By: Nana
Appiah Acquaye
OpenAI has reported a more
than 130 per cent increase in ChatGPT weekly active visitors in Nigeria in the
year to October 24, 2026, as the company steps up efforts to expand artificial
intelligence adoption through developer training, business partnerships and
collaboration with government and educational institutions.
The company disclosed the
growth following a weeklong series of engagements in Lagos that brought
together developers, students, founders and business leaders to explore
practical applications of artificial intelligence and support the growth of
Nigeria’s AI ecosystem.
The visit was led by
Emmanuel Lubanzadio, OpenAI’s Africa lead, and Tom Duff Gordon, the company’s
head of EMEA Policy, and centred on Moonshot, one of Nigeria’s leading
technology conferences.
As part of the engagements,
OpenAI partnered with Paystack to organise the OpenAI × Paystack AI Forum,
which brought founders and business leaders together to explore the use of AI
in business operations. Paystack also demonstrated internal tools and projects
developed through its AI Builder Challenge.
Among the solutions
demonstrated was the Paystack Index tool, which allows people in Nigeria to use
AI tools such as ChatGPT to buy mobile data, send money and order food.
OpenAI also partnered with
Andela and Miva Open University to host an OpenAI Academy featuring the Codex
Challenge. The programme brought together 100 experienced engineers and 100
students selected from more than 1,000 applicants for two weeks of free, hands-on
training.
Five finalists presented
their projects, with the audience awarding first place to Esih Egwurube’s
Coteacher, an AI-powered solution that allows teachers to record a lesson once
and provides students with alternative explanations and a voice tutor to support
learning at their own pace.
The Codex Challenge began in
Nairobi, continued in Lagos and is expected to move to South Africa.
OpenAI also convened
founders and investors through a partnership with Antler to explore
opportunities to build and fund AI companies across Africa. The engagement
featured a keynote address by Tom Duff Gordon and a conversation between
Emmanuel Lubanzadio and Antler CEO Magnus Grimeland.
The company further held
discussions with government representatives and the Gates Foundation on
Nigeria’s AI Scaling Hub and 3 Million Technical Talent initiative, exploring
how its programmes could help accelerate AI adoption, develop local talent and bring
promising solutions to more people.
At Moonshot, OpenAI
representatives also discussed the company’s growing work across Africa,
including collaborations with governments and universities and support for
developers building new solutions.
The company acknowledged the
contributions of its partners, including Andela, Miva Open University, Paystack
and Antler, as well as the Moonshot by TechCabal team, the Gates Foundation and
government representatives who participated in the engagements.
OpenAI said it was looking
to support more people in turning ideas into practical solutions, regardless of
the language they speak or where they live, noting that Nigeria’s next major AI
innovation could emerge in English, Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo or any of the country's
hundreds of languages.
