KAUST Innovation Ventures

Professor Zhiping Lai of KAUST developed a membrane-based lithium extraction technology that Lihytech has patented. The novel technology can extract alkali metal from a variety of sources, including seawater, brine, red mud, and others. The startup was funded through the KAUST Near Term Grand Challenge, a research translation programme, based on KAUST research, and the technology is being developed on campus.

Red Sea Farms offers diverse products and services including produce technology and consultancy. Their patent-pending technology enables greenhouse and hydroponic farms to grow more and better food with less water and energy - saving money and sustainably increasing profits. The company's team of experts provides technical advice on design and project management for saltwater and desert agriculture.

White Helmet provides AI and computer vision technologies for tracking, inspection, and digital documentation of construction sites.

Red Sea Farms offers diverse products and services including produce technology and consultancy. Their patent-pending technology enables greenhouse and hydroponic farms to grow more and better food with less water and energy - saving money and sustainably increasing profits. The company's team of experts provides technical advice on design and project management for saltwater and desert agriculture.

At Natufia, we believe you can transform your life by growing food in your kitchen. Health and wellness is a lifestyle and the Natufia indoor gardens was created to offer families a holistic, forward-visioning solution to healthy living. With a team comprised of technologists, architects, botanists and chefs, Natufia has risen to the forefront of technological development, making it possible to grow food to scale all of your family’s produce right at home. The plants and herbs are available to harvest immediately for cooking and eating, giving life to your diet, and transforming the way you relate to your food.

Excyton develops Perovskite LEDs for next-generation displays. The portfolio of patents includes formulations for perovskite ink, device architectures, production processes, and display designs. The company generates innovative designs to improve the effectiveness, vibrancy, brightness, and clarity of displays.

Providing EO data and analytics using SAR and serving multiple sectors. In addition, we design and develop the next SAR small satellites at X band.

Red Sea Farms offers diverse products and services including produce technology and consultancy. Their patent-pending technology enables greenhouse and hydroponic farms to grow more and better food with less water and energy - saving money and sustainably increasing profits. The company's team of experts provides technical advice on design and project management for saltwater and desert agriculture.

Based at KAUST in western Saudi Arabia, they first conceptualized the idea of Edama as a solution to the growing threat posed by unsustainable levels of organic waste in the country. Organic waste, primarily food waste, is a complex problem. Saudi Arabia ranks among the top food wasters in the world. At the same time, the Kingdom has limited arable land and scarce water resources to support mass-scale agriculture and feed the increasing population. Edama works to improve the entire food system--from production to consumption--simultaneously reducing organic waste in landfills and improving the agricultural sector’s productivity. Their team brings a diverse set of qualifications, spanning agricultural science, engineering, economics and communications. The breadth of their expertise allows us to take a more holistic approach to addressing the interconnected and complex issues of food waste, sustainability and agricultural productivity.

Scimagine is a startup that invented an innovative cloud֊based platform for the categorized experimental data, structured and stored in the form of a searchable database.

Talon Dust Control provides dust control and soil stabilization solutions. Their products control surface dust lift-off when applied to open areas, material stockpiles and slopes, unpaved roads, heavy haulage roads, and parking. They develop Talon Dust Control to serve customers in the harsh desert settings of the Middle East and North Africa.

Wayakit produces science-based hygiene products and services in order to reduce water and energy waste. They specialize in the production of cleaning and disinfection products through applied biotechnology. Wayakit's technology combines the power of natural cleaning with the science of cleaning to create cleaning bio-formulations that are effective, safe, environmentally friendly, and high-tech.

UnitX is a deep tech company that automates safety & security monitoring at industrial sites. Vizard, our patent-pending AI platform, leverages sensor data & video analytics to equip HSE & Security managers with real-time actionable insights. It detects life-threatening hazards such as worker falls, heat stress, etc., identifies and tracks workers, monitors restricted zones, and more. We help enhance worker safety, minimize incident risks and reduce operational costs while adhering to the highest levels of responsible AI and ethics. UnitX is an ISO certified company recognized by SDAIA & NVIDIA.

