Cassava Technologies, a leading technology systems integrator headquartered in the UK, has announced the establishment of a new business unit dedicated to its artificial intelligence (AI) activities. The new unit, dubbed Cassava AI, will operate as a separate entity within the Cassava Technologies group.
Cassava, founded by renowned African entrepreneur Strive Masiyiwa, has been known for its diverse technology offerings, including data centers, cloud services, cybersecurity, fiber connectivity, and renewable energy solutions. The company, which boasts a strong global institutional investor base, has now decided to sharpen its focus on the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
"Cassava AI is headquartered in London and can already provide services in any of the 40-plus markets in Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America, where the Cassava Technologies group companies operate," said Hardy Pemhiwa, the president and group CEO of Cassava Technologies.
The new business unit will be led by Ahmed El Beheiry, a veteran technology and telecommunications executive, who will spearhead Cassava's AI-related initiatives. This strategic move comes as Cassava has forged partnerships with industry giants such as Microsoft, Google, AWS, Anthropic, Oracle, Atlas AI, Cerebras, and Palo Alto Networks, enabling the company to offer superior systems integration and support to enterprise customers across key international markets.
"Since the advent of generative AI, Cassava has been proactive in establishing these strategic partnerships, which will now empower our customers to adopt and utilize the latest generative AI services from the world's leading vendors," Pemhiwa added.
Cassava's existing portfolio of services, including data centers, cloud, cybersecurity, fiber connectivity, and renewable energy, will continue to be offered alongside the new AI-focused business unit. The company has already trained and deployed more than 200 people from its 5,000-strong staff to support customers in their AI adoption and utilization journeys.
This move by Cassava Technologies underscores the growing importance of AI in the global technology landscape and the company's commitment to staying at the forefront of this transformative technology.
