From left to right: Satyajit Turumella – Chief Commercial Officer, Nation Media Group IT Advisory Director, Grant Thornton Advisory -East Africa, Esther Ngare – Transformation Lead – Nation Media Group and Richard Wanjoi- Manager @iLabAfrica
@iLabAfrica launched the 3rd Global Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Summit (GDSAI) on 13th November 2024, with the theme ‘Unlocking the Power of Big Data and AI to Shape the Future through Innovation’ which showcased the impact and implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) across various sectors, including agriculture, wildlife, media, and retail.
The annual two-day event turned into a three-day one as Strathmore University’s collaboration with Nation Media Group (NMG) introduced the first media-centered Pre-Summit Hackathon exploring how AI can revolutionize revenue generation, audience engagement, and emerging technologies in the media industry.
The event brought together individuals interested in the nexus between Data Science and AI, including hundreds of visionary AI developers, scholars, and entrepreneurs. Each presented bold and innovative ideas to reshape how media organizations create, distribute, and engage with content.
Eng. John Tanui, the Permanent Secretary at the State Department for ICT and the Digital Economy honored the 2024 GDSAI Summit with his presence. He expressed enthusiasm for the event highlighting the transformative power of Big Data in driving the digital economy. He went on to emphasize the significance of robust policies to safeguard data collection, processing, and distribution referring to data as “the new oil.” He noted that in today’s interconnected world, data has emerged as a critical resource, playing a pivotal role in shaping the global economy.
Dr. Joseph Sevilla, Director at @iLabAfrica, underscored the significance of the strategic partnership between Strathmore University and NMG, aptly describing it as “The Collaboration of Titans.” This alliance unites two industry leaders to combine their respective strengths to bridge knowledge gaps in society: Strathmore’s technical expertise in incubating innovative ideas and NMG’s societal influence in amplifying these innovations to a broader audience. He further emphasized the growing importance of data science in the business world, stating, “Data science is becoming the science of business. We now have the tools to collect data, analyze the past, and predict the future.”
The summit’s first-panel discussion, ‘Unlocking Kenya’s Potential Data Sovereignty in a Digital Kenya,’ that featured Loise Ochanda, Program Officer at Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC); Dr. Mugambi Laibuta, Executive Fellow at Strathmore Institute of Public Policy and Governance (SIPPG); Dr. Grace Bomu, Researcher; and Doreen Abiero, who moderated the discussion.
Ms. Ochanda highlighted the importance of creating data awareness beyond those with digital literacy, noting that many people do not view themselves as data producers. She stated, “Data has become another area for governance, and people have the authority to protect themselves.” She also emphasized the need for policymakers to localize data protection laws to be more specific to the Kenyan context. Dr. Grace Bomu explored gaps in the Data Protection Act, calling for stricter regulations on automated decision-making, clearer definitions of collaboration, and a stronger focus on issues of consent.
Other key topics discussed during the summit included:
How AI is Transforming Financial Services: Enhancing risk assessment, fraud detection, and financial inclusion.
AI-Enhanced Customer Journeys: Redefining engagement across multiple channels.
Predicting and Mitigating Climate Impacts: Discuss how Big Data analytics are used to track carbon emission reductions and offsets across agricultural practices.
Advancing AI in Healthcare: Recent innovations and ethical considerations.
Russell Akuom, Chief Information Officer at Nation Media Group, noted, “Data cannot be a substitute for design intuition. It can make a good design better, but it cannot make a bad design good.”
One of the major summit highlights was the announcement of the Pre-Summit Hackathon winners, 22 teams were selected from a competitive pool of applicants to pitch their ideas to a distinguished panel of judges. The pitches were evaluated based on their ability to generate new revenue streams, respond to market needs, and engage audiences using emerging technologies. Five teams made it to the final, and three winners were selected.
From left to Right: Team Rubani, SignSema, and Team X post for a photo
Team X emerged as the winner for their innovative project, Geo-Enhanced Nation—a personalized, hyper-local news platform that delivers targeted content and ads based on users’ precise geographic locations. Their solution stood out for its exceptional audience engagement, combining real-time data with advanced geo-targeting to create a customized news experience. They walked away with the grand prize of USD 1,000 and an opportunity for their project to be incubated by @iLabAfrica.
SignSema, an intelligent sign language interpreter platform that seamlessly translates sign language into text and vice versa, was placed second for using emerging technologies to bridge communication gaps for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community, They received a cash prize of USD 750.
Team Rubani was placed third for their AI-powered platform developed for Nation Media Group (NMG) to enhance content creation, optimize SEO, and drive personalized engagement. Their platform uses advanced AI tools to generate high-quality, relevant content and improve search engine visibility. The team was awarded USD 500.
According to a data Scientist at @iLabAfrica, Mr. Abraham Ngetich the hackathon was a timely initiative for Kenya’s media industry, which is often overlooked by innovators and startup investors in the digital space. “The hackathon is the first of its kind, providing solutions and innovations centered around the media industry.”
The summit provided a platform for professionals, CEOs, and senior managers from over 20 countries to come together, debate, network, and gain insights into how various industries are implementing Artificial Intelligence to reach new heights. It also offered scholars an opportunity to showcase their innovations through the pre-summit hackathon.
The 3rd GDSAI Summit underscores Kenya’s dedication to advancing in the rapidly evolving world of artificial intelligence. As the nation embraces AI and harnesses the potential of big data in everyday life, the summit has created a crucial platform for discussions on data sovereignty and the development of unbiased AI systems. These initiatives set the stage for a more promising, technologically empowered future.
Written by: Ajuna Lindah