Technology investment and innovation will be at the heart of Africa’s growth and technology development.

Dr Reevana Balmahoon, research group leader for Artificial Intelligence and Extended Reality at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), was one of the speakers at the Africa Tech Festival, which took place in Cape Town from 13 to 16 November 2023.

The Africa Tech Festival is a meeting place of Africa's largest community of tech champions, a vibrant community that connects in-person and virtually on an annual basis. For more than two decades, this annual event has brought together a passionate community of over a thousand movers and shakers within the technology industry to power the continent’s digital transformation.

Dr Balmahoon spoke about Artificial Intelligence (AI) innovation and ways to make an impact on business, humanity and the environment.

“AI is clearly a driver of innovation today. There are a few exciting developments when we look ahead – vision transformers, prompting and growth in the AI application layer. These areas are within reach for cross-domain applications and offer a range of opportunities for innovation,” she asserted.

During the week, she also participated in a roundtable discussion hosted by the Digital Cooperation Organisation (DCO), sharing views on combating misinformation using AI, to explore global perspectives on topics relating to digital spaces.

Technology investment and innovation are at the heart of Africa’s economic growth efforts, and the CSIR’s AI and XR research group is among the entities that will provide local and global solutions.