Safaricom’s annual engineering summit, Decode 4.0, kicks off next week. Tagged the “Made of Kenya Edition,” the summit opens its doors at the Sarit Expo Centre in Nairobi from March 31, running through Thursday, April 2, 2026.
The summit coincides with the telco’s 25 years of operations, and by all accounts, it could shape up to be their most ambitious gathering yet.
Safaricom is pivoting hard into what it calls the “Age of Intelligent Systems.” Where previous iterations of Decode laid the groundwork, version 4.0 looks squarely at how Kenya builds and scales this intelligence locally. The summit is structured around four thematic pillars: Fintech, AI, Gaming, and Ecosystem Building.
The Fintech track, dubbed the Intelligent Finance Grid, promises a look into the next era of autonomous, interoperable, and secure financial rails, building on the foundation of M-PESA and newer platforms like Ziidi. The AI track, billed as the Intelligent Core, will offer a deep dive into agentic AI, domain-specific models, and how distributed intelligence will reshape how developers in Kenya build and scale applications.
Meanwhile, the Gaming track, the Intelligent Creative Engine, powered by 5G, highlights generative, immersive production, a significant nod to Africa’s growing creator economy and interactive storytelling. Rounding it all out is an Ecosystem Building track, focused on the shared infrastructure needed for Africa’s interconnected future.
The three-day summit also has a very interesting line-up of speakers. From the telco’s side, attendees can expect to hear from Group CTO James Maitai, Group CFO and Innovation Officer Dilip Pal, and Chief Financial Services Officer Esther Waititu, alongside specialized leads in Generative AI and Cybersecurity.
The external lineup features prominent ecosystem voices, including Tonee Ndungu (Founder, NILAB), Evans Kiragu (CEO, Mekan Games), Stella Muraguri (Managing Partner, MMW Advocates LLP), and Ellein Nasieku (Producer, SemaBOX Africa).
Getting a physical seat is expected to be highly competitive. Last year’s Decode 3.0 drew over 9,600 physical attendees. Safaricom opens the registration portal every day at exactly 11:00 AM; once the daily slots are filled, the portal closes until the following morning.
For those who miss out or cannot make it to Nairobi, Safaricom will be live-streaming the entire three-day event on YouTube. Tickets and more information for the Safaricom Decode 4.0 are available at decode.safaricom.co.ke.
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