Who we are
Free market research for African startups.
We are a student-led research team at Williams College. We investigate the market, customer, competitor and operating questions behind a founder's next decision.
Completely free
For African startups.
We take our name from ubuntu, a Southern African ethic of shared humanity: a person is a person through other people.
Market entry
Our work so far
More than 15 startups. 6 countries.
The map shows where startups have worked with us. The research cards show the kinds of decisions behind those collaborations.
- More than fifteen
- Startups
- 6
- Countries
Founder questions have taken our research from customer segments and competitors to procurement, supply chains and emerging business models.
Countries where startups have worked with us
- Ghana
- Nigeria
- Kenya
- Rwanda
- Tanzania
- South Africa
Research questions we've worked on
- Markets & customers Competitive analysis, market entry and new customer segments.
- Operations Agricultural procurement and supply-chain research.
- Emerging business models Blockchain, tokenization and African crypto-market research.
Practice areas
Four sectors where better information changes decisions.
Each practice begins with a founder's question and follows the evidence wherever it leads.
Financial Services Ahead of the decision.
Payments, lending, remittances and the licences behind them.
Explore payments and lending →
Agriculture & Food FIELD to shelf.
Inputs, offtake, cold chain and the route from farm to buyer.
Explore farming and food →
Health Human. At every scale.
Diagnostics, pharmacy supply, provider networks and who pays.
Explore health and care →
Green Energy Keep the lights on.
Solar, wind, storage and the route from generation to everyday use.
Explore power and energy →The people behind the research
A Williams College team for each founder question.
Founders bring the context and the decision. Students bring the time, curiosity and disciplined research. Useful knowledge is built together.
Small project teams pair a founder's knowledge of the business with students ready to stay with the research until the question is clearer.
Work with Ubuntu
What would you like to understand about your market?
Founders can bring a question directly. Every research project is completely free.