Kenya shares draft AI policy; Côte d’Ivoire approves $170M data centre
Weekly News Digest...
Good morning!
Welcome to this week’s Africa AI News email digest!
A big newsletter issue today! Kenya opens consultation on a new emerging technologies policy; Egypt launches a national AI competency framework for teachers; NVIDIA backs an Egyptian AI accelerator; US-based Vercel acquires South African DevOps startup Stakpak; meanwhile Launch Africa Ventures discloses 15 new early-stage investments across AI, fintech and enterprise technology.
Data centre investment continued to gather pace. Côte d’Ivoire approved a $170 million sovereign data centre and digital infrastructure project, Cape Town cleared two hyperscale facilities expected to consume around 174MW, and Cassava Technologies secured Africa’s first Microsoft Azure ExpressRoute Metro location. Also see news from Raxio Group and Ethio Telecom.
Scroll down for more news.
Thanks for reading!
/Carrington
Policy
Kenya opens consultation on draft tech policy
#Kenya #policy - Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy has opened consultation on a 2026 policy creating a national emerging technologies council, risk-based system classifications, mandatory registration for high-risk applications and regulatory sandboxes. Public submissions are due by 4 August 2026. (Africa AI News)
Startups
NVIDIA backs accelerator for Egypt AI startups
#Egypt #startups - NVIDIA has launched its SIGNALS programme in Egypt with RiseUp, A15 and BitRoot to connect AI startups with the NVIDIA Inception ecosystem. The initiative provides technical training, engineering support, GPU credits and access to investors and global partners to help Egyptian AI ventures scale internationally. (Arageek)
Vercel acquires Egyptian startup Stakpak
#Egypt #M&A - US developer Vercel acquired Egyptian AI DevOps startup Stakpak, in a deal whose value was not disclosed. Founded in 2023, Stakpak built an open-source autonomous DevOps agent; its Egyptian engineering team will join Vercel, while founder George Fahmy moves into the US. (African-Startups)
Native acquires South African data firm Frontline
#SouthAfrica #M&A - US AI company Native acquired South African market-research firm Frontline Research Group, with the price undisclosed. Frontline’s panels cover more than 14 African markets. Native will add that data to its Store Graph and agent workflows. (Yahoo Finance)
Launch Africa makes 15 new early-stage investments
#Africa #funding - Launch Africa Ventures reported 15 new Fund II investments and nine follow-ons in a 20 July update. The portfolio spans AI, B2B commerce, supply-chain technology, embedded finance and future-of-work solutions across Africa. It is a fund-deployment update, not a single disclosed funding round. (TechCabal)
Data Centres
Côte d’Ivoire approves $170m data centre project
#CotedIvoire #datacentres - Côte d’Ivoire approved Cybastion to advance a $170 million project covering a sovereign data centre, government digital platform and smart-border system. Cisco will support the effort with Cybastion and the US embassy. (Developing Telecoms)
Cape Town approves two hyperscale data centres
#SouthAfrica #datacentres - Cape Town approved two hyperscale data centres expected to draw about 174MW when operational. The projects would add large electricity demand to the city’s grid and tie AI capacity to power availability, but the report did not identify operators or construction timelines. (Energy News Network)
Cassava wins Africa’s first Azure Metro site
#SouthAfrica #datacentres - Cassava Technologies’ Africa Data Centres in Johannesburg became Africa’s first Microsoft Azure ExpressRoute Metro peering location on 20 July. Its Liquid C2 unit plans Secure CloudConnect, which uses two metro peering sites to provide redundant connectivity for critical cloud workloads. (TechTrendsKE)
Raxio backs AFR-IX expansion in Angola, Mozambique
#Africa #datacentres - Raxio Group said that its Tier III data centres in Angola and Mozambique will host AFR-IX Telecom’s network expansion. The partnership adds local backbone capacity for cloud, AI applications and data-heavy workloads in Angola and Mozambique, using carrier-neutral facilities in both markets. (Developing Telecoms)
Ethio Telecom explores AI-ready data centre deal
#Ethiopia #datacentres - Ethio Telecom opened talks with Inspur Software Technology and Shandong Hi-Speed Road and Bridge International on 17 July about high-performance computing, AI-ready data centres and cloud platforms. The parties also discussed technology transfer, digital skills and a wider African rollout, with teams tasked to draft a roadmap. (TechTrendsKE)
Education
UNIBEN fund backs AI centre and research
#Nigeria #education - Nigeria’s University of Benin launched a ₦100 billion trust fund on 20 July to support infrastructure, research and academic programmes, including an AI centre. Technology leaders Tom Ilube and Hakeem Belo-Osagie pledged support for AI education, curriculum development and the centre’s establishment, according to Billionaires Africa. (Billionaires Africa)
Michigan launches $6m AI fellowship for African faculty
#Africa #research - The University of Michigan has launched a two-year African Faculty Fellows programme with about $6 million in backing. Fellows spend a year in Michigan on AI training and research, then return to Africa for a year applying projects and building institutional capacity. Applications open 17 August. (Opportunities for Youth)
Nigeria opens second GenAI fellowship for young people
#Nigeria #education - The Bosun Tijani Foundation, founded by Nigeria’s Minister of Communications Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, opened applications on 20 July for the second six-month Gen AI Fellowship cohort. The programme offers AI engineering and AI application tracks, a ₦50,000 monthly stipend, mentoring and placement support. Applications close 31 July, with training scheduled to begin on 1 September. (Technology Times)
Egypt launches national AI framework for teachers
#Egypt #education - Egypt has launched a national Artificial Intelligence Competency Framework for Teachers with UNESCO, becoming one of the first countries to adapt UNESCO’s global AI framework for national use. The initiative will guide teacher training, curriculum reform and AI adoption through online and in-person programmes, Arabic learning resources and teacher training hubs. (UNESCO)
Morocco taps Capgemini to boost AI skills
#Morocco #skils - Morocco has signed an MoU with Capgemini Morocco to strengthen AI skills across government, universities and research institutions. The partnership supports the Morocco Digital 2030 strategy, which aims to create 240,000 digital jobs, grow 3,000 startups and unlock more than $10 billion in AI-driven GDP. (We Are Tech Africa)
Ghana opens Women Techsters Sprint applications
#Ghana #women - Tech4Dev opened applications on 21 July for its Women Techsters Sprint in Ghana, a virtual programme for women aged 18–40. Training covers data science, cybersecurity and software development, with mentoring, practical projects and job preparation; the wider programme includes an AI masterclass and spans 30 African countries. (TechCabal)
Somalia opens its first national AI centre
#Somalia #education - Somali National University launched the country’s first National AI Centre in Mogadishu on 21 July. It will support research, academic courses, professional training and projects in machine learning, natural-language processing, data science, computer vision, robotics and AI ethics for public and economic uses. (Intelligent CIO Africa)
[ This newsletter was both AI edited & human edited ]