In this Business Talk interview with Michael Avery, Professor Vukosi Marivate talks about AI and how Africa is shaping the discourse around technology development.
Professor Marivate is Professor of Computer Science at the University of Pretoria, Chair of ABSA UP Data Science, and recently served on the United Nations Independent International Scientific Panel on AI.
He is also the founding director of the African Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Institute (AfriDSAI).
As Director of AfriDSAI, he oversees the organization’s goal of using data science and AI to shape a better future for the African continent.
It revolves around developing machine learning and AI methodologies tailored to African contexts, co-designing AI solutions with communities, and helping African researchers become global leaders in their fields.
Previously, he helped found Lelapa AI, an African startup focused on AI by Africans, for Africans, and Deep Learning Indaba, the continent’s leading grassroots machine learning and AI conference.
Maribate holds a number of degrees, including a bachelor’s and master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of the Witwatersrand.
in Computer Science from Rutgers University and completed the Leadership Development Program at Harvard Business School.
interview
In this Business Talk interview, Malibait reveals what it means for South African researchers to join the United Nations’ Independent International Scientific Panel on AI and how it reflects the level of AI-based research emerging from Africa.
Maribate outlines the importance of rigorous scientific analysis of AI as AI technologies become more commonplace, and why it is essential that African data, language, and social realities shape the global AI conversation.
It also touches on how universities are preparing students for an AI-centric future, and the human values they must uphold along the way.
Malibate concluded the interview by sharing his experience adapting language model AI to South African English.
Watch the interview with Professor Vukosi Maribate below.
