Kenya's artificial intelligence (AI) sector will receive $15 million (Shs1.95 billion) in funding in 2023, surpassing Nigeria which got $2.9 million (Shs377.9 million), according to a new report.
However, the two countries lagged behind South Africa, which saw inflows into the AI sector reach $123 million (Sh16.02 billion), according to a report by the Global Services Association for Mobile Communications.
“African tech startups will receive approximately $4 billion in investment in 2023, with Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt accounting for the majority of the investment,” the report said.
“However, AI investments still represent a minority of overall technology investments.”
Kenyans are eagerly embracing the use of AI to facilitate business and daily activities.
AI technology enables computers and machines to simulate human intelligence and problem-solving tasks, and the technology can be applied to many fields and industries, including healthcare, manufacturing, and the military.
According to the GSMA report, the use of AI in Kenya is currently focused on the agriculture sector, leveraging machine learning to provide data-driven advice to local farmers and help optimize productivity.
According to the report, agriculture and food security accounted for 49% of all AI adoption, followed by climate action and energy access at 26% and 24%, respectively.
Kenya has set up a team to draw up policy on AI use as it races to close loopholes amid a surge in the technology's popularity.
The 21-member committee, which was gazetted last month, will draw up rules on the technology and identify legal loopholes related to cybercrime and computer misuse.
Kenya, like other countries, is racing against time to adopt new technologies amid concerns about their impact on the human workforce, data security and more.
Kenya currently lacks a legal framework for the adoption of AI, a gap that has raised concerns over the security of the technology. These regulations seek to impose obligations on providers and users based on the different risks associated with different AI technologies.
AI relies heavily on vast amounts of personal and sensitive data, and concerns about data privacy and security continue to grow as new technologies are increasingly adopted.
The private sector is leading the adoption of new technologies in Kenya, and experts say transparency into AI solutions is crucial to spur adoption across different socio-economic segments of the country.
According to an analysis by the International Monetary Fund, 40% of global jobs will be affected by AI disruption.
