Podcast Summary: Born to Disrupt – Venture Building in the Middle East with Oliver Kreusen
In this episode of Born to Disrupt, hosts Mark Walker, Simon Hardie, and Grant Niven are joined by Oliver Kreusen, Partner and Managing Director at Bridgemaker Gulf, to discuss the evolving landscape of venture building, with a particular focus on its rise in the Middle East. The episode explores how venture building differs from traditional startup approaches, the challenges and opportunities it presents, and how AI and talent are reshaping the innovation journey.
What is Venture Building?
Venture building, as defined by Oliver, is the structured creation of new businesses—from identifying a market problem, designing a solution, validating it, and scaling it to become a sustainable and profitable venture. Unlike the traditional venture capital model, which often seeks to create unicorns through high-risk investment, venture building focuses on methodology, collaboration, and long-term value creation.
Oliver makes a clear distinction between the various models often grouped under the umbrella of innovation: corporate venture building, venture studios, consultancy-led innovation teams, and innovation hubs. Each operates with different goals and methodologies, but all share the aim of building viable businesses, often in collaboration with corporates, governments, or private equity.
Growth of Venture Building in the Middle East
Having relocated to Dubai to lead Bridgemaker’s expansion in the region, Oliver reflects on how venture building is taking off in the Gulf. While Europe and the US have established a foundation for innovation and startup support over the past decade, the Middle East is attempting to leapfrog maturity stages, accelerating the development of its innovation infrastructure.
This rapid growth is seen in the emergence of numerous venture studios, consultancies, and government-backed innovation platforms. However, Oliver notes that despite this boom, success requires deep stakeholder alignment, something more complex than in traditional startup models, where founders are typically free to drive their vision forward.
A prominent example cited is Noon, an e-commerce business tailored specifically to regional needs. While it mirrors Amazon in concept, Noon’s success lies in its local adaptation and joint venture backing, making it a flagship case for structured venture creation in the region.
Challenges for Corporates and Family Offices
The conversation also focuses on the appetite for innovation among corporates and family offices in the Middle East. Corporates often struggle with short-term mindsets and competing internal agendas, while family businesses, traditionally rooted in sectors like real estate and automotive, face growing pressure to future-proof their business models.
Oliver notes that succession planning is another key issue. While European families often lack successors, in the Gulf, the challenge is the opposite: a surplus of next-generation leaders, many of whom are highly educated but not yet embedded in their family businesses.
Venture building offers a structured way for these groups to innovate responsibly, drawing on their existing assets while experimenting with new models.
The Role of AI and Talent
A standout point of discussion is the impact of AI on venture building. Oliver explains that Bridgemaker has developed its own AI tool, Torsion, to dramatically accelerate ideation and validation. Tasks that once took months can now be completed in days or even hours.
Yet, he cautions that AI alone is not enough. The key to success lies in human talent—teams who understand how to apply AI meaningfully, validate solutions with real users, and bring practical insight into the process. The combination of structured methodology, AI-powered efficiency, and entrepreneurial talent is what sets effective venture builders apart.
Looking Ahead: A Model for Regional Innovation
The episode concludes with a look to the future. Oliver believes venture building won’t replace traditional startup models but will complement them, especially in regions like the Gulf, where government support, global investment, and an appetite for diversification are aligning to create fertile ground for new ventures.
With the backing of national strategies and ministries, such as the UAE’s Ministry of Economy, venture builders like Bridgemaker are well-positioned to support corporates and family offices in building the next generation of industry leaders—whether in digital, logistics, manufacturing, or sustainability.
