UNILORIN Alumnus, Habeeb Akinsola, Shines at Project I2M Startup Pitch Competition

Habeeb Akinsola, a graduate of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Ilorin, has emerged as one of the 20 winners of the ₦1.6 million startup pitch competition. He was among the 24 members of the 1st batch of the 2nd Cohort of Project I2M. Project I2M (Innovation to Market) fosters innovations in Nigeria by collaborating with researchers and innovators under the umbrella of an innovation consortium.

The project aims to support eligible innovations from researchers and inventors with funding to develop and commercialise their products. Fully funded by the UK’s Research and Innovation Systems for Africa (RISA), the project is implemented by the Innovation and Technology Management Office (ITMO) of the University of Lagos.

Out of over 500 applications, 100 applicants were selected, undergoing further screenings that narrowed the participants down to 52. These participants took part in an incubator programme, commencing with five weeks of online training. They were then divided into two batches; the first batch of 24 participants began their physical training on 11th November, culminating in the startup pitch competition on 15th November.

Notably, Habeeb’s final year project, Abiyamọ, which won the University of Ilorin Hult Prize Oncampus Programme in 2023 and competed at the Hult Prize Global Summit in Nairobi, was among the winning entries.