The Middle East isn’t just investing in digital health, it’s building around it. From national health strategies in the Gulf to growing startup hubs in Egypt and Jordan, the region is turning infrastructure gaps into launch pads. Government buy-in is strong, regulatory paths are clearer, and startups are beginning to scale beyond proof of concept.
The MENA healthcare market is projected to exceed $256.52 billion by 2025, with digital health consistently flagged as a top investment priority across UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Qatar.
For U.S. founders and investors, this is a region where chronic care, virtual infrastructure, and data-driven delivery are accelerating — likely faster than in more complex systems. Whether you’re scouting partners, mapping competitors, or evaluating cross-border expansion, this list is a practical lens into what’s working and where momentum is building.
These aren’t the only players in the market, but they’re the ones showing early traction, regional relevance, and potential strategic overlap with global buyers. Some are backed by institutional capital. Others are still emerging. All are building in a region that’s moving from exploration to execution.
20 Digital Health Startups Shaping The Middle East
Altibbi
Founded: 2011 | Location: Jordan / UAE | Category: Telehealth / AI Diagnostics
Altibbi is the region’s largest Arabic-language digital health platform, providing 24/7 virtual consultations, AI-based triage, and a vast medical content library. With over 20 million monthly users and 4.5 million consults as at 2022, it plays a leading role in expanding accessible healthcare across the region.
In 2023, Altibbi raised $44 million in a Series B round — part of its $50 million total funding — backed by Endeavor Catalyst, Middle East Venture Partners, and the UAE Ministry of Health. It is widely viewed as a strong candidate to become the region’s first healthtech unicorn.
Okadoc
Founded: 2018 | Location: UAE | Category: Telehealth / Scheduling
Okadoc offers a multilingual platform for virtual consultations, real-time doctor booking, and scheduling systems designed for hospitals, clinics, and insurers. Its tools improve operational efficiency and patient access across 40+ specialties.
Having raised $22.3 million to date from investors including iGan Partners and Bunat Ventures, the company is now expanding into Saudi Arabia with upcoming launches in cloud pharmacy and in-home care. Strategic partners include Aster DM Healthcare and several UAE health entities.
Cura
Founded: 2016 | Location: Saudi Arabia | Category: Telemedicine
Cura delivers 24/7 virtual care in areas such as primary care, mental health, and wellness coaching. The platform supports over 350,000 users and collaborates with more than 4,500 doctors. Cura gained momentum during the COVID-19 pandemic and helped normalize telemedicine use in Saudi Arabia.
Backed by a $4 million Series A round led by Elm and Aramco’s Wa’ed Ventures, Cura continues to grow through employer health programs and direct-to-consumer services.
Alma Health
Founded: 2021 | Location: UAE | Category: Chronic Care / Telehealth
Alma Health focuses on virtual care and medication delivery for patients with chronic illnesses such as diabetes and hypertension. Its platform allows users to consult doctors remotely and receive medications at home, improving convenience and long-term adherence.
The company raised $10 million in a Series A round in July 2023, led by Knuru Capital and Hambro Perks Oryx Fund. It is actively expanding into Saudi Arabia, aligning with regional efforts to improve chronic disease management through digital care.
Yodawy
Founded: 2018 | Location: Egypt | Category: Digital pharmacy / insurance integration
Yodawy is a comprehensive digital pharmacy platform offering prescription digitization, automated insurance workflows, and home delivery services. It serves both individual patients and enterprise clients, including insurers and hospitals.
The company has raised $26 million, including $16 million in a Series B round in 2023 and $10 million after Egypt-based investment fund management company Ezdehar acquired a minority stake in 2024. Backers include Delivery Hero Ventures, Global Ventures, and Ezdehar. With growing traction in Egypt and new moves into chronic care coordination, Yodawy is becoming a key player in B2B and consumer health logistics in the region.
Chefaa
Founded: 2017 | Location: Egypt | Category: ePharmacy / chronic care
Chefaa is a Cairo-based digital pharmacy platform helping patients manage long-term conditions through GPS-enabled medication delivery and AI-powered dosage tracking. The service is especially valuable for those dealing with chronic diseases like diabetes and cardiovascular conditions.
In 2023, Chefaa raised $5.25 million in a round led by Newtown Partners and Global Brain to support its expansion across North Africa. The company is focused on improving medication adherence and reaching underserved areas with limited pharmacy access.
MedIQ Solutions
Founded: 2019 | Location: Pakistan / Saudi Arabia / UAE | Category: Health IT / telehealth infrastructure
MedIQ Solutions provides a full-stack digital health platform serving patients, providers, and payers. Its offerings span telemedicine, EHR, remote monitoring, billing (including TPA, or Third Party Administrator, software), and practice management — designed to digitize the healthcare experience end-to-end.
Originally founded in Islamabad by Dr. Saira Siddique, the company is expanding regionally with offices in Riyadh, Qatar, and neighbouring Gulf countries. MedIQ now supports over 10 million users in Pakistan. In May 2025, MedIQ raised a $6 million Series A round co-led by Rasmal Ventures and Joa Capital to accelerate growth across Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
The company had previously raised $3.8 million in seed and bridge rounds. MedIQ positions itself as a digital operating system for MENAP healthcare, blending virtual care, AI claims, and connected infrastructure for long-term regional integration.
