BrainsMingle · AI Summit · 10–16 October 2026

BrainsMingle
AI Summit 2026

The Middle East's AI summit, built from a blank page: a free, fully virtual week of five parallel tracks, 135 speakers from 16 countries and 90 sponsors and partners. I conceived it, branded it, programmed it and took it to market.

100% virtual · 100% free

Concept & brandProgramme & partnershipsGo-to-market campaign
Visit the summit website
AI Summit key visual: five perspectives, one conversation about the future of AI

The summit in numbers

The programme

7days
5tracks
100+sessions
135speakers
16speaker countries
90sponsors and partners

The reach

20Kregistrations
570K+minutes watched
64attendee countries
1.59M+views on Meta
2.3×platform user growth

The brief

BrainsMingle is a video-first professional network, where people learn, share and connect through live sessions. It needed a moment that would put it on the regional map: not another event, but a week that brought together the people building, using and studying AI across the Arab world, and introduced them to each other on the platform.

My role

Head of Product Marketing at BrainsMingle. I led the summit end to end, from the first concept to the closing night: idea, brand, programme, speakers, partners, campaign and speaker experience.

  1. Concept & positioning“Everyone in AI. One week. One room.” Positioned as the largest AI summit in MENA.
  2. Brand identityThe summit name, logo and visual system, with a colour code for each track.
  3. Themes & five tracksL&D, Creative, Startups, Business and Tech, each with its own curated speakers.
  4. Programme architectureOpening and closing days, five nights of parallel tracks, a nightly Day Spotlight and Speed Networking.
  5. Speaker sourcing135 speakers confirmed and delivered, from 16 countries.
  6. Sponsors & partners90 sponsors and partners, including government, regional and strategic partners.
  7. Manus partnershipManus as AI enablement partner, and the Vibe Editing Hackathon built with it.
  8. Speaker experienceOnboarding for all 135 speakers and an interactive Speaker Handbook.
  9. Social campaignOne campaign on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram, with the same posts on all three — design, copy, publishing and moderation. 340+ posts in under a month.

The concept

Everyone in AI. One week. One room.

Five tracks, each built around a single domain with its own speakers and conversations, running in parallel every night of the summit.

AI in Learning & Development

How AI is transforming learning, from classrooms and universities to corporate training.

AI in Creative Industries

How generative AI is reshaping design, content, media and entertainment.

AI in Startups & Entrepreneurship

For everyone building, funding and scaling AI companies, from first idea to lasting business.

AI in Business & Enterprise

How AI transforms every business function, for the leaders and professionals navigating it.

AI in Tech & Infrastructure

The full story of AI from silicon to software, and the infrastructure powering it.

The shape of the week

Seven days. Every format.

Sat 10 Oct Day 1 Opening Day

High-profile panels bringing together leading voices from all five tracks, setting the tone for the week.

Every evening · Days 2–6 · Sun–Thu×5 nights
6–9 PMTrack Sessions

Five parallel tracks, three slots a night.

9 PMDay Spotlight

One stage, the whole summit in one room.

10 PMSpeed Networking

Meet the room you just shared the Spotlight with.

Fri 16 Oct Day 7 Closing Day

Talks, a workshop and Speed Networking open all day until midnight, with the hackathon winners premiered live.

All times Cairo · UTC+3Seven days · 10–16 October 2026

Diversity

Arab and international voices

Practitioners, founders, researchers, government leaders and creators — not keynotes, but real conversations in front of a global room.

135speakers
16countries
35joined from outside Egypt

Where the speakers joined from

Arab world

EgyptSyriaSaudi ArabiaJordanPalestineMorocco

Europe

GermanyNetherlandsFinlandBelgiumFranceUnited KingdomMalta

North America & Asia

United StatesCanadaJapan

Women in AI

25 women speakers

Around one in five speakers on the summit stage — women leading AI in health, learning, product, research, creative work and business.

