Jeff Carreira: This issue of the magazine focuses on AI, and more specifically, the point of crossover where artificial intelligence intersects with the world of spirituality. When I heard more about the work you are doing with Afrocore AI, I thought it would be wonderful to speak with you and get a sense of how AI looks from your point of view. Can you start by telling us a little about your company and the work that it does to support the introduction of AI technology into Ethiopia?

Mekdes Asefa: Afrocore AI originally began as part of another company where we were doing business consultancy for organizations in areas such as system design, workflow development, and staff training. When AI emerged in the way it has over the past few years, we realized that we needed to incorporate AI into our consultancy work, and that is how the idea first came about.

As we went deeper into the work, it became clear that Afrocore needed to become a company of its own. It no longer made sense for it to remain a part of the consulting business. Afrocore does more than consultancy now. We teach people how to use AI. The most accurate way to describe it is as an applied AI teaching center. We still do consulting work for companies and integrate AI systems for them, but our main focus is teaching. We are trying to expand and reach as many people as we can, because we know this is the future.

Jeff Carreira: Right now, all over the world, people are scrambling to figure out how to use AI, what it is useful for, what it is not useful for, and what the dangers might be. You are helping to introduce a technology into a culture that is different from the culture in which it was developed. As you bring this new technology into Ethiopia, what are the biggest challenges you face, and how does it gain acceptance?

Mekdes Asefa: The first thing to understand is that Ethiopia is a very religious and spiritual country. Anything that seems to threaten the traditions or the religious foundations of the culture is not easily accepted. These two aspects, tradition and religion, are deeply interconnected here. With the emergence of AI, many people are asking difficult questions. Anything new is often unwelcome, but AI is arriving on a much bigger scale than any previous technological shift.

In addition to the perceived cultural threat, people also see it as a threat to jobs and to human roles in society. Some believe it could replace human beings. Others see it as something evil. Many connect it with ideas about the end of times, as prophesied in the Bible or the Quran. Christianity and Islam are the two predominant religions here, and people often interpret AI through the lens of those prophecies. So the biggest challenge is that many people are approaching AI from a place of fear. That fear is the main obstacle when it comes to gaining acceptance.

Jeff Carreira: You mentioned that Ethiopia is a very religious country. Can you explain why people feel that their faith is challenged by the existence of AI?

Mekdes Asefa: New technologies have often been considered suspicious or even evil here. People use mobile phones now, of course, but even that took time, and many still interpret technology through certain prophecies in the Bible. Much of this centers on the Book of Revelation. Ideas about control, the end of the world, and the number 666 are very present in the culture. Because Revelation can be interpreted in many different ways, people tend to interpret it in whatever way confirms their fears.

So there are groups and activists who preach that AI will bring about the end times or that the people behind the technology are aligned with evil forces. That is a common narrative here. AI in particular triggers these concerns because of its speed and its magnitude.

Jeff Carreira: Here in the United States, there is a growing phenomenon where people feel they are coming into contact with divine beings, higher beings, or even God through AI. Is this something you have encountered at all?

Mekdes Asefa: I have not heard of that here. Not everyone is fearful, though. There are people who see AI simply as a tool and treat it as such. They say that we can use it for whatever we choose, whether for good or for bad. Some even use it for Bible study or for prayer, as part of their own spiritual journey. So there is openness in that sense, but I have not heard anyone say it brings them closer to God or to divine beings. That is not something people are talking about here yet. I think it will be a while before we hear anything like that.

Jeff Carreira: Are there other challenges that you face?

Mekdes Asefa: Another challenge is the language barrier and the issue of context. Most AI systems are developed elsewhere, and they are not particularly designed for the African or Ethiopian market. When you try to apply AI in a context that is purely Ethiopian, it often gets things wrong. That is a significant challenge.

However, this challenge is not entirely negative. In fact, I believe it creates inspiration. It pushes us to build homegrown AI tools that understand our languages and our cultural context. So it is a difficulty, but it is also a call to action.

Jeff Carreira: Do you imagine Afrocore getting involved in developing a homegrown AI?

Mekdes Asefa: Right now, what we are doing is trying to get as many people as possible to use AI, teaching them about it, and also advocating for its proper use so that people are not overwhelmed. We want Ethiopia, and Africa in general, not to be left behind again. That work naturally brings us into the wider AI world and into contact with others in the industry. There are only a few of us at the moment, but there will be many more, and a lot of new groups are already emerging. I can imagine future opportunities for collaboration in developing homegrown AI..

For now, we are focused on the applied side of AI. One of the things we always say is that nobody at Afrocore is a technical expert in the traditional sense, and none of us have an IT background. Our message is that if we can do it, anyone can. We are like the people who use electricity without needing to understand how it works. That is the path we are on. Even so, I definitely see possibilities for collaboration. We understand businesses and their needs very well, so we can come in as partners to provide direction, even if we are not the ones writing the code behind it.

