500 Global, which had previously invested in PlayAI, shared the news of the acquisition and praised the journey of the founders.

PlayAI began as an effort to address limited access to voice content in regional markets.

Over time, it evolved into a real-time generative voice infrastructure company that caught global attention.

Regina Zurutuza, Partner at 500 Global, remarked:

“What began as a local issue grew into a global voice infrastructure platform, rapidly built by two bold Egyptian entrepreneurs.

Now, they’re becoming part of Meta’s Superintelligence Labs. This reflects the power of global vision.”

500 Global first connected with the PlayAI founders in 2022, when the company was still in its early stages.

The team was exploring how real-time generative voice solutions could change human-machine interactions.

The core idea of PlayAI stemmed from the challenges of limited regional access to digital content, which the founders experienced firsthand.

In a statement, 500 Global noted:

“Mahmoud and Hammad reflect a belief we strongly hold — that solving local problems can lead to building global solutions.”

The financial terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed. The acquisition marks a significant milestone for the MENA tech ecosystem, underlining the potential of regional startups to scale internationally.