  • Dr. Heba SalehITI
  • Mai MedhatTuner
  • Hend El DamatyAI Global
  • Ola YousryTesla
  • Deena GergisEVA Pharma
  • Dina KhedrBrainsMingle
  • Shereen BadrMedrara Digitals
  • Sherouk GhallabNoor Edtech
  • Manar MansourTIK TEN Consulting
  • Aya AbdelkaderIntalio
  • Mona AliMacro Group Pharmaceutical
  • Dr. Yomna AbdelrahmanUniBw Munich
  • Sabrine AssemUnTap
  • Heba AbdelfattahBasharSoft
  • Ehsan SayedSales Techies
  • Asmaa SaadGAFI
  • Samra SalimEthos AI
  • Dr. Sumaya IslamPaderborn University
  • Sally AlbertEVA Pharma
  • Yasmine AguibMagdi Yacoub Heart Foundation
  • Malak AbdelghaffarThe Builders Sandbox
  • Nourah MahamedNourah Studio
  • Bana AlkhaledBana Influencers
  • Dorra MlouhiAWS
  • Reham SalehITIDA-SECC

The lineup · 135 speakers

135 speakers from 16 countries, across five tracks

  • Dr. Maged GhoneimaDr. Maged GhoneimaM Empire
  • Dr. Khaled AlashmounyDr. Khaled AlashmounyAIDAChip Inc
  • Dr. Heba SalehDr. Heba SalehInformation Technology Institute (ITI)
  • Dr. Hani ElgebalyDr. Hani ElgebalyAvidBeam Technologies
  • Abdelrahman SleemAbdelrahman SleemOligence AI
  • Karim NabilKarim NabilFPT Software
  • Dr. Sami AlAhmedDr. Sami AlAhmedDoroob
  • Bassam SharkawyBassam SharkawySprints
  • Eng. Mohamed EltabakhEng. Mohamed EltabakhArab IoT Community
  • Ahmed RahmyAhmed RahmyQuick-Wins
  • Essam RefaiEssam RefaiCORTX
  • Michael MounirMichael MounirMEG
  • Yahya ElArabyYahya ElArabyYehia Tech
  • Ehab DarwishEhab DarwishGTMENA
  • Eng. Maher KalashEng. Maher KalashSyrian Ministry of Health
  • Omar HeraizOmar HeraizSYNC School
  • Mohamed AliMohamed AliBusiness With Mo Podcast
  • David KpondehouDavid KpondehouAfrica Diaspora Network Japan (ADNJ) / Pasona Future Gateway
  • Magdi MoussaMagdi MoussaPeople of Data
  • Deena GergisDeena GergisEVA Pharma
  • Muhammad AbuElgheitMuhammad AbuElgheitTechieMatter
  • Ebrahem AnwarEbrahem AnwarICCY
  • Wajih AlkhiamiWajih AlkhiamiWajih Alkhiam
  • Eslam AhmedEslam AhmedAvidBeam
  • Mohamed HatemMohamed HatemURCA
  • Awad BekhetAwad BekhetURCA
  • Abdallah AmerAbdallah AmerCapsules Group
  • Ahmed El-ShamyAhmed El-ShamyDigisoul
  • Manar MansourManar MansourTIK TEN Consulting
  • Ahmed El SisiAhmed El SisiBridges Foundation
  • Mostafa ElganainyMostafa ElganainyNowlun
  • Ahmed FakhryAhmed FakhryScale by AI
  • Yasmine AguibYasmine AguibMagdi Yacoub Heart Foundation
  • Abdelrahman DiaaAbdelrahman DiaaFreelancer
  • Mohammad El-esawiMohammad El-esawiArab AI Club
  • Moustafa EshraMoustafa EshraIBM
  • Ibrahim HabibIbrahim HabibURCA
  • Ahmed AabedAhmed AabedYassir
  • Eyad EldomairyEyad EldomairySix10 Ventures
  • Yasser AbdellateifYasser AbdellateifAndalusia Group
  • Joud KhattabJoud KhattabBidayah Holding
  • Hazem SalimHazem SalimOutline-IT & Dameg
  • Nourah MahamedNourah MahamedNourah Studio
  • Dr. Ahmed ElshikhDr. Ahmed ElshikhITIDA-SECC
  • Belal AminBelal AminBrainsMingle
  • Omar El-ShenetyOmar El-ShenetyZilla Capital
  • Abu Bakr SolimanAbu Bakr SolimanSignalMatrix
  • Ameer SherifAmeer SherifBasharSoft
  • Mohamed NagatyMohamed NagatyExits MENA
  • Youssef HosniYoussef HosniSolita
  • Hend El DamatyHend El DamatyAI Global
  • Islam SaadanyIslam SaadanyForefront Consulting
  • Ahmed ElsherbeenyAhmed ElsherbeenyAmazon Web Services (AWS)
  • Ahmed EzzatAhmed EzzatAI Engineer & Manus Fellow in Egypt
  • Mohamed FaragMohamed FaragEDECS
  • Ahmed AbouZaidAhmed AbouZaidCamunda
  • Dr. Bishoy SawirisDr. Bishoy SawirisGB Corp
