Information Analyst and cybersecurity expert, Nathaniel Akande has stated that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a critical pillar for building scalable and innovative enterprises across Africa.
Hence, AI is no longer a distant technological concept but an active force reshaping how African businesses operate, scale, and deliver value.
Speaking on the evolving role of AI, Akande said, “Artificial Intelligence is powering the next generation of scalable, smart businesses. It has moved beyond experimental labs and is now actively powering logistics, customer engagement, finance, and enterprise decision-making across the continent.”
He noted that for African startups and businesses, AI offers a historic opportunity to overcome legacy challenges and leapfrog into global competitiveness.
Just as he stressed that AI is no longer a futuristic concept but a critical enabler of operational efficiency, market competitiveness, and economic inclusion across the continent.
According to him, AI is powering the next generation of scalable, smart businesses as the technology is already transforming sectors from agriculture, healthcare to fintech and logistics.
With Africa’s embrace of AI amid the global Fourth Industrial Revolution is marked by the convergence of AI, the Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, and big data. These technologies have moved beyond experimental laboratories to powering our everyday decisions in enterprises.
Akande opines that for African businesses constrained by infrastructure and high operating costs, AI presents a rare opportunity to leapfrog traditional growth barriers through automation, data-driven intelligence, and smart decision-making systems.
While defining scalability as a business’s ability to expand income and operations without proportional cost increases with automation, cloud-native architectures, and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), as core to the scalable enterprise model.
“Smart platforms thrive on efficiency and adaptability. AI integration is the cognitive engine behind this,” he explained.
He highlighted the widespread success of AI-powered SaaS tools, payment rails, and marketplaces that are reshaping productivity across industries. From AI-enhanced logistics in e-commerce to intelligent tutoring in EdTech, amidst real-world applications already in play across Africa.
While in agriculture, for instance, AI models now guide planting schedules using weather data, in healthcare, mobile apps detect early signs of diseases like diabetes.
He urged African enterprises to invest in robust data infrastructures and governance frameworks to extract value from AI systems as he stated, “AI is only as intelligent as the data it receives.”
“With the role of APIs in enabling interoperability, which is key for building flexible, responsive platforms. The government has a major role in enabling public-private data-sharing, especially in strategic sectors like health and agriculture,” he added.
Human capital development remains another foundational pillar. Akande called for deliberate investment in AI education, bootcamps, and cross-sectoral partnerships to grow the next generation of AI engineers and data scientists.
“Governments must incentivise STEM training, establish AI research labs, and support institutions that focus on context-specific innovations,” he said.
He noted that over-reliance on foreign models may lead to ineffective solutions and missed opportunities. Hence, Ethical AI governance must keep pace with innovation to mitigate risks such as algorithmic bias, data breaches, and cyber fraud.
“Building fair, explainable, and inclusive AI systems will be critical to gaining public trust and ensuring legal compliance,” he said.
While citing Nigeria’s Data Protection Act (DPA) and South Africa’s POPIA, he called for stronger enforcement of existing regulations and the development of new ones to address emerging threats in the digital space.
Looking ahead, Akande projected that Africa’s digital economy could surpass $180 billion by 2025, with AI at the core of its success.
“Enterprises that build with AI at the centre will not only dominate market share but also shape the continent’s digital future. AI is no longer optional; it is essential for any business serious about scaling, competing globally, and contributing to national development,” he averred.
