SA-Founded AI Startup HyperDev Secures R16 Million to Expand Coding Platform
SA-Founded AI Startup HyperDev Secures R16 Million to Expand Coding Platform. A South African-founded artificial intelligence startup is accelerating its global growth after raising more than R16 million (US$1 million) in pre-seed funding to further develop its AI-powered software development platform.
HyperDev, which operates in South Africa and Europe, announced that the investment was backed by venture capital investors from Europe and the United Kingdom. The company said the funding will be used to enhance its AI coding platform as demand for AI-assisted software development continues to increase.
The announcement comes less than three months after HyperDev launched its platform. According to the company, it has already attracted nearly 100,000 users across 14 countries during that period.
Unlike many AI coding platforms that focus primarily on generating code, HyperDev said its proprietary Guided Mode is designed to help users transform AI-generated code into fully deployable software applications. The platform also enables developers and non-technical users to collaborate on software projects, making application development more accessible to a broader range of users.
The funding round attracted support from European venture capital firms, including Loom Ventures. Falk Albers, Managing Director at Reinsurance Intelligence Quotient (RIQ) and General Partner at Loom Ventures, said the investment was driven by the company’s approach to AI software development.
“We backed HyperDev because they combine genuine AI research and development depth with a built-in distribution channel of millions of developers,” he said.
Albers added that the company is developing proprietary technology aimed at improving the usefulness of AI-generated code rather than relying solely on existing large language models.
HyperDev’s founding team includes Chief Technical Officer Piotr Sobolewski, who previously worked at OpenAI on technology that contributed to ChatGPT, and Riaz Moola, who previously worked at Google on AI technologies that later became part of tools such as Gemini. According to the company, both founders have also conducted research focused on improving interactions between users and large language models.
Sobolewski said the company believes the biggest challenge in AI-assisted programming begins after code has been generated.
“We built HyperDev because we knew the hard part was what came after, and nobody else seems to be solving that,” he said.
The company also reported improved user engagement following the introduction of Guided Mode. Chief Marketing Officer Kenne Loubser said user retention has nearly doubled since the feature was launched.
According to HyperDev, the platform is currently being used to develop a range of software, including mobile applications, ecommerce platforms, fintech products and education technology solutions. It also integrates with the HyperionDev online learning platform, giving users access to technical training programmes.
