Masakhane AI Hub

About the Masakhane AI Hub for African Languages

The Masakhane AI Hub for African Languages (“the Hub”) is an ambitious initiative to unlock the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) for over one billion Africans, speaking more than 50 diverse languages.

Anchored by the Masakhane Research Foundation (MRF), the Hub addresses the critical underrepresentation of African languages in AI development and the barriers to equitable access to AI-driven innovations.

The Hub aims to establish a thriving ecosystem where African AI solutions are developed locally, scaled globally, and tailored to meet the continent’s diverse needs. By building a robust, inclusive ecosystem for African language AI, the Hub will enable sustainable, locally appropriate AI solutions across a variety of socio-economic domains. Over time, the Hub aims to achieve impact in the areas of healthcare, education, agriculture, climate, and government services, which are viewed as critical sectors for digital development in Africa.

Our mission is to empower marginalized communities, build local capacity, and ensure African languages and cultures are fully represented in the AI-driven future.

Over the next five years, the Hub will focus on three strategic pillars—Data, Research, and Innovation—enabled by Institutional Capacity-Building. Key initiatives include:

Developing foundational datasets for African languages, supported by standardized collection tools and ethical frameworks.
Advancing critical AI models such as speech recognition and text-to-speech systems tailored to under-resourced languages.
Scaling applied use cases to demonstrate both social and commercial viability.

Vision: The Hub's ultimate goal is to empower one billion Africans by 2029 with locally relevant AI tools and resources, unlocking opportunities for economic development, local innovation, and the preservation of Africa's linguistic heritage. This work will benefit marginalized groups such as women, rural communities, the elderly and those with lower digital literacy, and those who primarily speak their mother tongue.

Meet the team

"The strength of this initiative lies in the people behind it," said Kathleen Siminyu, Board Chair of The Masakhane Research Foundation. "We’re building a team of bold, brilliant thinkers from across the continent who are committed to designing AI that reflects the realities, values, and diversity of African life."

Chenai Chair - Director

Chenai Chair serves as the leader of the Hub, responsible for shaping and executing the Hub’s strategy to position it as a global leader in African language AI. Chenai has led initiatives at Mozilla Foundation including the Africa Innovation Mradi and the Common Voice East African Languages program; World Wide Web Foundation’s Gender and Digital Rights flagship project; and Research ICT Africa’s Youth and Gender research and established the organisation's communications strategy. She is the founder of My Data Rights (Africa), an initiative that centers feminist perspectives in data governance and AI ethics. She currently sits on the Creative Commons Advisory council and Pollicy board. She holds a Masters in Social Science from the University of Cape Town, (Co-badged degree with (Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg and Jawaharlal Nehru University Delhi); Bachelor of Social Science (hons) in Labor studies and Bachelors degree in Gender and Industrial Sociology from the University of Cape Town.

Tajuddeen Gwadabe (PhD) - Program Manager and Monitoring and Evaluation Lead

Tajuddeen plays a central role in ensuring the success and impact of the Hub’s flagship projects by overseeing project management, operational excellence, and performance tracking. He previously served as Research Program Manager at the Masakhane Research Foundation, managing cross-border collaborations and donor-funded projects in African language technology. With extensive experience managing large-scale AI initiatives, Tajuddeen has overseen NLP research projects funded by Lacuna Funds, GIZ, and other international organizations,managing over $1 million in funding. His work bridges AI research, grassroots community leadership, and inclusive innovation in African language AI. Tajuddeen holds a PhD in Computer Science and Technology from the Data Mining and High-Performance Computing Lab at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, supported by the prestigious CAS/TWAS scholarship.

Noah Kipkoech - Grants Manager

Noah oversees grants administration, financial management, and operational frameworks at the Hub. Previously Noah was the Chief Operating officer at Uthabiti Africa. Noah is an accomplished Operations Management leader with hands-on experience in Grants Management, Financial Management, Human Resources Management, Administration, Project Management and Information Systems Management. Noah holds a Bachelors in Commerce Degree- Business Information Systems & Operations Management from University of Nairobi and Grants & Projects Management certification from-Strathmore University.

Qudus Balogun - Finance and Account Manager

Qudus Balogun oversees the financial operations of the Hub, ensuring transparency, accountability, and compliance with donor requirements. Previously Qudus was the Vice President, Finance & Administration – uLesson Education Limited. He was also Principal Partner – Iwelabi Consulting, Abuja. Qudus is an experienced finance professional with over a decade of progressive experience across multiple industries, including AgriTech, Financial Services, FMCG, Real Estate and most recently, Software as a Service (SaaS) business industry. He holds a Chartered Accountancy certificate from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN).

Areas of Focus

The Hub will pilot real-world AI applications that deliver immediate impact across diverse sectors. From improving patient outcomes in rural clinics to boosting literacy and empowering farmers with localized insights, these use cases exemplify the transformative potential of inclusive AI. The hub will do this by focusing on:

Data: Expand and diversify high-quality, community-driven datasets that document and preserve 50+ African languages, ensuring that language technologies are built on accurate and contextually relevant data.

Research: Develop and refine inclusive AI/ML models for African languages, ensuring that tools are inclusive, accurate, and capable of addressing real-world challenges in Africa.

Innovation: Scale NLP-driven solutions that address social challenges in the Global South, demonstrating the impact of representative language AI solutions in social domains (e.g., education, healthcare, agriculture, gov services).

Institutional capacity building: Strengthen the African NLP community and ecosystem by investing in institutional capacity and community-building. Foster partnerships with local and international stakeholders to enhance the Hub’s reach and impact.

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