At just the age of 27, Rivo Mhlari has earned himself the title of "a tech and innovation guru". The co-founder and CEO of Rikatec thought of the idea that eventually became Rikatec during his first year at university and started his business at the age of 23.

At the time, all he knew was that he wanted to connect people's cars to their smartphones. Little did he predict that he'd be on both the Forbes 30-under-30 and Mail & Guardian Top 200 Young South Africans lists less than five years into executing his vision.

His business, Rikatec, is an information-management system that uses algorithms to help insurers and finance houses predictive maintenance breakdown, track vehicles and pick up other risks to the cars they've financed or insured. Mhlari wanted to be at the forefront with other young entrepreneurs that are working to create the next wave of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) led companies in Africa.

"Africa just simply cannot afford, nor does it have to miss the possibilities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution," said Mhlari during the sixth and final instalment of the Nedbank YouthX Live event on Friday.

Mhlari reckons that as Africa is starting to invest in infrastructure again, with innovation hubs and labs sprawling in some areas and creating pockets of "smart nations", the scene has been set for more disruptive and radical innovations.

Not as easy as it seems

However, as much as technology now seems like an enabler for South Africa and the continent at large to produce more 4IR entrepreneurs, it's not as easy as it seems on the ground. In the four years that he and his business partner Jesse Matheri have operated Rikatec, Mhlari has had the front-row-seat view of the significant resistance to technology innovation in Africa, especially among big corporates.

"Unfortunately, our lives do not get better by chance. It gets better by change. Africans need to stop resisting change. This change can essentially make everyone's lives better. Accept tech and innovation so that it can improve our economy and improve our continent," he said.

Responding to Fin24's questions about how Rikatec navigates the environment dominated by bigger brands and whether insurers and finance houses are receptive to its technology, Mhlari said that has been one of the steepest hills the company has had to climb.

"It was not easy at all, and it's still not easy at all because the South African is landscape is traditional. So, anything that brings change, anything that does not fit a certain benchmark is tested to its extremes, to the point where even the tests don't make sense anymore," said Mhlari.

He said even with the accolades he's received, businesses are still sceptical of new technologies. He's had to tailor his offering to fit into the ecosystems of those who were willing to take a chance on a start-up.

"With these kinds of technologies, you're asking businesses to pretty much change the way they look. If you look at insurers, it's the way they assess vehicles," added Mhlari.