Carbon-CPU utilizes next-generation biotechnology to transform food waste into useful fatty acids needed as livestock nutrients. Every year, more than 1 billion tons of food waste is generated globally. However, the high organic content in this food waste makes it a very valuable resource. Globally, the demand for fatty acids is far more than what has been supplied, over 500k tons of fatty acids are required for the animal feed industry while only 30k tons are produced. Carbon-CPU aims to fill this gap by producing high-value bioproducts at a much lower cost and environmental burden, compared to the traditional chemical synthesis.

Iyris Advanced Desert Greenhouses is the Middle East's premier agriculture glazing specialist, providing tailored solutions for increased desert crop output. iyris collaborates closely with the glass industry's greatest companies to provide ultra-clear glazing with the most advanced anti-reflective and light diffusive coatings. ​

Sadeem is the world’s first multi-patented flood and traffic information system with active networks to save lives and money in realtime. They offer a novel early detection and monitoring flood system for urban areas and drainage systems. Their holistic solution consists in a combination of sensors network, mobile applications and visualization tools to face floods in a better way and mitigate its effects.

Red Sea Farms offers diverse products and services including produce technology and consultancy. Their patent-pending technology enables greenhouse and hydroponic farms to grow more and better food with less water and energy - saving money and sustainably increasing profits. The company's team of experts provides technical advice on design and project management for saltwater and desert agriculture.

Based at KAUST in western Saudi Arabia, they first conceptualized the idea of Edama as a solution to the growing threat posed by unsustainable levels of organic waste in the country. Organic waste, primarily food waste, is a complex problem. Saudi Arabia ranks among the top food wasters in the world. At the same time, the Kingdom has limited arable land and scarce water resources to support mass-scale agriculture and feed the increasing population. Edama works to improve the entire food system--from production to consumption--simultaneously reducing organic waste in landfills and improving the agricultural sector’s productivity. Their team brings a diverse set of qualifications, spanning agricultural science, engineering, economics and communications. The breadth of their expertise allows us to take a more holistic approach to addressing the interconnected and complex issues of food waste, sustainability and agricultural productivity.

Sadeem is a global marketplace to help data centers and hosting providers to sell simple cloud instances, through this market place the end users can locate the most proper Cloud Service Provider fits with their requirements.(AIRBNB for Data Centers). To achieve this, they have developed a simple and a comprehensive cloud orchestration includes a Control Panel for VMs management with embedded billing system and ticketing system via a single portal. This will ease the service provisioning process to the customers and on the other hand will off-load the cost of integration with third party tools from the Service Providers.

Firnas Aero uses unmanned aviation vehicles that harness the power of aviation technology to address business challenges. They offer unmatched inspection services. The dangers and difficulties of conventional inspection procedures are eliminated by using drones. They can be put into place more quickly, deliver more precise results, and do away with the dangers of risky inspections.

NoorDx provides genomics, innovation, pathogen genomics, human genomics, targeted gene panels, molecular diagnostics, clinical reporting, genetic counseling, and bioinformatic services.

Intravides is a team of research scientists and engineers who are passionate about Neuroscience, biology and informatics. They join forces to come up with solutions to conquer the medical world where their target audience would be medical practitioners of all ages and specialties, spanning from medical students of all levels to professional doctors and surgeons. They are experts in Imaging, data visualization and image processing as well as mixing research with state of the art augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR) hardware and software. Their current solution involves developing an AR system that enables neurosurgeons to practice surgery of tumor extraction with higher accuracy, less invasion as well as less post-surgery complications. They exploit the advancement in digital medical imaging techniques in building their AR based visual system from the ground up by using it as their main source of data and the backbone of their system.

