Alethiom

Geospatial Data Solutions for Africa

Alethiom Approach

Africa depends on its 50 million smallholder farmers. But the sector is ridden with inefficiencies and challenges at all levels of the supply chain, including access to finance.

Financial institutions do not have sufficient data to assess the lending risk to smallholders, and smallholders do not have access to the agronomic expertise to optimize their yields, and reduce the risk to lenders.

Our team works with multiple data sources including satellite data and ground-based remote sensing data from multiple sources. We combine this with proprietary data from the platforms of the companies and organizations with which we work to discern the “truth” (Alethia is Greek for truth).

We combine these multiple data sources with world-class expertise in machine learning and deep learning techniques. Our multidisciplinary team also has decades of experience in financial inclusion in Africa and can turn raw data into action, for the benefit of the communities in which we live and work in Africa.

People

Duncan Goldie-Scot

Duncan Goldie-Scot pioneered the use of mobile payments in microfinance institutions (MFIs) in East Africa. He co-founded Musoni Kenya, the first MFI to move entirely to mobile payments. The platform Musoni built is now licensed to over 100 MFIs across 15 countries in Africa..

Cale Ettenberg

Cale Ettenberg has spent years honing his skills in geospatial analysis and outreach in the public and private sectors. More recently, he spent a year as the Product Manager at FarmDrive in Nairobi, Kenya, working to bridge the funding gap between small shareholder farmers and funding institutions. Using the lessons learned from his time in Kenya, Cale is working to harness the power of remote sensing to assess yield for smallholder farmers in East Africa.

Roger Frank

Roger Frank is one of the pioneers in using capital markets funding for positive social change. He was a Partner of Developing World Markets, which has raised hundreds of millions of dollars for microfinance institutions. He currently directs Innovare, an agricultural leasing platform focused on Africa.

Koreen Millard

Koreen Millard, Ph.D., is a research scientist who focuses on developing intelligent solutions for environmental monitoring. Her expertise sits at the crossroads of earth-observation and data science. She puts a strong emphasis on validation of results and critical assessment of techniques. When she finds spare time, Koreen tries to detach herself from her computer and pretends to be an artisanal bread baker and brewer.

Doug Stiff

Doug Stiff, M.Sc., is an engineer and remote sensing specialist. With a background in geophysics and earth sciences, he is well suited to make informed, scientific decisions about earth systems processes. With almost 20 years’ experience, over half of which was collecting field data and processing earth observations data, he still loves going in the field to collect ground truth data and finding the perfect shady spot to have his morning tea on a hot day.

Lindsay Armstrong

Lindsay Armstrong is a scientific logistics specialist in the geomatics field. With a Master’s of Science in Unmanned Arial Vehicle (UAV) image acquisition and data processing, she has experience developing physiographic models of dynamic landscapes. She has worked for industry, universities, and government agencies. She has a keen eye on the bottom line and coordination and acting as a team player is her secret specialty.