Three university ventures from Switzerland, the USA and Egypt move into active pilots and commercial stages in Dubai

Three university ventures from Switzerland, the USA and Egypt move into active pilots and commercial stages in Dubai

  • Prototypes For Humanity is held under the patronage and leadership of Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
  • Academic ventures Oxara, P-Vita and Virufy from ETH Zurich, Zewail City and University of Fukui are now in active pilot and commercial stages in the UAE across construction materials, biofertilisers and AI-driven respiratory diagnosis
  • The programme translates global research into industry-aligned solutions, with measurable value for Dubai and the UAE’s economy, future-resilience and innovation ecosystems
  • A new wave of high-potential solutions from institutions including Harvard, Imperial College London and Petronas University is under evaluation for piloting, offering local entities access to top global R&D
  • Programme demonstrates Dubai’s unique capacity to attract top academic talent, accelerate commercialisation of scientific research and build globally competitive ventures from the city

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 18 May 2026 — Three ventures from Dubai Future Solutions – Prototypes for Humanity are now moving beyond scientific validation into active pilots and commercialisation in the UAE. Oxara, P-Vita and Virufy are deploying cutting-edge science alongside local partners across AI-enabled disease monitoring, bio-engineered fertilisers and high-efficiency construction materials.

The milestone marks the first commercial output of the The Dubai Future Solutions – Prototypes for Humanity programme, held under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF), The programme is held under the patronage and leadership of Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and is in strategic partnership with Dubai Future Foundation.

Dubai Future Solutions – Prototypes for Humanity provides academic founders with funding, business expertise, dedicated team support and closely managed industry collaborations to translate scientific research into industry-aligned solutions — a journey that begins with technology validation in real-world environments and evolves towards business set-up, commercial projects and growth. Using a de-risking, commercially minded approach, it works hands-on with founders to develop the foundations required to engage larger commercial partners and investors during and beyond the programme.

The programme sits within Prototypes for Humanity wider ecosystem of initiatives that engages thousands of academics every year, the largest and most comprehensive of its kind globally.

From research to pilot and commercialisation: the first cohort

Oxara – Sustainable construction materials

Oxara transforms mineral and construction waste into low-CO₂ building materials using a fraction of the energy and capex required by conventional cement production.

Founded by Dr. Gnanli Landrou and Dr.Thibault Demoulin, the company is now moving into commercial-scale deployment following a successful pilot with one of Dubai’s leading concrete manufacturers. At the same time, Oxara is accelerating its international expansion landmark projects and strategic partnerships across Europe and Africa.

At scale, Oxara’s technology offers one of the most commercially viable pathways to decarbonise the construction industry, while simultaneously reducing the financial and environmental burden of waste management for developers, municipalities, and governments worldwide.

P-Vita – Agricultural biotechnology

P-Vita uses proprietary biotechnology and AI-driven production to produce natural, cost-effective raw materials for the agriculture, food and pharmaceutical industries. Founded by Mohamed Tarek Abdelzaher, an environmental engineer, and Naglaa Mohamed, Chief Science Officer specialising in Biomedical Science and Molecular Biology, both graduates of Zewail City of Science and Technology, the solution is particularly topical as it produces fertilisers that address global shortages caused by international supply disruptions. The company is now ready to take a tested joint-venture model global. A growing number of tests, crops and farming models will begin this month in the UAE, expanding a product portfolio that already supports more than 4,800 smallholder farmers while also engaging with larger commercial farming operations, delivering higher yields at lower cost to farmers.

Virufy – AI-Powered respiratory health screening

Leveraging unique datasets, algorithms and expertise, Virufy is enhancing its smartphone app for the detection of multiple respiratory diseases through cough sound pattern analysis. Virufy was founded and is led by Amil Khanzada, Specially Appointed Assistant Professor at the Headquarters for Regional Revitalization, University of Fukui, where he teaches in the Management of Technology (MOT) course. He previously pursued graduate studies in Computer Science and Business at UC Berkeley and Stanford University.

Via the programme, Virufy is currently progressing a pilot clinical study with Dubai Health. With nearly 200 patients enrolled to date, the study will soon enter specialized AI R&D to develop a screening tool to protect the respiratory health of our loved ones and in future may improve global health for a billion users in developing nations.

His Excellency Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of the Dubai Future Foundation, said: “Through Dubai Future Solutions – Prototypes for Humanity, we are building a structured pathway that takes breakthrough research from the lab into real-world deployment and scalable ventures. Dubai offers something few places can – an integrated environment where government, industry and capital align to test, refine and grow solutions at speed. At Dubai Future Foundation, our role is to enable this journey end to end – connecting global talent with local partners, and turning scientific potential into tangible impact across sectors.”

His Excellency Arif Amiri, Chief Executive Officer of the DIFC Authority, said: “DIFC’s founding partnership in Prototypes for Humanity reflects our conviction that the most durable economic ecosystems are built on the ability to attract, support and retain the world’s most capable innovators. The programme’s global pool of innovators is ready to be leveraged to build even more competitive advantage for the public and private sectors in Dubai, a city where a deep ecosystem of capital, institutions and government help them succeed.”

Emerging pipeline: New ventures from Harvard, Imperial and beyond

For its upcoming cycle, the programme is working with a highly curated group of new ventures from leading global academic institutions, such as Harvard University, Imperial College London, Petronas Technology University and Duke University. Through the programme’s support, the ventures are in late stage conversations with leading entities to advance their efforts in the UAE, starting from the second half of 2026.

Tadeu Baldani Caravieri, Managing Director of Prototypes for Humanity, said: “The gap between a scientific breakthrough and a functioning commercial venture is rarely bridged without deliberate, bespoke support. The ventures we are advancing are proof that when the right methodology, partners and environment come together, that gap can be crossed, creating real value for organisations, society and markets.”

Applications to the Dubai Future Solutions – Prototypes for Humanity yearly summit are open, inviting graduates, students and researchers across all disciplines and universities to apply to join the global showcase of innovations this November in Dubai — and enter the selection process for the 2027 ventures programme.