Lengo AI, a SaaS startup based in Senegal, has announced a pre-Seed investment round led by Acasia Ventures, an Egypt-based venture capital firm. This funding round also saw the active participation of Ventures Platform, P1 Ventures, Launch Africa, Voltron Capital, and several other venture capital firms and individual angel investors.
The infusion of capital from this investment will be instrumental in Lengo AI’s expansion strategy. It will enable the company to grow its technology and sales teams, advance the artificial intelligence (AI) component of its product, and facilitate its entry into untapped African markets.
Why the Investors Invested
The investors’ decision to allocate capital to Lengo AI can be attributed to several compelling factors:
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- Untapped Market Potential: Lengo AI’s innovative approach addresses a pressing need in Africa’s informal retail sector. By leveraging AI and real-time data, it provides a solution to the challenge of limited market visibility for FMCG brands. Investors recognize the vast untapped potential in this market and its potential for explosive growth.
- Experienced Leadership: Lengo AI boasts a leadership team with a combination of skills and experience. Max Smith brings a wealth of knowledge in sales and market research across the African landscape, while Roger Xavier Macia, formerly the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Jumia in Senegal, offers deep insights into the local retail landscape. Ismaila Seck, with a PhD in machine and deep learning, adds expertise in AI and technology development. This blend of expertise instills confidence in investors regarding the startup’s ability to execute its vision.
- Scalable Business Model: Lengo AI’s unique approach, combining “Lengo Eagles” (field agents) with AI, offers a scalable business model that can effectively bridge the gap between retailers and FMCG companies. This scalable model positions Lengo AI for rapid expansion and increased market penetration.
- Positive Market Traction: The company’s early achievements, including real-time market monitoring for over 2,000 products and the mapping of thousands of corner shops in Dakar and other cities, provide tangible evidence of its market impact. Such traction serves as validation for investors.
- Collaborative Investment Ecosystem: The participation of multiple prominent venture capital firms in this funding round signifies a collaborative effort to support Lengo AI’s ambitious business plan. Investors believe in the potential for synergistic growth by pooling resources and expertise.
A Look at Lengo AI
Lengo AI, founded in 2022 by a dynamic team comprising Max Smith, Roger Xavier Macia, and Ismaila Seck, is a pioneering data-driven operating system designed specifically for the informal retail sector in Africa. The startup aims to bring a data-driven revolution to this sector by providing actionable insights and intelligence to fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) brands. These insights are derived from the vast network of corner shops that constitute a staggering 90 percent of retail purchases across the African continent.
The company operates out of Dakar, Senegal, and has identified its primary focus as empowering FMCG brands with actionable insights drawn from the vast network of corner shops that constitute the majority of retail transactions in Africa.
The startup’s unique value proposition lies in its hybrid approach, combining field agents known as “Lengo Eagles” with advanced AI technology. This approach allows it to provide real-time performance data on product sales, benefiting both retailers and FMCG companies.
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Lengo AI’s software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform also introduces the concept of the “Lengo Club,” designed to empower shopkeepers by providing insights into customer behaviors, alerts about new products, and a loyalty point system. On the corporate end, the platform helps local FMCG companies optimize their resources and offers purchasing behavior data to international companies looking to invest in the African market.
As of now, the company has mapped out over 30,000 corner shops across various cities. Max Smith serves as the CEO, leveraging his extensive background in sales and market research across Africa. Roger Xavier Macia, the CCO, brings his experience from Jumia in Senegal, and Ismaila Seck, the CTO, is a respected figure in Senegal’s AI community, holding a PhD in machine and deep learning.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert.
As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the continent’s pioneers in this regard