Creative Economy: Nairobi Workshop brings together creators, media, students

Google convened young creators, media professionals and university students in Nairobi for a hands-on workshop titled "Tutunge na Gemini." The event, held at Google's Nairobi office, showcased practical applications of artificial intelligence in creative and learning processes. Participants engaged in demonstrations and interactive exercises to harness Gemini's capabilities in research, brainstorming, writing, editing, and content planning.

Google Head of Communications Africa, Janet Kemboi, emphasized that AI's true value lies in assisting individuals in transforming their ideas into impactful work. The session introduced tools like Nano Banana 2, Gemini Omni, Gemini Live, and Gems, each designed to aid in visual asset creation, prototype development, product photography, promotional material generation, conversation-based AI interaction, and customizable AI development, respectively.

University students were particularly focused on AI's potential in research and learning. Google also introduced its Gemini Google AI Plus Student Offer, a program providing eligible Kenyan university students with access to advanced AI features, including Gemini Omni, higher usage limits, and 400GB of cloud storage across Google Drive, Gmail and Google Photos, alongside other AI-powered learning tools.

Charles Murito, Google's Regional Director of Government Affairs and Public Policy for the Middle East & Africa, highlighted the workshop's role in bridging resource disparities for African students. He explained that the Google AI Plus Student Offer aims to eliminate a significant cost barrier for AI tools, enabling students at smaller public universities and technical colleges to access the same research and synthesis tools as their global counterparts, thus mitigating library and computational deficits.