Powering AI Growth in MENA: Financing for the Next Wave
Fueling MENA’s AI, Beyond Equity.
AI in MENA is scaling through landmark projects and state-backed ambition, led by Saudi Arabia’s bold push to become a global hub. PIF’s flagship initiative Humain is building Arabic large language models and AI infrastructure with global partners, securing 18,000 GPUs from Nvidia, a $10B partnership with AMD, $5B investment from AWS, and a $20B datacenter deal with Supermicro and DataVolt.
At LEAP 2025, Saudi announced $14.9B in AI and digital investments, adding to a pipeline that includes a $1B Generative AI accelerator and the rumored $100B “Project Transcendence” to consolidate AI growth.
Across MENA, startups raised $2.1B in H12025, with ~$930M (≈44%) coming from debt, yet AI-specific deals remain over whelmingly equity-driven. This leaves founders with few non-dilutive options, even as their usage-based revenue models; per-token, per-API call, orper-transaction are uniquely suited for financing structures that scale with growth.
Why Usage-Based Revenue Financing Matters for AI
AI companies monetize on a per-token, per-API call, or per-transaction basis. As usage surges, so do revenues, yet financing structures haven’t evolved to match this model. Usage-based revenue financing (RBF) bridges that gap by tying repayments directly to actual usage revenue. This offers AI startups the flexibility to scale without dilution, while giving investors a return profile that grows in sync with adoption.
Key benefits include:
- Aligned Growth: Payments scale with revenue, accelerating during high-usage months and easing during quieter periods.
- Founder-Friendly: Minimal dilution preserves equity for strategic hires and long-term opportunities.
- Capital Efficiency: Startups can fund computing power, R&D, and expansion while maintaining operational flexibility.
- Market Fit: As token-driven and API-based monetization expands, financing linked to these models is perfectly timed.
How It Works in Practice
- Initial Advance: An AI startup receives, say, a $2M facility.
- Monthly Remittance: Each month, a small percentage (e.g., 3–8%) of usage-driven revenue is repaid.
- Growth Alignment: Higher usage leads to quicker repayment; lower usage eases cash flow pressure.
- Completion: Once the agreed-upon repayment cap (for example, 1.5x principal) is reached the facility concludes.
This ensures financing moves hand-in-handwith the startup’s revenue trajectory.
Key Features of the Model
- Flexible facilities from $500K–$5M, with 2–4 year tenors.
- Repayment percentages adapt to revenue thresholds.
- Real-time monitoring via usage dashboards (Stripe, Chargebee, or in-house systems).
- Optional upside: warrants or equity kickers where appropriate.
Why AI Startups Benefit
- Cash Flow Safety Net: Payments shrink or grow alongside usage revenue.
- Minimal Dilution: Preserve ownership for future rounds and strategic partnerships.
- Transparency & Trust: Automated revenue tracking builds confidence between founders and financiers.
A Growing Opportunity
Token-based pricing models show just how quickly AI usage translates into revenue:
- GPT-4: $0.03–$0.06 per 1K tokens
- Claude 2: $0.011–$0.032 per 1K tokens
- Cohere: ~$0.016 per 1K tokens
- Self-hosted Llama 2: as low as $0.00017 per 1K tokens with optimization
As startups harness these models, usage-based financing ensures that funding grows proportionally.
Looking Ahead: Multi-Agent Systems
The next frontier: Multi-agent systems could amplify token usage dramatically, with one request triggering multiple agents and calls. This will create new layers of growth opportunities:
- Higher potential revenues per user
- Rich product offerings with premium pricing power
- Financing structures that adapt to orchestration-based workflows
Final Thoughts
AI in MENA is scaling rapidly, with Saudi Arabia spearheading multi-billion-dollar projects that position the region at the heart of global AI innovation. Yet financing models remain equity-heavy, overlooking the recurring, usage-driven nature of AI revenues. Capifly is introducing usage-based revenue financing as a flexible, non-dilutive option for AI companies; founder-friendly, growth-aligned, and built for the unique dynamics of usage-driven models.
It’s more than capital. It’s a new way to fund innovation in MENA.
Additional resources for founders and startups can be found below: