Full Circle: From Web AddiCT to Google’s Scale Tier

Since the very beginning of my career, my path has been inextricably linked to Google. It started with a moniker I didn’t choose but happily embraced since Charles Lee Matthews authored it and a pivotal moment in 2007 when I met Larry Page as part of the inaugural class of TED Global Fellows in Arusha, Tanzania. “Rafiq keep on Googling” he penned in my copy of The Google Story. I took that advice literally.

Th TED Fellows programme was sponsored in-part by the very company that had begun to organise the world’s information. For nearly two decades since, people have asked me the same question: “Rafiq, you understand and are passionate about Google more than anyone. Why don’t you just go work for Google?”

My answer has always been the same: “I don’t want to work for Google. I want to work with Google.“

Today, that distinction means more than ever…

I am extremely stoked to announce that Naritive Tech has been selected for the Scale Tier of the Google for Startups Cloud Program, securing up to $350,000 (about R 6 million) in cloud and AI credits over the next two years.

It is the validation of a nearly 20-year thesis that building on the open web, powered by Google’s infrastructure, is the ultimate scalable strategy. It’s more than the credits.

The Long Road to Gemini and Vertex AI

My career has been spent decoding the evolution of Google Search. From my early days in SEO to building adtech platforms, I’ve always been fascinated by all things Google. A fact my Pixel-powered wrist, pocket, car and home can all attest to.

When we founded Naritive Tech (formerly Nat1ve Adtech), we made a counterintuitive play. While the rest of the adtech wwworld was trying to build “walled gardens” to compete with Google, we decided to lean in. We built our entire architecture to be Google-nat1ve, pun intended. By leveraging the decade+ years of experience gained being immersed within the inner workings of Google’s organic algorithms, Google Ads systems, the programmatic reach of DV360 and the intelligence of Google Cloud Platform.

We realised early on that the future of advertising wasn’t just where we’d be placing ads but how to generate the right kind of attention with them.

Why “Scale Tier” Matters

The “Scale Tier” is reserved for startups that are not just using the cloud for storage, but are pushing the boundaries of what is technically possible on the platform.

For Naritive, this partnership unlocks the full power of Vertex AI and Gemini. It allows us to Scale Without Fear. The infrastructure credits allow my engineering team to experiment with massive datasets and high-compute models without the “fear of the bill.” We can innovate at the speed of Google, with the support of Google. The immense savings allows us to grow my team with more confidence too.

The Next Chapter

In 2007, meeting Larry Page felt like a glimpse into the future. Today, building on the platform he helped architect feels like fulfilling that future.

Naritive Tech is no longer just “using” Google. We are deeply integrated partners, building the layer of creativity that sits on the backbone of their leading world-class infrastructure. We are proving that an African-born adtech company can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the best startups in Silicon Valley, contributing to the continent’s digital transformation. Naritive is part of the next wave of African innovation, a region where Google has committed $1 Billion to digital transformation.

To my team, partners, the Google Africa and the Google for Startups crew: thank you. The “Web AddiCT” journey is just getting started.

Okay Google… Let’s build.