Astra Tech To Raise $500 Million For 'Ultra' Digital Platform

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UAE-based tech development and investment group is aiming to revolutionise the consumer space for the MEA region

Astra Tech, UAE based technology development and investment group formed by Abdallah Abu Sheikh, a serial entrepreneur, and pioneer in the Middle East and Africa’s (MEA) tech startup ecosystem, is raising $500 million in investment from strategic investors as the company pushes forward with the launch of a new app-based ‘ultra platform’ from the region.

The platform will bring together selected consumer technologies, products, and services to address the ‘platform fatigue’ many users are experiencing today. This fatigue arises from an oversaturation of platforms that aim to integrate multiple semi-related services into their app’s core offering, resulting in a poor user experience.

The ultra platform focuses on providing a seamless, intuitive, and human experience while supporting the commercial ambitions of suppliers and partners. The company’s vision is to simplify the way people communicate, shop, pay, and transact.

“The super app space is ripe for transformation, and Astra Tech is here to disrupt and innovate. We’ve seen how in an effort to overcome profitability challenges and poor unit economics, platforms have jumped from one business line to the next in an attempt to force users to complete more transactions with them. The result is an overabundance of complex and sluggish digital platforms that aren’t fit for purpose,” said Abdallah Abu Sheikh, Co-Founder & CEO of Astra Tech.

“Our goal is not to reinvent the wheel but to repurpose familiar platforms to create what we call an ‘ultra platform’. That being, an unmatched interconnected ecosystem for digital commerce and communication revolutionises how people live and significantly reduces the time to complete everyday tasks. We want users to accomplish a lot more on a single platform without the need for additional apps or a subpar user experience.”