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Google Experts Answer Your Top Most Searched Questions on AI

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Olumide Balogun Most Searched Questions on AI

New search trends released by Google show that search interest in AI has reached an all-time high in Nigeria. The trends show that people have searched for AI more than ever in 2023 so far, with interest rising 310% since last year, and by 1,660% in the last five years.

Google’s research also revealed the top trending questions being asked about AI across Nigeria. Here, Google West Africa Director, Olumide Balogun, answers some of the most frequently asked questions.

  1. What is Artificial Intelligence and how does it work?

AI is a type of technology that can learn from its environment, experiences and people and that can understand patterns and make projections better than any previous technology before it.

AI models are trained and created by human engineers, who input data into the AI system to train it. For example, in 2012, we showed an AI model thousands of videos of cats on YouTube so that it could learn to recognize a cat. Now, with advancements in technology, we could give an AI model hundreds of books on animals to read – and, using those, it would be able to describe a cat to us on its own despite having never been shown one.

Once AI systems are trained, they’re tested to see if they work well. You can do this by asking the AI model to describe or recognise a cat, for example, or even to generate a picture of one for you. Training AI models can take a long time – but once they work, they can be deployed into production so that you can use them at home.

  1. When did AI start?

AI can be traced back to the early 1950s, when Alan Turing – a British mathematician – published a paper on Computing Machinery and Intelligence. That kick-started the principles behind AI – but the first time anyone used the term was likely in 1956 when John McCarthy hosted a conference at Dartmouth College called the Dartmouth Summer Research Project in Artificial Intelligence.

So AI is not new – in fact, AI research has been accelerating since the 1990s. Google itself became an AI-first company back in 2015. But the pace of AI development is accelerating – with more households able to access generative AI tools like text-to-image generators or chatbots – which has made AI a household phrase for maybe the first time ever.

  1. Where is AI used?

AI has always been integral to many daily tools, from Google Translate to antilock braking in cars. Its transformative power, however, is being harnessed more profoundly now. In the heart of this evolution is the Google AI Centre in Accra, laser-focused on Africa’s unique challenges and aspirations. While innovations like Google DeepMind’s AlphaFold impact global biotech, in Africa, we’re taking strides that resonate with local needs. We’re collaborating to map remote buildings for better planning, using AI to predict challenges like locust outbreaks and enhancing maternal health via AI-powered ultrasound.

AI’s potential in sustainability is vast. In Africa, it’s about thriving industries that respect our rich biodiversity. While the global health community benefits from protein sequence mapping, for Africa, it’s a hope against diseases like malaria.

  1. What can AI do and how can I use it?

Think of AI as a tool that’s really good at understanding patterns and making projections – better than any computer has been before – and that’s been taught to learn from its environment, experiences and people. When you put that ability to good use, you can use AI to do all sorts of amazing things, like helping doctors to screen for and identify cancer, predicting and monitoring natural disasters, or helping businesses to identify and reduce their carbon emissions.

You’re probably using AI all the time already without realising it. But you can now also use AI to help boost your productivity with experimental language tools like Bard, to translate even more languages on Google Translate, or to find the most fuel-efficient route on Google Maps.

  1. Is AI dangerous?

AI is like any other technology in that it can be used for good or bad, depending on the user. On the one hand, it has incredible potential to be used in ways that are beneficial for society – whether it’s protecting people from spam and fraud, translating hundreds more languages, or forecasting floods up to seven days in advance. But it can also be used to amplify current societal issues – like misinformation and discrimination.

It’s really important that we get these tools right, working together to ensure we’re creating and using them responsibly. That means governments are introducing regulations to help us seize the benefits of AI while mitigating the risks, as well as companies developing shared sets of standards and principles. At Google, we’re also led by our own AI Principles – which you can read online – to make sure we’re developing AI that is beneficial for society. 

  1. Will AI take my job?

As technology has developed, so too has the job market. At the beginning of the last century, people mostly worked in agriculture. Now we have hedge fund managers, cabin crews aboard widely accessible commercial flights – and, as recently as 1995, web designers. So we’ve had these questions for a long time, and, as a society, we’ve navigated them well.

That’s not to underestimate the potential of AI – which is essentially the ‘third wave’ of digital technology after the internet and mobile phones. It will be brilliant for people’s productivity and for economic opportunity – but it will also cause some levels of disruption. We’ll see a whole set of jobs that can grow – but the most profound change will be how many of our jobs will be assisted by technology. AI will become a partner to many of us, helping us not just to make the repetitive tasks of our work more efficient but also sparking creativity and enabling us to spend more time on the bits of our jobs that we love and that challenge us. We’re already working with people to help them learn how AI can help them. Our Grow with Google programs have trained 7 million people and helped to close the digital skills gap in Africa. Governments, NGOs, and the private sector can work together to bring similar schemes about – ensuring that everyone can benefit from AI.

