Nvidia, one of the world's largest technology companies, has invested in Cassava Technologies, a pan-African technology company, seven months after agreeing to supply it with artificial intelligence (AI) chips.

The equity stake elevates Nvidia's involvement from supplier to stakeholder and signals its confidence in Africa's emerging AI market.

Cassava Technologies, founded by Zimbabwean entrepreneur Strive Masiyiwa, operates the largest network of data centres in Africa and controls over 100 000 kilometres of fibre-optic cable. In March, Nvidia agreed to provide graphics processing units (GPUs) to Cassava's facilities, the company's first direct infrastructure deployment on the continent.

The partnership aims to address a fundamental constraint: most AI workloads generated in Africa are still processed offshore because local computing infrastructure remainsscarce. By placing Nvidia's hardware inside Cassava's data centres, the two companies intend to keep African data and computing power within the continent while giving developers access to advanced AI tools.

The deployment will start with approximately 3 000 Nvidia GPUs in South Africa and will expand to Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria, where roughly 12000 additional GPUs are planned over the next three to four years. Bloomberg estimates the initiative will require around $720 million in total investment.

The scale of the opportunity is tied to demographics. Only about 40% of Africans currently have internet access, but the continent's population is projected to reach 2.5 billion by 2050.

As connectivity spreads, demand for cloud services and AI applications is expected to grow sharply. Nvidia, which controls an estimated 93% of the global AI chip market, has positioned itself to capture that growth rather than treat Africa as a peripheral concern.

The investment also reflects broader geopolitical currents. It positions American technology companies as alternatives to Chinese state-backed infrastructure projects across Africa, advancing a market-driven model rather than government-led expansion.

The exact size of Nvidia’s equity stake in Cassava Technologies has not been disclosed, but the move underscores the company’s belief in Africa’s potential as a long-term market for AI and digital infrastructure.