University of Pretoria AI Professor Brings African Perspective to UN's First Global Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence - iAfrica. com

Prof. Vukosi Marivate, director of the African Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence at the University of Pretoria, has been appointed to the United Nations Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence. This body represents the first global scientific organization dedicated to overseeing artificial intelligence development and governance. Marivate was chosen from over 2,600 applicants spanning 140 countries, joining 39 other experts selected to serve on the panel. He holds the ABSA UP Chair of Data Science and has spent nearly a decade working to ensure Africa shapes artificial intelligence rather than being shaped by external forces. His appointment builds upon years of institution-building, including co-founding the Deep Learning Indaba in 2017 and establishing Masakhane, a grassroots initiative creating natural language processing tools for African languages. Additionally, his work with Lelapa AI launched InkubaLM, described as Africa’s first multilingual large language model. A central focus of his mission is addressing the disparity between South Africa’s 12 official languages and the lack of representation in most AI-powered voice assistants. Marivate notes that historical, cultural, and political factors have influenced digital language representation, warning that technology must represent people to deliver intended outcomes. The UN panel is mandated to ground international AI policy in scientific evidence, with its first report scheduled for delivery at the Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva in July 2026. Marivate expects broadening the range of voices shaping AI governance to be a significant outcome, even if a single global framework does not emerge. He warned that Africa’s under-investment in research and development leaves the continent poorly positioned to influence the AI revolution. According to Marivate, without active capability building, nations risk becoming mere spectators to transformative technologies that accrue in one space.