Ex–Scale AI executive raises $9 million to bring automation to Gulf industries

Bilal Abu-Ghazaleh raised $9 million to build artificial intelligence (AI) systems that automate decision-making in Gulf airports, construction sites, and oil operations, targeting over $10 billion in annual inefficiencies.

The Jordanian entrepreneur left Silicon Valley after nearly a decade to launch 1001 AI. His startup focuses on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), where delays and budget overruns plague critical sectors.

CIV, General Catalyst, and Lux Capital led the seed round. Additional backers include Replit CEO Amjad Masad, DAMAC’s Amira Sajwani, and Lean Technologies’ Hisham Al-Falih.

Abu-Ghazaleh spent nearly a decade building AI systems in America. He joined computer vision startup Hive AI before moving to Scale AI in 2020, where he rose from operations associate to director of generative AI operations. At Scale, he managed the contributor network responsible for annotating and labeling training data.

When Meta invested in Scale AI, the company shifted direction. Abu-Ghazaleh decided to leave and launch 1001 AI.

“Just looking at the top three or four industries like airports, ports, construction, and oil and gas, we see more than $10 billion in inefficiencies across the Gulf alone,” Abu-Ghazaleh told TechCrunch. He pointed to mega-projects where nine out of ten fall behind schedule or exceed budgets.

The startup’s AI platform connects to existing company software and models operational workflows. It then issues real-time directives to optimize operations.

“Today, an operations manager might call someone to reroute a fuel truck or send a cleaning crew to another gate,” Abu-Ghazaleh explained. “With our system, that orchestration happens automatically.”

Unlike most AI startups focused on software tools, 1001 AI tackles physical operations. The company’s team embeds with clients for weeks, running co-development sprints to tailor systems to each operation’s specific needs.

Lux Capital partner Deena Shakir sees major potential in this focus. “We’re extremely bullish on AI that solves physical-world problems at scale—optimizing how airports turn around flights, how ports move cargo, and how construction sites operate,” she said.

The two-month-old company operates from dual headquarters in London and Dubai. This positioning allows access to global AI talent while staying close to Gulf markets.

General Catalyst’s Neeraj Arora praised Abu-Ghazaleh’s experience and regional understanding. “Bilal is building the decision engine to automate that complexity with Scale-proven execution and the regional gravity to make 1001 the platform this market builds on,” he stated.

The startup plans to deploy its first product by year-end, starting with construction firms. Major Gulf airports and builders are already in discussions with the company.

Over five years, Abu-Ghazaleh aims to make 1001 AI the Gulf’s primary orchestration layer for critical industries before expanding globally.