Boom or bubble? News is that the business side of AI is creating new billionaires at a record pace: Of the 498 AI unicorns (valued $1 billion or more), over 100 were founded after 2023. And there are about 1’300 AI startups with $100 million+ valuations waiting in the wings. (This is after record funding rounds, though.) Amazing. 👀
In Today’s Open Letter
Big deal: Revolutionising BPO — bet you can’t tell if it’s human or AI.
Local: SA’s first fully 5G voice call & Shoprite moving out of Africa.
Global: NASA and Google’s new AI medical assistant for astronauts.
Tech events: Watch the Big Pitch & see how these startups got funded.
Plus: Need help building your business? SA founders help each other here.
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TRENDING NOW
Can You Tell if it’s AI or Human?
SA’s R53 billion call centre industry employs hundreds of thousands – this startup’s building AI to help them double in size and revenue…
Love ‘em or hate ‘em, call centres are important for SA’s economy – our Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry tripled in value from 2019 to 2024, doubling employment and attracting big firms like Amazon, Google, Microsoft and many Fortune 500 companies.
Why? The world loves us on the phone. South African call centres get 18% higher customer experience ratings than traditional leaders like India and the Philippines. This is an opportunity for SA growth we can’t afford to miss.
A while ago, estimates were that, if SA keeps investing in this sector, we could create 500-750k jobs and double our revenue by 2030. But that was before the impact of AI, which can help propel South Africa even further in this space.
Err, should we even touch AI in this space?
Now, we know what you’re thinking, and no. We’re not talking about those robocalls you love to hate. Or even the most recent spate of customer-service AI faux pas – like Air Canada’s chatbot inventing a refund policy and costing it millions, Microsoft recalling AI Bing Chat after it went off the rails, or FinTechs like Klarna getting so thoroughly burned by AI they vowed only to hire humans.
Not even hallucinations come close
No, we discovered a new tool so natural it gives us goosebumps in the best way. And it’s locally cooked…
The local startup showing what AI is really capable of
Nineteen58 is a venture studio building revenue-share tech products. And their first is AI call agents, a multilingual AI agent platform for customer support that actually sounds South African. Uncannily so, and we’ll prove it to you.
First, listen to this very real call centre call:
OK, now backflip, because that wasn’t a human agent, that was one of Nineteen58’s AI Agents. See what we mean?
How to build a next-generation AI agent
What started as a support tool for something else entirely (a WhatsApp payments product they were working on) blew a client’s mind so thoroughly, they quickly turned it into a fully fledged product, pivoting to call centres.
Today, Nineteen58 powers over 100k inbound and outbound conversations across voice, WhatsApp, web, Telegram and even Instagram DMs per month across 30+ businesses in South Africa and Europe.
What’s interesting is that, talking to founders Oliver Rowe and Dominic le Sueur, you quickly realise the platform didn’t start with a language model. It started with a business problem: Scaling customer interactions without losing context or driving up costs. And the game is not to replace humans, but to complete repetitive tasks and hand over the more creative stuff cleanly to humans.
The team at Nineteen58 were so sure you’d love it, they created a demo especially for Open Letter readers. Go on, click through 👇 and have a convo with the agent – let us know if you could tell if it’s AI or not.
Beautiful that such insane tech is coming out of SA. We’re watching this space.
FROM OUR FRIENDS AT SIDEKICK LAB
Strategy without structure is just educated guessing
AI is highlighting the poor quality of data everywhere…
AI is only as good as the data you feed it. And right now, most businesses have a problem: their data is a mess.
Dashboards full of numbers don’t equal strategy. Reports crammed with metrics don’t guarantee insight. If your data is scattered across databases, file systems and tools, your “strategy” is still running on gut feel — reacting to old problems instead of planning for new opportunities.
That’s where Sidekick Lab’s Auto-Discovery comes in
In just days, they turn data chaos into a clear, searchable foundation:
✅ A super-index with built-in business context and guardrails
✅ Your team can ask thoughtful questions in natural language
✅ And get reliable, actionable answers, instantly.
When your data is organised, your AI projects stop guessing and start delivering real results. The companies that make this shift will gain a decisive edge.
It all starts with your most valuable asset: your data.
IN SHORT
While you were weekending…
🎯 Apply and See Why. Ambitious local SMMEs, your chance to shine is here! Applications are now open for the 2025 Bellville Connect Level Up Series, a hybrid programme ending in a live pitch event and featuring a dash of green innovation. Nice one.
🩺 Doc Gemini. NASA and Google are teaming up to create an AI medical assistant designed to keep astronauts healthy on long trips to Mars. Their prototype, tested on simulated injuries, hit impressive accuracy scores of 74% to 88%. All fun and games till you gotta 3D print that new pancreas.
