Cassava Technologies announced today that it plans to build Africa\u2019s first AI factory \u2014 a powerful and super-secure data centre facility powered with NVIDIA AI computing technology. This will give African businesses, governments and researchers access to cutting-edge AI computing capacity \u2014 helping them develop smarter AI products, streamline operations and stay competitive in a fast-changing world. It provides the supercomputers and software needed to train AI while keeping data within Africa\u2019s borders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cassava plans to deploy NVIDIA accelerated computing and AI software using NVIDIA Cloud Partner (NCP) reference architectures, at its data centres in South Africa by June 2025, with expansion planned at its other data centre facilities in Egypt, Kenya, Morocco and Nigeria. Cassava\u2019s AI Factory will leverage the company\u2019s pan-African high-speed, ultra-low-latency, fibre-optic network with sustainable data centres to deliver AI as a Service (AIaaS). Cassava\u2019s world-class data centres are designed to be energy efficient, using less electricity to power AI computing workloads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
NVIDIA GPU-based supercomputers will power the AI factory, enabling faster AI model training, fine-tuning and advanced inference capabilities. Cassava aims to be the first to introduce these accelerated computing platforms to Africa as an NCP, playing a crucial role in the continent\u2019s AI ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Cassava AI Factory will ensure businesses and researchers have access to the AI computing power required to scale, boost productivity and power innovation. By using this secure, high-performance AI Factory, African businesses and governments can develop local solutions to local challenges, enabling Africans to build, train, scale and deploy AI in a secure environment compliant with global and local regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBuilding digital infrastructure for the AI economy is a priority if Africa is to take full advantage of the fourth industrial revolution. Our AI Factory provides the infrastructure for this innovation to scale, empowering African businesses, startups and researchers with access to cutting-edge AI infrastructure to turn their bold ideas into real-world breakthroughs \u2014 and now, they don\u2019t have to look beyond Africa to get it,\u201d said Strive Masiyiwa, Founder & Chairman of Cassava. \u201cCollaborating with NVIDIA gives us the advanced computing capabilities needed to drive Africa\u2019s AI innovation while strengthening the continent\u2019s digital independence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAI is helping innovators solve our greatest challenges in agriculture, healthcare, energy, financial services and many other industries creating opportunity in Africa,\u201d said Jaap Zuiderveld, VP EMEA at NVIDIA. \u201cAs an NVIDIA Cloud Partner, Cassava is providing essential infrastructure and software to help pioneering companies and organizations accelerate AI development to foster innovation across the continent.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cassava\u2019s AI Factory marks the next step in the group\u2019s long-standing leadership in providing world class digital solutions, reinforcing its broader commitment to responsible AI adoption, innovation and productivity growth in Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"