A Year Of Great African Tech Conversations

And so the African Tech Round-up’s First Birthday Celebration continues…

Over the past year, our sister podcast, African Tech Conversations, has featured relaxed in-depth chats with leading entrepreneurs, innovators and thought-leaders from Africa’s tech scene. In place of this week’s discussion on the African Tech Round-up, we’re sharing memorable moments from the series.

In this episode, you can look forward to hearing candid bits and insights courtesy of Mteto Nyathi, Alan Knott-Craig Jr, Matsi Modise, Ashley Veasey, Justin Spratt and Trevor Wolfe. We obviously couldn’t share snippets from every conversation we had, but you’re welcome to listen to every single one of them in their entirety at conversations.africantechroundup.com

By the way, Happy Birthday to my homeland— Zimbabwe!

First published on AfricanTechRoundup.com

Being Unemployable With Alan Knott-Craig Jr

Our final guest on Season Two of African Tech Conversations is the “unemployable”, disruptive force that is Alan Knott-Craig Jr.

It’s natural to assume that Alan Knott-Craig Sr (his father) paved the way for his son and namesake, Alan Jr to become one of the most well-recognised personalities on South Africa’s tech scene.

And while it’s impossible to disregard the advantages of having such an experienced and well-connected man for a father, Alan Jr has long proved his mettle as a startup founder and gone on to carve out his own success.

Prior to founding Free WiFi non-profit, Project Isizwe, Alan Jr founded World of Avatar and served as CEO of Mxit. Prior to that, he was Managing Director of iBurst, as well as Chairman of Cellfind.

At Project Isizwe— where he’s currently CEO, he’s poised to hand over the reins to Zahir Khan, so he can focus his energies on steering his latest venture— WiFi network startup, HeroTel.

There’s no doubt that when it comes to speaking his mind with little or no filter, Alan Knott-Craig Jr proves that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Happily, that attribute makes him a very interesting subject indeed.

Enjoy the conversation!

What Defines An African Startup?

Back in Episode 3 of the African Tech Round-up we asked the question: “What is a startup?” A lively discussion ensued— inspired by an eloquent piece written by David Adamo Jr, a Nigerian Computer Science PhD student at the University of North Texas.

Since then Founder & CEO of Hotels.ng, Mark Essien, and Project Isizwe Founder & CEO, Alan Knott-Craig Jr, have both since penned articles (When Startups In Nigeria Suddenly Got Serious and Venture Capital In Africa Is Hard) which contribute to answering a more pointed question we’re asking in this week’s show:

“What defines an African startup?”

Can African tech startups be defined in the same terms as those currently being born and raised in Silicon Valley?

Are there certain universal standards (i.e. minimum levels of traction in the form user onboarding, cash flow, etc.) that must be met in order for a business owner to claim the coveted title of “startup founder”?

Tefo Mohapi and I’s discussion this week adds to a debate that we hope everyone in Africa’s tech eco-system will continue to jump in on.

Also, catch up on all the week’s biggest tech, digital and innovation news from across Africa:

• Safaricom poised to start charging banks for bank-to-M-Pesa transfers,
• Google Transit launches in Kenya and attempts to aid users of public transport,
• Nest VC establishes a presence in South Africa through a partnership with Cape Town Garage,
• Android One’s Infinix Hot 2 smartphone selling like hotcakes in Nigeria,
• Google announces that they have reached a 10 million user milestone in Nigeria,
• South African mobile network, Cell C, discontinues free WhatsApp promotion, and
• South African airline FlySafair server crash following slash price ticket campaign.