Muscat-based eMushrif has raised $1 million in a pre-Series A funding round, the startup announced today. The million-dollar-rounds may have been very common lately in different ecosystems around the region but it’s the first time we’re hearing an Omani startup score it. According to our data, it is the largest investment round ever raised by an Omani startup. The investment came from Oman-based Phaze Ventures, Oman Technology Fund’s Wadi Accelerator (eMushrif was part of Wadi’s first cycle), Sparklabs Energy, Myrad Holding, and Bahrain’s Dividend Gate Capital. Some angels also participated in the round.
Founded in 2016 by Adnan Alshuaili, Awadh Alshukaili, and Issa Alshuaili, eMushrif uses Internet of Things (IoT) to turn regular school buses into smart buses. The startup apparently installs an IoT device on the buses that enables automatic attendance marking of the students. The solution comes with a visual child check and detection system to ensure no child ends up staying inside the bus. eMushrif’s solution also comes with two apps for the school administrators and parents to track the location of bus in real-time and receive important notifications. In addition to school buses, eMushrif has also built commuting management solutions for some other verticals.
According to its website, eMushrif currently has over 350 buses using its services. The startup was among MENAbytes’ nine startups to watch at Step conference 2018.
eMushrif, according to the statement, will use the investment for mass production of its IoT devices, R&D, sales & marketing, and for expanding to other markets in the region.
