Tech in Africa
Fastagger is an image annotation startup offering artificial intelligence solutions to AI-driven companies in healthcare, agriculture, financial services, and energy sectors. The co-founders are Mutembei Kariuki (CEO), Jude Mwenda, and Stephanie Njerenga (COO).
Fastagger recently made it to the three-month joint Africa4Future Aerospace Accelerator 2020 cohort organized by BizLab (Global Airbus accelerator), GIZ (German Society for International Cooperation), and CcHub (Co-creation Hub). Being shortlisted as one of the 10 participants from a pool of 212 applicants indicates a high level of confidence in its AI-driven solutions.
Mutembei Kariuki, the CEO and Co-founder of Fastagger gave insights on the company’s future in an interview with Space in Africa. The startup launched last year and is operating as a team of three co-founders, two team leaders, and 100 independent workers who carry out the remote labeling. The company has thus far received investment funding from angel investors. Their participation in the Africa4Future program aims at solving problems in the continent tied to satellite remote sensing data.
The startup sees several satellite data opportunities for real estate, agriculture, forestry, retail, financial markets, maritime surveillance, and security. Thus far, their experience at Africa4future Aerospace Acceleration has given them a boost in brand recognition and networking with future potential partners/clients such as Airbus.
The Government AI Readiness Index 2019 Report compiled by Oxford Insights & the International Development Research Centre projects the contribution of AI technologies at $15 trillion globally by 2030. The report points out how countries in the global North are better positioned to benefit from such gains than those in the global South.
In the report, there are no African countries in the top 50 positions. Only 12 African countries make it to the top 100. The top 5 African governments of the 54 in the continent were Kenya, South Africa, Mauritius, Ghana, and Tunisia. One of the challenges hindering the adoption of AI technology in Africa is “a lack of systematic study on the topic” resulting in largely “anecdotal data.” African AI startup companies like Fastagger are best placed to reverse the trend and position the continent as a leader in future AI advancements.
