Marrakech – The Moroccan startup iAvicenne secured first place in the Startup Competition at the fourth Qatar Africa Business Forum (QABF) 2025, earning a $40,000 prize. The competition took place on November 18-19 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The international competition recognized the top 10 African startups for innovation and strategic project impact. More than 200 applications underwent rigorous selection before 10 finalists advanced to the grand finale.
iAvicenne, part of Mohammed VI Polytechnic University’s (UM6P) NextAfrica program, claimed the top honor. The Egyptian startup Wafeeq secured second place, while another Moroccan company, Nexa IA from UM6P’s The Forge program, finished third.
iAvicenne specializes in medical superintelligence technology. The deeptech company operates with an ultra-secure private cloud system designed to reduce physicians’ cognitive workload while streamlining care delivery.
The startup developed a platform supporting doctors in clinical decisions through faster medical analysis and reduced diagnostic errors. The system provides easier access to advanced medical expertise and reliable patient management support while optimizing available medical time.
Othman Harit founded iAvicenne drawing on more than fifteen years of clinical experience in France combined with software development expertise. His dual background enabled him to design and test medical solutions addressing real-world healthcare needs.
“Our technology is designed to assist physicians, not replace them,” Harit stated. “It provides a powerful, reliable, and safe tool capable of supporting them in an increasingly complex medical environment.”
The founder added that QABF recognition confirms their innovations address genuine needs across Africa and international markets. He noted the award demonstrates the importance of partnerships between African, European, and Gulf ecosystems for accelerating healthcare innovation.
iAvicenne operates within the NextAfrica program, UM6P’s acceleration initiative supporting high-impact African entrepreneurs. The program aims to scale local solutions to international markets, addressing African challenges through innovative approaches.
The startup targets African healthcare challenges, including medical specialist shortages and health system overload. Harit’s company embodies UM6P’s vision of transforming regional challenges into opportunities for technological advancement.
“iAvicenne now aims to deploy its solution to millions of practitioners, with a technology adapted to real-world conditions and compliant with international clinical safety standards,” Harit explained.
The competition results reveal a structural shift in Africa’s innovation landscape, challenging the long-standing global tendency to underestimate the continent’s technological maturity.
Solutions emerging in health, agritech, and climate intelligence are no longer peripheral experiments – they are early indicators of Africa’s ability to generate commercially scalable, impact-driven technologies that respond to real market failures.
The strong performance of the two Moroccan winners – both products of UM6P’s acceleration pipeline – illustrates how institution-backed entrepreneurship ecosystems are beginning to function as engines of proprietary innovation rather than mere support frameworks.
It signals a broader trend: African startups are moving from “catching up” to actively shaping competitive advantages in sectors where global demand is rapidly expanding, positioning the continent as a future supplier of high-value, technology-driven solutions rather than a passive consumer of imported models.
