President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has revealed plans to strengthen Nigeria’s position in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital innovation through strategic collaboration with Google. During discussions in Paris with Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Tinubu outlined five key areas of partnership aimed at enhancing Nigeria’s technological landscape.
The proposed collaboration will focus on developing scalable cloud infrastructure, equipping the workforce with essential future-ready skills, promoting AI research and innovation, driving cloud adoption, and positioning Nigeria as a leading hub for digital transformation.
Highlighting Nigeria’s existing prospects in AI, Tinubu referenced Awarri Technologies, a local AI firm currently working with the Federal Government to build critical AI software infrastructure. This includes data capture platforms and a large language model (LLM) for Nigerian languages, developed in partnership with the National Centre for AI and Robotics (NCAIR). These initiatives aim to address the unique linguistic, cultural, and societal needs of the country, which have largely been overlooked by existing AI models.
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The President emphasized that the discussions with Google align with his Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritizes economic diversification through industrialization, digitization, and innovation. He stated that the partnership will empower businesses, create new opportunities, and solidify Nigeria’s role in the global digital economy.
The Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy will oversee the initiative, while the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) will lead its implementation.
“Nigeria is poised to take the lead in AI and technology—this is just the beginning of an exciting journey,” Tinubu declared.
