Hub71

Choose the right programme

• Open to any sector, pre-seed to Series A: the Access Programme.
• Web3 or blockchain: Hub71+ Digital Assets.
• Climate or sustainability: Hub71+ ClimateTech.
• Biotech, MedTech or digital health: Hub71+ Life Sciences.
• Building AI into your core product: apply to the programme that fits your sector and answer the AI question on its form. There is no separate AI intake.
• Smart or autonomous mobility: the SAVI track inside Access.
• Idea or pre-seed, wanting to build a first product with a venture builder: Initiate.
• Need to test with regulators before scaling: the Hub71 Sandbox Programme.

Know the deal before you apply

• The cash in the Access and Hub71+ programmes is given in exchange for equity through a SAFE note. It is not a grant.
• High-performing startups can be offered a further top-up for additional equity.
• Initiate takes no equity for Hub71 itself, but the venture builder sets its own terms.
• There is no application fee.
• Plan for relocation. At least one founder is expected to move to Abu Dhabi and build a team there, and Hub71's pages differ on how strictly this is applied, so ask.

How applications work

• Each programme has an online application form on its Hub71 page.
• Access applications do not close. Apply after the deadline and you are considered for the next cohort.
• The Access and Hub71+ pages show a February 2027 deadline for Cohort 21. The ClimateTech and SAVI pages also show an older cohort banner whose date has passed, so check the dates with Hub71 before relying on them.
• Hub71 holds information sessions from time to time. Check its events page for the next one.

How selection works

• Access and Hub71+: online application, pitch presentations to the Hub71 team and partners, then a final selection committee.
• Initiate: Hub71 first reviews whether your startup fits the programme, then the venture builder applies its own selection criteria and interviews.

What to prepare

• A PDF pitch deck covering the problem and solution, value proposition and business model.
• Competition, market, traction and funds raised so far.
• Your founding team.
• Your plans for Hub71 and for Abu Dhabi.

Not for you

• The MZN x Hub71 programme is for Emirati founders only.
• The UAE-India Start-Up Series 2.0 has closed. Watch for a future edition rather than applying to this one.

Hub71 is a technology ecosystem for startups in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates. It describes itself as a global tech ecosystem, was launched in 2019, and is backed by the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development and Mubadala Investment Company. It is based in ADGM on Al Maryah Island, where it connects startups with investors, corporates, government partners and other enablers.

How Hub71 programmes work

Hub71 is not a grant body, and Indian founders should read it that way. Its main route in is the Access Programme, a 12-month programme in which accepted startups receive in-kind support services, such as office space, housing and health insurance, together with cash that Hub71 provides in exchange for equity through a SAFE note. Hub71 describes the note as an uncapped, no-discount, future-looking MFN SAFE. High-performing startups can be offered a further cash top-up in exchange for additional equity. Applying costs nothing.

Alongside Access, Hub71 runs specialist Hub71+ ecosystems for digital assets, climate technology, life sciences and AI, a venture-builder programme called Initiate for earlier-stage founders, and a regulatory sandbox. Some tracks inside Access are run with a government partner, such as the SAVI track for smart and autonomous mobility and the ECA Anjal Z x Hub71 track for early childhood development.

Access is open for Cohort 21. The deadline shown is February 2027 and the programme starts in September 2027. Hub71 says applications do not close: a startup that applies after the deadline is considered for the next cohort. Applications go through an online form, then pitch presentations to the Hub71 team and partners, then a final selection committee.

Who can apply

Startups from outside the UAE can apply, including startups from India. Access is open to pre-seed, seed and Series A startups in any sector, and solo founders are accepted. The application asks for a PDF pitch deck covering the problem and solution, the business model, the competition, market and traction, the founding team, and your plans for Hub71 and Abu Dhabi.

The catch for founders based in India is relocation. The programme pages say at least one founder is expected to commit to relocating to Abu Dhabi long term and to build a team there. Another Hub71 page is stricter in one place, saying accepted startups must relocate and establish a presence at its space in Abu Dhabi, and softer in another, saying founders need to be on the ground for the first three months. Because these statements differ, confirm what is expected of your team with Hub71 before you apply.

Programmes

The Hub71+ tracks sit on the same 12-month programme and incentive package as Access, with a three-month guided track for the sector. Hub71+ Digital Assets is for startups working in Web3 or using blockchain, and its guided track is powered by Elixir Capital. Hub71+ ClimateTech is for startups advancing sustainable solutions. Its programme page names Plug and Play as the operator of its guided track, while another Hub71 page names New Energy Nexus, so the two do not agree. Hub71+ Life Sciences is for biotechnology, MedTech and digital health startups and was launched in 2025. Hub71+ AI has no separate intake: a startup applying to any of the other programmes answers a question about whether it is building AI as a core part of its product.

Initiate is for founders at the ideation or pre-seed stage who want to build a first product. It is operated with venture builders, among them Venture One, SC Ventures, Fikra Ventures and TMC2. Hub71 provides a free licence and office space for one year and help with settling in, and takes no equity. The venture builder you are matched with sets its own funding and equity terms.

The Hub71 Sandbox Programme was developed with the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development. It lets companies test their solutions with regulators, government entities and testbeds in Abu Dhabi on the way to licensing and deployment. Its page does not state who is eligible, what it costs or when it takes applicants.

Hub71 has also run an MZN x Hub71 programme at MZN Hub in Al Ain with Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, open to Emirati founders only. It is closed and is not open to Indian founders.

The India route

The one programme aimed at Indian startups is the UAE-India Start-Up Series 2.0. It is a cross-border competition run by the UAE-India CEPA Council with Hub71's support, not a Hub71 programme. It supported ten Indian startups: three were shortlisted into the Access Programme, and up to seven were to join a two-week in-person Immersion Programme in Abu Dhabi with market briefings, meetings with investors, corporates and government, workshops and a showcase. The Series' own application site says the application window has closed, although Hub71's page still shows an Apply button.

Facilities and support

Hub71's offer is built around being physically in Abu Dhabi. Accepted startups get office space as part of the in-kind support, and Initiate includes a free licence and office space at Hub71 for one year. Mentoring comes through the guided tracks, where startups get access to the operator's mentors. Hub71 also connects startups to investors, including capital partners, to corporates and to government partners for pilots.

Hub71 holds information sessions from time to time. None were scheduled when we last checked.

Scale

Hub71 reports its size in several ways, and the figures do not match. Its homepage shows more than 410 startups and more than 200 partners. Its 2025 impact report counts 390 startups in the ecosystem, 295 startups onboarded in Hub71 programmes and 66 capital partners, and says FinTech is 27 percent of the ecosystem, HealthTech and Life Sciences 15 percent and ClimateTech 11 percent. Another page says more than 300 startups across 24 sectors. These are all Hub71's own figures.

Where it is

Hub71 is at Al Khatem Tower, 15th Floor, ADGM Square, Al Maryah Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. General enquiries go to info@hub71.com.