Techstars, the most active startup investor in Africa, held its second pan-African Demo Day in partnership with Lagos-based innovation program, ARM Labs.
The ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator Demo Day was held on 20th February at Balmoral Convention Center, Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos.
At the event, Techstars’ stellar second cohort from across the continent, presented to Techstars’ vast network of investors, mentors, senior operators, and ecosystem leaders.
The startups unveiled achievements and future plans whilst vying for strategic partnerships and commercial collaboration.
Tthe event also featured a lively panel discussion exploring the state of VC funding and innovation in Africa.
Panellists included Olumide Soyombo, Partner at Voltron Capital; Biola Alabi, Partner at Acasia Ventures; and Ovo Emorhokpor, Founding Partner at Beta.Ventures.
ATTENDEES
With more than 480 industry leaders and investors attending, the guest list included;
- Idris Bello, Founding Partner at LoftyInc Capital;
- Tosin Faniro-Dada, Partner at Breega;
- Eloho Omame, Partner at TLCom Capital,
- Victor Sada, Head of Ventures & M&A at Interswitch;
- Bode Abifarin, Ex-Chief Operating Officer at Flutterwave; and
- Olusegun Adeniyi, Chief Digital Officer at Wema Bank, in attendance.
An additional 2,500 viewers joined online via Youtube and Linkedin.
THE STARTUPS
The ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator second cohort, chosen from over a thousand applicants across Africa included
- 24Seven End-to-End B2B solutions provider (Nigeria)
- Beauty Hut – innovative beauty distribution company
- Eight Medical – Emergency medical care services (Nigeria)
- GetEquity – Marketplace for for private capital investments
- JumpnPass – autonomous mobile self- checkout platform for in-store retail (Nigeria)
- One Plan – provider of AI enabled strategic porrtfolio , financial, resource and work management solutions (Ghana)
- PBR Life Sciences – real -world healthcare data, technology, PMR and consulting services provider.
- PressOne Africa – unique communication services and solutions provider for business (Nigeria)
- Rana – Energy-AS-A-Service Ecosystem (Nigeria)
- Surge Africa – cross- border payments solutions
- Swoove – automated logistics services (Ghana)
- Veend. – Credits and loans (Nigeria)
PERKS AND BENEFITS
The startups received;
1. $120,000 each in investment
2. 13 weeks of immersive training and mentorship
3. Workshops by leading industry experts them on;
- Go-to-markets Strategies,
- Financial Modelling,
- Customer Acquisition,
- Investment Readiness,
- People and Leadership,
- Legal and Governance,
- Product Management.
4. Over 300 perks, valued at over $4 million in savings,
5. Lifetime access to the Techstars worldwide network.
What was said
In her Demo Day welcome address, Oyin Solebo, Managing Director of ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator, emphasized the accelerator’s commitment to entrepreneurs. She said;
“At Techstars, we are committed to empowering entrepreneurs through our accelerators, venture funds, and network of investors, corporates, and mentors across various cities. We firmly believe that entrepreneurs are the driving force behind a better future for all, and our mandate is to ensure they succeed. “
She proudly highlighted the company’s latest status as it has become “the most active startup investor in Africa.”
Adetayo Bamiduro, Co-founder of Max.ng, emphasised the profound impact Techstars has had on his startup since selection in 2015.
Max.ng was the first African startup on the Techstars program.
Chief, Kenise Hill also gave an address, highlighting the U.S’s commitment to trade with Africa, and their areas of focus – technology, healthcare, renewable energy and food security.
In the closing address by Sadiq Mohammed, Deputy Group CEO of ARM Holding Company, expressed his delight in the partnership highlighting the objectives that have been achieved.
He also gave his vote of confidence to the startups saying “Despite the market and challenging macroeconomic climate”… “We believe this cohort is well-positioned for success.”
COHORT 3
According to the press release, the company has plans for a third cohort this year with applications opening mid-May.
Startups can register early interest here.