Episode #223: Henri Nyakarundi – ARED

Henri Nyakarundi, ARED — Building Solar-Powered Edge Infrastructure for Africa

Henri Nyakarundi is the founder behind ARED’s mission to close the digital divide across Africa with solar-powered, peer-to-peer edge infrastructure. Born in Burundi with Rwandan roots, Henri spent 17 years in the U.S., studied computer science, built businesses, and returned to Africa to tackle one of the continent’s toughest problems: affordable, reliable digital infrastructure for low-income communities.

In this episode, Henri breaks down how his team is fusing solar kiosks with mini-servers to deliver storage, computing, and connectivity at the edge—bringing content, payments, and apps closer to the people who need them most.

Top 5 Takeaways from the Episode:

Edge over cloud: ARED deploys mini-servers with Wi-Fi in high-traffic areas (restaurants, hotels, buses) to cache video, run apps, process payments, and enable gaming where bandwidth is limited.
Distributed, not blockchain: The network is “between centralized and decentralized”—a distributed model with centralized management (lighter than blockchain for the communities served).
Real traction, big vision: 548 devices are live across 4 countries; the goal is 500k–1M devices across at least 10 countries in the next 5–10 years, with GPU-enabled edge boxes and a rebuilt OS to support broader applications.
Model built for SMEs: Partners get the mini-server free and pay for the resources it provides; kiosks (for power + phone charging) are purchased at cost. Teleco partnerships and mobility use cases (like buses) are next.
Grit + capital: Self-funded early, then 10+ international competition wins and grants (including Microsoft and the German government). Now seeking patient, technically savvy investors who understand long-term infrastructure plays.