• Pan-African digital infrastructure giant Cassava Technologies has deployed an AI factory in South Africa
• It is hosting multiple AI models and offering a range of services, including an autonomous network operations platform for mobile operators  
• Cassava is planning Nvidia technology-based infrastructure facilities in four other markets across the continent 
• Its aim is to offer services in local languages, meeting sovereign AI needs

Pan-African digital infrastructure and communications networks operator Cassava Technologies plans to follow up its initial AI factory deployment in South Africa with AI infrastructure deployments in Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt and Morocco that will help to meet demand for local language AI services in those markets.   

Cassava, which recently launched its National Sovereign Cloud (NSC) solution, announced plans to deploy Nvidia technology in its South African datacentre facilities a year ago, since when Nvidia has become an equity investor in the company. 

It used that initial AI factory deployment in South Africa to develop GPU-as-a-service (GPUaaS) capabilities and launch, in November last year, its Cassava AI Multi-Model Exchange (CAIMEx), which makes AI tools (including a range of Nvidia platforms, such as NIM microservices) and large language models (LLMs) from the likes of Anthropic and Google available to Africa’s mobile operators and developers. 

It then followed that up with the launch earlier this month of Cassava Autonomous Network, an agentic AI solution for mobile operators that runs on the CAIMEx platform and which Cassava claims is the “first African-ready, autonomous network designed to self-optimise radio access networks and built specifically for the unique complexities of Africa’s connectivity landscape”.

Ahmed El Beheiry, group COO and group chief technology and AI officer at Cassava Technologies, stated: “Cassava Autonomous Network combines Nvidia’s AI infrastructure with the inclusivity of Africa’s networks’ needs and Cassava’s extensive experience in the telco industry. With this solution, we are delivering a significant step toward intelligent, self-healing, autonomous networks that drive coverage, quality, profitability and improve customer experience across the continent.”

Cassava aims to ensure that Africa has its “own production of intelligence – sovereign AI factories keep intelligence securely within borders, tune models to local languages and cultures, and cultivate local jobs, startups and economic growth.”

The initial AI factory is already meeting such needs. Dr H Sithole, centre manager of national integrated cyberinfrastructure (NICIS) at South Africa’s Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), noted: “The launch of the first Cassava AI Factory in the country and its expansion across the continent is a major milestone toward Africa’s digital sovereignty. Keeping data within African borders enables us to develop specialised models for healthcare, energy and agriculture tailored to our unique contexts. The Cassava AI Factory in South Africa enables the CSIR to extend [its] partnership with industry to accelerate the uptake of artificial intelligence within the broader South African research communities.” 

Cassava’s El Beheiry added: “Building Africa’s AI ecosystem is an act of empowerment, not just a technological milestone. As the continent’s first Nvidia Cloud Partner, we are ensuring that African businesses aren’t just consumers of global tech – they are the architects of it. Our goal is to give Africa the infrastructure to write its own future, using its own languages – starting with Swahili, then expanding to languages such as Zulu and Afrikaans to better serve local users and markets – and data to build a digital legacy on its own terms”.

- Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV