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Hub71’s Startup Ecosystem Now Boasts Over 200 Members
Companies from 6 individual countries have been welcomed by the Abu Dhabi-based tech ecosystem in the latest round of admissions.
Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem that assists creators in tech businesses, has grown its ranks to over 200 members. After a 60% increase in applications, an additional 20 firms were chosen to join the community, helping more startups than ever to maximize opportunities for funding and other business development in the UAE’s capital.
Entrepreneurs joining Hub71 gain access to huge networking potential within the ecosystem, which has now grown into a sizable community of tech entrepreneurs and attracted the attention of leading investors, as well as corporate, governmental, and academic partners.
Startups from six different nations have been welcomed to Hub71 in this latest round of admissions, and another 11 companies have relocated to Abu Dhabi after joining the growing community. The UAE is enjoying something of a tech renaissance of late, as it draws more and more top-flight companies from around the globe.
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“This success is a testament that Abu Dhabi is becoming a destination for high-quality startups that showcase great potential and impact,” says Badr Al-Olama, acting CEO of Hub71.
Among the companies chosen to join Hub71 is 44.01, an unusually-named business that aims to reduce carbon emissions by converting CO2 into rock. Adding to the community’s green credentials is Finland’s iFarm, which develops agricultural tech solutions to support automated vertical farming, highlighting the importance of cleantech and agribusiness development in the Hub71 portfolio.
News
Nano Banana 2 Arrives In MENA For Google Gemini Users
Google brings its latest image model to Gemini and Search, adding 4K output and tighter text control for regional users.
Google has opened access to Nano Banana 2 across the Middle East and North Africa, pushing its newest image model into everyday tools rather than keeping it inside the exclusive (and expensive) Pro tier.
The rollout spans the Google Gemini desktop and mobile apps, and extends to Google Search through Lens and AI Mode. Developers can also test it in preview via AI Studio and the Gemini API.
Nano Banana 2 runs on Gemini Flash, Google’s fast inference layer. The focus is speed, but also control. Users can export visuals from 512px up to 4K, adjusting aspect ratios for everything from vertical social posts to widescreen displays.
The model maintains character likeness across up to five figures and preserves fidelity for as many as 14 objects within a single workflow. This enables visual continuity across scenes, iterations, or edits — supporting projects like short films, storyboards, and multi-scene narratives. Text rendering has also been improved, delivering legible typography in mockups and greeting cards, with built-in translation and localization directly within images.
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Under the hood, the system taps Gemini’s broader knowledge base and pulls in real-time information and imagery from web search to render specific subjects more accurately. Lighting and fine detail have been upgraded, without slowing output.
By embedding the model inside Gemini and Search, Google is normalizing advanced image generation for a mass audience. In MENA, where startups and marketing teams are leaning heavily on AI to scale content across languages and borders, that shift lands at a practical moment.
The move also folds creative tooling deeper into search itself, so that image generation is no longer a separate workflow. It now sits right next to the query box.
Nano Banana 2 Arrives In MENA For Google Gemini Users
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