Seven African tech gadgets that are providing real human solutions

Forget self-driving cars. The real future is chaos represented by a toilet that monitors your diet, a bench that talks, and shoes made from yesterday’s Fanta bottles. African entrepreneurs have long been known for inventiveness, but now, our tech bros and sis have fully entered the chat armed with solutions no one asked for, but everyone needs.

Welcome to the strange, smart, and slightly unhinged corner of African innovation.

1. Sora Drone 

Sector: Healthtech                              

Country: Ghana / Côte d’Ivoire (pilots), backed by Japan

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You know how they call Africa “the white man’s grave” because malaria loves to whisper lullabies into visitors’ ears? Well, the oyinbos got tired of losing sleep (and lives), and Sora, a Japanese-backed healthtech initiative, decided to fight back with drones.

The drones are deployed to spray anti-malarial treatments over mosquito breeding grounds. Word on the street is that the mosquitoes bit one of the engineers. And you know how tech people are—if one goes down, the whole colony must be eliminated. No peace for the buzzing enemies.

2. Early Bean 

Sector: Fintech                                                                                                   

Country: Nigeria

You know that family member who eats the most but contributes nothing financially? No, not your pet dog—we mean your baby. A tin of Cerelac these days could fund a Jollof party.

Enter EarlyBean, a Nigerian fintech platform designed to help children start saving from day one. It allows parents, friends, and well-wishers to send money directly into a child’s wallet. No more “bring it, let me keep it for you” scams from Mummy and Daddy.

3. Vivoo & Smart Toilets 

Sector: Health & Wellness 

Country: US/Turkey origin, popular with Nigerian wellness influencers

Imagine going to pee at 3 am and your toilet responds like “Ma, you’re dehydrated. And your sodium intake is a crime.”

That’s Vivoo. It’s a smart toilet system and wellness pee strip combo that analyzes your urine and sends personalized health reports to your phone. It checks hydration, vitamin levels, and other stats you didn’t ask for while half-asleep.

4. Q-Bear Monitor

Sector: Parenting Tech                 

Country: Taiwan origin, adopted by African parenting forums

Babies live in their own mysterious universe. They cry, you guess. Is it heat? Hunger? Existential dread?

Q-Bear uses AI to analyze baby cries and tell parents what their baby is trying to say. It’s basically Google Translate but for baby noises. No more rocking a baby for three hours only to realize they just wanted to fart.

5. Intron Health

Sector: Healthtech                                                                                              

Country: Ghana

If you’ve ever looked at a doctor’s handwriting and considered calling a priest, you’re not alone. But Intron Health, founded in Ghana, has a fix. Its AI-powered speech-to-text software transcribes medical notes in African accents and local languages.

Doctors speak, and the system writes neatly and legibly. Hallelujah!

6. PAL Smart Bench

Sector: Renewable Energy                                                                           

Country: Zimbabwe

Benches used to be quiet, supportive public furniture. Not anymore.

The PAL Smart Bench, created in Zimbabwe, is solar-powered and talks to you. It delivers climate education messages, charges your phone, and occasionally sounds like your overly informed friend who just discovered TED Talks.

So next time you sit to clear your head, don’t be surprised if the bench asks about your carbon footprint.

7. Salubata 

Sector: Cleantech                                                                                             

Country: Nigeria

Remember that teacher in primary school who wore only one functional shoe? Well, that legacy lives on, just elevated.

Salubata, a Nigerian cleantech fashion brand, creates modular sneakers made from recycled plastic waste. The company collects plastic waste, particularly PET bottles, which are then processed, melted down, and spun into polyester yarns used in shoe fabrics.

They own and operate a production facility in Lagos, where the sneakers are assembled in a modular fashion, meaning the soles, uppers, and design layers can be detached and replaced without discarding the whole shoe. It’s like building Lego blocks for your feet.

You want a different look? Just swap out the parts. Got the shoe dirty? Remove, wash, and remix it.

You can change the sole, the fabric, and the vibe without buying a whole new shoe. It’s sustainable, affordable, and low-key fine.

Somewhere between genius and madness, these innovators are proving that the future won’t be boring. Because if there’s one thing African tech is doing right, it’s keeping the solutions real, human, and hilarious.