Startup Stories
Wed Feb 6, 18:00 - Wed Feb 6, 21:00
OfferZen Offices
ABOUT
Every story has a beginning and an end, but when it comes to launching a tech startup, there’s a whole lotta ups and downs in between.
Startup Stories is an exciting evening where founders share business learnings, personal habits, and crazy ‘early days’ stories of launching a tech startup in South Africa. In this panel-style discussion led by Philip Joubert, Co-founder of OfferZen, you ask the questions to get the answers you’ve always wanted. The panel line up includes Louw Hopley, Co-founder and CEO of Root, Benji Meltzer, Co-founder and CTO of Aerobotics, and Evan Robinson, Director, Founder and CTO of TaxTim.
Join members of the tech community in sharing stories about challenges, growth, and finding opportunities in unsexy markets. You’ll definitely want to be here for this one!
AGENDA
SPEAKERS
Louw Hopley
Co-founder and CEO at Root
With a background in Electrical and Electronics Engineering, and having founded an iPhone app development company based in New York, it’s no surprise that Louw loves to build great products. He has a keen interest in simplifying complex domains and decided to return to his roots in Cape Town to start Root, a programmable banking and insurance platform.
More about Root:
Founded in 2016 by Louw Hopley, Malan Joubert, and Philip Joubert, Root was built from the ground up to change the fintech space in South Africa. As a programmable banking and insurance platform, Root allows developers to prototype, build, and launch new financial service products. A Root account is accessible with RootCode, securely hosted by Root in the cloud, and comes with a programmable credit card, mobile app, online banking interface, and API.
Benji Meltzer
Co-founder and CTO at Aerobotics
With a background in Mechatronics and Biomedical Engineering, Benji is enthusiastic about machine learning and computational neuroscience. After working at Cyest Corporation and Uber, he turned his attention to building disruptive technology in South Africa by applying his analytical, computational and biomedical skillset. He co-founded Aerobotics in 2014, which is focused on developing smart Artificial Intelligence systems for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles that have been used extensively in the agriculture industry. As co-founder, Benji balances his enthusiasm for both design and entrepreneurship by staying involved in engineering system design and strategic business decisions at Aerobotics.
More about Aerobotics:
Founded in 2014 by Benji Meltzer and James Paterson, Aerobotics helps farmers optimise crop production by providing early problem detection and management solutions. Aerobotics has developed intelligent applications which automatically analyse aerial imagery (from drones and satellites) to diagnose specific problems on the farm. This artificial intelligence has been used extensively by farmers to manage their crops and, in turn, is changing the future of farming. Aerobotics has secured $2.6m in funding, from the likes of Nedbank, 4Di and Agfunder, and currently serves customers in over 15 countries including the US, Australia, and Chile.
Evan Robinson
Director, Founder and CTO at TaxTim
As an inventor, problem solver and programmer of more than 20 years, Evan has started three online companies and created many more online apps and tools. With a Master's degree in Biotechnology and Biochemistry, Evan assumed that completing his first tax return would be a breeze. It turned out to be unnecessarily stressful and complicated, and he wanted to solve this problem for himself and others. With initial seed funding from Google, and tax expert Marc Sevitz as co-founder, the two created a digital tax assistant called Tim. In his spare time Evan loves high-voltage experiments, DIY and baking.
More about TaxTim:
TaxTim is a virtual tax assistant who asks users simple questions one-by-one about their incomes and expenses, and then instantly prepares and submits a fully compliant tax return. Founded in 2011 by Marc Sevitz and Evan Robinson, the company has helped over 5.9 million South Africans easily complete their tax returns with maximum possible refund. Since its launch, TaxTim has expanded to Namibia with PwC, partnered with financial service providers like Momentum, Old Mutual and Sanlam, and successfully launched TaxTim for SMEs.