Jeff Carreira: A lot of people, of course, are wary of AI and concerned about it for different reasons. Some worry that people may attribute more to it than it is capable of, especially in terms of assuming it has more intelligence than it actually has. You mentioned earlier that you are trying to teach people how to use it appropriately. What kinds of dangers concern you with the influx of AI into Ethiopia? Do you see potential problems that you hope to help people avoid as this technology begins to take root in your country?

Mekdes Asefa: I am advocating for the appropriate use of AI, but at the same time I am not denying the risks that come with it. Like any tool, in the wrong hands it can be dangerous, and in the right hands it can do extraordinary things. Right now, the main concern for most people is job replacement. It is a very legitimate fear. Although I believe that, like every major technological revolution in the past, AI will eventually create more jobs than it destroys, that does not change the fact that individuals will be affected. Even if jobs increase on a macro level, people like Mr. X or Mr. Y may still lose their livelihoods.

For me, the biggest problem is the mismatch between current skills and the skills that will be required in the future. When AI becomes fully integrated, the abilities people need will be very different from what most people have today. The only way to overcome that risk is for people to take the initiative to get involved. They need to learn how AI works, become familiar with it, and depending on their industry, explore how they can start using it. With even a small shift in direction, people can develop additional skills that will keep them relevant in the job market.

There are also other concerns, such as disinformation. Many people worry about the impact on creativity. They say that artists will suffer the most, including musicians. But we are still navigating all of these questions, and we do not yet know what the full outcomes will be.

For me, this brings us back to the earlier question about spirituality and AI, because the fear of AI replacing jobs or creativity leads directly into that conversation. I see AI as the biggest mirror we have ever built. It reflects our collective consciousness. All these AI tools are trained on what we have given them. They learn from the patterns, stories, and data we have fed them. They amplify whatever is already there. If there is chaos, they will amplify chaos. But if we approach AI with curiosity and care, and if we value human qualities and attributes, then AI becomes something that accelerates creativity and service instead of replacing them. Seen from that perspective, this could become an opportunity for us to experience a kind of spiritual awakening.

In a way, AI forces us to ask deeper questions, and these questions are right in front of us. It pushes us toward spiritual inquiry. For example, what does it really mean to be human? Is being human only about performing tasks, being productive, winning competitions, or gaining whatever advantages society has created? Or is there something more profound than that? When we say that AI might destroy creativity, it also forces us to ask, what is creativity? If I can direct an AI tool to create a piece of music, even if I was never considered creative, even if I do not have a trained voice or musical knowledge, and the AI can produce something based on my direction, is that not a form of creativity? AI compels us to explore these questions.

To me, that is an opportunity. Of course, if we look at someone like Mr. X, who writes lyrics for artists, he may need to change the way he works. AI is not going to do everything on its own. It still needs a director. The person who already understands the industry, who has experience and knowledge, will be far more successful when paired with AI than someone who has no understanding of music at all. So rather than eliminating human creativity, AI may shift it, expand it, or require people to evolve the way they use their skills.

AI is a tool that can be used by everyone. The person who has been working in the industry will only be at a disadvantage if they refuse to use it. But if they choose to use it, and combine it with their own knowledge, skills, and experience, then AI becomes a benefit rather than a threat. For me, these concerns all come down to how we approach the technology. AI is not a danger on its own. The danger comes from the way we choose to relate to it.

Jeff Carreira: I want to explore this a little further, because one of the potential problems I see in bringing AI into Ethiopia is that AI is trained on the information we give it, and most of that information comes from sources that have a modern Western bias. You spoke about Ethiopia being a deeply religious country, and that makes me think that a tool like ChatGPT might not give answers that reflect the Ethiopian cultural or spiritual context. Do you see that as a problem?

Mekdes Asefa: Yes, absolutely. Even when you try to apply AI to business, the ideas it gives you are often not aligned with the marketplace in Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, or Africa in general. So yes, there is a significant problem. However, the Internet itself has always been this way, ever since it first emerged. The only difference between something like ChatGPT and Google is that Google gives you millions of pages and brings the most relevant ones to the top. But both systems are using the same information that already exists online.

AI is not going to come to my country and do research for me if the information is not online. It cannot understand our context unless we provide the data. That is why I believe the focus for Africa should be on developing homegrown AI. At the same time, using existing AI tools can accelerate the creation of those homegrown systems.

This issue becomes a real problem if we remain only as users, which has often been the case throughout our history with technology. Africa has mostly been a user rather than a creator. That approach is not going to work well for us now.

We can use these tools to create efficiency and support the tasks we already do, especially where there is no need to reinvent the wheel. But at the same time, we need major players to step forward and truly focus on developing AI for Africa. I would even say that Asia should be part of this same movement, because as you mentioned, most of these tools are strongly shaped by Western perspectives. It is up to us to build our own systems.

People often ask me whether I feel optimistic or pessimistic about the future of AI in my country. My answer is neither. I do not feel optimistic or pessimistic. I feel responsible. It is on us to create something that is respectful of our culture and holds the story of our heritage.