TODAY'S HIGHLIGHT | DUBAI'S STARTUP SCENE ON FIRE
Serhii Horodnii wanted two things to build his business idea: a healthy market of consumers, and cash. Luckily, he found the second thing in a market offering the first. So the Ukrainian entrepreneur is now in Dubai on one of the desert emirate’s few start-up accelerator programmes, developing his idea of using unmanned aerial drones for entertainment. “It’s the kind of place that suits my business perfectly,” says Mr. Horodnii, 33, who received $24,000 from the Turn 8 accelerator programme, which is funded by Dubai ports company DP World and operated by Innovation 360, a private sector start-up consultancy that also runs its own investment and mentor programme i360 Accelerator. For 20% equity in his business, Mr. Horodnii has accessed a small amount of capital, mentors and a new market of high-spending, game-savvy consumers. It is in Dubai where he now aims to launch his idea for a center where gamers control drones that relay their movement and action real time to headsets on the ground.
