A VC's perspective on the GCC's future workforce
The traditional nine-to-five work model that defined our lives for a century is being superseded by a fluid, skills-based system, augmented by tech and reshaped by evolving workforce expectations.
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is at the epicenter of this transformation — accelerated by powerful, converging forces — that position the region as a global testbed for the future of work:
Government-led digital transformation: From the UAE's AI curriculum to Saudi Arabia's
Gig economy growth: MENA freelance registrations surged 142 per cent in 2023.
Youth-dominated demographics: 60 per cent of the GCC's population is under 30, giving the region one of the world's youngest, most digitally fluent labour markets.
VC momentum in enterprise tech: Funding is being pumped into AI-native platforms and SaaS tools, reshaping productivity.
Together, these shifts are more than just an evolution in employment. They mark a wholesale reimagining of how work is organised, accessed, and delivered. In this dynamic environment, three venture capital opportunities stand out.
The new hiring stack: A VC playbook for global, on-demand, skills-based talent
Hiring across the GCC is moving beyond just digitisation. A re-engineering is occurring — to match the speed, fluidity, and expectations of a radically reimagined working environment.
Traditional CVs and degree-centric hiring practices are being superseded by real-time assessments and skills-first matching. AI-powered platforms such as Elevatus (Saudi Arabia) are leading this shift, helping companies overcome bias and accelerating talent acquisition by focusing on capability over credentials.
In parallel, companies such as Ogram (UAE) are utilising intelligent systems to deploy pre-vetted talent on demand, often within hours, in sectors including hospitality, logistics, and e-commerce.
Borderless hiring platforms such as Deel (US), Remote (US), and Workpay (Nigeria) are decoupling employment from geography.
Startups now have access to talent across jurisdictions while benefitting from streamlined contracts, compliance, and compensation – among other benefits.
This approach is more than mere convenience. From day one, it is essential to attract and enable a workforce newly defined by mobility, optionality, and seamless onboarding.
The result is a new hiring architecture: distributed, data-driven, and designed for a world where talent is global, liquid, and increasingly empowered.
Beyond SaaS: Investing in the next wave of AI-first enterprise tools
The greatest shift in the future of work is not
who
gets hired. Rather, it is '
how'
work gets done. We are entering the age of AI-native productivity, where tools execute on tasks rather than merely assist. AI is streamlining tasks today and will soon run workflows with minimal oversight. Ultimately, AI is poised to fully redefine enterprise models and productivity.
The GCC is leading in sectors where AI-native tools can leapfrog legacy infrastructure. Startups such as Tarjama (UAE) are building Arabic-first AI infrastructure for content creation and translation, equipping regional businesses with tools tuned to local language and nuance.
Meanwhile, solutions such as Queen.ai (UAE) are powering conversational sales and marketing automation for e-commerce, while the Applied AI Company (UAE) is focused on end-to-end workflow automation within heavily regulated sectors.
For founders, the most compelling opportunities lie in building AI-native tools that address real operational challenges in specific verticals, rather than creating generic platforms.
Investors, however, will generate long-term value from platforms that embed AI into their core operating model, and go beyond just bolting it on. In these ventures, AI will be more than a support businesses. It will shape how businesses run.
The portfolio career play: investing in the platforms powering career fluidity
As the future of work evolves, public and private sectors are creating models where learning, working, and earning form a seamless cycle.
Regional governments are investing heavily in upskilling and human capital development.
Saudi Arabia has committed to training 300,000 AI specialists by 2030, while a new generation of learning-to-earning platforms is creating faster, more adaptive paths from education to employment, tuned to the needs of a workforce in flux.
The rise of portfolio careers is also redrawing professional identity. Rather than climbing a single corporate ladder, knowledge workers are assembling flexible, self-directed careers often spanning multiple sectors, roles, and borders.
Platforms such as Neol (Turkey-based and operating in the UAE) are making this shift tangible, connecting creative professionals to global, project-based opportunities that prioritise autonomy and impact.
For founders, the opportunity lies in building platforms that treat learning as a continuous asset.
For investors, value can be generated from scalable, personalised ecosystems — built for a fluid, multi-career future, adapting as fast as the talent they serve.
