A-typical Ventures Backs Abu Dhabi’s Metric to Transform SME Finance with AI

News from the heart of the MENA startup scene can’t help but catch my eye, and I reckon the recent move by A-typical Ventures is one of those stories that really says something about the state of things. They’ve just announced their investment in Metric, a fintech startup from Abu Dhabi that’s been causing quite a stir with its AI-driven financial intelligence platform for small and medium-sized businesses.

Metric isn’t just another startup trying its luck—these folks have developed “Max,” a Chief Financial AI tool, and what a mouthful that is. “Max” isn’t just a line of code buried somewhere; instead, it acts like a kind of digital business co-pilot, using a mountain of transactional data—over $4.2 billion, if you believe the figures—to give business owners clear readouts on spending, forecasts, and even opportunities for growth. Frankly, if you’re running a business and can have your raw numbers turned into action points, that’s spot on and can save a load of headaches.

Since Metric’s launch in 2022 by Meenah Tariq, Omar Parvez Khan, and Dr. Habiba, it hasn’t hung about. In a relatively short spell, it’s managed to bring on board more than 130,000 businesses across 190 countries. What’s smart, the platform supports both English and Arabic, making it genuinely useful for the diverse fabric of entrepreneurs in our region. Plus, they’re not just about dashboards—the AI marketplace even connects founders to financial products like loans and debit cards.

Investment is always a bit of a group effort, isn’t it? Alongside A-typical Ventures, big names like 500 Global, Hub71, i2i Ventures, and a raft of angel investors have all thrown their hats into the ring. Alina Truhina, A-typical Ventures’ Managing Partner, summed things up, saying Metric solves one of the trickiest SME issues: “turning complex financial data into clear, actionable insights.” On the flip side, Aly El Shalakany—another face from the A-typical team—highlighted their plans to supercharge product development and roll out Max to a wider audience of business owners, especially in the GCC.

I've seen quite a few fintech platforms come through the ranks at Arageek, and, honestly, most fizzle out before they’ve even left the starting line. But something feels different this time—perhaps it’s Metric’s focus on entrepreneurs rather than accountants, or the way their system can pull in all sorts of scattered financial data and turn it into sector benchmarks or forecasts. That’s no small feat for any startup, let alone one that’s still finding its feet.

Even so, it’s not all plain sailing. Scaling across new markets can be a bit of a faff, and keeping that human touch when financial decisions are handed over to AI? Well… I mean, the jury’s still out for a few business owners. But for those who have felt overwhelmed by numbers, tools like Max could be a real game-changer.

If there’s one takeaway, it’s that startups like Metric—fuelled by homegrown ambition and now supported by seasoned investors—are carving out space for themselves, not just here in the UAE but across a much wider stage. That’s certainly the kind of story we at Arageek get chuffed to bits about, seeing founders empowered to turn numbers into real-world progress, typos, hurdles and all.

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