u/shaj_jafru

Hey everyone,

I’m currently raising a pre-seed round for a MedTech startup in Riyadh. We’ve had a string of meetings with a few local investors/VCs, and we have hit a wall that I’m struggling to navigate.

We are now 3+ meetings deep with the same group. They’ve seen the deck, the business model, and the high-level roadmap and even our working model prototype. Now, they are digging into the granular IP - proprietary data models, technical architecture, and the "under the hood" mechanics that make our product clinical-grade.

The issue: They are flat-out refusing to sign an NDA.

I understand the global VC standard is "we don't sign NDAs because we see too many deals," but at the pre-seed stage, asking for a full technical deep-dive on verbal trust alone feels like a massive risk. We’ve told them that any further disclosure requires some form of legal protection, but they keep pushing for "full transparency" to move forward.

Questions for the community:

1. Is this a red flag or just "The Saudi Way"? Has anyone else in the KSA ecosystem had investors push this hard for IP details without a Term Sheet or NDA?
2. How do you draw the line? How do you prove you have the "secret sauce" without giving them the recipe before they've even committed a single Riyal?
3. The "Fishing" Concern: At what point does Due Diligence turn into "IP Fishing" (gathering info to give to a more established portfolio company)? which I have seen happened.

As a founder, I want to be a "bridge builder" and show I’m easy to work with, but I can’t shake the feeling that I’m being asked to hand over the keys to the kingdom for a chance at a follow-up.

Would love to hear from other founders-how did you handle the "Deep Dive" phase without an NDA?

Hey everyone,

I’m currently raising a pre-seed round for a MedTech startup in Riyadh. We’ve had a string of meetings with a few local investors/VCs, and we have hit a wall that I’m struggling to navigate.

We are now 3+ meetings deep with the same group. They’ve seen the deck, the business model, and the high-level roadmap and even our working model prototype. Now, they are digging into the granular IP - proprietary data models, technical architecture, and the "under the hood" mechanics that make our product clinical-grade.

The issue: They are flat-out refusing to sign an NDA.

I understand the global VC standard is "we don't sign NDAs because we see too many deals," but at the pre-seed stage, asking for a full technical deep-dive on verbal trust alone feels like a massive risk. We’ve told them that any further disclosure requires some form of legal protection, but they keep pushing for "full transparency" to move forward.

Questions for the community:

1. Is this a red flag or just "The Saudi Way"? Has anyone else in the KSA ecosystem had investors push this hard for IP details without a Term Sheet or NDA?
2. How do you draw the line? How do you prove you have the "secret sauce" without giving them the recipe before they've even committed a single Riyal?
3. The "Fishing" Concern: At what point does Due Diligence turn into "IP Fishing" (gathering info to give to a more established portfolio company)? which I have seen happened.

As a founder, I want to be a "bridge builder" and show I’m easy to work with, but I can’t shake the feeling that I’m being asked to hand over the keys to the kingdom for a chance at a follow-up.

Would love to hear from other founders-how did you handle the "Deep Dive" phase without an NDA?

Hey everyone,

I wanted to circle back and say a massive thank you to this community. When I posted a few days ago about the struggles of navigating the VC and startup landscape here as an expat founder, I expected maybe a couple of pointers.

Instead, the response has been honestly overwhelming.

A few updates since then:

• My calendar for the next few weeks is officially at capacity with meetings.
• I’ve been reached out to by not just investors, but seasoned medical professionals who are genuinely passionate about pushing the digital health space in Saudi Arabia to a world-class level.
• The most surprising (and encouraging) part? Finding so many people who didn’t just want to talk numbers, but actually got the vision for what we’re trying to build.

It’s easy to feel like you’re shouting into a void when you’re bootstrapping in a new ecosystem, but the conversations I’ve had over the last 48 hours have completely changed my perspective on the "right rooms" in KSA. It turns out, some of those rooms are right here on Reddit.

We still want to hear from you: While the next few weeks are quite full, we are still incredibly eager to connect and discuss with as many like-minded people as possible. Whether you are in healthcare, tech, or the investment space, if you’re passionate about the future of digital health in the Kingdom, please don't hesitate to reach out. It might take us a little longer to find a slot on the calendar, but we value every single one of these connections.

I’m heading into a very busy stretch of demos and discussions, but I’ll do my best to share what I learn along the way for other founders who might be in the same boat.

To everyone who offered advice, made an intro, or just sent a word of encouragement, thank you for making the ecosystem feel a lot stronger and much more welcoming.

Let’s build. 🇸🇦🚀