88mph opens applications in Nairobi
08.05.2013, Nairobi, Kenya
88mph, an early stage startup fund and
3 month accelerator program has opened applications for Nairobi. The program
assists start-ups by giving them investment of up to a 100k, access to business
networks and the know how to quickly grow their businesses. 88mph’s strategy in
Africa is to fund strong teams and web-mobile ideas that have the ability to
scale across English speaking Africa.
“There’s an immense opportunity to
build mobile/web startups in Nairobi right now. African Mobile/web is hands
down one of the fastest growing markets in the world and we want to reach out
to entrepreneurs who build products and services for hundreds of million
mobile/web users that are rapidly popping up on the continent,” says 88mph
Program Director Nikolai Barnwell.
Barnwell continues,“Unfortunately, the
natural course of a startup is to die before succeeding. But we provide the
funding and the infrastructure to boost the odds of survival and we now want to
look for the next batch of future successful entrepreneurs.”
That’s why, in addition to funding, the
88mph team in Nairobi has put together talent and resources, to add more value
for the startups:
- A partnership with
Google has enabled the right space and internet resources to build tech
companies, as well as access to Google’s experienced web professionals who
can mentor the startups.
- A host of highly
experienced local Kenyans and global mentors have been added to the
already top-notch 88mph mentor network.
- Furthermore,
“Entrepreneurs-in-residence” – experienced entrepreneurs, specialized in sales,
programming & web design - are being brought in from across the world
to work side by side with the local startups during the 3-month
acceleration.
- Finally, 88mph
arranges a demo day, where the startups will get access to a group
of investors and showcase what they’ve achieved so far.
Last year 88mph invested in 6
web-mobile startups in Nairobi. The 3-month program to accelerate the growth of
the startups in Nairobi last year has reaped great rewards for the start-ups,
with one startup with confirmed follow on funding and another two that are in
final discussions. This will allow them to be able to scale their businesses
across Africa successfully.
‘I've seen a wealth of talent infused in Nairobi
within the past couple of years," says Carey Eaton, co-Founder, One Africa
Media and CEO, Cheki Africa Media."88mph and the ecosystem brewing here
are making a very significant contribution to building technology companies in
the region to another level, building the next great wave of web and mobile
businesses that solve African problems. I'm looking forward to following these
startups closely throughout the program."
The speed at which the mobile internet
has reached the markets of Africa, now at 274 million Africans on Edge or 3G,
has created a huge demand for local applications and services catering to the
young and growing middle classes of Africa. 88mph is here to fund start-ups
wishing to grab a portion of this growing market. So far, they have invested
over $750,000 into 23 early stage start-ups.
The combination of a large market,
young population and opportunities within the mobile/web industry makes this
accelerator attractive to any tech entrepreneurs who are looking to solve real
challenges in Africa.
"Looking 2-5 years ahead, the US
and Europe will be stagnating at best. I think the biggest opportunities for
return on investment will be in Africa and other emerging markets. Our
accelerator program is a great opportunity for international tech entrepreneurs
and returning diaspora to come, take advantage of the insane growth here, and
work on solving some really interesting problems," concludes Barnwell.
Ends.
Additional Information:
• Application deadline is midnight July
15th, 2013
• Startups can apply now on 88mph.ac
• 88mph invests up to $100k per startup
• Equity will depend on the startup
company valuations, which could range from $100k to $1mil
• Altogether 8 - 15 teams will receive
an investment and get accepted into the 3-month program
• The teams will be notiļ¬ed if they
have been accepted to the program by August 1st, 2013
• Program starts on August 26th
at the 88mph Garage in Narobi, Kenya
• Startups in the program will have
access to tech hubs in Cape Town, as well as to 88mph's partner tech hubs
across Africa
