INSPIRATION
Innovation for Africa, by Africans David Phume was born with an entrepreneurial spirit. This charismatic creative has never been afraid to dream big, and is passionate about doing his part to ensure that Africa becomes a technology powerhouse.
Phume’s love for creating and technology started when he was fortunate enough to be exposed to high-end animation software when he was 12 years old. He went on to study 3-D animation at Boston Media House in Johannesburg, before graduating from a San Francisco-based animation school where his teachers included professionals from international studios such as Pixar, Reel FX and Sony Pictures Imageworks. He founded Joburg’s Penthouse Motion Pictures in 2005, a broadcast design and animation studio which has since gone on to win numerous creative accolades. But Phume has always been one to look for new challenges, and so he began studying robotics and AI online with leading EdTech platform Udacity. He’s determined to become a leader in this field on the African continent. And, if his track record is anything to go by, it won’t be long before he has achieved his goal. “Four years ago, I started a new journey in tech because I realised that most of Africa’s problems are due to lack of technology,” he says. “I went on to launch Blackchain.ai, a technology company that identifies problems in Africa and finds solutions through technology. It is founded on four pillars - to inspire, identify talent, nurture skills and innovate. And now we are working on a robotics challenge TV show for high school students and currently in negotiations with broadcasters; a School of Robotics and AI and an Innovation Lab.” “We have already started the process of identifying five students for the School of Robotics and AI who we are enrolling in our programme at no cost to them. The main courses are robotics engineering and AI programming. For those with no prior knowledge in computer programming, there are prerequisite courses on C++ and Python programming,” he explains. “I want to do my part in ensuring that Africa becomes a technology powerhouse. Within the next five years, I hope to have enrolled more than 5 000 students across the continent in our robotics and AI programme.
David Phume and Shelile “Gino” Shelile, Blackchain.ai
30 YOUR BUSINESS | June-July 2020
With AI clearly becoming a powerful tool, it is important for all Africans to progress in technology with the goal of solving their biggest problems.
