Phyian Karinge has found a way to inspire hope among young innovators grappling with joblessness and cash-strapped start-ups in Kenya’s ever-challenging technology ecosystem.
When she started YoungTechiez about three years ago, she wasn’t chasing extra income or online fame. If anything, it was the opposite. Phyian knew she was committing to something that would drain her resources and time, with little, if any, financial reward.
YoungTechiez is dedicated to telling African technology stories, aiming to inspire and enlighten upcoming innovators and enthusiasts, and, ultimately, to help transform Africa from a follower to a leader in frontier technologies.
Many of its productions have attracted thousands of views, highlighting a clear appetite for stories that capture the hidden struggles and triumphs within Kenya’s tech scene.
"I asked myself, if I was to die in two months, what would I do differently? All those things that I wrote down, I did them."
A graduate of Business Information Technology from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Phyian works as a product manager at agritech firm, AgriBora. Her heart has always been in tech with the mission that the industry is far more than coding and long work hours.
“When I left campus, it was very hard to find where I fit in tech… until I discovered product management. That’s when the seed was planted, that people need this information.” Product management may be a financially rewarding role, but it didn’t feel right for Phyian to keep her discovery to herself.
Her true call to action came after reading The Top Five Regrets of the Dying by Bronnie Ware. “After I read that book, I asked myself, if I was to die in two months, what would I do differently? All those things that I wrote down, I did them,” she recalls.
That is how she found her peace. “Be brave to help someone who is in need, even when others are not doing it. Be brave to ask questions. Be brave to say no. Courage is the virtue that supports all virtues.”
-Vincent Owino