From Alumni & Supporters from…
Tembi means "hope" – You're welcome.
Tembi symbolises hope. We believe a person's future shouldn't depend on where they were born. So we share devices, discover builders through hackathons, and grow communities that stay with them. Together, they become digital equity, and hope, made real.
Tembi Labs exists to close the gap by partnering with universities across the Global South to run hands-on AI hackathons, provide access to cutting-edge technology, and create pathways for the next generation of AI innovators to learn, build, and thrive.
Tembi Labs exists to close the gap by partnering with universities across the Global South to run hands-on AI hackathons, provide access to cutting-edge technology, and create pathways for the next generation of AI innovators to learn, build, and thrive.
Our manifesto
Thesis we bet on!
We believe that talent is not the bottleneck, access is.
Somewhere in the Global South, a future founder, a future engineer, a future scientist is one laptop away from starting, and one laptop alone won't get them there. That's why we built a comprehensive approach: devices from Germany, AI hackathons to find them, and communities to keep them building.
This isn't charity. It's an unlock. The world hasn't run out of talent, it's just been looking in the wrong places.
Somewhere in the Global South, a future founder, a future engineer, a future scientist is one laptop away from starting, and one laptop alone won't get them there. That's why we built a comprehensive approach: devices from Germany, AI hackathons to find them, and communities to keep them building.
This isn't charity. It's an unlock. The world hasn't run out of talent, it's just been looking in the wrong places.
Our mission
Tech Access towards a better future
Step 1
Our Vision
A world in which equal access to technology is a human right, one where geography and income don't decide whether someone can build with technology, and where the Global South, like the Global North, creates, shapes, and exports technology instead of only consuming it.
Step 2
Our Mission
Tembi Labs exists to democratise access to technology. We aim to dismantle the barriers to cutting-edge software and hardware that prevent people in the Global South from participating in the global technology economy. Organising AI hackathons, distributing devices, enabling digital literacy, and building computer labs/science labs is how we close the gap.
Step 3
Our Values
We work human-first and AI-second, and we listen before we design. We back equity over equality, allocating against the gap rather than per head. We choose dignity over charity, building infrastructure for excellence and capturing people's successes, never their misery. We champion technological sovereignty through open source and repairable hardware. We think in ecosystems, because hardware, education, and network only work when built together. Talent exists everywhere, so the people we work with are authors, not beneficiaries. Other NGOs are partners, not enemies. And we hold ourselves to transparency, reporting our impact, budget, and failures.
Human-first, AI-second
We listen before we design. People come first, and AI serves them rather than the other way around.
Equity over equality
We allocate against the gap rather than per head, backing the people that access has left behind.
Dignity over charity
We build infrastructure for excellence and capture people's successes, never their misery.
Technological sovereignty
We champion open source and repairable hardware so communities own the technology they use.
We think in ecosystems
Hardware, education, and network only work when they are built together, not in isolation.
Talent exists everywhere
The people we work with are authors of their own success, not beneficiaries of handouts.
Partners, not enemies
Other NGOs working toward the same goal are allies. We collaborate rather than compete.
Radical transparency
We hold ourselves accountable, reporting our impact, our budget, and our failures openly.
Our Impact
25+
AI Hackathons organised
100%
Success Rate
48
Partners & Supporters
4 countries
Operating in
300
Students impacted
5
Solutions built
How we work & our partner journey
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Step 1
We host AI hackathons together with universities, igniting the fire and checking critical infrastructure for device donation.
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Step 2
During this process, starting from the initial hackathon, we enter into numerous talks with the university administration; they become our partners once vetted rigorously through our process.
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Step 3
Meanwhile, we partner in the Global North with companies who want to donate resources, funds, and devices in support of the mission, and with AI companies & research labs willing to provide AI credits and education programmes to the students.
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Step 4
To keep the fire going, we empower young students to take part in the Chapter Lead & AI Champion programme. They organise hackathons and become on-the-ground experts other students can approach.
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Step 5
Once partnered with a university, we set the cornerstones for device distribution with the administration, developing a concept and facilitating the distribution and the building of computer labs.
