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Who Oversees the Sky? The NigComSat-1R Dispute and the Politics of Technological Sovereignty

The NigComSat-1R dispute reveals a "sovereign improvisation" where a lightning strike turned a temporary Chinese backup into a seven-year default. This reliance on a Xinjiang ground station exposes the gap between owning a satellite and the institutional depth required to drive it, transforming a $311 million asset into a case study of postcolonial dependency. Ultimately, the $11.4 million debt functions as a moral economy, binding Nigeria to a "patience capital" that contradicts its own rhetoric of technological sovereignty.

The iDICE “Startup Bridge”

Nigeria has launched a ₦1 billion grant program to bridge the brutal funding gap for early-stage startups. But beyond the headlines of "investability" and "scalability," a deeper question remains: is this program simply a neutral financial lift, or is it something more? From the "Lagos bias" to the Silicon Valley vocabulary required to win, we look at whether the iDICE Bridge is creating a new pathway for local grit or teaching founders to perform for a specific audience.

Google Adds Yorùbá and Hausa to AI Search: A Nuanced Leap Forward

Google has expanded its AI Search to include two of Nigeria’s "Big Three" languages, marking a major milestone for digital accessibility. However, the omission of Igbo and Nigerian Pidgin raises urgent questions about linguistic hierarchy, standardization and "data sovereignty." As AI begins to set a digital standard for indigenous tongues, we must ask: are we seeing true inclusion, or simply Western knowledge wearing a local mask?

Reimagining AI as a Human Endeavor: The Human Aspects of AI and LLMs in Africa

LAGOSTECH’s panel “Reimagining AI as a Human Endeavor” brought students and scholars together to spotlight the hidden labour, cultural contexts, and decolonial possibilities behind AI and LLMs in Africa. From Folami’s story of data annotation to debates on history, identity, and cultural preservation, the event reminded us that AI is made—and can be remade—by people.

Reimagining AI as a Human Endeavor: A Call for Papers on the Human Aspects of AI and LLMs in Africa

This panel critically examines Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Large Language Models (LLMs) not as autonomous, objective technologies, but as deeply human products shaped by labour, social conditions, and cultural contexts. The perception of AI as autonomous often obscures embedded human choices, values, and biases, deflecting accountability from creators and socio-economic structures. Meanwhile, discourses on "algorithms" can stem from terminological anxiety about the roles these systems occupy in society. The speakers moves beyond the "algorithmic drama" of AI as an obscure, inhuman power, instead illuminating its complex socio-technical underpinnings.

Imagining Lagos 2035: The Future of Tech and Daily Life

Imagining Lagos 2035: The Future of Tech and Daily Life

Imagining Lagos 2035: The Future of Tech and Daily Life.
Date: Saturday, May 24, 2025
Time: 10:30 AM – 3:00 PM
Location: CcHUB, 294 Herbert Macaulay Way, Lagos
Join us for a free, interactive workshop to explore how Lagos’ tech ecosystem could evolve by 2035. Through scenario building, creative storytelling, and networking, we’ll co-create visions for the future of technology in Lagos.
Register now: https://bit.ly/4j1PkMS