Awarri: Know All About Nigeria’s Government-backed LLM and AI Startups

Nigeria’s technology minister, Bosun Tijani, stated earlier this year that the government was working with a local startup called Awarri, among other institutions, to create its large language model. And once again, Awarri is in the news for all the good reasons. Awarri was co-founded by serial entrepreneurs Silas Andekunle and Eniola Edun in 2019. The company aims to help Nigerians search for their place in the AI industry. 

Read this article to learn more about Awarri and its research model.

What is Awarri?

Awarri, derived from the Yoruba word “Awari,” meaning “seek and find,” embodies a vision where native intelligence meets the cutting edge of technology, artificial intelligence. It is a company dedicated to building frontier technology that can be deployed globally to inspire, entertain, and educate for a fairer and more equitable world.

According to the Awarri official website, “Awarri is committed to the democratisation of effective technology tools in educational settings on the African continent and has collaborated with various organisations, such as Union Bank, over the last 2 years in Nigeria to search for and train outstanding students between the ages of 11 and 16 in AI and robotics, preparing them for the future of work while at the same time creating employment opportunities for university graduates in Nigeria.” 

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What are the features of Awarri?

Awarri is developing Nigeria’s first and largest Large Language Model (LLM) based on both text and audio datasets to support the local creator and developer ecosystem. It aims to enable the development and adoption of frontier technology on the African continent by building lasting technology solutions and creating a brighter future using the power of AI. The various features of Awarri include: 

Service: It combines human expertise and cutting-edge technology to help machine learning teams get their models into production with high-quality labelled data at any scale, across various industries and data types.

Security: The AI platform is deployed to secure infrastructure with built-in access controls and safety features to keep your enterprise data secure. 

Ethical & Fair: AI can benefit all. Awarri is committed to an ecosystem that prevents the exploitation of African workers and is committed to paying a living wage to every worker, whilst operating with sustainable practices. 

Highest Standard: This AI platform leverages the best-in-class tools and infrastructure to deliver high-quality data and labels. An AI workforce with domain expertise scales from RnD to production volumes, whilst delivering an efficient and sustainable product.

This Nigeria’sfirst and Largest LLM is a language-based Gen AI solution that is currently based on the English language, which has far-reaching economic and societal consequences such as cultural preservation, data equity and diversity impacts. 

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