AI is everywhere, and whether you’re trying to get ahead of it or just make sense of it, the noise is real. What if there was one place to cut through the hype? One summit where you could explore how AI is transforming your business, your career, and your life?
Artificial intelligence is no longer a futuristic concept, it’s already reshaping the way we work, hire, trade, treat illness, learn, and live. Whether you’re ready or not, AI is in your inbox, your sales pipeline, your investment strategy, your doctor’s office, your child’s classroom, and embedded in the data trails we leave behind every day.
Consider this: nearly 80% of hospitals now use AI to enhance patient care and streamline operations (Docus.ai – AI Healthcare Statistics, 2024). And according to McKinsey, generative AI could add up to US$4.4 trillion (R80 trillion) annually to the global economy. Yet as this powerful technology accelerates progress, it also raises urgent questions, about inequality, data privacy, misinformation, and the rapid disruption of entire industries.
Enter AI Empowered, a bold new summit inspired by EO Cape Town, designed to move beyond the buzzwords and into what’s actually happening now, and what’s coming by 2030.
Held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre CTICC on 7–8 August 2025, this two-day event features global and local thought leaders from companies like Google, Salesforce, MIT Centre for Collective Intelligence, Woolworths, Discovery, Amazon Web Services, Pepkor and more.
This is not just a tech summit. It’s a two-day deep dive into the urgent, messy, exciting reality of AI today, with practical tools, eye-opening debates, and access to global and local experts who are shaping what’s next, all under one roof.
From smart cities to deep moral questions, this is the type of event where we look up from the laptop and ask: What kind of future are we building, and who gets to shape it?
Day 1: AI and Your Business
Day 1 is focused on ways to integrate AI into your business strategy. We’ll unpack how artificial intelligence is revolutionising everything from customer journeys, sales and marketing, talent acquisition and your team organogram, to creative workflows and financial forecasting.
Phase 2 speaker additions include:
- The Smart Future of Retail: Jose Rodrigues, Chief Data Analytics Officer at Woolworths, Michael Yolland, Head of Artificial Intelligence at Pepkor IT and Louise Liddell, Senior Solutions Architect at AWS.
- How intuitive, privacy-conscious AI agents are transforming industries and unlocking new levels of human potential: Tyler Reed, founder of pioneering AI company xgmi.
- Business coach, strategist, and business builder Mike Scott, APAC Director at Warp Development, on how non-technical founders should think about AI, not as a toolset, but as a source of leverage.
- Workshop: Making sense of AI to generate tangible returns for your business, with Gaurav Devsarmah, MBA & AI/ML Practitioner, Head of AI at Warp Development.
- Day 1 will be opened by Alan Winde, Premier of the Western Cape.
Day 2: AI and the world around you. From cities and climate, to ethics, education, health and the shadows where fraud lurks.
On 8 August, we zoom out to explore the seismic shifts AI is triggering across society. It’s no longer just about business, it’s about how AI is reshaping the very systems we rely on to live, work, learn, and thrive. What happens when machines start diagnosing illness, or managing traffic flow in cities?
This day dives deep into the human and societal implications of AI, with bold talks and challenging conversations on subjects like:
- Rethinking education in the age of AI: Shirley Eadie, Founding Director at Whole Human Studios.
- African Language Solutions: Thapelo Nthite, Co-Founder & CEO, Botlhale AI Solutions and Jade Abbott, Co-founder & Chief Technology Officer at Lelapa AI.
- Local Applications of AI: TB detection through lung sound analysis, Braden van Breda, Chief Executive Officer at AI Diagnostics.
- Redefining Legal: The AI-Driven Future of Law: Yvonne Wakefield, Chief Executive Officer at Caveat, with Kyle Torrington, Co-Founder & Director at Taylor Torrington and Associates Law Firm.
- AI in journalism: Karen Allen, Journalist and Founder at Karen Allen International and Chris Roper, Senior Strategist at Code for Africa.
With speakers being announced weekly, visit https://aiempowered.co.za/ for updates.
Expect 1,500 attendees each day, live demos, three dynamic stages, interactive activations, and hands-on masterclasses, AI Empowered, inspired by EO Cape Town, is set to become a cornerstone of Africa’s innovation calendar.
Cape Town’s global appeal, creative spirit, and booming tech culture make it the perfect host city-and the perfect excuse to stay for the weekend.
Tickets start at R3,600 for both days, and are on sale now at www.aiempowered.co.za
Proudly inspired by EO Cape Town, in partnership with CapeTalk, Daily Maverick, and produced by One-eyed Jack.
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