- Flapmax has selected 12 African startups to travel to Silicon Valley, California and take part in training together with Microsoft and Intel.
- This comes after more than 60 African startups took part on an online bootcamp programme earlier this year.
- The 12 teams will receive skills and knowledge from the tech giants in order for them to get their products ready for market.
Earlier this year, African AI firm Flapmax announced that it was looking for startups to take part in the second edition of its accelerator programme which was made in collaboration with tech giant Microsoft. On Thursday the company announced that it has selected 12 startups from across the continent to travel to Silicon Valley, California and take part in the next phase of the training.
This follows a two-week virtual bootcamp hosted by Flapmax where more than 60 African tech companies participated in online training. The final 12 startups were refined from this group and will now embark on an in-person education in Silicon Valley as part of the FAST Accelerator.
These startups will begin the next phase of the accelerator on 23rd October, when the participants will take part in a wide array of activities, including training in AI integration, business development, fundraising, and various other events. All the while working closely with Intel and Microsoft on their projects in a bid to ready the startups for their go-to-market moments.
Flapmax says that additionally, its engineers will aid the startups in applying large language model (LLM) AIs to their products through Microsoft Azure and Intel platforms.
“Microsoft believes that African startups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are well-positioned to become a bedrock for the African digital economy, with relevant solutions to local societal and economic challenges. Participation in the FAST Accelerator program will help these entrepreneurs capture growth opportunities and expand their market reach,” said Mame-Fatou Gueye, SME Program manager, Microsoft Africa Transformation Office.
The 12 startups going to Silicon Valley are:
- AI-powered fintech ZeeAfrica,
- Ecommerce platform Sumundi,
- Microlender CoTrust Equity,
- Logistics company Trucki,
- Orange VFX, an enterprise and corporate VFX and design firm,
- 10mg Pharma, a healthtech that focuses on saving patients money,
- SME financier WallX,
- Moosbu, another fintech that aids small businesses with their finances,
- KCG Aquatec Fish Farming, an agritech that focuses on fish farming operations,
- Aibanc, which offers “AI-powered banking,”
- Zendawa Africa, another healthtech that aids small pharmacies in translating to ecommerce,
- and finally, Greenbii, an AI-driven asset financing and software management platform for SMEs.
These 12 represent the finalists of the accelerator, which received 1 200 applications from startups in 35 African countries, most of which were fintechs.
“Applicants represented a broad mix of cloud-based products and services serving businesses throughout Africa, harnessing AI to drive innovation, enhance efficiency, and address critical challenges in their respective domains,” Flapmax explains in a press statement sent to Hypertext.
“At Flapmax, our mission is to build societally impactful solutions that harness the power of AI to transform multiple industries through long-term partnerships with startups, SMEs, and global enterprises,” said Dr Dave Ojika, founder and CEO of Flapmax.
“Our objective is to empower startups and underrepresented entrepreneurs to rapidly and sustainably scale their businesses and create new job opportunities using AI as a catalyst.”