The NOMADD is The NO-water Mechanical Automated Dusting Device. It was developed at the King Abdullah University for Science and Technology, (KAUST) near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Iyris Advanced Desert Greenhouses is the Middle East's premier agriculture glazing specialist, providing tailored solutions for increased desert crop output. iyris collaborates closely with the glass industry's greatest companies to provide ultra-clear glazing with the most advanced anti-reflective and light diffusive coatings. ​

Based at KAUST in western Saudi Arabia, they first conceptualized the idea of Edama as a solution to the growing threat posed by unsustainable levels of organic waste in the country. Organic waste, primarily food waste, is a complex problem. Saudi Arabia ranks among the top food wasters in the world. At the same time, the Kingdom has limited arable land and scarce water resources to support mass-scale agriculture and feed the increasing population. Edama works to improve the entire food system--from production to consumption--simultaneously reducing organic waste in landfills and improving the agricultural sector’s productivity. Their team brings a diverse set of qualifications, spanning agricultural science, engineering, economics and communications. The breadth of their expertise allows us to take a more holistic approach to addressing the interconnected and complex issues of food waste, sustainability and agricultural productivity.

Nanosferix is a product of Innovative Industrial Materials Factory LLC – a spinoff company from the KAUST Catalysis Center, supported by the Innovation Fund and Technology Office at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). They make hollow-silica fillers to allow ultralight engineering composite materials for high performance and advanced material applications. Nanosferix Hollow Silica is a unique and novel technology that works with commercial material systems to reduce the silica filler weight loading.

Mosero provides Artificial Intelligence (A.I) solutions to identify rare diseases through a predictive algorithms.

Low-power MEMS atomizer-vaporizer based with an ultrasonic vibration technology to disperse fragrance droplets of a few microns in size.

Albasr is a monitoring system to manage location of staff designated to control large crowds during events.

PepPrint provides technologies in 3D/4D bioprinting for applications in tissue engineering, regenerative medicine & diagnostics.

UnitX is a deep tech company that automates safety & security monitoring at industrial sites. Vizard, our patent-pending AI platform, leverages sensor data & video analytics to equip HSE & Security managers with real-time actionable insights. It detects life-threatening hazards such as worker falls, heat stress, etc., identifies and tracks workers, monitors restricted zones, and more. We help enhance worker safety, minimize incident risks and reduce operational costs while adhering to the highest levels of responsible AI and ethics. UnitX is an ISO certified company recognized by SDAIA & NVIDIA.

Arabian Combustion Technologies (ACT) is a KAUST spinout company focused on using world leading research to improve the environmental impact of combustion in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and globally. ACT operates in partnership with novel technology providers while developing manufacturing capabilities and creating high value employment for the local talent pool in the Kingdom.

AgDSS is a decision support system to help farmers and agriculture industry maximize their profit.

Quantum Solutions is a spinoff from the prestigious, widely cited research group led by one of the forerunners in the field of quantum dots, Prof. Osman Bakr, and supported by frontier scientists Prof. Liberato Manna, Prof. Maksym Kovalenko and Prof. Omar Mohammed. Quantum Dots are nanomaterials with outstanding photoelectrical and photoluminescence properties. Quantum Solutions’ QDot™ Quantum Dots serve as active materials and platform technology in wide range image sensors: to extend the sensitivity of silicon CMOS sensors beyond visible light for short wave infrared, UV and X-ray cameras. The technologies are protected with more than 20 granted and pending patents.

Scimagine is a startup that invented an innovative cloud֊based platform for the categorized experimental data, structured and stored in the form of a searchable database.

Intravides is a team of research scientists and engineers who are passionate about Neuroscience, biology and informatics. They join forces to come up with solutions to conquer the medical world where their target audience would be medical practitioners of all ages and specialties, spanning from medical students of all levels to professional doctors and surgeons. They are experts in Imaging, data visualization and image processing as well as mixing research with state of the art augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR) hardware and software. Their current solution involves developing an AR system that enables neurosurgeons to practice surgery of tumor extraction with higher accuracy, less invasion as well as less post-surgery complications. They exploit the advancement in digital medical imaging techniques in building their AR based visual system from the ground up by using it as their main source of data and the backbone of their system.

Oæsis is the world’s first company that provides laser-based energy efficient grow lights for vertical farming. They offer a flexible design of their systems and the key benefits of laser technologies. This technology is capable of growing any kind of plants for indoor farming (such as micro greens, lettuces, herbs and berries) at commercial scale and maximizing yields effortless. It enables a yearly produce of fresh plants, with no need of pesticides as it is a controlled environment.

