UAE sensor startup Persium takes LBS MENA top prize

Persium, a UAE-based environmental technology startup that builds and supplies air quality, noise and environmental sensors along with the data and solutions that flow from them, took first place at the London Business School MENA Startup Competition 2026, winning the Dubai finale on 14 October. Its offering convinced a judging panel assessing whether early-stage ventures could actually execute on their ambitions.

The competition, supported by LBS’s Institute of Entrepreneurship and Private Capital (IEPC), drew nearly 100 applications from across the Middle East and North Africa. Ten finalists earned a place on stage in Dubai, pitching for a share of a USD 45,000 non-dilutive prize pool. Their work spanned AI, healthtech, climate, fintech and proptech.

Behind the finale sat a structured delivery process. All 20 semi-finalists received mentoring from LBS alumni and experienced volunteers before the final round, a stage designed to sharpen the ventures before they faced the judges. Ihab Tabbara and Dr Nasir Khan, Co-Presidents of the LBS Entrepreneurship Club, MENA, organised the event with strategic partner MARIHUB.

The judging panel, tasked with evaluating execution as much as promise, comprised Karim Hasab El-Nabi, Founder of MARIHUB; Jane Khedair, Executive Director of IEPC; Pier Armando Vender, Principal at Iliad Partners; and Umer Saleem, Board Director and Chief Transformation Officer at Maven Investment Partners. Their criteria covered business potential, early traction, the founding team, problem-solution fit and the capacity to benefit from the LBS network.

Second place went to SDM, a Saudi startup building artificial intelligence that helps health practitioners across the Kingdom detect chronic disease early. Third place went to Frank AI, another UAE-based venture, which has developed an Agent Operating System for independent real-estate professionals across the GCC. Together the top three reflect the range of problems the cohort is working on, from environmental monitoring to healthcare diagnostics and property-sector tooling.

Alex Yousefian, CEO of Persium, welcomed the result. “We are absolutely thrilled to have won today. The quality of startups competing was exceptionally high, which makes this recognition even more meaningful,” he said.

By contrast, Khedair framed the competition in terms of what founders take away beyond the prize money. “Congratulations to Persium and all the finalists of the LBS MENA Startup Competition 2026. The competition is about more than recognising promising businesses. It is about connecting founders with the investors, mentors and wider networks that can help them grow,” she said.

Naif Al-Obaidallah, CEO of SDM, said the runner-up finish carries weight for his team’s ongoing work. “Being named among the top three at the LBS MENA Startup Competition is a proud moment for our team at SDM. This recognition motivates us to continue developing solutions that address healthcare challenges in Saudi Arabia and beyond,” he said.

For the organisers, the 2026 edition followed a familiar build-up: a broad application pool, a mentoring phase for the semi-finalists, and a single finale in Dubai where ten ventures competed for judges’ decisions and a share of the pool. The outcome leaves Persium with the top prize, SDM and Frank AI placed alongside it in the top three, and the mentoring and network connections delivered to the wider semi-finalist group as the programme’s broader output. Whether the ventures convert the Dubai result into working products and growing operations in their respective markets will be the next test of what the competition set in motion.