Africa offers economic prospects in practically every area, and the continent’s youthful population structure is a huge opportunity in this digital era, necessitating the continent’s prioritization of digitally enabled socio-economic growth.
While numerous African countries fight to achieve this, the Global Business School Network claims that the continent lacks the technological talent to make this change possible.
However, in recent years, Africa has seen the rise of youthful talents whose discoveries have earned global acclaim. Danny Manu, a rising star in the realm of communication, is one of these individuals.
With the debut of what is advertised as the world’s first entirely wireless headphones with live voice translations in 40 different languages, the Ghanaian-British technology entrepreneur has gone global.
Mymanu CLIK, the 33-year-old who successfully delivered his first real wireless translation earphones, keeps creating new norms in the field of mobile communication with the release of the Titan earbuds.
The eSIM-equipped earbuds allow you to make and receive 4G calls and text messages without relying on your smartphone, even if it’s hundreds of miles away.
This innovation has been very beneficial to the visually challenged community, as it allows them to communicate with their loved ones using only their voice rather than their mobile phone.
“…it touches my heart that I have been able to invent something that is solving even a bigger challenge than I wasn’t even aware of. “ Danny Manu, CEO and founder of Mymanu said.
However, reaching this feat was not simple; he had to fall, break, and strain before accomplishing it.
Investment
Danny gave some insight on how to gain the crucial support, “the only way they will be giving you their money in advance is that they want to know you are really passionate about what you are developing and they believe in it… First and foremost, I had to put so much time and money into constructing something that it was simple to receive assistance at the end.”
He wouldn’t say how much he put into building the brand, but he did say he had to fund it entirely on his own, using money from his previous employment as an engineer.
Danny stated that he had some difficulties getting funds because of his race, but he did not let this deter him from completing his goals. “When I was trying to raise money, that was a key factor, it’s not directly, but you can tell, I have seen it a couple of times, but I don’t allow that to affect me…”
This exemplifies one of the many obstacles black start-ups in the United Kingdom face when seeking funds or venture capital. However, “you receive support from the people when you create something innovative and solve a problem.” Danny went on to say more.
Danny has 32 employees and has raised more than 500 thousand dollars through crowdsourcing platforms. Read also; Understanding the Technology Behind Decentralized Exchanges
The Mymanu brand has grown in popularity in the company’s primary regions of the United States, Europe, and Asia. There are plans to add African languages to the list of languages programmed for live translation on the earphones, according to Danny.
Passion and discipline
Danny appears to be gaining the hearts of many as one of Africa’s most admired young digital entrepreneurs, receiving innumerable emails from young aspiring entrepreneurs, engineers, and developers from throughout the continent seeking guidance on how they may bring their ideas to life as well.
“The simple advice I normally share with them is to understand what they are building and the problem they are trying to solve, once you can establish that, you need discipline, I have seen people in Europe who have had all the support, but they still failed so the mindset is the key.”
He encouraged young entrepreneurs to collaborate and seek counsel from great mentors, which he confessed Africa lacked. Read more; Microsoft to Support 10,000 African Startups
Titan’s eSIM-based technology is also breaking new ground in terms of network security and reliability. The earbuds’ cellular data is powered by the eSIM within, so users don’t have to worry about connecting to untrustworthy public wifi or finding a secure connection.
