Phoenix Venture Partners (PVP) has led the $2.5 million Pre Series A priced equity round in GAGA Inc., the Saudi edtech platform delivering live, interactive learning for students aged 4 to 18. The investment, made through Phoenix Venture Partners Innovation Fund (CEIC) Limited, marks GAGA’s first fully priced institutional round and reflects strong confidence in its market position, execution, and long-term growth potential.

GAGA has rapidly become a leading platform in Arabic online education, offering expert‑led live classes across more than 200 subjects and supported by a rigorously vetted educator network. Built specifically for young learners, GAGA’s live learning interface emphasizes real-time interaction, peer collaboration, and measurable outcomes, addressing a growing demand for high‑quality, accessible Arabic educational content across the Kingdom.

PVP’s lead investment reinforces its commitment to technology innovation across the MENA region, particularly in education technology, and aligns with its strategy to support high‑impact Saudi founders. The firm views the Kingdom as one of the region’s most dynamic tech markets, shaped by rapid digital transformation, strong youth engagement, and national initiatives that continue to accelerate sector growth.

Commenting on the investment, Steve Khayat, Founder & CEO of PVP, said: “Our investment in GAGA reflects our strong conviction in the team’s resilience, drive, and ability to deliver meaningful impact at scale. The platform elevates the quality and availability of Arabic educational content, giving young learners access to interactive, high‑quality experiences in their own language. In moments when global circumstances challenge us, we believe even more strongly in backing founders who create real impact, and our long‑term commitment to the GCC, including the Kingdom’s rapidly growing tech ecosystem, has never been stronger. GAGA is reshaping how students engage with learning in the Kingdom and serves as a powerful complement to the traditional schooling system. We are proud to lead this priced round and support GAGA’s next phase of growth.”

Abdullah Al-Khorasani, Co‑Founder & CEO of GAGA, added: “This round marks an important milestone in our mission to make world‑class, interactive Arabic learning accessible to every family in Saudi Arabia. With PVP’s belief in our vision, we will expand our educator network, strengthen our Arabic content, and accelerate our technology development to empower more students across the Kingdom.”

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Flyby has appointed Tomaso Rodriguez as Non-Executive Chairman of the Board. The move signals Flyby’s transition from early traction to scale as the company prepares for a Series A raise and accelerated deployment across Europe and the Middle East.

Over six years as CEO of Talabat, Rodriguez grew the business more than ninefold and led the company through its IPO on the Dubai Financial Market in December 2024. The listing raised $2 billion and valued the platform at $10.1 billion, making it the largest global tech IPO of 2024, oversubscribed by double digits.

Under his leadership, Talabat became the largest on-demand technology platform across MENA — serving over 6.5 million active customers across eight markets. He stepped down as CEO in November 2025 following a planned leadership transition, and now brings his strategic playbook to Flyby as Chairman of the Board. Rodriguez’s decision to chair Flyby sends a clear signal to the market: the company has reached a level of traction and maturity that’s ready for scale.

What began as targeted pilots in Munich, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai has evolved into a live, digital out-of-home network embedded directly into last-mile logistics. The infrastructure doubles as a new medium, with clients already allocating budgets to it. Flyby’s client roster includes global brands and regional powerhouses: L’Oréal, Red Bull, Tabasco, Motorola, and Western Union on the advertiser side; Publicis, Yango and WPP among agency partners; and aggregators including noon, Talabat, Careem, and Deliveroo.

The company has a clear path to reach 10,000 boxes by 2027, built on existing partnerships and a proprietary stack combining IoT-enabled hardware, rider-level data, and real-time digital engagement. The network also supports urban beautification and smart city programs — making Flyby as relevant to municipalities as it is to media buyers.

Commenting on the appointment, Cheyenne Kamran, Co-Founder and CEO of Flyby, said: “Two years in, the platform is live, revenue-generating, and ready for scale. Tomaso took Talabat from a regional platform to a $10 billion public company. His experience will be key as we enter our next phase, marking the start of our Series A and our expansion into multiple new markets.”

“Every day, hundreds of thousands of delivery riders navigate our streets, a truly visible presence. Flyby is the only company globally that has successfully turned delivery fleets into a live, high-tech media channel. We’re unlocking an entirely unexplored frontier for advertisers, allowing them to deliver dynamic, real-time messages in a way that simply hasn’t been possible until now. This is one of the most compelling technological leaps in the industry and it’s an exciting moment to be part of a team redefining a whole category,” said Tomaso Rodriguez, Chairman of Flyby.

The appointment comes ahead of Flyby’s targeted Series A, which will fund the expansion to 10,000 smart boxes by 2027, with a five-year roadmap to 50,000 boxes across the GCC and Europe. At that scale, Flyby operates one of the most granular real-time mobility datasets in urban delivery, creating value across media, logistics, and smart city infrastructure. As Chairman, Rodriguez will drive investor and partner engagement and help strengthen Flyby’s position across advertising, mobility, and data.

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