Global Entrepreneurship and Maker Space Initiative

Name

Global Entrepreneurship and Maker Space Initiative

Legal name

Global Entrepreneurship and Maker Space Initiative

Website

https://gemsi.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Development and Maker Education Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

akta.pro primary industry

Leadership, Management & Teamwork for Business (EDAMAHAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Marketing, Branding & Sales Skills (EDAMAHAG)

Keywords

• Maker space workshops
• Hackerspace development
• Accessible technology education
• Community entrepreneurship programs
• Maker culture promotion

Headquarters

HQ city

Milwaukee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Sponsorships: GEMSI is a fiscally sponsored nonprofit organization that raises funds through donations and sponsorships. They ran a Kickstarter campaign (Baghdad Community Hackerspace Workshops) and accept direct donations via their website. The organization is exploring developing its own enterprise funding mechanism.
2. Grant Funding: GEMSI has received support from organizations such as USAID, which allocated over $25,000 for the first Startup Weekend in Baghdad.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

GEMSI is a fiscally sponsored nonprofit that fosters maker culture and entrepreneurship in the Middle East and North Africa by running free accessible-technology workshops (3D printing, Arduino, e-textiles, screen printing, copper etching), supporting the establishment of hackerspaces (notably Fikra Space in Baghdad and Lamba Labs in Beirut), operating the Rawaya wa Bidaya storytelling program, and facilitating entrepreneurship events such as Startup Weekend Baghdad. All programs are delivered free of charge to participants and funded through donations, grants, and sponsorships.

Product overview

GEMSI is a fiscally sponsored nonprofit organization that supports change makers and their communities worldwide. Rather than a software platform, GEMSI offers a suite of programs and services including: hackerspace development and support (helping establish collaborative maker spaces like Fikra Space in Baghdad and Lamba Labs in Beirut), educational workshops (covering 3D printing, Arduino, e-textiles, screen printing, and more), the Rawaya wa Bidaya storytelling program (collecting and illustrating stories of initiative from the Middle East), and Startup Weekend event facilitation. These programs work together to foster entrepreneurship, maker culture, and community development across the Middle East and North Africa.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rawaya wa Bidaya: A storytelling program to collect and share stories of DIY problem solving and courageous initiative from the Middle East

Products and services

• GEMSI Programming and Workshops Free, hands-on educational workshops covering accessible open-source technologies such as 3D printing (using devices like MakerBot), Arduino microcontrollers, e-textiles, littleBits, screen printing, copper etching, and mobile app development. Designed for young makers and entrepreneurs in the Middle East, particularly in Iraq, Lebanon, and Egypt, in resource-limited and conflict-affected settings.
• Rawaya wa Bidaya (See Feel Do) A storytelling program (also branded as See Feel Do) that collects and showcases stories of courageous initiative and DIY problem solving from the Middle East. Stories are gathered through the TEDx and GEMSI networks via video and text (including Facebook) and showcased during livestreamed discussions to hackerspaces worldwide. Top stories are illustrated by professional comic artists with plans for publication.
• Hackerspace Development Support and facilitation for establishing and growing collaborative maker spaces in the Middle East, including Fikra Space in Baghdad (Iraq's first hackerspace, founded April 2012) and Lamba Labs in Beirut (collaboration with the Karaj Beirut facility). Services include running pop-up hackerspace workshops, providing methodology and training, and connecting local spaces to the global hackerspace network.
• Startup Weekend Baghdad Entrepreneurship event facilitation in Baghdad, organized in collaboration with Startup Weekend HQ. Local participants pitch ideas over a 54-hour period and form teams to develop startup concepts, with a focus on enabling young Iraqi entrepreneurs to build innovation-driven ventures.

