Geeks on the Gulf: An Adventure in New Beginnings
42 Geeks and Global Eats
Somewhere between the brisk breeze of the Arabian Gulf, a growing network of extraordinary humans, and the alchemy of a nascent metropolis lies an irreplaceable experience. The gathering of 42 of the sharpest minds in tech and venture exploring new friendships, new startups, and new memories in the city of Dubai. Nested between a beginning stint in Tel Aviv and a closing chapter in Riyadh, the five-day excursion in Dubai found the geeks dancing in the dunes, digging in with founders, and discussing the future of MENA and beyond.
First, a little primer on 42 Geeks. If there is one thing to take away, it’s the v2 of Andreesen Horowitz’s thesis of “Software is eating the world.” And that is that “Geeks eat EVERYTHING.” Whether it be KPIs or Kebab, often you’ll find talk and taste of both in the many meals that Geeks shared together on the Dubai leg of the MENA 2023 excursion.
With phenomenal food as table stakes, you might be asking why would anyone fly 12+ hours to meet with other quasi-strangers in the middle of a desert? The answer is simple: putting brilliant people together in a brilliant location. For the globally-minded, you probably have heard of Dubai but for the globally active, you’d be motivated to see it for yourself. If you align with the 42 Geeks, it’s not that hard to see why the area is interesting.
Sandy Beginnings to Global Powerhouse
First off, Dubai and the United Arab Emirates at large is a magnet of diverse residents, with approximately 90% of the total population (9M) coming from outside the UAE often in search of limitless opportunities.
Dubai more specifically has proven to be one of the fastest growing cities in the world, originally seeded from a small fishing village but then rapidly morphed into a port city that served as a critical trade route to the Persian Gulf. With an offshore oil discovery in the 1960s bringing an accelerated uptick to the region, oil comprises only 1% of the economic activity today despite a 500% population boom in recent decades that lends itself to Dubai’s newly established reputation of a truly global business hub.
Inevitable Innovation
With all this economic activity, a diverse population with global reach, and perhaps the symbolic magnet of the world’s tallest building, it also makes for a perfect recipe to manifest a rapidly growing startup ecosystem. With over $1.25 billion cumulatively deployed into early stage (up to Series A) venture funding, there are no signs of slowing down. This makes Dubai an increasingly attractive region for founders and investors alike making it the perfect venue for a Geek gathering to kick off 2023.
Fadi Ghandour, Founder of Aramex
The Dubai startup ecosystem (and MENA venture ecosystem at large) was anchored in large part to Fadi Ghandour, the founder of Aramex, who shared his story personally with the Geeks early in our journey. After building “the FedEx of the Middle East” and the first Arab company to be listed on an American Stock Exchange, Fadi took to early stage venture investing. Fadi shared a plethora of insights with the Geeks ranging from ecosystem development, MENA challenges and opportunities, and the “spray to play” tactics of kickstarting a venture pipeline for those committed to new ecosystems.
Foundations for Friendships & The Future
This programming set the stage for a phenomenal line-up of founders, investors, and regional operators that shared their insights, stories, and canvases for the Geeks to connect together on. From Sequoia to Visa, Female Angels to the hottest local Fintechs, and even a frontier cohort of Network State founders, the caliber of the Geek community continued to drive the conviction that there is no opportunity too big for this global group to tackle together.
While there were countless, nuanced insights from local ecosystem oracles, it was the in-between moments that truly made for the 42 Geeks MENA experience. Somewhere between the Arabian dune bashing, rooftop happy hours at the Dubai Marina, sunset yacht cruises, and even 3 AM camel rides inside the hotel, the humbly brilliant group of Geeks shared a lot of laughs, alpha, food, and memories. Will let some of the photos below tell the remainder of the stories in Dubai.
Meeting inspiring people is one thing, traveling to new locations is another, but combining the best of both is a new kind of alchemy. In an increasingly connected and complex world, touring it together with the Geeks is a special opportunity to seize if you can for the frontiers and the friendships.
Special thanks for this excursion goes to Zane Austen for extending the invite and the 42 Geeks Team Alyssa Miller, Ashley Wright, Chok Ooi, and Dave McClure for organizing an incredible MENA 2023 excursion.
From left to right: Creator economy guru and hotel camel herder Andy Stack, 42Geeks M.C. and multi-unicorn talent provider Chok Ooi, grocery cart OG + dental hygiene poster child Jigesh V., and skater punk meets cybersecurity pioneer Dug Song share some champagne on the private residence balcony party overlooking the Dubai Marina.
Remember Andy Stack the camel herder? Here he is again reliably providing fun times every night at 3 AM at the JW Marriott Marquis with other Geeks.
Former Paypal execs Alan Tien and Simon Ru, crowdfunding pioneer Ryota Matsuzaki, and MD/investor Cathy Zhang manage a photo 2716 feet above the Dubai skyline. The tallest possible standing photo-op in the world.
From left to right: Global venture investor Tommy Chia, startup city supporter Colleen Brimen, autonomous gardener Divya Thakur, and motorhead fund manager Stephanie Shorter close out the last leg of the Dubai leg on a sunset yacht cruise.
Network State trailblazers from West DAO, Plumia, Jur, build_republic, and TNS team after a collective presentation at the DFIC Innovation Hub.
Finance or Falconry? Aman Verjee finds a kindred spirit in the sands of Dubai.
Sumit “Jay” Sen and Ming Yeh share a sunset photo after a wild ride through the Lehbab dunes and en route to a night of Arabic cuisine, belly dancing show, sandboarding, and camel riding.
Geeks and gravity are uncorrelated. Arben Ventures Partner and Stanford Postdoc Ariel Ganz tests new ceilings after the dune bashers tested our adrenaline.
interested in the next 42geeks trip?
by Angelo Alessio, Founder & Protocol Architect, build_cities
Angelo is the co-founder & protocol architect of build_cities, a protocol for startup cities. Prior to build_cities, Angelo was the Director of Product at Acorns by way of acquisition from a previous startup leading product and growth at Harvest, an AI-powered negotiator for bank fees and interest charges. Prior to a professional foray into tech startups, Angelo was an Engineer Officer in the U.S. Army.
Angelo Alessio holds an M.B.A from NYU Stern School of Business and a B.A. from University of San Diego in Political Science.
You can connect directly with Angelo on Twitter @angelo_a_jr
