South African organisations are moving beyond artificial intelligence (AI) pilot projects towards large-scale deployment, with Standard Bank and Eskom outlining how the technology is already being used to improve customer service, operational efficiency and infrastructure reliability.
The developments were highlighted at Huawei South Africa Connect 2026, which brought together about 2 900 government and industry leaders under the theme, “Where Innovation Shapes the Future”.
Discussions focused on the digital infrastructure, skills and partnerships required to expand AI adoption across financial services, energy, telecommunications, education and public services.
‘AI not a threat’
Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi said South Africa should view AI as an opportunity to address developmental challenges rather than simply as a threat.
“We have a responsibility to ensure that we don’t only view AI as a threat to be feared, nor as a trend to be followed lightly,” Malatsi said.
Standard Bank, which operates across several African markets, shared details of its strategic partnership with Huawei after the two organisations signed a memorandum of understanding to accelerate the bank’s digital transformation.
The partnership is aimed at strengthening Standard Bank’s technological capabilities and supporting the development of a resilient, intelligent and client-centred banking operation through AI, cloud technology, modern data platforms and advanced network infrastructure.
Khomotso Molabe, Standard Bank’s chief information officer (CIO) for Personal and Private Banking and deputy group CIO, said the bank expected AI adoption to have a net positive impact on Africa over the medium to long term. He said young Africans were likely to find innovative ways of applying the technology to challenges unique to the continent.
Molabe said the Huawei partnership gave Standard Bank access to computing capacity, large language models, cloud platforms and modern data systems required to deploy AI solutions at scale. The bank had moved beyond testing individual AI use cases and was now scaling solutions that had demonstrated measurable value.
Huawei’s Intelligent Call Centre solution
In Nigeria, Standard Bank has implemented Huawei’s Intelligent Call Centre solution, which Molabe said had removed more than half of the administrative tasks contact centre agents disliked, including preparation before calls and work required to close cases afterwards. This allowed employees to spend more time engaging customers and resolving their queries.
The technology is also being used to identify the intention behind a customer’s call, reducing reliance on traditional automated menus that repeatedly ask callers to select numbered options. A similar system is being introduced in selected South African contact centres.
Eskom chief technology and information officer Len de Villiers said the power utility’s digital and AI transformation was also accelerating.
Eskom currently has 20 active AI initiatives across eight business areas, with seven already scaled and delivering value. The utility has benchmarked 47 AI applications used by global electricity providers and identified eight critical or high-priority gaps that are being addressed.
“Digitalisation is now a strategic imperative, pairing engineering expertise with AI to lift reliability and affordability,” De Villiers said.
Huawei South Africa chief executive Will Meng said large-scale AI deployment depended on reliable digital foundations, including connectivity, quality data and the digitalisation of industries.
AI’s job creation potential
Huawei estimates AI could contribute between R1-trillion and R1.4-trillion to South Africa’s economy by 2030 and create as many as
400 000 jobs.
However, the company warned that fewer than 35% of South African businesses had identified where AI could unlock value from their data, while the country could face a shortage of about 200 000 AI and ICT professionals by the end of the decade.
Huawei said it currently works with more than 1 400 South African partners and operates three local cloud availability zones serving more than 300 customers and 1 000 technology partners.
- South African organisations like Standard Bank and Eskom are moving beyond AI pilots to large-scale deployment, enhancing customer service, operational efficiency, and infrastructure reliability.
- Huawei South Africa Connect 2026 highlighted the need for digital infrastructure, skills, and partnerships to expand AI adoption across sectors including finance, energy, and public services.
- Standard Bank partners with Huawei to accelerate digital transformation using AI, cloud technology, and modern data platforms, already scaling solutions with measurable value.
- Eskom has 20 active AI initiatives and is leveraging AI to improve power reliability and affordability, addressing critical gaps identified from global benchmarking.
- Huawei projects AI could add R1-trillion to R1.4-trillion to South Africa’s economy by 2030, create up to 400,000 jobs, but warns of talent shortages and low AI value recognition among businesses.
