Creative Zone together with Sharjah Media City is excited to invest in 2 of the UAE’s most promising start-ups, that has a vision of making a difference to the wider community. These start-ups will be given the opportunity to expand their reach through Creative Zone’s and Shams support services and partner networks allowing them access to business trade licenses, office spaces, legal advice, media and marketing services, funding options, tax and accounting consultation, and more.

This year, Startup X Accelerator programme has also joined hands with a lineup of supporting partners like, the Dubai Business Women Council, Capital Club Dubai, Global Millennial Capital, Financial Institutions and Universities.

Idea and early-stage startups across the country can apply to startup X by submitting a min long video explaining their business idea along with the business plan, following which ten candidates will be chosen for a seven-day training session, where candidates will obtain actionable insights on their business. These ten participants will then be invited to present their idea to the judges at the demo day. Two top business plans will be selected and will be offered a bundle of support services worth AED 100,000.

How Does It Work

Pitch It In A Minute

All entries are mandated to submit a video profile explaining their business plan in exactly 1-minute together with a short description of the candidate profile and the business plan. Only the shortlisted entries will be contacted for the next stage.

Selection

The 10 best business proposals will be shortlisted by the judges based on various criteria like feasibility of the business plan, pitch delivery, financial study, scalability, and sustainability. All selected candidates are to confirm their participation within the same week, else the waitlisted candidate will be given the opportunity.

Demo Day

The 10 shortlisted candidates will be given 10 days to prepare for a formal Demo Day where they would be invited to a physical event space to present their business plan to the panel of judges. There will be time allocated for presentation and Q&A for each participant. The expected presentation format will be communicated to all the finalists once the results are announced.

The top 2 business plans will be announced the same day and will be awarded business setup support services valuing at AED 100,000.

Award Detail

Creative Zone will provide the 2 winners with business support services worth AED 100,000, which will include:

1-year free trade license and company setup advice provided by Creative Zone
1-year office Space at My Office / Creative Zone
Free banking advice and support provided by Creative Zone Banking
1-year discounted insurance coverage for the winner
1-year free mentoring program with workshops, seminars and dedicated coaches
1-year free tax and accounting support provided by Creative Zone Tax & Accounting
1-year free legal advice provided
1-year access to Zoho CRM with $1,800 wallet credits
Access to capital, investors & partners
1-year HR support & recruitment services
$25k Azure credits to be spent in a 2 year time
1 year access to the below upon evaluation:
5 x Github,
5x VisualStudio
5x Office 365
1x Dynamics 365

Who Should Apply

The program is aimed at early stage start-ups that have recently started their businesses or are about to launch their businesses. Entrepreneurs who already have an MVP in place or that have seen a real interest and have tested their product or service with their market audience.The application process is open to anyone, but highly competitive.