Quantifiable outcome

• 13 teams formed from 44 ideas pitched at first Startup Weekend in Baghdad (June 2013)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Startup Weekend HQ (Seattle)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2013GEMSI collaborated with Startup Weekend HQ to organize the first Startup Weekend in Baghdad in June 2013. The partnership facilitated 44 ideas pitched and 13 teams formed, with USAID providing over $25,000 in funding through this collaboration. The event was planned via Skype calls and Google Hangouts with the Seattle-based team.
• Youth Development Initiative (YDI)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerYDI, an Iraqi youth development organization, provided GEMSI with a physical space near the river in Baghdad for daily meetings and activities during GEMSI's operational week. YDI's support enabled GEMSI to meet consistently every day and conduct multiple workshops.
• Institute of War and Peace Reporting (IWPR)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerIWPR, based in a secured area of Baghdad, provided Fikra Space with physical space, supplies, subscriptions, and services. IWPR staff closely followed GEMSI's work and offered unconditional support, including hosting workshops on electronics, screen printing, and other maker activities.
• TEDxBaghdadcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGEMSI has an ongoing collaboration with TEDxBaghdad, working together on the 2-day pop-up hackerspace before TEDxBaghdad events, sharing the TEDxBaghdad network for outreach, and co-organizing events. The TEDxBaghdad team, including Yahya and Abdul Ghany, coordinated GEMSI's visits to Baghdad.
• Lamba Labs Beirut HackerspacecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGEMSI collaborated with Lamba Labs (Beirut hackerspace) to run a month-long bootstrap bootcamp in October 2012, transforming the Karaj Beirut space into a public hackerspace. Bilal Ghalib worked directly with Lamba Labs founder Bassam Jalgha to establish the physical space.
• Builds Hackerspace (Boston)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGEMSI connected with Builds Hackerspace in Boston as part of its effort to link Baghdad's first hackerspace with the global maker movement. Builds provided support and shared their experiences with the Baghdad team.
• NYC Resistor (New York)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGEMSI connected with NYC Resistor during preparations for the World Maker Faire and livestream events. NYC Resistor shared video content about hackerspace activities to support GEMSI's programming.
• MITERS (MIT Hackerspace)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGEMSI connected with MITERS, where Bilal Ghalib had previously participated in 2008. During a September 2012 visit, Bilal received a $10,000 donation from supporter Cody Wilson while at MITERS.
• FabLab Egypt and Giza HackerspaceminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerGEMSI co-sponsored the Fanoos Ramadan Competition in Cairo with FabLab Egypt and Giza Hackerspace. GEMSI member Mahmoud ran the competition which encouraged Egyptians to reconnect with manufacturing roots using rapid prototyping tools.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit): German development agency that runs entrepreneurship, TVET, and youth-employment programs in MENA and other developing regions. Comparable only at the level of funder/operator overlap: GIZ channels the kind of institutional grant funding (analogous to USAID) that GEMSI depends on, and operates adjacent programming in the same geographies.

Direct peers

• NYC Resistor: Long-running Brooklyn hackerspace that shared video content with GEMSI and is part of its global network. Directly comparable as a community maker space offering workshops and tool access to a local creative/tech community.
• Lamba Labs: Beirut-based hackerspace and a documented GEMSI partner. Directly comparable as a Middle East hackerspace offering workshops, electronics, and 3D printing access to the local maker community; shares programming and audience overlap with GEMSI's Beirut activities.
• MITERS: MIT's student-run hackerspace and a documented GEMSI partner (Bilal Ghalib was a 2008 member). Comparable as a volunteer-driven hackerspace offering open access to fabrication tools and electronics, though focused on a university community.
• FabLab Egypt: Cairo-based Fab Lab that co-sponsored the Fanoos Ramadan Competition with GEMSI. Comparable as a MENA digital-fabrication maker space offering community workshops and rapid-prototyping access.
• Builds Hackerspace: Boston-area hackerspace documented as a GEMSI supporter and global-network partner. Comparable as a volunteer-run maker space offering electronics, 3D printing, and craft workshops to a local community.

Broad incumbents

• TechShop (defunct reference): Former chain of membership-based maker spaces providing 3D printing, woodworking, and electronics access. Comparable in core offering (community access to maker tools) but operated a for-profit paid-membership model very different from GEMSI's free, grant-funded model.
• Fab Foundation: Operates the global Fab Lab network of digital fabrication labs spun out of MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms. Comparable to GEMSI in building community maker/maker infrastructure, but operates as a broader incumbent with a worldwide footprint and institutional backing rather than a small volunteer-driven nonprofit.
• Maker Ed: U.S. nonprofit that supports maker education in schools and communities. Comparable mission to GEMSI (empowering makers and entrepreneurship through hands-on learning) but operates at a much larger scale in formal education settings rather than conflict-affected regions.

Emerging players

• Fikra Space: Baghdad's first hackerspace, established through GEMSI's facilitation in 2012. A direct spin-off peer — operates maker programming, Arduino workshops, and screen printing in Iraq along the same model GEMSI helped seed.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/gemsinitiative
• Xx.com/GEMSInitiative

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Global Entrepreneurship and Maker Space Initiative