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Tech & Business

12.1.2017

Meshal Al-Harasani: “All of us can invent”

A multiple degree holder, inventor and yet still in his prime, Meshal Al-Harasani embodies this generation of young talented Saudis, with their wide eyes set on the bigger, global picture. Who we met was a scientist who thinks big, as he surfs Saudi Arabia’s new entrepreneurial wave.

He’s in his thirties, and is armed with a science-heavy resume. Peering through his glasses’ trendy rims, Meshal Al-Harasani really looks the part. That of a true Gulf science nerd, donning his ghutra (a local red-and-white equivalent of the keffiyeh). Having studied at the Grenoble School of Management in France, Middlesex University in London and the prestigious King’s College London, Meshal is one of the new vital forces of the country, those who can truly call themselves creators.

Yes, Meshal is an inventor. Member of the American Society of Inventors since 2015, this scientist has just developed, in France, a patented needle that might revolutionize modern medicine. And the creator doesn’t plan to stop there, for he has interesting plans for his country’s future.

Kawa News : What does “creation” mean to you ?

Meshal Al-Harasani : All of us can solve problems: when we find a new problem, the first step before innovation and invention. All of us can invent. The first step to that is to think of problem solving.

Tell us about your latest innovation, the Fida needle…

It’s a medical innovation. It was made in the north of Paris, in Puiseux-le-Hauberger. It’s a serrated needle. It penetrates all the cartilages in all over the body without doing surgery. It’s very smart because it’s very small. With it, you could serrate ears or knees, for example, avoiding full surgery.

Tell us more about your project for the future city of Neom…

For the launch of Neom, two teams and I – nine members in total – are creating energy generators which draw power from when car tires roll over them. The generator would resemble a low-lying cylindrical hump. It wouldn’t exactly be a hump, because its height won’t exceed 1 cm. When cars drive over it, it will roll and generate power, for street lights for example. That way, cars won’t just be just consuming power, they would be generating it as well.

How do Saudi social entrepreneurship projects—such as yours—inspire you?

We have a lot of innovations in Saudi Arabia, and also a lot of inventors. I’m just one among many talented and creative Saudis. I think together we can change the world.

Published on 1 December 2017