Kathy Gibson reports – Realising the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) for Africa requires commitment and hard work.
This is the word from Kabelo Makwane, country manager of Google South Africa, addressing delegates to the Google AI in Action event taking place in Johannesburg today.
“The greatest risk we take is not taking part in the AI wave, and missing out on the profound benefits,” he says.
AI is already a major participant in the economy, worth more than $3-billion to South Africa today – and tipped to more than treble in the next couple of years.
“Capitalising on this opportunity is absolutely essential for the prosperity of South Africa and Africa,” Makwane says.
He outlines five key areas that need to be addressed, to realise Africa’s AI goals.
The first is infrastructure, and means we should be investing in robust broadband and network capacity.
The second key area is talent development. Indeed, Google has announced a new commitment to spend $27-billion on AI skilling on the continent – in addition to the existing $200-million earmarked for upskilling programmes.
The third imperative is to build world-class research capability and capacity, Malwane says. Some examples of projects underway include Google’s Open Buildings and flood warnings.
The fourth element is the need to nurture a vibrant AI ecosystem that includes access to research, collaboration and markets. Google for Startups has helped in this with over 250 startups that have collectively raised over $600-million. The Hustle Academy has additionally graduated over 17 800 people across the continent, with 4 600 of these from South Africa. And the AI for GovTech programme also brings these skills to government workers.
The final key pillar required for Africa to reap the benefits of AI is cross-continental collaboration and global partnerships.
“Together, we can create a system where AI benefit very person in Africa,” Makwane concludes.
Professor Paul Amayo, senior lecturer at UCT, believes the continents’ greatest resource is its people – and technology should be about serving them.
“AI is already making a tangible difference in language, healthcare, disaster response and research,” he says.
Communication is at the heart of all progress, Prof Amayo adds. Powered by advanced AI, Google now includes African language like Akan, Hausa, Swahili, and nine South African languages.
And local innovators are leveraging this ability, with Botlhale AI Solutions using Google AI to break language barriers for African business.
In healthcare, AI models are making strides in diagnosing diseases, says Prof Amay – and a lot of this work is happening in Africa.
For instance, IDinsight uses Google Cloud and GenAI to answer up to 60 000 questions a month to improve maternal health outcomes.
As climate change makes weather less predictable, Google Precipitation Nowcasting offers flood warnings of up to seven days in advance.
Google is also working on projects to help improve food security in Africa.
Finally, Prof Amayo says AI’s impact is accelerating scientific discovery.
He cites the example of AlphaFold, currently being used by more than 2,5-million researchers, including 25 000 in Africa,