Arabnet Arabnet

Now that 2013 is behind us, we can’t help but look back at a wonderful year and highlight its biggest events. We’ve already gone over our 10 biggest stories based on what you read, and this time we are sharing our favorite 10 startups of yesteryear. These startups were chosen by our staff, and are listed alphabetically.

On a related note, you might want to check out MEF’s 10 mobile predictions for 2014. And now, without further ado, here are 2013’s best startups...

BeeLabs: Mobile Development House

BeeLabs develops innovative mobile applications for Arab mobile users, including casual games and interactive educational apps. The Amman based company aims to bridge the current digital gap between English and Arabic content, bringing the same level of innovation and professionalism to the mobile application field.

BeeLabs’ initial foray into the mobile development field consisted of interactive picture books and educational applications for iOS and Android. Based on the overwhelming positive response that they garnered, BeeLabs decided to take their project further and develop deep, rich, and culturally relevant casual games for mobile devices.

The company collaborates with Media Plus and Sketch in Motion bringing together programming, creative and design expertise to produce high quality applications.

BeeLabs' latest release is the highly popular physics game ShibShib War, available for both iOS and Android.

Dokkanafkar: An E-commerce Platform for Imaginative Products

Dokkan Afkar is an online commerce platform based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia whose vision is to be “an inspirational e-commerce destination for those who appreciate creativity and design in products all over the Arab world.”

Dokkan Afkar focuses exclusively on inventive products with unique design elements. A pencil case that looks like an éclair, cutlery with lego pieces for handles, and Facebook Like and Dislike stamps are few of the imaginative products you’ll find on their site.

Currently, the company only works with designers in Europe and the USA. But in the next phase, it will open its doors for the public to pitch their ideas. Top rated designs will be selected for in house manufacturing in partnership with financial institutions. The company also plans on starting a community dialog around creative design, in addition to creating talk-show episodes, articles, and videos on the subject.

For more info, you can read our coverage of Dokkan Afkar and interview with the founders.

Feelit - A Social Network Built Around Emotions

Feelit is a social network built around emotions and moods. The service was created by four saudi entrepreneurs inspired by their  mission to help people communicate emotionally. In its current first version, the service seeks to help users quell bad moods or revel in happy thoughts.

The main feature involves a rotary dial like menu that you flick to set your mood: happy, sleepy, sad, and so on. Right below the dial, you are presented with the option to either ‘squash’ or ‘embrace’ that emotion with tailored content suggested by other users. The app also includes some other features: you can follow other users and keep track of their activity and posts on your timeline. You can comment on posts, you can also 'hug' people.

Currently , the team is working on version two of the app, which will place emphasis on communicating emotions rather than dealing with them. The ‘squash’ and ‘embrace’ button will be taken off, and in the newer, simpler version users will indicate how they are feeling and view or share links instead.

I3zif: First Arab Online Music School

I3zif is the first online music school in the Arab world. The service offers high quality, professional video tutorials by award winning musicians with a long teaching experience and an impressive live performance record. Videos are complemented by graphics and visual aids that take into consideration common mistakes students usually make. I3zif offers its lessons in Arabic, but it is also the first service to offer music tutorials for oriental instruments in English.

In addition to the i3zif music school, the service includes the i3zif musical instruments store, the i3zif blog, the i3zif clu - a user generated content section-, and the i3zif Library of popular songs tutorials and sheet music.

An online, video based school of music eliminates many of the constraints associated with traditional schools, namely inflexible class schedules, rigid study curricula, high fees, and a lack of choice when it comes to choosing your instructor. i3zif’s lessons can be accessed anytime, any place with a connection, at an affordable price, and students get to select the instructor they prefer after watching some free videos and choose what lessons they want.

Check out I3zif’s story here.

Instabug: Bug Reporting System for Mobile Apps

Instabug is a clever solution that allows testers to report bugs quickly and efficiently in less than 60 seconds. Sending feedback is as simple as shaking the device, which automatically takes the user to a feedback form. Instabug will also automatically include a screenshot taken at the moment of the shake to the form.

Additionally, users aren’t required to write any of the details or the steps that lead to the error since the app automatically extracts all that info and sends it along with the feedback. Developers also receive details on the device: model, OS version, memory and storage usage, as well as carrier info and the user’s location.

