inDrive Unveils Top 100 Women Entrepreneurs for the Aurora Tech Award 2026, with Egypt Represented
inDrive, the global smart mobility and urban services platform, has announced the Top 100 Women Entrepreneurs expected to make an impact in 2026 as part of the Aurora Tech Award, the world’s only global award dedicated to supporting outstanding female tech entrepreneurs in emerging markets. Egypt has secured a place on this prestigious list.
The 2026 edition of the award recorded a historic level of interest, attracting 3,400 applications from 127 countries, compared to 2,018 applications from 116 countries in 2025. This growth reflects the expanding global footprint of women-led innovation and the rising influence of female founders across emerging economies.
The highest number of applications came from Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Colombia, Egypt, Brazil, India, Chile, Pakistan, and Mexico, underscoring the diversity and geographic reach of women-led technology ventures.
This year’s Top 100 list features startups and projects led by women from across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, including Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and South Africa. These ventures represent ambitious and innovative solutions that contribute to the development of economic and service sectors while delivering tangible impact within their local communities.
Sector Diversity Across Markets
The Aurora Tech Award also highlights the diversity of sectors in which women-led startups are thriving, with trends varying by country:
Nigeria: EdTech, artificial intelligence and machine learning, fintech, energy and sustainability, and agri-food technology.
Kenya: Agri-food technology, health tech and medtech, AI and machine learning, EdTech, and energy and sustainability.
Egypt: EdTech, health and wellness technology, AI and machine learning, quality-of-life and wellbeing solutions, and cybersecurity.
South Africa: EdTech, data infrastructure and analytics, AI and machine learning, agri-food technology, and fintech.
Across the region, most startups operate under a B2B business model, particularly in Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, South Africa, and Morocco, reflecting a focus on scalable solutions designed to serve institutional and enterprise needs in local and regional markets.
Spotlight on Egypt
Among the Egyptian entrepreneurs featured is Nour, founder of Dalila, a women’s health application that is reshaping the concept of female healthcare in the Middle East and North Africa. Through science-based, accessible education addressing sensitive and often overlooked topics, Dalila has become a trusted digital companion for young women seeking support in reproductive health, sexual health, and menstrual cycle tracking.
Key Global Trends
Health technology remains the most prominent sector among startups in the 13 leading countries represented, with 23 health-focused companies featured this year, continuing a trend seen in 2025. HR tech startups were most dominant among Latin American founders, followed by Africa and the Middle East and North Africa.
Agri-tech ventures, primarily from Africa and Latin America, largely adopt B2B models, while EdTech maintained a strong presence with 18 companies, demonstrating the highest adoption rates of AI-powered tools.
Commenting on the announcement, Isabella Ghasemi Smith, Director of the Aurora Tech Award, said:
“The Top 100 women tech entrepreneurs represent just 3% of more than 3,400 applicants, making them truly exceptional founders. They are building strong, impactful companies that deliver real solutions to challenges facing their communities and markets. We are proud to showcase their achievements and the influence they are creating.”
Previous Awards and Next Steps
Last year’s Aurora Tech Award ceremony, held in Cairo, celebrated outstanding women entrepreneurs from emerging markets. Solape Akinpelu, founder of HerVest in Nigeria, won first place, followed by Loreto García Arraztúa, founder of Nido Contech in Chile, in second place, and Shreya Prakash, founder of FlexiBees in India, in third place. Fourth and fifth places went to Laura Velásquez Herrera of Arkangel AI in Colombia and Leonie Korn of UpLeap in Switzerland, respectively.
The finalists from the Top 100 list are scheduled to be announced in February 2026, with a global awards ceremony to honor the winners later in the year.
About Aurora Tech Award
The Aurora Tech Award is an initiative by inDrive aimed at supporting bold and high-potential women tech entrepreneurs in emerging markets. Beyond recognition, the award serves as a launch platform by providing non-dilutive capital, direct access to investors and industry experts, and a global entrepreneurial network, empowering founders to scale faster and achieve broader impact.
About inDrive
inDrive is a global smart mobility and urban services platform, with more than 360 million app downloads, ranking as the world’s second most downloaded ride-hailing app for the third consecutive year. Beyond ride-hailing, inDrive offers intercity transportation, delivery services, and financial services. In 2023, the company launched its investment arm, New Ventures, specializing in mergers and acquisitions.
Operating in more than 982 cities across 48 countries, inDrive is driven by its mission to challenge injustice and aims to positively impact the lives of one billion people by 2030, through fair pricing models and impactful social initiatives.