This 26 Year-Old Founder Built Not 1, But 2, Tech Companies With No Prior Tech Experience

After creating KB Matrix to connect textured hair stylists with clients across Europe, Netochukwu Onuoha is taking on PR with Inkognito.AI

At just 26 years old, Netochukwu Onuoha is already a serial entrepreneur, having launched two tech companies despite her education in science and law. Her latest venture, Inkognito.AI, is an AI-powered platform that helps founders and business owners identify the right PR opportunities and craft stronger pitches.

Onuoha and her co-founder, Deepali Garg, built Inkognito.AI as their project during Build Club’s Women in AI accelerator, a four-week virtual program designed to help women take AI ideas from concept to reality, where it placed third in this year’s final showcase.

“The idea came from my experience building in tech and realizing that one of the biggest challenges founders face isn’t creating the product but getting visibility and finding the right PR opportunities,” Onuoha says.

“Every founder has a story worth telling,” she continues, “and we built Inkognito.AI for the founders, business owners, and PR teams who are done sending generic outreach and getting silence back. This is the platform that automates hyper-personalized pitches, so your story finally lands.”

Here Onuoha shares her journey founding startup tech companies and how AI can be a game changer for Black entrepreneurs:

How were you able to launch two tech companies with no previous technical experience?

Most of the skills I’ve used while building KB Matrix and Inkognito AI have been transferrable skills from my legal background and experience in previous entrepreneurial ventures. I think one of the biggest misconceptions around building a startup is that founders need to be able to code in order to build a technology company.

My background is in law and sciences, I’ve always approached problems from a systems and innovation perspective. I’ve learned how to identify gaps, understand users, communicate a vision, and bring together the right people and resources to execute.

Technology is a tool. As a founder, my role is to understand the problem deeply, define the vision around building the solution, and build the ecosystem around it. I’ve used no-code tools, AI tools, partnerships, and technical collaborators to turn ideas into products.

The ability to learn quickly and leverage resources has been more important than already knowing everything.

What was the hardest thing about being a non-technical founder, and how did you overcome it?

The hardest part was initially feeling like I had to prove I belonged in the technology space.

Coming from a non-technical background, there can be moments where you question whether you have enough credibility to build a tech company. I overcame that by shifting my mindset from “I need to become an engineer” to “I need to become an effective technology leader.”

I invested time in understanding the fundamentals of how products are built and distributed, how AI works, how to communicate with technical teams, and how to make informed decisions.

I also learned that diverse perspectives are a competitive advantage. My lived experiences allowed me to identify problems and opportunities that may have been overlooked by others.

What did you learn through the process of launching your first startup, KB Matrix, that you’ve applied this time around?

KB Matrix taught me that building a startup is less about having everything figured out from day one and more about continuously validating, learning, and adapting.

With KB Matrix, I learned the importance of deeply understanding your users before building. I spent time speaking to Afro hairstylists, running educational webinars, understanding their challenges, and seeing the gaps in the industry. That customer-first approach has shaped how I’m building Inkognito.AI.

I’ve also learned that distribution is just as important as the product itself. A great product needs a community, a clear message, and a strategy for reaching the right people. With Inkognito.AI, I’m applying those lessons much earlier, focusing on user feedback, building relationships, and creating something people genuinely need.

What do you see as the opportunities in AI that Black entrepreneurs should be leveraging?

AI represents one of the biggest opportunities for Black entrepreneurs because it lowers barriers to building, creating, and scaling.

For generations, many Black founders have had incredible ideas but faced limitations around access to capital, networks, and resources. AI is changing the landscape because individuals can now automate processes, create content, analyze information, build prototypes, and operate more efficiently.

The opportunity is not just to use AI as a consumer, but to become builders and owners within this new economy.

I think there is a huge opportunity for Black entrepreneurs to create AI solutions that are culturally relevant, solve real problems within our communities, and bring perspectives that are often missing from technology development.

What’s your best advice for other Black women who want to build tech companies?

When I started building in the tech ecosystem, I felt lost but I found my way to communities like Rewriting the Code where I could connect with other likeminded women in both early and late stages of their tech profession. In Rewriting the Code, I saw the power of representation, meeting the Black women in tech “Black wings” within this community made me feel seen.

A lot of women, especially women from underrepresented and minority backgrounds, underestimate the value of the skills they already have. Tech is not only about coding, it’s also about problem-solving, creativity, communication, leadership, strategy, and understanding people.

I would encourage other Black women to see themselves as contributors to technology, not just users of it. The future of tech, especially the advancement of AI, needs diverse builders, founders, and leaders and your perspective is part of what creates better solutions.