Cairo – Mubasher: The seventh edition of RiseUp Summit will kick off on Thursday in Cairo under the theme “Journey To Growth”.

The three-day event that brings together entrepreneurs, startups co-founders, and innovators in the Middle East and Africa will be held for the first time at the American University in Cairo (AUC) New Cairo campus, according to a statement on Wednesday.  

RiseUp Summit will host more than 17 competitions, 180 exhibiting startups, and 200 workshops.

The event will also feature several panel discussions with 300 speakers, including the Egyptian businessman Samih Sawiris; TV presenter Raya Abirached; the managing director of Spotify for Middle East and Africa, Claudius Boller; the head of social at 9GAG, Karen Cheng; and the Egyptian film director Amr Salama.

For the first time, RiseUp Summit will collaborate with Dubai CommerCity to hold a two-day hackathon, bringing together 200 IT developers to share innovative ideas and compete for prizes amounting to $15,000.

The number of participants is expected to range between 8,000 and 10,000 this year at the AUC venue.