MENA Startups to Watch
Aly Magdy, founder of the startup Seavo, succeeded in manufacturing Orca Elite, the first environmentally friendly individual electric water vehicle by pure Egyptian hands, and the 28-year-old entrepreneur was able to penetrate the field of marine equipment industry, and was able to produce a versatile marine scooter, with specifications based on the concepts of sustainability and green economy, as the idea relied on the use of energy that does not cause any carbon emissions, and takes into account the social, economic and environmental impact. Rasmal interviewed Magdy to learn about Seavo’s experience and journey in the startup industry.
Let’s first get to know Aly Magdy, founder of the startup Seavo?

I am the founder of Seavo. I started my journey when I was a child. I had a hobby of disassembling toys and turning them into other things, this led me to study mechatronics engineering and get a bachelor’s degree in this discipline. After graduating, I joined a number of research groups in the biomedical sector where I specialized in the development of biomedical devices and solutions, and we were developing an automated system for HCV detection and diagnostic kits. From here, I began to notice the gap between research in laboratories and market needs, and the volume of science that is not activated to serve people, and I began my attempts to develop research outputs and turn them into products that meet the needs of the market.
What drew you to the start-up sector?
When I discovered the link between the market and the importance of my research for society, my passion began to increase not only regard to engineering and science, but also to the importance of transforming these ideas and knowledge into material things that benefit people, this prompted me to study MBA at the American University in Cairo, in an effort to transform all the theoretical sciences I learned into ideas and applied practices that are closely linked to serving the needs, and my presence in all the different places I worked for helped me, where I was developed with researchers and professors who are experts in their engineering and medical fields and have a great passion for turning ideas into reality that serves their environment.
When did the implementation of Seavo begin, and how did the concept originate?
I am a person with a great passion for the field of automation and robotics in general and marine robotics in particular, and about five years ago the idea of Seavo began to appear and consider it the marine version of the electric car Tesla, where Seavo adopts a vision that seeks to convert small marine mobility vehicles into electric-powered devices, and Orca Elite comes as the first product produced by Seavo in the marine mobility sector. But our goal is more than just a single product, we are working to be the leader in sustainable eco-friendly electric marine mobility.
Could you elaborate on the features of Orca Elite, Seavo’s original product?

Orca Elite is an electric water scooter that is very similar to a jetSki, but in a small and light size that can be carried, transported and stored in a space that does not exceed the size of an average suitcase, Orca Elite can be used either to swim on the surface of the water at a dolphin speed of up to 21 km per hour, or to dive to great depths of up to 30 meters for professional divers, and the scooter has a fast charging feature, as it takes 60 minutes to charge and enables you to use it for 75 minutes.
The Orca Elite scooter is environmentally friendly and does not cause any carbon emissions, and it also takes into account the highest standards of safety and security for its users through its engineering characteristics and advantages that are designed with great precision to be helpful for its user, as Orca Elite can be used as a buoy that helps its user to float on the surface of the water, as it is prepared for rescue and diving purposes and many uses related to aquatic and marine life.
How much does the market need Orca Elite, in your opinion?
We have realized the market’s need for a product like Orca Elite and other ideas that Seavo has because our vision is greater than just creating a device used for entertainment in water games and tourism, as the maritime industry and shipping are one of the largest sectors that people rely on in terms of supply chains around the world, and the lives of many communities depend on marine life, and if we look at all the goods that the world needs, we will find that they depend on maritime mobility. There are also many fields and economies based on marine life, such as fishing, marine research, reconnaissance and tourism, which gives us an opportunity to realize the ideas we adopt and want to turn them into market products that benefit society and take into account environmental standards.
Speaking of solutions, What tactics and methods does Seavo use?
The Issue began to emerge with the signing of the climate agreement that aims to move towards a green economy and sustainable energy by 2040, which resulted in treaties that will reduce fuel consumption and the use of oil in power generation, and therefore our need for new technology runs vehicles without any carbon emissions, which has made many revolutionary ideas related to the future mobility based on clean energy a reality and witnessing currently as Seavo.
Why did you originate the approach in Egypt?
The Egyptian Ministry of Environment earlier decided to close some marine areas due to high carbon emissions to protect coral reefs, which had an impact on the surrounding ecosystem and other industries like tourism, hotel occupancy, employment, and direct and indirect supply chains related to this marine environment. This awareness that protecting the environment has an impact on other industries led us to think of a solution through which we can penetrate the field and emerge and uniqueness in this part of the market by producing carbon-free vehicles that preserve the environment and help revive tourism and other maritime practices.
How did you come up with this idea and bring it to life?
We decided to take advantage of our engineering expertise in water robots, and we worked to bring the Seavo Orca Elite electric water scooter to the market, where we started to adopt a sustainable environmental concept, and directed it to the tourism sector in the first place, and we were helped by the lack of many competitors in this field, and high prices of competing products if compared to the reasonable Orca Elite price, all of this helped us to achieving a 100-ton reduction in carbon emissions in some places that were dependent on water vehicles Oil-powered, in addition to the feasibility of the economical uses of Orca Elite, where a traditional waterscooter, for example, requires fuel that may cost about $ 16 while the Orca Elite is charged for less than a quarter cent, which is a significantly economical difference both during uses and even the cost of purchase compared to competitors.