  • Fahd HemeidaFahd HemeidaAAST
  • Dr. Fadi AmroushDr. Fadi AmroushHIAST-CIE
  • Moe AshMoe AshThe Catalyst
  • Mohamed MostafaMohamed MostafaWidebot AI
  • Mona AliMona AliMacro Group Pharmaceutical
  • Youssef KamalYoussef KamalPeople of Data
  • Mustafa AliMustafa AliMeta
  • Abdul Rahman AlAshrafAbdul Rahman AlAshrafAI & Digital Transformation Expert and Technology Team Lead & Manager
  • Mohamed ShafikMohamed ShafikEYE Creative Studios
  • Taha AliTaha AliGroHub
  • Ahmed FarisAhmed FarisTeracloud
  • Mostafa HassanMostafa HassanBasharSoft
  • Ayman H.Ayman H.Homains
  • Heba AbdelfattahHeba AbdelfattahBasharSoft
  • Asif ShahriarAsif ShahriarConstructor University Bremen
  • Mohamed ElAswadMohamed ElAswadAswad AI
  • Mohamed SabryMohamed SabryLinkOut & Nabta
  • Mohamed KelanyMohamed KelanyNtegralOne Solutions
  • Dr. Yomna AbdelrahmanDr. Yomna AbdelrahmanUniBw Munich
  • Khaled HeshamKhaled HeshamRobusta Technology Group (RTG)
  • Ehsan SayedEhsan SayedSales Techies
  • Yehya OthmanYehya OthmanBusiness Lobby & Marketing Terrace
  • Omar NasrOmar NasrGlobalAssess360
  • Ziad ElalailyZiad ElalailyPwC ETIC
  • Ahmed El ZoughbyAhmed El ZoughbyUX Labs
  • Asmaa SaadAsmaa SaadGAFI
  • Ezzat EssamEzzat EssamTPP
  • Aya AbdelkaderAya AbdelkaderIntalio
  • Hassan GadHassan GadFgimawya
  • Sherif ShalabySherif ShalabyBig Move Agency
  • Mo FattahMo FattahKeepUp & MIT VAP Finalist
  • Reham SalehReham SalehITIDA-SECC
  • Yousef GamalYousef GamalBrainsMingle
  • Hatem SallamHatem SallamEduSofx
  • Tarek TahaTarek TahaAmtaar
  • Eng. Mohamed OmaraEng. Mohamed OmaraHoopoe Digital
  • Mai MedhatMai MedhatTuner
  • Ebrahim HegazyEbrahim HegazyDark Entry
  • Shereen BadrShereen BadrMedrara Digitals
  • Dorra MlouhiDorra MlouhiAWS
  • Akram MarwanAkram MarwaniCareer
  • Ahmed ElfakharanyAhmed ElfakharanySchuberg Phillis
  • Hany AhmedHany AhmedBeyondAI
  • Abdelrahman OsamaAbdelrahman OsamaMal
  • Sally AlbertSally AlbertEva Pharma
  • Hany SaadHany SaadITWorx
  • Sabrine AssemSabrine AssemUnTap
  • Mohamed ElsherifMohamed ElsherifASaaSI Middle East
  • Hani ShakerHani ShakerAbqr AI
  • Dr. Sumaya IslamDr. Sumaya IslamPaderborn University | gr33nUP
  • Ahmed BastawyAhmed BastawyICEALEX
  • Ola YousryOla YousryTesla
  • Yassir El IsmailiYassir El Ismaili1MoreThing Ventures
  • Malak AbdelghaffarMalak AbdelghaffarThe Builders Sandbox
  • Mohamed AboElKheirMohamed AboElKheirIronclad
  • Hossam ElberyHossam ElberyBasharSoft
  • Samra SalimSamra SalimEX Tesco, Ethos AI
  • Eslam SayedEslam SayedLearnKhana
  • Mahmoud AshrafMahmoud AshrafBasharSoft
  • Bana AlkhaledBana AlkhaledBana Influencers
  • Islam MostafaIslam MostafaKiwi Pizza
  • Mohamed FaroukMohamed FaroukZewail Univeristy
  • Ashraf BacheetAshraf BacheetO7 Therapy
  • Sherouk GhallabSherouk GhallabNoor Edtech
  • Ahmed ElKayeshAhmed ElKayeshRoboPhi
  • Mahmoud ElrefaeyMahmoud ElrefaeySaudi Confidential Company
  • Mostafa ZekyMostafa ZekyZeky Films
  • Ahmed RamyAhmed RamyFastAutomate
  • Kamal GhamryKamal GhamryNinos
  • Mahmoud AbdelhamedMahmoud AbdelhamedConfidential
  • Ahmed EsmailAhmed EsmailEVRAID
  • Anwar AlyAnwar AlyZaher.ai
  • Nader SayedNader SayedTawasul for AI transformation
  • Mostafa MohamedMostafa MohamedAmerican Bath Group
  • Mahmoud AbdellahiMahmoud AbdellahiCairo University
  • Hasan Abo-ShallyHasan Abo-ShallyMicrosoft | ArabAIClub | Hasoub
  • Ahmed AmeenAhmed AmeenITIDA-SECC
  • Dina KhedrDina KhedrBrainsMingle

