Last week in Johannesburg, Lenovo’s Accelerate 2025 event was more than just a showcase of technology; it was also an opportunity to promote Africa as the future of AI. The message conveyed was that advanced AI-enabled systems, which are built on collaboration, inclusion and practicality, are now indispensable. The phrase everyone’s talking about? “Smarter Technology for All.”
The opening statement was made by Yugen Naidoo, General Manager of Lenovo Southern Africa, which captured the moment. Lenovo’s approach is described as pocket-to-cloud, an ecosystem that starts with smart devices and expands through AI-optimized infrastructure and sustainable services.
The realization that he was advocating for a vision where AI benefits everyone, from students in rural towns to businesses in urban centers, felt like a turning point.
The focus is not solely on faster laptops, but also on redefining the way we work, learn, and interact.
This mission revolved around a panel that focused on democratizing AI. Naidoo highlighted the fact that AI is not a fixture in ivory towers, but rather canister churches, hospitals, and corner stores. Lenovo infrastructure expert Tikiri Wanduragala characterized hybrid AI, which includes both cloud and edge computing, as the inherent feature of our digital realm. Thibault Dousson, the services director, emphasized that AI thrives on data and only works when businesses create secure environments around it.
Lenovo’s focus is not on selling devices, but on promoting a future where collaborations are crucial. Their 360 Circle ecosystem, lauded by Canalys, is a mature reflection of sustainability and shared responsibility.
The Aura Edition laptops, which are co-developed with Intel and available at a low price point, have been designed to achieve “Smarter AI for All” by including AI tools that enhance productivity, security, and privacy.
The event wasn’t solely focused on tech specs. NVIDIA, Databricks and others are brought together to create end-to-end solutions for AI deployment at Lenovo’s AI Center of Excellence, showcasing its global hub.
The implementation of AI teaching assistants, predictive analytics on farms, and machine vision for patient triaging could transform Africa without requiring a large budget or proprietary systems.
The financials of Lenovo demonstrate the company’s aspirations. Its Infrastructure Solutions Group experienced a surge in demand for AI-ready solutions, leading to 20% more revenue growth during the Q3 fiscal 2024/25.
The fact that your consumer PC revenue represents 46% of your business makes this task incredibly difficult. The success of the system is based on its devices, but it relies on infrastructure such as racks for servers, clouds, and AI engines that work together seamlessly.
My impression is that accelerators like Accelerate 2025 can either manipulate their audience or move them. The indications given by Lenovo this time were that India, Middle East, Türkiye, and Africa META regions will receive AI-ready hardware and localized ecosystems designed for scale and resilience. That gives me confidence in Lenovo’s regional commitment and in Africa’s capacity to lead in some of the challenging use cases.
Nevertheless, ambition results in setbacks due to fragmented infrastructure, inadequate skills, and delayed regulatory mechanisms. Challenges abound. Lenovo is displaying signs of creating supportive relationships through partnerships with educational institutions, including Durban University of Technology and a growing local vendor network. The Accelerate 2025 mission leaves me feeling both inspired and hopeful. Lenovo’s focus is not on technology alone, but on promoting ecosystems across different domains. They’re banking on ordinary Africans acquiring AI tools to boost prosperity, opportunity, and innovation. That’s a future worth investing in.