Apply to Gates Foundation AI Fellows Programme
Fellowship Opportunity: AI Fellow – Africa Regional Offices
Organization: Gates Foundation
Locations: Abuja, Nigeria | Nairobi, Kenya
Employment Type: Full-Time (12-Month Limited-Term Employment)
Job Requisition ID: B021830
Application Deadline: 11 November 2026
About the Gates Foundation
The Gates Foundation is a global nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting poverty, disease, and inequality. Its core mission is to ensure that everyone, regardless of identity or circumstances, has the opportunity to live healthy and productive lives.
About the AI Fellows Programme
The Gates Foundation is recruiting its first Africa-based cohort under the AI Fellows Programme. The initiative aims to accelerate the responsible and impactful use of Artificial Intelligence across global health, development, and education.
Selected fellows will work side-by-side with the Foundation’s Africa team, regional partners, and government counterparts to engineer AI-powered tools that solve critical challenges across African nations. Fellows will lead one or two high-priority projects over the course of the 12-month term.
Sample Project Areas
Financing & System Efficiency: Develop AI-powered decision-support tools to improve financing systems and identify operational bottlenecks.
Essential Medicine Availability: Design targeted solutions to eliminate stockouts of essential medicines at district and health facility levels.
Supply Chain Optimization: Strengthen health planning and supply chain networks using predictive AI tools that prioritize interventions, forecast stockout risks, and manage product redistribution prior to expiration.
Key Responsibilities
Scoping & Strategy: Identify real-world challenges and scope appropriate AI solutions alongside project teams and external partners.
Prototyping & Modeling: Build functional prototypes using modern Large Language Models (LLMs) and design robust Machine Learning models.
Data Engineering: Prepare, manage, and integrate complex datasets and data pipelines while maintaining strict data integrity, security, and ethics.
Evaluation & Integration: Rigorously evaluate models for accuracy, fairness, and reliability, and integrate AI solutions into real-world workflows.
Capacity Building & Mentorship: Drive AI literacy through training materials, workshops, guides, and peer mentorship to champion responsible AI adoption.
Cross-Sector Collaboration: Partner effectively with technical and non-technical stakeholders while actively mitigating algorithmic bias and promoting data privacy and transparency.
Requirements & Qualifications
Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or a relevant discipline.
Experience: Minimum of 2 years of hands-on experience applying AI solutions, preferably within health or agricultural systems.
Technical Proficiency: Strong expertise in modern AI/ML modeling, evaluation frameworks, and practical experience with LLMs, open-source tools, and API-based AI platforms.
Engineering Skills: Comprehensive software engineering and data skills required to build end-to-end applied solutions.
Core Competencies: Strong cross-functional collaboration, adaptability, teamwork, and the ability to communicate technical insights clearly to diverse audiences.
Legal & Compliance: Candidates must have the legal right to work in the designated base country (Nigeria or Kenya) without visa sponsorship. (Note: Relocation support is not provided, and employment is contingent upon passing a background check).
Why Join the Gates AI Fellows Programme?
High-Impact Work: Tackle critical global health, development, and educational challenges across low- and middle-income countries.
Extensive Network: Collaborate with leading NGOs, academic institutions, government bodies, and international organizations.
Leadership & Growth: Gain exposure to senior leadership, receive mentorship from industry experts, and build a portfolio of transformative projects.
How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates are encouraged to submit their applications through the official Gates Foundation recruitment portal by 11 November 2026.