Who was in the room

Eight kinds of organization, one stage

Government & public sector

ITI · ITIDA-SECC · GAFI · Syrian Ministry of Health · HIAST-CIE

Global tech & corporates

AWS · Meta · IBM · Microsoft · PwC · Tesla · Camunda · FPT Software

AI startups

AIDAChip · WideBot AI · BeyondAI · Zaher.ai · Abqr AI · Oligence AI · Scale by AI

MENA scaleups & enterprises

WUZZUF · iCareer · AvidBeam · EVA Pharma · ITWorx · Robusta · Yassir · EDECS · MEG · GB Corp

Universities & research

Paderborn University · UniBw Munich · Constructor University Bremen · Zewail University · Cairo University · AAST · Magdi Yacoub Heart Foundation

Investors & ecosystem builders

Exits MENA · M Empire · 1MoreThing Ventures · Zilla Capital · iceAlex · Bidayah Holding

International & community networks

Africa Diaspora Network Japan · Arab AI Club · Arab IoT Community · People of Data · Hasoub

Creators & media

Yehia Tech · Bana Influencers · Wajih Alkhiami · Business With Mo · Zeky Films · EYE Creative Studios

90 sponsors and partners

Government · Regional · Strategic · Community
9Sponsors
5Government partners, two in Syria
10Strategic partners
25Regional partners in 7 countries
29Community, media and tech partners
12Student partners

Sponsors · 9

  • WUZZUF
  • Homains
  • AZM
  • CORTX
  • DevOps Hive
  • Maestro
  • Nisbah
  • Praxis
  • SecYour

Government partners · 5

  • ITIDA
  • Information Technology Institute (ITI)
  • Egypt Innovate
  • HIAST-CIE, Syria
  • SMEDCS, Syria

Strategic partners · 10

  • WUZZUF
  • iCareer
  • Manus
  • Startup Egypt
  • M Empire
  • iceAlex
  • UnTap
  • Wrk+
  • Robusta Technology Group
  • Off Campus

Regional partners · 25

  • AI Global, Germany
  • Doroob, Syria
  • The Algerian Developer, Algeria
  • Staff Arabia
  • MRKZ
  • Sanad Youth Foundation for Development
  • NasBoard
  • Techaniat
  • TechRise
  • Entrepioneers 2030
  • Startup Grind Damascus
  • Aleppo Digital District
  • Al Nahda Organization for Development
  • Bana Influencers
  • Accelerate Prosperity
  • Umbrella500
  • Planlyze
  • JCI Aleppo
  • Bidayah
  • Y2AD
  • Student Empowerment & Entrepreneurship Center in Syria
  • C0RE X, Morocco
  • GADI World, UAE
  • Holland Acumen Holding, Netherlands
  • Arab AI Club, Palestine

Community, media, EdTech and tech partners · 29

  • QAF Education
  • LearnKhana
  • English Capsules
  • Next Academy
  • Bytes EG
  • Zaher AI
  • NOOR
  • Not Yet A Founder
  • The Event Talks
  • aSaaSi Middle East
  • People of Data
  • PRDKT+
  • Figmawya
  • Dr. Ahmed El-Shamy
  • EraaSoft
  • MLOps MENA Community
  • ZAWOLF.AI
  • GroHub
  • GTMENA
  • Business Lobby
  • Executive Mastery Camp
  • Linkout
  • Tawasol
  • Leaders in AI Era
  • AI Solutions
  • TechZone
  • DILZ
  • Women in AI
  • GDG Cairo

Student partners · 12

  • GDGoC Al-Azhar University
  • GDGoC EUI
  • IEEE Zewail City
  • SemiColon
  • AIESEC
  • MSP-MIU Tech Club
  • Microsoft Student Club SAMS
  • Youth Scope
  • ACU Masters
  • IEEE MTI
  • Kafr Elsheikh Racing Team
  • IEEE MNU SB

AI enablement partner

Vibe Editing Hackathon

“One idea. One film. Made with Manus.”