The most crucial elements for any product’s success are maintaining control over product quality standards and taking user experience and safety into mind. How did Seavo at Orca Elite fulfil these demands?
Manufacturing is one of the biggest challenges we face as a company producing hardware, as the process is long, complex and requires attention to every detail. I also learned that these results decrease the investors in this field in the Middle East and North Africa, which has a negative impact on the issue of settling the hardware and equipment industry in the region. However, despite these challenges, we were able to succeed because we concentrated on our strengths, of design quality, engineering performance and the development of electric jet motors to produce the highest possible underwater power.
We are a team have the experience to develop technology, produce the prototype and carry out operation to reach the next stages, and the first steps were based on reaching competitors, studying the market, knowing suppliers and experts in this field around the world, and we were able to identify and learn from the experience of experienced people.
The experimentation stage and safety regulations have been followed later. Since we had standard specifications that adhered to the highest quality standards regarding the design of Orca Elite, we turned to certain manufacturers at that time to make some parts according to our demand through the experts of our technical team.
Are there any additional applications for the Orca Elite aside from tourism and recreation?
Before the uses of Orca Elite in entertainment and tourism, its uses came mainly for the purpose of rescue, and the main focus was on the remote control function and the engineering application of this use without focusing on design, as the wireless control of the water scooter can reach anyone in a difficult situation in the water, but one of the challenges we faced was the issue of trust in the Arab product, but we have come a long way in achieving trust, and now we prove that Orca Elite is A multifunctional device that can be used in more than one way to meet the needs of different sectors of marine life, and we are now working on Orca Elite accreditation in both reconnaissance, marine research, salvage, fish farms, as well as recreational and tourism uses.
Where is Orca Elite made at the moment?
We can proudly state that the original Orca Elite was developed, designed, produced, and put together in Egypt, but as we move toward producing in larger quantities, we will rely on a range of different countries to produce and put together, including the lithium batteries we import from Samsung, where we use the same type and technology of electric car batteries, and other technologies that are not readily available within the region’s industries.
What potential markets are there for Seavo Mobility products?
We started from the Egyptian market, which is a promising market for us due to several factors, the first of which is that we run Seavo from Egypt, and that our beginning was in the Egyptian market where Orca Elite was tested, which allowed us to make a network of relationships that can be greatly exploited, not to mention our understanding of the Egyptian market problems that Seavo products will be a solution to.
Now we look at targeting the GCC market, which makes us keep in mind that our accreditation certificates comply with the requirements of the GCC standards as well, and during the coming period, we will be present in Jeddah at King Abdullah University, which we will explore the Saudi and GCC market, as well as we put our eyes on some African countries as a potential and promising market that we look forward to contributing to providing solutions to it.
Even though the Orca Elite water scooter is less expensive than its competitors, many individuals still find it to be pricey. Have you found a way to go past this?
This is accurate, which is what prompted us to consider offering a participatory use solution. Since not everyone can afford to purchase Orca Elite for a short time, like two weeks, we are currently working on an ideal solution through a smart digital mobile platform that will allow people to share the product for a reasonable price. Partnerships will also be formed with partners in resorts and coastal areas to provide the product and make it available for hourly or daily rental. We can simply track all of our products thanks to location-tracking technology, increasing the reach of our water scooter users at the lowest possible cost and without harming the environment.
For any entrepreneur, funding is one of the hardest obstacles. How has Seavo approached this problem?
We chose to manufacture hardware in the maritime industry, which is closely related to tourism, in light of a global pandemic that threatens the stability of the world, and all these factors have made it very difficult to attract funding. In general, there is a great fear of funding related to the manufacture of equipment and devices, with the majority of the support being directed to softwares. I believe we have chosen all the options that make investors afraid to invest in Seavo.
I took a chance and jumped into the unknown because I believed in the idea and spent a lot of my own money to win investors’ trust, but over time I realised that not all the investors I reached out to were the right ones for me. Investing is more than just raising money; it’s a long-term partnership between the entrepreneur and the investor who needs to have experience, and know-how that add to the entrepreneur’s ambition and fundamental principle.
We started talking to investors outside the region when we reached a high level of confidence in the product, customer experience, and design. From there, we started getting good feedback and raising money, which allowed us to be heard by other investors. We are currently in the pre-seed funding stage and recently closed seed funding round in the hopes of obtaining more funding to grow and realise more ideas.
What are Seavo’s most significant recent advancements?
By attending the Web Summit, the largest technology conference in the world, in November 2022, Seavo made a significant step forward. We were chosen as one of the top 20 (Machine Demo) hardware manufacturers, placing fourth on this list, which is a crucial sign that we are moving in the right direction.
Based on your knowledge and experience What is the startup’s cornerstone?
Work collaboratively with other experts, never work alone, and never assume that all of your ideas will turn out perfectly. Every viewpoint that is different from your own is crucial to your startup journey and will point you in the proper direction as you work toward your desired vision and goal.
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