Iwnetim Abatek, an Ethiopian entrepreneur and assistant professor at MIT in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, has been named to the MIT 35 Innovators Under 35 list. The annual list, published by MIT Technology Review, celebrates the world’s most promising young creators in science and technology. Abatek’s research focuses on sodium-ion batteries, a potentially cheaper alternative to lithium-based power for electric vehicles and grids. He’s also exploring ways to use underground heat and pressure to produce ammonia, a key fertilizer ingredient and potential green fuel, according to MIT
Lagos and San Francisco-based Compound AI has launched KidGPT, an AI agent specifically designed for children aged five to thirteen and their parents. The AI agent assists children in studying and learning various topics, including math, English, and even language learning. It gives children questions and additional prompts rather than giving them answers. “I’ll help you think through how to write the essay yourself first. What do you already know about bees? What do you want to include in your essay? Let’s start with a plan,” it says on their website. AI
Kai Cenat recently confirmed plans for his Nigerian school after months of speculation and criticism from fans. In 2024, the streamer visited the Makoko Children Development Foundation School and Orphanage in Lagos, where he saw the dire conditions of the students and staff. After seeing the school’s sinking building, limited space, and the struggle to provide a learning environment for its 385 students, Cenat wanted to help. Cenat announced plans to construct a new school in the Makoko community. In the announcement, he asked people living in Nigeria or on the African
The UK wants more African companies to choose London when raising money on the stock market, a British trade official told Semafor. Tracey Austin, a senior director at the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), said attracting more African IPOs has become a top priority. “The UK is trying to be more inventive to sell London as a financial services center from where companies can attract global capital, not just a place to do business in and leave,” Austin said. African Companies Are Already Raising Billions in London Between 2010
Sahel Capital, a private investment firm dedicated to expanding Africa’s agribusiness sector, has announced that its Social Enterprise Fund for Agriculture in Africa (SEFAA) has secured a $10 million investment from the Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund. The partnership, funded by MEDA Mauritius, will contribute to expanding financing for small and medium-sized agribusiness enterprises across sub-Saharan Africa. “Since the inception of the Fund in 2021, we have processed 33 facilities to 18 companies in 7 countries in SSA”, Mezuo Nwuneli, Managing Partner of Sahel Capital, said in a press release. SEFAA’s strengthening
Alami Capital, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are collaborating to launch the LaunchPad at GITEX Nigeria 2025, a pioneering investment and venture-building platform designed to scale Africa’s most promising women-led startups. Women in Africa own 27% of businesses and contribute 13% of GDP, and yet they only receive 7% of total venture capital. The LaunchPad will tackle the under-capitalization of women-owned startups. After GITEX Nigeria, The LaunchPad will give $250,000 in catalytic capital to 5 selected ventures, along with mentorship and
Neibar is a social platform that helps people give away home, school, and workplace items they no longer need. The company, founded by software developer Roland Namwanza in July 2025, offers a diverse range of products, including household goods, office supplies, clothing, electronics, books, groceries, and university past exam papers. Namwanza told Techpoint Africa that it was hard to overlook the significant waste co-existing with the apparent need in his community. So, instead of creating a platform to buy and purchase products, he built one where people could give without expecting money
Pan-African payment orchestration platform, HoneyCoin, has raised $4.9 million in a seed round led by Flourish Ventures. Other investors included Visa and TLcom, Stellar Development Foundation, Lava, and more, according to a press release shared with POCIT. The Nairobi-based startup tackles inefficiencies in global financial infrastructure, particularly for businesses in pre-emerging markets. It gives businesses a unified, stablecoin-compatible platform for collections, treasury management, settlements, and FX management. By building a stablecoin-based liquidity engine and bypassing fragmented rails, HoneyCoin gives businesses instant or same-day settlements, compared to the traditional four to seven-business-day timeframe. David Nandwa
Mastercard released a whitepaper highlighting Africa’s readiness, opportunity, and roadmap for responsible artificial intelligence (AI) adoption. Harnessing the transformative power of AI in Africa shares insights into how AI can unlock significant outcomes across the continent’s major industries, including agriculture, healthcare, education, energy, and finance. The whitepaper also details the potential positive impact of AI on digital infrastructure, policy and governance, research and development, local language processing, and investment into Africa. Additionally, it examined how AI can create more jobs, with up to 230 million digital jobs projected by 2030 on
The Nigerian melon seed, Egusi, made history by becoming the first West African crop and the first object from Nigeria to reach space. The seeds, which are initially from Oyo State in southwest Nigeria, launched aboard SpaceX Crew-11 as part of a NASA-backed research mission to the International Space Station, according to BBC Africa. The trip was led by 2021 Forbes Africa 30 Under 30 honoree Dr. Temidayo Oniosun. The project explores how culturally significant crops, such as Egyptian cotton and Pakistani wheat, behave in microgravity. Taking Egusi to space
