Microsoft and Accenture Join Dubai-based Accelerator Program Intelak Hub to Bolster Local Tourism

The future of travel and tourism is, at best, a murky haze that is entirely indefinitive. The pandemic has devastated the global airline industry, so much so that losses throughout 2020 so far are totalled at $84 billion, with another $15 billion expected in 2021, according to global airline group LATA.

As the world slowly starts to open up its borders, and tourism becomes nascent with new regulations and new systems being deployed, to say that the best minds and platforms need to huddle up in the search for innovative solutions is an understatement. 

Dubai, a city that brings in the most tourist dollars worldwide - with an estimated total of $30.82 billion spent in 2018 by overnight international visitors - is accelerating the entrepreneurial efforts across the global aviation and tourism industry with the launch of a new platform titled Intelak Hub. The platform bands together former programmes Intelak Incubator, Idea Lab and the Futurism Accelerator as one new holistic brand devoted to supporting ideation by both early and late stage startups in the sector.

Intelak Hub is co-chaired by Emirates Group, Dubai Tourism, Microsoft and Accenture, a cohort of seasoned organisations that boast unmatched experiences within their domains. The programme will provide startups with mentorship, resources and strategic training to help entrepreneurs get inventive as they attempt to untangle the complex business knots that face the industry.  

“Intelak Hub is envisioned to become a powerhouse to unleash the potential of budding start-ups and catalyse their success to tackle challenges and propel growth by harnessing some of the best-in-class technologies,” said Sayed Hashish, General Manager, Microsoft UAE. “We look forward to working alongside our partners and mentoring these home-grown innovators focusing on travel, tourism and aviation to push the envelope and bring their ideas to life. Startups have become an undisputable innovation engine, and together with our forces combined – we will empower them to achieve more."

Applications for the programme are now open, and you can apply right here. Startups don’t have to be based in Dubai to take part in the incubator or accelerator programmes by Intelak Hub.