Nigerian entrepreneur Solape Akinpelu has won the 2025 Aurora Tech Award, becoming the first recipient to clinch the prize for two consecutive years.
Akinpelu, the founder of fintech platform Hervest, was announced as the winner of the $30,000 top prize during the final event held in Cairo between April 11 and 13.
She follows in the footsteps of fellow Nigerian Folake Owodunni, who won the award in 2024, marking another milestone for women in Nigeria’s growing tech ecosystem.
According to a statement issued by the organisers on Friday, four other female tech founders were also recognised at the event. The first runner-up, Loretxu Garcia Arraztoa of Chile-based Nido Contech, received $20,000.
India’s Shreya Prakash, co-founder of FlexiBees, was awarded $15,000 as second runner-up, while Laura Velásquez Herrera of Colombia’s Arkangel AI and Leonie Korn of Switzerland’s UpLeap each received $10,000.
Each finalist will also receive access to investors, industry leaders, and strategic partners through the Aurora platform to support business growth, the statement said.
The award is an initiative of inDrive, a global mobility and urban services platform operating in over 888 cities across 48 countries.
The company said the initiative aims to promote gender equity in technology entrepreneurship by supporting high-potential female founders building scalable ventures.
“The Aurora Tech Award isn’t about representation for the sake of it — it’s about backing the highest-potential founders building real companies,” said Isabella Ghassemi-Smith, Head of the Aurora Tech Awards.
“These women aren’t here because of their gender. They’re here because they’re building businesses investors should care about.”
Evgenia Matrosova, Chief Growth Officer and Head of Ride-Hailing at inDrive, said the award seeks to close the gender investment gap in emerging markets.
“Supporting female entrepreneurs in overcoming barriers and building strong networks is essential,” she said. “The Aurora Tech Award is not just an accolade — it’s a launchpad for the next generation of unicorn founders.”
The 2025 edition attracted 2,018 applications from 116 countries — double the number received in the previous year.
Finalists were selected from regions including MENA, Latin America, Central Asia, and the Asia-Pacific, with ventures spanning artificial intelligence, fintech, and health tech.
The final stage of the competition took place during the SHE CAN conference, hosted by Entreprenelle, a Cairo-based organisation focused on empowering women through entrepreneurship. The event drew over 7,000 attendees.
In addition to its core ride-hailing business, inDrive provides services such as intercity transportation, freight delivery, courier services, and task assistance. Its non-profit arm, inVision, runs community initiatives in education, gender equality, science, and the arts.
The company said the inDrive app has been downloaded more than 300 million times and was the second most downloaded mobility app globally in 2024.
