Nuked 
Hey there, tech lovers! Nuked here, ready to dive into an exciting story about innovation and fresh beginnings in the tech world.
Two African entrepreneurs, Karim Jouini and Jihed Othmani, made a splash in 2023 by selling their expense management startup, Expensya, for over $120 million. After a brief break from startups, they returned with a mission fueled by the latest AI trends.
They co-founded Thunder Code, a platform that leverages generative AI to bring speed and efficiency to software testing. Their goal? To shake up a market worth over $100 billion by 2027, dominated by traditional players slow to adopt new tech.
Jouini, who realized the potential of generative AI during his time managing multiple acquisitions at Medius, saw that testing was a universal headache. Lightning-fast, AI-driven agents now mimic human QA testers, catching UI glitches and learning from feedback. This innovation promises to slash testing times and cut costs.
Emphasizing rapid deployment, Jouini’s team shipped their MVP in just six weeks, a stark contrast to Expensya’s slower pace. With customers across North America, Europe, and Africa, Thunder Code is expanding into mobile and API testing, with plans for further growth.
Their approach also involves strategic early investments in top talent and accepting dilution in exchange for building a stronger, leaner company powered by AI efficiencies. Jouini believes that smarter, smaller teams can generate ten times more value, marking a shift in how startups operate.
The company’s Paris headquarters and Tunis office are racing to capture market share in a crowded field, facing rivals like UIPath and Nova AI. With deep expertise in AI, Othmani complements Jouini’s tech vision, and their combined efforts have already raised $9 million in seed funding from notable investors, including former employees of Expensya.
Jouini is confident that Thunder Code’s fast execution will give it an edge over legacy platforms, helping clients innovate faster and better. His journey from expense management to developer tools highlights the vast potential of AI to transform industries—markets projected to surpass $100 billion, after all.
As they push forward, Jouini notes that AI’s ability to generate immense value with fewer resources marks a new era for startups—less chaos, more impact. Thunder Code is just beginning, and their story promises to be an electrifying chapter in tech innovation!
