What Mosul Space does

Mosul Space is a non-profit innovation hub founded in May 2014 in Mosul, Iraq, by Salih Mahmood. It operates Mosul's first dedicated co-working and makerspace facility, providing shared workspace, prototyping equipment, business incubation, hackathons, capacity-building training, and mentorship. The organization targets youth aged 15–30, early-stage startups, and marginalized groups including women across Nineveh governorate, reporting cumulative reach of 10,000+ youth, 5,000+ trained beneficiaries, 100+ startups emerged, and 400+ jobs created.

The hub's core technical assets are physical rather than digital: a makerspace equipped with 3D printers, laser cutters, CNC machines, and electronics workbenches that enable hardware prototyping and fabrication. Programmatic work extends beyond generic maker activity into applied projects, including a UNESCO heritage reconstruction initiative producing 130 bells for Mosul's Old City and a Caritas Czech Republic collaboration on medical device repair. The organization also runs structured incubation programs under USAID's Ta'afi and Tahfiz initiatives and contributes to the UNDP Mosul Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Platform.

The business model is grant-funded non-profit operations. Direct commercial revenue is limited to co-working access fees priced at 5,000 IQD per day, 20,000 IQD per week, and 80,000 IQD per month — small ticket sizes that produce only marginal contribution relative to operating costs. The funding base spans international development donors and corporate philanthropy, with disclosed partners including USAID, GIZ, UNDP, Meta, UNESCO, Caritas Czech Republic, CFLI, and ILO. Recognition includes the Prince Mohammed bin Fahad Foundation award and the AIA AUIS Innovation Award, both received in 2022.

Name

Mosul Space

Legal name

Mosul Space

Website

https://mosulspace.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mosul Space is a non-profit innovation hub in Mosul, Iraq, providing co-working space, a hardware makerspace, business incubation, and capacity-building training to youth entrepreneurs and startups, funded primarily through international development grants from USAID, GIZ, UNDP, and partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Innovation Hub and Coworking Services

SIC

Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744)

akta.pro primary industry

MOOC & Open Course Platforms (EDAFAIAA)

Keywords

• Co-working space
• Innovation hub
• Business incubation
• Entrepreneurship training
• Maker space

Headquarters

HQ city

Mosul

HQ country

Iraq

HQ region

Middle East

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Co-working Space Rental: Co-working space is available for booking at daily, weekly, and monthly rates in Iraqi Dinar. This provides a recurring rental revenue stream from freelancers, entrepreneurs, and startups.
2. Grant-Funded Programs: Operations are primarily funded through international donor and government grants including USAID (Ta'afi, Tahfiz, DCEO programs), GIZ ICT program, UNDP, Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI), and ILO. Programs are project-based with defined outcomes.
3. Meta Coursera Partnership (Free to End Users): Meta partnership provides free Coursera courses to youth. Revenue implication is indirect — drives community growth and future paid service uptake.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Mosul Space operates a non-profit innovation hub in Mosul, Iraq, providing co-working space, a free Open Space, a Maker Space with prototyping tools, business incubation programs, mentorship and consultancy, and hackathons. The hub primarily serves youth, women, startups, universities, and hospitals through capacity-building initiatives funded by international donors.

