Meta, in partnership with Data Science Africa, has opened applications for the Llama Impact Grant for start-ups and researchers based in Sub-Saharan Africa.
As part of Meta's global Llama Impact Grants, this initiative will support innovative projects that harness the power of Llama, Meta's open-source large language model, to develop solutions tailored to the region's needs.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has more potential than any other modern technology to increase human productivity and creativity, accelerate economic growth, and unlock progress in medical and scientific research, says Meta.
To help realise this potential, the company is seeking proposals from organisations and individuals across Sub-Saharan Africa that leverage Llama for economically and socially impactful projects, focusing on areas such as health, science and agriculture.
The winning proposal will receive a grant of $20 000 to help develop these innovations and bring them to market.
Balkissa Idé Siddo, public policy director, Sub-Saharan Africa at Meta, comments: "We’re still in the early days, but AI is likely to fundamentally change every aspect of our lives − spurring innovation, turbo-charging growth and driving an explosion in learning and productivity.
“At the forefront of this transformation are open-source AI models, like Meta's Llama, which are available for free for organisations to use, modify and build on.
“Through this grant programme, we’re hoping to support and scale AI-driven solutions across Africa that use our open-source model Llama to address the continent’s unique social and economic challenges, empowering innovators to drive meaningful impact across the region.”
The grant for start-ups and researchers is part of Meta's broader Llama Impact Grants programme, which launched in October 2023.
This global initiative looks to source innovative use cases of Llama, to address critical global challenges in areas like education and open innovation. There have been over 800 applications from more than 90 countries to the global initiative since 2023.
Proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
- Clear description of an application with a compelling use case that makes use of Llama.
- Clear path to impact and large potential user base for the solution.
- Team composition and expertise.
- Ethical product development.
- Realistic budget and timeline.
Interested applicants must submit their proposals via the online application portal before the submission deadline of 18 April.
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