How Hubtel is rethinking AI in Ghana: Own your data, rent the intelligence

For many Ghanaians, the question on everyone's mind is whether artificial intelligence (AI) will improve their lives or cause disruptions. Ghana has committed $270 million to prepare for AI, and a local company called Hubtel is helping ordinary people navigate this new technology. Head of Engineering at Hubtel, Augustine Adjei, explained how the company has learned from its mistakes and found a smarter approach to AI.

Hubtel launched an AI lab in 2023 but soon realized it could not compete with global companies selling cheaper AI tools. Instead of trying to build its own AI from scratch, Hubtel decided to buy access to these tools and focus on managing its own data. This way, Hubtel keeps full ownership of its data and avoids the high costs of training AI models with valuable information.

Adjei emphasized that talent is not the problem; resources are. As long as AI models are only as good as their data, Hubtel is teaching its AI using Ghanaian data to ensure it understands the local context and speaks in a Ghanaian accent. This virtual call centre at Hubtel answers customer inquiries quickly and accurately, using AI that is built in Ghana and trained on Ghanaian data.

This approach aligns with the broader national strategy, as Communications Minister Honorable Sam George pointed out. For Ghana to succeed in the digital economy, it must first develop and share a robust data infrastructure. Hubtel's strategy demonstrates that companies can benefit from AI without reinventing the wheel, by using proven global tools and then building on them with locally relevant data.