Shalom Rayhamen: The Nigerian Developer Behind Lagos Life’s $10m Startup
When Shalom Rayhamen posted a link to her new game on October 1, 2026, she did not expect to wake up to an internet sensation.
The Nigerian software developer had spent the night building Lagos Life, a browser game that allows players to create characters, earn virtual money, rent homes and navigate a digital version of Lagos.
She finished the game in the early hours of the morning, shared the link and went to sleep. By the time she woke up, thousands of people had already started playing.
Within days, the game attracted millions of players and caught the attention of investors. On October 9, Vatar, the company behind Lagos Life, announced a $500,000 pre-seed funding round at a $10 million valuation.
The investment attracted prominent figures in Nigeria’s technology industry, including Flutterwave chief executive Olugbenga Agboola.
But Rayhamen’s story began long before the funding announcement. Her journey involved teaching herself software development, finding ways to learn despite limited resources and working towards a career in technology.
Here is what to know about Shalom Rayhamen, her journey into software development and how she created one of Nigeria’s most talked-about online games.
1. Shalom Rayhamen taught herself software development
Rayhamen’s journey into technology did not begin with the resources available to many established software developers.
In an account published by Zikoko on October 7, she described the challenges she faced while learning to code in Abia State.
Power cuts and poor internet connections made the process difficult. She sometimes visited technology hubs to use their electricity and free Wi-Fi.
When her internship ended, she continued learning on her own. She kept practising and looking for ways to improve her skills, even when the conditions were far from ideal.
Her persistence eventually opened doors in the technology industry.
In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, she secured her first paid software development job. A startup working on a medical booking application hired her to build its front end.
The job paid her ₦60,000.
Although the amount was modest, it gave her an important realisation: the skills she had been developing could earn her money.
She used the payment to buy another laptop, giving her a better tool for continuing her work.
Her experience highlights an important part of her journey. Before investors valued the company behind her viral game at $10 million, she had to find ways to learn, practise and secure her first opportunities.
2. A Facebook connection changed her career
Rayhamen’s next major opportunity came through social media.
In 2021, a Malaysian user who had seen her work on Facebook contacted her about a potential job. The contact connected her with an employer, and the conversation eventually led to a remote software development position.
The offer was worth $1,000 a month, according to her account.
The opportunity changed her financial circumstances and showed how sharing her work online could connect her with employers outside Nigeria.
It also demonstrated the value of building a visible body of work. Rather than relying only on traditional job applications, Rayhamen had used social media to showcase her abilities.
Her career continued to develop as she gained more experience in software development.
She later obtained the UK Global Talent visa, according to her account published by Zikoko. The visa is designed for eligible people with recognised talent or exceptional promise in fields including digital technology.
That milestone added another chapter to her career before Lagos Life brought her wider attention.
3. The idea for Lagos Life came from childhood gaming
Rayhamen’s interest in games dates back to her childhood.
She grew up playing The Sims 3, a life simulation game that allows players to create characters, build homes and manage different aspects of their virtual lives.
The experience stayed with her. She began imagining what a similar game might look like if it reflected Nigerian culture and everyday experiences.
A second source of inspiration came from Lagos Run, a Nigerian browser game created by Opeyemi Adeniran. That game allows players to drive a danfo through a virtual Lagos.
Watching the game helped Rayhamen develop the idea for a different kind of experience: a shared virtual city where people could build characters, work, earn money and interact with other players.
She eventually turned that idea into Lagos Life.
The result was a game built around familiar Nigerian experiences. Players can look for work, pay rent, socialise and visit virtual locations inspired by Lagos.
The game also reflects the city’s social and economic differences. Players may begin with different levels of virtual wealth, creating different experiences within the same digital environment.
Rather than asking users to imagine a distant fantasy world, Rayhamen created one that many Nigerian players could immediately recognise.
4. She built Lagos Life in a single night
One of the most striking parts of Rayhamen’s story is how quickly she developed the game.
According to her account, she worked through the night and completed Lagos Life at about 5 a.m. on October 1.
She posted the link at around 7 a.m. and went back to sleep.
By approximately 10 a.m., the game was already gaining attention online. She said it had attracted more than 10,000 plays by the time she checked it.
The game’s rapid growth surprised her. What began as a project built around an idea she wanted to explore quickly developed into a product with a large audience.
Players could access it through a browser without downloading a separate application. They could also interact with other people inside the virtual city.
That combination of easy access, familiar Nigerian references and social interaction helped the game spread.
However, the speed of development does not tell the whole story. Rayhamen had spent years developing her software skills before building Lagos Life.
The overnight success was the result of an idea meeting years of preparation, rather than a substitute for that preparation.
5. Lagos Life turned her into an overnight sensation
After its launch, Lagos Life spread rapidly across Nigerian social media.
The game gave users an opportunity to recreate aspects of everyday life in a virtual environment. They could earn money, rent accommodation, socialise and explore familiar locations.
The concept generated conversations because it reflected experiences many Nigerians understood.
The game also benefited from word of mouth. Players shared their experiences online, introducing others to the virtual city.
By October 8, reports said Lagos Life had crossed four million players. The growth attracted attention beyond gaming communities and positioned the project as a potential business opportunity.
For Rayhamen, the challenge was no longer simply creating a game people enjoyed. She also had to consider how to maintain it as its audience expanded.
A growing online game needs reliable technology, regular improvements and support for its users. It also needs a business model that can pay for those operations.
The sudden increase in attention therefore created both an opportunity and a new set of responsibilities.
6. Investors valued her startup at $10 million
On October 9, Vatar, the company behind Lagos Life, announced that it had raised $500,000 in pre-seed funding at a $10 million valuation.
The investment round included Olugbenga Agboola, who invested through Resilience17. Other participants included technology entrepreneur Oo Nwoye, Terra Industries and Mono co-founders Nathan Nwachuku and Abdulhamid Hassan.
The round reportedly closed within a day.
The funding marked a major development for Rayhamen and the company as they work to build a business around the game.
However, the $10 million valuation does not mean the company received $10 million in cash. The funding raised was $500,000, while the valuation represents the estimated worth of the business during the investment round.
The money gives Vatar an opportunity to develop the product and build the company beyond its initial viral success.
It also places Rayhamen’s work within a wider conversation about Nigerian technology entrepreneurs building consumer products rather than focusing only on financial technology or business software.
7. What Shalom Rayhamen’s story reveals
Rayhamen’s rise offers a different picture of how technology careers can develop.
Her journey moved from self-directed learning and a modest first software job to international remote work, a project inspired by childhood gaming and a startup that attracted investment within days of launching its flagship product.
Her experience also demonstrates the potential of building products around local culture.
Lagos Life did not need to invent an entirely unfamiliar world to attract players. It used recognisable experiences and turned them into an interactive digital environment.
Still, the funding round is only one milestone. Vatar must now demonstrate that it can retain users, develop the game and build a sustainable business.
For Rayhamen, the next chapter will involve turning the attention surrounding Lagos Life into something that can last beyond its initial viral moment.
Her journey from teaching herself to code to leading a startup valued at $10 million is already a remarkable story. What she builds next will determine how far that story goes.