Kenya AI challenge ends with Ksh.500,000 prize pool

The two-month programme, led by DirectEd Development in partnership with Ai Kenya and supported by Mercy Corps AgriFin and global technology firms, culminated in a final pitch event at ALX The Piano in Nairobi. More than KSh500,000 in prize money was awarded to winning teams.

The challenge attracted more than 600 applicants, from whom 100 developers were selected to participate in the final stage after undergoing training in responsible AI, graph databases and gender-responsive design.

Participants were tasked with developing AI-driven solutions to address three key areas affecting smallholder agriculture: financial inclusion, weather and climate advisory services, and market access. The challenge was based on problem statements submitted by agricultural organisations working with Mercy Corps AgriFin, with the organisations providing data, technical guidance and feedback throughout the programme.

Among the top winners was AngaWatch, a smart greenhouse platform that uses AI to identify crop diseases at an early stage and delivers treatment recommendations to farmers through WhatsApp or SMS in English and Kiswahili.

KaLi (Kenya Agri-Lending Intelligence) was recognised for developing an AI-powered credit assessment tool that enables financial institutions to evaluate farmers using indicators such as cooperative delivery records, savings group participation, mobile money transactions, community relationships and climate data instead of relying primarily on physical collateral.

SokoSense also ranked among the leading entries with an offline-first platform that provides farmers with market prices, borrowing rates and AI-generated advisory services through SMS and USSD, making the service accessible to users without smartphones or internet connectivity.

Other finalists included Shamba Ladder, Export Path AI, Kilimo AI, SoftFarm, CropEx and SmartExports.

Separate awards were presented under a technology track sponsored by Neo4j, with Verifarm, AngaWatch and Farmwise recognised for their use of graph database technology. Additional awards from other technology partners are expected to be announced this week.

Speaking after the competition, DirectEd Development co-founder Kidus Elias said the programme demonstrated the ability of Kenyan developers to build practical AI solutions when given access to relevant challenges and support.

Ai Kenya Chief Executive Officer Alfred Ongere said the projects reflected growing local capacity to develop AI applications tailored to the needs of Kenyan farmers rather than relying on imported solutions.

Mercy Corps AgriFin Senior Regional Data Manager Emmanuel Makau noted that deploying AI in agriculture requires solutions that account for the diverse languages, farming practices and information channels used by smallholder farmers across Kenya.

The organisers said winning teams will receive continued support to refine and test their solutions through Mercy Corps AgriFin's network with the aim of scaling successful innovations.

The challenge comes amid growing investment in AI-powered agriculture. According to Markets and Markets, the global AI in agriculture market is projected to grow from US$1.7 billion in 2023 to US$4.7 billion by 2028, while World Bank data shows private investment in Sub-Saharan Africa's agri-food technology sector has increased from less than US$10 million in 2014 to approximately US$600 million in 2022.