Surprising AI innovations out of South Africa have been helping meet the needs of the continent, from bridging language divides in the emergent field to crucial new applications in agriculture.
Arthur Goldstuck, a tech journalist and author from South Africa, stressed that language models like ChatGPT may not meet the needs of Africans who speak less dominant languages, but that problem may be addressed by new African-made models.
"There is a big AI divide in the sense that when you look at the large language models that are driving generative AI, most of those are produced in the global north with the United States and China in the lead. But we also see countries like France, for example, very active in producing large language models. And what this means is that most of this AI is trained on dominant languages, like English or Mandarin, or French. And on a continent like Africa, where there are hundreds of languages, and for many people, their home language is not one of the dominant global languages, AI becomes, to some extent, inaccessible," Goldstuck said, speaking in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN).
He also noted that South Africa's localized AI growth, which focuses on addressing local needs such as agricultural analysis, is bridging practical challenges across the continent.
"We are seeing initiatives, however, tremendous innovation across Africa, especially in the sense of addressing the needs of the continent. I say, in my book about AI that innovation in Silicon Valley is usually based on opportunity. Across the African continent, innovation is based on need. And when you are taking the learnings of 75 years of research into AI and apply them to the specific needs and challenges of the African continent. You see incredible things happen," said the author.
"In South Africa, specifically, there's a company called Aerobotics that uses drones to take video footage of crops and orchards. So the AI analyzes what is happening on the ground, continually, and then allowing the farmer to continually intervene to ensure that they have the best possible crops. And that technology is now being used across Africa," he said.
S Africa bridges global gap in AI development through necessity-driven innovation
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Cho Tae-yul, foreign minister of the Republic of Korea (ROK), in Beijing on Monday.
Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that China and the ROK are close neighbors and should maintain regular exchanges.
Recently, China-ROK relations have been facing difficulties and challenges, which is not in the common interests of both sides, nor is it what China wants to see, Wang said, adding that it is hoped that the ROK side will work with China to stick to the original intention of establishing diplomatic ties, adhere to the direction of good neighborliness and friendship, stick to the goal of mutually beneficial cooperation, remove disturbances, and make joint efforts to push for the sound and steady development of China-ROK relations. He pointed out that China and the ROK should understand and respect each other, strengthen communication and exchanges, eliminate misunderstandings and enhance mutual trust.
Wang added that China hopes the ROK side abides by the one-China principle, properly and prudently handles Taiwan-related issues, and consolidates the political foundation of bilateral relations. The two sides should send more objective and positive messages, increase positive guidance, and strengthen people-to-people exchanges to consolidate public support for bilateral relations.
China is speeding up the development of new quality productive forces, promoting high-quality development and expanding high-level opening up, which will bring important opportunities to the ROK, Wang said, adding that the two sides should deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, be reliable and long-term partners in each other's development process, jointly oppose trade protectionism, safeguard the international free trade system, and ensure stable and unimpeded production and supply chains.
Cho said that it is hoped that this visit will become an important step forward in ROK-China relations. The ROK government attaches great importance to its relations with China, and looks forward to working closely with China to develop a healthier and more mature strategic cooperative partnership on the basis of mutual respect, reciprocity and common interests.
He added that it is in the common interests of the two countries and peoples and the expectation of the international community to promote the development of ROK-China relations and jointly meet common challenges. The ROK is willing to enhance mutual trust, expand consensus and focus on cooperation with China, thus avoiding geopolitical constraints as much as possible and jointly opening up a new situation of bilateral cooperation.
The two sides also exchanged views on China-Japan-ROK cooperation, the situation on the Korean Peninsula and other issues of common concern.
At the invitation of Wang, Cho is visiting China from May 13 to 14.
Chinese foreign minister holds talks with ROK counterpart
