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Lean teams up with Plug and Play to advance health innovation in Kingdom

Lean teams up with Plug and Play to advance health innovation in Kingdom

Arab News20-07-2025
As part of its ongoing efforts to expand international collaboration and accelerate innovation in the healthcare sector, Lean Business Services, a leading national enabler of digital health solutions and a Public Investment Fund company, has signed a strategic memorandum of understanding with global innovation platform Plug and Play, renowned for its startup acceleration programs. The agreement was signed during the official ministerial visit to the US led by Abdulaziz Al-Rumaih, vice minister of health.
The partnership will establish a scalable and sustainable health innovation ecosystem in Saudi Arabia by launching acceleration programs for startups specializing in digital health and artificial intelligence, as well as creating innovation hubs that empower the next generation of health technologies across the Kingdom and the wider region. The MoU was signed at Plug and Play's headquarters in San Francisco by Mohanned Alrasheed, CEO of Lean, and Saeed Amidi, CEO of Plug and Play.
Commenting on the collaboration, Alrasheed said: 'At Lean, we believe that true innovation begins with building strong international innovation networks. Our partnership with Plug and Play marks a strategic step toward creating a fertile environment for health entrepreneurship in the Kingdom and driving digital solutions that can meet the future needs of healthcare, both locally and globally.'
Amidi added: 'We're incredibly excited about our partnership with Lean and the opportunity to showcase our shared vision to the world. Our teams will be working closely together to build something truly impactful that blends innovation, investment, and global collaboration to shape the future of healthcare and AI.'
As part of the visit, the delegation from the Ministry of Health and Lean met with leaders from major technology companies, including Apple and Google, to explore the latest advancements in smart health devices, AI-driven solutions, and health data analytics. The discussions focused on potential integration opportunities with Saudi Arabia's national healthcare systems.
The tour also included visits to leading startups specialized in accelerating drug discovery and early disease detection using AI. The delegation also visited Stanford Biodesign Labs to explore innovation support models in medical device design and biomedical engineering.
This milestone reflects Lean's strong commitment to its role as a digital enabler in the health sector. It aligns with Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 goals to build an innovative, sustainable, and innovation-driven healthcare ecosystem. Through global partnerships, Lean continues to lead digital transformation efforts, leveraging technology to deliver more efficient, human-centered, and high-quality health experiences to communities across the Kingdom.
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