I am all for driving down dependency on big tech but is google even bothered by which Internet you use if Android dominates the smartphone market? Most people will already be using one of Android/Apple/Microsoft OS, so that’s still a lot of western influence. Though, this is a huge step to digital independence imo.
I hope they start shifting towards Linux and fund open source initiatives.
People in Africa are largely using phones from China which don’t run Android. For example, Huawei has its own HarmonyOS now, that was forked from Android a while back and it’s no longer compatible with it.
I do think that Linux based phones would be great, but it doesn’t seem like there are any viable options in the foreseeable future.
This is really exciting: hundreds of millions now keep their internet data inside Africa and are no longer hostage to large companies outside of it
Yes, but an network limited locally isn’t an alternative, what it needed are global alternatives to the US BigBrother hegemony. The Africa network is nice for African people, but isn’t an alternative and less an “terror” for Google.
As I understand it, it’s not limited locally. Africa’s Continental Internet Exchange (CIX) connects Africa internally first, but it still links globally. It’s about sovereignty, not isolation.
In terms of networking, this is not different from Europe and other regions with many local IXPs that allow regional traffic within the continent… the thing is that in the past, Africa has not had an infrastructure that allowed connecting to another African country without it being routed through international networks outside the continent.
Ah, ok, anyway it is mandatory to end the US hegemony in the web, currently more than ever.
Like you said, the headline is overhyped a bit.
But still exciting because it’s a very important first step. Data colonization is being stopped. Nothing could be done until then.
It also puts hard limits on the expansion of the tech bro billionaires
I don’t understand what I’m reading. Is it just like datacenters in africa or did they make an alternative to http/https
The African Internet Exchange System project was launched by the African Union Commission to promote the exchange of intra-African internet traffic within the continent. Before the project, Africa was paying overseas carriers to handle this traffic, which was both costly and inefficient. The project is a key part of the Program on Infrastructure Development in Africa, which aims to establish an intra-African broadband infrastructure and has highlighted the importance of Internet Exchange Points.
The main difference between the AXIS project’s proposed system and the global internet is the way internet traffic is routed. The global internet often routes intra-African traffic through overseas carriers. The AXIS project’s goal is to keep this traffic within the continent by exchanging it locally or regionally through IXPs. This eliminates the need for international transit, which reduces latency and saves costs.
there’s some more info here
