AIfluence, a Kenyan adtech firm and influencer marketing platform, has raised $1 million in seed funding, 18 months after raising another $100,000. Antler East Africa, VC OUI Capital, ArabyAds, and a European family group participated in the round, which was led by Dubai-based EQ2 Ventures.
AIfluence, which launched in April 2020, addresses a major issue for brand marketers: reliably measuring the ROI and efficacy of influencer marketing efforts. Through its audience-first strategy, the platform can precisely match influencers with a specific demographic by leveraging powerful Machine Learning algorithms.
The AIfluence platform, which runs campaigns in 13 African and Asian countries, allows advertisers to onboard and coordinate with thousands of micro and nano influencers every campaign, resulting in genuine peer-to-peer interactions and higher conversion.
“People are the new media in today’s digital world, and AIfluence is uniquely positioned to turn this reality into tangible results for advertisers. We’ve been impressed by the team’s obsession to use data in order to spread authentic and relevant messages to the right audience. This is what advertising should always be. We’re looking forward to AIfluence’s journey ahead.” CEO of EQ2 Ventures Patrick Thiriet said.
C0-founder and CEO Nelson Aseka said AIfluence’s current marketing success has been validated by this outstanding Seed round.
“We are at the cusp of a revolution, the way marketing works globally is changing. We find ourselves at an intersection of advanced technology and the fastest-growing region in the world in terms of digital and social media penetration. It’s an exciting place to be. Our guiding philosophy is that influence is not a profession, it’s an outcome.” he adds.
By the end of 2021, the Kenya-based Adtech business wants to use the fresh capital to further enhance its Tech and SaaS platform, as well as expand into the remainder of Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.