Microsoft Unveils New AI Project Built for the Global Majority, Starting with Kenya
Generative AI powers apps and tools that boost productivity and knowledge in most places across the world. But these systems don’t work equally well for all communities, especially those under-represented online, where most AI training data originates. As a result, generative A..
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Microsoft has launched "Project Gecko," a new artificial intelligence initiative designed for the "global majority," starting with Kenya. This project aims to address equity gaps in AI by developing cost-effective, tailorable systems that incorporate local languages, culturally relevant knowledge, and multi-modal interactions for communities often under-represented online.
- The initiative's core is the MultiModal Critical Thinking Agent (MMCTAgent), an AI system now available on Azure AI Foundry Labs with open-source code on GitHub.
- Agriculture is the initial focus in countries like Kenya and India, where AI is being developed to assist millions of smallholder farmers using local languages such as Kiswahili, Kikuyu, and Kalenjin.
- Project Gecko leverages Digital Green's FarmerChat and has developed new tools for automatic speech recognition and text-to-speech for languages like Swahili, Kikuyu, Kalenjin, Dholuo, Maa, and Somali, using a dataset of 3,000 hours of crowd-sourced Kenyan speech.
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Microsoft and Google Launch New AI Programs in Africa as Jumia Reports Surge in Rural E-Commerce - November 2025
Microsoft has launched "Project Gecko," a new artificial intelligence initiative starting in Kenya that aims to address equity gaps by developing cost-effective systems incorporating local languages and culturally relevant knowledge. In a separate initiative, Google and the AfCFTA Secretariat have launched the ‘AfCFTA Digital Inclusion & Entrepreneurship Programme’ to provide African SMEs with AI and digital trade skills. These developments coincide with a report that rural Kenya now accounts for 60 percent of all orders placed on Jumia's e-commerce platform. This significant shift in online shopping, which has surpassed major cities, is attributed to improved connectivity, affordable smartphones, and expanded delivery networks.
