• UAE-based healthtech Takalam has raised $1 million in a pre-Seed round, led by Emirates Angels members, along with Nowaisi Investments, Plug'n'Play and a Jordanian based Fund.
• Founded in 2020 by Khawla Hammad and Inas Shashieh, Takalam is an online counselling platform for mental well-being that connects individuals and entities directly with mental health experts through a private and personalised, secure, digital experience using video, audio and instant messaging.
• The company plans to introduce other therapeutic tools and self-help exercises that will be available on its mobile application.

Press release:

The UAE-based company has raised $1 million in funding that was led by Emirates Angels members.

A group of Emirates Angels’ members have invested along with Nowaisi Investments, Plug n Play and a Jordanian based Fund in Takalam’s Pre-Seed round.

Takalam also received a grant last year from Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), the central government hub supporting investment in Abu Dhabi.

Founded by Emirati entrepreneur Khawla Hammad along with co-founder Inas Shashieh, Takalam [Arabic for ‘TALK’] is an award-winning online counselling platform for mental well-being. It is a Hub71 company working under the umbrella of Authority for Social Contribution (Ma'an) and Department of Health Abu Dhabi Tech-Hub.

The platform connects individuals and entities directly with mental health experts through a private and personalised, secure, digital experience using video, audio and instant messaging, leveraging the power of AI and Data analytics. The company also plans to introduce other therapeutic tools and self-help exercises that are going to be available on their upcoming mobile application.

"Focusing on tech-based startups with a sector-agnostic approach, part of our aim is to support local startups. Takalam is an example of a great product and strong leadership team, tackling a social issue creating impact, all while providing the opportunity to create shareholder value with a solid business model,” said Masaood Al Masaood, Chairman of The Emirates Angel Investors Association, a nonprofit organisation officially registered Under the Ministry of Community development in the United Arab Emirates founded in 2020. The Association aims to positively contribute to the early-stage investment ecosystem through their angel investors network association.

The United Arab Emirates is leading the startup scene in the MENA region with regard to the number of companies funded and the capital invested in startups.