How does AI Safety Nigeria connect people, policy, and AI governance

​Dr. Ayuba Tuodolo Founder and Executive Director of AI Safety Nigeria

We had the pleasure of having Dr. Ayuba Tuodolo founder and executive director of AI Safety Nigeria, one of Africa's most dynamic organizations advancing safe, ethical, and inclusive artificial intelligence.He is a convener of African Cybersecurity Convention and led AI Safety Nigeria in hosting the first ever AI Safety Summit in Nigeria. A researcher in the technical domains of AI safety and governance, Dr. Tuodolo bridges policy, research, and community engagement to strengthen public trust in emerging technologies. He also serves on the Advisory Council of Blacks in AI Safety and Ethics, or BASE. His work supports the development of National Artificial Intelligence Commission Bill 2025, and positions Africa at the forefront of responsible AI innovation.

*Note: transcript has been taken by AI zoom assistant and edited to highlight for readability on key topics covered in the discussion
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How did you end up working at the intersection of technology and society?

I actually came into AI because of the passion and not because of the hype. I came from a concerned point of view. I saw how rapidly artificial intelligence and systems are shaping economies around the world, also helping to shape societies. But, I also noticed that Africa is largely, or the Global South, I would say, is largely absent from the rooms where decisions are being made. And if they are not absent, then just a very few. This pulled me into AI safety and governance. That's where the passion is, and that's how I actually got into this space.

What does responsible technology mean to you?

Responsible tech means building systems that are actually safe. And not just safe, they are aligned with human values. And when they align with human values, they can also be accountable to the people they affect. Responsible technology would mean safety, inclusion, and accountability. The context of when it comes to awareness is not just profits or power. 

you know, context when it comes to awareness, In my opinion, we've seen that the big techs are probably looking at profitability more than safety and inclusion.

In regards to AI and technology governance, what do you think is missing in the global conversation from a Nigerian perspective? 

In Nigeria there has been some form of accountability but when it comes to Artificial Intelligence, Nigeria is still trying to build something. Currently we have no frameworks that have been built into the laws. We don't have very strict regulatory processes or regulatory frameworks in Nigeria….there must be accountability when it comes to artificial intelligence.

We must only give the Nigerian government the credit to say that there are policies that are already being put in place. That's because we currently have the Nigerian AI strategy. It's a framework that has been designed to create a roadmap on how artificial intelligence can be used, and how it can be deployed safely in Nigeria. We have the Nigerian Data Protection Act, which serves more like an enforcement agency to all of the incident responses that can occur during deployments of artificial intelligence. So yes, Nigeria is still building. It’s an ecosystem that is evolving.

We hope that in the near future, with the work we do in AI safety in Nigeria, we can be able to influence some of the processes and roadmaps that have been put in place for Nigeria.

Where do you think we are getting things wrong when it comes to AI or technology governance?

Where we’re getting it wrong is the speed at which we  embrace A systemsI. We have been able to look at one of the best ways to ensure that you also use the same speed to create safety, to ensure proper governance of a technology you are embracing very fast.

We think that governments in the Global South should ensure that. Whatever we are embracing, we have the capacity to also add a voice to it. We have the capacity to also ensure that our voice matters, so it is not a technology that is just imported into the Global South, without being a major contributor to how it is governed and to how it is implemented. So for me, that seems to be the biggest problem around how it comes in the Global South. I think one of the best ways we can look at it is to ensure that  whatever is being imported should be designed for the people. So if you want to design something, you should design it with the people in mind. 

Unfortunately, most systems are not designed with the [local] data.Or the data not being used from the people who are eventually users of those systems. So for me, it's a big concern that will lead to other big topics like data colonization and data sovereignty. 

What are the current trends in Nigeria to ensure AI alignment? 

The Nigerian government has, from our perspective, you can hardly build the ecosystem if there are no laws guiding it. If there are no laws saying these are the patterns you must use, everything is still in building stages. The Nigerian government is investing so much on e-governance, currently but AI has not seen the most attention.

We feel that our government is still at the phase of understanding, and I think this is happening around the Global South as well. But unfortunately, the majority of the citizens have already embraced this [AI] technology. That's why organizations like AI Safety Nigeria are coming into play to ensure that we can begin some form of AI literacy, which is part of the things we do currently, to help bridge that gap. We are able to help the Nigerian government that these are the tools, or these are the necessary aspects to be able to govern artificial intelligence and allow young startups in the ecosystem to find a voice and to have a ground they can be able to succeed properly. 

In the proposed bill currently, there are some unfavorable decisions around, ecosystems or small startups, or startups that are coming around AI. We are thinking, and we are already mapping out frameworks to counter some of them.

We must also ensure that startups in AI do not suffer, you know, when it comes to building technology that you're meant to build, because of the strict regulations and processes, which I know currently, the EU is reconsidering their  strict measures around these aspects of regulation and enforcement.

AI Safety Nigeria Initiatives

We ran the very first AI Safety Summit, bringing together government regulators, civil society organizations, students from universities, academics, and journalists. The summit gave birth to other programs for capacity building. Currently, we run an event called Learn and Launch. Learn and Launch is a capacity building program that is held every month. It’s a program where young people who are working in the intersection of AI come together in a room to discuss policies,

topics like algorithmic failures, we discuss large language terms, and we come up with policies. We've been able to design policy briefs around red lines. We've also talked about red teaming.

We have a reading group across 9 universities currently, with over 163 students, reading every week.