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Step 6
Beyond the computer labs, we focus on educating staff, teachers, community leaders, and more, to ensure these devices are used and remain impactful, spurring ideas and solutions to their communities' own challenges and igniting the entrepreneurial spirit.
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Step 7
Through this enablement, empowerment, and access to cutting-edge technologies, our focus shifts to value generation. We want to focus on entrepreneurship and economic outcomes, spurring further benefits to the whole community.
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Step 8
While we stay in the loop, making sure the previous steps continue without us, we open our platform for talent placement and recruiting. The hackathons, devices, and our enablement programme give us an immense pool of ready-to-work talent that we share with companies in the Global North, as a business model.
Our northstar
Charity was yesterday. Equality is today. Equity is the future.
Tech Access for All
Out of a vision and research starting in 2023, the journey began in 2026. Today, Tembi Labs is run, operated, and managed by Filmona, Hyewon, Billy, and Tim. But the story behind it started years earlier at a lunch table in the halls of Cambridge University. The topic circled around the ties between technology and the economy: how the health of future economies can be projected starting with a country's youths' access and exposure to technology and digital literacy. The conversation delved into various metrics centred on the Global South and showed that this, although crucial and vital for the world, is not yet being targeted or talked about by bigger institutions.
Born in Togo and raised in Germany, Tim took this matter personally and started researching. Over the years he talked to many, but with the speed and rapid development of AI he saw the gap increasing and the problem intensifying, without it entering public awareness. So he brought together like-minded people burning for the mission to build a team: Hyewon, Billy, and Filmona. The effort and experience of the team gave birth to Tembi Labs and the work we are privileged to do today, helping people get better and faster access to cutting-edge technologies.
Born in Togo and raised in Germany, Tim took this matter personally and started researching. Over the years he talked to many, but with the speed and rapid development of AI he saw the gap increasing and the problem intensifying, without it entering public awareness. So he brought together like-minded people burning for the mission to build a team: Hyewon, Billy, and Filmona. The effort and experience of the team gave birth to Tembi Labs and the work we are privileged to do today, helping people get better and faster access to cutting-edge technologies.
The Team behind Tembi Labs
Tim Jamboula
Co-Founder
Filmona
Co-Founder
Hyewon
Co-Founder
Billy Nyeongesa
Co-Founder
A mission so possible, even Tom would join to make it a reality!
Our mission and belief are unwavering. Geniuses and innovators exist everywhere, they just need to be empowered. With your help, they can be. Until Tom joins, you are their lifeline, and the future world depends on them. Join us in making this mission a reality!
FAQ
Questions you might have…
The first step is to get in touch with us. We'll discuss the best options with you and find the right fit together. It usually begins with a short intro call, and from there the next steps depend on where you're starting from. We're familiar with both.
We don't run charity, we run talent-activation programmes. We give access and let people build, so participants are the authors of their success, not recipients of handouts. That focus, together with radical transparency, is what makes us the right partner.
Companies sponsor a Corporate Challenge Day (EUR 5,000 to 15,000): they set a real problem with sample data, their jury takes part, they own the intellectual property of the solutions, and they gain brand presence plus access to a talent pipeline.
Around 4 hours of introduction to AI tools, then about 24 hours of team building, then a business pitch to a jury with prizes. Participants use AI-native tools like Cursor and Lovable and build working prototypes in 24 to 48 hours. The strongest join the Fellows Network.
Nothing. Sponsored AI stacks like Cursor and Lovable come with credits, so students pay nothing to take part. Open hackathons are open to all levels across the Global South, especially at partner universities.
Devices are earned, not given away. A hackathon must first prove local demand. After that, refurbished enterprise laptops (via partners like Computer Aid International) are built into computer rooms for institutions, with local owners and a check-in after 6 months.
Yes. The university provides the venue, access to students, a local contact, plus power and internet. Tembi brings the format, facilitation, jury, sponsored AI tools and credits, mentors and storytelling. It starts with a 30-minute call and needs roughly 6 to 8 weeks of lead time.
Yes, and that will always be the case. Even after we start working together, you have dedicated team members who look after your inquiries.