AUC Angels, the first university based investment network in the Middle East, has announced its investment in dental 3D printer manufacturer, Mogassam and AR furniture startup, Furnwish. The network led the pre-seed round for Mogassam, and participated in the seed round for Furnwish. However, the exact investment amounts were not disclosed. 

Mogassam: Streamlining the Dental Workflow 

Founded by Ahmed Adel, Ahmed Atef and Mostafa Saleh, Mogassam is a B2B platform that designs, manufactures and markets digital light processing (DLP) 3D printers, currently used for dental equipment. Mogassam digitizes the workflow for dentists allowing them to print their own crowns, aligners and Hollywood Smiles based on their patient’s imprint. The startup aims to complete the digital dental workflow. 

Furnwish: Brining Your Furniture to Life

Founded by Reham Elmasry, Ahmad Amin and Inji Naguib, Furnwish is an augmented reality (AR) application empowering furniture stores and design professionals to better showcase their products and services. An innovative solution helping millions of people who are trying to furnish their homes, the startup has been making waves ever since it launched in 2017. Most recently, Furnwish won the title of “best company that has innovative work plans for the future” at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in January 2020.  

How AUC Angles Aims to Support the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

With the recent outbreak of coronavirus, economies around the world have been hit hard. However, while many companies are struggling to survive, it is usually in these times of crisis that many startups are born. Talking to WAYA, Ayman Ismail, Abdul Latif Jameel Endowed Chair of Entrepreneurship at the American University in Cairo and Founding Director of AUC Angels explained: “Recessions are painful, especially for startups. However, they also create opportunities for disruption and waves of innovation that are often captured by startups. Investing in startups that have the potential to capture these opportunities has often proved to be very profitable.”

This is where AUC Angels comes in. According to Ismail, “The network provides a platform for angel investors to access some of the most resilient and innovative startups in Egypt and to participate in their growth stories, as they navigate these turbulent times.” 

AUC Angels is the first university based investment network in the Middle East. It focuses on educating accomplished working professionals on angel investing and aims to create impact by capitalizing on the professional diversity of the AUC community and its alumni. The networks’ objective goes far beyond building a large network and closing deals. According to Mariam Kamel, AUC Angels Manager, “At the core, it is about supporting the startup scene and filling a gap that existed in the market for providing seed funding to early stage startups.”

“There is a lot of talent within our community that are not only looking for access to investment opportunities, but can also mentor many of the early entrepreneurs,” says Kamel. 

The network was launched in 2019 and has attracted 60 investors. So far, AUC Angels has closed investments in 7 other startups, including DentaCarts, a dental e-commerce platform, and Jinni, a cleaning service platform, as well as GBArena, an online gaming platform. AUC Angels is currently leading pre-seed and seed rounds in a number of companies that are addressing the current changes in our lifestyles and behavior as a result of the coronavirus crisis. The networks’ partnership with AUC Venture Lab, gives it access to vetted and highly scalable startups. AUC Angles also provides startups with business and finance skills that equip them to develop attractive investment cases, empowering both startups and investors.