Zoho Corporation is charting a strong growth trajectory in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), with the UAE emerging as its fastest-growing market in the region. Speaking at Gitex, Hyther Nizam, President MEA of Zoho, highlighted the company's achievements over the past year, including a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 50 per cent sustained for seven consecutive years.

“We've consistently achieved 50 per cent growth, and we're optimistic about continuing this trajectory,” said Nizam, underscoring the region's strategic importance to Zoho's global expansion.

A major driver of this growth has been Zoho's push into artificial intelligence. Moving beyond the hype, the company has developed its own suite of large language models (LLMs) tailored for business use. These models - ranging from 1.3 billion to 7 billion parameters - are deeply integrated across Zoho's product ecosystem and offered under the brand name Zia. Customers can choose between Zoho's proprietary models or public LLMs like OpenAI, Google Gemini, and Anthropic.

“We want to be an affordable player and cut down input costs,” Nizam explained.“Our B2B-focused LLMs are designed to deliver real-world value without the high token costs associated with external models.”

Zoho has also made strides in agentic AI, launching Agent Studios and upgrading nearly every product with richer features and deeper AI integration.

While Zoho has long been recognized as a champion of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the company is now gaining traction among large enterprises.“We've onboarded many big brands and are expanding our footprint in the customer experience space through our CX platform and CRM software,” Nizam said.

The company's flagship suite, Zoho One, remains a favourite among SMEs for its affordability and comprehensive toolset. At the same time, individual products like CRM and customer experience tools are seeing strong adoption among enterprise clients.

Looking ahead, Zoho's growth strategy includes rolling out enterprise-grade AI features and integrating with legacy systems under the theme“Modernise Your Legacy Systems.” Nizam explained that many companies with decades-old systems are seeking modernization without abandoning their core data.“We complement what they already have, helping them build modern systems around legacy infrastructure to enhance customer experience.”

Gitex has played a pivotal role in boosting Zoho's visibility and lead generation efforts.“It's no longer just a branding opportunity - it's a serious platform for business growth,” Nizam said. Over the course of the event, Zoho engaged with more than a dozen major brands, including prospects from Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern markets.

Buoyed by this year's success, Zoho plans to expand its presence at next year's Gitex, potentially taking a larger booth at the World Expo venue.

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