After three days of competition at LEAP 2026, ten startups have reached the Rocket Fuel Finale. Tonight in Riyadh, seven awards will determine which founders leave with a share of the $1 million prize fund.
One hundred startups entered the Rocket Fuel competition at LEAP 2026. Tonight, only ten will stand on the Main Stage.
The Rocket Fuel Finale begins at 5:15 p.m. on September 3 in Hall 1 of the Riyadh Exhibition and Convention Center in Malham. The founders will make their final cases before the judges, with deliberations beginning at 6:15 p.m. and the winners revealed live from 7 p.m.
The finalists emerged from a diverse semifinal cohort representing more than 40 nationalities and 25 countries, with women accounting for 23 percent of participating founders. Their companies span artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, biotechnology, healthcare, manufacturing, water security and sustainability.
Each finalist will have three minutes to pitch, three minutes to answer questions from the judging panel and one minute for evaluation and scoring. Seven awards, worth a combined $1 million, will then be presented.
The Ten Finalists
- Wittify AI:Sarah Alhumour will open the finale for the Saudi seed-stage company operating across artificial intelligence and deep technology.
- SarsatX:Amru Alomoudi will represent the Saudi Series A company working at the intersection of cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and advanced technology.
- Carevision:Amani Amin Ab. will pitch the United States-headquartered seed-stage company developing AI and deep-technology applications.
- Imagine Devices:Iman Salafian will represent the United States pre-seed biotechnology and healthcare company.
- Waspito:Jean Lobe Lobe will pitch the Cameroon-headquartered Series A health technology company working to widen access to medical services.
- ADADK:Bayan Al-Abdulli will represent the United Kingdom seed-stage company focused on energy, sustainability and intelligent water management.
- Ferveret:Reza Azizian will pitch the United States Series A deep-technology company developing more sustainable cooling infrastructure for AI and high-performance computing.
- Trase:Rowan Alawi will represent the Qatar-headquartered seed-stage company applying technology to manufacturing, construction and sustainability.
- Rology:Jason Musyoka will pitch the Saudi Arabia-headquartered Series A health technology company using AI-supported teleradiology to accelerate medical reporting.
- MELT WATER Inc.:Andrew Quadech will close the running order for the Ukrainian seed-stage company developing sustainable water-purification technology.
The finalists will face Armineh Baghoomian, Managing Director and Head of Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Partners for Growth; Talal Alasmari, Founding Partner at Ra’ed Ventures; JF Gauthier, Founder and CEO of Startup Genome; and Robin Schneider, Chief Strategy Officer and Acting Chief Investment Officer at HUMAIN.
Each startup will receive a score from one to five across seven criteria: innovation and creativity, growth potential, functionality, traction and market growth, impact on people and society, team strength and experience, and the quality of the founder’s delivery.
The evening’s largest prize is the $250,000 LEAP Award for the competition’s most outstanding startup. The $150,000 Shooting Star Award will recognize an exceptional early-stage company, while the $150,000 Scaling Star Award will honor an established venture demonstrating scalable growth.
The Into New Worlds and Tech for Humanity awards will each provide $150,000 for disruptive innovation and meaningful societal impact. The $100,000 LEAP Landing Award will support a high-potential international startup capable of establishing itself and creating economic value in Saudi Arabia. The $50,000 People’s Choice and Founder Award will recognize the team that most powerfully captures the LEAP audience.
Rocket Fuel’s importance extends beyond tonight’s prize money. It brings founders into direct contact with investors, government leaders, technology companies and potential customers inside one of the world’s most ambitious economic transformations.
Under Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia is not simply hosting the future of technology. It is building the market, infrastructure and institutional momentum required to deploy it. Rocket Fuel turns that national proposition into a live competition, giving founders a route from international visibility to meaningful Saudi growth.
The Saudi Times is honored to serve as a media partner of LEAP 2026 and the exclusive media partner for Rocket Fuel. We are proud to have accompanied this journey from the competition floor to tonight’s final reveal, sharing the founders, technologies and ambitions shaping its story.
Tonight, seven winners will be announced. Yet all ten finalists will leave the stage having demonstrated something larger: when the world’s founders are ready to turn innovation into execution, Saudi Arabia is ready to meet them.
