Now in its seventh year and organized by Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct, Digital Lab Africa has unveiled its jury. The illustrious group will be tasked with evaluating and picking the winners from the raft of applications received for DLA 7.

Featuring a mix of local and international industry experts, the 5 person jury includes Sithe Ncube (Nyamakop), Yves Le Yaouanq (Focus Entertainment), Kgositsile Poonyane (MTN), Sidick Bakayoko (Paradise Games), Timothy Flusk (Wits University).

Created in 2016, Digital Lab Africa is an initiative of the French Institute and the French Embassy in South Africa, managed by the South African innovation hub Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct since 2018. 

The very idea of DLA is to offer emerging talents a springboard to fast-track their project’s development, with the support and expertise of DLA creative industries ecosystems in France and in Sub-Saharan African countries. It has incubated 48 projects since 2016.

Now in its second edition Digital Lab Africa widens continues its popular Bootcamp – a collaborative space for young Africans working in the digital creative industreis working in: animation, video games, immersive realities (XR: AR or VR), music and visual arts. Creatives will be able to work with peer mentors who will collaboratively design the Bootcamp programme with the participants. The Bootcamp will form part of the 2024 Fak’ugesi Festival where the participants will pitch for production funds as well as the chance to be selected as finalists in the DLA #8 Acceleration programme.