Upanzi Network partner opens Digital Innovation Lab in Morocco

Patricia Raffaele

Mar 18, 2026

Students, faculty, researchers, and others now have access to a new Digital Innovation Lab at Al Akhawayn University (AUI) at its Ifrane campus in Morocco. As a member of the Upanzi Network, led by Carnegie Mellon University Africa (CMU-Africa), the recently opened lab supports efforts to strengthen digital public infrastructure (DPI) across the continent, including a focus on cybersecurity and responsible AI.

The Upanzi Network, an Africa-based collaboration of engineering research labs, is working toward a secure and resilient digital transformation of the continent. Each university partner lab has received a one-year seed grant for up to $50,000 USD for a research project related to the goals of the Upanzi Network. With the new Digital Innovation Lab, AUI plans continued growth in the areas of capacity building, applied research, and student-led innovation.

A man cutting the ribbon at the opening ceremony — The official opening of the Digital Innovation Lab, attended by Upanzi Network co-director Moise Busogi.

A row of students sitting in an auditorium — Attendees at the opening of Digital Innovation Lab

A small group of people in the new lab listening to a woman speak — Participants take a tour of the new lab

A group of about thirty people posing while sitting at a table in the new lab — Students, faculty, and the community celebrate the opening of the Digital Innovation Lab

The Digital Innovation Lab serves as a regional hub in Morocco, providing space designed to foster collaboration between the university community, public institutions, civil society, and international partners. The lab invites collaboration and interactive discussion through its workstations, technology, and areas for demonstrations, as well as flexible space for workshops, meetings with partners, and student showcases.

The workspace supports the lab’s goals of fostering inclusive, human-centered innovation and serving as a bridge between academic research and societal challenges, with the goal of developing real-world solutions. Houda Chakiri, assistant professor at AUI and lead of the Digital Innovation Lab noted that by supporting experimentation with systems like the Modular Open Source Identity Platform, it is supporting the overall goal of serving as a bridge between research and addressing real-world challenges.

Programs and projects are already underway in the lab, including the participation in the Digital ID Hackathon Africa 2026 and a meeting of the AI and Society International Symposium 2026, bringing together international researchers and practitioners working at the intersection of AI, governance, and society.

Along with the Upanzi Network, other partners in the lab include the Open Government Partnership, and Women in AI Morocco.

AIU’s leaders explained that the mission of the Digital Innovation Lab’s is to generate student-built solutions, policy-relevant research, research on digital transformation, and sustainable partnerships that transform academic innovation into real-world impact in Morocco and across Africa.