Cassava Technologies, a pan-African company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, has announced the construction of Africa’s first artificial intelligence (AI) factory—an innovative data center facility powered by NVIDIA’s AI computing technology. This state-of-the-art factory will provide businesses, governments, and African researchers with access to advanced computing capabilities, accelerating the development of local AI solutions and optimizing operations in key sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, energy, and financial services.
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The facility, to be located in South Africa and expected to be operational by June 2025, will feature NVIDIA Cloud Partner (NCP) reference architectures and will later expand to other data centers in Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria. Leveraging its pan-African high-speed, low-latency fiber optic network, the factory will offer AI as a Service (AIaaS), enabling organizations to harness the power of accelerated computing with a sustainable and energy-efficient approach.
According to Strive Masiyiwa, founder and chairman of Cassava, this initiative addresses the urgent need to build digital infrastructure for the AI economy in Africa, driving the continent’s fourth industrial revolution. “Our AI factory provides the necessary infrastructure to scale this innovation, empowering African businesses, startups, and researchers with access to cutting-edge technology. Now, they no longer need to look beyond Africa to get it,” said Masiyiwa.
The partnership with NVIDIA, a global leader in accelerated computing, ensures that the AI factory will use GPU-based supercomputers to train AI models faster and with greater precision. Additionally, the factory’s secure and high-performance environment ensures compliance with both international and local regulations, strengthening the continent’s digital independence. Jaap Zuiderveld, vice president of EMEA at NVIDIA, described the project as a unique opportunity to leverage AI to address critical challenges across multiple African industries.
With this factory, Cassava Technologies reaffirms its leadership in delivering world-class digital solutions in Africa, emphasizing its commitment to responsible AI adoption, local innovation, and increased productivity throughout the continent.