Journify secures $4m to advance AI-powered marketing data
First-party data activation platform targets rising acquisition costs
#UAE #funding - US and UAE-based marketing technology company Journify has secured $4 million in funding to advance its AI-powered customer data platform. The investment round was led by Amman-headquartered venture capital firm Silicon Badia with participation from Saudi holding group RZM and other strategic investors. Journify's Conversion API (CAPI) and Composable Customer Data Platform (CCDP) solutions aim to help brands capture, unify and activate first-party data in real-time while maintaining privacy compliance in an increasingly regulated digital landscape.
SO WHAT? - Journify's funding arrives at a critical inflection point for digital marketers facing both skyrocketing customer acquisition costs (up 200% over the past decade) and rapidly evolving privacy regulations. The platform addresses the need for more efficient use of first-party data as third-party cookies disappear and consumer privacy concerns intensify. By promising up to 5x higher match rates and demonstrating 50% ROAS improvements, Journify offers a solution to the challenge of maintaining marketing effectiveness in a privacy-first world.
Here are the key details of the announcement:
Journify has secured $4 million in funding in a Seed round led by Amman-headquartered venture capital firm Silicon Badia with participation from Saudi holding group RZM and other strategic investors. This follows a pre-seed round funded by angel investors last year.
Journify's AI-powered SaaS platform enables real-time data activation across web, mobile, and offline channels, helping brands overcome common challenges like low match rates, fragmented integrations, and complex compliance requirements in modern digital marketing.
The startup has demonstrated impressive early traction, scaling to $1 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) within nine months of its March 2024 launch, indicating strong market demand.
Journify's customer results showcase significant ROI improvements, with brands like Saudi Arabia’s Jarir Bookstore and and Muscat-based Dr. Nutrition reporting a 50% boost in return on ad spend (ROAS) and an 80% reduction in cost per purchase after implementing the platform.
The company deploys advanced AI capabilities including predictive models for user behavior analysis, cross-channel attribution measurement, and real-time data health monitoring with automated alerts to maintain data quality and identify inefficiencies.
Strategic partnerships with major advertising platforms including TikTok, Google, and Snap enhance Journify's ecosystem integration, with personalized campaigns now reaching over 30 million users across the Middle East and North Africa region.
Journify's founding team brings cross-domain expertise, with CEO Taoufik El Jamali and co-founders Omar Al Shoubaki and Amine Chouki leveraging previous experience scaling data-driven marketing solutions across the US, MENA, and Europe.
The company maintains a global footprint with headquarters in both the US and UAE, plus technology development hubs in Morocco and Jordan.
ZOOM OUT - Journify's Seed round follows a number of successful AI marketing and ecommerce fund raises in the Middle East and North Africa, that may perhaps highlight that marketing could be becoming a sweet spot for AI investments in the region. So far this year, Saudi Arabia-based Halo AI raised $6 million to transform brand-creator collaborations; Oman-based ecommerce pricing platform Sampo AI raised $750,000 in its pre-seed funding round; and, in one of the largest early-stage investments in the MENA region, Dubai-based autonomous e-commerce solutions specialist Qeen.ai raised $10 million.
[Written and edited with the assistance of AI]
Read more about recent AI startup fund raises:
UAE-based Qeen.ai secures $10 million in Seed round (Middle East AI News)
Sampo AI raises $750K in Oman’s largest pre-seed round (Middle East AI News)
Halo AI raises $6 million to transform brand collaborations (Middle East AI News)