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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | DAY 3 · THURSDAY 21 MAY 2026 | NAIROBI, KENYA |
Africa’s essential AI economy foundations in focus on final day of AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA 2026 |
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East Africa’s largest AI and tech launch event concluded with discussions on sovereign infrastructure, trusted digital systems, startup investment, scaling platforms and IP protection |
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Nairobi, Kenya – 21 May 2026: AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA concluded in Nairobi on Thursday as regional digital economy stakeholders and global tech leaders examined the foundations shaping Africa’s role in the emerging AI economy. |
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Organised by inD, the global organiser of GITEX events, in partnership with the Office of the Special Envoy on Technology of the Republic of Kenya, AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA is East Africa’s largest AI and tech launch event, its inaugural edition featuring 280-plus enterprises and startups, while gathering thousands of tech executives from 75 countries, including 120 speakers alongside 100 investors managing US$50 billion in capital. |
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While unprecedented socio-economic potential accompanies AI, amplified by McKinsey estimates that GenAI could unlock US$61–103 billion annually across Africa, debates are intensifying around the defining challenges that could derail the region’s digital ambitions. |
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From rebuilding public trust in digital systems and regulating rapidly evolving AI technologies to securing autonomous AI-powered infrastructure and designing intelligent systems that reflect African realities, the AI in Action Forum took these debates into applied territory during Thursday’s finale at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC). |
Engineering citizen trust through intelligent governance |
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A major third-day highlight was the civic tech session ‘Rebuilding Trust Through Intelligent Public Services’, which explored how AI-enabled public infrastructure can help governments restore citizen confidence through more responsive, transparent, and accountable service delivery. |
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As public trust increasingly hinges on real-world service experiences rather than policy intent alone, a distinguished panel discussed how intelligent verification systems, digital identity frameworks, automated case resolution, and connected service orchestration can create more seamless and auditable interactions across government ecosystems. |
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“Public trust is about how citizens feel about their government, and this has been declining in recent decades,” said panellist Ntuthuko Ndamane, Director of Information Technology Management Services, Kwa Zulu Natal Department of Transport in South Africa. “Trust is emotional; it does not collapse through public documents or political rhetoric, but through lived experiences. This is why we must always have end-users in mind when digitising public services, ensuring greater efficiency, transparency, interoperability, and the ability for citizens to escalate or challenge decisions. That is how we move from merely consuming government services to genuinely trusting them.” |
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Panellists also addressed what technological, regulatory, and governance architecture is required to build a ‘trustworthy by default’ state capable of measuring, predicting, and correcting service delivery gaps in real time. |
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James Ayugi, CEO & Founder, e-Citizen, added: “When it comes to technology and trust, especially in public service, availability is key. Every time citizens log into a government platform and the service is available, and when they apply and get a service every single time wherever they are, it brings trust. Availability is the key ingredient of trust.” |
International venture capital meets continental scale ambition |
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Dialogue and debate accelerated at the Venture Scaling Forum, where founders, investors, accelerators, and ecosystem leaders explored the capital, partnerships, and market access strategies required to scale high-growth African startups. A central GITEX innovation ecosystem pillar, the forum connects emerging ventures with venture capital firms, corporate buyers, policymakers, and cross-border expansion opportunities across sectors including AI, fintech, climate tech, mobility, and digital infrastructure. |
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Under the Growth and Expansion theme, the session ‘When Silicon Valley and the UN Build Together: A New Blueprint for African Innovation’ explored the implications of a landmark public-private collaboration designed to scale African entrepreneurship beyond fragmented pilot programmes. |
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Among the expert panellists was Astria Fataki, Strategic Lead – Tech Hubs Design and Development, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Through the timbuktoo initiative, which supports the African startup ecosystem by addressing critical gaps and working with African governments, investors, corporates, and universities, Fataki is helping build pan-African infrastructure designed not only to support startups, but to reshape how entrepreneurship is financed, nurtured, and scaled across the continent. |
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Discussing the importance of building sustainable, long-term innovation ecosystems that balance commercial viability with inclusive socio-economic impact, Astria Fataki said: “Capitalism has brought its share of problems for societies, but it’s also a very powerful tool if it’s used properly. I like to think around the concept of conscious capitalism – let’s do well, but let’s do good also, and make sure every human being can live a dignified life. What’s needed is a mechanism where we create enough value for innovation and impact to sustain themselves in the long run. Across Africa, we see a genuine willingness to commit, invest, and build toward this shared vision.” |
