Hello everyone,
The year has kicked off on a strong note, both personally and at Antler.
I spend a lot of my time thinking about the startup ecosystem: speaking with founders tackling hard problems across the continent, and building platforms that can better support innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa. It’s been energising to see the quality of ideas and the ambition of the builders I meet every week.
I’m excited to share more about what I’ve been working on over the past few weeks.
I hope your year is off to a great start as well.
Antler Global Updates
Antler Sustainability Report
We just published our fifth annual sustainability report, and this time we did something different. We used Lovable, one of our portfolio companies, to build an interactive experience instead of the usual lengthy PDF. You can explore the data, insights, and our progress in a way that actually makes sense. Check it out here
Antler's 2025 Progress
The Wall Street Journal recently covered Antler's momentum in 2025. We made over 400 investments globally last year, and Dealroom.co named us the most active global AI investor in 2024. We closed a $160M US-focused fund and raised $510M total across the firm. We're on track for 500 new investments in 2026 while staying highly selective; just 2.7 out of every 1,000 founders who connect with us receive investment. Read the full article here.
What Makes a Unicorn Founder?
We analysed 1,629 unicorns and 3,512 founders globally to understand what drives the world's most valuable companies. Key findings: AI unicorn founders are getting younger, time-to-unicorn is shrinking, around 40% are repeat entrepreneurs, and a quarter are immigrants building outside their home countries. Read the full report here.
Antler Africa Updates
Cohort Applications
Applications are open for our third residency program in Lagos and our 14th in Nairobi. We're looking for outlier founders with deep domain expertise and a strong bias for execution, people building solutions to real problems with the grit to see them through. Applications close soon, so if you know ambitious founders who fit this profile, please send them our way. They can apply directly at antler.co.
Portfolio Updates
Cubbes, our portfolio company, was selected as one of the winners of the 4th cohort of GETAccelerated by the Grooming Endowment Trust, winning ₦10 million. Congratulations to Peter Adeyemi and the team!
We've also made investments in new companies across Kenya and Lagos. We'll share more details soon, but we're excited about the impact these companies will make.
Under-30 Problem Validation Idea Lab (above) & Real Sector x Fintech Idea Lab (below)
Idea Labs in Lagos
In Lagos, we've continued our Idea Labs series, closed working sessions where we help founders pressure-test their ideas before rushing to product. In January, we ran the Under-30 Problem Validation Idea Lab for young founders actively building or ideating, and this month we hosted a Real Sector × FinTech Problem Validation Lab. Both sessions focused on breaking down problem statements, stress-testing urgency, working through unit economics and regulatory realities, with seasoned builders sharing operator insights.
Personal Updates
I participated in the TechCabal State of the Industry in Africa (SOTIA) 2025 Report Launch Roundtable. The message was clear: capital alone no longer defines success in African tech; capability and execution discipline do. We touched on everything from unit economics and capital efficiency to how companies use debt, approach M&A, navigate regulation, and scale across Africa.
Get the full report here.
TechCabal recently asked me to predict what might happen in the tech ecosystem in 2026. It pushed me to reflect on the macro-economic and industry shifts of the last 18 months and thinking through how those trends could shape the year ahead. Curious about what I anticipate? Read my thoughts here.
I was also featured in BusinessDay recently, sharing my perspective on how the Nigerian startup ecosystem has performed over the last 18 months. You can read the full article here
Lastly, we went live with the Periscope Podcast, and we have received overwhelmingly positive feedback over and beyond our initial expectations. I launched Periscope to demystify fundraising, financial planning, technology, marketing and all the ingredients necessary to build scalable businesses across Africa. From planning to launch, I've enjoyed every bit of it. Please subscribe, listen to previous episodes, and share with your friends.
Episode 1: Are you VC Backable? I sat down with Tosin Faniro-Dada, Partner at Breega, to explore what makes a startup VC backable. We discussed what investors look for when deciding where to deploy capital, and what founders often get wrong. Listen here.
Episode 2: AI is Not a Strategy. I sat down with Tarebi Alebiosu to discuss why AI is not a strategy and how founders should approach building with AI. Listen here.
Please reach out if you see any opportunities to collaborate; I'd love to hear from you.
Lola