
Zain Verjee, an executive fellow at the Digital Data and Design Institute at Harvard University, is a co-founder of an AI and communications consultancy and also hosts the podcast series Embedded. In a conversation with Omar Ben Yedder, she discusses the potential of AI and the adoption of technology in Africa, which are key topics at this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos.
You’ve spent considerable time exploring AI and cryptocurrency over the past year. What insights have stood out to you? What aspects have captured your interest, both positively and negatively?
This year has been about learning for me. I’ve actively engaged with AI technologies and tools, as well as the world of cryptocurrency. My aim is to absorb at least one percent of something new each day, celebrating each small victory and allowing myself to grasp the basics before advancing further.
I don’t need to become an absolute expert in everything; achieving a 30 percent understanding feels acceptable. I’ve also observed that, as a woman, there’s often an intimidation towards technology when it’s not our primary area of expertise. I strive to break down those barriers, as if I can understand and work with new technologies, so can other women.
I’ve realized that AI is here to stay—those who fail to adopt it will be overshadowed by those who do. In my communications field, AI has disrupted this sector first and continues to do so, affecting writing, creativity, content creation, production, editing, and filmmaking at a rapid pace. The environment is now more balanced.
I am hopeful that innovation will simplify our lives, enhance our intelligence, and speed up our tasks. However, I approach these advancements realistically, aware that a significant journey remains in embedding ethics into AI, addressing dataset biases, and confronting necessary legal and regulatory challenges.
What surprised me is that skills like writing, linguistics, empathy, and emotional intelligence are proving to be significantly more important than merely learning to code or taking a machine learning course. These human skills will be essential as AI continues to advance.
Do you believe the continent is embracing new technologies, or are we at risk of falling behind, especially given the considerable financial resources required to compete in the AI race?
I hold a very positive outlook for the continent. We are not standing still. Recently, we hosted a Bitcoin Africa crypto conference where individuals explored the development of stable coins and various practical applications of blockchain technology across Africa. I’ve also acquired many NFTs created by African talent, indicating that we are actively participating, though in diverse pockets.
Despite a steep learning curve and the need for accessible knowledge and information about cryptocurrency in Africa, many people are innovating AI solutions tailored to specific African needs, led by African innovators and focusing significantly on language and datasets. We are working on developing small language models suited to the continent’s unique diversity.
Cultural nuances are being incorporated into AI and datasets for accurate and relevant retrieval. I have strongly advocated for ownership of our datasets. Given our historical context, it is crucial that we do not allow our data—our current resource—to be sold to the West, only for it to be repackaged, researched, refined, and sold back to us at higher prices. Hence, it is essential to manage our data and embrace data sovereignty.
We need to build the necessary infrastructure to support our AI ecosystem, including renewable energy-powered data centers. The broader our skill sets as a continent and as individuals, the better positioned we will be.
Talent exists across the continent. We have coders, creators, product managers, designers, and engineers who need opportunities.
Additionally, we must responsibly utilize our resources. We should facilitate collaborations and learn from one another while creating opportunities for our creators to contribute solutions in fields like agriculture or health, which could significantly transform the continent.
We should not shy away from the profit motive. Our aspiration should be to establish a business ecosystem and marketplace where our creators can earn a living and thrive within emerging industries. Our leaders need to stimulate innovation and nurture open ecosystems rather than impose excessive regulations.
Throughout your career in media, you’ve aimed to reshape the narrative about the continent, yet AI could risk perpetuating existing stereotypes. How can AI become a force for good, especially given the limited coverage of Africa?
The answer lies in generating our own datasets and genuinely African data through production, structuring, and labeling. Since leaving CNN, I’ve emphasized the importance of owning our narratives. We need to share powerful stories about the continent that genuinely reflect its diversity and build a robust media and storytelling market.
While the fundamental principle remains unchanged, the evolution of technology requires a shift in perspective—aligning our focus with future trends and anticipating the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence, with datasets at the core of this transition.
While we may lack the capacity to compete directly with platforms like Google’s Gemini or Meta’s Llama, we can innovate through smaller language models and ecosystems tailored to our needs.
Our leaders must intensify their efforts to cultivate learning ecosystems for our youth, creating new job opportunities. We should avoid premature regulation and instead allow innovation to flourish.
It is critical that women and girls are not sidelined, and the gender gap in technology does not widen. Breaking down barriers is essential. We must enhance female participation in technology and invest in their development.
What essential elements are missing in Africa that are hindering progress in AI?
There are numerous challenges. Firstly, our foundational infrastructure is lacking. We face unreliable electricity, which is a major issue. Limited broadband access and high data costs are additional hurdles, as are poor logistical infrastructure and vital distribution networks that connect us effectively. We also have few data centers and limited skill sets. While these challenges are real, they should not be perceived as insurmountable barriers.
So, what’s next? There are significant concerns regarding human capital and the educational pipeline. A notable gap exists between the current learning on the continent and the rapid evolution of necessary skill sets. It’s vital for leaders on the continent to take proactive measures to address this, rather than relying on international organizations or tech giants to dictate our course of action.
We must promote technical training programs centered around AI and robotics and foster widespread digital literacy at all levels.
Risk-taking remains insufficient throughout the continent, and the venture capital ecosystem is underdeveloped. Although we often refer to the “Silicon Savannah,” this vision has yet to materialize. To truly advance our industries, particularly in creative cultural sectors, we need a robust capital ecosystem.
We need to develop systems capable of producing authentic African images and videos. While I can utilize tools like Sora and Midjourney, their outputs sometimes fail to accurately represent the diverse facial features of Kenyans, Nigerians, Ethiopians, and Rwandans, as they are influenced by Western datasets and perceptions of blackness.
I’ve raised concerns about how regulatory frameworks might inhibit innovation. We observe varying regulations across countries, and despite opportunities for regional cooperation, we frequently find ourselves competing against each other. The region has immense economic potential.
I also believe there is inadequate intellectual property protection for innovators, product managers, and those looking to develop new solutions on the continent. Imported solutions from the West often fail to address our unique challenges, yet these are the solutions typically implemented, which presents a significant dilemma.
We truly need to focus on developing products that specifically address African challenges, which requires the establishment of multidisciplinary product labs.
This year’s theme is ‘Davos Collaboration is the New Intelligent Age.’ Do you anticipate greater collaboration or increasing division between rich and poor?
Is Davos merely an assembly of private jets that contributes to a significant carbon footprint? It is no longer acceptable for the insulated elite to discuss the less fortunate—it reflects inequity.
AI can act as a great equalizer, providing opportunities to bridge the gap between the rich and poor. It democratizes access to knowledge and tools for those with connectivity.
Open-source models and datasets offer pathways for collaborative research and development, which is encouraging. Lambda 3 serves as a positive example.
I believe discussions surrounding policy choices, international regulations, ethics, and frameworks will be prominent at Davos. If I were to emphasize one critical concern, it would be the urgent need to address the knowledge divide between populations that are AI-enabled and those that are AI-limited—a gap that may rapidly widen. We must work to reshape the dynamics of power.