Building the infrastructure for the next work era
Relationships, processes, and priorities within the workforce are being re-architected from the ground up. We are witnessing the rise of a new workforce operating system: AI-powered, inclusive, and globally distributed.
For founders, this means creating agile, accessible, and automated solutions. For investors, the next wave of category-defining ventures will embed intelligence into core workflows, not just layered-on AI; enable diverse, borderless access to income and opportunity; and unlock economic mobility – freeing up time for learning, creativity, and purpose.
Explore the future of work in greater depth, with analysis and insights from Global Ventures' new
The writer is a senior partner at Global Ventures.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
2 hours ago
- The National
AI chip smuggling 'gets more airtime than it should', White House official says
The idea of high-performance AI chips being smuggled into potentially nefarious hands gets more attention than it should, a White House official has said. Michael Kratsios, who serves as director for the Trump administration's Office of Science and Technology Policy, said on Wednesday that there are a lot of misconceptions and misguided fears about the 'physical diffusion' of artificial intelligence technology developed by the US. 'We're not talking about like a bag of diamonds or something,' he said during a discussion at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies think tank about Mr Trump's recently announced AI Action Plan. Some politicians have expressed concerns about the potential for recently announced US AI partnerships overseas to be exploited by countries like China to try to acquire powerful American-made technology. 'These are like massive racks that are tonnes in weight and you're not going to put it on a forklift or back it into a truck, or something," he explained, adding that the idea of chip smuggling "probably gets more airtime than it should." Mr Kratsios also said the hypothetical scenario of the US partnerships with other countries leading to the misuse of data centres by countries like China for 'training runs' to access the centres was overblown. 'What you're most worried about is large-scale runs that are for training sophisticated models and those are actually pretty easy to flag,' he said, adding that the US will make sure to implement what's known in IT circles as Know Your Customer policies to prevent bad actors from gaining access to data centres powered by US technology. Mr Kratsios said that Mr Trump's predecessor, Joe Biden, put too many chip export restrictions on allies, and that the export of US technology to countries with peaceful AI aspirations was critical to an overall AI strategy. During Mr Trump's visit to the Gulf in May, he announced the US-UAE AI Acceleration Partnership framework that will eventually lead to the construction of a 5GW UAE-US AI Campus in Abu Dhabi. 'The [Biden administration] limits made no sense at all,' he said, referring to President Biden's policies aimed at limiting the powerful CPUs and GPUs available to certain countries. Those policies were largely aimed at preventing the diffusion of US technology to China. It proved controversial, with companies like Microsoft and Nvidia claiming the policies hurt US efforts more than helping. Some US AI companies like Anthropic, however, have sought to keep the export controls. 'In some cases, smugglers have employed creative methods to circumvent export controls, including hiding processors in prosthetic baby bumps and packing GPUs [graphics processing units] alongside live lobsters,' read an April policy letter from Anthropic. That letter later came under criticism over what some called the oversimplification of how AI data centres work. Regardless, in keeping with that theme of reversing the Biden export policy, the Trump White House recently announced plans that would allow for Nvidia to resume sales of its H20 graphics processing unit to China. That decision, however, has come under criticism from several technology analysts and politicians. A group of Democratic senators this week sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick urging him to reverse course. At the CSIS event, Mr Kratsios said the concerns from Democratic senators were oversimplified, adding that the H20 was designed to comply with US concerns about giving China too much computing power, among other things. 'It's not a free-for-all sale,' he said, referring to White House's H20 announcement. 'Any sale that Nvidia wants to make to China is one that's going to require an export licence.' Mr Kratsios added that the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security would be evaluating each of those licence applications and 'weight the costs' before giving Nvidia approval.
