Everything founders ask, answered.

A six-week, zero-equity platform for the 10 best African AI startups, run by Askya Investment Partners. You strengthen your technology and governance foundations, make progress towards product-market fit and build a scalable growth engine, through expert masterclasses, 1-on-1 coaching from top African founders and operators, and corporate meetups.

AI could add up to $1 trillion to Africa’s GDP by 2035 according to the African Development Bank, and the winners will be decided by execution and ability to drive adoption, not funding. Everything here is built around measurable outcomes and corporate contracts.

Corporate introductions, masterclasses and 1-on-1 coaching from some of the best African operators and founders. Access to AI compute infrastructure and cloud capacity through our technology partners, with technical coaching from their engineering teams, starting with a technical and market assessment.

Your cohort is announced at Moonshot in Lagos on October 28 and 29, Africa’s largest startup event, in front of investors and enterprises. The weeks that follow turn that exposure into signed contracts.

Askya Investment Partners, a seed-stage venture capital fund focused on African tech and AI, founded by Babacar Seck, in partnership with Magna Collective, an innovation and venture advisory firm founded by Femi Awoniyi.

Startups from anywhere on the African continent, building for African markets, driving productivity and economic development, led by founders who want to fundamentally change outcomes in their industry.

No. We welcome two profiles. AI-native and deep tech companies leveraging AI as a core vector of innovation and value creation, including teams training or fine-tuning their own models, teams building on foundation models with a defensible layer of proprietary data, workflows or domain expertise, and research groups commercialising market-relevant intellectual property. And companies digitising the real economy that generate proprietary structured data at scale and seek to leverage AI to accelerate their growth.

A team, a live product with commercial traction such as paying customers or pilots, and the commitment to build an enduring company at continental scale.

Yes, as long as your current programme has no exclusivity clause and you can commit the 3 to 6 hours per week.

Complete the prequalification form on the platform page. It takes about an hour, and you will need your product overview, traction numbers and team details.

Applications open on August 7, 2026 and close on September 30. The cohort is announced on October 15. The platform kicks off on October 26 and ends on December 4.

Ten.

Ambitious, mission-driven founders out to solve big problems, with superior execution capabilities. A product solving a problem your customers urgently need solved, with a clear answer to why now. First commercial traction. A team with technical strength in-house and proven ability to execute. And solid foundations: sound governance, ethics and unit economics that can scale.

Remote-first, over six weeks. Masterclasses, workshops and corporate sessions all run remotely. The only in-person moment is Moonshot by TechCabal in Lagos, October 28 and 29.

Up to 6 hours per week. The platform is designed to fit around the daily reality of running your startup.

English. All masterclasses, workshops and materials are delivered in English.

Two team members per startup for each masterclass and workshop.

Nothing, and no. Zero equity, zero warrants, no fees, no hidden costs. You keep your cap table intact.

Yes. Participation creates no obligation on either side. Askya also runs venture capital funds, and may invest up to $200,000 in the cohort’s most promising startup.

Our support does not stop on December 4. We follow up on your corporate contracts through to signature.