Doha – September 8, 2026: HERO, a startup project pioneered by two students and one alumnus from Weill Cornell Medicine-<a href="https://gulfeyenews.com/qatar-event-show-2026-successfully-concludes-the-three-days-of-dialogue-partnerships-and-future-focused-industry-debate/”>Qatar (WCM-Q), advanced to the 2026 EF Hult Prize Global Accelerator, becoming the second team from Qatar to reach this stage of the global competition since 2021.
HERO is one of 21 startups that were selected to participate in the 2026 EF Hult Prize Global Accelerator, a four-week, in-person program held in the UK, which brought together promising student ventures from around the world. The HERO project team comprises final-year WMC-Q medical students Mlaak Rob and Mahmoud Yousef, plus WCM-Q Class of 2026 alumnus Dr. Yousef Al Najjar.
HERO is developing a portable hyperbaric emergency oxygen device designed to improve survival rates for people experiencing heart attacks. The team’s solution aims to make emergency oxygen treatment more accessible and effective, particularly in time-critical medical situations.
The 2026 Globol Accelerator cohort included 21 startups from 13 countries, representing 16 nationalities. The selected ventures are developing solutions across healthcare and pharmaceuticals, climate technology, environmental services, renewable energy, education, and education technology.
HERO’s progress marks an important milestone for student entrepreneurship and innovation in Qatar. As the second team from the country to reach the EF Hult Prize Global Accelerator since 2021, HERO represented WCM-Q, as well as Qatar’s growing student innovation ecosystem, on an international platform. HERO is no stranger to success, having already won the Best Company of the Year award in the university category at the Mubadara 2026 event, held in May by INJAZ Qatar. Rob holds the position of chief creative officer of HERO, while Yousef is the chief executive officer, and Al Najjar is the chief operating officer.
This year, the EF Hult Prize program in Qatar was delivered in full partnership with the Al Fikra Competition. The partnership supported both the Qualifiers and Nationals stages, providing students in Qatar with a strong platform to develop their ideas, compete nationally, and progress through the global EF Hult Prize program. Al Fikra is Qatar’s national entrepreneurship competition, led by the Center for Entrepreneurship at the College of Business and Economics, Qatar University. The EF Hult Prize and the Al Fikra Competition are proud to have supported HERO’s journey and to see the team representing Qatar on the global stage.
The 2026 EF Hult Prize program has progressed through several stages. Approximately 18,000 teams participated in the Qualifiers stage, of which approximately 2,000 advanced to the Nationals stage. From there, 80 startups progressed to the Digital Incubator, after which 21 startups were selected to participate in the in-person Global Accelerator.
As part of the Global Accelerator, the HERO team received intensive mentorship, participated in workshops, connected with industry experts, and learned how to prepare for investor engagement.
Rob said: “The Global Accelerator has been one of the most valuable parts of our journey as a company and as entrepreneurs so far. Being surrounded by such passionate ambitious teams from around the world, learning from experienced mentors, and constantly challenging each other has pushed us to think bigger. More than anything, it has shown us how much stronger an idea becomes when you are surrounded by the right people.”
On August 27, HERO pitched at Google Demo Day in front of a global panel of investors and experts. This allowed the team to showcase its solution, receive valuable feedback, and connect with potential investors and partners from around the world.
Dr. Max Renault, director of innovations in global precision health at WCM-Q, said: “We are immensely proud of the success of HERO and of the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship embodied by our students, Mlaak and Mahmoud, and our alumnus Dr. Al Najjar. To reach the final 21 from an initial pool of 18,000 entrants is a truly remarkable feat and I am very pleased that they found participating in the Global Accelerator so rewarding. We wish them the very best of success as they continue to develop their excellent project.”
Yana Dabaghie, Middle East and North Africa Regional Manager, EF Hult Prize, said: “HERO’s advancement to the Global Accelerator is an important milestone for the team and for student entrepreneurship in Qatar. As the second team from Qatar to reach this stage of the EF Hult Prize since 2021, HERO is demonstrating the ambition, creativity, and global potential of student founders in the country. We are incredibly proud of the team and grateful for our partnership with the Al Fikra Competition, which helped create a strong national platform for students to participate, compete, and progress through the EF Hult Prize journey.”
Al Fikra manager Juha Peralampi said: “We are extremely proud to see HERO progress from Al Fikra in Qatar to the EF Hult Prize Global Accelerator. Their journey demonstrates exactly what we hoped to achieve through this collaboration: to provide talented student entrepreneurs in Qatar with a strong national platform, while also creating a pathway for the very best teams to compete and succeed internationally.”