Artificial Intelligence in Africa is gaining momentum. Startups are emerging, research is advancing, and adoption is growing across sectors.
Yet one critical piece has been missing: computing power.

According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) — as reported by AI Magazine — only 5% of African AI professionals have access to adequate computing resources, and just 20% have on-site access to GPUs.
This gap has kept many researchers, startups, and innovators dependent on expensive overseas cloud services.

That’s what NVIDIA and Cassava Technologies are now trying to change.

What is a GPU, and Why Does AI Need It?

A GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) was originally designed to render video game graphics. But unlike CPUs, GPUs excel at parallel computation, making them indispensable for deep learning.

For AI:

• GPUs enable the training of large neural networks in weeks instead of years.
• They power everything from language models to computer vision and recommendation systems.

Without GPUs, modern AI progress would simply not be possible.

What is an “AI Factory”?

An AI Factory is essentially a data center optimized for AI workloads. Instead of being designed for storage or standard computation, it is equipped with thousands of GPUs that can handle training and inference at scale.

Why this matters:

• Training large language models (LLMs) or complex computer vision systems requires GPU clusters.
• Without local facilities, African innovators must rent access from foreign cloud providers—expensive, slower, and raising sovereignty concerns.

The NVIDIA–Cassava Partnership

In March 2025, NVIDIA and Cassava Technologies announced a $700 million plan to build Africa’s first AI Factory.

• NVIDIA supplies GPUs, technical expertise, and its software ecosystem (CUDA, AI frameworks).
• Cassava invests in physical infrastructure, data centers, and operations.
• Important point: this is not a donation. NVIDIA is being paid through the deal — but it also secures a strategic early presence in Africa’s emerging AI market.

The first site is in South Africa, with expansion planned for Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and Morocco.

The Rollout: From 3,000 GPUs to 12,000

• June 2025: the first phase deployed 3,000 NVIDIA GPUs in a Cassava facility in South Africa.
• Next 3–4 years: up to 12,000 additional GPUs will be rolled out across the other target countries.
• A memorandum of understanding with the South African AI Association ensures that more than 3,000 AI professionals will get physical access to these GPUs.

This is a scale of computing that Africa has never seen before.

Why This Matters for Africa’s Tech Ecosystem

• Lower barriers to entry: GPUs become more accessible, reducing reliance on costly overseas clouds.
• Local innovation: healthcare AI, agricultural analytics, and fintech models can be built on African soil.
• Talent empowerment: data scientists and researchers can train larger models and compete globally.
• Business opportunities: companies can leverage AI infrastructure to create services adapted to African realities.

Africa’s AI potential cannot be unlocked without access to computing infrastructure. This partnership represents a step toward bridging that gap. — Data Centre Magazine

Africa in the Global Context

To understand the significance, it helps to compare Africa’s situation with other regions:

• Europe operates AI supercomputers like Jean Zay in France, with more than 1,500 NVIDIA A100 GPUs — already half the capacity of the South African rollout.
• The Middle East is pouring billions into sovereign AI infrastructure, such as the UAE’s Falcon supercomputer, with thousands of GPUs.
• The United States and China each operate clusters of tens of thousands of GPUs for training frontier AI models.
• Africa, until now, had close to zero comparable facilities.

This initiative does not close the gap, but it marks a decisive step in narrowing a decades-long divide.

Economic Implications: Who Will Really Benefit?

While the investment is celebrated, questions remain about the economic model:

• Access costs: Will startups and universities be able to afford local GPU time, or will prices mirror global cloud providers?
• Client mix: Will the infrastructure primarily serve African innovators, or will Cassava also target international clients to ensure profitability?
• Sustainability: Can this model scale without heavy reliance on government or donor subsidies?

These questions will determine whether the AI Factory empowers African innovation or becomes another resource export platform.

Beyond Infrastructure: The Bigger Picture

While this project is about technology, it is also about geopolitics and markets.

• NVIDIA currently controls about 93% of the global GPU market.
• U.S. firms are expanding into Africa as a counterweight to China’s Digital Silk Road strategy.
• Cassava’s approach ensures that data remains on the continent, a critical step in addressing digital sovereignty.

Conclusion: A Step Toward Sovereignty?

Africa is finally gaining access to industrial-scale computing power for AI.
For startups, researchers, and innovators, this could be transformative.

But the bigger question remains: will this translate into true sovereignty?

• Who will control access and pricing of this infrastructure?
• Will African startups and universities capture the value, or remain dependent on external providers?

Perhaps the most important reflection is this:
Can Africa build not only with NVIDIA, but also beyond NVIDIA?