The results are in and the organisers of the annual Africa Tech Festival, taking place in Cape Town 14 – 16 November, announced the top ten finalists of the AfricaIgnite Pitch Competition who will battle it out to win the opportunity to represent the African continent in the Startup World Cup on 1 December this year.
Congratulations to everyone who entered. We called for the continent’s brightest, most inspiring founders to apply to help build the African innovation ecosystem and they certainly delivered.
I know I speak for my colleagues, the investors and judges who will be closely monitoring the pitch competition, when I say that Africa’s talent, ingenuity, and unmatched potential is abundant and diverse, and this is clearly represented in this broad array of finalists. It is therefore going to be no small task to select just one winner who will represent the continent at the Startup World Cup Final, held by Pegasus in San Francisco on 1st December.
James Williams, Senior Director, Events, Connecting Africa, Informa Tech
The top 10 finalists are: AsaanaPay, Tausi App , Bus54, Delta Scan, Oneway Connect, Ukwenza VR, Hippocampus Education, BenaCare, Gradlinc, Kyanda Africa.
Providing insight as to what she will be looking for in the winning pitch, investor, and AfricaIgnite Pitch Competition judge, Keshni Morar of Investable , warns contenders to come prepared. Morar will be looking for the granular detail in the presentations, with a demonstrable understanding of the market in which the start-up is looking to play or is already active. Depth of the go to market strategy too for those start-ups at pre-seed capital, is a vital consideration.
Like every other serious investor out there, I look for the coherence between the pitch story and the data points. If it’s not there, there’s no chance of us getting involved.
Keshni Morar, Founder & Managing Director, Investable
