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About Us

Empowering Global Innovation from Paris to the world

Nest Accelerator is the first transcontinental innovation hub connecting emerging markets to global innovation ecosystems. We empower startups, coompanies, institutions and governments to collaborate across borders through high impact programs, strategic mobility, and access to the world's most powerful innovation platforms.

Headquartered in Paris and Riyadh, Nest Accelerator serves as a launchpad for entrepreneurial success to create a global bridge for innovation.

Our core pillars:

Startup Acceleration: Transcontinental bootcamps, founder mobility, mentorship and Demo Days.
Corporate & Institutional Engagement: Market access, B2B matchmaking and open innovation.
Innovation Diplomacy: Strategic positioning of countries within global tech ecosystems.
Learning Expeditions and founder immersion programs.
Access to Europe's and the GCC top Innovation hubs.

Why Global Ecosystems Choose NEST ACCELERATOR ?

Built for founders, institutions, and future leaders across borders, time zones, and industries.

Strategic by Design

Everything we build from programs to partnerships is structured for long-term global scalability.

Trusted by Institutions

We work hand-in-hand with governments, ministries, and innovation hubs across continents.

Powered by People

Founders, students, policy makers . We don’t just support them. We launch them into real-world ecosystems.

About the Founder - Lamia Hanafi

Lamia HANAFI, Founder & CEO of Nest Accelerator, is also the President of Innovation & Startup Ecosystems at the G100 Women Economic Forum, the most influential international network of women leaders. She collaborates with governments, institutions and entrepreneurs to advance inclusive innovation and empower women-led ventures worldwide.

She is a visionary entrepreneur and innovation strategist bridging ecosystems across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. She created the first transcontinental innovation hub designed to scale startups, support governments, corporations, and promote innovation diplomacy across continents. She is recognised as International Diplomacy Leader 2025 by Arab Leaders Magazine & received the nomination by the prestigious Business Elite's"40 under 40" promoting the 40 most successful and ambitious European young business leaders for 2025.

Her entrepreneurial journey began in 2015 with the co-founding of the startup Lok-iz, France first collaborative real estate tech platform. Her work earned her recognition from Forbes, Challenges, Voice of America and more. In 2017, she was named among Top 100 French Startups by Challenges Magazine, joining elite programs including Oxford Fab Accelerator, Station F, Facebook Startup Garage.

In 2016, she was selected among only 140 entrepreneurs out of thousand applicants worlwide to attend the prestigious Global Entrepreneurship Summit at Stanford University, hosted by President Barack Obama. There she had the rare opportunity to be mentored by the Director of Innovation at the White House: an experience that profoundly shaped her transcontinental outlook and her long-term mission.

That same vision inspired her to launch La French Moroccan Touch in 2018 at Station F, with the support of the Moroccan Ambassador in Paris. This pioneering initiative brought together tech leaders, entrepreneurs, and investors from France and Morocco, creating one of the first platforms to celebrate the power of diaspora innovation diplomacy. Her ability to build influential bridges between ecosystems has remained a hallmark of her career.

In parallel, Lamia has served on several strategic committees advising on startup and innovation policy. Her early success positioned her as a key figure in the French Tech movement.

President Startup Ecosystem & Innovation, G100 Women Economic Forum,

Co-founder of Lok-iz, one of France's pioneering real estate tech startups selected as a Top 100 French startup & Active member of the FrenchTech Ecosystem since 2015 & Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN, Stanford University 2017), alumni Station F (2017)
Former Head of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the University of the King Mohammed VI Polytechnic France, where she led the positioning of the first African university presence at Station F and the launch of the flagship NextAfrica startup acceleration program supporting African entrepreneurs and International startups interested in the african market.
Contributor to innovation policy between The United States, Morocco, Africa, France, and Saudi Arabia
Mentor and board member of several startups
Regular speaker at global forums including Women Economic Forum and institutional Innovation Summits.

With a founder's instinct, a global network, and a strategic vision rooted in action, Lamia HANAFI is not just building ventures, she's architecting the future of innovation across continents where emerging markets are not peripheral, but central.

In 2023, She served as Head of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of the King Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P) France, where she made history in February 2025 by playing a key role in the positioning of the first african university within Station F, the world's largest startup campus in Paris. Drawing on her strong global network, she led the launch of NextAfrica, the first transcontinental acceleration program focused on startups scaling into African markets and led by African diaspora founders and global founders. In less than two years, Lamia transformed vision into execution supporting Morocco and Africa as integral players in the Global Innovation map.

Whether shaping startup policy in Riyadh as part of the French Tech delegation, mentoring emerging entrepreneurs in Latin America, or advising governments on startup ecosystems, Lamia HANAFI is a catalyst for bold, inclusive innovation.

To Make Innovation the World’s Most Borderless Language.

Because progress should travel faster than paperwork.

We accelerate cross-border entrepreneurship — expanding market access, advancing innovation agendas, and putting our partners at the center of global change.

The Impact Is Real. The Growth Is Measurable.

Our partners don’t just collaborate they scale, launch, and lead with us.