The University of Cape Town (UCT) has launched the African Hub on AI Safety, Peace, and Security, a first-of-its-kind platform designed to place African perspectives at the center of global conversations on artificial intelligence governance and safety.
“This hub is about more than science — it’s about societal impact,” said Associate Professor Jonathan Shock, interim director of the UCT AI Initiative. “Our aim is to ensure Africa’s priorities are represented in global AI debates while advancing research, building capacity, and influencing policy.”
Building a Community and a Field
The launch event brought together students, academics, international partners, and dignitaries for an evening that blended institutional vision with a call to action. UCT Vice-Chancellor Professor Mosa Moshabela, Emily Middleton from the United Kingdom’s Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, and Maggie Gorman Vélez from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC) delivered opening remarks.
Professor Moshabela described the launch as a proud and defining moment for UCT. “We are not only launching a hub; we are affirming our role in leading Africa’s contribution to the future of AI safety,” he said. “By anchoring the hub here, we are saying that Africa’s voice matters, that Africa’s knowledge matters, and that Africa’s future in AI must be secured on its own terms.”
Middleton emphasized the urgency of including African voices in global AI systems design. “Despite people in African countries being most exposed to AI-related risks, they remain under-represented in shaping AI systems,” she said. “UCT’s expertise positions this hub as a much-needed center of gravity for Africa-led research with global implications.”
Gorman Vélez placed the hub within a broader global initiative, noting that it is one of 13 multidisciplinary labs under the AI for Development program. “By fostering safe and inclusive AI ecosystems, we empower local experts to develop their own solutions and mitigate risks through sustainable policies and standards,” she said.
Addressing AI Risks with African Solutions
Introducing the hub, Professor Shock highlighted the need for Africa-focused research on AI safety, peace, and security. “Much of global AI safety work has focused on existential risks,” he said. “While these are important, there has been far less attention on the peace and security consequences of AI for African societies — from disinformation during elections to AI-driven surveillance and impacts on labor markets.”
He added that systems developed outside Africa often fail to function effectively on the continent due to data diversity — a factor he sees as an opportunity rather than a limitation.
Over the next three years, the hub will focus on research, capacity strengthening, and policy influence, collaborating with networks such as Masakhane, Deep Learning Indaba, AfriClimate AI, GRIT, and CAIR.
Shock also underscored the transformative potential of AI in agriculture, healthcare, education, and governance. “AI can help smallholder farmers predict crop diseases, improve irrigation, deliver low-cost diagnostic tools, and flag disinformation in African languages to protect democracy,” he said.
A Call for Inclusive AI Safety
Delivering the keynote address, Dr. Chinasa Okolo, founder and scientific director of Technecultura, urged a reframing of AI safety through an African lens.
“Mainstream AI safety has been dominated by Western-centric approaches that often exclude the lived realities of the Global South,” Okolo said. “Without deliberate effort to center African perspectives, global AI safety initiatives risk perpetuating the very exclusions they claim to address.”
She called for multilingual evaluation systems, regional infrastructure investment, and public participation in AI governance. “Without African leadership, so-called global safety initiatives will remain incomplete,” she added.
From Cape Town to the Continent
Looking ahead, Shock expressed optimism that the hub will catalyze long-term collaboration and innovation across Africa.
“Five years from now, I hope we’ll have a network of African innovators building tools that address risks while advancing peace, democracy, and development across the continent,” he said.
The African Hub on AI Safety, Peace, and Security marks a pivotal step in ensuring that Africa not only participates in — but helps define — the future of responsible artificial intelligence worldwide.
