Yoseph Ayele

Web3 <> Africa

Yoseph Ayele is an entrepreneur and visionary leader focused on building a borderless economy in Africa powered by Web3 and frontier technologies.1 As the founder of Borderless Africa, he supports founder and builder communities across the continent, hosts high-impact events, and bridges African Web3 communities with global infrastructure builders.1 3

Background and Education

Yoseph has a diverse international background:

Born in Ethiopia
Grew up in Tanzania, Kenya, and Nigeria
Studied at Harvard University, earning a Bachelor's Degree in Social Studies
Completed a Master's Degree in Management & Commerce at Victoria University of Wellington1

Professional Experience

Yoseph's career highlights include:

Founder of Borderless Africa (April 2021 - Present): Leading initiatives to support African founders and builders, including "magma," a two-week in-person residency for top African founders.1
Co-Founder & CEO of Edmund Hillary Fellowship (EHF) (October 2016 - March 2021): Led the design and implementation of the world's first Global Impact Visa with the New Zealand Government, bringing 532 founders and builders from 58 countries to New Zealand.1
Co-Founder and Director of Kiwi Connect (January 2014 - January 2017): Worked on entrepreneurship and innovation initiatives in New Zealand.1

Vision and Initiatives

Yoseph is committed to:

Creating a borderless world and unlocking the full potential of Africans.2 4
Leveraging Web3 and other frontier technologies to build an open and permissionless economy in Africa.1 4
Bridging African Web3 communities with global infrastructure builders.1

His work with Borderless Africa aims to build the foundational blocks for realizing this vision of a borderless African economy.3

Yoseph is actively involved in the Web3 and blockchain space, advocating for increased African representation in DAO governance and promoting Ethereum's potential impact on the continent.5 6

Highlights

Oct 9 · twitter

What an insightful discussion with @sreeramkannan and magma founders with @borderlessaf 🔥

Blockchain innovations facilitating the exchange of commitments is a brilliant way of seeing the world. First principled building 🫡 https://t.co/7qcKNhHwBH

Sep 30 · twitter

magma2 kicked off in Kenya today 🌋

24 founders and builders join the second cohort of the magma founder residency by @borderlessaf!

Why?

To build Africa’s finance and trust onchain To coordinate our roadmaps and increase the interoperability between what each of us is building To get hands on support from global players

Building the onchain economy in Africa, for Africa, and from Africa to the world is one of the hardest things anyone can do:

High friction integrating with traditional systems
Web3 UX hurdles
Africa is very disconnected from global infrastructure builders
Diverse jurisdictions, cultures, and starting points
If we can't create real utility, users don't stay

These challenges make Africa one of the best places to build, because the opportunity is just massive. Success could mean altering economies and impacting over a billion people, scaling Web3 beyond speculation to mass adoption.

magma is where this crucial coordination is happening. Today, we are 48 founders and builders with 25 fast growing startups across both cohorts.

I am excited to welcome magma2 founders and builders to the trenches: @k_smarter, @aagbona, @JessicaGbt, @0xNdeto, @haroldsphinx, @Abala_kparobo, @wor, @justvibesncode, @koz_squad, @allan_kakai, @tonyolendo, @0xgodspower, @lancenonce, @DesireYavro, @machuche1, @TheAIbunny, @KuzyTheAwsomest, @iamnotstatic, @TK_254, @varounsvlogs, @0xeliashezron, @0xChege, @launchnodes, and @shogz_snr.

We salute your commitment to building together 🫡

We also welcome incredible partners who are helping make magma2 possible, most returning supporters from the last cohort!

@ENS_DAO, @base, @ethereum ESP, and @circle are our anchor partners contributing to the success of magma, adding hands on value to builders.

@Scroll_ZKP, @PrivadoID, @graphprotocol, and @eigenlayer are active supporters of magma2, opening new channels to integrate into global infrastructures. Thank you!

Returning mentors and supporters including @blockchainjames from @fireeyesgov, @isaacpatka from @0xshield3, @iamsonge and @cryptowanderer are growing the magma fire.

magma1 alumni @njokuScript, @felixmacharia_, and @Metachaser24 are contributing back and weaving threads across the community.

@bleso_a, @Esk3nder, @YalorMewn, @chrislemanade, @TimBeiko, @sorumfactory, and @amosguni are running workshops, AMAs, and supporting magma builders.

The fire is on 🔥. I'm excited for what can unfold when highly motivated folks come together for 12 days.

#magma #Web3Africa