A group of students from Khalifa University has developed an AI-based startup called Hartum Compliance to simplify cybersecurity compliance for organisations using artificial intelligence and automation.
The platform was founded in 2025 and is currently preparing to launch pilot projects with early partners. It is supported by Cyber E71, a startup ecosystem backed by the UAE Cyber Security Council, and is focused on helping organisations improve their cybersecurity compliance requirements.
The platform is designed to reduce the amount of manual work involved in compliance by guiding organisations through assessments, organising evidence, identifying compliance gaps and generating reports. It initially supports UAE cybersecurity compliance requirements before expanding to international standards such as ISO.
Younes Alawi and CEO Layyal Alhammadi developed an idea after completing an internship in governance, risk and compliance. They noticed that many organisations relied on spreadsheets, emails and manual processes to manage cybersecurity compliance, prompting them to build a more efficient solution.
Hartum Complian includes guided compliance assessments, dashboard-based risk progress tracking, AI-generated evidence, and automated report generation. Future versions are expected to integrate with cybersecurity products to automate evidence collection and support audits.
The startup has received backing from the Khalifa University Entrepreneurship Centre (KUEC), the AWS/CTIB Cybersecurity Startup Accelerator and Cyber E71. It won first place in the cybersecurity category at the Sandbox AQ Winter Entrepreneurship Pitch Competition, receiving AED200,000 in funding support, $35,000 in cloud credits from Amazon Web Services and AED1 million in AWS accelerator startup credits.
The founders plan to build a homegrown cybersecurity solution for organisations across the UAE before expanding into regional and international markets.
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