OkHi (Pivot/Wind-Down)

01 / WHAT IT BUILT

What the company did

OkHi was a Kenyan smart-addressing startup co-founded in 2014 by Timbo Drayson, an ex-Google engineer who had led the launch of Google Maps across the Middle East and Africa and invented Chromecast. It aimed to give the four billion people without a formal physical address an 'OkHi address' — a web link pointing to a GPS tag and photo of a property's gate. During COVID-19, the company made a crucial pivot from its consumer app to B2B, selling AI-powered address verification to banks and fintechs in emerging markets, focusing on Nigeria. Investors included Interswitch Group (strategic partner), Founders Factory Africa, Betatron, Garage Capital, and Nate Blecharczyk. The company raised multiple rounds, including $750,000 in 2015 and $1.5 million in 2021–2022 to expand in Nigeria.

03 / EVENT HISTORY

Events in the structured record

1. 2014
   Founded

   Timbo Drayson co-founded OkHi in Nairobi; the company won Seedstars Nairobi for its address-discovery app.

2. 2015
   Funding

   OkHi raised $750,000 from investors including ex-Google CFO Patrick Pichette and Garage Capital, plus a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant.

3. 2020
   Pivot to B2B

   During COVID-19, OkHi pivoted from its consumer app to B2B address verification for financial services, launching in Nigeria with strategic partner and investor Interswitch Group.

4. 2022
   Seed extension

   OkHi raised a $1.5 million seed extension to expand in Nigeria, targeting one million members and growing its remote team across Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, and London.