Top firms grow workforce by 38% in one year

July 22, 2025

From the newsletter 

Africa’s ten leading electric mobility companies as ranked by the number of their employees increased their workforce by 1,289 staff over the past 12 months, according to analysis of LinkedIn data by Mobility Rising. The new hires make up 38% of the current workforce, which totals 3,386 employees, highlighting the rapid pace at which the continent’s top firms are growing. 

  • The top ten firms, ranked from first to last, are Tesla, Spiro, Max, Rubicon and Ampersand. Others are Roam Electric, Kiira Motors Corporation, Gogo Electric, BYD and BasiGo. 

  • Half of the top ten largest employers in the electric mobility industry are electric motorcycle companies, underlining the huge potential that the sector has as demand continues to grow. 

More details

  • US-based EV giant Tesla is the fastest growing EV company on the continent, expanding its workforce in Africa by 918 to 1,430. The net increase is more than that recorded by all the other nine leading electric mobility companies combined. 

  • Spiro, Africa’s leading electric motorcycle company with a presence in eight countries, has the second largest workforce. The company now has 436 workers that have profiles on LinkedIn, an increase of 206 from July 2024. 

  • Nigeria-based EV company Max, has the third largest workforce on the continent. The company has 415 staff listed on LinkedIn, an increase of 11 from last year. Rubicon, a South African charging company, has 271 workers, the fourth largest. This is a major reduction after the firm’s workforce shrunk by 46. 

  • Ampersand’s workforce has grown by 72 to 230 between July 2024 and July 2025, one of the fastest growth rates. The electric motorcycle company, which operates in Kenya and Rwanda, has the fifth largest workforce on the continent. Kenya-based Roam Electric is sixth, with a workforce of 143 listed on the platform. 

  • Electric bus assembler Kiira Motors Corporation and electric motorcycle firm Gogo Electric, both based in Uganda, were joint seventh, with a workforce of 122 each. Kiira’s workforce has increased over the period by 49 staff, while Gogo’s has also grown by 22 employees. 

  • China’s BYD, the world’s leading EV manufacturer, and Kenya-based electric bus assembler closed our top ten largest EV firms in Africa. BYD’s workforce on the continent stands at 109, an increase of ten from last year while BasiGo’s stands at 108, an increase of 4 employees over the same period.  

Our take

  • With Tesla accounting for over 70% of all new hires among the top 10, its growing footprint in Africa could force regional players to accelerate recruitment, partnerships, and local operations to keep up, particularly in energy storage, charging, and premium EV segments. 

  • Electric motorcycle companies like Spiro, Ampersand, and Gogo are growing fast and expanding geographically. Expect more hiring sprees as they push to localize production, open swap stations, and establish stronger after-sales networks across East, West, and Central Africa. 

  • Despite Rubicon’s workforce reduction, demand for charging infrastructure is growing. Hiring and investment in this space is expected to continue, especially as electric buses and cars increase in cities and government-backed electrification projects ramp up.