Orange is working with OpenAI to make LLMs in Africa more inclusive

Orange, the French telecommunications company, has taken a big step towards inclusive access to AI Large Language Models. In a press release, the company announced: “OpenAI and Orange have signed an agreement giving Orange direct access to the OpenAI models, available for the first time in Europe with data processing and hosting in European data centers, allowing Orange to work on improvements .” existing solutions across its footprint.” While the company is a major player in the communications space in Europe, most of its growth comes from its subsidiaries in Africa and the Middle East. So it’s no surprise that their collaboration also has an African focus. According to the same press release, the company will work with both OpenAI and Meta to optimize AI Large Language Models (LLMs) to understand regional African languages, starting with Wolof and Pulaar, the major languages ​​in Senegal and the entire West Africa region .

Much attention has been paid to how LLMs and “gene AI” will change the way we live and work, but as long as it is only available in the most popular languages, the most vulnerable people will be left behind. In Senegal, where Wolof is spoken more widely than French, the ability for a farmer to ask a question about a crop or for an entrepreneur to get help analyzing his books by speaking in Wolof with ChatGPT will be a radical improvement access to information and analysis.

This inclusive progress is particularly important for women. According to the UNESCO Library, the Gender Parity Index (GPI) for literacy rates in sub-Saharan Africa ranges from 0.63 to 0.77, indicating that female literacy rates are significantly lower than those of men. In Senegal, only 45.4% of women can read and write, compared to 68.4% of men. In Africa, literacy correlates with the ability to speak colonial languages ​​such as French or English.

It’s not just large telecommunications companies that are focused on training AI to work seamlessly with African languages. Earlier this month, Lingawa, a technology company that helps the diaspora learn their native African languages, announced a $1.1 million capital raise. Investors including Voltron Capital, WEAV Capital and the MasterCard Foundation took part in the round. In an interview with Techpoint, co-founder and CEO Frank Williams said: “We have already developed AI as a core part of our build in terms of matching students and tutors, but in the background we have also started working on our African-large language models. The company is starting with Igbo and Yoruba, in which ChatGPT can already converse, but just like Orange, whose “long-term goal is to work with many AI technology providers to enable future models to recognize all spoken and written African languages Lingawa will also expand the languages ​​it works with. Whether large or small, companies working towards a more inclusive future for LLMs are working to close the digital gender divide.