Termsheet Live in Riyadh: STV, Soum, Stream & Aya
A fireside chat with STV GP Ahmad AlNaimi and discussion on second order disruption in Saudi with founders of Soum, Stream & Aya
Good afternoon,
Startup ecosystems tend to evolve in waves. The first wave brings existing industries online, digitizing payments, commerce, transportation, and services. The second wave is often more interesting. It emerges once the underlying infrastructure and consumer behavior have already changed, allowing founders to rethink categories from the ground up.
We’ve seen this play out in markets around the world. In China, the rise of ecommerce gave way to new models like social commerce. In India, digital payments infrastructure enabled a new generation of fintech and wealth-tech companies. As ecosystems mature, the biggest opportunities often shift from digitizing existing workflows to creating entirely new experiences on top of digital foundations.
Saudi Arabia appears to be entering a similar phase. With high digital adoption, a cashless economy, and a growing base of technology-first consumers, founders are increasingly building companies that go beyond simply moving offline industries online.
The venture capital ecosystem around them is evolving just as fast, shaping what gets funded, what scales, and what a large Saudi technology company looks like in 2026 and beyond.
To dig into both sides of that story, Termsheet has partnered with COLABS to host two evenings in Riyadh.
Evening One: Second Order Disruption
A panel with the founders of Soum, Stream, and Aya, on how Saudi startups are evolving, from digitizing existing industries to addressing the inefficiencies and trust gaps that first wave left behind, and the new markets emerging as a result.
📅 Thursday, June 25
⌚ 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
📍 COLABS Narjis, Riyadh
Register here: https://luma.com/k2sz8vi6
Evening Two: STV on the Saudi Venture Market
A fireside chat with Ahmad AlNaimi, General Partner from STV covering their investment thesis, how they’re reading the Saudi ecosystem today, the exit landscape, and where AI fits into the next chapter of Saudi technology.
📅 Sunday, June 28
⌚ 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
📍 COLABS Narjis, Riyadh
Register here: https://luma.com/4rphk09g
Hope to see some of you there.
Zubair