Ethiopia Launches AI-Focused Hospitality Hackathon to Drive Tourism Innovation
Kuriftu Resorts, in partnership with ALX Ethiopia and WeVenture, has launched Hospitality Hackathon 2026 - a two-day national programme designed to develop artificial intelligence solutions for Africa's tourism and hospitality sector. Now in its second edition, the initiative will take place across two Addis Ababa venues on 4 April at the Capstone ALX Tech Hub in Lideta and on 18 April at Kuriftu African Village. The programme targets young developers, startup founders, university students and early-career IT professionals, tasking teams with building deployable AI-powered prototypes to improve resort operations, guest services and revenue generation.
The hackathon goes beyond competition, incorporating pre-event training workshops, a structured team registration process and a three-month incubation programme through WeVenture for winning teams. Organisers are also exploring collaboration with OpenAI for technical support and mentorship. The winning team stands to receive 150,000 Ethiopian Birr in prize funding alongside incubation support and mentorship. The initiative comes as Africa's tourism and hospitality industry continues to expand - the World Travel and Tourism Council reported the sector contributed over $168 billion to Africa's economy in 2024, equivalent to approximately 6.8 per cent of continental GDP and supporting more than 24 million jobs.
Source: The Voice of Africa
