2026-04-21 15:02:16
Two South African AI Startups Selected for Google for Startups Accelerator Africa Class 10
Two SA startups, Loop and Vambo AI, join Google's Accelerator Africa 10th cohort from 2,600 apps; Loop enhances mobility/payments, Vambo AI enables multilingual AI; program runs Apr-Jun 2026 with mentors and AI workshops.
Abstract: Two South African startups, Loop and Vambo AI, have been selected for the Google for Startups Accelerator Africa's 10th cohort, chosen from about 2,600 applications and one of 15 African participants. Loop digitizes mobility and payments, while Vambo AI provides multilingual AI infrastructure for translation, speech, and generative AI across African languages. The 2026 program runs April 13–June 19 and offers mentorship and hands-on workshops focused on AI/ML. Since 2018, the accelerator has supported 106 startups from 17 African countries, helping them raise over $263 million and create more than 2,800 jobs.