Morocco’s Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) is planting a flag in the United States, launching a new global hub with offices in New York and Cambridge to forge a more direct connection between Africa’s burgeoning innovation ecosystem and North America’s deep pools of capital, research, and technology.
The move, announced this week, isn’t just another international university branch. Instead, UM6P is positioning its U.S. Global Hub as a strategic bridge. The goal is two-fold: provide a landing pad for African startups and researchers to access U.S. venture capital and industry networks, and create a channel for American innovation to be tailored and scaled for the African continent.
Since launching in 2017, UM6P has rapidly built a reputation as an African-centered research institution focused on impact. With a community of nearly 7,300 students, including 1,000 PhD candidates, the university is doubling down on key sectors like sustainable agriculture, green energy, AI, and water security. It’s also nurtured a significant startup ecosystem, backing over 1,000 founders and idea-holders to date.
But scaling those ideas and connecting them to the global market remains a challenge. The new U.S. hub aims to tackle what the university sees as three structural gaps holding back the continent’s tech ecosystem.
First, it seeks to move African research from the periphery to the center of global conversations. Second, it plans to actively leverage the African diaspora in North America, mobilizing a powerful, but often dispersed, network of talent and capital. Finally, it wants to be a translation layer, adapting global tech breakthroughs for the specific contexts and challenges of African markets.
“UM6P was built on the idea that Africa’s future will be shaped by talent, science, and innovation rooted in local realities but connected globally,” said Mehdi EL KHATIB, the Managing Director of the new UM6P Global Hub U.S., in a statement. “The establishment of UM6P in the U.S. reflects our commitment to building these bridges.”
This isn’t UM6P’s first international foray. With existing branches in Canada and France, the U.S. launch signals an acceleration of its global strategy. By establishing a physical presence near the academic powerhouse of Cambridge and the financial might of New York, UM6P is betting it can create a more structured pipeline for collaboration than currently exists.
The university already boasts over 200 partnerships with global institutions, including several in the U.S. The new hub is designed to supercharge these relationships, moving from ad-hoc exchanges to structured joint research projects and, crucially, creating deal flow for investors looking for the next wave of emerging market innovation.
For the American tech and investment community, UM6P wants to be seen as the go-to partner for engaging with Africa. With Morocco acting as a gateway to the continent, the university hopes its hub will not only funnel African talent outward but also de-risk and guide American investment inward. The real test, of course, will be whether the bridge can bear the weight of two-way traffic, successfully landing African startups on Sand Hill Road’s radar and bringing U.S. tech back to Casablanca and beyond.
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