We also launched the first Indigenous AI Safety and Governance Fellowship in Nigeria having participants across the world both in Africa and in Europe. where we are developing one of the best [programs] around governance and policy. So far, Nigerians are excited about this because this is the first time they are seeing a dedicated group in Nigeria for the safety of Artificial Intelligence. 

What is Learn and Launch

Learn and Launch : Is ran by AI safety Nigeria with community groups inviting them to facilitate discussions. These local series of talks around Nigeria about AI Safety and Alignment: Why it Matters

Currently, we [AI Safety Nigeria] have expanded the Learn and Launch. It used to be in  Abuja but currently, we have just launched Lagos, we're launching another city by the end of this month. Cities are calling us to host in their cities. They said, it feels like we're sitting on a time bomb and we don't want that to happen. The communities call to say  we've seen the work you do, and we want to help expand the work. Many are volunteer led. Sometimes they want to bring in their funds to ensure these events are happening. So yes, the people love the project. People love the fact that we have somebody and some organizations *like ours, trying to check and advise the government, and ensuring that what we are consuming a form of artificial intelligence systems are safe and ethical and have human value.

New Nigerian Government coming, what next? 

Election, if not tackled properly, can cause a catastrophic crisis, or a catastrophic risk, or even an existential risk, because of the power that deepfakes travels. And so we have been able to come up with an advisory on election matters in Nigeria. We'll be sharing that advisory sometime by next week. We feel that the government needs to understand the dangers.

Because we are non-governmental, we play a role of advisory. We do not enforce it. We are also not at any point, trying to advocate for anything. We are not an advocacy group, because of the kind of roles we play and because of the kind of partners we get internationally also, we don't play advocating roles. The kind of roles we play are strictly advisory. For example, we currently have placed an advisory about a surveillance camera that has been deployed in three cities in Nigeria. It is AI-enabled, CCTV. We have sent in an advisory to the government on how this data must be used and how the global AI governance policies must be in place. Such as surveying people, surveillance without consent, it's a crime. So we do all of this just to ensure that we check every system that comes into the government, whether political, whether about elections,about health, agriculture etc. We want to ensure that whatever comes into this part of the world comes in safe and comes in using the best ethical standards.

What needs to happen in the next 5 to 10 years to move us towards more responsible and inclusive technology.

Yes, so first I see an African AI capacity beyond what it is currently. I see that the capacity in the next few years will be bigger than what it is.

Two, I see regional coordination. Why am I talking about regional coordination? Because Africa needs to find a way to become major players, and one of the best ways to become major players is to collaborate. Look at the kind of work the EU is doing. The African Union must do better. We must coordinate other African states to ensure that we have one clear roadmap, and that's what I see coming in the future, because a lot of voices are tilting towards that, and asking the African Union to look at what the EU is doing, and build something for Africa by Africans. 

I see a lot of inclusion in global governance, also. The work that you do here is also ensuring that the voices in the Global South are included in the global space. I see top Nigerians, getting involved. Our top AI researchers from the Global South are beginning to raise a voice.

I believe if Africa doesn't build capacity now, we won't just miss the AI revolution we will be governed by it.

In a nutshell, we must ensure that we build such capacity. It's a beautiful and a bright future for me that I see with the work that is going on around the Global South. I see a brighter future 

for the Global South and Africa in general.

Yeah, I think I see that also across the board in other countries that I've talked to, that there needs to be more alignment also across the board for it to actually amount to anything, because otherwise one country will do something else.

that directly affects your country. If if you're implemented into that model in some way, right? Okay. So let's go down to closing remarks and hopefully end on a happy note, as you said. I think you mentioned this also just now. But maybe you have something more to add, 

What is one technology trend you're excited about?

AI for public good, looking at health and education and youth innovation.

We’ve held an AI community hangout, and one of the key things we talked about is training technologies, AI for public good. I see that in health and in education. It is transforming how our education…It's also turning around the ways that our health systems are being managed. And so, I'm excited about that. I’m also careful that it's not misused, it is balanced, and that way it can become really exciting.

The one thing that worries me is concentration of power and misuse. You know the topic has always been there. Who do we hold accountable when an AI system goes wrong? That's where misuse comes in. AI systems are not really designed to cause chaos. They are not really designed to cause catastrophic risk. But the misuse of it… brings all of those aspects. Using it for disinformation, using it for biosafety issues, using it for cyber threats, these are the problems.

I just close by talking about what has happened between Anthropic and the US government. This is what we want, and this is what AI systems are built for. One party wants to use it for another information or for another purpose. And so that's where my biggest worry lies. My biggest worry lies in the place where this technology can cause an existential risk and work in a way that humans cannot control it anymore. That's my biggest worry.

Do you have any advice for people who want to get into AI?

Yes, I think I have more advice even for people who are building AI, because I feel that is where safety starts from. Every time we talk about safety, how AI is governed, can the government control them? Can the government use strategies like maybe withholding powers around GPUs for enforcement?

Even before we get to that point, can we begin to build with safety from day one? Can we have safety embedded in all the systems from day one? Because it becomes even more difficult to begin to build safety into already powerful systems. It becomes almost impossible.

So, we're hoping that as you build your systems, ensure you follow the guardrails. Ensure you follow the frameworks. Ensure safety is number one. And that way, we can have a better world. We can have a better system, we can have the excitement that truly Artificial Intelligence should bring into play. That's my advice currently.