What I Did Next

This week, I’m sitting down with Karim Mekhtigian and Mohamed Fares, two of the visionary architects behind Cairo’s premier design firm, Alchemy alongside Emy Hussein. Together, they have spent years shaping the architectural landscape in Egypt, setting new standards of quality, style and craftsmanship.

In the first of two episodes, we talk about how they each came to architecture and design, and then joined forces to create a partnership that spans two decades. On part two next week, Karim & Fares tell me about their design philosophy, and how they built a brand that became a move...

Ramy Adeeb, founder & managing partner of 1984 Ventures, is back for an Encore episode to talk about what he’s been upto since 2023. He talks about why he’s excited about AI in legacy sectors but worried about unemployment. He also takes on our signature lightning round.

This episode is part of Encore, where I check-in with some of your favourite WIDN alumni. We’ll continue this segment with more of the show’s alumni, so stay tuned.

We’re continuing my conversation with Dina H. Sherif, talking about the shift from aid to agency, AI and regulation, and entrepreneurship as a national competitiveness strategy.

Dina has served as the Executive Director of the MIT Kuo Sharper Center for Prosperity and Entrepreneurship since 2019. You can catch the first part of our conversation in your podcast app or on our website.

I’ll be back next week with an Encore episode with founder of 1984 Ventures, Ramy Adeeb on everything he’s been up to since 2023.

This episode is brought to you...

I’m joined by Dina H. Sherif about entrepreneurship and ecosystem building in growth markets. Dina has served as the Executive Director of the MIT Kuo Sharper Center for Prosperity and Entrepreneurship since 2019. She also talks about her own entrepreneurship journey with Ahead of the Curve, and her personal experiences with loss.

We’ll continue the conversation in Part 2 about the shift from aid to agency, AI and entrepreneurship as a national competitiveness strategy.

This episode is brought to you by:

I recently moderated a panel about how AI is being applied across different sectors like media and finance, how investors are looking at AI companies and the role of telecom in enabling AI adoption. My panelists was made up of a number of the show's alumni including Ahmed Alfi (Chairman, Sawari Ventures), Amy Mowafi (Co-founder & CEO, MO4 Network), Mounir Neamatalla (Founder & CEO, MNT Halan) and Karima El-Hakim (Partner for Africa, Plug and Play Tech Center), and Head of Cloud Software and Services for Ericsson North Middle East, Amer Sakkijha.

This panel was part of our partnership with...

Today I’m bringing you a special episode with our sponsor EFG Holding. I recently interviewed Karim Moussa, Co-CEO of EFG Hermes Buy-Side, Head of Private Equity & Asset Management & CEO of Vortex Energy. Karim tells me how he got started in private equity, and how the thesis of investing with purpose led EFG to expand renewables, education and healthcare.

This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One, your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today!

On the second part of my conversation with Youssef Salem, we’re talking about AI, energy security and the future of the region. Youssef also tells me why the younger generation needs to prepare for greater competition in the AI age and how he's working to inspire them.

Youssef Salem is the CFO of ADNOC Drilling. ADNOC is the UAE’s primary oil company and 12th largest in the world in terms of production. You can also watch the first part of our conversation where we talk about his personal and professional pivots in your podcast app or o...

I‘m delighted to be joined by Youssef Salem, CFO for ADNOC Drilling. ADNOC is the UAE’s primary oil company and 12th largest in the world in terms of production.

I’ve followed Youssef for quite some time now and in addition to his many professional accomplishments, he’s a wonderful role model for the younger generation entering the corporate world.

On this first of two episodes, we talk about his personal and professional pivots that brought him to where he is today, and the impact of the recent war on the UAE in particul...

We’re continuing my conversation with Nabila Abdel Nabi, Senior Curator of International Art at Tate Modern and Lead of the Hyundai Tate Research Centre: Transnational. On this episode, we talk about what those specialisations really mean, the paradigm shifts happening in the art world, and how a curator like Nabila collects feedback from the Museum’s audience.

This episode is brought to you by:

I’m joined today by Nabila Abdel Nabi, Senior Curator for International Art at Tate Modern and Lead of the Hyundai Tate Research Center: Transnational. When Nabila and I first met a few years ago I was immediately impressed by her sincerity and depth. She is thoughtful and intentional in how she interacts with the world and those qualities make for deep and interesting conversations. 

We talk about her curatorial work, in particular her focus on transnational and transcultural approaches to art history and the importance of better institutional support for parents. 

On Part 2 of our...

I’m re-connecting again with one of my first guests, Jalal Abu-Gazaleh & Dalia Sultan, co-founders of Gourmet Egypt. The headline news since we first spoke in 2021 is that the company went public earlier this year! 

