On Thursday, December 4, 2025, the heart of Victoria Island, the Landmark Event Centre, played host to the seventh edition of AOT Lagos 7.0, a flagship technology conference uniting policymakers, founders, investors, researchers, government officials, venture capitalists, startups and innovators. The theme, “Future Technologies & Sustainable Lagos,” captured the spirit of the gathering: positioning Lagos as a burgeoning technological hub, not just for Nigeria, but for Africa.
The event carried the weight of expectation. As global and regional stakeholders convened, the goal was clear: to explore emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, smart infrastructure, IoT, digital governance and climate-friendly innovations. At its core was a shared ambition: to reshape Lagos into a safer, smarter, greener megacity, resilient enough to meet the demands of rapid urbanisation and future growth.
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Government’s Push: Infrastructure, Policy and Innovation Funding
Delivering the keynote, Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, Deputy Governor of Lagos State Government, underscored the administration’s commitment to transforming Lagos through sustained public-private collaboration. Over the past five years, the state has laid more than 2,500 kilometres of fibre-optic cables, upgraded smart traffic systems and expanded digital public services, improvements that have reportedly benefitted over one million residents.
Equally significant was the revelation that the Lagos State Science, Research and Innovation Council (LASRIC) has channelled nearly ₦2 billion into more than 75 startups and research projects across sectors such as fintech, agritech, healthtech, edtech, construction tech and climate-related innovation. The planned Lagos Innovation Bill is expected to formalise support for innovation, safeguarding intellectual property, promoting funding access and deepening collaboration among government, academia, and industry. A sub-national Cybersecurity Council, recently proposed, would also prepare Lagos for an AI and IoT-enabled future.
For his part, Olatunbosun Alake, Commissioner for Innovation, Science and Technology, said Lagos has emerged as Africa’s leading tech ecosystem. Between 2019 and 2024, Lagos-based startups drew over US$6 billion in funding, accounting for an estimated 80 per cent of Nigeria’s roughly 2,000 active startups. The government is poised to introduce the Lagos Innovation Deal, a framework to promote collaboration between government, universities and entrepreneurs, accelerate AI adoption, advance data protection, and further cement Lagos as a global technology hub.
Innovation Meets Purpose at AOT Lagos 7.0
At the welcome address, Victor Gbenga Afolabi, founder of Eko Innovation Centre and co-organiser of AOT Lagos, put forward a powerful perspective: cities generate 80 per cent of global GDP while contributing 75 per cent of carbon emissions, underscoring the urgency of leveraging technology for climate-smart urban planning. In densely populated Lagos, which houses around 10 per cent of Nigeria’s population on just 3 per cent of its landmass, the need is especially pressing.
At this year’s event, innovations ranged from smart infrastructure and digital governance to CleanTech solutions, electric mobility and sustainable agriculture (vertical farming, precision farming). These offerings were not mere ideas, but practical solutions bridging urban challenges with technological opportunity. According to Afolabi, the trick lies in upskilling Lagosians, the state’s greatest asset, and enabling policymakers and private sector actors to collaborate effectively.
Celebrating Innovation: Tech Ecosystem Awards 2025 & The Road Ahead
A striking feature of AOT Lagos 7.0 was the fourth edition of the Tech Ecosystem Awards 2025, held that evening to honour individuals, startups and organisations making waves in Nigeria’s tech space. Achievements across social innovation, mobility, cleantech, AI and robotics were recognised — a vivid sign that Lagos is not simply dreaming of transformation, but already acting.
Among the awardees were: inDrive (Social Transformation Leadership Award), BudgIT (Social Innovation Award), Maxdrive.ai (Sustainable Mobility Award), Creeds Energy (CleanTech Innovation Award), and Chowdeck (Startup of the Year), among others, reflecting a diverse ecosystem of innovation and impact across many sectors.
Looking forward, the vision painted at AOT Lagos 7.0 is bold and far-reaching. With new policy frameworks, funding avenues and collaboration platforms, Lagos appears poised to double the contribution of technology and innovation to its economy by 2030. The city is on track to define Nigeria’s, and perhaps Africa’s, tech trajectory for decades to come.
Lagos is reinventing itself as more than just a bustling megacity, it aims to be a model of urban resilience and sustainable innovation. Through AOT Lagos 7.0, the government, startups, innovators and global tech leaders have signalled that the future of Lagos will be shaped not by inertia, but by ideas turned into action.
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