Update

August brought a wave of recognition, partnership, and expansion across Kano’s innovation ecosystem. From an award celebrating years of youth-focused enterprise work, to new conversations on inclusive AI, a visit from federal regulators, a bootcamp introducing children to STEM, and a pre-incubation programme setting its sights on six states, the month reflected an ecosystem that is not only growing but reaching further than before. Startup Spotlight: Salamatu Adamu This month’s Startup Spotlight features Salamatu Adamu, an impact storyteller, creative strategist, and project manager whose work sits at the intersection of data, people, and story. Salamatu is the founding partner and Senior Partner, Creative Strategy at Cavemen Africa, a consortium using storytelling to preserve culture and build economic resilience for young people. She is also the founder of Sal’s Epiphany Studio, which has worked with more than 60 brands, including Golden Penny, Golden Morn, Gusto, and Max Air, and the creator of SHENi (She Commerce Nigeria Initiative), a product-photography training programme delivered across Kano and Abuja that reached about 80 women directly, in partnership with Startup Kano, Nile University, E-Health Africa, Northino, and with SMEDAN’s endorsement.She is a two-time author of the 15-year anthology “Diary of a Heartbreak Kid” and “Epiphany Magic Book,” Africa’s first handbook on product presentation. In 2020, she won the Northwest regional prize and a one million naira grant at the Creative Business Cup Nigeria finals in Lagos. Over her career she has designed more than 30 creative projects and helped over 50 brands tell their brand and impact stories.At Startup Kano, Salamatu heads the Product and Growth department, leading the Incubation and Acceleration programmes and M&E frameworks under it. Recognising Homegrown Innovation: An Orange Economy Award for ENGAUSA Engr. Mustapha Habu Ringim, Founder and CEO of ENGAUSA Global Tech Hub Ltd, received an award recognising his contribution to Kano State’s Orange Economy. The recognition came during the August 13 study tour of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) to Kano State Government House, themed around economic diversification and entrepreneurship. Ringim used the platform to highlight ENGAUSA’s six years of work, including thousands of trainees, hundreds of incubated startups and SMEs, and its use of mother-tongue learning to make AI and digital literacy more accessible to underserved communities. It was, as he put it, a recognition he accepted on behalf of the entire ENGAUSA family. Designing Accessible AI: A Partnership with KDIN On August 20, the Kano Digital Innovation Network (KDIN) convened an “AI for All” Accessibility Forum online, bringing together developers and local digital workers to discuss how AI tools can be made more accessible and inclusive for the Northern Nigerian market. The session explored practical accessibility features such as captioning, sign language support, and speech recognition, reflecting a growing push across the ecosystem to ensure emerging technology serves everyone, including persons with disabilities. A Visit from the Nigerian Communications Commission Also on August 20, the Kano Hub received a delegation from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), representing the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy. The delegation, which included the Executive Commissioner for Stakeholder Management, the Director of Zonal Operations, and the Zonal Controller for Kano, met with Gateway Programme participants who were engaged in computer literacy and digital skills training at the Hub. The visitors commended the friendly, inclusive learning environment supporting young people’s digital growth. Introducing Children to STEM: KASITDA’s Digital Kids Bootcamp From August 17 to August 28, the Kano State Information Technology Development Agency (KASITDA) ran its Digital Kids Bootcamp at the Digital Industrial Park on State Road, introducing children aged 9 to 11 to foundational STEM concepts, basic coding, and entry-level robotics, building the ecosystem’s talent pipeline from the ground up. Scaling PitchStar Across Northern Nigeria After years of building startups from Kano, Startup Kano announced it is taking its signature pre-incubation pipeline regional with PitchStar Cohort 5. The programme is expanding to six strategic states, Kano as the central hub, alongside Gombe, Borno, Katsina, Jigawa, and Nasarawa, each in partnership with a local hub. The goal is to capture more than 200 idea-stage startups over the next three years and turn them into resilient, investment-ready ventures through a three-month intensive bootcamp, three months of real-world fieldwork, global mentorship, star-level certification, and a grand demo day in 2027. Applications opened August 28, 2026. Looking Ahead Taken together, August’s activities show an ecosystem earning wider recognition while deliberately reaching further, from an award honouring years of grassroots enterprise work, to new conversations on accessible AI, a federal delegation’s visit, a bootcamp shaping the next generation of builders, and a pre-incubation programme now spanning six states. Startup Kano remains committed to supporting initiatives that connect ideas to impact, strengthen ecosystems, and create opportunities for people across Kano and beyond. Have an idea-stage startup? PitchStar Cohort 5 applications opened August 28, 2026, across Kano, Gombe, Borno, Katsina, Jigawa, and Nasarawa. Get your idea ready, and follow Startup Kano’s channels for the application link and updates.

