18 months after raising $100k in pre-seed funding, Kenya-based Influencer Marketing Platform, AIfluence Inc, has closed $1 million in seed funding round led by Dubai-based EQ2 Ventures, and joined by Antler East Africa, Nigerian VC OUI Capital, ArabyAds and a European family office.
The funds will be used to expand into the rest of Africa, the Middle East, and Asia by the end of 2021, as well as to further invest in AIfluence’s technology and SaaS platform, according to the company.
“From when we first incorporated in December 2019 to today, we have experienced exponential growth. In just 18 months of operations, we have closed over $1M in contracts, working with and gaining the trust of numerous regional and global advertisers across the FMCG, Banking, Telco, Travel, and Electronics sectors. Words fail me in explaining what this milestone means to me personally,” AIfluence Co-founder and CEO Nelson Aseka said.
Read also:Visa Launches Card Payment Service in Somalia
“We are at the cusp of a revolution, globally the way marketing works is changing. We find ourselves at an intersection of advanced technology and the fastest growing region in the world in terms of digital and social media penetration,” he added.
Why The Investors Invested
This is the first time EQ2 Ventures (formerly the corporate VC arm of Choueiri Group) would be investing in a startup in sub-Saharan Africa. The venture capital firm had previously invested in Egypt’s Homzmart. The firm has also invested in a marketing solution ArabyAds which happens to also be an investor in this round. This seed investment validates AIfluence’s existing marketing effectiveness.
Read also:Haller Foundation Partners Mara Phones to Boost Technology Accessibility in Rural Africa
According to Patrick Thiriet CEO of EQ2 Ventures:
“People are the new media in today’s digital world, and AIfluence is uniquely positioned to turn this reality into tangible results for advertisers. We’ve been impressed by the team’s obsession to use data in order to spread authentic and relevant messages to the right audience. This is what advertising should always be. We’re looking forward to AIfluence’s journey ahead.”
The participation of Antler in this round also shows the startup has done well with its previous pre-seed funding from it. Founded in Singapore in 2017, Antler is a global startup generator and early-stage VC firm with eight locations across the world. It launched operations in Kenya in 2019, and provided pre-seed funding to four companies, including AIfluence Inc., Digiduka, ChapChapGo and AnyiHealth.
“We are excited to see local founders with deep expertise in the African market take a global problem head on, and in a short time demonstrate a tech solution that is fast attracting demand in Africa and beyond,” Melalite Ayenew, Antler East Africa’s Partner added.
A Look At What AIfleunce Does
AIfluence, which was launched in April 2020, addresses a major pain issue for brand marketers: accurately measuring the ROI and efficacy of influencer marketing efforts. The platform’s audience-first philosophy allows it to properly link influencers with a particular demographic by utilizing powerful Machine Learning algorithms.
Read also:Every Digital Business Needs a Data Strategy
The startup runs campaigns in 13 African and Asian countries and allows advertisers to onboard and coordinate with thousands of micro and nano influencers every campaign, resulting in genuine peer-to-peer interactions and higher conversion.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer