Dubai-based legal tech startup Qanooni has raised $2 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Village Global, with participation from Oryx Fund by Salica Investments, TA Ventures, and a network of strategic angel investors, it announced on Tuesday.
Founded in 2024 by serial entrepreneurs Anuscha Iqbal, Ziyaad Ahmed, and Karim Shiyab, Qanooni is building an AI-powered legal platform that integrates directly into Microsoft Outlook and Word, enabling lawyers to draft, review, and manage documents using AI that adapts to their writing style and internal standards.
The startup’s approach differentiates it from traditional legal tech tools by eliminating the friction of switching platforms. Instead of requiring lawyers to learn new software, Qanooni works within the Microsoft Office environment that legal professionals already use daily, making adoption seamless.
Anuscha and Zahid previously co-founded Spotii, a buy-now-pay-later platform that was sold to Australian fintech Zip Co in 2021, followed by Spotii-in-a-Box, which was acquired by NymCard in 2023. Iqbal also brings 13 years of investment banking and private equity experience, including a role as Managing Director at Abraaj Group.
Shiyab, the legal expert on the team, founded Legalintro, a consultancy specializing in helping firms expand in the GCC region, and previously served as a senior lawyer at Al Tamimi and Company, the region’s leading law firm.
The new funding will fuel Qanooni’s expansion across the UAE and UK markets while enhancing its proprietary AI engine tailored specifically for legal workflows. The platform enables law firms and legal departments to prepare and review documents faster and more accurately, while seamlessly connecting with existing document management systems.
Qanooni’s generative AI is designed to mimic individual lawyers’ tone, writing style, and internal firm standards, making it a personalized legal assistant rather than a generic tool. This customization capability addresses a key challenge in legal AI adoption, where firms need technology that aligns with their specific practices and quality standards.
The round attracted notable individual investors including Ben Casnocha, Sri Batchu, Josh Rodger, Viktoriya Tigipko, Andrew Verbitsky, Jimmy Stone, Nicholas Nottebohm, Ashish Shetty, and Miguel Rodrigues.
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