The National
3 hours ago
- The National
Money & Me: ‘Starting a company helped me attain financial independence'
Deepika Nahata became an entrepreneur when she identified a pain point for many working households: doing the laundry. Partnering with a close relative, she launched WashOn Laundry as a family business in Dubai just before the Covid-19 pandemic. The company caters to individuals and businesses such as hotels, salons and gyms, and offers additional services such as shoe cleaning, bag restoration, cleaning of carpets, curtains and sofas. She credits running the business for five years with giving her financial independence and more autonomy in taking decisions on money matters. 'We initially thought we had taken the wrong decision, but consistency and attention to customers' requirements are the only secret to success,' says Ms Nahata, 36, who is from the north-eastern Indian state of Assam. WashOn, which is based in Dubai Investment Park, has now grown to 100 employees. Ms Nahata has been living in Dubai for the past 10 years and currently lives in Murooj Al Furjan with her husband, who is a software engineer, two sons aged 10 and 2, and her in-laws. She is a commerce graduate and holds a chartered accountant internship. Did wealth feature in your childhood? What did you learn from it? I was raised as a saver. Whenever I asked for pocket money, my mother would advise me to separate my needs from my wants. I didn't realise it then, but that simple lesson has changed the way I think about money. The habit of saving has helped me tide over emergencies. Saving and reinvesting our profits back into the laundry business have helped us to enhance our way of working by updating equipment and expanding our service offering. I only choose to spend on things that add value and offer me something in return. How did you first earn? The first income I earned was for my CA internship, making 5,000 Indian rupees ($57.8) per month in 2012. Following the internship, my employer shifted me to a full-time role on a monthly pay of 20,000 rupees. Any early financial jolts? I remember one time when I had started working in India and my parents travelled out of town. The washing machine in my house broke down and I had no money to pay the technician. I had to borrow money from my neighbour. That was a wake-up call because I had no savings and was spending all my income going out with friends. How do you grow your wealth? Through reinvesting profits back into my business. I am a smart spender and only invest in things that add value. I don't spend lavishly on parties or luxuries, instead I'm focused on doing things that add value to my working life. Have you been wise with money? Yes, it's been five years since we founded WashOn. The time, care and effort we have put into growing it are paying us back, not just in terms of revenue but also in terms of the experience and lessons from running the business. What has been your best investment? Building our business. We started the venture from scratch. But now we are able to provide employment to 100 people and sustain their livelihoods. That gives us pride and joy. Any cherished purchases? Only the new equipment that we have purchased to improve efficiencies and add value to our laundry business. Any financial advice for your younger self? Don't wait to be financially ready. Whenever you feel like starting a business or doing something on your own, start small but at least make a start. When my co-founder and I decided to start the business, we had a lot of doubts, but we didn't want to be financially dependent on someone else. There were many financial challenges as well and the prospect of taking risk. I am quite risk averse. But we decided to take the plunge. As it's a family business and we didn't want to take on loans, we tapped into family savings. We started with five to six employees and today we have more than 100 workers and there's been a huge increase in our business revenue. Any key financial milestones? Running the business has helped us gain financial independence and also given us decision-making powers. Earlier, we had to take our husbands' consent on important financial matters. Now, my co-founder and I are financially savvy and take crucial decisions ourselves. What luxuries are important to you? Spending quality time with family. What are your financial goals? I want to grow WashOn to a level where we can provide our services all over the UAE. Currently, we are focused on Dubai only.
Gulf Today
3 hours ago
- Gulf Today
ADFD attends opening of Jordan Digital Health Centre
In the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Al Hussein Bin Abdullah II, Crown Prince of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), represented by Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Director General, participated in the official inauguration of the Jordan Digital Health Centre, a pioneering virtual hospital initiative. This initiative is part of the UAE's broader grant, managed by ADFD, to enhance development projects aligned with Jordan's Economic Modernisation Vision 2023-2025, with a total funding of Dhs1.5 billion. These projects further contribute to Jordan's National Council for Future Technology agenda and reinforce the UAE's ongoing commitment to driving strategic development partnerships in the region. The Jordan Digital Health Centre aims to connect healthcare centres and create an integrated electronic medical records management system through a unified digital platform, to enhance Jordan's healthcare sector in delivering remote care services aligned with international standards. Executed through the support of UAE-based company 'Presight,' a leader in advanced technology and AI-driven digital solutions, in collaboration with Jordan's Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, this centre marks a strategic milestone in enhancing Jordan's digital health infrastructure. During the ceremony, Prince Al Hussein extended his appreciation to the UAE's leadership, President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. He emphasised that this initiative underscores the enduring strategic ties between the two nations and their commitment to advancing sustainable development and economic integration across key sectors. He also praised ADFD's key role in supporting transformative development initiatives, as the Jordan Digital Health Centre serves as a model of cross-border institutional collaboration. WAM