Health at Hand
Founded: 2015/2016 | Location: UAE | Category: Telehealth / virtual care
Health at Hand provides on-demand video consultations with UAE-based, DHA-licensed doctors through its mobile apps, targeting non-emergency health concerns. Users can access e-prescriptions, lab test requests, sick leave certificates, and medication delivery in Dubai. The company is fully licensed by the Dubai Health Authority and the UAE Ministry of Health, and it complies with HIPAA and GDPR standards for data privacy.
Health at Hand has raised approximately $4.1 million in early-stage funding and serves as one of the earliest virtual care providers in the UAE, focusing on accessible, regulated digital health services.
Vezeeta
Founded: 2012 | Location: Egypt / UAE | Category: Health IT / ePharmacy
Vezeeta began as a doctor booking platform and has evolved into a full-stack digital health company offering SaaS solutions, teleconsultations, and ePharmacy services.
With over $63 million in funding, including a Series D round in 2020, Vezeeta now operates across multiple MENA markets. The platform supports millions of users and healthcare providers, enabling better care delivery and system efficiency. Vezeeta is expanding its provider SaaS tools and aims to be a long-term infrastructure player in the region’s fragmented health systems.
Clinicy
Founded: 2017 | Location: Saudi Arabia | Category: Clinic SaaS / automation
Clinicy provides a cloud-based software platform for private clinics in Saudi Arabia. Its tools include online appointment booking, patient reminders, electronic medical records, and integrated teleconsultations.
With 1 million patients already using the platform, Clinicy raised $5 million in Series A funding in 2024 to scale further. The startup aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 by helping smaller providers digitize operations and connect to the national health data infrastructure.
Athir
Founded: 2017 | Location: Saudi Arabia | Category: Health IT / EMR
Athir is a healthtech company offering integrated electronic medical records (EMR) and insurance claims solutions for providers in Saudi Arabia. Its platform streamlines documentation, billing, and reimbursement processes, helping reduce administrative burden and speed up payments.
In August 2024, Athir raised its first funding round with backing from Wa’ed Ventures. Positioned within Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 goals, Athir is contributing to national efforts to digitize health systems and improve provider-payer integration.
Aumet
Founded: 2016 | Location: Jordan / Saudi Arabia | Category: Health supply chain / AI
Aumet operates an AI-driven B2B marketplace that matches pharmacies and healthcare distributors with the right inventory.
The platform helps streamline procurement, reduce waste, and forecast demand more accurately across the region’s fragmented medical supply chains. Aumet raised $7 million in a Pre-Series A round in 2023 led by Shorooq Partners and Asia Africa Investment & Consulting (AAIC). Now expanding into Saudi Arabia and North Africa, it is becoming a key enabler of supply chain efficiency in MENA healthcare.
Klaim
Founded: 2019 | Location: UAE | Category: Health fintech / claims management
Klaim helps healthcare providers unlock revenue faster by purchasing delayed insurance claims and turning them into upfront payments. This model offers cash flow stability in a region still working toward standardized claims processing.
In 2025, Klaim raised $26 million in Series A funding led by Tharawat Tuwaiq and Lucidity Insights. Its services are used by clinics and hospitals across the UAE and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), offering a fintech layer to support operational resilience in healthcare.
Shezlong
Founded: 2015 | Location: Egypt | Category: Mental health / teletherapy
Shezlong is the first Arabic-language online therapy platform in the region, offering confidential video and chat-based sessions with a network of over 300 licensed therapists. It addresses culturally sensitive issues such as trauma, family stress, and anxiety with localized care and accessible pricing.
With over 120,000 users in 2022, Shezlong is active across the Arab world and partners with schools, employers, and institutions. It has raised more than $619k to date and continues to expand regionally.
Lillia
Founded: 2020 | Location: Qatar | Category: AI / chronic care
Lillia uses digital twin technology to simulate individual patient health profiles and predict disease progression. By integrating real-time data from wearables and clinical inputs, the platform supports more personalized and proactive chronic disease management.
In 2025, Lillia received a $1.7 million grant from Qatar’s Research, Development & Innovation Council to scale its predictive engine across the Gulf. Still early-stage, it reflects growing regional interest in AI-powered precision medicine.
Tuba
Founded: 2025 | Location: Saudi Arabia | Category: Corporate health / AI
Tuba is a Saudi-based platform helping employers manage healthcare spending and improve employee wellness through data-driven insights. It uses predictive analytics to track plan usage, deliver personalized health programs, and measure ROI on corporate health investments.
In 2025, Tuba raised $8 million in a pre-seed round led by Al-Waalan Investment. As a first mover in the Gulf Cooperation Council’s emerging “smart corporate health” space, Tuba is tapping into rising demand for value-based care and workforce wellness.
