The WhatsApp Effect: How Startups Are Building Big on a Simple Chat App

Nick Mills is a dynamic entrepreneur and technologist dedicated to enhancing public safety through innovative, community-led solutions. As a Co-Founder of Community Wolf, he spearheads the development of WhatsApp-based public safety tools. Their platform helps public and private law enforcement operate more efficiently ensuring that every community feels safe and protected. With a background in quantitative trading and a managing partner of Versofy Solar, Nick brings strong leadership, an appreciation for unit economics, and strategic experience to the social innovation space.

A lifelong creative and problem-solver, he turned to entrepreneurship after years in asset management, tracing back to childhood ventures creating and selling rugby DVDs. Nick is notably driven by community insight and is building a company that embraces user feedback, connection, and kindness, even amidst social media scrutiny. His passion for democratising access to global growth stories and technology reflects a commitment to practical, high-impact innovation in underserved communities.

Dr Anton Prinsloo is a seasoned healthcare leader and general practitioner with over two decades of experience in private general practice, particularly in high-volume, resource-constrained rural settings. His work in these environments has shaped his approach to sustainable, system-based models of care that are relevant both for medical funders and for the evolving National Health Insurance framework.

He is currently building and managing the National Health Care IPA, a rapidly growing network of over 1,000 general practitioners providing direct primary care to both existing and new patients. Previously, he served as the CEO of ASAIPA and as a director at the IPA Foundation, where he played a key role in doctor network management. His areas of expertise include member communication, physician contracting, clinical profiling, and peer review.

Dr. Anton is also the founder of Connected Care, an ICT-driven initiative aimed at empowering healthcare professionals through technology. Recognizing the digital overload faced by doctors, Connected Care developed the National Sign On—offering a unique digital identity and secure electronic signature—and MediNotes, a system designed to help practitioners transition from paper-based to more efficient, digitally-enabled practices.

With a deep understanding of frontline care and a strategic vision for the future of general practice, Dr. Anton continues to be a driving force in transforming primary healthcare delivery in South Africa.

Gustav Praekelt is the co-founder of Turn.io, a public-benefit company powering life-improving conversations through WhatsApp. Alongside Pippa Yeats and Simon de Haan, Gustav launched Turn.io in 2017 out of a project within Praekelt.org aimed at reducing costs for MomConnect—South Africa’s large-scale maternal health SMS program. This initiative led to the creation of the world’s first impact-driven WhatsApp service. Since then, Turn.io has supported organisations and governments—most notably the World Health Organization during the COVID-19 pandemic—in reaching millions through scalable, chat-based services. Today, Turn.io enables hundreds of organisations to deliver vital services across sectors such as health, education, employment, climate, and financial inclusion, all through a simple, accessible WhatsApp interface.

Lisa Adams is the visionary Founder of Citizen Code and a technologist with over 15 years dedicated to Tech4Impact. Using her lived experiences as a woman of colour from a low-income community, Lisa bridges technology gaps for underserved communities. She has a comprehensive background in technology, from operations and UX design to managing complex engineering teams.

Having travelled to various under-served communities across the globe to understand the barriers to technology access. Lisa collaborates regularly with end-users and global technologists to uplift communities. She has led global-scale technology teams and serves as a Technology Director to UK NPO Girl Effect. Lisa has developed AI-powered chatbots, web apps, IVR, and USSD solutions, focusing on SRHR, digital health, and education across africa, & east asia. She is on a mission to develop an African Valley approach to technology design, integrating intersectional lenses and African solutions.