How Seyi Fabode Rebuilt After Failure and Built Venture-Scale Success Abroad

Seyi Fabode’s journey from a factory floor in Lagos to leading AI-powered energy infrastructure projects in the United States reflects a career shaped by curiosity, resilience, and strategic reinvention.

After leaving a stable banking job, navigating startup failures, raising millions in funding, and engineering a successful exit, Fabode has emerged as a respected figure in the global energy technology space. His story illustrates how long-term thinking and disciplined learning can turn early uncertainty into sustained impact.

At the centre of his philosophy is a simple belief: if people understand more, they make better decisions. That principle continues to guide every company he builds.

Early Foundations in Learning and Analysis

Fabode’s professional mindset began forming in childhood. Drawn to books and research, he spent hours in libraries exploring unfamiliar subjects. His mother encouraged this habit by asking him to summarise what he had read, forcing him to extract key ideas and explain them clearly.

This early discipline sharpened his ability to analyse complex material, identify what matters most, and communicate it effectively. Over time, this skill became the backbone of his entrepreneurial work.

Most of his businesses, he explains, are built around gathering fragmented information, organising it intelligently, and transforming it into tools that help people make confident financial and operational decisions.

From Engineering Studies to Corporate Banking

Fabode studied metallurgical and materials engineering at the Federal University of Technology, Akure. While the field was unconventional, it matched his curiosity about systems, materials, and production processes.

After graduating, he worked at a metal manufacturing factory in Agege, Lagos. The factory supplied parts to businesses across the city, and observing its profitability opened his eyes to overlooked opportunities within Nigeria’s industrial ecosystem.

Following his National Youth Service, he joined Guarantee Trust Bank as a risk analyst. His entry into the bank was largely accidental, after accompanying a friend to an interview and being encouraged to participate.

Despite the prestige of the role, the work itself felt repetitive. However, it offered valuable insight. Most of the loan applicants he analysed were entrepreneurs seeking large amounts of capital. Their ambition, combined with watching his father operate his own business, strengthened his interest in entrepreneurship.

Transition to the UK Energy Sector

Seeking deeper technical exposure, Fabode pursued a postgraduate degree in Manufacturing Systems Engineering, focusing on large-scale operations and workflow optimisation.

This qualification led to a role at a 1,000-megawatt power station in East London, supplying electricity to hundreds of thousands of homes. Working in critical infrastructure exposed him to the complexity of energy markets, regulatory frameworks, and industrial-scale systems.

It was here that his path toward technology entrepreneurship truly began.

Discovering Technology Through Crisis

During a financial downturn, one of the power station’s major corporate customers collapsed, leaving the facility with excess electricity that had to be traded on energy exchanges.

To solve this problem, external founders were hired to build specialised trading software. Fabode served as the liaison between the plant and the developers, observing the system’s design and implementation.

Watching a small team build software capable of managing millions of dollars in daily transactions reshaped his thinking. It revealed how technology could unlock efficiency and value at scale.

Motivated by this experience, he left the power station and joined the founders. Together, they developed EnergyQuote, a platform that provided energy pricing and procurement tools for businesses and consumers.

The company eventually attracted major corporate clients and was acquired by larger firms, validating the commercial potential of their model.

Building and Exiting Power 2Switch

After relocating to the United States, Fabode launched his own company, Power2Switch. The platform adapted EnergyQuote’s model for the American market, which was undergoing deregulation at the time.

Power2Switch focused on simplifying energy data and helping users compare suppliers and contracts. In 2009, the company raised approximately $3 million in funding.

Over five years, the business expanded steadily and achieved a successful exit. For Fabode, the most meaningful outcome was not personal profit but team development. Nearly all employees went on to build their own companies, using the exit as financial and professional leverage.

The experience reinforced his belief in entrepreneurship as a multiplier of opportunity.

Venture Capital and a Second Startup Setback

Following the exit, Fabode worked with Evergreen Climate Innovation, contributing to research on future energy trends and investment strategies.

He later founded a sensor-based Internet of Things company focused on water infrastructure management. The startup raised $4 million and deployed monitoring systems for municipal networks.

Despite technical success, the company failed to reach sufficient scale. After four years, it was shut down due to limited growth prospects.

Rather than viewing this as defeat, Fabode treated it as strategic feedback. He learned the importance of timing, market readiness, and scalable business models.

Lessons from Building in the Diaspora

Operating in the UK and US exposed Fabode to environments with mature infrastructure and institutional support. In these markets, founders often build on existing systems rather than starting from scratch.

He notes that while entrepreneurs still face challenges, access to reliable utilities, regulatory frameworks, and open APIs significantly lowers entry barriers.

For African founders considering international expansion, he advises focusing on problems they understand deeply and adapting solutions for global relevance. Local insight, combined with scalable design, remains a powerful advantage.

Powering the AI Era with Infrastructure Intelligence

Fabode’s current venture applies his experience in energy, data, and systems engineering to modern infrastructure investment.

The company develops AI-driven platforms that help investors evaluate and optimise energy assets connected to the US National Grid. By analysing factors such as pricing structures, grid constraints, and co-location opportunities, the system identifies ways to maximise asset value.

For example, underperforming renewable plants can be matched with data centres or new contract arrangements, increasing revenue and efficiency.

This dual focus on information analysis and infrastructure deployment reflects his long-standing philosophy of transforming complexity into opportunity.

Africa’s Opportunity in Data Centre Development

Fabode believes Africa is positioned to play a major role in the next phase of global data infrastructure.

While the US faces a potential oversupply of power for data centres, many African regions offer lower construction and operating costs when paired with private energy generation.

He argues that perceived investment risk in emerging markets is often overstated. Through strong local partnerships and community engagement, regulatory and operational friction can be significantly reduced.

In contrast, large-scale projects in developed markets frequently face prolonged approval processes and high financing costs before construction begins.

According to Fabode, Africa’s decentralised energy systems and flexible development models provide a competitive advantage that could attract global technology investment.

A Career Built on Reinvention

From banking to engineering, from failed startups to successful exits, Seyi Fabode’s career reflects continuous adaptation.

Each stage has contributed new skills, perspectives, and discipline. His journey demonstrates that entrepreneurship is rarely linear and that setbacks often lay the groundwork for long-term success.

By combining deep technical knowledge with strategic learning and resilience, Fabode has transformed early uncertainty into sustained global impact.