Understanding the UAE startup opportunity with Brad Gerstner and Ibrahim Ajami | E1751

This Week in Startups is presented by: VEED makes it super easy for anyone (yes, you) to create great video. Filled with amazing features like templates, auto subtitles, text formatting, auto-resizing, a full suite of AI tools, and much more, VEED gives you the tools to engage your audience on any platform. Head to VEED.io to start creating incredible video content in minutes. OpenPhone. Create business phone numbers for you and your team that work through an app on your smartphone or desktop. TWiST listeners can get an extra 20% off any plan for your first 6 months at openphone.com/twist iConnections is a platform to connect and meet with elite capital allocators through their online platform and bespoke events. The first 25 VC funds to sign up for iConnections Miami 2024 event in January of next year will receive a 20% discount! Head to iConnections.io/twist to sign up today! * Today’s show: Altimeter’s Brad Gerstner and Mubadala's Ibrahim Ajami join Jason to discuss their first UAE impressions (1:33), how the country is attracting startup talent, unclogging the capital allocator log jam, and more (19:43)! * Follow Brad: https://twitter.com/altcap Follow Ibrahim: https://twitter.com/IbrahimAjami * Time stamps: (0:00) Brad and Ibrahim join Jason (1:33) First impressions of the UAE (10:25) Veed - Head to https://www.veed.io/pricing?utm_campaign=TWIS&utm_medium=Marketing&utm_source=YouTube and start creating professional-quality videos in minutes! (11:55) The story of Mubadala (19:43) Attracting talent to the UAE (26:53) OpenPhone - Get 20% off your first six months at https://openphone.com/twist (28:21) The shifting perspective of the UAE and the opportunity it presents (35:07) The level of curiosity in Abu Dhabi (37:02) iConnections - Get 20% off iConnections Miami 2024 event at http://iconnections.io/twist (38:21) Adjusting to the changing market (41:58) Mubadala’s portfolio and investing in SoftBank’s Vision Fund (49:40) Getting fit (56:27) Unclogging the manager log jam and the denominator problem (1:04:59) Investing in relationships (1:11:38) The progression of the UAE * Read LAUNCH Fund 4 Deal Memo & Apply for Funding Buy ANGEL Great recent interviews: Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland, PrayingForExits, Jenny Lefcourt Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis * Follow Jason: Twitter: https://twitter.com/jason Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis * Follow TWiST: Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin * Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.founder.university/podcast