Bola Agbonile
Bola Agbonile is a multi-venture entrepreneur and product strategist building AI-powered, culturally rooted platforms that strengthen human connection and preserve heritage languages. As Founder and Product Lead at Zabbot LLC, Bola leads the development of a fast-emerging language technology platform focused on heritage preservation, beginning with Yorùbá. Zabbot combines natural language processing, text-to-speech, and speech recognition technologies with cultural intelligence to create intuitive learning experiences that reconnect diaspora communities and language enthusiasts with their roots.
In addition to Zabbot, Bola co-leads Beacon VIP Concierge Limited (BVCL), a premium lifestyle and travel concierge in Nigeria, and NaijaSparks, a culturally aligned matchmaking platform for Nigerians in the diaspora. Prior to founding these ventures, Bola held senior technology and product roles at Starbucks, earning a U.S. patent for an AI-driven customer experience solution, and worked at Microsoft as a Software Development Engineer in Test (SDET). Her experience spans innovation leadership, agile development, cross-functional team building, and delivering enterprise-scale products from concept to market.
Bola is deeply committed to blending technology with cultural insight and community engagement. She actively participates in AI ethics and standards discussions, advocating for inclusive, responsible AI frameworks that amplify voices often ignored by mainstream technology. With a background in electrical engineering and an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the University of Lagos, Bola combines technical rigor with strategic vision, building ventures that empower communities, celebrate culture, and create meaningful impact.
• A Design Thinking Approach to Putting the Customer First
• Certified Professional Engineering Manager
• Change Management Certification
• Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competency
• Professional Scrum Product Owner 1
• Certified Business Analysis Professional
• Microsoft Certified Database Administrator
• Project Management Professional
• Six Sigma (Black Belt)
• University of Lagos- B.S.
• University of Lagos- M.B.A.
• Toastmasters International
• Project Management Institute
• Product Development and Management Association
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• Association of International Product Marketing & Management
• Seattle Audubon Society
• Zeno | Math Powered
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to combining a passion for cultural preservation with a strong foundation in technology and product strategy, allowing me to create impactful platforms like Zabbot and Naija Sparks that connect people to their heritage and communities.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me are faith, family, and a belief in my ability to make an impact, guiding both my work—like building culturally meaningful AI tools at Zabbot—and my personal life, which I enjoy through dancing with family, road trips, and observing the world around me.