BioSapien
Founded: 2018 | Location: UAE | Category: Medtech / oncology
BioSapien is developing MediChip, a 3D-printed biodegradable implant that delivers chemotherapy directly to tumors, reducing systemic side effects. The implant is designed to improve cancer treatment outcomes while minimizing toxicity.
In early 2025, the company secured over $8 million in a Pre-Series A extension from Global Ventures and Golden Gate to advance clinical trials and prepare for regulatory approval in Europe and the U.S. BioSapien represents a growing medtech push from the Gulf toward global markets.
Valeo Health
Founded: 2021 | Location: UAE | Category: Preventive health / AI wellness
Valeo combines wearable data, AI insights, and real-time coaching to deliver personalized preventive care. The platform helps users manage stress, sleep, fitness, and chronic risk factors through behavior-based interventions.
In 2025, Valeo raised $12 million in a Series B round led by Flintera (with support from Nuwa Capital and Mindshift Capital), bringing its total funding to $20 million. As interest in early intervention and digital wellness rises, Valeo is becoming a core player in the region’s preventive health ecosystem.
Dawatech
Founded: 2020 | Location: Jordan | Category: Pharmacy SaaS / health ERP
Dawatech offers a cloud-based pharmacy management platform built for community pharmacies in the MENA region. Its all-in-one ERP system integrates POS, inventory, accounting, supplier ordering, analytics, and fintech tools, making it a critical digital infrastructure layer for independent pharmacies.
The company raised a seven-digit seed round in 2021, led by Access Bridge Ventures with participation from ISSF, to expand into Saudi Arabia and launch a B2B marketplace. By 2021, Dawatech had processed nearly $100 million in gross merchandise volume and was used by 40% of Jordan’s pharmacies.
O7 Therapy
Founded: 2019 | Location: Egypt / Saudi Arabia | Category: Mental health / therapy platform
O7 Therapy is an online mental health platform offering bilingual therapy services for individuals and organizations. Its features include video and phone sessions, peer-support chat via “Rassel,” therapist training through O7 Academy, and corporate wellness tools delivered via a B2B2E model.
The company raised a $2.1 million seed round in April 2022 led by Hikma Ventures, with support from C-Ventures, Lotus Ventures, and angel investors. O7 Therapy entered the Saudi market in 2023, aligning with Vision 2030 and establishing a headquarters in Riyadh.
With partners such as Riyad Bank, Tawuniya, and CMC, O7 Therapy is expanding access to culturally relevant, tech-enabled mental health care across the region.
Key Takeaways for Founders and Investors in Digital Health
Startups in the Middle East aren’t just localizing — they’re building durable, capital-efficient models that are gaining traction with governments, insurers, and consumers alike. For U.S. founders and investors, there are a few recurring signals worth noting:
1. Government alignment unlocks scale.
Many of the startups listed are working directly with health ministries or government-backed VCs. Platforms like Altibbi, Clinicy, and Cura have grown by embedding into national digital health agendas — something still rare in more fragmented U.S. systems.
2. Chronic care is the wedge.
Whether it’s diabetes, metabolic health, or pharmacy adherence, the strongest B2C and B2B platforms are solving chronic conditions first. Investors are backing this pattern, with startups like Alma Health, Yodawy, and WEMA Health raising meaningful early rounds.
3. Infrastructure is still wide open.
The EMR, claims, and supply chain layers in many parts of the region are beginning to modernize. That creates opportunities for healthtech SaaS, claims fintech (like Klaim), and even next-gen supply platforms (like Aumet).
4. Healthtech is regional before it’s global.
Founders building in MENA are often solving for language, regulation, and consumer behaviors that don’t cleanly map to Western norms. But those same solutions — when designed with scale in mind — may extend to other emerging markets or turn into acquisition targets for global players expanding eastward.
5. Capital is consistent — but early exits are rare.
The region is seeing a steady flow of early- and mid-stage investment from both local and global VCs. But it’s still a long game. Strategic partnerships, regional expansion, and government integration are more common outcomes than quick M&A.
Final Thoughts: Why MENA Matters to U.S. Digital Health Teams
If you’re a U.S. healthtech founder or investor, the Middle East may not be your first market of focus — but it should be on your radar. It offers two kinds of opportunities.
First, for U.S.-based companies looking to expand into the region, markets like the Gulf states and Egypt present real commercial potential in chronic care, virtual consults, AI diagnostics, and health IT. That said, success here depends on more than product fit. You’ll need localization (not just translation), strong in-market partners, and often some form of regulatory navigation to close deals.
Second, for U.S. VCs, the region is producing capital-efficient startups solving hard problems in pharmacy access, infrastructure, and care continuity. These companies tend to operate without heavy reliance on U.S. billing codes or value-based care maturity, making them an interesting counterpoint to typical U.S.-centric models — and a potential source of new scale plays or cross-border growth.
We focus on helping digital health teams build go-to-market engines that land in the U.S. — but increasingly, we’re working with founders who are thinking beyond it. Some are based in the Middle East and ready to enter the U.S. market. Others are U.S.-based but watching MENA closely for signals, talent, or capital.
If you’re one of them— and you want a clear path into U.S. health systems, buyers, or growth-stage readiness — we can help.
