Rima Al-Sheikh, founder and CEO of GTL.io the user research and product design agency. Rima previously co-founded and exited Nabbesh.com the first freelance marketplace in MENA. Holding over a decade of experience in designing and building technology products for different sectors mainly focused on media and consumer through her journey with ITP the largest publisher in MENA, Dubizzle and multiple other organisations. Rima is a Syrian national residing in Dubai.
Hasan Haider is currently Venture Partner looking after the MENA region for 500 Startups, the most active Silicon Valley based global Venture Capital firm, with 17 investments to date in the MENA region. Hasan is also the Chief Executive Officer at Tenmou – the first Business Angels organization in Bahrain. Incorporated in May 2011, Tenmou’s objective is to invest in and support high-potential start-up Bahraini entrepreneurs. Tenmou has invested in 18 seed stage startups with a total investment portfolio of USD 1.2m to date.
Hasan is a regular speaker on entrepreneurship, having spoken at international events such as the World Economic Forum, the Angel Capital Association Summit, Arabnet, Stanford University, the MENA Business Women’s Network Forum and the 10th International Entrepreneurship Forum. He also represented the MENA private sector in the 9th BMENA Forum for the Future. Hasan is active locally, having arranged the 1st and 2nd MENA Angel Investors Conferences in 2012 to bring together the disparate groups of Angel Investors and companies looking for funding in the MENA region together. Hasan also organized the 1st and 2nd Startup Weekend Bahrain in 2011 and 2012, and co-organised Wamda’s Mix N Mentor Manama event, and the US Embassy Bahrain’s Entrelab project.
Hasan started his entrepreneurial activities by launching FILM2GO, an online DVD rental service. Hasan also has several years of investment experience, most recently as a Portfolio Manager at SICO Investment Bank. He is committed, driven and dedicated to developing a start-up culture in Bahrain and helping other entrepreneurs make their ideas into a reality.
