In 2023, founders Karim Jouini and Jihed Othmani made headlines when they sold their expense management company Expensya to Swedish software firm Medius. Though the terms were not made public, multiple sources say the deal was worth just over 120 million dollars, making it one of the biggest acquisitions involving an African startup.
After the sale, both founders publicly said they were finished with startups. Jouini even took on a role as chief technology officer at Medius, helping the company integrate acquisitions across three continents.
But the rise of generative AI reignited their entrepreneurial spark.
They are now back with a new company called Thunder Code, a software testing platform powered by generative AI. In just six months, they have raised 9 million dollars in seed funding.
“It is wild because we swore never to do this again,” said Jouini. “Expensya was really tough. But I think it is like parenting. You forget how hard it is the first time. This new venture is intense already, but we are excited. We believe it has the potential to become a unicorn.”
The Spark Behind Thunder Code
Jouini says his work integrating multiple companies at Medius showed him the power of AI to reshape the software industry. Testing stood out as a problem that every company struggled with, no matter what product they were building.
That insight became the foundation for Thunder Code.
The platform uses AI agents that simulate human quality assurance processes. These agents detect subtle design and usability issues, improve with feedback, and dramatically speed up the testing cycle.
The company is already working with clients in the United States, Canada, France, and Tunisia. Its software is currently focused on testing web apps, but plans are in motion to expand into mobile, desktop, and API testing by the end of 2025.
A Faster, Smarter Start
Having learned hard lessons from Expensya, Jouini is focused on moving fast and staying lean. The first product prototype was built in just six weeks. He says it is already more stable than Expensya was after four years.
This time around, he is also committed to hiring the best talent early and is not afraid to give up equity to do it.
“Many African founders are afraid of dilution,” Jouini said. “But we think that if you can build a billion dollar company even while giving up a bit more ownership, that is a win.”
He believes AI will allow Thunder Code to deliver ten times the value with fewer people, reflecting a growing shift toward smaller, more powerful teams.
Big Market, Bigger Ambitions
Switching from expense tools to developer platforms was not easy, Jouini admits. But the market for software testing is huge and growing fast. Analysts estimate it will be worth more than 100 billion dollars by 2027. Despite that, many testing platforms still rely on outdated code and manual processes.
Jouini believes Thunder Code’s speed and use of AI gives it a competitive edge, even in a crowded market that includes established players like Tricentis and BrowserStack, as well as newer startups like Jetify and Nova AI.
Built by Veterans, Funded by Believers
Thunder Code is based in Paris with an additional office in Tunis. Othmani, the cofounder, brings deep AI experience. He led internal AI development at Expensya long before tools like ChatGPT went mainstream.
The team raised its seed funding from several familiar backers, including Silicon Badia, Janngo Capital, and Titan Seed Fund. Notable angels also joined the round, such as Roxanne Varza, director of Station F, and Karim Beguir, CEO of InstaDeep. Some of their former colleagues at Expensya, now flush with cash from the acquisition, have also invested.
“Some of our investors are actually former Expensya employees,” said Jouini. “It feels good that it worked out like that.”