Africa’s AI Future Must Be Written in Our Languages, Values, and Vision

The imperative to collaborate boldly to shape Africa’s AI future on its own terms with its languages, values, and for its people

Reflections from Dr Teddy Nalubega, KCL representative at the Paris AI action summit 2025

With the singular focus on Africa’s AI future, I was honored to travel to France for the Paris AI action summit 2025 in February. The summit convened world leaders. They aimed to confront one of the most transformative and disruptive forces of our time — Artificial Intelligence.

The Summit framed its discussions about five major themes. These themes were public service AI, future of work, innovation and culture, trust in AI, and global governance of AI. Each theme revealed both promise and peril in equal measure.

World leaders were hopeful that AI, will drive breakthroughs in medicine, improve energy systems, and revolutionize access to knowledge. Beyond isolated cases like DeepMind’s AlphaFold, AI innovations are primarily serving private enterprise. It can’t predominantly handle public need. The discussion highlighted that this trajectory risks concentrating influence in the hands of a few dominant actors. This compromise threatens both national sovereignty and democratic oversight.

France’s Position On AI

France’s position was notable as it proposed a global platform to incubate public interest AI. A platform that prioritizes independent, open-access, and sovereign solutions. This was not simply a matter of equity, but rather the need for control. It stated that AI could deepen existing disparities without decisive public intervention. These disparities exist between those who develop AI and those who are merely exposed to it. This disparity is perhaps most acute in the Global South.

Africa’s AI Future

But in Africa, if it waits for permission to join in the AI era. From the summit deliberations, it was clear that Africa must collaborate boldly. It should shape the AI future on its own terms, with its languages, values, and for its people.

From policy to people, from vision to execution, Africa must build a digital future that leads, not follows. A truly inclusive global AI ecosystem can’t exist without reflecting the diverse epistemologies. It must also consider the cultural frameworks and developmental priorities of African societies. AI should not just understand African voices, it must speak them.

The predicted socioeconomic consequences of this technological wave are poised to affect nearly 40% of jobs worldwide, replacing some, augmenting others. Governments therefore are expected to implement policies that promote workforce adaptability and AI literacy. Businesses must be incentivized to adopt AI in ways that enhance productivity without sidelining human talent.

And in Africa, this means investing in local AI research, educational infrastructure, and ethical frameworks that align with regional realities. Open-source AI may serve as a vital equalizer, but only if African developers and institutions are participants, not just users.

AI Developments and Funds

Beneath these developments is an intensifying global race. There are dramatic market shifts. Chinese startup DeepSeek unveiled its R1 model. It rivals OpenAI and Google at a fraction of the cost. North America captured nearly $100 billion in AI venture capital in 2024, while Europe trailed at $15.8 billion, according to PitchBook. During the summit, France pledged €109 billion to AI development. Add an additional, €150 billion was promised by international investors. Another €50 billion will come through a UAE-France data center agreement.

As revealed, in this race, investment alone is not enough. However, innovation must be tethered towards inclusion. The countries that thrive will be those that use AI wisely. They will not see it just as a blunt tool of automation but as a bridge between technological ambition and human development.

AI Ethics

Meanwhile, the ethical dimension of AI development remains unsettled. The Paris Summit acknowledged the limitations of the Frontier AI Safety Commitments, which are non-binding, and slow to scale. Several nations have launched AI safety institutes. However, the global adoption of robust safety tools lags dangerously behind the pace of innovation. The world must dismiss the incorrect notion that managing near-term harms, like bias or misinformation, is separate. Preparing for speculative risks, such as AGI, must be undertaken in conjunction. Both must be addressed, and very fast. This is a clear reflection on responsible Al.

AI Governance

And finally, was the looming question of AI governance. The European Union’s AI Act is now in force. It bans certain high-risk AI applications. However, a unified global framework remains elusive. As the summit emphasized, multilateral cooperation is not optional but rather essential. The environmental cost of AI must be measured and managed. Data protection must be universal. AI’s militarization must be globally restrained before norms harden into threats. This protects Africa’s AI future adaptation progress.

As these discussions evolve, Africa must not be a latecomer to the negotiating table. It must be a co-architect of AI’s moral, regulatory, and technological foundations. The continent’s future will not be secured by passively consuming foreign technologies. Instead, it will be forged by designing systems that speak to its histories. These systems will reflect its dreams and its people.

The question now is not whether AI will transform the world, it already is. The question is whether humanity, and all of humanity, will shape this transformation or be shaped by it. The Paris AI Action Summit may have set the stage. However, the real work begins at the intersection of values, vision, and will.

It is time to build an AI future for everyone. This includes not only the powerful but also the public, the workers, and the many. It is time to build an AI that is ours all.