Tanzanian innovator wins global AI awards

DAR ES SALAAM: TANZANIAN entrepreneur Yvonne Baldwin has made history by winning two prestigious awards at the AI for Good Innovation Factory 2025, a United Nations-backed startup competition focused on accelerating tech-based solutions for global development.

Ms Baldwin was awarded in the AI for Good Global Summit happening in Geneva parallel to the High-Level Event of the 2025 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS+20), (WSIS+20 2025).

Competing against 650 innovations from around the world, Ms Baldwin—Co-Founder and CEO of Elevate AI Africa emerged as the Winner of the Women’s Innovation Factory Pitching Competition 2025 with her impactful project MamaMate, which supports rural women through AI-driven health and wellness services.

In addition to the women’s category win, she also clinched the Grand Prize of the AI for Good Innovation Factory 2025, earning her a certificate, trophy and a cash prize of 20,000 US dollars.

Organised under the umbrella of the AI for Good initiative by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Innovation Factory provides a global platform for startups, researchers and tech entrepreneurs to pitch and accelerate AI-powered projects that address sustainable development challenges.

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The AI for Good Global Summit serves as the UN’s primary platform for promoting artificial intelligence solutions that support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This year’s summit brought together thousands of global stakeholders, including heads of state, AI researchers, development partners, startup founders, civil society actors and youth representatives.

It aims to showcase how AI technologies can be harnessed to address real-world challenges such as poverty, climate change, health disparities, education gaps and food insecurity.

The four-day hybrid event features a dynamic programme of keynote speeches, expert panels, hands-on workshops, live technology demonstrations and startup pitch sessions under the popular Innovation Factory segment.

The summit also includes thematic highlights such as the AI Governance Day, which will focus on policy, ethical standards and responsible innovation and the International AI Standards Day, dedicated to harmonising global AI norms.

A major component of the summit is the AI for Good Innovation Factory, a startup competition that showcases scalable, impact-driven solutions.

It is in this category that Tanzanian entrepreneur Yvonne Baldwin made history by winning two prestigious awards for her AIbased innovation.