Abiola Olaniran, the visionary founder of Gamsole and an early investor in Techpoint Africa, passed away on Wednesday, July 16, at age 36. The software engineer was buried the same day in a private ceremony.
Olaniran, a 2010 Microsoft Imagine Cup winner, established Gamsole in Lagos in 2012, charting a new course for mobile game development across Africa. His studio’s titles garnered over 10 million downloads by early 2015, spanning Windows Phone, Android, and feature-phone platforms. In 2016, Gamsole, in partnership with MTN, launched its flagship game, Gidi Run, which redefined game monetisation strategies on the continent.
Recognised by Forbes Africa in its “30 Under 30” list (2015) and as one of the “30 Most Promising Young African Entrepreneurs” (2016), Olaniran also played a pivotal role in the broader tech ecosystem.
He provided initial funding for Techpoint Africa in 2015 and later served as CTO for ed-tech firm eLimu, overseeing a significant rebuild of their mobile applications. In recent years, Olaniran transitioned from daily operations at Gamsole to focus on mentoring emerging studios and angel investing across Africa’s burgeoning tech landscape.
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