Egypt – The land of antiquities and algorithms

Egypt – WTM in London’s Premier Partner for 2026 – is a land of unmatched diversity. But did you know it is also a land of digital transformation, entrepreneurs and start-up conferences? Here’s Chris Carter-Chapman, Event Director, WTM in London, to explain.

“Ancient Egyptian technology” has its own Wikipedia page. From ramp-and-lever mechanisms and chariots, to lighthouses, ships and glassmaking there’s a bountiful list of innovations said to have emerged from the world’s oldest nation state.

Fast forward three thousand years and Egypt is still very much interested in maintaining and supporting a technologically advanced society. The clearest evidence of this came earlier this year, when the government launched the “Egyptian Startup Charter” with some very ambitious aims. These included; mobilising $1bn in investment over the next five years, instigating policies to support up to 5,000 startups, creating 500,000 direct and indirect jobs, reducing the brain drain of local talent, and encouraging venture capital.

The charter was eighteen months in the making, with Egypt’s Ministerial Group for Entrepreneurship taking responsibility for delivering these objectives. The group’s chairperson, Rania Al-Mashat, was Egypt’s first female tourism minister, holding that position from 2018 to 2019. 

The Egypt section from Digital 2026 – the annual global deep dive by We Are Social, Meltwater and DataReportal – showed that over 80% of the country’s 119 million inhabitants used the internet in 2025, equivalent to nearly 100 million people. In volume terms, this is significant, but there is also a sizeable offline-to-online shift waiting to happen.

In fact, it’s starting to happen. Digital take-up has been increasing steadily over the past ten years, driven by younger demographics. An estimated 51.2% of Egyptians are under the age of 25, with just 4.3% over the age of 65, making it one of the most youthful populations in the world.

Over half (53%) of Egyptians access social media. Mobiles are the device of choice, with almost all (95%+) connections classified as broadband.

Crunchbase has an Egypt startup hub page, listing more than 1,000 funding rounds totalling $1.4bn. It also lists a stellar who’s-who of investors leading the funding rounds, including global players Y Combinator, Accel, 500 Global as well as regional specialist such as A15.

And there is also RiseUp Egypt, an annual summit for entrepreneurs which has been taking place since 2013. This year’s event, which was held at the Grand Egyptian Museum and where the Startup Charter was launched, attracted a global audience comprising 20,000+ entrepreneurs, 400+ speakers and 100+ investors.

Elsewhere, the Egyptian version of the entrepreneur-and-investor TV franchise Shark Tank is one of the most popular programmes in the country.

So, the foundations for the Startup Charter to build on are in place: a young, digitally aware population, an established startup scene and a wider public interest in entrepreneurship and innovation.  

At last year’s Arabian Travel Market, VIDEC and Cambon Partners presented some research into the specifics of the Egyptian online travel market in a benchmarking study which also covered GCC countries.

The total Egyptian air market value is skewed downwards, in dollar terms, by a currency depreciation as part of an arrangement with the IMF. However, volumes in percentages are quite revealing, pointing to the potential ready to be unleashed through the offline-to-online shift.

Projections for 2026 suggest that only 16.3% of air booking value will be transacted online, with modest growth bringing the volume to 18.3% by 2028. By channel, OTAs and airline.com (web, mobile, app) will each account for 8% in 2026; by 2028 OTAs will be outperforming airline.com at 9.6% and 8.6% respectively. Offline channels will account for around 70% in both years, while corporate bookings through the GDSs, which cover online and offline agents, accounts for around 11%.

Hotel bookings online outperform air but offline remains the dominant channel. In 2026, online penetration is tipped to come in at 22%, climbing to 24% in 2028. Unlike air, there is clear daylight between OTAs and hotel.com – in 2026 the share of their total hotel market will be 18% and 4% respectively, growing to 19% and 5% in 2028.

So, is there an Egyptian travel tech startup community, looking to be part of the offline to online shift that is starting to happen? It appears so: at the start of this year, researcher Tracxn identified 179 companies active in “travel and hospitality tech”, of which 28 have received funding, totalling $155 million over the past ten years (although its definition of travel tech covers electric scooter hire, shuttle bus bookings, luggage storage and other components which comprise the digital travel experience).

With the Startup Charter still in its earliest stages, the full impact of the government’s support of and commitment to Egypt’s startups is yet to be realised. But over the next five years or so, we will start to see the emergence of Egypt as a tech start-up hub. Factor in Egypt’s widespread appeal to different types of tourists from different source markets, chances are that a lot of these startups will be making their mark in the travel technology space.