Africans In Tech

What does it take to go from a rural Mississippi town of 500 people to becoming a Staff Software Engineer? 🚀 In this episode of Office in Tech, we sit down with William "Emjay" Hill to discuss his incredible journey through traditional tech spaces, the reality of navigating corporate politics as a minority, surviving tech layoffs, and why mastering data is the ultimate prerequisite for...

Hey what's up, fam! Welcome back to Africans in Tech, where we're building bridges and shaping futures in the tech landscape. 🌍✨ In today’s episode, we sit down with the brilliant Destini Simmons (aka @CyberShortieee)—co-host of the massive Techtual Chatter podcast, cybersecurity professional, and true industry disruptor. 🔥 Destini drops real, unfiltered gems about what it actually ta...

👋 Welcome Back to the Africans in Tech Podcast! What does it actually take to break into cybersecurity and hit a 6-figure salary in today's ultra-competitive market? 🤔💻 In this powerful episode, your hosts Sahr Lebbie and Queen Duncan sit down with Danny, the brilliant mind behind Cyber Sprint Academy. Danny drops absolute gems on everything from navigating the grueling tech job hunt to bu...

Welcome back to another amazing episode of the Africans in Tech podcast, where we are building bridges 🌉 and shaping futures in tech! 🚀  Today, your co-hosts Queen Duncan and Sahr Lebbie are sitting down with the brilliant Dola Adesanya 👑, the Agentic AI Transformation Lead for Internal Business Operations at Google! ✨ From being a firstborn daughter navigating the "black tax" 💸 in...

🔥 In this powerful episode of Africans in Tech, we sit down with Annie Tagoe—Olympian 🏃🏾‍♀️, Team GB athlete 🇬🇧, and IMG model 💅🏾—to dive deep into her journey from Ghana 🇬🇭 to the global stage. This is NOT your typical athlete story… Annie keeps it real about: ✨ Growing up in Ghana and moving to the UK 🏃🏾‍♀️ Starting track at 15 and quickly going international 💔 Battling injuries, surger...

In this episode of the Africans in Tech podcast, host Queen Duncan sits down with the multi-hyphenate powerhouse Ashley Miller 👑. Ashley is an Account Executive, Realtor, and the founder of The Black Exchange, but her journey to success was anything but linear. 📈 From walking onto the University of Florida’s track team 🐊 to navigating the high-stakes world of property management and surviving m...

🎙️ On this episode of Africans in Tech, host Sahr Lebbie sits down with the incredible Taylar Smith — born and raised in Davenport, Iowa, now thriving in Atlanta as a tech sales professional, mentor, and founder of Taylar Talks Tech. This is one conversation you do NOT want to miss! 🔥 Taylar's journey is anything but ordinary. She came to Atlanta at 21 years old with barely any money, sleepi...

On this episode of Africans in Tech, host Queen Duncan sits down with Torrance Evans — a self-taught software engineer who turned persistence into opportunity. Torrance shares his journey from growing up in Peoria, Illinois, to moving to Atlanta and building multiple businesses — from wholesaling real estate to running a car rental company — before pivoting into tech. After failing interviews, gri...

In this episode of the Africans in Tech Podcast, we are joined by Bricesen Ross, a seasoned IT Director, Consultant, and Founder of Tech Disciple. 🎙️ Bricesen’s story isn't just about professional success; it’s a raw, unfiltered look at the systemic hurdles and cultural sacrifices often demanded by Silicon Valley. 💼 Bricesen takes us through his journey—from his early days fixing iPhones in...

In today's episode, co-hosts Queen Duncan and Sahr Lebbie sit down with the incredible Kaylin Moss—known to the internet as the "Software Engineer Baddy." 💻🔥 Kaylin is a powerhouse AI Engineer working in the healthcare sector, a professional model featured by brands like Ulta and Honda, and a fierce advocate for authenticity in corporate spaces. 👠🤖 We dive deep into her Gullah G...

In this episode of Africans in Tech, host Sahr Lebbie sits down with Brandon Okpalobi—founder of Dibia Athletic and Dibia Dream—for a powerful and honest conversation about building real impact through STEM, sports, and community. Brandon shares how he moved away from traditional pitching and focused on telling the true story of the work, leading to the impact of over 45,000 youth across the U.S.,...

Ayanna Williams went from job hopping at Marshalls 🛍️, Six Flags 🎢, and BWI Airport ✈️ to holding a secret security clearance 🔐 and working as a systems administrator in Baghdad, Iraq 🇮🇶 — all without a college degree 🎓❌. In this episode, she breaks down every step of that journey and what it really cost her along the way. Ayanna got her start through the Year Up United program 🚀, which place...

