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Meta and the Federal Government of Nigeria, alongside the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) programme and Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Nigeria (RAIN), have launched a new AI Academy designed to equip Nigerians with practical artificial intelligence skills and support emerging AI startups.
The initiative offers participants access to free AI training, while selected innovators and startups will have opportunities to receive funding, advertising credits and international exposure.
Free AI training for Nigerians
Participants will be able to access AI courses through learning platforms including Coursera, DeepLearning.AI and DataCamp.
The training will cover areas such as generative AI, prompt engineering, multimodal AI, data analytics and building applications with Meta’s Llama models.
The programme is targeted at helping Nigerians develop relevant AI skills and apply them to real-world projects and business opportunities.
Top 100 participants to receive additional benefits
The initiative will also provide additional opportunities for the best-performing participants.
The top 100 participants will qualify for Meta Blueprint scholarship opportunities and could receive up to $5,000 in Meta advertising credits to support their projects or businesses.
AI startups can win $5,000
Nigerian AI startups have also been invited to participate in an AI Startup Pitchathon as part of the programme.
Interested startups are expected to apply before August 21, 2026, after which selected businesses will get the opportunity to pitch their ideas.
Ten startups will be shortlisted to pitch at GITEX Nigeria on September 3, with two eventual winners set to receive financial and business support.
Each winning startup will receive $5,000 in funding and $2,000 in Meta advertising credits.
Winners to travel to Türkiye
Beyond the financial support, the two winning startups will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Meta’s AI Summit in Istanbul, Türkiye, scheduled for November.
The opportunity will give the successful founders international exposure and access to a wider technology ecosystem.
The programme also includes a six-week AI Developer Bootcamp, organised by RAIN, aimed at helping selected developers and startups turn their ideas into functional AI-powered products.
Overall, the partnership seeks to strengthen Nigeria’s AI talent pool, encourage local innovation and create more opportunities for Nigerian developers and startups to compete in the global technology industry.