20 African Startups to Watch in 2026

For its inaugural Startups to Watch list, Techcrier engaged founders, investors, and ecosystem operators to identify early-stage companies shaping the next phase of African innovation. Most of the startups featured are under two years old and operate across diverse sectors, with strong signals for growth and relevance in 2026.

Here are 20 African startups positioned to make an outsized impact in the year ahead.

1. Gowagr — Nigeria

Gowagr is reimagining prediction markets in Nigeria by positioning itself beyond traditional gambling narratives. Often compared to Polymarket, the platform allows users to make predictions across sports, entertainment, and politics, creating a more interactive and socially driven experience.

In under two years, Gowagr has attracted close to 200,000 users. Beyond predictions, the startup also powers esports and fantasy gaming competitions, expanding engagement and opening new participation models within digital entertainment.

2. Partyverse — Nigeria

Event culture is deeply ingrained in Nigeria, but organising events remains complex and fragmented. Partyverse aims to streamline event discovery, planning, and management through a single platform.

Launched less than a year ago, the startup has already partnered with PiggyVest and raised an undisclosed funding round from Zrosk. In addition to logistics, Partyverse enables users to capture and share event moments, turning events into lasting digital experiences.

3. LevvyBox — Nigeria

With an estimated 20,000 ride-hailing drivers operating across Nigerian cities, LevvyBox is creating new income opportunities through mobile outdoor advertising.

Co-founded by Olamigoke Kumuyi, Goodness Chinemelum, Ayomide Ishola, and Tobiloba Adekunle, the startup converts vehicles into advertising assets using in-car displays and rooftop billboards. LevvyBox has onboarded 400 drivers so far, with early brand clients including Kava, Yellowlyfe, and Filmhouse Cinemas.

4. ChipMango — Nigeria

As global demand for semiconductors rises, the shortage of skilled chip designers has become increasingly visible. ChipMango is working to close that gap by building chip design capacity from Africa.

Founded by Ola Fadiran and Jovan Andjelich, with experience from Tesla and Google, the startup offers chip design education and professional services. ChipMango has partnered with institutions such as Miva Open University and Obafemi Awolowo University and reports $200,000 in revenue generated to date.

5. Midiarack — Ghana

Media buying across Africa remains largely manual, requiring advertisers to navigate fragmented systems and offline processes. Midiarack centralises media buying by offering a single platform for booking billboard, radio, and podcast advertising.

Launched seven months ago, the Ghana-based startup has processed over 300,000 cedis in gross merchandise value. Founded by former Bolt employee Kwabena Sarpong, Midiarack is part of the Ashesi Venture Incubator and aims to digitise Ghana’s advertising ecosystem.

6. VDL Fulfilment — Ghana

VDL Fulfilment is emerging as a critical logistics backbone for merchants seeking to scale without operational bottlenecks. Founded in 2020 by Vanessa Omari, the startup manages warehousing, packaging, inventory, payments, delivery, and customer support.

Over the past two years, VDL has processed more than 622,000 fulfilment orders, serving over 307,000 customers. With 70+ staff and 350 riders, the company supports businesses across eight countries spanning four continents.

7. Senga — Kenya

Senga is a Kenyan logistics startup focused on reliable last-mile delivery across challenging transport networks. Founded by June Odongo, the company promises sub-48-hour deliveries and reports over 20,000 completed deliveries.

By automating logistics workflows using machine learning, Senga is transforming years of operational experience into scalable software designed for efficiency and reliability.

8. ChatSasa — Kenya

Founded by Eston Kimani, previously behind Africa’s Talking, ChatSasa is bringing AI-driven customer service to African businesses.

The platform provides a human-assisted AI agent that works across websites, WhatsApp, mobile apps, and email. Beyond support, ChatSasa offers insights into sales performance, agent productivity, and operational efficiency, enabling businesses to optimise engagement in real time.

9. Honeycoin — Kenya

Honeycoin is leveraging stablecoins to simplify cross-border payments across Africa. The fintech claims to serve over 300 businesses and 300,000 individuals, processing $150 million in monthly transactions.

