Nigeria has unveiled the Nigeria AI Scaling Hub (NAISH), a national platform designed to expand access to Artificial Intelligence (AI) infrastructure and support researchers, startups and public institutions in developing solutions to address local challenges.
According to the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, the Nigeria AI Scaling Hub was established to accelerate the adoption and scaling of Artificial Intelligence across Nigeria by connecting innovators, researchers, startups, government institutions, academic organisations and development partners.
The initiative includes Nigeria’s national shared compute infrastructure hosted by Galaxy Backbone and supported by the Gates Foundation, aimed at reducing one of the major barriers affecting AI development globally — limited access to computing resources.
Tijani said access to compute has become a major factor shaping AI innovation worldwide, adding that the shared infrastructure would help researchers, startups and public institutions build and deploy AI solutions from Nigeria.
The Nigeria AI Scaling Hub will provide the infrastructure, partnerships and support required to move AI solutions beyond pilot stages and enable wider deployment across different sectors.
The launch of the hub also marked the commencement of the Scaling AI for Development (SAID) Challenge, an initiative designed to connect government institutions with Nigerian AI startups to develop solutions for public sector challenges.
Through the challenge, AI startups with proven solutions will have opportunities to work with government institutions to address real-world problems and improve public service delivery through technology.
The platform is expected to strengthen collaboration within Nigeria’s AI ecosystem by bringing together innovators, researchers, government agencies and private sector partners to advance the development of locally built solutions.
The initiative is supported by partners including Galaxy Backbone, Lagos Business School and the Gates Foundation, as stakeholders continue efforts to position Nigeria as a key player in the global artificial intelligence space.
Applications for the Scaling AI for Development (SAID) Challenge are now open for Nigerian innovators building AI solutions aimed at improving public services and creating measurable impact.
