Google Search now supports Yoruba and Hausa in Nigeria 🌍🔎

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Google has announced the integration of two major Nigerian languages—Yoruba and Hausa—into its AI-powered search features. The update allows Nigerian users to ask questions and receive answers directly in their native languages. The goal is to make AI technologies more accessible and relevant for users across the continent.

Search becomes accessible in local languages 🗣️📱

With this update, Google Search features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode now support both Yoruba and Hausa. In practice, users can type or speak their questions and receive AI-generated summaries in their own language.

The move reflects Nigeria’s unique linguistic landscape. The country has more than 500 languages, but Hausa and Yoruba rank among the most widely spoken. Together, they account for nearly 48.7% of the population’s native speakers. By integrating these languages into its AI tools, Google aims to lower the barriers faced by users who are not always comfortable using English for complex online searches.

According to Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, Google’s head of communications and public affairs for West Africa, the update relies on the multimodal reasoning capabilities of the Gemini model. The system is designed to deliver more relevant responses within local linguistic and cultural contexts.

Thirteen African languages now supported 🌍🧠

With the addition of Yoruba and Hausa, Google’s AI-powered search now supports 13 African languages. These include Swahili, Wolof, Afrikaans, Kinyarwanda, Akan, Oromo, Amharic, Somali, Setswana, Zulu and Sesotho.

Google says these languages were selected based on search activity across the continent as well as their demographic importance. The broader aim is to enable more African users to access online information in the languages they use every day.

More broadly, the initiative reflects a growing trend across the tech industry. Major technology companies are increasingly adapting their AI tools to local linguistic realities in order to expand adoption in emerging markets.

A broader strategy to localize AI in Africa 🤖🌍

The integration of Yoruba and Hausa is part of Google’s broader strategy to develop AI technologies tailored to the African continent. As part of this effort, the company has been investing in initiatives aimed at improving the linguistic capabilities of its models while encouraging the development of local solutions.

A few weeks earlier, Google also launched WAXAL, an open-source speech dataset developed in collaboration with African universities. The resource is intended to support the development of voice recognition systems and digital assistants capable of understanding African languages.

In the long run, Google hopes these initiatives will drive wider adoption of its services while helping reduce the digital access gap across the continent.

👉🏾 Do you think integrating African languages into artificial intelligence can genuinely accelerate digital access and access to information across the continent?