Safaricom is staking its claim in Africa’s AI future with a $500 million investment in AI infrastructure across East Africa over the next three years, according to its Chief Enterprise Business Officer, Cynthia Kropac. Kropac, who announced the move at the Connected Africa Summit 2025, highlighted the continent’s unique chance to craft its own AI journey, emphasizing the need to develop the right policies and foundational infrastructure to support such development. She argued that, while AI development has mostly been confined to the West and Asia, Africa should develop its own systems rooted in local languages, data, and challenges. Kropac also stressed the importance of harmonizing digital laws and building inclusive, homegrown systems that can tackle issues like multilingual education, mobile diagnostics, and smart agriculture. She revealed that Safaricom has already trained over 5,000 employees in AI and that the $500 million will empower local developers to develop AI solutions for different sectors.
TechTrends