From being permanently banned from Uber and Lyft 🚫🚗 to becoming a Cloud Architect specializing in cloud and AI infrastructure ☁️💻 — Demecos Chambers’ story is a powerful example of resilience, determination, and betting on yourself when life hits rock bottom. In this episode of the African Tech Podcast 🎙️, Demecos shares his unfiltered journey growing up between North Carolina and Atlanta 🌎, n...

Diana Mungu’s journey is powerful, layered, and deeply inspiring 🌍✨ Born in a refugee camp in Kenya to parents from Uganda and South Sudan, she shares how her family’s refugee story shaped her mindset, ambition, and deep sense of purpose 🙌🏾 In this episode, Diana walks through her career from early retail jobs 🛍️ and sales roles 📈 to building a strong corporate foundation at General Mills, wh...

In this powerful episode of the Africans in Tech Podcast, host Sahr Lebbie sits down with Adetayo Ibijemilusi to unpack his incredible journey — from dropping out of nursing school, battling depression, and attempting suicide… to becoming a high-earning AWS Cloud Engineer, retiring his parents, and building a blueprint for $500K/year and generational wealth. This one is raw, faith-filled, and prac...

What does it really take to break into the music industry — and stay there? In this episode of Africans in Tech, host Sahr Lebbie sits down with Ayo Beatz — UK-based rapper, producer, and global creative — to unpack his journey from freestyling as a teenager in New York to producing a Top 3 UK charting record. Ayo Beatz shares the real, behind-the-scenes path of building a music career from the gr...

In this powerful episode of Africans in Tech, we sit down with Leander Howard II. Father, GTM Advisor and Career Coach Leander breaks down what it really takes to win as a founder in today’s world — ignoring social media noise, blocking out unqualified opinions, and focusing on respect, execution, and results. We dive into: Why being respected matters more than being liked How social media can dis...

In this powerful episode of Africans in Tech, host Sahr Lebbie sits down with Aisha Diambou, a Georgia Tech biomedical engineering graduate, to unpack her raw and unfiltered journey through healthcare, corporate America, layoffs, discrimination, and ultimately pivoting into tech. Aisha shares what it was really like working as a clinical specialist in cardiac electrophysiology, assisting in life-o...

In this powerful and unfiltered conversation, we sit down with Blessing Douglas — entrepreneur, mental health advocate, and development leader — to unpack one of Africa’s biggest challenges: the gap between policy and enforcement. We explore how weak compliance systems, lack of accountability, and poor data practices impact mental health services, governance, privacy, and development across the co...

In this episode of Africans in Tech, we sit down with Victoria Walker, a powerhouse software engineer at JP Morgan Chase and founder of Vivify Solutions. Victoria’s journey is a masterclass in resilience—overcoming the foster care system, personal loss, and legal hurdles to build a thriving career in fintech and her own product development agency. We dive deep into: The Reality of Self-Teaching: H...

🚀 From AI Solutions Specialist to Tech Founder — Ashley Robinson is on a mission to make the world a better place through technology. In this powerful episode of Africans in Tech Podcast, Ashley shares how she went from psychology and HR to becoming a Generative AI Engineer and now the CEO & Founder of Better Boost, a wearable tech startup creating AI-powered smart glasses that translate lang...

In this inspiring episode of the Africans in Tech Podcast, host Sahr Lebbie sits down with Banke Balogun, a LA based model turned Solutions Engineer, to explore her incredible journey from the runway to the world of tech. 💻 ✨ In This Episode, You’ll Learn: 💪 Why confidence is the #1 skill to master when breaking into tech 💬 How to “fake it till you make it” — and still show up authentically 🌐...

This week on Africans in Tech, we sit down with Ayo, founder of Techsgiving, and unpack how he built one of the most influential tech conferences for Black and Brown professionals in the DMV. From a humble rooftop meetup to Nationals Park Stadium with 7,000+ attendees, his journey is a blueprint for anyone scaling community with intention, culture, and infrastructure. If you're building a sta...

In this powerful episode of Africans in Tech, host Sahr Lebbie sits down with Jarrett Albritton — tech sales veteran, speaker, and founder of Big Stage Energy — for a raw, unfiltered conversation about what it really takes to succeed in tech, business, and life. From door-to-door sales and landing an enterprise role at IBM, to speaking on stages with billionaires and building a platform rooted in...

In this powerful and thought-provoking episode, host S. Lebbie sits down with Manal Al-ansi — attorney, educator, and visionary founder of Diaspora District — to explore her remarkable journey from Ethiopia 🇪🇹 to Seattle, Washington 🇺🇸, and her mission to connect education, culture, and innovation across continents. From navigating identity in American classrooms to shaping policy at the City of S...