Red Sea Farms offers diverse products and services including produce technology and consultancy. Their patent-pending technology enables greenhouse and hydroponic farms to grow more and better food with less water and energy - saving money and sustainably increasing profits. The company's team of experts provides technical advice on design and project management for saltwater and desert agriculture.

SaNoor is the enabler of high brightness lighting and high speed wireless communication. SaNoor is a group of scientists, engineers and innovators with 10+ years experience in optoelectronics and photonics. They understand technology and they know how to utilize the state-of-the-art technology to solve the challenges you are facing.

PepPrint provides technologies in 3D/4D bioprinting for applications in tissue engineering, regenerative medicine & diagnostics.

Sadeem is the world’s first multi-patented flood and traffic information system with active networks to save lives and money in realtime. They offer a novel early detection and monitoring flood system for urban areas and drainage systems. Their holistic solution consists in a combination of sensors network, mobile applications and visualization tools to face floods in a better way and mitigate its effects.

The iDive was developed in the Red Sea Research Center at KAUST to provide scientists with better ways to record data while scuba diving. But once we had figured out how to use an iPad underwater it seemed a shame not to let everyone else in on the fun.

NoorDx provides genomics, innovation, pathogen genomics, human genomics, targeted gene panels, molecular diagnostics, clinical reporting, genetic counseling, and bioinformatic services.

Insyab’s mission to offer wireless solutions that unleash the power of collaboration. They believe the next wave of use cases in the robotics industry entails the deployment of multiple agents (e.g. drones, crawlers, or rovers) which cooperate together to finish the job faster and more efficiently. The same concept can be generalized to any multi-agent autonomous system. In a number of key market segments, such as law enforcement and energy, missions have to be carried out independent of cellular infrastructire. This calls for a robust stand-alone wireless connectivity solution.

Albasr is a monitoring system to manage location of staff designated to control large crowds during events.

Scimagine is a startup that invented an innovative cloud֊based platform for the categorized experimental data, structured and stored in the form of a searchable database.

The solar photovoltaic market is one of the fastest growing energy markets in the world. That growth comes amidst the race to the bottom on cell and module pricing driven by fierce supply side market competition. PV manufacturers can no longer count on economies of scale and incremental process improvements to attain profit in the face of competitive pricing pressures. Manufacturers need to differentiate their product by delivering better performance for the same or lower cost. QD Solar, a University of Toronto spinoff company, will provide this differentiation.

PepPrint provides technologies in 3D/4D bioprinting for applications in tissue engineering, regenerative medicine & diagnostics.

FalconViz is set to deliver digital transformation at scale in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabis. As an intelligence company founded in patented technological advancements developed at KAUST from 2014, we are the kingdom’s experts in developing state-of-the-art solutions to rapidly digitize invaluable assets across geospatial, inspection, climate and cultural heritage market sectors. We uniquely are able to fill the technological gaps of digital transformation through the deployment of our fleet of aerial drones, terrestrial scanning systems, cyber-secure data center and team of specialized geo-engineers and spatial computing experts. By providing turn-key AI and software solutions, we extract intelligence from our clients’ digitized assets enabling them to advance their digitization and intelligence capabilities and make strategic decisions in real-time.

Nanosferix is a product of Innovative Industrial Materials Factory LLC – a spinoff company from the KAUST Catalysis Center, supported by the Innovation Fund and Technology Office at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). They make hollow-silica fillers to allow ultralight engineering composite materials for high performance and advanced material applications. Nanosferix Hollow Silica is a unique and novel technology that works with commercial material systems to reduce the silica filler weight loading.

Graphene Crystal is a spin-off of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. It was founded by Dr. Shashikant P. Patole, Prof. Pedro Costa and Dr. Archana S. Patole. The company started its operation in November 2016.

BioBreath is developing the breath sensor diagnostic device.

High value polysaccharides and pigments produced with high-output micro-algae and vertical photo-reactors.

Established at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in 2013, Visual Experience has been providing end-to-end virtual reality services across the Gulf Cooperation Council region with the goal of bridging the gap between virtual reality and mainstream audiences.