Tune in for the inside story of their expansion and IPO.

This episode is part of Encore, where I check-in with some of your favourite WIDN alumni. We’ll continue this segment with more of the show’s alumni, so stay tuned.

Chapters:

0:00 Coming up..

13:27 The IPO Journey

31:53 Balancing marriage and bus...

We're continuing my conversation with journalist & best-selling author of Prisoners of Geography, Tim Marshall. On this episode, Tim tells me how the journalism landscape has changed, and the importance of geographical context in understanding current affairs and geopolitics.

I’ll be back again next week with a special Encore episode with two of my earliest guests—Jalal Abu Ghazaleh and Dalia Sultan, co-founders of Gourmet Egypt—and the amazing story that led to their incredible IPO earlier this year.

Chapters:

0:00 Coming up...

10:40 The importance of geography in current affairs

15:2...

Tim Marshall joins me on the show this week to talk about his journey from starting out with the British Royal Air Force to his three-decade career in journalism and now best-selling author of ‘Prisoners of Geography’.

We also talk about the importance of understanding geography and how that intersects with current affairs and geopolitics. This is particularly relevant considering the ongoing war in the Middle East. More on that in Part 2 which comes out next week. 

This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One, your one app for investing in more than...

I’m continuing my conversation with Thuraya Ismail, CEO of Mentor Arabia, an organisation dedicated to improving the well-being of the Arab youth. On this episode, Thuraya shares her insights on drug prevention, overcoming stigma and how this work intersects with her other passion for arts & film.

Chapters:

0:00 Coming up

3:27 Tackling drug prevention

12:12 Impact of Saudi Vision 2030

14:14 Supporting youth through arts

16:13 Expanding Mentor Arabia

This episode is brought to you by:

I’m delighted to welcome Thuraya Ismail. She's the CEO of Mentor Arabia, an organisation dedicated to improving the well-being of young Arabs in general, and towards drug prevention in particular. Since its launch in 2006, the organisation has reached more than 1.5 million beneficiaries and now operates across 12 countries. Stay tuned for more on that in Part 2 of our conversation next week.

I’m really impressed with Thuraya’s work, and I was happy to sit down and get a real in-depth look at her personal journey, including losing her father last year, and her work to mentor the yo...

On this episode, you'll hear about the incredible message through art with designer Nada Debs and entrepreneur Sarah Beydoun, and the importance of preservation from Omniya Abdel Barr and artist Louis Barthelemy. This episode is part of our new segment, Double-Take, where I take a deep-dive into a single topic and connect the dots between some of our best conversations.

This episode is brought to you by Azza Fahmy Jewellery⁠

This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One, your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today!

I'm re-connecting today with award-winning film producer Mo Hefzy. Since I first spoke to him in 2022, Mo has had a series of successful releases, including 'Flight 404', 'Seeking Haven for Mr. Rambo', 'Darwish', and many more. 

This episode is part of Encore, where I check-in with some of your favourite WIDN alumni. We’ll continue this segment with more of the show’s alumni, so stay tuned. 

Chapters

0:00 Welcome to a new Encore

0:44 Growth of Saudi cinema

2:50 Challenges in Egyptian cinema

8:00 The impact of streaming

23:34 The Li...

We’re continuing my conversation with legendary architecture Abdel Wahed El Wakil. Today, we’re diving deep into the world of architecture and materials. This episode is a crash-course whether you're in the field, an enthusiast like me, or just want a better understanding of the world around us. Abdel Wahed also tells me about the spiritual connection that traditional architecture fosters with nature and our experience as humans.

Chapters 
0:00 Coming up 
0:35 The masters of modern architecture 
10:43 The essence of traditional art 
13:02 The shift to individualism 
19:20 The significance of courtyards 
20:31 The importance...

I‘m joined today by a legend of from the world of architecture, Abdel Wahed El Wakil. I sat down with him a couple of weeks ago in Doha, where he now lives, to document his incredible journey, his vision for architecture as an industry, and Islamic architecture in particular.

Abdel Wahed has designed buildings around the world, including in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Paris and London. He also studied and worked under his mentor, Hassan Fathy, an architecture legend in his own right.

Chapters:

0:00 Coming up

10:42 Architecture's Purpose

19:10 Materialism vs...

I'm re-connecting today with celebrity chef & author Bobby Chinn. I first spoke to Bobby during the summer of 2021 in preparation for Season 2. That feels like such a long time ago, we were just 8 episodes in at the time, and we're now in our 6th year with more than a 100 episodes!

You can listen to that episode in your podcast app or our website.

This episode is part of Encore, where I check-in with some of your favourite WIDN alumni. We’ll continue this segment with more of the show’s alumni next month, so stay...

We’re continuing my conversation with luxury travel journalist and editor Maria Shollenbarger. Today, we’re delving into the travel industry—how and why certain destinations trend over others, how preferences have changed since COVID, and the future of travel in the age of AI. 

I’ll be back next week with a new Encore episode with all-round rockstar Bobby Chinn.

Chapters

0:00 Coming up...

2:30 Travel in a post-COVID world

5:56 The Impact of Social Media

7:22 The role of Airbnb

9:03 Life as a Travel Journalis...

I’m excited to be kicking off the year with Maria Shollenbarger, travel editor at the Financial Times’ HTSI magazine. I got to know Maria last year at The Narrative Summit, where she was on a panel that I moderated. 

Maria has been with the FT now for 17 years and had always dreamed about working as a travel journalist. On Part 1 of our conversation, we unpack her journey traveling and living around the world. 

Maria has a sophisticated eye, an instinct for what travellers need and want, and we’ll her industry in a lot of d...

We all know the value of looking back to understand our path. But as the world becomes increasingly uncertain, I wanted to open a new chapter on the show.
In 2026, in addition to reflecting on the past, we’re also tackling the big questions about our future. I’ll be asking my guests how they're navigating the same anxieties and opportunities we all face, from AI to climate change to the changing world around us.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re closing out the year with a special episode with EFG Holding, and I’m joined today by the Group’s Chief Finance & Operations Officer, Mohamed Abdel Khabir. Mohamed joined the investment bank in 2008 and took on the CFO role in 2016. Earlier this year, he took on the additional responsibility of Operations, which includes Marketing, Technology & Administration. 

Mohamed has been actively involved in EFG Holding’s transformation from a MENA-based investment bank to its current avatar—a leading financial institution with a universal bank in Egypt and a leading investment bank in MENA. 

We’ll be back in...

Last week, Mounir Nakhla told me about his entrepreneurial journey with MNT Halan, and how the company has risen to become of the Africa’s fastest growing start-ups. On this bonus episode, Mounir talks to me about the strategy behind their recent expansion into 3 new territories — Turkey, the UAE & Pakistan. 

Chapters:

0:00 On this episode...

5:12 Consolidation vs. Expansion

8:36 The impact of geopolitical factors 

This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One, your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today!

I'm joined today by entrepreneur Mounir Nakhla. Mounir is the co-founder & CEO of MNT-Halan, Egypt's fintech unicorn that has now served more than 8 million customers and recently expanded into the UAE, Turkey & Pakistan.

Mounir launched his first company in 2010, which showed him the true potential of micro-financing to unlock economic potential. This led him to co-found MNT-Halan in 2021 with Ahmed Mohsen.

Mounir is an old friend and I've always known him to be incredible disciplined and routine-based. So I wasn't surprised to see this translate into his role as a founder and CEO. He...

I'm re-connecting today with Dr. Nadine Hachach-Haram. Dr. Nadine is the founder & CEO of Proximie  ⁨and a practicing NHS surgeon with a specialty in plastic surgery. I first spoke to Dr. Nadine three years ago, when she told me how she wanted to help operating rooms function more effectively with Proximie. 

This episode is part of Encore, where I check-in with some of your favourite WIDN alumni. We’ll continue this segment with more of the show’s alumni, including Chef Bobby Chinn, film producer Mo Hefzy, and more. 

Chapters

0:00 Coming up...

7:24...

We’re continuing my conversation with Karima Hakim on this episode, talking about the evolution of the private sector in Egypt and Africa, and her work specifically with Plug & Play.

You can also catch the first part my conversation with Karima in your podcast app or on YouTube. 

Chapters

0:00 Introduction

0:45 The Private Sector Evolution

11:39 Women Supporting Women

16:23 Leadership in a Changing World

19:55 Karima’s work with Plug and Play

26:48 Addressing the Forum for President Macron

This episode is brought to you b...

I’m joined today by Karima El Hakim, Country Director at Plug & Play Egypt, and co-director for the company’s operations in the rest of Africa. Just as importantly, for me she’s one of the show’s biggest fans! 

On Part 1 of my conversation with Karima, we’re criss-crossing through both her personal and professional journey, from growing up in Egypt in a Francophone home to her pivot to technology and the investment world.

Coming up next week on part 2, Karima tells me about her work with the private sector in Egypt and across Afri...

