Engineer Builds Africa's First Multilingual AI Platform

Pelonomi Moiloa co-founded Lelapa AI in December 2022 after an unconventional career spanning biomedical engineering, a master's degree in Japan, and data science leadership at Nedbank. The Johannesburg startup has launched InkubaLM, described as Africa's first multilingual large language model, and Vulavula, a natural language processing service supporting languages including isiZulu and Sesotho. Lelapa AI has drawn global recognition, with Microsoft President Brad Smith publicly citing the company as a partner in March 2025. Moiloa has been named among Time magazine's Most Influential People in AI and received a Mozilla Rise 25 Award. The company's mission centers on digital inclusion and ensuring African languages are not left behind in the AI era.