Iyin Aboyeji to Launch AI Talent Startup, Targets One million Engineers

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigerian technology entrepreneur, Mr Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, is launching a new artificial intelligence (AI)-focused talent startup, Talent Nation, as he seeks to position African software developers to meet rising global demand for AI professionals.

The venture, which aims to train and supply AI engineers to multinational companies, is targeting the development of one million AI engineers over the next 10 years.

Mr Aboyeji, who co-founded Flutterwave and Andela and was an early investor in Moove, disclosed the plans in an interview with Semafor, saying most of the developers trained through the new venture would come from Africa.

“We’ve got a goal of a million AI engineers over the next 10 years,” he said.

Talent Nation is backed by seed funding from African investment firm Enza Capital and London-based LocalGlobe, although Mr Aboyeji declined to disclose the amount raised.

According to the publication, its first training programme, Learn2Earn, has attracted 63,000 applications, with less than three per cent of applicants selected for training across multiple campuses.

The startup said it would provide tuition-free training, using a peer-learning model to develop engineers to internationally competitive standards.

According to Mr Aboyeji, the company expects to train AI engineers at a cost of less than $5,000 per person over a two-year period, without relying on paid instructors.

He said the approach would help address the high cost of developing AI talent while expanding access to skilled professionals needed by businesses globally.

“We don’t need $300,000 AI engineers. That’s not how this technology is going to find its way to mom and pop shops around the world,” he said.

Talent Nation’s chief executive, Ms Kesiah Valkin, said building a competitive talent pipeline required more than recognising Africa’s human capital potential, stressing the need for infrastructure to identify and develop skilled workers.

“Developing talent at scale is an extraordinarily complex undertaking,” she said.

The launch comes amid increasing demand for AI specialists as technology companies globally commit billions of dollars to artificial intelligence development.

However, Africa remains underrepresented in the global AI workforce. According to the Boston Consulting Group, the continent has about 62,000 AI specialists, representing five per cent of the global AI workforce.

The development presents an opportunity for Talent Nation to tap into the growing demand for AI professionals, particularly as African software developers expand at a rapid pace.

Andela, which Mr Aboyeji co-founded in 2014 to train African software developers for global technology companies, helped develop a generation of engineers across six African countries before he left the company in 2016.