New AI Skills and Compute Africa Foundation Launches in Kigali to Boost Africa’s AI Ecosystem
AISCA Foundation will work closely with universities, the venture ecosystem, governments, development agencies, and private-sector partners to ensure that AI innovation is rooted in African priorities and accessible to local builders
The AI Skills and Compute Africa Foundation (AISCA Foundation) has officially launched in Kigali, marking a significant step toward strengthening Africa’s artificial intelligence ecosystem. The Foundation is focused on removing barriers to innovation by expanding access to computing resources, supporting research, developing AI skills, and building stronger communities.
With seed backing from the founding technology partner, Cassava Technologies, AISCA Foundation aims to bridge Africa’s “compute gap,” enabling local innovators to build and scale globally competitive AI technologies while cultivating the next generation of AI talent.
“Africa has the talent, ideas, and urgency to lead in applied AI. What has often been missing is access to compute, coordinated ecosystem support, contextualised data sets, and scalable pathways into dignified economic opportunities. AISCA Foundation is designed to help close those interconnected gaps,” said Isobel Acquah, Chief Executive Officer, AISCA Foundation.
To advance its mission, AISCA Foundation is built on four core pillars: sovereign compute infrastructure, curated African datasets, AI skills development, and community building. Through these focus areas, the Foundation seeks to strengthen local AI capabilities, support research, and cultivate a thriving network of technical talent across the continent.
Through its four strategic pillars, AISCA Foundation has outlined ambitious targets aimed at driving inclusive growth and delivering measurable impact across the continent. The Foundation plans to support one million young people in accessing meaningful economic opportunities across the AI value chain. It also aims to provide compute grants to 25,000 AI-native innovators developing AI-powered solutions, while supporting 10,000 researchers with compute resources and technical assistance to advance cutting-edge research from Africa.
To achieve these goals, AISCA Foundation says it will collaborate with universities, governments, development agencies, venture ecosystem players, and private sector partners to ensure AI innovation remains grounded in African priorities and accessible to local innovators.
During a fireside session at the Kigali launch, Hardy Pemhiwa, President and Group CEO of Cassava Technologies, highlighted the role of AI infrastructure in unlocking opportunities for Africa’s next generation of innovators.
“ While Cassava has invested millions of dollars in setting up AI Infrastructure, supporting AISCA through enabling access to dedicated compute ensures that we are empowering African youth in utilizing the rails to create localized value for their communities in practical and impactful ways.” He said.
In her keynote remarks, AISCA Board Chairperson Agnes Kalibata underscored the importance of creating technologies that address Africa’s unique needs, arguing that imported solutions frequently fail to solve local challenges effectively.
The Foundation’s launch also highlights Rwanda’s emergence as a key destination for digital innovation and frontier technologies in Africa.
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