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Smartphone Penetration in Angola Extremely Low—Anda CEO

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Anda Angola CEO CNN

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The chief executive of a popular mobility platform in Angola, Anda, Mr Sergio Tati, has lamented the poor digital literacy in the country, noting that many residents of the Southern African nation do not have access to the internet.

Speaking with CNN’s Ms Zain Asher on her Marketplace Africa show, Mr Tati said “smartphone penetration in Angola is extremely low.”

On this episode of Marketplace Africa, CNN explored how a budding startup ecosystem is driving a digital revolution in the country.

“A really unique challenge to Angola is the lack of digital literacy. So, that’s quite specific to our context compared to let’s say in Nigeria, where you have many more people who have access to smartphones.

“Sadly, the smartphone penetration rate in Angola is extremely low. You don’t have a lot of internet cafes that people can go to and get access to the Internet, so that’s definitely something that has stifled innovation in Angola a little bit,” Mr Tati said on the show.

The company originally began as a ridesharing platform, but Mr Tati said, “The focus has entirely shifted towards the asset financing piece of the business because that’s what we realised was the biggest problem.

“Now, we’re going way deeper into the FinTech part of the business. And as well, really focusing on the microcredit, mobile money payments, and everything that we can now do, thanks to the fact that we’ve solved this broader and the bigger credit problem that was getting access to the assets in the first place.”

As startups like his continue to grow, Mr Tati disclosed that support from Angola’s National Institute INAPEM has been vital.

INAPEM was created to help sponsor and connect entrepreneurs with regulators and government ministries.

“The Angola startup ecosystem is emerging. In the last few years, we as a state have paid more attention for the needs to organise all the key players that are operating and contribute as well for the reinforcement of our ecosystem,” an Executive Director at INAPEM, Braulio Augusto, noted.

“We have a lot of opportunities across the continent, where we have a lot to learn from other top ecosystems in our continent, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, and others. And we need to be more open to speak with them, share our experience as well, local experience. But also getting from them and see how we can partner more intra-African.

African ecosystems need to be more integrated, need to cooperate more between them, and see in each other more complementary solutions rather than competitive solutions,” the executive director added.

INAPEM has registered approximately 345 tech startups in recent years, including food delivery company, Mamboo, which has Kae Carvalho as the Chief Operating Officer (COO).

“We are contributing to the ecosystem growth and so it’s more jobs that we are creating in the economy. But I think it will be easier and faster, the development, if we have initiatives that promote and support discussions. We can do a lot of things. We just need a little push sometimes,” Carvalho stated.

Another tech firm doing well in Angola is Appy Saúde, the largest online pharmacy network in the country, which is opening up health and medical access to an entirely new population.

The chief executive of the firm, Pedro Beirão, explained that the company started as a way for people to find information about medical services and products.

“We were worried about how information access was just so restrained. So, we really wanted to make it available for everyone. So, information is free for people,” Beirão disclosed.

“And now they’re able to purchase the product and get it delivered. So, the whole idea is really to empower people to use technology and to take a step further into having access to services that were 10, 15 years ago unavailable to them,” Beirão added.

Looking to the future, Beirão said, “We want to be the company in Angola that will be known for creating the highest impact in people’s lives. We would like to reach ten plus million people in health care, education.

“We want to be in different African countries. We want to be an Angolan company conquering the African region, not only Angola, and take that flag with us.”

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2025 Glovo Startup Campus Keeps Slot for GITEX Nigeria Tech Participant

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2025 Glovo Startup Campus

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

Glovo, a leading technological platform connecting customers, businesses, and riders and offering multicategory on-demand services, has kept a slot for a lucky Nigerian start-up founder for its prestigious 2025 Glovo Startup Campus taking place in October in Barcelona, Spain.

The slot for Nigeria will be chosen by the organisers of GITEX Nigeria Tech Expo and Future Economy Summit.

This has been made possible through a strategic partnership arrangement between Glovo and GITEX Nigeria.

The Glovo Startup Campus is an annual programme by Glovo that brings tech startups from key markets to its headquarters in Barcelona for intensive mentoring, networking, and knowledge-sharing sessions focused on scaling their solutions for greater impact.

Every year, participants are selected through a local startup competition, and the winner gets to represent their country at the Glovo Startup Campus in Spain.

Last year, the programme hosted 21 people from 16 startups, representing 4 countries. Their participation allowed them to access 20 mentors, some of whom are Vice Presidents and board directors of blue-chip companies.

