Namya is a new venture that will deliver advanced bioactive products to farmers in Saudi Arabia and around the world – helping them use fewer inputs and grow higher-yielding, more resilient crops.

The agri-food sector is facing immense pressure to meet rising global food demand and ensure food security. Current agricultural practices, including the excessive use of natural resources and overreliance on fertilizers, are harming the environment, contributing to global warming, and underscoring the need for more sustainable approaches to agricultural productivity.

A 12-year research study led by Professor Salim Al-Babili and his team at KAUST identified a naturally occurring plant regulator, Zaxinone, for its role in promoting plant growth and increasing yield.  This discovery led to the creation of MiZax, a groundbreaking compound that mimics Zaxinone’s function while making its benefits more accessible and applicable at scale.

“MiZax is the result of more than a decade of research to understand biological mechanisms that govern plant growth and resilience,” said Professor of Plant Science Salim Al-Babili. “Our goal has been to translate fundamental discoveries in plant science into solutions that can help address agricultural challenges in Saudi Arabia and beyond.” It supports plants by strengthening root biomass, improving nutrient uptake, and promoting branching, delivering measurable improvements in crop vigor, yield, and resistance.

While MiZax was born in the laboratory, SEQUENCIVE is enabling its transition from a lab discovery to a farming application through commercial scale validation and venture building. Realizing the importance of early adopters and market traction, SEQUENCIVE is also bringing in the right offtakers, investors, and partners to achieve nationwide impact and scale it from the Kingdom to global markets.

“Two years ago, we seized the opportunity of MiZax at KAUST as a solution to tackle the current challenges in the agri-food value chain. At SEQUENCIVE, we bridge the gap between proven science and scaling its impact. The framework we built with KAUST is specifically designed to translate proven science from labs to fields, and from Saudi Arabia to global markets."

— Dr. Ayman Karam, Chief Scientific Officer, SEQUENCIVE

This partnership between KAUST and SEQUENCIVE addresses one of the most pressing challenges in modern agriculture and food security. These joint efforts aim to continue translating scientific innovations into commercially scalable agricultural solutions to promote sustainable farming and address Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which aims to combat food security challenges and position the kingdom as a knowledge-based economy.

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