When people ask me what GistCaster is, I notice I don’t lead with the technology anymore.
I don’t say “AI-powered platform” or “LLM-based fact-checking system”, even though it is both of those things.
Instead, I find myself saying: It’s what I’ve been building since 2009. In my head, we are still connecting communities, enabling economic access, and answer critical life questions for underserved youth. Just like we were doing during the “alpha” phase of GistCaster, back in 2009.
The GistCaster Technology Changes, The Mission Doesn’t
I started building web and mobile platforms back in 2009 with a simple conviction: that access to verified, actionable information could be the lever that lifts communities out of poverty. Back then, smartphone penetration in Nigeria was minimal, internet connectivity was expensive and unreliable, but the mission was already clear.
By 2012, I had built an SMS longcode gateway. While the world was talking about apps and mobile-first experiences, I was sending text messages, because that’s what actually worked for the people I wanted to serve. SMS didn’t require smartphones, didn’t need data plans, and reached people in the most remote corners of West Africa where mobile coverage was the only digital infrastructure that existed.
The technology was primitive by today’s standards, but the impact was real. We built g160 and it was a resounding success. Students could access educational content. Small businesses could connect with customers. All through 160-character text messages.
Now, in 2025, I’m working with AI, large language models, and machine learning. GistCaster employs real-time fact-checking engines to combat misinformation. We are building a verified user tier, and pro tools for those who need that extra firepower.
But Here’s What Hasn’t Changed
The mission is identical to what it was in 2009: connecting communities, enabling economic access, and answering critical life questions for underserved people.
The young person in Alimosho who needs to know if a job posting is real — that’s the same person I was trying to reach in 2009.
The small business owner who can’t afford marketplace commission fees but needs to reach customers — I was building for them in 2012.
The community trying to separate truth from rumor in a flood of WhatsApp messages — they’re why I built that SMS gateway, and they’re why I’m building GistCaster today.
GistCaster as Social Enterprise, Not Tech Startup
This is why I don’t think of GistCaster as a tech startup.
Startups chase markets. They pivot. They optimize for growth metrics and exit strategies.
Social enterprises chase missions. They adapt their tools, but they don’t abandon their purpose.
The tools have evolved dramatically — from basic web forms to SMS gateways to AI-powered intelligence engines. Africa’s mobile economy has grown from nascent to contributing over $220 billion to the continent’s GDP. Generative AI could unlock another $100 billion in annual economic value across African sectors.
But the core question remains unchanged: How do we use whatever technology is available, right now, today, to give underserved African communities the information and economic access they need to thrive?
In 2009, the answer was simple web and mobile platforms.
In 2012, it was SMS gateways.
In 2025, it’s AI, LLMs, and blockchain-verified information networks.
In 2030? I don’t know yet. But I know the mission will be the same.
The Through-Line
Sixteen years is a long time in technology. It’s several complete cycles of hype and disillusionment. It’s the difference between feature phones and 5G smartphones.
But when you’re building for impact rather than exits, you measure time differently. You measure it in communities connected, in livelihoods enabled, in critical questions answered.
GistCaster, with its AI fact-checking, its verified marketplace, its hyperlocal community feeds, is just the latest expression of a commitment I made in 2009.
The technology will keep evolving. The mission stays the same.
That’s what makes it a social enterprise.
