This system runs as a two-week digital bootcamp adopted by a 14-week in-person accelerator in Riyadh.
Worldwide firms should relocate to Saudi Arabia for the in-person section, with Exel supporting the method.
Chosen startups obtain as much as $300,000 per group, cut up between $150,000 in money and $150,000 in strategic in-kind help.
AI is embedded throughout the curriculum, from growth pipelines by way of to commercialisation and go-to-market technique.
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Funding agency Merak Capital launched its Exel by Merak Gaming Accelerator again in 2024 with roughly $82 million, concentrating on early-stage sport studios, publishing platforms, and adjoining companies. However how, precisely, does it work?
This system has run twice, graduated dozens of startups, and reopened functions in April, with as much as $300,000 per group. But questions on fairness, eligibility, relocation, weekly construction and what precisely studios get in return proceed to floor.
As studios throughout the Center East and Africa weigh up whether or not to use for its third cohort, we have damaged down the construction, the cash, the commitments and the areas studios mostly misunderstand.
The fund behind the accelerator
Exel by Merak is the gaming-focused accelerator arm of Saudi Arabia-based funding agency Merak Capital.Â
This system is aligned with Saudi Arabia’s Nationwide Gaming and Esports Technique below Imaginative and prescient 2030, which implies it sits inside a broader state-backed push to place the Kingdom as a worldwide video games hub.
The fund plans to put money into 15 to twenty startups throughout cohorts, with the said objective of manufacturing not less than 15 commercially viable video games out of this system.
What studios obtain
Chosen startups can obtain as much as $300,000 per group, cut up evenly between $150,000 in money and $150,000 in strategic in-kind help. The in-kind portion covers weekly mentorship from video games business and tech veterans, entry to Merak’s associate community (Savvy, Huawei, the Saudi Esports Federation and Microsoft are among the many named companions), and structured help throughout growth, go-to-market and scaling.
In a earlier interview, Exel by Merak CEO Faisal Sedrani described the $300,000 as “catalytic, not symbolic.” The intent, he has stated, is to offer studios runway to hit milestones that unlock follow-on funding somewhat than to fund a full manufacturing cycle.
The construction of this system
The method strikes by way of six phases. Name for functions opens first, adopted by a qualifying and choice spherical. Purposes are reviewed on a rolling foundation, with the group evaluating on group energy, market potential, scalability and technical execution. Founders are additionally assessed on how they method monetisation and long-term sustainability, not simply the product itself.
A two-week digital bootcamp follows for individuals who make it by way of. This section covers preliminary onboarding, coaching and setting strategic targets, and it may be managed alongside present work commitments.
A filtering spherical comes subsequent, the place the highest performers are chosen to maneuver into the accelerator section. This 14-week in-person program in Riyadh is concentrated on commercialisation and go-to-market technique for video games. It requires full-time dedication from the core group, together with the CEO and major co-founders.
Stipend, lodging and journey help are supplied for groups coming from outdoors Riyadh or outdoors Saudi Arabia.
Demo Day closes out the in-person section, with startups pitching their ventures to a curated viewers of traders, stakeholders and publishers. Publish-program help continues afterwards by way of Merak’s community, with continued mentorship, follow-on funding pathways, and business connections.
What a typical week appears to be like like
Contained in the accelerator section, the weeks comply with a constant rhythm. Founders spend time with mentors and business specialists who’ve shipped video games and constructed studios and have one-on-one periods with the Exel group for direct suggestions. Groups run inside hurdle periods to maintain supply on observe and listen to from alumni and founders about what labored and what didn’t.
The schedule additionally consists of hands-on workshops protecting sensible operational abilities, devoted construct time for the product itself, and pitch observe periods to arrange for Demo Day. Pitching is steady all through this system, not only a remaining train.
Eligibility standards
Worldwide firms should relocate to Saudi Arabia for the in-person section, with Exel supporting the relocation course of. Native firms should maintain a sound Business Registration (CR) and Exel will help those that need assistance buying one.
Studios will need to have an MVP, vertical slice or be actively within the growth stage. A robust group portfolio, proficiency in English, demonstrated market potential, full dedication to this system, and clear potential for development and scalability are all required.
Geographic eligibility is broader than the “MENA” label suggests. The primary two cohorts drew greater than 5,000 functions from over 70 nations. Egyptian studios have already gone by way of this system and Sedrani has confirmed Exel is open to African sport studios, citing “robust potential for cross-regional collaboration”. Nigerian, Kenyan, South African and different African studios are eligible to use.
Half-time founders aren’t eligible for the accelerator section. If chosen, the expectation is full-time dedication from the core group.
The cohort roadmap
Exel has mapped out 4 deliberate cohorts. Cohort 1 ran in H1 2025 and has concluded. Cohort 2 ran in H2 2025 and has additionally concluded. Cohort 3 is at present taking functions and can run in H2 2026. Cohort 4 will run in H1 2027 and is, for now, the ultimate deliberate batch, though additional cohorts are doubtless past 2027.
The anticipated outcomes
By the tip of this system, graduating studios are anticipated to launch a cultured gaming product, have a pitch deck and be funding-ready, exhibit income development alongside viewers constructing and key partnerships, and current a transparent monetisation technique.
“The programme empowers you to develop your enterprise and it additionally enables you to determine who you’re as a founder. We are going to poke at your weaknesses and we are going to reinforce your strengths, since you begin with understanding who you’re,” stated Exel by Merak program advisor Kelly Zmak.Â
AI as a core curriculum thread
AI runs by way of the curriculum as a core theme, protecting growth pipelines, go-to-market technique, commercialisation and operational tooling. Studios are anticipated to actively combine AI into their workflows and justify the alternatives they make round it by way of this system’s weekly deliverables.
“A common theme all through this system is AI,” Zmak continued. “We would like you to make use of AI with information and experience, not make selections based mostly on ignorance and concern.”
Frequent founder pitfalls
Sedrani has been candid about the most typical mistake he sees: founders pitching pure artistic imaginative and prescient and not using a business backbone. Traders at Exel need to see how the sport ties to market demand, the way it acquires and retains customers, and the way the enterprise generates income. The accelerator is structured round shifting founders from “constructing a sport” to “constructing a worthwhile firm”.
Purposes for Cohort 3 shut on Might twenty first, 2026. The group evaluates every day on a rolling foundation, so earlier functions enhance the possibility of well timed evaluation. You possibly can apply by way of the official web site.Â
