Kayode Makinde
AI Researcher | Data Scientist

Kayode Makinde is an AI researcher at Lawyers Hub, Africa's leading AI policy organization, where he explores the intersection of AI, law, and technology to drive ethical AI development and policymaking in Africa. He is also a multi-award-winning data scientist at Perizer, specializing in AI-driven research analysis, market trends, and optimization.

With a background in engineering, Kayode has gained recognition for his innovative research, including training reinforcement learning agents to play Ayo, a traditional Nigerian game. This project earned him the Best Poster award at the DSN AI Bootcamp and 3rd place at IndabaX Nigeria 2024. His achievements also include winning the Bluechip Data and AI Summit hackathon, the DataFest hackathon, and receiving the prestigious Mr. Algorithm award for excellence in AI.

Kayode is a skilled speaker and educator who has delivered impactful sessions at leading tech events, including DataFest Africa 2024 and TECH MEET Abeokuta 3.0, where he has shared insights on computer vision, object detection with YOLO, and reinforcement learning. His diverse projects demonstrate his practical approach to AI, from developing an AI-powered ripe orange plucking robot to designing optimization algorithms for real-world applications.

A passionate advocate for AI innovation in Africa, Kayode combines deep technical expertise with a commitment to community engagement. He leverages AI to solve local challenges in agriculture, cultural preservation, and beyond, while inspiring the next generation of AI practitioners to harness AI’s transformative potential for sustainable development.