Ghanaian artificial intelligence (AI) startup Aya Data has successfully raised $900,000 in seed funding as it seeks to scale its operations and expand its product offerings. Founded in 2021 by Freddie Monk and Ama Larbi-Siaw, Aya Data focuses on data annotation and collection services, which are essential for training AI models such as large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Gemini.
Aya Data’s services include labeling data such as images, videos, and text, which are critical for developing and refining AI systems. The company is also dedicated to transforming its workforce by upskilling its employees, enabling them to take on more advanced technical roles in data engineering and data science.
The $900,000 seed round, a mix of debt and equity funding, brings Aya Data’s total funding to $1.15 million, following an earlier pre-seed investment of $300,000 from Microtraction, Savannah Fund, and UK-based investors. The latest round was led by 54Collective, with support from a group of angel investors.
Aya Data plans to use the new capital to scale its flagship products, AyaGrow and AyaSpeech. AyaGrow is a precision agriculture tool that helps farmers, both commercial and smallholder, monitor their crops and fields using AI technology. AyaSpeech, meanwhile, is a speech-to-speech solution designed to facilitate communication in local African languages.
In addition to product development, the startup will use the funds to hire new talent and expand its capacity to serve clients both locally and internationally.
“Our goal is to make AI accessible to as many businesses and people as possible while ensuring that Ghana and other emerging markets can develop world-class AI technology,” said co-founder Ama Larbi-Siaw.
Aya Data’s ambition to bridge the AI gap in Africa positions the company as a key player in fostering technological innovation across the continent.
