Author: Ugochukwu Levi F

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East, involving intensified hostilities with Iran, the United States, and Israel, is beginning to affect the global economy and is putting pressure on the worldwide artificial intelligence investment boom. Rising energy costs, supply chain disruptions, and inflation are creating a more challenging environment for technology investment. The Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development (OECD) said the war has disrupted the global economy’s growth trajectory. A near‑halt of energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz is expected to drive inflation higher and slow growth that had previously been supported by strong technology demand. As a…

Across Africa, governments are leveraging AI for governance, economic growth, and social services, while investment flows into startups focused on enterprise AI, developer tools, and multi-language platforms. Regional clusters are emerging with unique strengths shaped by local needs, language diversity, and international partnerships, with Morocco and Tunisia forming a compact North African hub backed by French investors. Despite investor enthusiasm for Africa’s untapped data and large consumer base, venture data from Launch Base Africa shows that AI activity is concentrated in five key hubs-Egypt, South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco, and Tunisia-accounting for nearly 90% of venture-backed deals, reflecting local economic conditions,…

In an effort to set the pace for the adoption and deployment of artificial intelligence in Africa, Nigeria has completed the draft of its National Artificial Intelligence Strategy and is preparing to submit it to the National Assembly for legislative approval. The strategy is designed to guide the country’s development, regulation, and responsible use of AI across government, industry, and research institutions. Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy Minister Bosun Tijani confirmed that the draft was finalised following consultations with government agencies, private-sector stakeholders, and academic experts. The strategy provides a framework for AI governance, innovation, and capacity building, aiming to…

Over 200 Nigerian women from diverse professional sectors attended an intensive Artificial Intelligence (AI) training programme in Abuja on Tuesday, part of a collaborative effort by the Federal Government and technology experts to expand female participation in the digital economy. The event brought together women working in health, media, public service, and development to learn practical AI skills designed to boost productivity, improve decision‑making, and strengthen workplace performance. Dr Olubunmi Ajala, National Director of the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR), said the “AI for Women” initiative was created to help move women “from being consumers of technology…

Artificial intelligence is becoming firmly embedded in everyday professional life, with new research suggesting that users are increasingly relying on AI not only as a support tool but as a central part of how they work, learn, and manage information. A March 2026 survey conducted by Anthropic, based on responses from more than 80,000 users of its AI assistant Claude across 159 countries, finds that daily AI usage is now driven primarily by productivity needs rather than creative expression. The study, described as one of the largest multilingual qualitative analyses of general AI use, employed an AI-powered “Anthropic Interviewer” to…

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is developing a personal artificial intelligence agent to assist with his duties as chief executive of Meta Platforms, in a move that signals a growing role for AI in top-level corporate decision-making. The initiative forms part of Meta’s broader push into advanced artificial intelligence, with the system designed to function as a real-time assistant capable of retrieving internal data, analysing complex information, and supporting executive-level decisions. According to reports, the AI agent is being built to serve as a “co-pilot” for Zuckerberg, providing him with faster access to insights across the company’s operations, including its social…

Microsoft and NVIDIA have expanded their strategic partnership to advance “agentic AI” and “physical AI,” with a focus on enterprise-scale AI agents, robotics, and simulation-driven systems at NVIDIA’s GTC 2026 event in San Jose. The announcement centres on integrating NVIDIA’s Physical AI Data Factory Blueprint with Microsoft’s Azure cloud network, including Microsoft Foundry, to support large-scale development and deployment of autonomous AI systems. According to NVIDIA’s official statement, the blueprint is designed to: “enable massive-scale data processing and curation, synthetic data generation, reinforcement learning and evaluation of physical AI models for vision AI agents, robotics and autonomous vehicles.” The company…

Rwanda has trailed the rest of Africa in AI infrastructure and digital innovation, as it launches a national Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) strategy to strengthen data sharing across institutions, improve public service delivery, and accelerate its artificial intelligence ambitions. The strategy was unveiled during DPI Day in Kigali, organised by the Rwanda Information Society Authority in partnership with Access to Finance Rwanda and the Ministry of ICT and Innovation. The event also marked progress since the Rwanda Centre of Digital Public Infrastructure was established in 2025. Digital public infrastructure refers to compatible, foundational systems-such as digital identity platforms, payment systems, and…

A Scottish sheriff, Sheriff John MacRitchie of the Sheriffdom of Tayside, Central and Fife, sitting at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court, has issued a firm warning on the use of artificial intelligence in legal proceedings after a landlord relied on fabricated case law and statutory references generated by AI in a civil claim. The case involved landlords David and Lesley Meek, who sought to recover around £5,857 in alleged rent arrears from former tenants. However, the court found that key legal authorities cited in their submissions could not be verified in any official legal database and did not exist in Scots law.…

In a bid to improve AI infrastructure and accelerate digital innovation, Kenya and the European Union have strengthened their digital partnership, placing renewed emphasis on artificial intelligence policy and critical infrastructural development at a high-level tech forum in Nairobi. The meeting convened policymakers, regulators, and industry stakeholders to explore how deeper collaboration can support Kenya’s ambition to emerge as a leading technology hub in Africa, while aligning with global standards on AI governance and data protection. Addressing participants, Eliud Owalo said the government is advancing investments in digital infrastructure alongside progressive regulatory frameworks. “Kenya is committed to building a robust…