Sophia, the first humanoid robot, is scheduled to address the 5th Transform Africa Summit to be held in Kigali, from the 14th to the 17th of May 2019. The summit will be held under the theme “Boosting Africa’s Digital Economy”, and Sophia is expected to headline discussions around artificial intelligence and the 4th Industrial Revolution. Sophia is a citizen of Saudi Arabia and a United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Ambassador. She has the ability to see, follow faces, sustain eye contact, and recognise individuals. She can also process speech, have conversations using a natural language subsystem, and can walk. On November 21, 2017 Sophia was named the United Nations Development Programme’s first-ever Innovation Champion. The summit will host high profile speakers and panellists, including Smart Africa’s Director General Lacina Koné, World Bank Vice President Makhtar Diop, Mozilla Chief Innovation Officer Katharina Bochert, AfDB President Dr Akinwumi Adesina and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Regional Director Cynthia Samuel Olonjuwon, among others. The summit will also host several Heads of State, ministers from across Africa, captains of industry, innovators and thought leaders within the ICT space. The Government of Kenya will launch Africa’s Digital Economy blueprint during the summit. The Summit is expected to attract over 4,000 participants, including Heads of State and Government, First Ladies, UN Broadband Commissioners, Ministers, African Mayors, Public & Private Sector, international organisations, industry leaders, investors, entrepreneurs, Young innovators, Civil Society and Academia. The key summit streams for this edition include: The Smart Africa Heads of State Leaders Summit, The Smart Africa Women’s Summit, FinTech and eHealth Forums, the Smart Africa Conference and Exhibition to name a few. editor@newtimesrwanda.com
