The Independent National Electoral Commission has held discussions with Google and Microsoft on the use of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies in Nigeria’s electoral process ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, held the meetings in Ottawa, Canada, between September 9 and 11, 2026, on the sidelines of the Global Conference on Responsible AI and Elections.
The engagements also involved officials of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, with discussions focusing on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, emerging technologies and election administration.
Amupitan, who was accompanied by INEC Director of Information and Communication Technology, Dr Lawrence Bayode, first met Microsoft Emerging Tech and Cyber Lead, Ethan Chumley, and Programme Manager, Ariana Molina.
The discussions centred on emerging technologies, cybersecurity and the responsible application of artificial intelligence to electoral systems.
The INEC chairman also met Dr Lisa Poggiali, Chief AI Advisor at IFES, where they discussed responsible AI in election administration and practices adopted in other democracies.
On September 11, Amupitan met David J. Lopez, Google’s Global Lead for Civic Responsibility, to discuss technology and artificial intelligence in electoral processes.
According to INEC, the engagements were aimed at exploring partnerships that could help the commission address opportunities and risks associated with emerging technologies in elections.
Speaking at the conference, Amupitan said Nigeria’s experience showed the importance of deploying technology under strong institutional and regulatory safeguards.
“AI must strengthen electoral integrity, improve public service, and always remain under human control,” he said.
He identified human oversight, transparency and accountability, data protection and privacy, cybersecurity and risk management, as well as operational value and public trust as key principles for the use of AI in elections.
Amupitan said INEC had established an Artificial Intelligence Division within its ICT department and was developing an AI roadmap for phased adoption.
He added that an AI governance framework was undergoing internal approval, while staff training was being extended to ICT, operations, legal, voter education and risk management departments.
One of the applications being developed by the commission involves the intelligent management of election results.
Under the system, data extracted from scanned Form EC8A result sheets can be compared with information from the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, with discrepancies flagged for officials to review.
“The system does not alter results. It assists officials by identifying issues that require human attention,” Amupitan said.
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He said INEC’s deployment of election technology was guided by the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act 2026, INEC regulations, the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 and the Cybercrimes Act 2024.
The chairman also said the commission’s Policy on Election Technology Acquisition and Deployment requires ethical use of technology, human verification, bias reviews and data security for AI systems.
Nigeria is expected to conduct its next general elections in January 2027, with INEC already deploying and reviewing technology aimed at improving the electoral process.
Amupitan said Nigeria had more than 93 million registered voters, about 180,000 polling units and approximately 185,000 BVAS devices.
He said technologies including BVAS, the INEC Result Viewing Portal and the Automated Biometric Identification System had been introduced to reduce human error and limit manual interference in the electoral process.
The INEC chairman said the commission would assess AI projects based on factors including processing errors, reliability, staff acceptance, security, public confidence and sustainability before considering wider deployment.
The meetings with Google and Microsoft did not amount to a publicly announced contract between the companies and INEC.
About the Author
Cecilia Attah is a tech analyst with a degree from Benue State University. She covers tech news and startups at TechRegard with a focus on how technology is transforming Africa and shaping the global landscape.