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Another panellist was Carrie Liauw, Executive Director, Market Launch at 500 Global. Elaborating on long-term structural support for the continent’s innovation economy, Liauw stated: “We see everybody building across every single industry in Africa – and everybody is building because there are real problems to solve. What we want to do is build a legacy of continuity and longevity by supporting founders and high-impact startups through revenue growth, fundraising journeys, and impact tracking to help them scale successfully.” |
Protecting Africa’s innovation economy beyond the prototype |
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International institutional participation at AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA 2026 included GIZ (German Agency for International Cooperation), the Italian Trade Agency’s Italian Pavilion, Estonia’s Garage 48 Hackathon Series, and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). |
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WIPO, the United Nations agency that protects intellectual property (IP) rights worldwide, highlighted the urgent need for African startups, founders, and entrepreneurs to secure ownership of their innovations early. |
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Despite Africa’s rapidly expanding innovation economy, fewer than 500 Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications have been filed annually from the continent since 2013, including just 458 in 2025, underscoring persistent gaps in awareness, affordability, education, and access to practical IP support structures. |
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WIPO discussions highlighted how IP has become a critical commercial asset for startups – strengthening investor confidence, unlocking licensing opportunities, protecting innovation, and supporting long-term enterprise value creation across increasingly competitive digital markets. |
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Emir Ali Jazairy, Senior Counsellor for the PCT International Cooperation Division at WIPO, stressed the importance of embedding IP literacy, protection frameworks, and commercialisation pathways more deeply into Africa’s startup ecosystem to ensure founders build innovative technologies and capture the long-term economic upside of their ideas. |
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“We have noticed in our past participations in startup events in Africa that IP is completely invisible, when it should be ubiquitous,” said Jazairy. “IP is a strategic asset for startups: it safeguards innovation, increases investor confidence, and creates licensing and commercialization pathways that generate long-term value.” |
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Jazairy cited the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) that enables a startup to file a single international patent application that preserves filing priority in many countries and delays national filing costs and decisions. “This enables a strategic, cost-effective way for startups to buy time – 18 additional months – gauge patentability through a search report, test markets, and coordinate global IP strategy before committing to full national prosecutions.” |
A region shaping global technology movements |
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Culminating three days of high-level dialogue, cross-sector collaboration, and strategic debate around Africa’s AI future, AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA 2026 reinforced Nairobi’s position at the centre of conversations shaping the continent’s digital transformation. |
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Reflecting on the inaugural edition and why East Africa was the latest destination in the international expansion of GITEX, Trixie LohMirmand, CEO of the global organiser of GITEX, said: |
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“Using AI makes you a market. Creating AI makes you a power. Africa holds one of the world’s greatest strategic advantages through its people, talent, and entrepreneurial energy, and Kenya has already demonstrated how innovation from this region can shape global technology movements. The next chapter is about building the infrastructure, partnerships, and intelligence economy that will allow Africa to lead rather than follow.”
— Trixie LohMirmand |
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AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA returns in May 2027. For future news and more information on this year’s first edition, please visit aieverythingkenya.com. |
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–ENDS– |
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Follow us on social media: #aieverythingkenya |
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Media Contact |
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Gareth Wright |
James Wambua |
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About AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA |
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AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA, taking place from 19–21 May 2026, is East Africa’s premier platform for artificial intelligence, innovation, and emerging technologies. The event brings together global leaders, policymakers, startups, investors, and enterprises to shape the future of Africa’s digital economy. The AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA Summit will be held at the Sarit Expo Centre on 19 May, followed by the AI EVERYTHING KENYA X GITEX KENYA Expo and Conference on 20–21 May at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre. The show is organised by inD, global organisers of GITEX, and serves as a gateway for international companies entering Africa and a launchpad for African innovation to scale globally. Through high-level summits, exhibitions, and investment forums, the event fosters collaboration, accelerates digital transformation, and positions Kenya as a leading hub for inclusive and impactful AI development across the continent. For more information, visit www.aieverythingkenya.com. |