Google opens its first AI lab in Africa

Anicka Slachta | | Health Exec | Precision Medicine

Google has opened its first African-based AI lab in Accra, Ghana, CNN reported April 15.

The operation, headed by Senegalese research scientist Moustapha Cisse, is expected to facilitate AI development in Africa by providing developers with the necessary research and tools they need to build their products. Cisse said the lab publishes open-source code that’s accessible to the public.
 

Google has opened its first Africa Artificial Intelligence lab in Ghana

“When we do science, the results of our research, usually and hopefully, because it is of good quality, goes way further than we expect and we are hoping to see the same things happen here in Accra and across Africa,” he told CNN.

Cisse said the center engages directly with African universities by providing grants and PhD scholarships to students interested in AI. Google also supports graduate programs in machine intelligence at the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences in Rwanda.

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Anicka Slachta

After graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelor’s in journalism, Anicka joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering cardiology. Close to her heart is long-form journalism, Pilot G-2 pens, dark chocolate and her dog Harper Lee.

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