We’re already in April, and the year is moving quickly. There’s been a lot happening across Antler globally, here in Africa, and on a personal front. From launching new cohorts to settling into our new Lagos office, and engaging in thoughtful conversations around talent development and capital deployment across the continent, the momentum has been strong.
I’m excited to share a few updates with you.
Antler Global Updates
Antler has its third unicorn 🦄
PixVerse, backed by Antler and Alibaba, just raised $300 million in Series C funding, reaching unicorn status and joining Lovable and Airalo in Antler's growing portfolio of billion-dollar companies. The AI video generation platform allows anyone to create cinematic-quality video from a single prompt, photo, or clip, democratising what once required expensive equipment and technical expertise. Users across 175 countries have already created 2.1 billion videos on the platform.
With this new funding, PixVerse plans to accelerate global expansion and grow its enterprise customer base.
Read more here.
Antler Africa Updates
LOS3 Founders with Deepankar Rustagi
For our third Lagos cohort, we received over 6,400 applications and selected 36 founders, making it our largest cohort in Nigeria to date. On average, the group brings 9.6 years of experience spanning fintech, healthcare, e-commerce, the creative economy, and logistics.
It’s energising to work alongside builders who are tackling some of Africa’s most pressing challenges with deep domain expertise and a strong bias for execution. We look forward to backing more of these founders as they validate their ideas and build products the market truly needs.
NAI14 Founders
In Nairobi, we launched NAI14 with 15 founders selected from almost 3,000 applications. This cohort brings 15 years of average work experience across agribusiness, FMCG, financial services, pharmaceuticals and capital markets, sectors fundamental to the region's economic transformation.
Antler Lagos Office
We've moved into our new Lagos office at the Federal Palace Hotel complex. The larger space allows us to support more founders, engage more effectively with the ecosystem through events and convenings, and create collaborative environments where founders, operators, and investors can connect. Exciting times ahead!
Rooftop
We also have a fantastic rooftop space that's perfect for hosting mixers, panel discussions, and community gatherings. We're open to partners who want to collaborate to create meaningful ecosystem events. If you're interested in exploring a partnership, please reach out.
Personal Updates
I had the privilege of participating in the Cheetah Roundtable in Nairobi, where I shared a panel with Ulric Daniel, CEO of Yalelo Zambia, and Maryanne Ochola, Managing Director at Endeavor Kenya, moderated by Coen van Genderen from FMO. Our session focused on "Winning Talent Development Strategies for the Next Generation of Agribusiness Leaders in Africa." One theme came through clearly: talent remains one of the biggest constraints to scaling businesses across the continent, often more critical than access to capital. Businesses scale through people, and investing in the next generation of leaders is just as important as investing capital.
I also represented Antler on a panel exploring different pathways of capital into African businesses, alongside Lilian Oyando from Goodwell Investments, Asif Noorani from Phatisa, Dan Apungu from Adenia Partners, Isaac Mungoma from IDH, and George Njaramba from AfricInvest Group. We discussed how different funding models - from pre-seed and seed capital to growth equity and private equity - serve businesses at different stages. Big thanks to FMO, IFC, and Finnfund for hosting.
Back in Lagos, I participated as a panelist at the Lagos Angel Network (LAN) Q1 Members Meetup, which brought together a growing community of investors, operators, and ecosystem leaders. Two of our portfolio companies, Cubbes and Forti Foods, presented during the event, sharing their journeys and progress with the community.
The conversations reflected the increasing momentum around structured angel investing in our ecosystem, a positive signal for the maturation of our investment landscape.
I have been releasing new episodes, and the conversations keep getting better:
Episode 3: Not Just a Launch, It's a Strategy – I sat down with Olajumoke Abiodun to break down why a launch without a clear go-to-market strategy is just noise, and how founders can move from one-off hype to building sustainable growth engines through deliberate positioning, channel selection, and customer retention. Listen here.
Episode 4: Profitability for Asset-Heavy Companies – I sat down with Adetayo Bamiduro, Co-founder of MAX, to discuss the unique challenges capital-intensive businesses face and how they can set up the right operational and financial structures to build, scale, and survive in industries where unit economics and asset utilisation can make or break a company. Listen here.
I’ve moved to a bi-monthly rhythm to ensure each newsletter is more thoughtful and packed with relevant content. As always, if you see opportunities for us to partner, I’d be glad to connect.
Lola