7 Nigerian-American women blazing the trail in technology

There has been clamours for more female inclusion in how technology is playing out to change the world.

Silicon valley startups and companies, in the US have been singled out with criticisms on female bias. That being said, which could be left for debate, is not the gist of this article so to speak, as we're here to show that women are doing amazing things in the tech enabled world.

These women of Nigerian origin have gone on doing great work in the tech and business landscape, pursuing passionate ideas and grabbing opportunities presented them.

They include:

Luvvie the media guru

Young and getting it, 13-year old Luvvie Ajayi has become something of a celebrity status with the running of her blog, Awesomelyluvvie.com and Awesomelytechie.com.

With these sites she blends pop culture, humour, tech and business. She is also a speaker and author of a book named ‘’I am judging you: The Do Better Manual, a New York Times Bestseller. She’s also reported to be working on a TV adaptation for the book with popular Grey Anatomy series producer Shonda Rhimes.

Ajayi is bilingual. She was born in Nigeria and moved to the U.S. with her family at the age of nine.

Asmau Ahmed, Brand Manager, Plum Perfect

Ahmed heads customer-centric digital innovation at Capital One. She is also founder and engineer for Plum Perfect, a patented technology that extracts visual data from photos to match shoppers to products.

Ahmed was a panelist at the 2017 FORBES Under 30 Summit where she provided valuable insight on how to keep women and girls engaged while in pursuit of careers in Science, Tech, Engineering and Mathematics(STEM).

Kelechi Anyadiegwu, CEO & Founder, Zuvaa Marketplace

Kelechi is inspired by the African fashion world and set her own marketplace to showcase this to the rest of the world. The online shop named Zuvaa sees Anyadiegwu uses her background in marketing and user experience technology to showcase the beauty and vibrancy of over 50 of the best designers on the African continent.

She’s been featured in notable magazines like Fast Company and The New York Times. She has been recognised by Forbes as a “30 Under 30” in the retail and e-commerce category.

Esosa Ighodaro, C0-Founder C0-sign

Ighodaro forfeited a career in banking to pursue an idea to make social shopping easy by co-founding CoSign, a mobile social media-shopping app with innovative technology that rewards endorsers around the world. As president, Ighodaro heads branding, marketing, sales, external partnerships and communications. And raising funds as a finance expert.

Ighodaro spent over six years developing her skills by working with top companies like J.P. Morgan Chase and CitiGroup.

Ighodaro is from New York and resides in Brooklyn.

Jessica O. Matthews, CEO, Unchartered Play

At age 19, Jessica invented the Soccket ball, an energy generating soccer ball providing off-grid power for the developing world. At 22, she founded Uncharted Play, an energy company. She is an ambassador for entrepreneurship in Nigeria.

Jessica’s research and career centres around the intersection of disruptive technology, human behaviour and the psychology of self-actualization. A dual citizen of Nigeria & the U.S., Jessica has a degree in Psychology and Economics from Harvard University, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

ALSO READ: Women-focused dating app Bumble just launched its LinkedIn killer, 'Bumble Bizz'.

Morin Oluwole, Head of Luxury, Facebook and Instagram

Morin Oluwole is a digital strategist and thought leader in digital advertising at Facebook in France, where she manages Facebook and Instagram's global luxury client partnerships.

She joined Facebook in September 2006 and has focused on Product Marketing (Facebook Pages), Global Partnerships (fashion/luxury), and Digital Advertising.

Fluent in Yoruba, French, English and Spanish, Morin currently resides in Paris.

Zim Ugochukwu, former Founder and CEO, Travel Noire

Ugochukwu’s aim with Travel Noire is dedicated to creating long-lasting change by using technology to empower people of colour to lead more global lives through travel, inspiring them to frequently explore new destinations.

Travel Noire was announced to be acquired by Blavity in September of 2017.