Click to watchNigeria’s artificial intelligence (AI) scene is accelerating, driven by new infrastructure, supportive policy signals, and a wave of founders developing products tailored to local needs. Recent estimates suggest Nigeria’s AI market could reach about $1.4 billion by 2025, pointing to fast-rising demand for data, models, and applications across sectors. Global players are also investing: Google’s Africa commitments (first announced in 2021) have crossed the $1 billion mark in connectivity and ecosystem support, with new projects such as undersea internet cables, research grants, and programmes that support startups. All these efforts are helping to build a more substantial base for AI innovation in Nigeria.
Amid this momentum, Nigerian teams are shipping practical AI tools in health, finance, language technologies, agritech, insurance, and cybersecurity, often solving problems that global models overlook, such as African accents, indigenous languages, or connectivity constraints. For a broader context on the ecosystem’s direction, see Condia’s coverage of AI’s impact on African startups, customer-support AI, and policy debates. (Here)
Below are 8 emerging AI startups in Nigeria to watch. Each profile highlights what they do, recent proof points, and why they matter now.
1. CDIAL AI
CDIAL AI (Centre for Digitisation of Indigenous African Languages) develops language technologies that enable the use of digital services in African languages. Its Indigenius platform and multilingual keyboard support over 180 African languages, aiming to localise search, messaging, and enterprise workflows at scale. Founded by Yinka Iyinolakan, CDIAL operates from Lagos and Los Angeles and works with enterprises that need translation, speech, and localisation APIs.
In 2024–2025, CDIAL’s language tools featured in multiple ecosystem round-ups and received national recognition for innovation. The company’s materials describe small language models and enterprise agents tailored to low-resource languages, aligning with Nigeria’s broader push on language-aware AI.
As governments and platforms localise services, CDIAL’s language stack provides a practical approach to making AI more inclusive across chat, support, and learning products.
2. BetaLife Health
Founded in 2021 by Mubarak Ayanniyi and Mathew Okwoli, BetaLife Health uses artificial intelligence and predictive analytics to improve blood-supply management and donor coordination across Nigeria. The platform enables hospitals to predict blood demand, manage donations, and minimise shortages and delays in supply.
BetaLife Health has been selected for several national AI funding programmes and has partnered with NIGCOMSAT to enhance healthcare access through satellite connectivity. It has also participated in innovation cohorts focused on expanding digital health solutions in rural areas. Public updates and community posts highlight growing recognition for its AI-powered system and its impact on improving blood availability in underserved regions.
Managing blood supply is a significant challenge in many parts of Africa. By using AI to forecast demand and plan deliveries, BetaLife Health helps hospitals get blood where it’s needed faster, saving lives and cutting waste.
3. AwaDoc
AwaDoc is an AI-powered health assistant on WhatsApp that offers instant triage and connects users to verified doctors. Co-founded by Chinonso Egemba (Aproko Doctor) and Jesse Benedict, it serves as the primary point of contact for health queries, meeting users where they are through messaging apps.
Media profiles and product explainers describe AwaDoc’s always-on symptom guidance and structured escalation to human clinicians. The approach blends conversational AI with verified provider networks to expand access at low cost.
Nigeria’s high patient-to-doctor ratios and uneven facility access create delays. Low-friction triage via WhatsApp can reduce pressure on clinics and shorten time to care.
Related article: Six African Startups Using AI for Customer Support
4. 10mg Health
10mg Health uses AI and embedded finance to give collateral-free working-capital loans to clinics, pharmacies, and hospitals, approving in minutes and disbursing at scale. The company reports serving over 6,000 providers and disbursing more than $ 3.4 million in loans, with underwriting powered by real-time data rather than traditional collateral. Public coverage also uses the name 10mg Pharma, reflecting its finance-for-health positioning.
Founded in 2022 by Christian Nwachukwu, 10mg Health operates from Lagos, Nigeria, and focuses on helping healthcare businesses across Africa access quick, data-driven credit. Recent features explain how its AI model pairs providers with finance partners and manages risk; sector press has profiled its approach to closing Africa’s healthcare financing gap.
Access to affordable healthcare financing remains a significant challenge. Using data-driven risk models can help more hospitals and pharmacies get loans quickly without needing to provide substantial collateral.