Teams directed an AI agent to research, script, design and edit a cinematic film — no camera, editing suite or film background needed. Open to every field, and encouraged to tell stories from the Arab world in Arabic, English or both. The winning films premiered live on the summit's closing day.

See the hackathon
20teams took part
2–3builders per team
$50Manus credits per builder
3winning teams

Prizes · Manus credits for every team member

Second prize$100per team member2
First prize$200per team member1
Third prize$80per team member3

Speaker experience

From first invitation to going live

  1. 01

    Invited

    Personal outreach and one-to-one onboarding for every one of the 135 speakers.

  2. 02

    Prepared

    An interactive, 11-section Speaker Handbook with a personal session finder: date, time, track and co-speakers in one place.

  3. 03

    Promoted

    Ready-to-share promotion assets, so every speaker brought their own audience to the summit.

  4. 04

    Live

    An 11-point pre-session checklist and a browser-based session room: no Zoom, no installs.

A high-reach campaign

LinkedIn · Facebook · Instagram

I ran the campaign end to end — design, copy, publishing and community moderation — with the same posts on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

LinkedIn · 21 Sep – 17 Oct 2026

340+posts
196K+impressions
10.6K+clicks
5K+net new followers
13.3K+page views
44follower countries

55% of followers at senior level or above.

Facebook & Instagram · 21 Sep – 18 Oct 2026

1.59M+views
61.8K+engagements

Views up more than 570× on the previous period.

Platform users2.3× growth
LinkedIn followers6.1K → 11K+
Facebook followers200+ → 5K+
Instagram followers80+ → 1,160+

Day by day

A lineup and an agenda for every night

AI Summit speaker lineup, Sat 10 Oct AI Summit agenda, Sat 10 Oct: today's sessions
Sat 10 OctDay 1 · Opening day · 21 voices · 6 panels
AI Summit speaker lineup, Sun 11 Oct AI Summit agenda, Sun 11 Oct: today's sessions
Sun 11 OctDay 2 · 22 voices · 16 sessions
AI Summit speaker lineup, Mon 12 Oct AI Summit agenda, Mon 12 Oct: today's sessions
Mon 12 OctDay 3 · 21 voices · 16 sessions
AI Summit speaker lineup, Tue 13 Oct AI Summit agenda, Tue 13 Oct: today's sessions
Tue 13 OctDay 4 · 22 voices · 16 sessions
AI Summit speaker lineup, Wed 14 Oct AI Summit agenda, Wed 14 Oct: today's sessions
Wed 14 OctDay 5 · 23 voices · 16 sessions
AI Summit speaker lineup, Thu 15 Oct AI Summit agenda, Thu 15 Oct: today's sessions
Thu 15 OctDay 6 · 22 voices · 16 sessions

Results

20Kregistrations in one month of campaign
570K+minutes watched across 100+ sessions
64countries in the audience
135speakers from 16 countries, including 25 women
90sponsors and partners across government, regional, strategic and community tiers
7 daysa full programme delivered, every session aired
2.3×platform user growth during the campaign
1.59M+views on Meta

What made it work

An outreach engine built on people, not ad spend

Instead of buying reach, the summit borrowed trust: every speaker and partner brought their own audience, regionally and internationally.

135 speakers

Each speaker promoted their own session to their own network, using ready-made promotion assets.

90 partners

Government, regional, community and student partners shared the summit with their members across seven countries.

One campaign

The same posts on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram — 340+ in under a month — for every speaker and partner to reshare.

The result20Kregistrations64attendee countries570K+minutes watched
  1. 01

    One idea anyone can share

    Five tracks every night, one shared Spotlight, then networking: a format people could explain in one sentence and invite others to.

  2. 02

    Every speaker a channel

    135 speakers meant 135 audiences. Onboarding, a handbook and personal promotion kits made sharing effortless.

  3. 03

    Partners as distribution

    Partners in Egypt, Syria, Morocco, Algeria, the UAE, the Netherlands, Palestine and Germany carried the summit into their own communities.

  4. 04

    Regional roots, international reach

    Arab voices alongside speakers from Europe, North America and Asia drew attendees from 64 countries.

  5. 05

    Organic first, paid as a light boost

    The campaign ran on people and partnerships, with very little spent on paid ads.

Let's shape
what comes next.

Begin with a 30-minute discovery conversation, or share the brief for your next initiative.