Wen Ousmane Dicko no fit find mentor for im tech start-up, di 17-year-old Malian do wetin plenty pipo for im age no go even tink of: e clone one.

Using content wey dey public from French-Lebanese entrepreneur Oussama Ammar, e create one AI assistant wey fit dey channel di business mogul ideas and principles, dey give am guidance anytime e need am.

Dis kain boldness and technical skill don turn Dicko to person wey pipo sabi well well, and e don land am for di 2025 Forbes 30 Under 30 list of di most influential young Africans.

As di founder of Dicken AI – Mali first artificial intelligence automation agency – e don already position imsef for di front of di continent tech revolution.

"My goal dey simple: to change how African companies dey use technology to improve dia efficiency and impact," Dicko tok give TRT Afrika.

Dicken AI dey solve one problem wey plenty businesses for di continent sabi well: customer service wey no dey efficient, wey dey waste resources and dey make dem lose clients.

Di solution na AI chatbot system wey fit handle up to 90% of customer interactions automatically, and e go still maintain natural, conversational tone. Di agents dey work 24/7 for WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, and company websites.

"For most of di companies wey we dey work with, di teams dey overwhelmed because dem dey answer di same questions again and again. Dis dey make dem lose responsiveness, customers, and money," Dicko explain.

"We dey help companies reduce dia costs, increase dia efficiency, and improve di customer experience. We dey specialise for customised AI agents wey fit match each industry."

Precocious Talent

Dicko journey enter entrepreneurship start wen e realise early di power wey technology get.

At di age of seven, as e dey play video games, na dia e first see di potential wey digital technology get. By di time e reach teenage, dat interest don turn ambition.

With just internet connection and determination, e start to dey learn seriously.

"Di first thing wey I do na to type for Google: 'How to start an online business?' Na dia everything start," di teenager tok give TRT Afrika.

"I read books, watch videos and take training courses... I quickly realise say technology no just dey interesting, e fit change di world."

Algorithm creation, coding, software design – Dicko learn all of dem through online tutorials and videos, dey build im expertise from scratch.

But wen e wan launch im business, e find out say e dey largely on im own, even though pipo promise to support am but di promises no come through.

"I start alone. I get promises, sometimes dem dey sincere, sometimes dem no dey, but di support no too dey concrete," e tok. "So, I decide to find another way."

Making Things Happen

Di search for another way lead am to create di AI mentor based on Ammar, co-founder of The Family, one successful business incubator.

"Since I no fit get Ammar by my side, I develop one AI clone of am, one personal assistant wey dey powered by im ideas, principles and speeches," Dicko tok.

"Di clone help me structure my thoughts, make better decisions and, most importantly, I no dey feel alone for my progress."

Three years after e start, Dicken AI don expand pass customer service chatbots to dey develop lead generation tools and WhatsApp integrations.

Di company dey move into AI personalisation and e dey offer training and support services. International partnerships dey show face, with potential clients and collaborators for Canada, France, Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire.

As Dicko dey prepare for im baccalaureate exams, top universities for di world dey likely dey notice am. But im ambition pass personal achievement. E wan make Dicken AI become di standard for AI services among French-speaking companies for Africa.

Im medium-term goal na to create one African AI community – "something like Silicon Valley," di teenager tok – wey go encourage learning, sharing, and collaboration among tech professionals for di continent.

For di future, Dicko dey dream to develop one big language model (LLM) wey Africans go create entirely. Di goal na to respond to di linguistic, cultural and economic realities of Africa.

For now, dis teenager wey get di confidence of seasoned entrepreneur dey continue to build, dey aim to change how African businesses dey use technology.