NBA Africa announced the 10 startup companies from seven African countries selected to pitch their products to a group of international industry leaders on September 25 in New York.
The committee will then determine the four winning companies who will receive financial support and mentoring, including the opportunity to participate in workshops and development programs facilitated by NBA Africa or its partners.
Companies announced as finalists
- Back (Rwanda) provides a wearable technology solution called WristWrist for venues and event organizers to facilitate cashless payments at event venues. WristWrist provides a payment system where attendees can load money onto wristbands before an event and spend it at the event venue through seamless, fast transactions.
- Buzza (Nigeria) helps sports organizations improve their operations through digital solutions, including enabling organizations to move from paper to digital management, website creation, payment collection and revenue growth. Athletes can also register on the platform to track their matches and scores and build their profiles to become more prominent sports figures and influencers across Africa.
- Festival Coins/Tix Africa (Nigeria) is an event technology company offering a customizable code-free event registration and ticketing platform called Tix Africa for events in Nigeria and Ghana. It allows event organizers to sell tickets online, process payments and handle on-site registrations.
- Gara (Côte d’Ivoire) is a pan-African video game and comics platform that encourages and facilitates the distribution of digital entertainment experiences on the continent. Through culturally relevant products, including games featuring local celebrities and customizable payment systems for local currencies, Gara aims to facilitate wider outreach and monetization of the creative and cultural industries on the continent.
- HustleSasa (Kenya) provides live event services that support payment processing, attendee check-in, merchandise sales, customer data management, influencer tracking and more.
- Naemo Global (Nigeria) aims to revolutionize sports scouting on the African continent through its proprietary scouting software Afriskaut, which uses data analysis and artificial intelligence. The Afriskaut platform processes video of football matches and extracts critical data, which it makes available to clients through a platform and application programming interface (API) to support the identification of the next generation of elite talent.
- Power to Girls Foundation (Ghana) provides a social connection and mentorship platform called My Power App, dedicated to empowering and supporting girls and women aged 13-20. The platform provides educational resources, connects users with mentors, offers a confidential helpline and fosters a supportive community of like-minded girls, addressing critical areas of development such as education, mental health and personal growth.
- Salubata (Nigeria) creates modular shoes that are reused from plastic waste. With a global patent and two design rights for its innovation, the company aims to reduce the global carbon footprint through its eco-friendly products.
- UBR VR (Egypt) offers state-of-the-art, fully immersive virtual reality (VR) experiences throughout Egypt. Its rich historical and fictional VR world is culturally relevant and localized, allowing players to roam freely in enclosed spaces and interact with each other in a defined game area. These virtual reality experiences are unparalleled in the country and foster a sense of connection with both the local community and their colleagues.
- Vambo Technologies (South Africa) provides a digital language technology platform that leverages artificial intelligence to provide real-time translation, content creation and language learning technology. Not only does Vambo AI offer widely spoken languages such as Amharic, Yoruba, French and Portuguese, it also offers more specialized languages spoken across Africa to facilitate true digital inclusion on the continent.
What They Say
“We are inspired by the level of talent and creativity from all of the nominees and congratulate the 10 deserving finalists who will present their innovative solutions at Demo Day later this month,”, said the CEO of NBA Africa Claire Akamantzi.
“NBA Africa is committed to supporting the continued growth of startups on the continent, including the four winners whose innovative solutions will further elevate sports and creative industries in Africa for years to come.”
About Accelerator
Powered by ALX Ventures, the ‘Triple-Double: NBA Africa Startup Accelerator’ was open to African startups developing solutions in event management and ticketing, youth development, artificial intelligence and digital marketing.
Because this matters
The initiative will support Africa’s tech ecosystem and the next generation of African tech entrepreneurs by providing them with access to mentoring and capital that will help grow the sports and creative industries.
The four awarded startups will be announced at Demo Day.
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