FG unveils first AI tool

The Federal Government of Nigeria, has unveiled the country’s first multi-tongued large language model in a move to boost its course in artificial intelligence.

Bosun Tijani, the Communications Minister, revealed this disclosure on X account (formerly Twitter).

The multi-tongued Large Language Model is a highly developed artificial intelligence system capable of comprehending, processing, and generating text in multiple languages.

The launch of the LLM was part of the activities of a 4-day AI workshop held in Abuja, which brought together over 120 AI experts to co-create and accelerate AI development in Nigeria.

According to the minister, the LLM will be trained in five low-resource languages and accented English, ensuring stronger language representation in existing datasets.

“The LLM will be trained in five low-resource languages and accented English to ensure stronger language representation in existing datasets for the development of artificial intelligence solutions.

“The project will also be supported by over 7,000 fellows from the @3MTTNigeria programme,” the minister expounded.

He stated that the AI tool, developed in collaboration with local and global tech companies, was poised to revolutionise AI solutions in Nigeria and beyond.

The minister also declared the relaunch of the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics in partnership with Cisco, a renowned cybersecurity firm.

Tijani claims that this is the first of its kind in Africa, a special-purpose vehicle designed to foster research and development on cutting-edge technologies such as AI, robotics and the Internet of Things and their practical application in areas of Nigerian national interest.

The enhance capacity at NCAIR would help it improve to fulfil its endorsement as a digital innovation and research facility, he added.