Open to investment & partnership · Jigjiga, Ethiopia
AI Engineer · Founder & CEO, Othama AI · Co-Founder & CTO, Codemano
26-year-old engineer and founder building full-stack AI systems for the markets that need them most.
I go from idea to shipped product — LLM apps, backends, data pipelines, the whole stack.
Based in Jigjiga, Ethiopia. Two companies. One belief:
AI should work where most people actually live.
AI research and product company based in Jigjiga, Ethiopia. Building intelligent tools and SaaS products for underserved markets — with a focus on the Horn of Africa. One mission: build AI systems that actually work for the people who need them most, not just those who already have everything.
The first AI trained on Ethiopian business law — accessible via Telegram with zero sign-up. Ask any question in plain language: get the answer, exact law and article number, and strategic analysis. Covers VAT, forex rules, investment law, trade licensing, and labor law — backed by actual legislation.
Software company building modern, affordable, all-in-one business tools for SMEs in Ethiopia. The vision: local businesses should not pay for ten different software subscriptions or struggle with tools built for other markets. One platform. Affordable. Built for how Ethiopian businesses actually operate.
Built Othama AI from scratch — concept, engineering, and launch. Led the full development of OthaMa Legal: Business Edition, the first AI system trained on Ethiopian business law. Owns strategy, product, fundraising conversations, and all technical architecture. Currently growing the product and actively seeking investment and partnership to scale.
Co-founded Codemano with a vision to give Ethiopian SMEs a complete, affordable, local-first software platform. As CTO, lead all technical decisions — architecture, stack, engineering direction. Building a product that replaces the fragmented mix of expensive imported tools most local businesses are forced to use.
2.5 years of full-time production AI engineering. Designed, built, and deployed real AI systems in an enterprise environment — covering the full pipeline from data ingestion and model integration through to deployment and monitoring. This is where the technical foundation was built.
Five-year Computer Science degree with a strong foundation in software engineering, algorithms, and systems. Overlapped with real industry AI engineering from 2023 — graduating with both academic credentials and hands-on production experience already in place.
"Most AI companies build for markets that already have everything. I'm building for the ones that don't — starting where I live, starting with what I know."
I'm Ishak Handule, 26, from Jigjiga in the Somali Region of Ethiopia. I'm a full-stack AI engineer and founder — I build from idea to deployed product, end to end. LLM systems, backend APIs, frontends, data pipelines, infrastructure, and the product thinking that ties it all together.
I spent 2.5 years as an AI Engineer at CelluTech IT before making the leap to start my own companies. In April 2026 I founded Othama AI and launched OthaMa Legal — the first AI system built around Ethiopian business law. I also co-founded Codemano as CTO, building affordable all-in-one software for Ethiopian SMEs.
I speak Somali (native), English and Amharic (fluent), and Arabic (basic) — which shapes how I think about building for multilingual, underserved markets across the Horn of Africa and beyond.
I'm open to investment, partnership, and collaboration on both Othama AI and Codemano. I'm also available as an AI engineer for the right opportunity. If you believe in what I'm building — reach out.
Looking for investors, partners, and collaborators who believe AI should work for everyone — not just Silicon Valley.
Whether you want to invest in Othama AI or Codemano, explore a technical partnership, hire me as an AI engineer, or just talk about what we're building in Ethiopia — reach out. I respond.