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Anghami Partners With Wajeez To Add Audible Books
Thousands of audiobook summaries look set to be added to the portfolio of Anghami after a partnership is announced with leading platform Wajeez.
Anghami, the pioneers of music streaming and digital distribution in the MENA region, has just announced a collaboration with Wajeez, another MENA-based platform that enables users to read or listen to 15-minute curated summaries of books, novels, and podcasts in Arabic.
The partnership will help Anghami add thousands of audiobook summaries to its platform, greatly expanding the company’s portfolio and strengthening its commitment to enriching user experience with world-class Arabic content.
Anghami’s 72 million+ users will soon have access to over 3,500 regional and international non-fiction book titles in an audio summary format as an add-on within the main Anghami platform.
“The art of storytelling is a historic, cultural cornerstone in the Arab world. Our partnership with fast-growing startups like Wajeez marks a defining chapter for us as we collectively aim to leverage the full potential of audio content,” says Elie Habib, Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer at Anghami.
Anghami hopes that the new catalog, which includes both audiobook and podcasts formats, will freshen their current offering and help to give creators an expanded platform and outlet for their work. Meanwhile, for Wajeez, the collaboration will see its content reaching a much wider audience.
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“Our partnership with Anghami, the region’s leading streaming platform, reinforces our vision to spread culture and knowledge on the widest possible scale in the Arab world, because we believe that the knowledge gained from reading constitutes awareness, which is a fundamental pillar for the renaissance, advancement, and civilization of people,” says Rami Abu Jbara, Chief Content Officer & Co-founder of Wajeez
Anghami’s announcement comes at a time when the company is actively bolstering its commitment to providing the best possible Arabic content. The platform has already announced the addition of live events, offline and virtual entertainment to its services, in a move that hopes to showcase top talent and help to put the region’s vibrant culture in front of a global audience.
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UAE Prepares To Launch Two Satellites: Thuraya-2 And MBZ-SAT
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum chaired the first meeting of the Supreme Space Council yesterday.
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE, chaired the first meeting of the Supreme Space Council in Dubai on December 16, 2024. The session highlighted the UAE’s ambitious space plans and took stock of the sector’s economic progress.
The council emphasized the growing role of private companies in advancing space technologies, noting that their contributions are now equal to that of the public sector. Members also praised initiatives like the Space Economic Zones Programme, which are designed to fuel innovation and investment in the space industry.
خلال ترؤسنا الاجتماع الأول للمجلس الأعلى للفضاء، بحثنا الاستثمارات الوطنية والمشاريع المقبلة في قطاع الفضاء والذي يشهد تطوراً مستمراً… وجددنا التزامنا بدعم ومواصلة تنفيذ برامج طموحة لاستكشاف الفضاء الخارجي حيث وصل حجم الاستثمارات في هذا القطاع إلى 40 مليار درهم خلال السنوات… pic.twitter.com/etJ33OnuSu
— Hamdan bin Mohammed (@HamdanMohammed) December 16, 2024
Discussing the UAE’s space journey, HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum remarked, “The national space sector continues to grow and advance, and we take immense pride in the remarkable achievements we have accomplished over the years”.
Sheikh Hamdan also received updates on two upcoming satellite projects: Thuraya-2 and MBZ-SAT. Thuraya-2, developed by Space42, is slated for launch this December. Meanwhile, the MBZ-SAT, created by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), will soon follow. MBRSC, a major driver of the UAE National Space Programme, continues to lead the nation’s space-related developments.
Space42 took the opportunity to showcase its advancements, including ongoing collaborations between public and private entities. The company also outlined strategies to promote innovation, boost revenue streams, and create new opportunities for growth in the sector.
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The UAE’s current projects build on a growing legacy of space exploration. Back in 2020, the nation made headlines with its Mars mission, successfully sending a probe into the planet’s orbit in 2021. This mission, which is now in its second phase as of June 2024, has been collecting critical data to develop a comprehensive diurnal image of Mars.
The UAE also ventured into lunar exploration with an unmanned mission aimed at studying untouched regions of the Moon’s surface. While the probe ultimately crashed during its landing attempt after communication was lost seconds before touchdown, the effort represented a significant step in the country’s exploration ambitions.