South Africa Opens Continent’s First AI Research Center Dedicated to Defense

ADF STAFF

South Africa has launched its latest venture exploring the potential for artificial intelligence (AI), this time in the defense sphere.

The Defence Artificial Intelligence Research Unit (DAIRU) opened in early May at the South African Military Academy in the Western Cape province. It’s the first center of its kind in Africa, according to Mondli Gungubele, South Africa’s minister of communications and digital technologies. DAIRU is South Africa’s fourth AI research center. Gungubele said the center represents a strategic leveraging of AI on behalf of national security.

“For Africa to be competitive in the world, we need to realize that there was a space race, then the arms race and now the AI race,” Gungubele said during the center’s launch. “We cannot afford to be left behind in this one.”

The explosive growth of AI around the world increasingly includes a role in defense and security. Uses include guiding autonomous weapons, and gathering intelligence to predict when equipment needs maintenance in order to prevent breakdowns. The fact that such tasks fall within the exclusive mandate of the government means those are areas where the government must lead in adopting AI technology, according to Gungubele.

“While the challenges may be many and daunting, they are definitely not insurmountable,” the minister told South Africa’s first National AI Government Summit in April.

At the moment, the government is losing potential AI experts to the private sector — or to other countries, Gungubele said. Addressing South Africa’s AI brain drain requires greater economic opportunities, more investment in research infrastructure, and promoting AI education, according to United Nations University Rector Tshilidzi Marwala.

“Creating a supportive ecosystem and leveraging the diaspora for knowledge transfer is also imperative,” Marwala said during a speech in December 2023.

Additionally, according to recent South Africa’s 2022 census, the country is not educating enough students at the advanced levels needed to develop the skills to expand South Africa’s role in the AI space. While nearly 87% of students complete secondary education, less than 6% go on to college and just over 2% go to technical schools.

A recent report on economic growth suggested that South Africa lags behind other countries because of a lack of investment in innovation and research and development.

“Intriguingly, these are the very metrics that are important in the age of AI,” Marwala said.

At the time, Marwala called for opening more research centers in the country focused on different aspects of AI.

“Solid investments in facilities and spending for research to facilitate the consolidation of researchers and professors are pivotal to creating an AI-driven economy,” Marwala added.

During the DAIRU launch, South African National Defence Force Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Michael Ramantswana noted that the opening of the research center reflects South Africa’s commitment to leveraging AI for military advancement.

“AI, akin to electricity or fossil fuels, has the potential to redefine modern militaries and reshape the global balance of power,” Gungubele said during the DIARU launch.