• Latest Techzim Podcast: The ZOL Startup Challenge meet-up, WhatsApp Plus and Zim e-commerce

    In this edition of the Techzim podcast we discussed the 2014 ZOL Startup Challenge meet-up scheduled for the 21st of August. We also dug into WhatsApp Plus discussing whether it is […]

  • All is set for ZOL Startup Challenge Harare meetup next week

    It’s ZOL Startup Challenge season again and as we mentioned in our earlier release, this year’s event has been scaled up to add a whole new dimension of competitiveness and […]

  • The ZOL Startup Challenge 2014 to be bigger, better and much more fun

    Today we are proud to announce that Zimbabwe’s most anticipated startup competition is upon us. The fourth edition of the ZOL Startup Challenge kicks off today and we have bumped […]

  • ZOL sponsors Startup Challenge for the 4th Year

    Local internet service provider, ZOL Zimbabwe, has once again thrown its full weight behind the ZOL Startup Challenge. The tech startup showcase, now in its fourth year, has had ZOL […]

  • Surge Conference and ZOL Startup Challenge

    The ZOL Startup Challenge is Zimbabwe’s largest tech startup competition and conference. The Challenge presents local startup entrepreneurs with the rare opportunity to pitch to a panel of experienced mentors and […]

  • Here are this year’s ZOL Startup Challenge winners

    They came. They pitched. Got feedback. Refined their pitches. And today the finals of the ZOL Startup Challenge took place! So we’re excited the winners of the challenge this year. […]

  • ZOL Startup Challenge 2013 finals: D-Day is nigh!

    Tomorrow marks the pinnacle of the 2013 ZOL Startup Challenge. What began as a list of 44 applications has gone through a rigorous pitching , feedback and refinement process of […]

  • Day 2: Here are the ZOL Startup Challenge 2013 finalists

    Today was the second round of the ZOL Startup Challenge. 10 Startups were pitching for a spot in in the final 5 who, in the coming weeks will be pitching […]

  • Techzim Surge 2013 conference and ZOL Startup Challenge event report

    Yesterday was one day filled with startup excitement for us here. We hosted the Techzim Surge conference and the first round of the ZOL Startup Challenge in Harare. It was […]

  • ZOL Startup Challenge battle tips #TechzimSurge

    7 days are left before Techzim Surge and the epic Zol Startup Challenge. The visual below has 5 tips we believe are important for contestants and even for startups that will […]

  • ZOL Startup Challenge: One year later for Footballzone

    It’s already been a year since the 2012 ZOL Startup Challenge and what a year it has been for Footballzone, the company behind Zimbabwe’s leading soccer website Soccer24. Every startup […]

  • Announcing Techzim Surge and the ZOL Startup Challenge

    Since 2011, we’ve been organising a grass roots tech event & Startup Challenge thanks to the team at ZOL Zimbabwe. Way before any hype or encouraging signs, ZOL has consistently committed themselves to developing […]

  • ZOL Startup Challenge 2011 winners: Where they are now

    Last month, as we prepared to hold the ZOL Jumpstart Challenge 2012, we contacted the winners and finalists of the challenge in 2011 to check on the progress of their […]

  • Some thoughts on the ZOL Startup Challenge

    Nearly 2 weeks ago, we had our first ZOL Startup Challenge final where 3 talented winners were chosen from a very strong field. Since then the dust has settled and a number of people have made comments on the Challenge and process. I thought I’d give some thoughts as the idea originator, main sponsor and…

  • ZOL Startup Challenge: Predict and win competition!

    As you probably know, tomorrow is the big day; Five finalists in the ZOL Start-up Challenge will battle it out for the top prize at the finals. The top start-up will be awarded US $5,000 cash and US $5,000 worth of internet services from ZOL. Two runner-ups will each get US $2,500 cash and US…

  • ZOL Startup Challenge Finalists: FUNZA

    Funza is an online recruitment platform targeted at grassroots recruitment. It is the only concept stage startup to qualify for the finals. Escar concludes will also provide its development, placement and consultancy services in the greater sub-region.

