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Google Cloud has projected that its Johannesburg Cloud Region could generate an additional $90.6 billion in economic output and support nearly 315,000 jobs across Africa by 2030.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, Maureen Costello, Vice President for UK, Ireland, and Sub-Saharan Africa at Google Cloud, made this known in a statement on Wednesday.
She said the projection was made as the company unveiled five AI initiatives aimed at accelerating the continent’s digital transformation at its inaugural Africa Cloud Summit in Johannesburg, attended by approximately 3,000 business leaders, developers, public sector officials, and technology partners.
The initiatives build on Google’s existing $1 billion investment commitment to Africa and cover infrastructure, AI research, startup funding, and digital skills development across the continent.
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What Google is saying
Costello said the announcements reflect a recognition that African enterprises have moved beyond AI experimentation and are now deploying practical business solutions at scale.
She announced plans to establish a Digital Exchange Port in South Africa’s Eastern Cape to strengthen internet resilience and international connectivity.
- “The facility, the first of four planned African connectivity hubs, will connect the continent directly to Australia through the Umoja subsea cable and a new subsea route to India,” she said.
Google also launched Africa’s first Applied AI Lab in Accra, Ghana, pairing African startup founders with Google researchers and providing early access to the company’s latest AI models to support solutions addressing uniquely African challenges across business, education, creativity, and software development.
Google Senior Vice President for Research, Labs, Technology and Society, James Manyika, said the investments reflect a long-term commitment to African-led AI innovation.
- “The new initiatives will expand infrastructure, strengthen partnerships and equip African innovators to harness AI for locally relevant solutions,” he said.
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Google announced that applications for the 2026 South African Google for Startups Accelerator will open on July 21, with 15 startups to be admitted for AI-focused training, mentorship, and equity-free funding as part of the company’s commitment to support 50 African ventures by 2028.
To deepen digital skills, Google will partner WeThinkCode to establish a three-million-rand digital innovation centre at South West Gauteng TVET College in Soweto.
Google.org committed more than $1 million to support The Akuna Group’s AI education programme for underrepresented African creators, as part of the company’s broader push to widen access to AI skills development across the continent.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, quoted in the summit statement, said Africa was becoming a strategic growth region for the global cloud ecosystem through sustained investments in AI and digital infrastructure.
What you should know
The latest announcements add to Google’s growing portfolio of AI investments across Africa.
Nairametrics earlier reported that Google has launched Build with AI, a new initiative designed to train 1,000 Nigerian developers in generative artificial intelligence (AI) skills.
The programme aims to equip participants with the technical expertise needed to develop innovative, locally relevant and globally competitive AI-powered solutions.
The initiative is being implemented in partnership with GOMYCODE, a technology education and training company focused on equipping individuals with in-demand digital skills.
