Google has offered a free access to advanced AI tools for university students across Africa.
NaijaOnPoint Nigeria reports that Google has unveiled a new initiative to strengthen higher education in Africa by giving university students free access to its premium AI plan, Google AI Pro, for 12 months.
The offer is open to eligible students aged 18 and above in Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Rwanda, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, granting them access to some of Google’s most advanced artificial intelligence tools for learning, research, and creative projects.
The program, powered by Gemini 2.5 Pro, Google’s most capable AI model, aims to equip Africa’s next generation of leaders, innovators, and creators with foundational AI literacy. By giving students hands-on experience with generative AI technology, the initiative seeks to prepare them for a rapidly changing global workforce where AI proficiency is a key skill.
“We are seeing a new wave of innovation in Africa, driven by the energy and ingenuity of our young people,” said Alex Okosi, Managing Director for Google in Sub-Saharan Africa. “By providing students with access to our most advanced AI tools, we want to empower them to not only excel academically but also to become the builders and shapers of the future. This initiative is about democratizing access to technology and giving African students the skills to lead globally.”
The Google AI Pro plan includes a suite of tools tailored to meet the academic, research, and creative needs of university students:
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Supercharged Learning and Research: Features like Guided Learning assist with in-depth research, summarizing academic papers, debugging code, and solving complex problems step-by-step.
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Time-Saving Efficiency: Deep Research enables users to generate comprehensive, cited reports from hundreds of web sources in minutes — transforming how long-form assignments and dissertations are approached.
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Enhanced Organization and Creativity: NotebookLM helps organize notes and connect ideas, while Veo 3 can turn text prompts or images into high-quality short videos for projects and presentations.
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Ample Cloud Storage: Each user receives 2TB of cloud storage across Google Drive, Gmail, and Photos — ideal for coursework, research data, and creative portfolios.
To activate the 12-month free plan, university students in eligible countries can visit gemini.google/students to verify their student status and confirm a payment method (without incurring any charges). The offer will remain open for redemption for 60 days, from October 7 to December 9, 2025.
This initiative builds on Google’s ongoing commitment to Africa’s digital growth, following programs such as the Google for Startups Accelerator Africa and Digital Skills for Africa, which have already helped millions of individuals and businesses acquire essential digital and entrepreneurial skills.
By investing in Africa’s youth through access to cutting-edge AI tools, Google aims to spark a new wave of innovation and empower students to become active contributors to the continent’s growing digital economy.