Founded five years ago, Honeycoin operates in more than 15 African countries, as well as the United States and Europe. In 2025, it raised $4.9 million in seed funding from investors including Flourish Ventures, 4DX Ventures, and Visa Ventures.

10. Carschek — Nigeria

Trust remains one of the biggest barriers in Africa’s used-car market. Carschek addresses this through AI-powered vehicle inspections, VIN history checks, and document verification.

The startup combines a 150-point inspection process with financing and registration services, offering a full-stack trust layer for buyers and sellers navigating the used vehicle ecosystem.

11. BAC Intelligence — Nigeria

BAC Intelligence is bringing data-driven decision-making to Africa’s aviation industry. Founded in 2024, the startup provides analytics for airlines, lessors, investors, and aviation stakeholders.

By consolidating fragmented datasets, BAC Intelligence helps users evaluate market readiness, operational quality, and asset fit, replacing intuition-driven decisions with evidence-based insights.

12. Flux — Kenya

Flux is a climate-tech startup focused on carbon dioxide removal through enhanced rock weathering. The process improves soil health while permanently capturing CO₂.

Led by CEO Sam Davies, Flux began field trials with 50 smallholder farmers in Western Kenya in collaboration with the UNCCD. The company is also developing an 800-acre research farm to support scaled deployment and data-driven experimentation.

13. Woliz — Morocco

Woliz is building digital infrastructure for small merchants in Morocco, connecting them to FMCG brands and financial institutions.

Following a $2.2 million pre-seed round, the startup reports onboarding 55,000 stores and processing over $50 million in GMV since launching in 2024. Woliz has also partnered with Morocco’s Ministry of Industry and Trade to support the digitisation of 90,000 shops.

14. SongDis — Nigeria

SongDis helps independent musicians distribute, monetise, and manage their careers globally. The platform supports music releases, royalty management, and advance funding tied to streaming revenue.

Launched in December 2024, SongDis has onboarded 1,200 users across 20 countries and was recently selected for the NBA Triple Double Accelerator Program.

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15. Sytemap — Nigeria

Nigeria’s real estate sector struggles with poor documentation and fraud. Sytemap uses blockchain, satellite imagery, and data verification to improve transparency in land transactions.

The startup reports over 20,000 users, more than $200,000 in processed transactions, and partnerships with over 200 real estate companies. It also supports instalment-based property purchases to reduce ownership barriers.

16. Solve.AI — Nigeria

Solve.AI provides businesses with AI-powered voice and messaging agents that handle inbound calls, lead qualification, appointment booking, and follow-ups.

The platform processes around 10,000 call minutes and 15,000 WhatsApp interactions weekly. With multilingual support and real-time handoffs to human agents, Solve.AI balances automation with personalised customer engagement.

17. MarketingBlocks AI — Nigeria

MarketingBlocks AI offers founders an automated growth engine for personal branding and marketing execution.

The platform handles content creation, posting, engagement, and strategy through an AI-powered CMO. The startup reports $740,000 in annual recurring revenue and over $3 million in total revenue since launch.

18. Plotweaver — Nigeria

Plotweaver is building AI-powered language infrastructure for Africa’s creative economy. The platform supports script development, production planning, dubbing, and subtitling across African languages.

Recognised as the official AI software partner for filmmaking in Nigeria by the Nigerian Film Corporation, Plotweaver has partnered with universities and studios across Africa and South America. In 2026, it plans to roll out studio-grade AI dubbing across 12 African languages.19. TNKR — Nigeria

TNKR is tackling gaps in Africa’s manufacturing ecosystem with Leonardo, an AI-powered workshop assistant for engineers and hardware teams.

Selected from over 5,600 applicants by the Innovate Africa Fund, TNKR has pivoted from content into deep industrial tooling. Its technology supports troubleshooting, prototyping, and manufacturing in resource-constrained environments.

20. Oikus — Nigeria

Oikus is building trust infrastructure for Africa’s real estate sector. Rather than focusing on listings, the startup analyses property data to expose misinformation and reduce fraud.

In 2025, Oikus presented at the Lagos State Real Estate Marketplace Conference organised by LASRERA. The company reports analysing over 100,000 listings and conducting more than 250 resident surveys to better understand pricing and trust dynamics.