Across Africa, artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a major driver of digital innovation, reshaping industries and addressing critical issues. In Madagascar, AI is steadily improving social inclusion, opening up new possibilities for underserved populations.

Andréa Valéria Andriantefiarinesy (photo) is the co-founder BrA.I, the startup behind a device that instantly translates text into Braille using artificial intelligence, aiming to improve access to information for visually impaired individuals. From a graphic design background, she shifted her career path after joining the Advanced Design program at the Orange Digital Center (ODC). There, she met other young innovators and together they formed BrA.I, which won first place at the Orange Summer Challenge 2023 (OSC 2023).

"The idea came from a simple yet striking observation: access to information remains a major challenge for visually impaired people. While assistive technologies exist in developed countries, their high cost makes them inaccessible to most, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds," Andriantefiarinesy said. "Our goal is to make these technologies affordable and widely available, enabling more visually impaired individuals to access information and gain independence."

Winning first place at OSC 2023 marked the beginning of an intense yet rewarding entrepreneurial journey. "It was a turning point: we had to decide the future of the project. Seeing the potential of BrA.I and the public’s enthusiasm for its deployment, we decided to pursue the venture and turn this idea into reality," she recalls.

The path was not without challenges. Some team members left the project for personal or professional reasons, requiring Andriantefiarinesy to assume strategic and operational leadership roles. "I had to learn how to manage a team, structure our work, and make tough decisions," she said. Thanks to incubation support and guidance from mentors like Rudy DEAL, IT & Digital Services Director at VIVETIC Group, she successfully navigated these challenges.

In 2024, BrA.I won second place and the Women’s Prize at the Orange Social Venture Prize for Africa and the Middle East. "This confirmed that our project meets a real need and that it was time to structure BrA.I into a full-fledged startup," she said.

Andriantefiarinesy envisions BrA.I becoming an essential tool for visually impaired individuals within five years, with at least one device in every institution. "Ultimately, we want BrA.I to become a personal device, used on demand just like a mobile phone," she said. "We’re aiming for large-scale adoption, with our device present in every household, providing a practical and accessible solution for daily life—both nationally and internationally."