  • ZOL Startup Challenge Finalists: Sadomba-Mahari, AvisPar

    The idea of the AvisPar Visual Package was conceived by Kudzai Sadomba, a gaming developer with, according to the startup, 10 years of programming experience. Sadomba Mahari pitched the AvisPar suite of applications at the Startup Challenge in Harare on 03 August 2011, and secured a place in the 5 finalists battling it out for…

  • ZOL Startup Challenge Finalists: Softwarehouse – Hardware Inventory

    Hardware Inventory is a proprietary Windows based application developed by Softwarehouse, a local startup that began on the back of their Quickstem Suite-a floriculture management software that has been used by farmers in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Kenya, Ethiopia, and the Netherlands among others. Quickstem was beginning to gain traction until the global recession resulted in…

  • ZOL Startup Challenge Finalists: Ribe Networks

    Ribe Networks is a local chat application that has set its sight on disrupting internet based messaging. It intends to do so by offering users across all mainstream mobile and pc platforms the ability to interact with peers through the lightweight and locally hosted Ribe Chat application. Users can link their Ribe account to Facebook,…

  • ZOL Startup Challenge Finalists: Mukela Travel

    With just ten days left before the ZOL Startup Challenge finals, this short series will profile each finalist in the challenge, exploring what they hope to achieve and how they […]

  • Startup Challenge: One swallow doth not a summer make!

    I thought it important to share with you my recent experiences as a judge at the inaugural Zimbabwe Tech Start-Up Challenge. First of all go take a look at “3 more finalists are selected for the Start-Up Challenge” which will give you a good idea of what happened. Part one is on this link! The…

  • 3 more finalists are selected for the Startup Challenge

    Yesterday, 16 August was an intense day at the Startup Challenge. A total of 10 tech startups pitched to the panel of judges and 3 were selected to go through to the next round. The startups that made it to the next round are, in no particular order: Software House (an Internet based tech hardware…

  • Pictures: the Startup Challenge on 15 August 2011

    We spent the better part of today at the Startup Challenge interacting with tech startups and watching them demo. It was an exciting day, filled with a lot of great ideas presented by some of the most interesting Zimbabweans in tech. It’s not easy to explain how it feels to be amoung such amazing people…

  • Startup Challenge: Open for applications to 15 August qualifying event

    At the qualifying Startup Challenge event, held last week alongside BarCamp Zimbabwe on 3 August, only 2 startups, Mukela Travel and Sadomba-Mahari, managed to make it to the finals. The target was 5 startups to battle for the collective prizes totaling $25,000 – sponsored by Zimbabwe Online (ZOL).

  • Startup Challenge: 2 startups through to the finals, 3 slots remaining

    Yesterday, a total of 15 startups pitched at the Startup Challenge, held alongside BarCamp Zimbabwe. It was quite an experience seeing the 15 teams, one after the other present their ideas and solutions. We have quite some talent and ingenuity among us. This was the first tech pitching event for a lot of people present…

  • Pictures: BarCamp Zimbabwe and the Startup Challenge

    Yesterday, we spent the day at BarCamp Zimbabwe. It was busy day and we had a blast. We loved every minute. The Startup Challenge went well too. Unfortunately we couldn’t fill the 5 finalists slots we had. Only two were taken and the rest will have to be at another event. Here are a couple…

  • Startup Challenge: What Applicants need to know about pitching

    A lot of startup applications have been coming in for the US$ 25, 000 Startup Challenge which is being run alongside BarCamp Zimbabwe 2011. Since an event of this nature has not happened in Zimbabwe before, the following practical pointers can bring applicants and prospective entrepreneurs up to speed on the elements found in a…

  • Startup Challenge – A chance for Zim startups to win US $25,000 in prizes

    On 3 August (just some 9 days away), BarCamp Zimbabwe will be held in Harare. The event is for tech startups, geeks, entrepreneurs and generally the whole tech community in Zimbabwe. We’re excited about it. We’ve longed for tech startup events like this one and we feel this will take tech in Zim to another…

  • If you are a startup you need to be a part of the 825 Value Creation Challenge (VCC3)

    825, an Old Mutual subsidiary is running an incubator under the theme Value Creation Challenge and applications are open for entrepreneurs and startups. The deadline for applications is on the […]

  • Zim fintech startups! Check out this global challenge

    Inclusive Fintech 50 (IF50) is a global innovation competition that aims to identify and elevate cutting-edge emerging inclusive fintech startups that have the potential to drive financial inclusion. IF50 uncovers […]