What scale really looks like at LEAP
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This week we’re quoting…
Annabelle Mander (Executive Vice President at Tahaluf)
What Annabelle said:
“At Tahaluf, the most honest measure of scale is WhatsApp. If you want to understand what it really takes to deliver LEAP, you look at the group chat.”
The secrets of the chat
Today, as Annabelle added (she wrote this on LinkedIn originally, by the way) there are 125 people in the LEAPers WhatsApp group, working towards LEAP 2026.
But the first edition of LEAP was delivered by just 26 people. Those 26 made it happen – and even as the team has grown, the 26 are still with us.
In a world obsessed with numbers, we love this focus on people; on the messages and coordination and the process of people figuring things out together. Because those people, and all of that figuring out, is what makes LEAP possible.
Scale starts long before the headlines
From the outside, scale looks clean and polished. Big stages, big speakers, big announcements. From the inside, it looks more like threads of conversation stretching late into the night, questions answered quickly, problems solved collectively.
For LEAP, scale began when the conversations did. Because before the event was measured in hundreds of thousands of attendees and millions of dollars of economic impact, we measured it in trust – between teams, partners, suppliers, speakers, exhibitors, sponsors, government stakeholders… the list goes on.
The group chat grew because the work grew. And the work grew because more people believed in what was being built.
Continuity is an underrated advantage
One of the less visible aspects of LEAP’s growth is how much continuity sits behind it. Our teams have worked together across editions, and relationships don’t reset after each event – we build, piece by piece, over time.
Continuity is underrated in fast-moving industries, but it’s what allows us to handle complexity with calm. Because when people know each other, the work and scale is far more manageable. It’s why LEAP can absorb growth (not just in size, but in ambition) and stay coherent.
Platforms are built by people
We love data. And metrics help us understand what’s going right, and where we need to improve focus.
But LEAP’s impact today reflects a wide range of different motivations, all converging in one place:
- attendees looking to learn and connect,
- exhibitors and sponsors bringing technologies and ideas to market,
- startups searching for opportunity,
- investors exploring what’s next,
- speakers influencing global conversations,
- teams behind the scenes making it all function.
What binds these motivations together is a shared willingness to participate openly – with inspiration and ambition. That’s what turns an event into a platform.
Back to the group chat…
We like the WhatsApp chat as a metaphor because it’s democratic.
Everyone’s in it. Everyone contributes. And it grows organically – because the work demands it.
It also reflects the reality that scale and impact aren’t hierarchical anymore. They’re networked, and responsive, and the result of collective effort.
Five editions in, LEAP is defined by how many people feel part of it – and how many continue to show up, year after year, to build it.
You might be attending or exhibiting; sponsoring or speaking; investing, or supporting from behind the scenes. Whatever your place at LEAP 2026, you’re part of the chat.
We can’t wait to see you in Riyadh this April.
Have an idea for a topic you'd like us to cover? We're eager to hear it. Drop us a message and share your thoughts.
Catch you next week,
The LEAP Team
