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Tripesa

Category: AI Search / Retrieval

A no-code travel-tech platform and AI-powered marketplace designed to digitize the African tourism value chain by providing SMEs with the tools to manage and sell their services online. Tripesa was founded in 2020. The company is led by David Gonahasa. Based in Kampala, Uganda. Team size: 11-50. Total funding raised: Undisclosed. Latest round: Pre-Seed (Aug 2022). Key investors include Future Africa, Consonance Investment Managers, LTNT Investments, Eric Osiakwan.

Founded
2020
Headquarters
Kampala, Uganda
Team size
11-50
Total funding
Undisclosed

Value proposition

Empowers local travel businesses to eliminate expensive middlemen and international OTAs by providing affordable digital infrastructure, integrated payments, and AI-driven market access.

Products and solutions

No-code Website Builder for Travel SMEs, Booking and Inventory Management System, Integrated Fintech/Payment Processing Layer, Roamio (AI-powered Travel Marketplace), Multi-channel Distribution Tools

Unique value

Unlike global OTAs that focus on the traveler, Tripesa focuses on the 'supply side' (SMEs), providing a full-stack operating system that bridges the gap between local African operators and global demand via AI.

Target customer

African travel and tourism SMEs (tour operators, travel agents, tour guides, boutique hotels) and global travelers seeking direct local experiences.

Industries served

Travel & Tourism, Hospitality, Fintech, E-commerce

Technology advantage

Combines a specialized no-code SaaS stack for complex multi-day tours with a proprietary AI recommendation engine (Roamio) and localized payment settlement infrastructure.

How they differentiate

Tripesa differentiates by providing a localized, no-code 'operating system' specifically for African SMEs that integrates inventory management with multi-currency payment processing and an AI-driven direct-to-consumer marketplace (Roamio) to bypass high-commission international OTAs.

Main competitors

Wetu, Tourplan, Nezasa, HotelOnline

Key partnerships

Future Africa (Investor), Consonance Investment Managers (Investor), Alibaba e-Founders Fellowship (Strategic Network), Local Tourism Boards in East Africa

Notable customers

African tour operators, Travel agents, Boutique hotels, Local tour guides in East Africa

Major milestones

Founded in 2020 to digitize African tourism, Raised $1.2M Pre-Seed round in August 2022, Market expansion into Kenya in late 2022, Launched Roamio, an AI-powered travel marketplace, in early 2025

Growth metrics

Onboarded over 800 travel and tourism SMEs across Uganda and Kenya; expanded operations from Uganda to Kenya within two years of founding.

Market positioning

B2B2C travel-tech infrastructure and fintech layer for emerging market tourism SMEs.

Geographic focus

East Africa (Uganda, Kenya) with expansion plans across the African continent.

Patents and IP

No registered patents disclosed as of latest update.

About David Gonahasa

David is a seasoned tech entrepreneur with over 15 years of experience in the African travel and fintech sectors. He previously founded RoundBob, one of Africa's first tourism-booking marketplaces (2013-2020), and served as the Chief Marketing Officer at Mobicash Africa (2011-2013). He is an Alibaba e-Founders Fellow (Class 3, 2018) and is recognized for his work in digitizing the African tourism value chain.

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