5. Curacel
Curacel is a fast-growing Nigerian insurtech startup using artificial intelligence to modernise insurance operations across Africa. Its platform automates key processes such as claims handling, fraud detection, and policy management for auto, health, and life insurance providers. By doing so, it helps insurers make quicker and more accurate decisions, significantly reducing fraud and operational expenses.
Founded in 2020 by Henry Mascot, Curacel is headquartered in Lagos and operates in several African markets, including Ghana, Kenya, and Uganda. The startup offers an easy-to-integrate API that connects directly with insurers’ existing systems, cutting claim turnaround times to less than 24 hours. Its goal is clear: to help insurance companies process genuine claims efficiently while eliminating waste and fraud.
With growing adoption from leading insurers and digital platforms, Curacel is positioning itself as one of Africa’s leading AI-driven insurance infrastructure providers. By automating manual checks and enabling data-driven decisions, the startup is improving transparency, customer trust, and profitability across the continent’s insurance sector.
6. Intron Health
Intron Health is a healthtech startup developing clinical speech recognition technology designed specifically for African accents and healthcare environments. Founded in 2023 by Dr Tobi Olatunji, the company aims to bridge the gap between medical documentation and technology by allowing doctors to dictate notes. It reports naturally, without being hindered by accent bias common in Western-trained voice systems.
In 2024, Intron Health raised $1.6 million in pre-seed funding, achieving around 92% accuracy for clinical terms. Its AI-powered platform is already being used in over 30 hospitals, serving tens of thousands of patients and reducing dictation and transcription time for healthcare workers. The startup is also developing multilingual models, including an English-to-Hausa version, to make its system more accessible across Africa.
By streamlining clinical documentation and reducing administrative workloads, Intron Health enables hospitals to deliver faster, higher-quality patient care. Its focus on African speech patterns and real-world hospital data positions it as a pioneering force in AI-driven healthcare solutions across the continent.
For further ecosystem context, see Condia’s feature that also spotlights Intron. (Here)
7. KrosAI
KrosAI is an emerging Nigerian AI startup focused on building intelligent solutions for businesses across Africa. Founded in 2024 by Joshua Firima (CEO) and Godgift Egims (CTO), the company was born out of a pivot from their previous venture, Moosbu, a commerce automation platform. The founders transitioned from e-commerce technology to artificial intelligence after identifying stronger opportunities in AI-powered business automation and decision systems.
With a vision to make advanced AI tools accessible to African enterprises, KrosAI develops systems that help companies improve efficiency, predict customer behaviour, and automate operations. Its products are designed to integrate seamlessly into existing workflows, providing data insights that support more intelligent business decisions.
By evolving from Moosbu into a full-fledged AI company, KrosAI represents the growing maturity of Nigeria’s startup ecosystem, where founders are adapting quickly to global technological shifts and shaping Africa’s AI future.
8. Xara AI
Xara AI is an emerging Nigerian artificial intelligence startup dedicated to creating innovative, accessible solutions for individuals and businesses. Founded in May 2025 by Sulaiman Adewale, the company was established to bridge the gap between complex AI technologies and everyday business needs in Africa. Its mission is to make AI tools simple, practical, and affordable for users in sectors such as customer service, marketing, and data management.
With a focus on ease of use, Xara AI develops systems that help organisations automate repetitive tasks, analyse information faster, and make better decisions through data-driven insights. The company’s goal is to empower businesses to work more efficiently and stay competitive in a rapidly changing digital economy.
As one of Nigeria’s newest AI ventures, Xara AI reflects the country’s growing innovation scene, where founders are using technology not just to follow global trends but to build solutions designed for Africa’s unique challenges and opportunities.
Nigeria’s artificial intelligence industry is growing quickly, led by creative founders, supportive government policies, and a new wave of local innovation. The eight startups featured, ranging from Intron Health’s voice technology for African accents to Xara AI’s innovative automation tools, demonstrate how Nigerian entrepreneurs are leveraging AI to address real-world challenges in healthcare, finance, and business operations.
With continued support from organisations like NITDA and the National Centre for AI and Robotics, Nigeria is becoming an essential player in Africa’s tech ecosystem. These startups highlight the country’s creativity and determination to build practical, home-grown solutions that can compete globally, strengthen Nigeria’s digital economy, and advance its role in the global AI revolution.
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