Cassava Technologies partners with Accenture to deploy sovereign AI infrastructure across Africa

Technology company will launch GPU-as-a-Service solutions starting in South Africa before expanding to Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria. The partnership aims to enable local data processing within national borders using NVIDIA infrastructure housed in Cassava's data centers.

Mauro Macchi, CEO of Accenture for Europe, Middle East and Africa. 

Cassava Technologies, a technology company with African operations, has formed a partnership with Accenture to develop sovereign AI capabilities across the continent. The collaboration will utilize Accenture's AI Refinery platform to create AI solutions using Cassava's GPU-as-a-Service infrastructure.

The solutions will be housed in Cassava's data center facilities and powered by NVIDIA AI infrastructure. Organizations will be able to process AI workloads and data within national boundaries to comply with local regulations and requirements.

Implementation will begin in South Africa before expanding to Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria. The rollout aligns with Cassava's planned expansions at other data center locations across Africa. The company will use its fiber broadband network connecting energy-efficient data centers to support AI computing operations.

Mauro Macchi, CEO of Accenture for Europe, Middle East and Africa, stated that the partnership will help deliver sovereign AI solutions and enable organizations across Africa to adopt AI technology. Ahmed El Beheiry, CEO of Cassava AI, said the GPU-as-a-Service model will allow businesses to access computing power based on their requirements.

The companies plan to integrate regional context, languages, and cultural elements into AI solutions for African enterprises. Target sectors include financial services, mining, telecommunications, agriculture, and healthcare. This approach is designed to ensure compliance and technology relevance for local markets.

Cassava will invest in infrastructure and platform development to prepare for commercialization, focusing on scalability, security, and compliance requirements. The partnership supports the company's commitment to AI adoption and productivity growth in Africa.

The sovereign AI approach allows data and AI processing to remain within specific geographic boundaries, addressing data sovereignty concerns and regulatory compliance requirements that many African governments and organizations prioritize when implementing AI technologies.