Hattan Ahmed

Hattan Ahmed heads the Entrepreneurship Center at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), where he supports and mentors existing startups and potential new ones across the Kingdom.

He has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Alabama.

After working as a business system analyst with Saudi Aramco from 2003 to 2007, he earned his MBA in business administration from the University of Leeds.

Prior to his current post, he served as a startup development officer at KAUST from 2013 through 2017, and has won international awards.

Ahmed has also worked as a research portfolio specialist and has experience in software development, obtaining qualifications in key platforms such as SAP and SharePoint.

He believes in young people as change agents of the future, and that universities play a key role in creating national economic impact.

KAUST is currently hosting a boot camp to develop pilgrim services for Hajj and Umrah. Up to 80 people are taking part in the event, which runs from Feb. 13 to 21.

He said it was the second annual collaboration with the Makkah governorate and one of KAUST’s outreach partnerships. It was also a key program in advancing entrepreneurship in the Kingdom aligned with the goals of the Vision 2030 reform plan, he added. “There are some great ideas emerging and we look forward to providing ongoing mentoring and support to the startup founders,” he told

Arab News.