During the event, participants had a one-on-one session with Impact Hub to discuss individual check-in point and action plans. 3 Venture Capitalists were on ground to witness pitch ideas from techpreneurs, while 3 guest speakers also took part in a roundtable discussion.

For the first time, Glovo is extending the programme to Nigeria to enable a startup owner from Nigeria to participate.

The General Manager for Glovo Nigeria, Ms Lamide Akinola, explained that the decision to enlist a Nigerian participant for the programme reflects the company’s commitment to nurturing entrepreneurial ecosystems in the country.

The programme offers promising startups exposure to global best practices, mentorship from industry leaders, and the opportunity to plug into an international innovation network.

She also noted that the partnership with GITEX Nigeria underscores the organisation’s commitment to spotlighting the continent’s rapidly evolving tech ecosystem and positioning Africa not just as a growth market but as a driver of global innovation.

According to her, the 2025 Startup Festival offers the opportunity to exchange ideas on digital inclusion, sustainable urban logistics, and how platform businesses can fuel local economic development.

“It’s exciting to see many entrepreneurs, investors, and tech leaders come together to co-create solutions to uniquely African challenges. I’m particularly eager to explore partnerships and policy frameworks that can unlock the next wave of e-commerce potential in Nigeria and beyond,” she said.

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HoneyCoin Raises $4.9m to Boost Payment Orchestration Infrastructure

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HoneyCoin

By Adedapo Adesanya

Payment orchestration platform, HoneyCoin, has announced a $4.9 million funding round led by the global venture firm, Flourish Ventures, to boost its operations.

Flourish is joined by a dynamic mix of regional and global investors, including Visa Ventures, TLcom Capital, Stellar Development Foundation, Lava, Musha Ventures, 4DX Ventures, and Antler.

According to a statement, the new capital will accelerate the scale of operations, expand its product suite, and bring on new senior hires to strengthen its position as a prominent player in the payments industry.

Mr David Nandwa, who became one of Africa’s youngest fintech CEOs at the age of 19, launched HoneyCoin in 2020, during the pandemic.

With HoneyCoin, he and his team have set out to develop the financial operating system for a hybrid future, where fiat and blockchain infrastructure merge to enable faster, compliant, and cost-efficient cross-border money movement.

Since its launch, the platform claims it has scaled rapidly, processing hundreds of dollars in transactions to over $150 million in monthly transaction volume, serving more than 350 enterprise customers and hundreds of thousands of consumers through its flagship consumer app, Peer. Collectively, it powers payments for millions of end-users across four continents.

Mr Nandwa said, “Our mission is to build the operating system for money, how it’s moved, held, and collected, regardless of medium or geography.

“Just as Apple redefined computing and Visa transformed global commerce, we believe financial infrastructure is undergoing another once-in-a-generation shift.

“This raise enables us to lead that transformation, across Africa and other global markets, by building resilient, interoperable infrastructure for the future of finance.”

HoneyCoin says it addresses long-standing inefficiencies in global financial infrastructure, particularly for businesses in frontier markets, by providing a unified, stablecoin-compatible platform for collections, treasury management, settlements, and FX management.

By building a stablecoin-based liquidity engine and bypassing fragmented rails, HoneyCoin offers businesses instant or same-day settlements, compared to the traditional 4–7 business day timelines.

Flourish Ventures, which first backed HoneyCoin in 2021, co-led the latest fundraise as a follow-on investment, signaling strong confidence in the startup and underscoring its long-term commitment to building fairer financial systems across Africa.

Speaking on the investment, Flourish Ventures Principal, Mr Efayomi Carr, said, “We first backed HoneyCoin in 2021 based on David’s technical expertise and regulatory vision.

“Since then, he’s built a licensed, profitable, and high-growth infrastructure platform powering nearly 300 financial institutions and processing billions in transactions annually. This follow-on investment reflects our deep confidence in HoneyCoin’s results to date and potential to lead the next generation of compliant, blockchain-enabled finance across Africa.”

Operational in over 45 countries and PCI-DSS Level 1 certified, HoneyCoin allows businesses to collect and disburse mobile money, card, and bank payments across 15 African markets, as well as in the US, Canada, Europe, and the UK. Its FXHub enables customers to buy and sell up to 49 currencies at competitive rates, giving CFOs and finance teams the tools for seamless global treasury management backed by real-time data.

Licensed across key markets including the US, Canada, EU, and key African jurisdictions, HoneyCoin has built direct integrations with banks and telecom operators, including partnerships with MoneyGram, UBA Bank, and Stripe. Its platform is already being used by high-growth businesses and fintechs, including Cedar Money, TerraPay, and Jiji, underlining the platform’s increasing adoption across industries.

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