MENA’s Edtech Startup Geek Express Raises $520K Pre-Series A Funding

Founded in 2017 by Manal Hakim, and Rayan Najdi, Geek Express enables youth in the MENA region with the STEAM skills needed in today’s world. The STEAM-based learning experiences range from DIY boxes complimented by self-paced video lessons, to a comprehensive hybrid tech journey that includes camps and live online courses. All services and courses are accessed through a gamified app where students can engage, book, compete, and educate themselves at their own pace.

Geek Express has democratised technology, making it available to all youths independent of age and background. Students at Geek Express have the option of learning how to code, design, build, and create tangible projects that translate into reality. This is how students are able to process the concept and further develop their cognitive skills.

Today, Geek Express has over 1800 active students across the MENA region, ranging from K-12 to high schoolers.

The key differentiator behind this platform is the ability to offer an engaging & unique tech journey, where students learn the fundamentals of coding, engineering, and digital design early on and through their preferred medium.

With a team of 13 developers and community managers and 200+ teachers, this startup represents a scalable model producing its own IP, one of which is the DIY MAKERBOX, self-paced video lessons, and accredited STEM curriculums.

“The round is strategic given that National Talents are an EdTech partner in Saudi, which helps us penetrate the market and expand our reach,” says Hakim, co-founder and CEO, “I’m really proud to state that we have a 60%-40% female to male ratio between our team and students.”

The round will allow the Ed-Tech hub to accelerate the development of the platform and secure content partnerships in 2020, before reaching the profitability and growth stage in 2021.