Google introduces Yorùbá, Hausa support for AI Search in Nigeria

By Funmilola Gboteku

Global search giant, Google said it has expanded language support for its Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered search features to include Yorùbá and Hausa Languages in Nigeria.

The update will allow speakers of the two Nigerian languages to access AI powered search experiences in their mother tongue for quick summaries and conversational exploration, Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, Communications and Public Affairs Manager, West Africa, Google, said this in a statement on Thursday.

The manager noted that the expansion formed part of Google’s broader effort to make AI more inclusive across Africa.

He explained that the development brought the number of supported African languages in the company’s AI Search features to 13.

Kola-Ogunlade said the update would enable more Nigerians to interact with S search in familiar languages while seeking information online.

He added that the development meant that a student in Kano could ask questions in Hausa, while a trader in Ibadan could seek advice in Yorùbá.

“Building a truly global search goes far beyond translation, it requires a nuanced understanding of local information.

“With the advanced multimodal and reasoning capabilities of our custom version of Gemini in search, we have made huge strides in language understanding.

“This ensures our most advanced AI search capabilities are locally relevant and useful in each new language we support.

“This is about ensuring Nigerians can converse with search in their mother tongues, making information more helpful for everyone,” he said.

Kola-Ogunlade added that the expansion would allow users to ask complex questions in their preferred language through text or voice while exploring the web more naturally.

(NAN)