On 25th September, more than 60 founders, investors, and executives converged at Halo in Lekki Phase 1 for the debut of Unicorns After Dark, a new after-hours gathering for Lagos’ tech community.
What started as an idea for an intimate dinner evolved into a buzzing night that brought together the city’s brightest entrepreneurial minds in a setting where games, conversations, and storytelling mixed effortlessly with deal-making and networking. Jenga, pool, food, and drinks set the tone, but the real highlight was the candid “war stories” exchanged, raw accounts of scaling pains, fundraising battles, and breakthrough wins that only fellow founders could truly understand.
A Founder Building Spaces for Founders
Unicorns After Dark is the brainchild of Razaq Ahmed, a founder who has dedicated his career to turning bold startup ideas into scalable businesses. He is the founder of E3 Digital, which helps SaaS founders move from idea to investor-ready MVP in just 12 weeks, and Track That Ride, an active venture transforming mobility with technology.
With years of experience helping retail businesses drive sales, loyalty, and digital growth, Razaq knows first-hand the challenges of building in Nigeria’s complex environment. That is why Unicorns After Dark was never just about fun. It was about creating a platform where ambition meets authenticity, and where relationship-building is valued as highly as raising capital. “Doing business in Nigeria is relationship-based,” he explained. “It is important to meet in person, build bonds, and even match-make between founders and investors.”
The Companies That Showed Up
The evening drew executives and operators from GetEquity, PocketFoods, Travubug, Happy Coffee, Betrworkr, Pam Africa, Rocket Energy, and more than 30 other companies. Angel investors were also present, blending into the relaxed setting but clearly engaged.
Returnee founders, entrepreneurs who had lived, studied, or worked abroad before coming back to Nigeria and Africa, were a strong presence in the room. Their stories of bringing global expertise home added weight to the night’s conversations and optimism to its atmosphere.
A Movement in the Making
By the time the last game ended and the final glasses were raised, Unicorns After Dark had already established itself as more than just an experiment. It gave Lagos founders something rare, a space to relax, bond, and still walk away with valuable new connections and investor interest.
The debut edition proved there is a strong appetite for spaces where fun and ambition coexist. Judging by the buzz as attendees spilled into the Lekki night, Unicorns After Dark is set to become a new tradition in Lagos’ startup culture.
For Razaq Ahmed, this is only the beginning. A second edition is already being planned for October, with ambitions to scale the experience to Abuja soon after. The long-term vision is to attract not only founders and investors but also key tech and media partners, turning Unicorns After Dark into a flagship series that blends community, culture, and collaboration across Nigeria’s innovation hubs.
