Qualcomm introduces 2026 class of African start-ups

Qualcomm welcomes the 10 African entrepreneurs selected for its 2026 Make in Africa Mentorship Programme. [Gemini Generated Image]

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Qualcomm Incorporated has revealed the 10 start-ups selected for the 4th year of its Qualcomm Make in Africa Mentorship Program, which is part of an ongoing effort to strengthen the continent's deep-tech ecosystem.

These early-stage firms, selected from over 1,200 applicants from 45 countries, will be given rigorous training in Edge AI, IoT, and 5G to develop solutions in sectors ranging from agritech to EV infrastructure.

The innovators in the class of 2026 are:

• Amperra Charging Company (Namibia): Grid-adaptive smart EV charging.

• Anatsor Ltd (Nigeria): digital poultry management systems.

• D-Olivette Labs (Nigeria): Bio-intelligence for agricultural production.

• Mindora Corporation (Zimbabwe): Braille keyboards for digital accessibility.

• MVUTU (Congo): Solar-powered IoT cold storage.

• QualiKeeper Investments (Zambia): AIoT livestock monitoring.

• SafeSip (Tanzania): Smart water access and monitoring.

• Sesi Technologies (Ghana): AI-powered cocoa quality assessment.

• TWave Ltd (Uganda): automated solar fish-feeding systems

• Zerobionic (Kenya): Assistive robotics for persons with disabilities.

"These startups are pushing the boundaries of what technologies such as Edge AI and 5G can enable," says Wassim Chourbaji, president, MEA at Qualcomm. "We are seeing increasing sophistication in how these solutions are deployed at scale."

Financial and legal assistance are considered to be critical to the initiative. Each firm is eligible for a $5,000 stipend, plus up to $5,000 in patent filing expense reimbursement. 

To safeguard African innovations, the program delivers IP education through L2Pro Africa as well as consultations with the law firm Adams & Adams.

The programme will end with a finale in which one notable start-up will receive a Social Impact Fund grant. 

The African Telecommunications Union supports the program, which aims to bridge the gap between early-stage design and commercial feasibility for African high-tech talent.