On 31st July 2026, Startup Kano officially launched the Africa-Asia Venture Bridge Webinar Series, a new initiative designed to connect African startup ecosystems and select ventures with Asian investors, mentors, and innovation partners. The series was conceived as more than a one-off event; it marks the beginning of a structured pathway that starts with ecosystem visibility and investor dialogue, and is designed to progress toward startup mentorship, investment readiness, and deeper partnership development, eventually feeding into a planned virtual venture studio. Nigeria led the pilot phase as the series’ inaugural country session, with Uganda, Egypt, and Zambia set to follow in the months ahead. Each country session in the series follows the same structure: an ecosystem context briefing, curated startup pitches, an investor perspective, and open discussion on investment support and cross-border collaboration. The Nigeria session, themed “Scaling Innovation from Africa’s Largest Entrepreneurial Market,” 55 people registered within one week for the session and 43 attended the full 90-minute session, a turnout that reflects genuine interest from founders, ecosystem players, and investors alike. Attendees described the session as educative and engaging, with substantive exchanges continuing well into the Q&A segment. Setting the Tone: Why This Series Exists The session opened with Ahmad Bature, Co-Founder of Startup Kano, framing the purpose of the webinar for participants, explaining that the series was convened to address a persistent gap in African innovation: founders across the continent are building real, tested solutions every day, but too often lack the visibility, partnerships, and investor access needed to scale beyond their home markets. Ahmad set the context for why a structured Africa-Asia dialogue, rather than a one-off pitch event, was the right vehicle to begin closing that gap. He then handed over to Aida Isah El-Hassan, Managing Director of Startup Kano, to deliver the official welcome address. Aida welcomed participants joining from across Nigeria, other African countries, and Asia, describing the moment as a reflection of a shared belief that innovation thrives when ecosystems connect, collaborate, and create opportunities beyond borders. She noted that what many African founders need most isn’t more ideas, but greater visibility, stronger partnerships, and access to new markets and investors, which is why this series was created. She framed the Venture Bridge as Startup Kano’s effort to bring together African innovators, ecosystem leaders, investors, and strategic partners to exchange ideas, build relationships, and open doors for collaboration, expressing hope that the session would mark the beginning of many meaningful, lasting partnerships between Africa and Asia rather than a single isolated engagement.Aida also took a moment to specially acknowledge Jun Kojima, Director of Ant Capital, Japan, thanking him for his collaboration, trust, and commitment in helping bring this initiative to life. She closed her remarks by thanking the ecosystem partners, speakers, startup founders, and every participant who made the session possible, before handing back to Ahmad to guide the rest of the program. Country Ecosystem Briefing: Nigeria’s Digital Innovation Landscape Delivering the Country Ecosystem Briefing, a 15-minute segment placed immediately after the opening, was Victoria Fabunmi, National Coordinator of the Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation (ONDI) under NITDA. Her participation was specifically requested to add institutional credibility and policy perspective to the session, giving Asian investors, mentors, and strategic partners a grounded overview of Nigeria’s innovation landscape, ecosystem strengths, policy environment, and emerging opportunities.Victoria brings over 15 years of experience across venture capital, private equity, and startup ecosystem development to the role. Before joining ONDI, she was an Investment Principal at Atlantica Ventures, where she led investment readiness programs and supported innovation hubs across the continent. She has also co-founded three successful technology-enabled businesses, giving her a rare combined vantage point as policymaker, investor, and founder. Her briefing touched on Nigeria’s startup and digital innovation ecosystem, key sectors and opportunity areas relevant to investors, recent policy and institutional developments supporting startup growth, the role of public and private ecosystem actors in enabling innovation, and why Nigeria as Africa’s largest entrepreneurial market is positioned as a natural anchor for Africa-Asia startup collaboration. The session’s focus areas of mobility, commerce, enterprise technology, creative economy, and climate innovation were reflected directly in the lineup of startups featured later in the program. The Investor Perspective: A View from Asia Representing the Asian investor community was Jun Kojima, Director at ANT Capital, Japan, a key partner in bringing the Venture Bridge series to life alongside Startup Kano. Jun brings extensive cross-border investment experience across private equity, venture capital, and portfolio management, with a career spanning leadership roles at Golden Egg Ventures, DG Ventures, Japan Post Capital, Manulife, and Visa Worldwide. He holds a B.A. from the University of Sydney and a Master’s degree from the University of Technology Sydney. His session offered participants a candid, practitioner’s view of what Asian investors look for when evaluating African ventures: the diligence priorities, market signals, and partnership structures that matter most from a cross-border investment standpoint. As co-creator of the series, Jun’s presence also underscored that the Venture Bridge isn’t a one-directional showcase, but a genuine two-way exchange built jointly by African and Asian partners from the outset. Startups in the Spotlight Five Nigerian startups pitched during the showcase segment, spanning minerals, robotics, energy, developer infrastructure, and mobility, a deliberate cross-section reflecting the session’s stated focus areas: GenesysOne: Founded by Ubaid Sulaiman, GenesysOne is building a platform to turn Africa’s fragmented mineral supply into verified, traceable, export-ready inventory. Using blockchain-backed Digital Product Passports with GPS origin data, lab assays, ESG scoring, and carbon footprint tracking, the company addresses a systemic trust gap in global mineral supply chains. Miners currently lose 40-60% of potential value due to lack of price transparency and market access, while buyers face unverifiable origins and regulatory exposure. The company has $2M in lifetime offline GMV, a copper pilot running in Tanzania, four MOUs with large-scale mining companies, and four LOIs worth $8M in its pipeline. GenesysOne is raising SGD 500K in pre-seed funding. Dalton: Founded by Yaseer Abdussalam and Jacob Gill, Dalton is building what