South African entrepreneur, educator and technology innovator Tshaamano Mabuba is emerging as one of the continent’s compelling young voices in inclusive artificial intelligence and education technology.
Mabuba, the Founder and CEO of Buddy Learning, recently represented South Africa at the Second International Conference on the Advancements of Artificial Intelligence in the African Context, held in Tanzania from 22 to 23 July 2026. She delivered a presentation titled “Building Technology that Understands the African Child”, contributing to a wider continental conversation about responsible, inclusive and context-aware artificial intelligence.
Her presentation challenged technology developers, policymakers and educators to move beyond merely giving African learners access to digital tools and to consider whether those tools understand their languages, environments, curricula and lived experiences.
“We cannot achieve educational equity by simply placing the same technology in every learner’s hands,” says Mabuba. “The technology must understand who that learner is, the language they speak, the curriculum they follow and the environment in which they are learning. African children should not have to adapt themselves to technology that was never designed with them in mind.”
A tutor in every learner’s pocket
At the centre of Mabuba’s work is BuddyAI, a multilingual, AI-powered tutor that operates directly through WhatsApp.
The platform is being developed to provide personalised, curriculum-aligned support through text, voice notes and image uploads. Because it works through WhatsApp, learners do not need to download a new application or own an expensive laptop or tablet.
Learners can use BuddyAI to ask academic questions, receive guided explanations, practise through quizzes, revise difficult concepts and prepare for assessments. Its WhatsApp-based delivery and focus on African languages are intended to reduce financial, linguistic and technological barriers to academic support. This accessibility-focused approach has also been highlighted in recent coverage by Disrupt Africa and We Are Tech Africa.
BuddyAI supports Buddy Learning’s broader human tutoring network rather than attempting to replace teachers or tutors. The company combines immediate AI-powered assistance with access to young tutors who can provide mentorship, accountability and deeper academic intervention.
According to Buddy Learning, the business has supported more than 10,000 learners and families across Southern Africa, created income and development opportunities for more than 70 young people, and introduced BuddyAI to approximately 1,700 users through paid access and pilot programmes. Independent profiles and award coverage have also reported the company’s reach of more than 10,000 families.
From a small tutoring initiative to an African EdTech company
Buddy Learning began as a tutoring initiative created to solve two connected problems: unequal access to academic support and limited employment opportunities for talented young people.
Mabuba’s understanding of the education system comes from both personal and professional experience. She previously worked as a mathematics educator and tutor, allowing her to witness how large classes, limited learning resources and language barriers can prevent capable learners from receiving individualised support.
“Talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not,” says Mabuba. “There are brilliant learners who need someone to explain a concept differently, and there are brilliant young people with the ability to teach who need an opportunity to earn, grow and contribute. Buddy Learning was created to connect those two realities.”
Recent media profiles have documented how Mabuba transformed difficult personal circumstances into a mission to make educational support more accessible, while her Nedbank Business Ignite interview explored how lived experience can inspire commercially viable solutions to real social challenges.
Recognition for bold and inclusive innovation
Mabuba was recently selected as a finalist for the 2026 Veuve Clicquot Bold Future Award, which recognises emerging women entrepreneurs building high-impact businesses. The 2026 finalists represented sectors including education, technology, agricultural innovation, women’s safety and sustainability.
She was also selected as a 2026 Nedbank Business Ignite finalist, with Buddy Learning recognised as an education technology business providing multilingual academic support through WhatsApp.
Her wider entrepreneurial journey has received recognition through programmes and platforms including the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship, the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, the MTN Youth Hustle Hub and the Africa Tech Festival.
For Mabuba, however, the goal extends beyond personal recognition.
“The real measure of our success will be whether a child in a township, village or low-income household can receive the same quality of personalised academic support as a child with access to every possible resource,” she says. “We want every learner to know that help is available, that their language matters and that their circumstances do not determine the size of their future.”
Buddy Learning is now focused on improving BuddyAI’s technology, expanding partnerships with schools, businesses and social-impact organisations, and developing a model capable of reaching learners across the African continent.
