The Wits Innovation Centre and Machine Intelligence and Neural Discovery (MIND) Institute at Wits University in Johannesburg, South Africa, is launching the AI & African Music project, it was announced on Wednesday (Sept. 10). The initiative aims to empower creatives to explore the intersection of cutting-edge technology and African musical traditions and sounds.
Musicians, producers, composers and music educators of African nationality and living in an African country, regardless of which genre they work in, are invited to submit AI-driven music project proposals here. The deadline for submission is Sunday (Sept. 14). Proposals can include: using AI to co-create, perform and teach music in African traditions; recording, transcribing and preserving African musical works, from oral heritage to digital formats; reimagining local, traditional, indigenous or contemporary genres; and building and localizing AI tools that understand African sounds, languages and workflows.
Selected honorees will receive 30,000 South African rand per month for four months and team up with an AI engineer and program advisor to develop their unique ideas over a six-month process, starting with an industry exchange and launch workshop in November and culminating in a showcase in April 2026. Both events will be held at Wits University.
“As a dedicated partner to the continent’s music ecosystem, Billboard Africa is thrilled to support The MIND Institute’s AI & African Music initiative. We’ve seen countless examples of how the marriage of African creativity and innovation not only propels culture forward but also changes lives, and nowhere has this been more evident than across Africa’s vast and rich musical landscape,” said Nkosiyati Khumalo, editor-in-chief at Billboard Africa, in a press release. “Technological projects which center African creativity allow for more opportunities to transmit culture, to create new pathways for discovery and collaboration, and to influence the global music and creative industries. We look forward to supporting and amplifying the exciting work the candidates produce.”
South African-born, U.S.-based industry veteran and investor Charles Goldstuck is funding the project. Professors Christo Doherty of the Wits Innovation Centre and Benjamin Rosman, director of the MIND Institute, are driving AI & African music.
“African musical creativity offers tonalities, textures and traditions that challenge and expand today’s AI tools — most of which are trained on Western data,” said Doherty in a statement. “This project takes a bold step toward placing African creators at the centre of global technological transformation.”
Added Rosman: “The MIND Institute is committed to driving homegrown innovation that reflects Africa’s diverse cultural landscape. Through this project, we’re not just participating in the global AI conversation — we’re leading it. By supporting musicians to experiment with AI, we’re unlocking new forms of expression and ensuring Africa is a creator, not just a consumer, in the future of artificial intelligence.”