Nelson Aseka, the Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AIfluence, has been named the winner of the 2023 Visa Everywhere Initiative (VEI), Kenya edition.
Aseka received a monetary prize of Sh2.8 million ($20 000) and progress to the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA) regional finals.
“This is not only a win for AIfluence but a win for the continent. We are looking to empower the young people in the creator economy by helping them build sustainable businesses, and collaborating with Visa will provide tremendous synergies that will empower the youth of this continent. The Visa Everywhere Initiative has provided opportunities for those of us in underserved sectors to showcase our solutions, and it is an honor to be this year’s winner of the Kenya edition,” said Aseka.
AIfluence is Africa’s 1st AI-driven Influencer Marketing Platform. The technology identifies trusted voices that engage, nurture, and activate the right audience to accelerate customer acquisition and growth for global brands.
The platform focuses on taking advantage of the budding creator economy by boosting financial literacy, development of payment solutions, and the provision of tools and resources to enhance the sector.
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“We are delighted to announce the winners of the Visa Everywhere Initiative Kenya competition. This competition has demonstrated the wealth of solutions that exist to solve our country’s current and future commerce challenges. We are proud to recognize these start-ups who have exhibited remarkable innovation and a deep commitment to making a positive impact in their sectors,” said Eva Ngigi-Sarwari, Ag. General Manager for East Africa at Visa.
The Visa Everywhere Initiative (VEI)is a global innovation program and competition for start-ups and fintech companies.
The 2023 edition attracted more than 200 applicants from across the country, each with solutions aimed at delivering innovative payment and commerce solutions to consumers and businesses.
Other winners of the 2023 Kenya edition are Leja, who won the audience favorite award, while the social impact prize went to Ndovu, with the two Fintechs each receiving Sh1.4 million ($10 000).
Leja is a finance management app for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises focused on building financial infrastructure for MSMEs, while Ndovu is an embedded wealth management platform aimed at building a savings and infrastructure ecosystem.
The winning start-up at the CEMEA Regionals will participate in the global finale, which will be held in September in San Francisco. The CEMEA finals will be live-streamed on July 27 on TechCrunch.
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