Lelapa AI, a collaboration between Jade Abbott and Pelonomi Moiloa, is working to create AI tools specifically designed for African languages. Their latest tool, Vulavula, can convert voice to text and detect names of people and places. The lack of AI tools for African languages excludes African people from economic opportunities. While efforts have been made, the translations are often inaccurate. Lelapa AI aims to build Africa-centric AI solutions to address these challenges and put power back into the hands of African people.
This company is building AI for African languages
Jade Abbott and Pelonomi Moiloa, the founders of Lelapa AI, are working to create AI tools that specifically work for African languages. Many existing language models do not perform well for languages with smaller numbers of speakers, especially African ones. Lelapa AI has released Vulavula, an AI tool that converts voice to text and detects names of people and places in written text. It currently supports four languages spoken in South Africa and aims to include other languages from across Africa.
The lack of AI tools that recognize African languages and names excludes African people from economic opportunities. Lelapa AI aims to solve this problem by building Africa-centric AI solutions. Their goal is to put power back into the hands of African people and help them harness the potential benefits of AI technologies.
Challenges faced by African AI startups
African AI startups face major hurdles, including lack of funding, limited access to investors, and difficulties in training AI to learn diverse African languages. These startups often get ignored by investors due to the small size of the potential market, lack of political support, and poor internet infrastructure. However, small African startups like Lelapa AI, Lesan, and GhanaNLP are playing an important role in developing AI tools for African languages.
A new paradigm for AI models in Africa
Lelapa AI is creating a new paradigm for AI models in Africa. Instead of relying solely on internet data, they work both online and offline with linguists and local communities to gather data, annotate it, and identify use cases where the tool might be problematic. This approach allows them to develop context-specific and culturally relevant models. Lelapa AI also collaborates with grassroots initiatives like Masakhane to promote NLP research in African languages.
Evolve your company with AI
If you want to stay competitive and evolve your company with AI, consider the following steps:
1. Identify Automation Opportunities
Locate key customer interaction points that can benefit from AI. Determine areas where automation can improve efficiency and enhance customer experience.
2. Define KPIs
Ensure your AI endeavors have measurable impacts on business outcomes. Define key performance indicators (KPIs) that align with your business goals and track the success of your AI implementation.
3. Select an AI Solution
Choose AI tools that align with your specific needs and provide customization options. Look for solutions that can be integrated into your existing systems and workflows.
4. Implement Gradually
Start with a pilot project to test the effectiveness of the AI solution. Gather data and feedback to refine and improve the system. Gradually expand AI usage across different areas of your business.
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