Product overview

Mosul Space is an innovation and technology hub offering a suite of interconnected services centered around entrepreneurship, technology, and innovation support. The core offerings include Open Space (free communal workspace), Co-Working Space (paid workspace), and Maker Space (equipped workshop for prototyping). Supporting services encompass Consultancy and Mentorship, Capacity Building Programs, and Networking Services. The hub also runs structured programs including Business Incubation (USAID Ta'afi and Tahfiz programs) and Hackathons addressing various community challenges. The ecosystem is designed to support youth from idea generation through to business launch and growth, with physical spaces serving as collaborative environments for learning, creating, and networking.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Co-Working Space Membership Paid co-working workspace offered to individual members, freelancers, and early-stage entrepreneurs in Mosul, with daily, weekly, and monthly membership tiers. Designed to provide affordable workspace for youth and startup founders in a post-conflict city.
• Open Space Free communal workspace available to the broader Mosul community, providing an accessible entry point for individuals who cannot afford paid co-working memberships. Intended to broaden engagement and lower barriers to participation.
• Maker Space Prototyping and fabrication facility equipped with 3D printers, embedded systems, and prototyping tools, used by entrepreneurs, students, and innovators to build hardware and product prototypes. Targeted at hardware-oriented startup founders and makers.
• Business Incubation Programs (USAID Ta'afi and USAID Tahfiz) Structured incubation programs for early-stage startups, including USAID Ta'afi and USAID Tahfiz cohorts, providing mentorship, training, and capacity-building support to participating entrepreneurs. Aimed at founders developing growth-ready ventures in Mosul.
• Hackathons and Innovation Events Time-bound competitive events that bring together programmers, designers, and entrepreneurs to build solutions to defined challenges. Targeted at student developers, technologists, and early-stage founders in Mosul.
• Consultancy and Mentorship Services One-on-one consultancy, mentorship, and capacity-building services provided to startups, entrepreneurs, and partner institutions. Includes training delivery for universities and hospitals as well as guidance for individual founders.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10,000+ young people aged 15-30 reached through programs and activities since 2014
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.

• MetacoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2023Mosul Space partnered with Meta to offer free Coursera courses to youth in Mosul. Courses cover digital marketing, front-end development, and back-end development. This partnership provides free educational content to the community as part of Meta's workforce development initiatives.
• International Labor Organization (ILO)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022ILO partnered with Mosul Space during the CFLI project, providing marketing training to female business leaders as part of the women's empowerment initiative.
• Caritas Czech RepubliccoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Mosul Space partnered with Caritas Czech Republic on a medical device maintenance project aimed at repairing broken medical devices in Nineveh. The Makerspace was used to 3D-print spare parts for devices damaged during the ISIS liberation war. A total of 13 devices were repaired across 4 different hospitals in Nineveh.
• UNESCOmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMosul Space supported UNESCO's project of rebuilding the old city of Mosul and reviving its spirit. The Makerspace team designed, prototyped, and 3D-printed 130 bells in a classical style, which UNESCO installed at the facade of reconstructed houses in the old city.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Oasis500: Amman-based MENA startup accelerator and innovation hub providing incubation, mentorship, and funding access — closest regional peer to Mosul Space's youth-incubation mission.
• Fab Lab (Fab Foundation): Global network of digital fabrication labs equipped with 3D printers, laser cutters, and CNC machines. Most direct structural peer to Mosul Space's Makerspace service.
• MassChallenge: Global zero-equity accelerator providing mentorship, workspace, and programming to early-stage startups. Comparable in offering structured incubation and access to corporate partners to startup founders.
• Impact Hub: Global network of impact-focused innovation hubs offering co-working, incubation, and community programs. Most directly comparable to Mosul Space's combined workspace + maker + community model.
• MIT Enterprise Forum Pan Arab: Regional entrepreneurship competition and capacity-building program for Arab-world founders. Comparable programming, mentorship, and ecosystem-development focus to Mosul Space's incubation work.
• Flat6Labs: MENA early-stage venture accelerator operating seed programs and startup programs across the region. Comparable in delivering structured entrepreneurship programming to founders.
• Wamda: MENA-focused entrepreneurship platform providing content, programs, and ecosystem support. Comparable in supporting startup communities across the region, with overlapping MENA founder and donor ecosystem.

Regional players

• ENACTUS Iraq: Global non-profit running student entrepreneurship programs with active Iraqi chapters. Comparable in delivering capacity-building programming to youth in post-conflict markets, though structured as university chapters rather than a physical hub.
• Rise (formerly Iraq Venture Partners): Iraqi-focused entrepreneurship and SME support organization running programs for early-stage startups. Comparable in addressing Iraqi founder pain points but operating as a regional platform rather than a single physical hub.

Broad incumbents

• Station F: Largest startup campus globally offering co-working, incubation, and corporate partnerships. Comparable as a multi-tenant innovation campus model, though at vastly larger scale and commercial orientation.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mosulspace

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 Mosul Space