Pan-African entrepreneurial training program, seed fund, and tech incubator, Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST), has launched its fourth incubator and tech hub in Nairobi, Kenya.
According to a statement issued, this will serve as its flagship East African space, joining hubs in Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa.
The Nairobi launch comes less than a year after the opening of MEST Africa’s Lagos and Cape Town hubs in November 2017.
The Nairobi space will also host the new East African office of its parent brand, global leader in media intelligence and AI-Driven Outside Insight, Meltwater , who is also expanding into the region.
The incubator will provide the same on-the-ground support, access to resources and global MEST network enjoyed by portfolio companies in Accra, Lagos and Cape Town, the statement continues.
Following the announcement of a US$700k investment in 7 startups from the 2018 MEST cohort, one of the first companies to move into the Incubator in Nairobi will be recent investment Sharehouse, an ‘Airbnb for warehouses.’
They will be joined by existing portfolio company Nestmetric , a platform that makes business insights and predictions through Machine Learning accessible to all types of businesses.
“MEST is thrilled to officially establish our presence in East Africa with the launch of our Nairobi incubator,” said MEST Managing Director Aaron Fu. “I personally look forward to engaging even more deeply with the incredibly vibrant tech and startup community thriving in Nairobi, which I’m happy to call home.”\