The NOMADD is The NO-water Mechanical Automated Dusting Device. It was developed at the King Abdullah University for Science and Technology, (KAUST) near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

NextPotential is a waste-to-fuel clean energy company that develops and licenses process technology to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions into natural gas at a competitive price. Our patented photocatalytic technology can be retrofitted to existing infrastructure in a wide range of industries, such as wastewater treatment, landfill gas recovery, ethanol fermentation, natural gas treatment, industrial processes, and electric utility. The company was formed in January, 2014 and has received funding from the Arizona Commerce Authority, Arizona State University, and the Flinn Foundation. We are headquartered in Arizona with offices in Scottsdale and labs in Phoenix. The company is an early stage startup with six employees.

FalconViz is set to deliver digital transformation at scale in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabis. As an intelligence company founded in patented technological advancements developed at KAUST from 2014, we are the kingdom’s experts in developing state-of-the-art solutions to rapidly digitize invaluable assets across geospatial, inspection, climate and cultural heritage market sectors. We uniquely are able to fill the technological gaps of digital transformation through the deployment of our fleet of aerial drones, terrestrial scanning systems, cyber-secure data center and team of specialized geo-engineers and spatial computing experts. By providing turn-key AI and software solutions, we extract intelligence from our clients’ digitized assets enabling them to advance their digitization and intelligence capabilities and make strategic decisions in real-time.

The solar photovoltaic market is one of the fastest growing energy markets in the world. That growth comes amidst the race to the bottom on cell and module pricing driven by fierce supply side market competition. PV manufacturers can no longer count on economies of scale and incremental process improvements to attain profit in the face of competitive pricing pressures. Manufacturers need to differentiate their product by delivering better performance for the same or lower cost. QD Solar, a University of Toronto spinoff company, will provide this differentiation.

Sadeem is the world’s first multi-patented flood and traffic information system with active networks to save lives and money in realtime. They offer a novel early detection and monitoring flood system for urban areas and drainage systems. Their holistic solution consists in a combination of sensors network, mobile applications and visualization tools to face floods in a better way and mitigate its effects.

Scimagine is a startup that invented an innovative cloud֊based platform for the categorized experimental data, structured and stored in the form of a searchable database.

FalconViz is set to deliver digital transformation at scale in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabis. As an intelligence company founded in patented technological advancements developed at KAUST from 2014, we are the kingdom’s experts in developing state-of-the-art solutions to rapidly digitize invaluable assets across geospatial, inspection, climate and cultural heritage market sectors. We uniquely are able to fill the technological gaps of digital transformation through the deployment of our fleet of aerial drones, terrestrial scanning systems, cyber-secure data center and team of specialized geo-engineers and spatial computing experts. By providing turn-key AI and software solutions, we extract intelligence from our clients’ digitized assets enabling them to advance their digitization and intelligence capabilities and make strategic decisions in real-time.

The NOMADD is The NO-water Mechanical Automated Dusting Device. It was developed at the King Abdullah University for Science and Technology, (KAUST) near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

BioBreath is developing the breath sensor diagnostic device.

Nanosferix is a product of Innovative Industrial Materials Factory LLC – a spinoff company from the KAUST Catalysis Center, supported by the Innovation Fund and Technology Office at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). They make hollow-silica fillers to allow ultralight engineering composite materials for high performance and advanced material applications. Nanosferix Hollow Silica is a unique and novel technology that works with commercial material systems to reduce the silica filler weight loading.

SONATE is a spin-off of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology founded by Dr. Jürgen Kosel, Dr. Ahmed Alfadhel and Dr. Enrique Vilanova Vidal. Their objective is to become a leading manufacturer of high quality aluminum oxide membranes and metallic nanowires at industrial scale to advance solutions from research laboratories to real world applications. With many years of experience in the fabrication of aluminum oxide membranes and metallic nanowires, they are able to provide excellent service and adapt their products to customer specific needs.

Automated multiple-layer nanowire-growth equipment using multiple sources

Nanosferix is a product of Innovative Industrial Materials Factory LLC – a spinoff company from the KAUST Catalysis Center, supported by the Innovation Fund and Technology Office at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). They make hollow-silica fillers to allow ultralight engineering composite materials for high performance and advanced material applications. Nanosferix Hollow Silica is a unique and novel technology that works with commercial material systems to reduce the silica filler weight loading.