Instabug was a finalist for the Startup Demo competition during ArabNet Beirut 2013. It also won first place at the MIT Arab Startup Competition, and its founders secured a seat to fly to Silicon Valley and be part of the prestigious Blackbox Connect. Watch Co-founder Omar Gabr present Instabug during ArabNet Beirut 2013 below.

MesCadeaux: E-commerce Website Focused on Gifts

MesCadeaux is a Moroccan e-commerce website that focuses on gifts. The service helps you explore gift ideas from a wide selection of items across a very wide range of categories: electronics, customer appliances, decoration, furnishing, sport, beauty and wellness, games and toys, baby corner, box and gift cards, art and literature, accessories, travel, music, flowers and chocolate.

It also includes a quiz designed to help you find the perfect gift. You can create your own gift registry for birthdays, baby showers, weddings, and so on, in addition to a rich directory of places and expert advice from all over Morocco to help you organize your events. Corporate gifts for customers, suppliers and employees are available too.

And to cap it all off there is an entertainment section related to the event and gift industry filled with a  selection of photos, videos, and jokes.

MesCadeaux won third prize of the Startup Demo during ArabNet Riyadh 2013 last month.

Qhat: Cloud Based, Merchant Driven Loyalty Program

QHat is a cloud based loyalty platform that allows merchants to improve their customers' loyalty, retention, advocacy and lifetime value. QHat is a merchant driven loyalty program, which means that points earned from a particular vendor will only be redeemable from that same one. According to CEO Sherif Korashy, this scheme “ allows consumers to get up close and personal with their favorite merchants and brands.” It also allows merchants to have full control over their own programs.

Each time a purchase is made from a QHat partner, a proprietary smart code and a QR code will be printed on your receipt. Using either one - QR for mobile devices and QHat smart code for the web access -, users can accumulate their points. Once they’ve collected enough points for a reward the system will notify them.

QHat also claims that their Loyalty Engine and proprietary QHat Smart Code encryption algorithm enables merchants from all over the globe to register and launch their loyalty program in less than 60 minutes at zero startup cost. Their Customer Communication Manager provides merchants with an effective engagement tool delivering personalized content based on deep customer insights from the built-in Customer Intelligence Appliance.

Rwaq: Arabic E-learning Platform for the Masses

Rwaq is an Arabic massive open online courses (MOOC) platform that offers high quality academic courses in Arabic covering multiple fields and specializations such as art, medicine, engineering, and the like. The platform currently offers 15 MOOCs, is accessed by tens of thousands of users and generating an overwhelming positive response according to cofounder Fouad Al-Farhan.

All the courses are free. All the material is generated by local professors and academics pro bono. Classes are conducted using video lectures and complement by online assignments.

Sohati: Arabic Health and Medical Portal

Sohati is an Arabic health and medical portal that provides trustworthy medical information, tools for managing health, and connects people with doctors in town. Sohati has created a destination that fills the gap in Arabic content when it comes to health information on the internet.

The site steers clear of complicated medical terms and jargon and instead provides accessible information written by an in house editorial team and cross checked by independent doctors. Sohati doesn’t shy away from any taboo subjects such as sexology, gynecology, psychiatric disorders and mental health problems either.

The team is also working on introducing real time online video, audio, or chat based consultations for an affordable fee.

Wally: Smart Personal Finance Application

Wally is an incredibly easy to use smart personal finance app. Users can quickly add and review expenses on the go with easy to understand graphs based on categories, aspects or even venues. The app will even draw your attention to deviations from your usual spending habits.

Adding expenses can be done either manually or by taking a picture of a receipt. The built in InstaScan® allows the camera to read the receipt and capture the amount, venue, date, and time. All the info will be automatically saved. The app will also detect your location and link the expense to the venue.

The app understands that not every dinner is work related, and not every drink out is social. In this regard, categories can broken down into “Aspects”, where you can specify the why of your expenses. Consequently, you can see which of your expenses are social, work, family or even vacation related.

The apps is very secure as well. All the expenses you add are saved right into your phone and not on a server. This means that no one has access to your info.

Wally was a at Startup Demo competition finalist at ArabNet Beirut 2013 and won first prize. They also announced $400,000 in funding on June 26 at the ArabNet Digital Summit 2013.

You can watch Saeid Hejazi present Wally during the Startup Demo competition below