tech
These two founders left Goldman and Meta to build voice AI for markets everyone else overlooked
The startup's own stack for Africa and Middle East is now handling more than 17,000 calls per day.
TL;DR
- AethexAI, a voice AI startup, raised $3 million in pre-seed funding led by 4DX Ventures to target markets in Africa and the Middle East.
- The company developed its own small AI models (Kora series) and orchestration layer to handle localized dialects and reduce latency, as existing global players were not built for these regions.
- AethexAI's platform is now processing over 17,000 calls per day, focusing on use cases such as debt collection, customer activation, and KYC verification.
- The startup's founders, Mariama Diallo and Ayooluwa Odemuyiwa, previously worked at Goldman Sachs and Meta, respectively.
- The African and Middle Eastern market has unique demands, including high call volumes, varied dialects, and different infrastructure, which AethexAI aims to address.