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DeepSeek-R1: Expert seeks African govts’ participation in AI innovation

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An Artificial Intelligence (AI) expert, Mr Omoikhefe Aienloshan, on Thursday, called on African governments to be part of the innovations around AI.
Aienloshan, also the Founder, ZeroEdge and Gasnownow, a gas distribution and retailing company, made the call in a statement following the AI innovation tussle between the USA and China.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the USA and China have been in a tech war because U.S. which had AI powerhouses like Open AI, ChatGPT, Google Gemini, among others, banned the sales of semi conductor chips to China for years, in a bid to limit China’s AI capacity.
China had last week released an AI model, which according to users, is more powerful and up to date than anything the Americans have, that is the DeepSeek-R1.
The Chinese have additionally made the AI model open source, thereby making it available for download, fine tuning, altering to suit demands of the user.
The move by the Chinese over the week had made tech billionaires lose a combined amount of over 100 billion dollars in the value of AI companies on the American stock exchange market.
The expert said, “This AI competition is no longer just about who can create better technologies, it’s about who can shape the future of global economies, industries, and even political landscapes.
“African governments, innovators, and tech entrepreneurs should recognise the urgency of the moment. There should be strategic investments in AI education, robust data policies, and collaborations with both Eastern and Western tech powers.
“Africa cannot afford to sit on the sidelines while global superpowers determine the rules of the game.
“We have the talent, we have the innovation but without the right infrastructure and forward-thinking policies, we’ll miss this crucial window of opportunity.”
Aienloshan said that Africa could engage now as a key player in the AI space by investing in homegrown talent, fostering AI start-ups, and creating platforms that allowed African tech companies to collaborate with international partners.
Beyond geopolitics, Aienloshan stated that the opportunity and with right investments in AI, service delivery could be boosted in sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, real estate, energy and potentially creating millions of new jobs.
“We must create an environment where AI innovation thrives across sectors. AI is not just for the elite, it’s a tool that can drive inclusive economic growth if we harness its potential correctly,” Aienloshan said.
He added that the situation projected an AI cold war, adding that the world was on the brink of a technological race with far-reaching political and economic implications.
DeepSeek-R1, hailed as China’s most advanced AI system to date, has stunned experts worldwide with its capacity to process massive datasets at unprecedented speeds and solve complex problems across industries.
Many see it as a direct challenge to U.S. dominance in AI research, sparking concerns that the two superpowers could lock the rest of the world out of the most significant technological advancements of the 21st century.

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