Today’s episode is a deep-dive with our sponsor, EFG Holding. As a long-time sponsor of the show, EFG have been with us from our single digit episode count all the way through to 100! I’m joined on this special episode by Hanaa Helmy, Chief Corporate Sustainability and Impact Officer at EFG Holding and CEO of the EFG Foundation. Hanaa has been with the company 19 years, and has been involved with the Foundatoin right from its launch in 2006. She has also been recognised by Forbes Middle East as one the region’s Top Sustainability Leaders in both 2024 and 2025.

...

We’re celebrating 100 episodes! So this week I’m sitting down with our producer Chirag Desai to celebrate this milestone and unpack some of the learnings. 

Chapters 
0:00 Episode 100! 
1:11 Evolution of Podcasting 
3:11 Reflections 
13:53 Destiny vs Agency 
24:08 The Impact of Our Work 
24:28 A big thanks to EFG Holding 
25:35 Malak takes on the Lightning Round

This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One, your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today!

We’re continuing my conversation with Azzam Fakhreddin this week, where he tells me about his decision to shift focus to economics under the mentorship of Dr. Galal Amin and getting starting in the family hospitality business. Azzam also tells me about his involvement with the Jordan football team, which just qualified for its first FIFA World Cup in 2026.

I’m also excited to share that What I Did Next just completed 100 episodes! Next week, I’m sitting down with our producer Chirag Desai to celebrate this milestone and unpack some of the learnings. 

Chapter...

I’m joined today by Azzam Fakhreddin, a name familiar to many across the Middle East as a notable figure in the hospitality industry. On Part 1 of our conversation, Azzam tells me about his involvement in two significant projects, the book ‘Palestine, Memories of 1948’ and the feature film ‘Palestine36’, which is Palestine’s official entry to the 2026 Oscars. It stars iconic actors Jeremy Irons and Liam Cunningham and will be premiering in London later this month.

Chapters

0:00 Introduction

5:41 Family Legacy and Early Life

14:10 Palestine, Memories of 1948

21:24 Life After 50

22:25 The...

AI is a topic that has come up many times over the years on the show, so today I’m sharing a special episode of Double-Take where I’m connecting the dots from some of our previous episodes on the philosophical, ethical and practical implications of our future AI world.

You’ll hear from author & AI expert Mo Gawdat on how we all need to be better role models for this nascent technology, actor Ramy Youssef on some of the implications for creators and filmmakers, Amazon’s Omar El Sahy talks about some of its practical applications and ad l...

Continuing my conversation with Dr. Mona Hamdy to unpack the role of AI, and how the emerging world should prioritise its adoption. We talk about the ethical implications of technological advancements, and the need to close the gap between profit-driven AI development and our needs as a society. She also tells me about her work with Anomaly, the ‘Bitcoins and Birkins’ club, and upcoming launch of iConnections Middle East.

Chapters

0:00 Where tech and humanity intersect

5:51 Navigating AI's Future Responsibly

9:23 Defining the Ethical Framework for Technology

15:15 The Glob...

The word AI gets bandied about by everyone in everything today, and I’ve been wanting to unpack the opportunities and challenges our future world holds for us. So I’m delighted to welcome technology ethicist Dr. Mona Hamdy to the show this week.

On Part 1 of our conversation this week, we talk about her pivots, and how she found herself at this unique intersection of technology and human dignity.

Coming up next week on Part 2, I pick Mona’s brain on some of my questions on the future world of AI: have we unleas...

One of the themes that often comes up on the show is giving back to the community. Today I wanted to highlight two guests who instantly come to mind when talking about giving back—the incredible heart surgeon, Sir Magdi Yacoub and META’s Regional Director, Fares Akkad. 

This episode is part of our new segment, Double-Take, where I take a deep-dive into a single topic and connect the dots between some of our best conversations.

When I spoke to Fares in late 2023, he had just come back from visiting the Za’atari Refugee...

Today I’m sharing the answer to another question I’m asked quite often: “how do you prepare for your interviews?”

Author and commentator Omar El Akkad joins me this week to talk about his latest book “One day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This”. This is perhaps the most important book I’ve read in the last couple of years as it brought together all that I have been thinking, and feeling, about Western Liberalism. I talk to Omar about the larger themes that led to him writing the book, and his own questions of identity as a result of his experiences as an Arab writer in the West. Our conversation was powerful, intense and thought-provoking. 

Chapter...

Media powerhouse Amy Mowafi returns to the show for Encore, where I check-in with your favourite alumni guests. 

Since we last spoke, Amy has been leading and participating in various must-attend events across Egypt. She’s also been returning to her first love, writing, with her ⁠Substack⁠.

You can also catch my previous Encore conversations with adventurer Omar Samra, designers Nada Debs and Nadine Kanso, and entrepreneur Ahmed Alfi in your podcast apps, or on our website.

I’ll be back with a new guest next week, see you then!