• 9 Specialized Accelerator Programs to Be Launched in 2026 in Partnership with StartupEgypt
• EGP 450 Million in Expected Investments Through the M Empire Angel Investor Network
By : Bakinam Khaled
Startup Gate, the digital platform supporting Egypt’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, has announced the launch of Phase Two of its platform—marking a significant step toward enhancing efficiency, connectivity, and collaboration across the ecosystem, while fostering a more inclusive and integrated environment for all stakeholders.
The launch of Phase Two builds on the success of the platform’s first phase, which contributed to the development of a diverse community of startups across multiple sectors, alongside mentors, investors, and ecosystem partners.
Startup Gate was founded by Egyptian entrepreneurs Emmy Tawfik and Sarah Khalifa, with backing from the M Empire angel investor network, in response to a clear gap in the Egyptian market. Despite the strong momentum of Egypt’s startup scene, the ecosystem continues to suffer from fragmentation and scattered information—resulting in missed collaboration opportunities and many promising startups remaining under the radar.
Since its inception, Startup Gate has gone beyond being a digital platform to become a practical, action oriented initiative designed to simplify startups’ access to support, knowledge, and relevant connections at early stages—through a single, trusted gateway that brings together ecosystem stakeholders and delivers a high quality user experience.
Phase One Results
Phase One was launched in October 2025 and focused on startups, mentors, and investors. Since then, the platform has attracted more than 750 startups, mentors, investors, and partners, with total membership expected to reach 3,000 users by the end of 2026.
Startup Gate adopts an inclusive approach to onboarding startups—from idea stage through growth stage—across a wide range of sectors, including fintech, healthtech, edtech, e commerce, supply chain, and more. At the same time, the platform maintains a strong focus on trust and quality by reviewing all startups, mentors, and opportunities before they are made available, ensuring a credible and value driven ecosystem.
Phase Two: Toward a More Integrated Ecosystem
With the launch of Phase Two, Startup Gate expands its scope to include entrepreneurship support organizations such as incubators and accelerators, service providersand investment institutions. This expansion aims to include a larger number of ecosystem stakeholders and connect them more effectively, while strengthening collaboration between startups, investors, and mentors.
Commenting on the launch, Emmy Tawfik, Founder and CEO of Startup Gate, said: “From day one, our goal has been to build a true gateway that allows entrepreneurs to access what they need without complexity or fragmentation. Phase Two represents a pivotal step toward a more connected ecosystem—where opportunities are clearer, collaboration is easier, and support is more impactful.”
Sara Khalifa, Co Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Startup Gate, added: “We believe the strength of any entrepreneurship ecosystem lies not in the number of initiatives, but in the quality of the connections between them. Through Phase Two of Startup Gate, we are creating a central anchor point that brings all stakeholders together and supports the sustainable growth of Egyptian startups.”
Both further emphasized that building a strong entrepreneurship ecosystem requires genuine and long term collaboration among all stakeholders. With the launch of Phase Two, Startup Gate renews its commitment to empowering Egyptian startups, enabling them to scale with confidence, and opening new local and regional growth opportunities.
Accelerators, Mentorship, and Strategic Partnerships
Startup Gate is currently expanding its mentor network to include specialized experts from Egypt and abroad, aligned with the real needs of entrepreneurs. The platform also plans to join an internationalnetwork to adopt the mentorship methodology developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
In addition, 9 specialized accelerator programs will be launched throughout 2026 in partnership with StartupEgypt, a leading non governmental organization supporting entrepreneurship in Egypt. These programs will be led by major corporations and sector focused startupsin different sectors like FinTech, EduTech, Healthtech, Logistics and more, enabling participating startups to benefit from structured mentorship, business development support, growth acceleration, and access to funding.
Through the M Empire angel investor network, participating startups are expected to attract investments totaling approximately EGP 450 million.
Community Engagement and Upcoming Activities
Since its launch, Startup Gate has participated as a partner in severalentrepreneurship focused events and summits, and has organized online webinars to support founders and facilitate knowledge sharing. With Phase Two, the platform plans to expand these activities and strengthen partnerships with private and public sector entities, with further announcements to be made throughout 2026.
