NAIROBI: Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella is in Kenya for a surprise visit that cements the country’s dominance as the region’s ICT hub.
The visit by Mr Nadella comes just two days after the country hosted thousands of entrepreneurs and investors for the 6th edition of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES).
Nadella jetted into the country on Tuesday afternoon for the launch of the global tech giant’s new operating system – Windows 10 – and to assess Microsoft’s projects in Kenya.
The country serves as Microsoft’s regional headquarters and was one of the 13 cities globally chosen to host Wednesday’s launch of Microsoft’s latest and most advanced operating platform yet.
The software, launched globally Wednesday, is the company’s attempt to reverse its fortunes in the mobile industry.
Nadella has been with Microsoft for more than 20 years and is the firm’s third CEO after Steve Balmer and Bill gates. Wednesday, he spent the morning in Nanyuki following up on Microsoft’s project to deliver broadband to rural areas around the country.
The project, implemented in partnership with Internet company Mawingu, utilises idle television spectrum to deliver low-cost Internet using solar energy.
Nadella then spent the afternoon with developers in Kenya’s tech community at Nairobi’s Startup Garage where he also hosted a closed round-table discussion with selected individuals from Kenya’s tech community.
Microsoft is banking on the launch of Windows 10 to claw back lost market share particularly in mobile devices where the company is finding a hard time fighting off Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android operating systems.
The new Windows 10 is the most advanced operating platform from the company and it allows consumers to operate all their devices seamlessly. It will be available for free as an update for users with existing Windows devices.
