Africa Tech Radio

The Gist on the Daily Life of an AI Professional in LendTech W/ Femi Ogunbodede

All the opportunities I have gotten till date...was through a referral - Femi Ogunbodede.

In this episode of the Data and AI Gist Podcast, host, Philip Ade-Akanbi chats with Femi Ogunbodede; the Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence Lead at Indicina.

A data scientist with over 5 years of experience, mostly in the fintech space, focusing on credit, he enjoys running (having run two marathons), listening to music, and drinking coffee.

His proudest moment in his career is taking a product idea from the product team and seeing it developed, sold to clients, and serving a lot of customers.

Femi shares insights into the following: Absence of an African ChatGPT, Lack of Research Culture, Access to Data at Scale, Dedicating Resources to AI Research, AI and Economic Inclusion, Balancing Global Practices with Nigerian Reality, Data Privacy, Fairness and Explainability, Significant AI Solutions in Africa, AI/ML Adoption in Nigeria, AI Governance.

One of the key points he highlights in this episode is how Neo-banks like FairMoney and Carbon took a data-driven approach, gathering data from the ground up for decisioning to give out loans to regular Nigerians.

He notes that AI can make things easier and faster for existing players (neo-banks and traditional banks) who have already gathered data and AI models can be fine-tuned for specific use cases.

For Femi, his biggest career mistake was thinking that "anything is possible" and falling into the trap of trying to do everything, not realizing that resources and time are limited.

The failure of a big, 6-month "moonshot" project taught him that he should have started very small with a proof of concept (PoC) to check if the idea could actually work, instead of going straight into a full development.

He advises people to identify people with similar interests, discuss projects, and keep in touch at a professional level. He also advises people to "pay it forward" and help others with referrals.

Join the Conversation:

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WOYM Ep 8: Medical Negligence and Elite Consensus

What responsibility do we all have whether as elites or ordinary citizens?

While Ekene leads the conversation on medical negligence, Ayisha is asking if there is an elite consensus in Nigeria?

Responsibility is wielded and demanded as well from the ordinary citizen to the powerful elites.

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Digital Space - The Geospacial Tools and How They Apply to Modern Agriculture with Dr Francis Muthoni

In this episode of Digital Spaces by Radio IITA, Dadjie Odok sits down with Dr. Francis Muthoni, a GIS and Remote Sensing Scientist, to explore the role of geospatial technologies in modern agriculture and how they are being applied at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).

Dr. Muthoni walks listeners through some of IITA’s key geospatial tools and innovations, explaining how GIS, remote sensing, and spatial data are used to support smarter decision-making across the agricultural value chain. The conversation highlights how these technologies help reduce manual labor, improve productivity, optimize resource use, and minimize post-harvest losses.

Key insights from the episode include:

• How geospatial tools support crop monitoring, land use analysis, and planning
  
  
• The practical impact of remote sensing on agricultural research and farming systems
  
  
• Ways spatial data enables efficiency, resilience, and sustainability in agriculture
  
  
• Why digital and geospatial innovations are critical to the future of African agriculture
  
  

This episode offers a practical and accessible look into how data, mapping, and technology are transforming agriculture, making it essential listening for researchers, agripreneurs, policymakers, and anyone interested in agricultural innovation.

The Gist on the Daily Life of an Analytics Professional in a FinTech Startup W/Seyi Oluwagbamila

"Dealing with burnout?

Step away from the laptop...have some food & sleep"

In this episode of the Data and AI Gist Podcast, host, Philip Ade-Akanbi chats with Oluwaseyi Oluwagbamila, a Senior Analytics Engineer at Piggyvest.

Oluwaseyi or Seyi or Starboy (as he's fondly called), shares insights into the daily life of an Analytics professional in a fintech startup in Nigeria.

Seyi who moved from Wema Bank to PiggyVest has spent 5 years in the analytics engineering space and is instrumental to PiggyVest's successful use of data to drive financial inclusion in Nigeria.

Seyi sheds light on how he deals with burnout, too much information (tmi) and analysis paralysis among other daily challenges that plague data analytics professionals.

Starboy has spent the last 5 years blending the precision of a data engineer with the curiosity of an analyst. He enjoys everything that moves with speed, from data, to cars, to airplanes!

Join the Conversation: Follow @AfricaTechRadio and use #DataAndAIGist to share your thoughts.

Connect with Seyi on Social Media.

www.linkedin.com/in/oluwagbamila

x.com/gbamilaDavid

instagram.com/oluwagbamz

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The Gist on Opportunities in Analytics Career W/ Gift Ojeabulu, Cofounder

In this episode of the Data and AI Gist Podcast, host Philip Ade-Akanbi sits down with Gift Ojeabulu, Co-founder of  @datafestafrica351  and DataFestAfrica, to explore the role of community, mentorship, and advocacy in shaping Africa’s data and AI ecosystem.

Gift shares insights into his journey from software development to developer relations, explains how African industries; from fintech to entertainment and sports are adopting AI, and reveals why mentorship and structured learning are critical to Africa’s digital transformation.

They also discuss the origin story of DataFestAfrica, how it has evolved into a continental movement for knowledge sharing, and what’s next for Africa’s growing data talent pipeline.

 

Join the Conversation:

Follow @AfricaTechRadio and use #DataAndAIGist to share your thoughts.

Connect with Gift on LinkedIn and explore DataFestAfrica at datafestafrica.com

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Instagram Wrapped 2025: Feature Changes That Shaped This Year

Instagram didn’t just add features in 2025, it changed how we post, scroll, and connect.

Tune in as we break down what changed, what stuck, and why it matters.

Trends that Shaped Business and Law in 2025

At the intersection of Business and Law trends is what this episode offers.

 

Managing Partner & Cofounder at Pavestones Legal teams up with a Senior Associate at the firm to walk Tony through the business and law trends that have defined 2025 in Nigeria.

Digital Space - Personal Identifiable Information (PII) and Fair Data Principles with Mr Olawamiwa Adeoluwa

In this episode of Digital Spaces by Radio IITA, the Data Curator Officer in the Data Management Unit at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Mr. Olawamiwa Adeoluwa, speaks on the critical topic of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and FAIR Data Principles in agricultural research and in the agric space.

The conversation unpacks what constitutes PII, why its protection is essential in data-driven agricultural systems, and the risks associated with improper data handling. Mr. Adeoluwa also explains the FAIR Data Principles—Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable—and how they guide responsible data collection, storage, sharing, and reuse within the agricultural and research ecosystem.

Key themes discussed include:

• Understanding PII in agricultural and research data contexts
  
  
• Balancing data openness with privacy, ethics, and compliance
  
  
• Practical application of FAIR data principles in agricultural research
  
  
• The role of data governance and stewardship in strengthening trust and impact
  
  
• Why responsible data management is foundational to innovation in agriculture
  
  

This episode offers valuable insights for researchers, data managers, policymakers, and agritech practitioners navigating the intersection of data protection, ethics, and open science in agriculture.

TikTok Wrapped 2025: What Really Changed on the App

If creating on TikTok felt different in 2025, it wasn’t your imagination.
From longer videos and in-app scheduling to smarter search and AI-powered content creation, a lot changed.

Listen in to hear what really changed on the app this year.

Africa's Biggest Tech News stories from 2025

Here is a breakdown of the major tech stories that rocked 2025 in Africa.

In this episode, Tony highlights these stories and hopes that you can share your pick of major stories also in the comments.