📞 5G’s a Callin. Vodacom made SA’s first fully 5G voice call, marking a leap in mobile tech with better call quality. Hmmmm, time to fold those tinfoil hats.
🇿🇦 Lekker Local. South African retail giant Shoprite is waving goodbye to Ghana and Malawi, focusing its energies back home. With trading stores up for grabs in both nations, the shift continues Shoprite's strategic exits from several African markets plagued by currency whims and high costs. Focused like a locust.
✅ The Stack. Founders need tools and suppliers they can trust. Check out our Founder’s Stack with full-funnel tech performance marketing by Stream, hardware, software, acceleration and funding for remarkable builds with Octoco and loads more vital startup tools & services.
BUILDING A BUSINESS IN SA
3 things we learned in our community this week
Success greatly depends on playing in a space where you know you can win: The Founder Collab members all get free access to The Open Letter events. And last week’s Stellenbosch event was off the charts 👇. Featuring Malan Joubert (behind so many SA success stories) saying success hinges on “playing at the right poker table”. Play against pros, you’ll probs lose. But find a table you can win and success is within grasp.
These peeps were in the right place last Thursday…
Be bold and take risks: New Collab member Brett Geyser from AI study companion Bag Learning shared the story of how publishing a super-controversial video in the early days attracted their now-“Chief Learning Officer” to the company, helping pivot their product in a vital new direction.
The greatest commodity a new business has is trust: Trust unlocks so much when you’re starting out. If customers get to know you, that’s great, but it’s only half the fight. The big hurdle is getting them to trust you enough to try the product. That’s the only time/place where magic can start happening. Renier ran an awesome session on building trust early on last Friday — you should’ve been there. Only Collab members get access to the recordings.
Want to learn quicker and move faster in your business, too? Join The Founder Collab, it’s where 100+ real SA founders help each other to build better, faster every day.
WHAT YOU SAID
Get moving…
Last week, we showed you how GONOW On Demand’s exploring micromobility in SA, asking if you’d ever hop on a pay-per-minute e-scooter. And most will give it a try…
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 🛴 Yes – I’d be zipping around like it’s Mario Kart (44%)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🏃♂️ Maybe – for short trips or when I’m too lazy to walk (13%)
🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 💸 Only if it costs less than Uber and a samoosa (17%)
🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🕳️ Nope – potholes, hijackers & rush hour traffic say hi (20%)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 👵 Only if it comes with a helmet, insurance and a backup prayer (6%)
Your 2 cents…
“Potch? Bloem?”
Ah, yes, now you’re talking, Roland! 🛵💨
“I believe upgrading our public transport infrastructure will give exponential long term returns in the form of, at least, business opportunities and less traffic.”
Ja, no, can’t deny that, Ruan. All of SA needs it yesterday. 🚆
“People would need to have a licence to ride a scooter, surely. How will this be administered? SA traffic is hectic — being in a car is scary enough, never mind on a scooter!”
Yeh, we probably need more special lanes/infrastructure for it, Eileen. 🚴
“I have used the lime mobility scooters in Dubai, it works great!”
Nice one, Renaldo. Probs work lekker over there. ♻️
“We have been living in London for 2 years and E-scooters are being discontinued in London and Paris because they are a danger and they catch fire. This idea might work in Stellenbosch, but definitely not in Joburg. Too much crime.”
Hmm, so if the bikes don’t work, maybe personal helicopters, Sharon? 🪂
LOOKING TO CONNECT?
Upcoming Startup Events
The big pitch 2025: qualifier two — CPT 13 August, 18:30 — Ten of South Africa’s most promising startups take the stage in Cape Town, competing for a place in the grand finale and a $1m investment prize. Tickets are mandatory; book here.
Founder funded: the Regenize x E Squared story — CPT 14 August, 13:00 — How do you scale a zero-waste movement and make it inclusive? Join Regenize co-founders Chad Robertson and Nkazimlo Miti at Innovation City Cape Town in conversation with E Squared’s Zakiya Khan as they unpack how Regenize grew from a bootstrapped idea to an award-winning recycling startup. Book here.
Venture trailblazers — Online 15 August — Hustle Fund GP Elizabeth Yin has reviewed over 20k startup pitches and helped founders raise hundreds of millions. She shares her journey from AdTech founder to VC. Free to attend, RSVP here.
Hosting a demo day, panel, founder meetup or tech event? Let us know, and we’ll feature it for FREE.
AROUND THE WEB
🛠 Tool to Try: Nitrode lets you “vibe code” a playable 3D game with AI in hours.
🤔 That’s Interesting: English speakers get uneasy after 4 seconds of silence, Japanese last 8.
🔥 Next Level: How to get yourself and a bunch of friends over a high wall real quick.
🍔 Hack: This guide maps all the key players in AI hardware right now.
🌐 Wow Site: GlobeTV lets you watch free live TV channels from around the world.
THANKS FOR READING
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