This blog is part of the AI worldwide tour series, which highlights customers from around the globe who are embracing AI to achieve more. Read about how customers are using responsible AI to drive social impact and business transformation with Global AI innovation.
Africa stands at the cusp of a transformative future, uniquely positioned to lead in AI-powered solutions. With a median age of 19 and 60% of its population under 35, the continent is home to a youthful, dynamic workforce. By 2030, this growing tech talent could solidify Africa’s role as a key player in the global economy.
To further accelerate the continent’s digital and AI transformation, Microsoft South Africa has introduced its AI skilling initiative, a program which aims to equip one million South Africans with critical, in-demand digital skills by 2026, empowering individuals and businesses to thrive in an increasingly AI-powered world.
Africa’s exceptional rate of new business startups, coupled with a growing wave of investment and innovation, has created a powerful synergy, positioning the continent as a thriving hub for AI-powered transformation. This potential was on full display at the Microsoft AI Tour stop in Johannesburg, South Africa, where innovative companies showcased how generative AI and AI agents are already reshaping industries and driving impactful change across Africa.
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South African Revenue Service transforms tax filing with AI and cloud services
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has significantly enhanced the tax filing experience for South Africans by integrating AI and machine learning into its operations. Serving 14 million taxpayers across more than 200 sites, SARS manages an extensive volume of data.
AI and data science are pivotal in efficiently handling this complexity. “Embracing AI in tax and customs administration is revolutionizing our engagement with taxpayers and traders,” explained Edward Kieswetter, Commissioner of SARS. “It enables hyper-personalization, in the provision of service as well as detecting non-compliance. It automates routine tasks and augments the work of tax professionals with insights from data.”
A key advancement is SARS’s ability to pre-populate tax returns using third-party data analyzed through AI models. In the recent fiscal year, 5 million individuals received automatic assessments without any action required on their part, often receiving refunds within three days. For those who opted to file manually, assessments were delivered in under five seconds.
SARS has also enhanced taxpayer interactions by deploying a chatbot integrated with Azure Cloud Services and enabled with Azure OpenAI Service. This system provides personalized guidance based on individual records, having generated approximately 300,000 tailored responses to date.
We must come to terms that our future is a co-existence with AI agents that in many ways will replace some of the work we do, augment all our work and significantly enhance our abilities as a species.”
Edward Kieswetter, Commissioner of SARS
These initiatives underscore SARS’s commitment to leveraging AI to make tax compliance more straightforward and efficient for South African taxpayers.
Lelapa AI promotes more human innovation with the help of AI
Lelapa AI is an Africa-centric AI research and product lab committed to harnessing the power of AI to drive innovation and uplift African communities. By focusing on their unique strengths in efficient small language models, Lelapa AI aims to advance AI technology on a global scale, with a particular emphasis on tackling the complex challenges faced by the Global South.
A flagship example of their work is InkubaLM, Africa’s first multilingual AI small language model. This groundbreaking tool is designed to support and elevate low-resource African languages such as Swahili, Yoruba, isiXhosa, Hausa, and isiZulu. By providing capabilities for translation, transcription, and other natural language processing tasks, InkubaLM addresses the digital underrepresentation of these languages, empowering African communities and ensuring a stronger presence in the global digital space.
Rooted in the philosophy of Ubuntu (“I am because we are,”) Lelapa AI prioritizes the development of technology grounded in humanism and interconnectedness, championing responsible AI practices across the continent and beyond. Furthermore, the organization recognizes the importance of fostering opportunities for African AI talent, creating a platform where researchers can make meaningful contributions while receiving fair and equitable compensation. Through its innovative work, Lelapa AI is shaping a more inclusive and representative future for Africa in the global AI landscape.
SPAR is revolutionizing the future of retail with Microsoft Copilot and AI
SPAR, a prominent retailer in Africa and Europe, has effectively harnessed AI to address business challenges and enhance operations. By integrating Microsoft 365 Copilot into its existing Microsoft 365 ecosystem, SPAR has streamlined various tasks, leading to significant efficiency gains. Employees utilize Microsoft Copilot in Word for document creation and summarization, in Microsoft Teams for catching up on missed meetings and managing minutes, and in Microsoft PowerPoint for generating initial presentations.
This strategic implementation has resulted in a 67% active user base among employees, saving approximately 715 hours—equivalent to 89 workdays or the output of four full-time employees. Notably, 93% of Copilot users report increased productivity, and 88% feel empowered to complete tasks faster. These outcomes, and SPAR’s continued investment into new applications like enhanced data visualization, deeper Copilot use, and AI-powered object recognition, underscore SPAR’s commitment to leveraging AI to enhance productivity and empower its workforce.
AI for everyone in Africa
As we embrace an AI-powered future, it is crucial to prioritize responsible and sustainable innovation that addresses Africa’s unique challenges, aligns with human values and cultural diversity, and ensures ethical, collaborative, and culturally attuned solutions through thoughtful regulation and stakeholder engagement.
Digital skills are the foundation for modern innovation. By making AI education more accessible to Africa’s diverse populations, Microsoft is working to support home-spun innovation in Africa that will prepare the continent’s youth for high-tech jobs, reduce unemployment, and promote inclusive economic growth.
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