Qme Raises $3M to Fix Appointment Booking Challenges in Africa

Egyptian SaaS startup Qme has secured $3 million in seed funding, led by deep-tech company AHOY. The funding is set to support its AI-driven appointment booking system, which aims to address inefficiencies in service delivery across Africa and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) regions.

A Widespread Problem in Customer Service

Long wait times and inefficient booking systems have been a major challenge in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Qme, which launched commercially in 2023, claims to have reduced wait times from 116 minutes to 14 minutes across healthcare, banking, and government sectors. It also reports a drop in phone booking no-show rates to below 1% and a shift from paper-based queuing to digital alternatives, potentially saving 50,000 square meters of paper.

Investment and Expansion Plans

Qme’s participation in AHOY’s Startup Builder Initiative, which aims to support 10,000 entrepreneurs and 30,000 software developers in MENA by 2030, signals broader ambitions. AHOY, which operates in logistics, aviation, and smart city solutions, is expected to provide Qme with technical expertise and market access.

According to Qme’s CEO and Co-Founder, Maged Negm, the investment will help scale operations and refine AI-driven customer service solutions. While Qme has seen early success in reducing inefficiencies, the funding raises questions about how well it can expand beyond its initial market and whether its model can be replicated at scale.

With growing demand for digital transformation in customer service, Qme’s next challenge will be proving that its technology can sustain long-term impact beyond the initial rollout.