Provision Sight Africa has won Sh500,000 in seed capital after emerging top in the Investor Pitch Arena at the Women in STEM Africa Summit 2026 held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi.
The two-day summit, organised by Women in Technology and Innovation Africa (WITIA) in partnership with UNESCO, brought together government officials, academics, researchers, entrepreneurs, industry players and development partners to explore ways of strengthening Africa’s technology and innovation ecosystem.
Held under the theme “Discovering Talent. Driving Innovation. Shaping Africa’s Future,” the summit concluded on Friday with nine finalists pitching their innovations before judges, investors, venture capitalists, industry leaders and potential partners.
Provision Sight Africa, also known as Blindsight Africa Limited, emerged the overall winner. The company, founded by Victoria Mwaura, is developing artificial intelligence-powered assistive technology to provide smart navigation solutions for visually impaired people in Kenya and East Africa.
Speaking after the announcement, Mwaura said the award would help the company improve its technology and expand its reach.
“Winning the Investor Pitch Arena is a powerful validation of the work we are doing to use AI to create greater independence and inclusion for visually impaired people,” she said.
Mwaura added that the Sh500,000 would enable the company to strengthen its technology and reach more users across the region.
“The KES 500,000 will help us strengthen our technology, expand our reach and move closer to serving more people across Kenya and East Africa,” she said.
Innobid, led by co-founder and chief executive officer Eliud Luutsa, secured second position, while Tallycheck Limited, founded by Caesar Wamugo, Paul Chege and Emanuel Maina, finished third.
Luutsa said the competition had given African startups an opportunity to engage investors and industry stakeholders.
“Being among the top innovators at the Investor Pitch Arena is a significant achievement for our team. The Summit has given us more than recognition; it has opened doors to conversations, partnerships and opportunities that can help us grow Innobid and increase our impact,” he said.
WITIA Programs Manager Wesa Sitati said the pitch competition was intended to address the gap between innovative ideas and the resources required to develop them into viable enterprises.
“Africa does not have a shortage of talent or ideas. What we need are stronger bridges between innovators and the capital, markets, mentorship and partnerships that can take their solutions to the next level,” Sitati said.
He said the competition sought to ensure promising African innovations do not remain at the prototype stage but receive the support needed to scale.
WITIA Founder and Chair Eunice Pohlmann said the results demonstrated the importance of investing in women and African innovators.
“Today we have seen what happens when talent is given a platform, when innovators are allowed to present their solutions and when investment begins to follow ideas,” Pohlmann said.
She said WITIA wanted women to play a leading role in developing companies and solutions within Africa’s innovation economy.
WITIA Advisory Board Member Dr Bella Namango called for closer collaboration between innovators, investors, government, academia and industry to help successful startups scale.
“The next step is to ensure that these innovators receive the support, investment and partnerships they need to scale and create lasting impact,” she said.
The summit ended with a call for stronger partnerships to connect African talent with investment, markets and opportunities, while WITIA reaffirmed its commitment to narrowing the gender and digital divide through training, mentorship, internships, scholarships and other initiatives.
