Share, a Kenyan startup is quietly attempting to solve one of Africa’s most overlooked connectivity problems, not the absence of infrastructure, but its inefficiency. Share is a fast-rising venture-backed company that has, in just over a year, grown its open-access network footprint to reach more than eight million people.
This expansion covers from Mombasa into Nairobi and positioning the startup as a key orchestrator of Africa’s fragmented internet ecosystem. Rather than laying cables or building towers from scratch, Share is taking a different route, aggregating existing but underutilised infrastructure into a single, accessible network layer.
As co-founder Luis Munoz Aycart explains, “Today, there’s no shortage of fibre, subsea cables or data centres across the continent; the challenge is that they operate in silos.”
By breaking down these silos, Share is enabling internet service providers (ISPs) to access high-speed bandwidth more efficiently, sometimes improving speeds “by up to 100x without increasing their costs”, while laying the groundwork for what it calls Africa’s largest unified internet network.
What to Know About Share
Share is building what can best be described as a shared digital backbone for internet access across Africa. The startup’s model revolves around creating an open-access network, where multiple infrastructure providers and ISPs can connect, interact, and exchange capacity seamlessly.
Unlike traditional ISPs that invest heavily in physical infrastructure, Share positions itself as an intelligent coordination layer.
“You can think of Share as the ‘brains’ of a massive shared network,” Aycart noted, highlighting its role in managing and distributing capacity from central data hubs to end users.
Founded by Aycart alongside his brother Jose and longtime collaborator Omar Pederzoli, the company emerged from a practical frustration. The trio initially set out to build an ISP in Kenya but quickly realised that the problem wasn’t a lack of infrastructure, it was a lack of coordination.
“Delivering fast, reliable internet at the end-user level was nearly impossible… not because the infrastructure didn’t exist, but because it wasn’t coordinated well enough,” Aycart said.
This realisation became the foundation of Share’s current model.
The Main Problem and How They’re Solving It
Africa’s internet paradox is striking: while the continent has seen significant investments in fibre optics, subsea cables, and data centres, over 600 million people remain unconnected. The issue lies in fragmentation.
On one side are large infrastructure providers sitting on excess capacity they struggle to monetise. On the other are thousands of ISPs facing high barriers to entry, including expensive upfront commitments and restrictive contracts.
Share steps in as a bridge between these two worlds.
“We act as a neutral, open-access layer that connects both sides,” Aycart explained.
By aggregating infrastructure into a unified system, Share enables providers to maximise their assets while allowing ISPs to scale rapidly without heavy capital investment.
Crucially, the company doesn’t stop at coordination. In areas where infrastructure is lacking, Share has the licensing and operational capability to deploy new assets, ensuring network continuity. The result is a hybrid model, part aggregator, part enabler, that reduces inefficiencies and unlocks access at scale.
How Share Benefits Users
For the average internet user, Share’s impact may not be immediately visible, but it is deeply felt. By simplifying access for ISPs and reducing operational costs, the company enables:
- Faster internet speeds
- More reliable connections
- Potentially lower service costs
The claim of improving speeds “by up to 100x” underscores the scale of inefficiency that previously existed in the system. When ISPs can tap into a shared pool of capacity without financial bottlenecks, service quality improves significantly.
In essence, Share is shifting the internet experience from one defined by scarcity and inconsistency to one driven by efficiency and scalability.
The Market Capacity and Growth Trajectory
Share’s early traction suggests strong demand for its model. On the supply side, the company has already secured partnerships with 12 major infrastructure providers, unlocking access to extensive fibre networks across Kenya.
On the demand side, interest from ISPs has been equally robust, with a waitlist representing over 100,000 end users.
Within just four months of scaling efforts, Share reports a network footprint spanning:
- Over 100 ISPs
- More than eight million people
The company is currently onboarding its first 50,000 active users, marking its transition into a full commercial launch phase. Backed by venture capital, including a recent seed round led by Greenfield Capital, Share is now eyeing aggressive expansion.
Plans are underway to scale nationwide in Kenya and extend into East and Southern Africa by late 2026. Notably, expansion does not require heavy infrastructure investment.
“In many cases, it’s activating existing capacity… and turning on the network,” Aycart said, highlighting the efficiency of its model.
What Does Share’s Revenue Model Look Like?
Share operates a platform-based revenue model, designed to lower entry barriers for ISPs while ensuring sustainable earnings.
Instead of charging upfront fees, the company takes a percentage of each end-user transaction processed through its platform.
This approach allows ISPs to access “unlimited connectivity without upfront costs,” while also simplifying payment flows across the ecosystem.
Beyond connectivity, Share is also building what it describes as a financial coordination layer. This includes tools to help ISPs manage capital more effectively and potentially access additional financial services in the future.
This dual-layer strategy, combining infrastructure coordination with financial services, positions Share not just as a network provider, but as a broader digital ecosystem enabler.
Why This is Important
Share’s model addresses one of the most critical yet under-discussed challenges in Africa’s digital transformation: inefficiency in existing systems.
For years, the narrative around connectivity has focused on building more infrastructure. Share flips that narrative by demonstrating that better coordination can be just as impactful as new construction.
By unlocking idle capacity and lowering barriers for ISPs, the startup is effectively accelerating internet access without the need for massive capital expenditure. This has far-reaching implications:
- Faster digital inclusion
- Improved access to online education and services
- Enhanced economic participation across underserved regions
Moreover, its scalable, asset-light approach could redefine how connectivity solutions are deployed across emerging markets.
As Aycart succinctly puts it, the mission is ambitious but clear, “to build Africa’s largest internet network.”
If Share succeeds, it may not just improve internet speeds, it could fundamentally reshape how the continent connects, communicates, and competes in a digital world.
Talking Points
Share’s model is clever and timely, but it is not without structural risks that could limit its long-term impact. On the positive side, the company is tackling a real inefficiency, Africa’s fragmented internet infrastructure, and its asset-light, aggregation approach is far more scalable than traditional capital-heavy telecom models.
If executed well, it could unlock stranded capacity, lower entry barriers for ISPs, and accelerate connectivity without waiting for new infrastructure rollouts. However, the model’s success hinges heavily on sustained cooperation from large infrastructure providers and trust from ISPs, two groups with historically conflicting incentives.
By positioning itself as a “neutral layer,” Share risks being squeezed from both ends: providers may eventually prefer direct monetisation channels, while ISPs could resist dependency on an intermediary that controls access and pricing dynamics.
There is also the question of defensibility, aggregation platforms can be replicated, especially by incumbents with deeper capital and regulatory influence. Additionally, claims of “up to 100x speed improvements” sound compelling but may reflect edge cases rather than consistent user experience, raising concerns about overpromising in a highly sensitive market.
Notwithstanding, Share is addressing a genuine bottleneck with an elegant solution, but its ability to scale sustainably will depend less on technology and more on governance, partnerships, and whether it can maintain neutrality while building power in a fragmented and politically complex telecom ecosystem.
_____________________
Bookmark Techparley.com for the most insightful technology news from the African continent.
Follow us on X/Twitter @Techparleynews, on Facebook at Techparley Africa, on LinkedIn at Techparley Africa, or on Instagram at Techparleynews
