Technology company, ipNX Nigeria, has warned industries against excessive dependence on artificial intelligence without first putting in place reliable systems, quality data, and sustainable digital infrastructure.
The caution was given during the 2026 edition of the IoT West Africa Conference and Exhibition held in Lagos, where industry stakeholders gathered to discuss the future of digital transformation across Africa.
This was made known through a statement made available to The PUNCH on Thursday.
According to the statement, the company’s Chief Technology Architect, Oluwaseun Oluboyo, said organisations must avoid embracing technology simply because it is trending.
He said this during a boardroom dialogue titled, “Tech Transformation: A Masterclass to Enable the C-Suite to Lead Digital Transformation in Nigeria.”
According to him, successful digital transformation starts with understanding customer needs and identifying business problems before introducing technological solutions.
He noted that many firms often focus more on adopting new technologies than building systems capable of supporting them effectively.
Oluboyo said, “AI is not a magic bullet. AI will produce nonsense faster than any human can do, so your data quality is of critical importance. Your workflow has to be just right because AI also doesn’t know when to pause.”
He further explained that poor data management and weak operational processes could undermine the benefits of artificial intelligence, stressing that organisations must properly map out their systems and prepare their infrastructure before deployment.
“Organisations must invest the time to understand their systems, map their data properly, and prepare their infrastructure before deployment,” he added.
Oluboyo also raised concerns about Africa’s growing dependence on foreign-based cloud infrastructure, saying the continent must begin to prioritise local digital systems to address issues relating to data security, privacy, and regulatory compliance.
He said, “We can’t rely only on powerful computers located in the cloud to run our AI and digital services. Apart from delays in speed, there are also important concerns about data privacy, security, and government regulations around where information is stored and controlled.”
He maintained that building local infrastructure would not only strengthen digital sovereignty but also improve efficiency and long-term sustainability.
