What The Hindawi Foundation does

The Hindawi Foundation is a UK-registered charity (registration number 1181788) headquartered in Windsor with a regional office in Cairo. Founded by Ahmed Hindawi (Executive Chairman) and Nagwa Abdelmottaleb, the Foundation's stated mission is to provide free digital reading content globally. It operates a portfolio of platforms: Booktime, focused on children's reading; Safahat, focused on Arabic literature and cultural heritage; and Folios, an AI-powered translation platform launched in 2026 to scale multilingual content production. The Foundation distributes content across more than 10 languages through a library of 3,500+ books, serving over 300,000 monthly readers across 190+ countries.

The Foundation operates as a non-profit with revenue derived entirely from donations; no commercial products, subscription tiers, or advertising revenue are referenced in the operating model. Content is offered without charge to end users, which positions the Foundation as a public-good provider rather than a commercial content distributor. Distribution is entirely digital, with no apparent physical retail or licensing model. Institutional partnerships with Birmingham City University, Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, PRODOMINICANA, CNL, and Ulverscroft indicate a deliberate ecosystem strategy spanning academic, cultural, and charitable sectors, primarily reinforcing the Arabic heritage and children's reading programs.

The Foundation is supported by a team of 51–100 employees distributed across the UK headquarters and the Cairo regional office. Operational capacity spans content acquisition, translation, software development (including the Folios platform), and partner management. The 2024 mission expansion signaled a deliberate broadening of program scope beyond the original children's reading focus, and the 2026 Folios launch marks the Foundation's most significant product-side investment in scaling multilingual content creation through automation.

Name

The Hindawi Foundation

Legal name

Hindawi Foundation

Website

https://hindawi.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Hindawi Foundation is a UK-registered charity that provides free multilingual digital reading content to over 300,000 monthly readers across 190+ countries, operating platforms such as Booktime (children's books), Safahat (Arabic literature), and Folios (AI-powered translation), funded entirely through donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital Publishing and Charitable Reading Platforms

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (519)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Reading Comprehension & Close Reading Enrichment (EDAMAJAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Learning Content Bundling & Subscription Passes (All-Access Libraries) (MPACALAL)

Keywords

• Digital publishing platform
• Children's book publishing
• Arabic digital library
• Ai translation tools
• Nonprofit literacy programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Windsor

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations: The organization operates as a registered charity funded entirely by donations. Accepts one-time and monthly donations in multiple currencies (USD, AED, DZD, EGP, EUR, GBP, MAD, QAR, SAR) via credit/debit card, wire transfer, and PayPal. Donors can direct contributions toward specific books, languages, or projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Hindawi Foundation is a registered charity that provides free digital access to books worldwide through three platforms: Booktime (illustrated children's books in multiple languages), Safahat (an Arabic literature library including Nobel laureate works), and Folios (an AI-powered translation tool). All content is offered free of charge to end users, funded entirely by donations, with the mission of removing financial and linguistic barriers to reading.

Product overview

The Hindawi Foundation operates a portfolio of interconnected reading access initiatives. Booktime is a charitable digital publisher offering illustrated children's books in 9+ languages via mobile app and web platform. Safahat is an Arabic literature library providing free access to diverse Arabic works including Nobel laureate publications. Folios is an AI-powered translation tool that enables users to create book translations across languages. Together, these products work to eliminate financial and geographic barriers to reading, with Booktime and Safahat providing the content library while Folios extends accessibility through translation capabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Booktime: A charitable digital children's book platform offering highly illustrated books in multiple languages for free, accessible via a mobile app and web platform.
• Safahat
• Folios

Products and services

• Booktime A charitable digital publishing platform specializing in illustrated children's books available in multiple languages including Arabic, English, Portuguese, Spanish, and Japanese. Delivered via a dedicated mobile app and web platform, offering free access to diverse reading materials for children globally.
• Safahat A diverse digital library providing free access to literature in Arabic, including works by Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz. Offers a wide selection of Arabic literature available for free download and reading.
• Folios An AI-powered translation platform that empowers users to create book translations, enabling readers to access books in their preferred language by breaking down linguistic barriers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 20% reduction in mortality and depression rates in adults who read books
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Birmingham City UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 May 2026Partnership supporting emerging illustrators through the 'From Brief to Publication' assignment where BCU Illustration students illustrate manuscripts for Booktime. Creators whose work stands out may be commissioned to complete illustrations for published books.
• CNL (Gaelic Books Council)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Booktime to support translation of books into Gaelic, enabling Gaelic-speaking children to access illustrated children's literature in their native language.
• Fundação Calouste GulbenkiancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting translation of books into Western Armenian for Safahat, preserving cultural heritage through accessible literature.
• PRODOMINICANAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting audiobook production for Safahat, expanding accessibility of Arabic literature through audio format.
• UlverscroftminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting Hindawi Foundation's mission to spread the joy of reading globally.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Internet Archive: Non-profit digital library offering free access to millions of books, cultural artifacts, and web archives. Directly comparable mission to make content freely accessible globally, with a much larger catalog and brand recognition.
• Project Gutenberg: Free ebook platform offering 70,000+ public domain books globally. Comparable free distribution model targeting global readers, though focused on public domain Western literature rather than Arabic or children's illustrated content.
• Worldreader: Non-profit providing free digital books to children and families in developing countries via mobile reading programs. Directly comparable donation-funded model and target demographic.
• Library For All: Non-profit digital library providing free ebooks to readers in developing countries. Directly comparable donation-funded free reading model targeting low-bandwidth and underserved geographies.
• African Storybook: Non-profit creating open-access illustrated storybooks for African children in multiple languages. Comparable free children's literacy model with focus on underrepresented languages and emerging markets.
• Pratham Books' StoryWeaver: Non-profit multilingual children's book platform offering free illustrated stories in 200+ languages. Highly comparable mission to provide free, multilingual reading material to children globally.

Broad incumbents

• Khan Academy: Large non-profit offering free educational content across multiple subjects and languages. Comparable free education mission at significantly larger scale, with broader subject coverage and stronger brand.
• Epic!: Children's digital library offering illustrated books and audiobooks via subscription. Comparable target audience and illustrated content type, but commercial model rather than free/charitable.

Others

• Storytel: Subscription audiobook and ebook platform operating across multiple markets. Adjacent digital reading industry, but commercial subscription model and significantly broader catalog of millions of titles.

Regional players

• Kitab Sawti: Arabic-focused audiobook and ebook platform serving the MENA region. Regional overlap in Arabic content audience but commercial subscription model targeting paid Arabic-speaking consumers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hindawi-foundation

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 The Hindawi Foundation