Top investors emphasise the importance of adaptability, innovation and long-term vision if entrepreneurs want to scale their AI-driven businesses.

Dubai, UAE, 6 February 2025: AI business owners must adopt a forward-thinking mindset and remain adaptable if they are to successfully secure investment, experts told attendees at Ai Everything Global 2025. The event, packed with engaging discussions, also featured a venture capitalist who shared his story behind the decision to invest in Elon Musk’s latest AI venture.

At Ai Everything Global exhibition at Dubai Exhibition Centre (DEC), AI investments became a key topic of the inaugural edition. Organised by Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), in affiliation with GITEX GLOBAL, Ai Everything Global is the world’s premier AI event, examining and discussing the big winds of change reshaping the AI landscape. The show highlighted conversations about the future of AI, pushing boundaries of innovation across industries.

Hosting the world’s leading Investor Programme, Ai Everything Global attracted over 150 top investors, including venture capitalists, family offices, funds, CVCs, accelerators, and angels managing over $70 billion in assets. As part of the programme, investors engaged in pre-scheduled targeted meetings through a concierge team, connecting with 250 highly innovative AI-driven startups to scout businesses aligned with their investment thesis.

Global Investors Shared their Unique Perspectives and Hands-on Experience

Among those who joined the stage was Igor Ryabenkiy, Managing Partner at AltaIR Capital and an early investor of several unicorns like PandaDoc, Miro, OpenWeb, Deel, Turing, and many others. With over two decades of venture capital experience, Ryabenkiy has worked with more than 350 tech startups, nine of them within the select group of pioneering and fast-scalable businesses surpassing the one billion valuation.

With the AI market accelerating at an unprecedented pace, demand for AI-focused businesses and start-ups is skyrocketing, creating immense growth opportunities. However, Ryabenkiystressed that entrepreneurs seeking financial backing must not only impress with their product but also with a clear vision of where they want to go in the future. “The product is crucial, but thinking outside the box can help attract investment,” said Ryabenkiy.

He continued: “The most important part is understanding where they want to be as a company in a few years’ time. This gives me insight into their current trajectory and future potential. Time is changing rapidly, and competition is fierce, especially with so many companies vying to develop the same product.

“Understanding their future plans is crucial, but entrepreneurs also need to be prepared for the challenges they may face. More importantly, they need to know their product really well, be adaptable to making changes if things are not working and articulate how they can bring their ideas to life.”

Meanwhile, attendees also heard from Kevin Jiang, Chief Investment Officer and Co-Founder at Mangusta Capital.The venture capital and growth equity firm, born in Italy and with a global reach, aims to support pioneering ‘life-changing technologies and innovations.’ Notably, it has recently invested in xAI, Elon Musk’s AI-powered initiative to accelerate human scientific discovery.

“Investing in Musk’s xAI company is a no-brainer”

Jiang shared his excitement about AI’s transformative potential and the reasoning behind investing in xAI – a decision he believes will yield significant long-term benefits.

He said: “When I think about the AI ecosystem today, I actually like to break it down into two parts – the infrastructure and application sides. There’re billions of dollars going to infrastructure and that seems to be captivating most of the people’s attention today. Just as important though, is the application side, and that is where we spend most of our time – across different technology layers. For me, this is where I find a lot of excitement as every industry is being transformed by AI through automation and leads to better decision-making.”

He continued: “On xAI, one of the things that I’m very grateful for is, through my two partners and our networks, we were able to get an allocation to the round early last year. That was a strong performing investment for us and we’re now excited to have that in our portfolio. When we think about the thesis, a lot of it hinges upon Elon’s ecosystem that is built. There’s a ton of different pieces of his ecosystem that we think would drive significant benefits to xAI where there is a unique data set that no one else has.

“One of the key theses’ when we were looking at the investment was which company has the strongest ecosystem to tap into and, without a doubt, it’s Elon Musk’s ecosystem.”

The inaugural edition of Ai Everything Global concluded today with a series of impactful sessions and groundbreaking AI-led solutions as part of the exhibition showcase featuring the dynamic evolution of AI in Everything.

For more information, please visit www.aieverythingglobal.com

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About Ai Everything Global

Ai Everything Global, the world’s premier AI event, debuts in the UAE across Abu Dhabi and Dubai from 4-6 February 2025 – organised by Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) in affiliation with GITEX GLOBAL, the world’s largest and best-rated tech show hosted annually in Dubai. The inaugural edition stages the largest AI ecosystem gathering worldwide, welcoming over 500 AI big tech, SMEs, and award-winning startups alongside 500 Chief AI Officers (CIAOs), 150 global investors, 200 international speakers, and 100 commercial AI developers from over 70 countries. It unites the world’s foremost AI experts, thought leaders, and corporate innovators to discover the most transformative hands-on use cases, address AI commercialisation challenges, forge new partnerships, accelerate cross-continental innovation, and shape the future of AI applications. For more information, please visit: aieverythingglobal.com.

About Dubai World Trade Centre

A global business facilitator since 1979, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) is home to the region’s leading purpose-built convention and exhibition centre. DWTC provides a platform for connecting people, products, innovation and ideas from around the world through a dynamic calendar of international trade exhibitions and its own roster of sector leading mega events. As a designated free zone, complemented by award-winning commercial real estate, DWTC plays an integral role in Dubai and the region’s growth story. Since its inauguration, DWTC has hosted over 6,000 events, with an estimated economic output of AED 248 billion, attracting over 38 million business visitors to Dubai.

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