Africa and the Middle East’s accelerating push into artificial intelligence is set to take centre stage in Cairo next month, as Egypt hosts Ai Everything Middle East & Africa (MEA) Egypt 2026, the world’s first all-AI summit and expo of the year. The event arrives as artificial intelligence is projected to contribute more than US$1.5 trillion to Africa’s GDP by 2030, intensifying government and private-sector investment across cloud infrastructure, digital services, and industrial intelligence.
Taking place on 11–12 February 2026 at the Egypt International Exhibition Center (EIEC), Ai Everything MEA Egypt is presented by GITEX, the world’s largest technology and AI events network, and hosted by Egypt’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) in partnership with the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA).
Announced just four months ago, the event has mobilised the global AI ecosystem at unusual speed, positioning Egypt as an early-year convening point for policymakers, investors, enterprises, and startups shaping the next phase of AI deployment across Africa, the Levant, and the Gulf.
Egypt’s AI Readiness Moves Into Global Focus
Ai Everything MEA Egypt comes at a defining moment for the country’s digital strategy. Egypt currently ranks first in Africa for Government AI Readiness and third in the Arab region for AI Resilience, reflecting sustained policy focus on sovereign AI capabilities, data infrastructure, and skills development.
As a geographic and economic bridge linking Africa, the Middle East, and the GCC — and as a pioneer of Arabic-first AI models — Egypt has emerged as a focal point for regional AI experimentation. The summit aligns with the country’s Second National AI Strategy, aiming to translate long-term policy frameworks into deployable technologies, investment inflows, and measurable economic outcomes.
By convening global leaders in AI policy, infrastructure, and deployment, the event is designed to accelerate Egypt’s AI roadmap while strengthening its position among the world’s fast-emerging digital economies.
Global AI Enterprises Anchor Infrastructure and Industry Momentum
More than 350 AI enterprises and startups from over 30 countries will participate, showcasing production-scale AI deployments across sectors including cloud computing, cybersecurity, data centres, public services, telecommunications, healthcare, mobility, fintech, and digital payments.
Global technology leaders including Microsoft, Cisco, HPE, Red Hat, AWS, Capgemini, Dataiku, e& and Fortinet will be joined by leading regional enterprises such as Alkan, Cyshield, and Link DataCenter. A growing number of AI-first companies from the UAE and Saudi Arabia are also choosing Cairo as the launchpad for region-specific solutions.
Among them is WideBot AI, one of MENA’s leading Arabic-first AI-as-a-Service platforms, alongside EZELINK, Odoo, Ziwo, Zakaa, and Barq Systems, all showcasing AI products tailored to local languages, regulatory environments, and enterprise needs.
Commenting on Egypt’s AI trajectory, Mohamed El Kassem, General Manager, Microsoft Egypt, said:
“Generative AI is reshaping what’s possible for nations that are ready to embrace it, and Egypt is stepping confidently into that future. At Microsoft, we are committed to empowering Egypt’s government, businesses, and young innovators with secure, responsible AI technologies that accelerate growth and unlock new opportunities.”
UAE-based technology and telecommunications group e& is continuing its long-standing engagement with the GITEX network through a major enterprise AI showcase in Cairo. Hazem Metwally, CEO, e& Egypt, noted that the event arrives at a pivotal moment as organisations across the region seek to operationalise AI at scale.
Egypt Emerges as Africa’s Most Funded Startup Ecosystem
Egypt’s AI momentum is increasingly reflected in venture activity. Egyptian startups raised more than US$339 million in the first half of 2025, accounting for 31% of total startup funding across Africa, positioning the country as a regional hub for AI entrepreneurship.
Participating startups at Ai Everything MEA Egypt include the UK-based Emotii, recognised among Europe’s top 10 AI startups; Germany’s Imensus, developer of fully autonomous seismic technologies backed by European space programmes; and Egypt’s Olimi AI, whose multilingual AI agents are designed to understand regional Arabic dialects across Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
“Thriving in AI means iterating rapidly and staying focused on real customer problems,” said Shaden El Olimi, CCO of Olimi AI. “Ai Everything MEA Egypt brings together pioneers navigating this frontier, and we’re excited to showcase how that philosophy shapes Arabic voice AI.”
Startups and enterprises from more than 30 countries — including Germany, the UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Cyprus, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, India, Pakistan, and China — will be represented, reinforcing the event’s global scope.
From Autonomous Mobility to Healthcare: AI in Deployment
Beyond strategy and policy, Ai Everything MEA Egypt places strong emphasis on real-world AI use cases already delivering measurable outcomes.
Egyptian AI solutions provider Brightskies will demonstrate the country’s most advanced locally built and tested autonomous driving platform. THAKAA will showcase an Arabic-language AI platform for senior leaders, already deployed at one of the world’s largest children’s cancer hospitals to support operational efficiency and healthcare delivery.
On the infrastructure side, NtegralOne Solutions will introduce high-performance AI stations designed to enable enterprises, startups, and researchers to run advanced AI workloads locally, reducing dependence on overseas data centres.
Sovereign AI Takes Centre Stage at the Summit
Running alongside the expo, the Sovereign AI Summit will host high-level discussions on how AI can drive GDP growth, digital sovereignty, skills development, and industry transformation, with a strong focus on deployment realities rather than theoretical potential.
Speakers include Dr. Michel Rogy, Digital Development Practice Head for Africa & Middle East at the World Bank, and Zsuzsanna Hargitai, Managing Director for SME Finance & Development at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), addressing how access to capital and compute reshapes national competitiveness.
Fresh from a headline-making US$10 billion compute agreement with OpenAI, Cerebras will join the summit to examine the infrastructure constraints behind sovereign AI ambitions, alongside semiconductor firm Tenstorrent. Discussions will also address responsible AI, sustainability, and public-interest deployment, featuring leaders from the UN Environment Programme and global enterprise technology providers.
About Ai Everything Middle East & Africa Egypt 2026
Ai Everything Middle East & Africa Egypt 2026 takes place in Cairo from 11–12 February 2026. Presented by GITEX GLOBAL and hosted by Egypt’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) in strategic partnership with ITIDA, the event is positioned as the world’s first all-AI summit and expo of the year.
The event convenes global AI enterprises, startups, investors, academia, and public-private sector leaders to showcase AI research, live use cases, and outcome-driven applications supporting Egypt’s National AI Strategy 2025–2030 and the wider region’s digital transformation.
