Vegan Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed was named “Technology Investor of the Year” at this years CEO Middle East Awards.
The prestigious award ceremony, held in Dubai, aims to “recognize and reward the most successful and innovative CEO’s in the Middle East.” According to Arabian Business magazine, “The awards represent the benchmark of success for senior executives in the Middle East and are eagerly anticipated by winners, sponsors, nominees, and guests each year.”
“Thank you for so much for this award,” Prince Khaled began in his acceptance speech. He made it clear that although he received the award, his success is due to the support the team at his company KBW Ventures, an investment firm that focuses on building a more sustainable, ethical future of food and technology, and KBW Investments. “I’m lucky to have partners that believe in me as I them,” he said.
Prince Khaled then urged his audience to be more conscious of how their actions affect the planet and other living beings. “I’d love everyone to take their actions into consideration when thinking of the environment,” he said. “And I’m not talking about buying the next Prius or Tesla or solar farms.”
“The number one contributor to global warming is factory farms,” he continued, adding that industrial animal agriculture’s greenhouse gas emissions outweigh the entire transportation industry. “Reducing meat, fish, and the root of all that is evil, dairy, from our diet will contribute more to our health and the environment than you can imagine. Please choose compassion over taste … Peace starts at the table.”
A vegan himself, Prince Khaled is passionate about leaving the current food system behind and building a better world for people and for animals – KBW Ventures’ office is even completely cruelty-free. The goal of the company is not money, although Alwaleed is, without a doubt, a successful investor, but more about creating a positive future for younger generations.
In an interview with Arabian Business, the prince said, “I think about my daughters…What kind of world am I leaving them? And what did I do to make their life better? At the end of the day, we’re here temporarily. I’m not taking my money with me, or my shoes, or my watches.”
He continued, “People are just going to remember me for what I did. If I’m gone, and my daughters can say he really did everything he could for us, I can’t ask for anything more.”
The prince works closely with key food technology industry leaders to bring about this positive change. KBW Venture’s notable investments include Prolacta Bioscience, a life sciences company focusing on advancing the science of human breast milk; Memphis Meats, a clean meat company; and JUST, a vegan egg startup, also focusing on the development of clean meat.
Prince Khaled has worked particularly closely with JUST CEO and founder Josh Tetrick, whose company aims to release slaughter-free meat to market this year. The entrepreneur has even been compared with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who aims to disrupt the transportation industry. According to the prince, he loves JUST “so much” he would drop “(almost) everything to work there.”
Image Credit: KBW Investments
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