Africa Rising: The Future of African Tech in Silicon Valley
Join us for Africa Rising: Founders Showcase, an exclusive evening where visionary Nigerian founders from the NSIA Prize for Innovation (NPI 3.0) present their groundbreaking startups to the Silicon Valley community.
These innovators are part of the Draper Hero Training Program, a five-week, fully funded immersion bringing high-potential African founders to Silicon Valley for mentorship, exposure, and investor connections.
Discover how Africa’s rising tech ecosystem is shaping the future of healthcare, agritech, clean energy, and inclusive finance — and meet the founders building scalable, high-impact businesses across the continent.
What to Expect
🚀 High-impact Startup Pitches & Product Demos – Live founder presentations from award-winning African startups.
💬 Fireside Chat: “Why Africa, Why Now?” – A candid conversation about building and investing in Africa’s next growth markets.
🤝 Curated Networking – Connect with founders, investors, ecosystem leaders, and the African diaspora in the Bay Area.
Speaker - Tom Fairburn (Cofounder Baobab Network)
Tom Fairburn is Co-Founder of Baobab Network, the UK-based early-stage investor and accelerator dedicated to African tech startups. With a deep passion for unlocking Africa’s entrepreneurial potential, Tom has spent his career helping bold founders build impactful, scalable businesses across the continent.
Prior to Baobab Network, Tom cut his teeth in global business, culture and innovation – gaining hands-on experience in dynamic environments and witnessing first-hand how opportunity and talent flourish when given the right platform.
Featured Startups & Founders
D-Olivette Labs — Tunde Adeyemi (Founder & CEO) AI-powered biodigesters that turn farm and food waste into clean energy and orgnic fertilizer, driving climate-smart agriculture at scale.
Promise Point — Bukola Farinde (Founder & CEO) A women-led cassava powerhouse operating a fully automated processing facility and partnering with thousands of smallholder farmers to unlock Africa’s staple crop economy.
GeroCare — Dr. Ebinabo “Ebi” Ofrey (Co-Founder & CEO) A health-tech platform delivering subscription-based, proactive doctor home visits that transform elderly care for families in Nigeria and the diaspora.
Fertitude — Dr. Kieva Chris-Amusan (Founder & CEO) A digital women’s health companion offering 24/7 reproductive health support so women across Africa can access stigma-free, personalized fertility and hormonal care.
Crop2Cash — Seyi Alabi (Founder & CEO) A digital financial rails for agriculture that turns any basic phone into a micro-bank and agronomist, giving smallholder farmers access to inputs, finance, and markets.
Integrated Aerial Precision — Femi Adekoya, “The Flying Farmer” (Founder & CEO) An AI-driven agritech company using drones and precision data to help farmers monitor crops, boost yields, and farm more sustainably.
Who Should Attend
Venture capitalists, angel investors, and fund managers exploring Africa-focused deal flow
Corporate innovation teams, accelerators, and ecosystem builders
African diaspora professionals and operators in the Bay Area
Anyone curious about how African startups are shaping the future of health, food systems, and climate-smart growth
Hosts
Malaika Commons is a San Francisco-based community for global founders, funders, and friends. We host curated events, showcases, and residencies that connect ambitious entrepreneurs with investors, operators, and allies across the world’s leading tech ecosystems.
Draper University Cohort – NSIA Prize for Innovation (Nigeria)
RSVP
Seats are limited join us for an evening that showcases Africa’s startup future in the heart of Silicon Valley.