Twelve startups have been selected for the second edition of the ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator, which provides access to up to US$120,000 in equity funding and other types of support.
Launched by Techstars, a global investment business that provides access to capital, one-on-one mentorship, and customised programming for early-stage entrepreneurs, in partnership with ARM Labs, a Lagos-based innovation programme focused on helping fintech startups, the ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator runs for three months.
The first edition ended earlier this year, and 12 companies have now been selected from over 1,000 applications to take part in the second edition. Whereas the first cohort focused on fintech and prop-tech companies, this cohort focuses more broadly on entrepreneurs that are changing Africa, and the world, by using technology, data and intelligence to serve a population growing in size, youth, income and digital access.
Nine of the selected ventures hail from Nigeria. They include inventory marketplace 24Seven, beauty e-commerce platform Beauty Hut, emergency response startup Eight Medical, investtech platform GetEquity, and mobile checkout solution JumpnPass. The other selected Nigerian startups are health data service PBR Life Sciences, customer insight platform PressOne Africa, payments solution Surge Africa, and funds on-demand service Veend.
Two Ghanaian startups have been selected – pension-planning platform One Plan and logistics startup Swoove – and the cohort is completed by the London-based but Africa-focused energy company Rana.
“Our second cohort truly showcases, and perhaps also epitomises, the wealth of talent, innovation and ingenuity that can be found within the African tech ecosystem. Supporting this group in reaching their full potential feels like the perfect segway following the close and success of the inaugural cohort,” said Oyin Solebo, managing director of the ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator.
“The current market dynamics means that founders need a combination of financial support as well as technical assistance and access to networks in order to build resilient businesses. We are glad to be able to provide comprehensive support that covers this entire spectrum.”
The programnme will conclude with an invite-only demo day on February 22, 2024.
