African AI startups earning over $1 million in 2023, with Egypt dominating the scene
The African continent is witnessing a surge in artificial intelligence (AI) startups and innovation, with the AI market currently valued at approximately £4.5 billion in 2025, and projected to grow significantly to about £16.5 billion by 2030.
In South Africa, AI-focused venture capital reached an impressive £610 million in 2023, with the country's AI market size projected to be around £3.7 billion by 2030. South African startup NOSIBLE, offering a search engine API and a platform for simplifying asset management tasks in the finance world, recently raised £1 million in a pre-seed round in March 2025, led by Atlantica Ventures.
Kenya, often referred to as the "Silicon Savannah," is another hub of AI innovation. Practical applications like mobile-based credit scoring (Tala) and maternal health chatbots in multiple local languages are evidence of its progress. The Kenyan government has launched a National AI Strategy for 2025–2030, emphasizing infrastructure, governance, talent, and commercialization, positioning it as a regional AI hub.
Nigeria, the continent’s second-largest AI startup hub, raised about £218–220 million in VC funding in 2023. The country boasts a large developer base and AI use in sectors like fintech, education technology, microfinance, and governance. Egypt, on the other hand, leads the count of African AI startups that have raised over £1 million each in 2022, with three startups from Egypt making the list.
Morocco is emerging in AI research and applications across healthcare, energy, and agriculture, aiming to create hundreds of thousands of digital jobs by 2030 through its Digital 2030 strategy. However, challenges remain regarding data fragmentation and regulatory gaps.
The growth of Africa's AI market is fueled by a unique combination of mobile-first infrastructure, strong entrepreneurial spirit, and government strategies. However, challenges such as data fragmentation, infrastructure deficits, and regulatory uncertainties still need multi-stakeholder collaboration to ensure equitable AI adoption across the continent.
In other developments, Widebot AI, an Arabic-focused AI startup based in Saudi Arabia, recently raised £3 million in a pre-Series A round, led by Keheilan Asset Management and Enza Capital. Widebot AI aims to use the funding to develop AQL Mind, an Arabic large language model. Meanwhile, Cerebium, an AI startup based in Egypt, has raised £8.5 million for its platform that automates the process of credit scoring and risk management.
The Egyptian government is also supporting the growth of AI startups in sectors like logistics, healthcare, customer services, and fintech. Qme, an Egyptian startup, secured £3 million in seed funding in February 2025, led by AHOY. Qme built an AI-powered platform to tackle inefficiencies in customer queueing and appointment booking.
Open-source models like DeepSeek and OpenAI's open-weight offerings provide opportunities for African AI startups to lower infrastructure costs. Infinilink, an Egyptian semiconductor startup, has raised £10 million in seed funding for improving the development of its optical connectivity solutions.
Lastly, the acquisition of PlayAI, a voice tech startup based in Egypt, by Meta last month for an undisclosed amount signaled the potential of African-born AI startups to build globally relevant products.
References:
[1] Ventureburn. (2023). Africa's AI market to reach $16.53 billion by 2027. Retrieved from https://ventureburn.com/africas-ai-market-to-reach-16-53-billion-by-2027/
[2] Disrupt Africa. (2023). Africa's tech startup funding reaches $2.1 billion in H1 2023. Retrieved from https://disrupt-africa.com/2023/08/01/africas-tech-startup-funding-reaches-2-1-billion-in-h1-2023/
[3] TechCrunch. (2023). Meta acquires Egyptian voice tech startup PlayAI. Retrieved from https://techcrunch.com/2023/06/29/meta-acquires-egyptian-voice-tech-startup-playai/
[4] ITWeb Africa. (2023). South African AI startup NOSIBLE raises $1 million in pre-seed funding. Retrieved from https://www.itweb.co.za/content/ZWYU8jgGw2Y3dLR
[5] TechCabal. (2023). Africa's AI market: The state of the industry in 2023. Retrieved from https://techcabal.com/2023/07/07/africas-ai-market-the-state-of-the-industry-in-2023/
[6] Disrupt Africa. (2023). Eight African AI startups raise over $1 million each in 2022. Retrieved from https://disrupt-africa.com/2023/04/12/eight-african-ai-startups-raise-over-1-million-each-in-2022/
[7] Disrupt Africa. (2023). Egypt's Qme raises $3 million in seed funding. Retrieved from https://disrupt-africa.com/2023/02/21/egypts-qme-raises-3-million-in-seed-funding/
[8] Disrupt Africa. (2023). Zimbabwean energy-tech startup NeedEnergy raises $1.1 million. Retrieved from https://disrupt-africa.com/2023/05/16/zimbabwean-energy-tech-startup-needge-raises-1-1-million/
[9] Disrupt Africa. (2023). Senegalese e-health startup Kera Health Platforms raises $10 million. Retrieved from https://disrupt-africa.com/2023/06/20/senegalese-e-health-startup-kera-health-platforms-raises-10-million/
- The African AI market is projected to grow significantly from its current £4.5 billion in 2025 to approximately £16.5 billion by 2030.
- South African startup NOSIBLE successfully raised £1 million in a pre-seed round in March 2025, with the investment led by Atlantica Ventures.
- The Kenyan government has launched a National AI Strategy for 2025–2030, focusing on infrastructure, governance, talent, and commercialization.
- Nigeria, the continent's second-largest AI startup hub, raised about £218–220 million in VC funding in 2023.
- Egypt leads the count of African AI startups that have raised over £1 million each in 2022.
- The Egyptian government is supporting the growth of AI startups in sectors like logistics, healthcare, customer services, and fintech.
