A startup based in Ghana known as Aya Data has successfully secured a $900,000 seed funding round, which comprises a combination of debt and equity. This funding is intended for the expansion of its two main products, AyaGrow and AyaSpeech, as well as for hiring new employees.
This recent funding has brought the total funding for the startup to $1.15 million. Previously, Aya Data had raised $300,000 from various investors like Microtraction, Savannah Fund, and UK Investors. The latest round of funding was spearheaded by 54Collective, with the participation of other angel investors.
Established in 2021 by Freddie Monk and Ama Larbi-Siaw, Aya Data focuses on recruiting individuals to gather and categorize data such as images, videos, and texts, which are crucial for the development of Large Language Models like ChatGPT and Gemini. Additionally, the startup offers training to its workers who are tasked with data annotation responsibilities, preparing them for technical roles such as data engineering and data science. Currently, Aya Data has 11 employees covering these roles.
Aside from data annotation and collection, Aya Data also develops customized AI solutions for businesses. Among its AI products are AyaGrow, a solution for monitoring crops and fields that enhances precision agriculture for commercial and smallholder farmers, and AyaSpeech, which is a comprehensive speech-to-speech solution enabling interactions in local African languages for businesses, consumers, and governments.
Aya Data is part of a growing cohort of startups worldwide, including Shaip, Sama, iMerit, Cloudfactory, and Dataloop, which are facilitating the advancement of AI systems. Large language models necessitate vast amounts of accurately labeled data, a task often outsourced by global tech giants like Meta and OpenAI to companies like Aya Data in countries such as India, the Philippines, Kenya, and Lebanon.
“We are committed to nurturing local expertise that can harness AI to address the most critical challenges on the continent,” stated Ama Larbi-Siaw, the COO and co-founder of Aya Data.
In the consultancy sector, Aya Data faces competition from companies like Brainpool.ai, Deeper Insights, SandTech, Pro AI, and Faculty AI. Nevertheless, these firms frequently outsource their data collection and annotation tasks to business process outsourcing in developing nations.
“Due to our operations being centralized in Ghana, we are able to deliver services more quickly and efficiently without involving third parties,” remarked Gillian Hammah, the Marketing and Strategy officer at Aya Data.
The company generates revenue by offering data annotation services and reported earnings of $500,000 in 2023, catering to around 20 active clients, including MIT, Seedtag, Unilever, and Labelbox, among others.
“While the majority of our projects have involved global clients, we are increasingly focused on assisting African businesses in leveraging AI to enhance their competitiveness.”
The company’s objective is to train 1000 data annotators, engineers, and scientists in the upcoming months and enhance its in-house products.
“Ultimately, our goal is to facilitate the adoption of AI by as many businesses and individuals as possible and ensure that the capability to develop this technology to a world-class standard exists in Ghana and similar markets.”