Gen AI Network (GAIN), an organization dedicated to promoting the widespread use of artificial intelligence among young Nigerians, is set to host Nigeria's inaugural creative AI competition. This initiative was confirmed to Technext by Michael Osumo, the Program Manager of GAIN's parent company, Instig Labs.
The competition, titled "Prompt to Screen," is open to all participants and has already attracted hundreds of applications. The event is scheduled to commence on November 8 and conclude on December 13, featuring two distinct categories: Creative AI for storytelling and Creative AI for builders.
In the storytelling category, participants will be assigned weekly themes. They will be tasked with producing AI-generated art, music, or videos that align with these themes. A winner will be announced each week leading up to the competition's finale.
For the building category, participants are expected to develop AI-powered software specifically for creative media applications. While this category will not have weekly winners, the final award recipients will be announced on December 13.
Individuals can enter the competition either on their own or as part of a team. However, prizes will be awarded based on the merit of the submitted work, irrespective of the team's size. Teams will be responsible for distributing any awarded prizes amongst their members.
Program Manager Michael Osumo explained that the competition's core objective is to democratize AI creativity, transforming it from a specialized advantage into a widely accessible resource.
"We want AI creativity to become a shared resource, not a private advantage," Osumo stated. "The Prompt To Screen Competition is our first large-scale expression of that mission, bringing together students, creators, and startups to produce films with AI and learn through collaboration rather than isolation."
The keynote address at the finale will be delivered by Paige Bailey, AI Developer Relations Engineering Lead at Google DeepMind, on the topic "AI and the Future of Storytelling." The judging panel includes Hilda Edet (Hillz), a multidisciplinary musician and creative director; Ejike Kanife, a seasoned technology reporter and Editor at Technext; Olawale Ibitoye, a software engineer and creator of the productivity app AgendifyNow; and Amir Mušić, a creative strategist and AI influencer renowned for assisting creators and brands in achieving growth through AI-powered storytelling and visual innovation.
Additional judges comprise Odufa Oshiomah, a content specialist at Falcon Aerospace with expertise in crafting narratives within the aviation sector, and Oladayo Olufade, Group IT Head at EbonyLife Group, who applies extensive experience in banking, finance, and media to advance technology strategy and infrastructure across the entertainment industry.
Beyond Competition: GAIN's Vision for Creative AI Labs
The organizers emphasize that the "Prompt to Screen" program extends beyond a singular competition, aligning with GAIN's broader ambition to establish creative AI laboratories on university campuses. These labs are envisioned as communities of practice, providing students with spaces for experimentation, development, and collaborative learning.
Chukwuerika Achum, Founder of Instig Labs, described these hubs as more than just training centers; they are developmental environments designed to foster the future of Africa's creative economy.
"These are not just training hubs; they are R&D environments for the African creative economy," Achum explained. "AI has transformed how creative work is executed. However, the most advanced models remain inaccessible to a significant portion of the population in this region. We are addressing this through Creative AI Labs, offering members free access to these resources and facilitating skill development."
He further elaborated that students will not only create films and digital art but also develop software, workflows, and tools aimed at accelerating and simplifying creative production processes for others. Just as Nollywood and Afrobeats have demonstrated the potential for cultural intellectual property to achieve global reach, the Creative AI Labs represent a strategic investment in the next phase of value creation.
Achum highlighted that for many decades, African creativity has been constrained by a lack of resources rather than a deficit of ideas. The scarcity of essential tools, time, and infrastructure has hindered execution. For example, producing a short film historically required equipment rentals that could consume a student's entire budget, and access to decent workstations for editing was limited. Animation production was often reserved for a select few due to the lengthy rendering times and extensive revision processes involved.
"Now, at a Creative AI Labs session, a university student shows up with nothing but an idea. No gear. No budget," Chukwuerika stated. "By the end of the day, she’s built a storyboard, generated visuals, scored a soundtrack, and cut a 30-second teaser. One laptop. Zero friction."
The "Prompt to Screen" Challenge and the Creative AI Labs are presented not as investments in superficial tools, but as strategic initiatives to accelerate learning cycles, enhance storytelling, and broaden access to opportunities. The organizers believe that the teams poised for success will be those that effectively combine discerning taste with reproducible workflows and a steadfast commitment to ethical creation.
Echoing this sentiment, Toyin Bamidele (Batel), UNDP Nigeria's Digital Innovation Officer, emphasized during an ecosystem co-creation engagement session at the UNDP Innovation Centre in Lagos that genuine advancement in this domain will stem from collaborative local efforts that consolidate talent, data, and contextual understanding, rather than isolated breakthroughs.