AI Power Concentration in Kenya

Abstract

Abstract This paper examines how digital sovereignty and power manifest within Kenya’s evolving AI ecosystem, situating the country’s experience within broader debates on inequality and technological governance. Three interconnected dimensions structure the analysis: market dominance by foreign technology corporations, asymmetric access to technical infrastructure, and weak domestic regulatory capacity. Drawing on multi-stakeholder perspectives from government officials, private sector leaders, start-ups, civil society organizations, and academics, the paper systematically analyzes structural, technological, and individual harms perpetuated by AI systems, interpreting how existing power dynamics both reflect and potentially amplify socioeconomic inequalities. Kenya presents a compelling case study in technological leapfrogging and adaptation. Its AI start-up ecosystem shows promising signs of locally driven development addressing challenges from informal employment to customer experience, yet foreign entities from the Global North continue to dominate critical computing infrastructure and investment capital. As AI increasingly emerges as a strategic geopolitical asset rather than a technological curiosity, this inquiry is particularly timely. The paper addresses a critical gap in the literature, which has largely overlooked African perspectives on the structural harms produced by global AI power asymmetries. By conceptualizing the Kenyan AI landscape through the lens of digital sovereignty, the analysis examines how control over critical infrastructure generates dependencies between technology producers and communities, and identifies the specific mechanisms through which power operates within these ecosystems. This approach reveals both the constraints on and opportunities for Kenyan agency in technological governance.