Ethiopian Agritech Startup Lersha Wins USD 100 K MIT Solve Prize
Summary
Lersha, an Ethiopian agritech startup based in Addis Ababa, won the Heifer Prize for Smallholder Agricultural Transformation at the MIT Solve 2026 Challenge Finals. The company secured USD 100,000 in unrestricted funding through the award. Lersha operates a phygital model that combines digital services with field agents and a call center to support smallholder farmers. It provides inputs, mechanisation, financing, market access, and climate advisory services, and says it has already onboarded about 380,000 farmers. The startup aims to expand to 1 million active farmers by 2030.
Funding
Amount
$100.0K
Total raised
Date
January 1, 2026
Announcement date
Investors
-
Lead investors
Company
lersha.com
Funded company
AskAI Classifications
Sectors
AgriTech
Retail and Commerce
AgriTech Platforms
Functions
Developer and IT Infrastructure
Workflow Orchestration
Linked Companies
Lersha
$1M to $5M