Nigerian immigrant begins manufacturing first-ever Black-owned fleet of self-driving pods

A Black-owned tech firm based in Miami, Florida, has begun manufacturing self-driving vehicles called JéGO Pods. The firm will start releasing the pods in late 2022 and will be used to mobilize healthcare services.

JéGO Technologies Inc is founded by Frederick Akphoghene, a Nigerian immigrant, who started his career in tech as early as 16. Since he started his journey, he has built and partnered with hundreds of companies and startups including Abovav Technologies and Oddio Tribe Holdings.

According to Akphoghene, the purpose of his company is to use its mobile platform to connect users with businesses that provide on-demand services like Flu Testing, COVID testing, IV therapy and other services which can be brought directly to customers using driverless JéGO pods.

“JéGO is here to give entrepreneurs the space to compete and to give service providers the mobility to serve without the burden of large fixed costs like rent…This will lead to more money flowing into our communities as opposed to it flowing outwards to large corporations – because we are just as tired of that normalcy as you are,” said Akpoghene, according to Black News.

According to Black News, the name ’JéGO’ “is inspired by the African goddess of commerce, which is a wink to Akpoghene’s mission to use technology to uplift the fastest group of entrepreneurs in the world: Black women and small business owners.”

Akphoghene has over 15 years of experience in tech development and software engineering and has been able to design the patent-pending flagship prototype himself. His autonomous pods have already been approved by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and have garnered a number of partnerships including one with a Miami-based Urgent Care Clinic.

In five years, Akphoghene and his team plan to complete their pilots in multiple cities, including Miami, Atlanta, and Los Angeles, Luxembourg, and have a fleet of over 100 vehicles operating in various routes throughout the U.S., Europe, and South Africa, they announced in November 2021.

“It’s clear now more than ever that people need and continue to need services on the go – starting with COVID testing. Join us in changing the world by building a new commerce infrastructure powered by JéGO Pods. We’re here to ensure the present and future growth of businesses and access to crucial care services throughout the pandemic and beyond,” said Akpoghene.

Akpoghene has also revealed another exciting offer — the JéGO Pods Non-Fungible Token (NFT) — which will also be made available this month through OpenSea, which is the largest platform for NFTs.