This new app lets you trade skills for experience

Swaplyst is a new mobile app built around a simple trade: your time and skills, for real experience and community impact. Announced on 12 November 2025 at Web Summit in Lisbon, it comes from Kamel Al Asmar, the founder of Nakhwah, and it broadens classic volunteering into internships and one-to-one skill swaps. The startup is now based in Abu Dhabi’s ADGM, and the beta is live on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

What Swaplyst is trying to fix

Many volunteer platforms only list formal roles. People also want flexible, interest-driven ways to learn and help.

• Matches people and organisations for volunteering, internships and skill exchanges
• Uses AI and natural language processing to streamline discovery
• Designed to feel familiar like social apps, minus the noise
• Accepts users globally in beta

Swaplyst positions itself as a practical bridge between learning and giving back. You can trade what you know for what you want to learn, or pick a cause and start helping. AI helps describe what you can offer and what you need, then suggests relevant matches. The team says the experience borrows the simplicity of social feeds, but centres purpose and shared value rather than likes.   

How it works in practice

You build a profile, list skills you can share, and set goals for what you want to learn or where you want to volunteer.

• Volunteer listings from organisations and communities
• Internship posts, especially from startups
• Peer-to-peer swaps, like “teach me Figma, I’ll help with content”
• Matching guided by AI prompts

Under the hood, Swaplyst uses natural-language inputs to match people to opportunities without long forms. It extends beyond formal volunteering into internships and direct swaps, which better align with how young people learn today. The aim is a faster path from intent to action, with discovery tuned by your interests and availability.   

From Nakhwah to Swaplyst: the backstory

This isn’t a cold start. It’s a reboot of an idea that once led the region.

• Nakhwah launched as the Arab world’s first volunteer-matching platform
• Recognised by Ashoka, Forbes Global, KAAYIA and Takreem
• Service ended in 2018; the ethos continues here
• Founder Kamel Al Asmar says the goal now blends giving with growth

The legacy matters. Nakhwah helped make volunteering visible to youth across the region and picked up global recognition along the way. Swaplyst takes that foundation and widens the lens to include skills, internships and global reach, while keeping the emphasis on generosity and learning.   

Built in Abu Dhabi, aimed at the world

The startup now operates from Abu Dhabi Global Market, which has become a busy hub for founders and AI-leaning products.

• Abu Dhabi-based at ADGM with a global launch plan 
• Part of a broader UAE push into practical AI, from robotics labs to industry pilots
• Taps into an active early-stage scene at platforms like Hub71

Being in ADGM gives Swaplyst an obvious on-ramp to startups that need interns and fresh talent. Abu Dhabi’s support stack, from accelerators like Hub71 to sector labs, has leaned into applied AI this year. That context should help Swaplyst find both sides of its marketplace: people who want to grow, and organisations that can offer meaningful work.

Availability: platforms, regions and who it’s for

You can try Swaplyst now in beta. It’s open globally.

• iOS and Android beta available; sign-ups are open worldwide
• Aimed at students, early-career talent, and anyone who wants to learn by doing
• Good fit for startups and non-profits that need project-based help

The beta is live on both major app stores, with a broad invite to individuals and organisations. If you’re new to volunteering or want to learn a tool with peer support, the app is meant to reduce the friction of finding a match. For teams, it’s a way to post real tasks that give people experience while advancing projects.   

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