The African continent now counts 207 active artificial intelligence startups spread across 17 countries — a number that has doubled in three years, according to the TechCabal Insights report published in April 2026.
Three countries account for most of that momentum: Nigeria (50 startups), South Africa (49) and Kenya (31) together represent 63% of all AI startups on the continent.
Other ecosystems are growing more quietly but just as fast: Egypt has gone from 3 to 11 startups since 2022, Ghana now counts 13, and Tunisia 11 — trajectories that paint a less concentrated map of African AI innovation than a few years ago.
This growth echoes a ranking published in December 2025 by The Observer, which placed Egypt, South Africa and Ghana among the best-positioned African countries in the global AI race.
The economic stakes go beyond the tech sector itself: Africa's AI market could generate up to $1 trillion by 2035, according to the most optimistic projections cited by industry players.
For still-emerging ecosystems like Cameroon's, these figures chart a path worth following: today's concentration around three anglophone hubs isn't fixed, as shown by the recent progress made by Egypt, Ghana and Tunisia.
