Building Zimbabwe's AI Safety Future
Building the knowledge, technical capabilities, research community and institutional partnerships needed to navigate the risks of increasingly powerful artificial intelligence.
A public-interest initiative for AI safety in Zimbabwe
AI Safety Zimbabwe (ASZ) is an emerging public-interest initiative dedicated to advancing the understanding, research, governance and technical practice of artificial intelligence safety in Zimbabwe.
We are developing a community of researchers, technologists, students, policymakers, professionals and institutions who can understand and address the risks of increasingly powerful AI systems. Our work connects Zimbabwe's technological, economic and institutional realities with global developments in alignment, frontier AI governance and catastrophic risk reduction.
Zimbabwe deserves a place in the global AI safety research and governance community, and that participation begins with building local knowledge, talent and institutional capacity.
Capability is moving faster than the capacity to govern it
AI is advancing rapidly
Advanced AI has significant implications for economies, institutions, public services, employment, security and society, in Zimbabwe as everywhere else.
The risks are serious
Alongside real opportunity come problems of reliability, misuse, loss of human control, cybersecurity, systemic vulnerability and potentially catastrophic outcomes from advanced systems.
Access to the field is limited
Many students, professionals and institutions in Zimbabwe have little access to structured AI safety education, research mentorship or technical training. ASZ aims to help close this gap.
Participation, not only adoption
Zimbabwe should not only consume AI built elsewhere. Zimbabweans should help understand, evaluate, govern and shape how advanced AI systems are developed.
Six interconnected programme areas
What we are preparing first
Latest publications
An open, growing ecosystem, not a closed committee
Students, developers, researchers, lawyers, educators and organisers all have a part to play. We're now recruiting our first volunteer team: applications close on 29 November.
- Learning cohorts and reading groups
- Technical AI safety community
- Student-led campus chapters
- Volunteer and mentor roles
- Writing for ASZ publications
Locally grounded, globally connected
Events
Building Zimbabwe's capacity for a safer AI future
Locally grounded. Globally connected. Committed to AI safety.
Where we are now
AI Safety Zimbabwe was started by a small volunteer founding team working across law, information systems research, technology and community engagement. We share a conviction that Zimbabwe needs to take part in global AI safety conversations while also addressing the practical challenges of responsible AI adoption in resource-constrained environments.
ASZ is in its founding stage. We are developing our first programmes, preparing a virtual launch and building the partnerships needed to run learning cohorts, a technical research community and student chapters. Everything on this site that describes future work is marked as planned, in preparation or proposed.
A Zimbabwe with the knowledge, institutions and technical capabilities to shape a future in which advanced artificial intelligence is safe, beneficial and aligned with human wellbeing.
To cultivate Zimbabwe's AI safety ecosystem through education, technical capacity building, research, community development and collaboration with regional and international AI safety organisations.
Safety capability should grow alongside adoption
Zimbabwe's growing interest in digital transformation and AI adoption, including the direction set by the National AI Strategy, creates an opportunity to develop safety capabilities alongside technological advancement rather than after it.
Today, few Zimbabweans have access to structured AI safety education, research mentorship or technical training. ASZ exists to build that access, so that Zimbabweans can contribute to AI safety locally, regionally and internationally.
ASZ contributes research, public education and policy discussion. It is not a government regulator or a certification authority, and does not audit or certify AI systems.
Our six programme areas
How we intend to work
Scientific seriousness
We treat frontier AI risk as a technical and empirical question and hold our own claims to that standard.
Public interest
Our work serves Zimbabwean society broadly, not a single company, sector or political interest.
Technical competence
We build real skills in evaluation, alignment and governance, not only awareness.
Intellectual curiosity
We read widely, question assumptions and stay open to being wrong.
Community and inclusion
We welcome people from every discipline, institution and part of the country.
African participation
We contribute African perspectives and talent to a global field that needs them.
Our first twelve months
This roadmap sets out our intentions. None of these phases is complete yet.
Six interconnected programme areas
From first introductions to AI safety through to technical research and governance, each area builds on the others. Open any card to see the activities it covers.
Programme directory
Every programme shows its current status. None is open for applications yet. Register your interest and we'll contact you when registration opens.
A Zimbabwean voice in AI safety research
Explainers, policy commentary, technical reports and reflections from our community. We publish on Substack, and new pieces appear here as they go out.
Formats we are preparing
- Research reflections
- AI safety explainers
- Policy commentaries
- Technical project reports
- Fellowship reflections
- Student research articles
- Interviews with researchers and practitioners
- Reviews of international AI safety research
- Zimbabwe-specific AI safety analysis
Want to write for ASZ? We are looking for writers, editors and researchers to contribute the first pieces.
A distributed network of learners, researchers and organisers
ASZ is building communities across Zimbabwe's universities, colleges, innovation hubs and professions. Here is what we are preparing.
You don't need to be an AI researcher
AI safety needs technical, legal, social and organisational skills. We welcome interest from:
- University and college students
- Software developers
- Data scientists
- Machine learning engineers
- Cybersecurity professionals
- Researchers
- Lawyers and policy specialists
- Economists and social scientists
- Educators
- Community organisers
- Communications professionals
- Designers
- Programme coordinators
- Research mentors
- Institutional partners
Help build Zimbabwe's AI safety community
We're recruiting our first volunteer team now. For learning cohorts, mentoring, research and partnerships, choose a pathway below and register your interest.
Six ways in
Roles we are recruiting for
All roles are volunteer roles. Time expectations, and any compensation arrangements, will be stated clearly before you commit to anything.
Community and leadership
- Assistant coordinators
- Programme coordinators
- University chapter organisers
- Community engagement leads
- Volunteer operations support
Research and technical
- Technical research assistants
- AI evaluation contributors
- Reading group facilitators
- Research mentors
- Data science and software engineering volunteers
Communications and publications
- Writers
- Editors
- Graphic designers
- Social media contributors
- Website developers
- Newsletter coordinators
Partnerships and operations
- Partnership outreach
- Event coordination
- Fellowship support
- Grant research
- Programme administration
Register your interest
Tell us a little about yourself and how you'd like to contribute. It takes about two minutes.
Institutions, funders and research organisations
We are interested in working with universities, research institutions, technical communities, civil society, public institutions, funders and global and African AI safety organisations.
Get in touch
Questions about programmes, volunteering, partnerships or media? Send us a message.
Public contact details
- operations@aisafetyzimbabwe.org
- AI Safety Zimbabwe
- Substack
- aisafetyzw.substack.com
ASZ does not have a public office address.
Based in Zimbabwe. Working with Southern Africa and the wider African AI safety ecosystem.