Before Venture Capital Shows Up, FirstFounders Is Building African AI Startups for the Long Haul
In an ecosystem where venture capital often arrives too late or too early, FirstFounders is betting on a different approach: building startups well before institutional investors get involved.
Founded in 2020 by David Lanre Messan, the Nigerian venture studio operates on a single conviction: African startups need deep operational support long before they need large cheques. Rather than waiting for traction to attract investors, FirstFounders embeds itself with founders from the idea stage, combining execution support, talent, and early capital to turn raw concepts into scalable, AI-driven businesses.
The model is designed to address a persistent imbalance in Africa’s startup landscape. Ideas are plentiful, but the infrastructure required to convert them into resilient, market-ready companies remains thin.
Diagnosing a Structural Problem in Africa's Startup Ecosystem
Messan traces the origins of FirstFounders to what he sees as a fundamental flaw in the continent’s startup ecosystem: a mismatch between capital access and operational readiness.
There are many founders at the bottom of the pyramid with strong ideas but without the expertise or support needed to turn those ideas into products, he Said.
He points to the growing list of startup shutdowns as a symptom of this gap. In the first half of 2025 alone, Insights recorded six startup closures. In Messan’s view, these failures are rarely about a lack of funding in isolation. More often, they stem from founders raising capital without the systems, discipline, or execution capacity required to deploy it effectively and scale sustainably.
Inside the FirstFounders Venture Studio Model
FirstFounders structures its venture studio around three roles: entrepreneur, operator, and investor. The studio engages founders at the earliest stage, working with them to validate ideas, refine value propositions, and test early signs of product-market fit.
Once a concept shows promise, startups enter an intensive operational phase that typically lasts between 24 and 36 months. During this period, FirstFounders provides hands-on support across talent acquisition, technical development, and strategy, helping founders build execution muscle before pursuing aggressive growth.
Capital is introduced gradually and deliberately. Rather than deploying large sums upfront, FirstFounders releases funding in stages tied to clearly defined milestones. According to Messan, the firm has deployed approximately $1 million to date.
Venture lab capital tests ideas with small cheques, then studio capital, typically around $120,000, helps bring the product to market, he explained. Once a startup matures, venture capital partners can step in with larger investments, often $500,000 or more, to support scaling.
The goal, Messan says, is to avoid the common trap of premature scaling while producing startups that are genuinely ready for institutional capital.
The Growth of Venture Building in Nigeria and Africa
Despite its potential, the venture studio model remains relatively underdeveloped across Africa. Data from Africa-focused intelligence firm Briter estimates that only about 50 venture studios operate on the continent.
Briter found that Nigeria leads Africa with 11 venture studios, including Ceedcap, FastForward, Aidi, Peo Venture Studio, Sunray Ventures, and FirstFounders. South Africa follows closely with 10 studios, while Kenya has nine.
The figures suggest growing interest in the model but also highlight how limited structured venture building remains relative to the scale of Africa’s entrepreneurial ambitions.
A Strategic Shift Toward African AI Startups
While FirstFounders initially supported startups across multiple sectors, its focus has increasingly narrowed around artificial intelligence.
Messan frames AI not as a passing trend but as a foundational layer for future businesses. “AI is not just a tool; it is the operating system for the future,” he said.
Today, five of FirstFounders’ seven portfolio companies are AI-focused. These include PocketLawyers, a virtual office platform for legal professionals; PayAfta, an AI-powered payments solution; KorinAI, which generates music using artificial intelligence; Fleekstar, a consumer insights and research platform; Zurri, a marketplace for AI agents and models; IDX, an AI-based identity verification platform; and Avant, a cross-border commerce platform serving small and medium-sized enterprises.
For Messan, the emphasis is less on adopting AI for its own sake and more on applying it to concrete problems within African markets.
We look at the moving needle of the problem we want to solve, and where AI comes in as an operating system, he said. We are building infrastructure, services, and products tailored to African markets, using local data and context to deliver practical solutions.
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Choosing Founders Who Can Execute
Founder selection is central to FirstFounders’ philosophy. Beyond technical skill or market insight, the studio prioritises discipline, accountability, and execution capacity.
Messan describes the approach as “build fast and kill fast,” a process that involves quickly shutting down underperforming ideas to conserve time and capital. Founders are evaluated not only on ambition but also on character, resilience, and operational rigour.
This level of involvement, Messan argues, is especially critical for early-stage AI startups, where experimentation, iteration, and sustained focus are often required before viable business models emerge.
Building for Systemic Impact in the Tech Ecosystem
FirstFounders positions its work as part of a broader effort to reshape Africa’s entrepreneurship ecosystem. Rather than chasing short-term exits, the studio aims to institutionalise venture building and expand access to entrepreneurship at scale.
In the next 10 years, we aim to help 1,000 entrepreneurs launch businesses and create over one million jobs in Nigeria alone, Messan said.
Looking ahead to 2026, FirstFounders plans to concentrate on scaling its existing portfolio while Messan works to raise a $7.5 million fund in the United States to support future growth. The studio is also developing a venture studio operator programme and preparing a white paper to document its methodology and share best practices with ecosystem stakeholders.
