Lengo AI’s Successful Pre-Seed Round Validates Noru Capital’s Bold Investment

Dakar, Senegal, 04 October 2023  – Noru Capital, first venture capital firm to back Lengo, is excited to announce the successful completion of their pre-seed funding round.

Based in Dakar, Lengo AI enables fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) brands to track their performance across tens of thousands of informal retail points in Africa. As the startup’s first VC investor, Noru Capital is joined in this round by top-tier VC firms from the continent, such as Acasia Ventures, Ventures Platform, Launch Africa Ventures, P1 ventures, along with other funds and business angels. This investment will empower Lengo to strengthen its team, expand its revenues, and accelerate the integration of AI into its products, taking a significant step toward realizing its grand mission: « Stop Guessing Africa. » 

Founded in 2021, Lengo AI was born from a paradox. In Africa, FMCG brands invest billions of dollars in promoting new products. However, information about their performance in retail shops, which are 90% informal across the continent, remains difficult to access, imprecise, and costly. 

To address this challenge, Lengo AI has mapped nearly 30,000 shops in Senegal, and united the shopkeepers under the Lengo Club. Building on this community, the startup has constructed the first AI-based operating system for informal retail in Africa.

For FMCG companies, Lengo AI provides a range of precise metrics to monitor their performance, that of their competitors, and make data-driven decisions. For shopkeepers, Lengo AI delivers essential data to better understand their business and increase their revenues. 

The startup is led by a strong and complementary trio of founders. Max Smith, CEO, brings solid experience in business development and market research in Africa. Roger-Xavier Macia, COO, possesses deep knowledge of the retail world, acquired, among other places, at Shopee and Jumia. Ismaila Seck, CTO, and a Ph.D. in Computer Science is an expert in artificial intelligence technologies. 

« At Lengo, we saw a space that is still largely untapped by startups in Africa, that of Business Intelligence in informal retail. An innovative solution based powered by disruptive technology, Artificial Intelligence. All of this led by a strong and complementary team with whom we immediately resonated. We are delighted to be the first investor in this round. » said Naofal Ali, Partner at Noru Capital.