Microsoft will invest $1 billion into Kenya’s digital ecosystem in partnership with G42, among others.
Microsoft and G42 will also design and build a state-of-the-art data center campus in Olkaria, Kenya, run entirely on renewable geothermal energy. The data center will run on and provide access to Microsoft Azure in the region and bolster high-speed cloud and AI services adoption.
His Excellency, President, Dr. William Samoei Ruto, stated that, “This partnership is bigger than technology itself. It is about coming together of three countries with a common vision of a nation empowered by technology, where every citizen has the opportunity to thrive in the global digital landscape. It’s about building a future where Kenya flourishes as a digital leader.”
G42 has begun work to train an open-source large language AI model in Swahili and English. Microsoft and G42 will also work with local universities, through the Microsoft Africa Research Institute, the Microsoft AI for Good Lab, the Mohammed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence in Abu Dhabi, To build on this and help accelerate advanced research in Kenya.
“This partnership between two companies and three countries highlights a real opportunity to bring digital technology to the Global South in a safe and secure manner,” said Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft. “This represents the single largest and broadest digital investment in Kenya’s history and reflects our confidence in the country, the government, its people and the future of East Africa.”
Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab in Nairobi will use AI technology to work with nonprofit organizations and other partners to help address economic and societal priorities across East Africa. The two will also launched launch and operate an East African Innovation Lab in Nairobi to help Kenyan and other East African startups develop and implement cloud and AI services in partnership with its developers at the Africa Development Center, which has 500 employees in Nairobi.
Microsoft will expand its work to bring last-mile wireless internet access to 20 million people in Kenya and 50 million people across East Africa by the end of 2025 through Mawingu Networks, Liquid, CSquared and other local partners in Kenya such as M-KOPA.