Medad Technologies Pte Ltd (Singapore) was founded in 2012 to apply AD technology to desalination, the reclamation of a variety of “problem” waters, zero liqud discharge (“ZLD”) and the generation of very high-purity water. With exclusive licenses of key patents from both the National University of Singapore (NUS) and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Medad continues to develop AD technology internally while executing its go-to-market strategy. Medad's first commercial AD Desalination plant has been completed. In 2017, Medad has also been commissioned to build the world's first AD-Crystallizer plant as an extension to the AD plant to achieve zero liquid discharge (“ZLD”).

FalconViz is set to deliver digital transformation at scale in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabis. As an intelligence company founded in patented technological advancements developed at KAUST from 2014, we are the kingdom’s experts in developing state-of-the-art solutions to rapidly digitize invaluable assets across geospatial, inspection, climate and cultural heritage market sectors. We uniquely are able to fill the technological gaps of digital transformation through the deployment of our fleet of aerial drones, terrestrial scanning systems, cyber-secure data center and team of specialized geo-engineers and spatial computing experts. By providing turn-key AI and software solutions, we extract intelligence from our clients’ digitized assets enabling them to advance their digitization and intelligence capabilities and make strategic decisions in real-time.

ROFix offers an accurate and reliable RO membrane fouling prediction device.

Watsup Systems is a manufacturer of real-time monitoring of surface fouling in filtration units and cooling systems.

Foult Optimo

Established at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in 2013, Visual Experience has been providing end-to-end virtual reality services across the Gulf Cooperation Council region with the goal of bridging the gap between virtual reality and mainstream audiences.

The iDive was developed in the Red Sea Research Center at KAUST to provide scientists with better ways to record data while scuba diving. But once we had figured out how to use an iPad underwater it seemed a shame not to let everyone else in on the fun.

Photo-realistic 3D immersive environment

Hachid (founded in 2013) is a young high-tech spinoff of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Their key competence is reliable, robust and scalable crowd management. Their technology (patent pending) allows authorities and planners to count extremely dense crowds reliably and effortlessly. Their sensors can be used to monitor crowd flow through doors, and they can be deployed outdoors and in harsh climates.

Desalination system based on low-pressure/low-temperature multi-stage membrane distillation

Established at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in 2013, Visual Experience has been providing end-to-end virtual reality services across the Gulf Cooperation Council region with the goal of bridging the gap between virtual reality and mainstream audiences.

OsmoH2O provides sustainable water solutions through innovative water technologies.

The NOMADD is The NO-water Mechanical Automated Dusting Device. It was developed at the King Abdullah University for Science and Technology, (KAUST) near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The iDive was developed in the Red Sea Research Center at KAUST to provide scientists with better ways to record data while scuba diving. But once we had figured out how to use an iPad underwater it seemed a shame not to let everyone else in on the fun.

Envirola is committed to our global environment and to the innovative research, teaching, and outreach that are needed to address issues related to critical environmental issues to identify solutions, contribute to positive change, and build the foundations for a sustainable future.

Fabrication of nanoporous membranes

Touching Care provides mobile application that helps to enhance the lives of Alzheimer’s patients and their caregivers.

Fabrication of smart nano-devices for image sensing and solar energy harvesting

Agendat is a mobile web calendar application that provides a scheduling online system for academic organizations.

RBIS provides web-based environmental management tool to maintain the most updated data from Red Sea.

Acadox is a cutting-edge approach to managing academic-social life in a simple, secure and efficient manner. Acadox is community-focused and has the perfect blend of tools and services to help you reach the maximum of your learning goals. They have built their infrastructure on the most advanced Cloud technology applications so that it reduces your IT operational costs and.lets you focus on your learning and teaching.

WebGLot provides easily programmable web-based interface for real-time interactive data visualization.

Date Palm Tissue Cultivation offers cultivation of drought-resistant palms with seawater irrigation and resistance to Red Palm Weevil.