Lagos has emerged as the world’s fastest-growing emerging technology ecosystem in 2025, according to a new report by renowned data analytics firm, Statisense. The ranking places Nigeria’s commercial capital ahead of global contenders including Istanbul, Pune, Mumbai, and Riyadh.
The Statisense report, published on social platform X, evaluated cities based on metrics such as enterprise value, unicorn count, funding growth, GDP per capita, and cost of living. Other cities rounding out the top 10 include Belo Horizonte, Curitiba, Johannesburg, Chennai, and Ho Chi Minh City.
Additional emerging tech hubs named in the report include Kyiv, Mexico City, Vilnius, Jakarta, Bengaluru, Zagreb, Dhaka, Bangkok, Santiago de Chile, and Kampala.
Reacting to the news, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu attributed the city’s rise to deliberate government policies and sustained investment in innovation and digital infrastructure.
Speaking at the Art of Technology Lagos 6.0 event on Monday, themed “Artificial Intelligence and the Lagos Digital Economy,” the governor, represented by Deputy Governor Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, highlighted Lagos’s proactive role in shaping Africa’s tech future.
“Through deliberate policies and investments, we have created an enabling environment that fosters innovation and positioned Lagos as a global player in the technology value chain. The achievements reflect the ingenuity of our people and our unwavering commitment to innovation. But we must continue to build on this foundation to secure our position as a leader in the global tech ecosystem,” Sanwo-Olu said.
He also noted that startups based in Lagos raised over $1.2 billion in 2023, accounting for a remarkable 75% of all startup investments in Nigeria.
Delivering the keynote address at the event, Terrens Wu, Managing Director, Enterprise Business Group at Huawei Technologies, spoke on the evolution of global digital infrastructure and the growing dominance of artificial intelligence.
“From the first growth curve of the informatization age, human society has achieved ubiquitous interconnection, connecting a large number of users and causing a traffic explosion. This has accelerated the demand for digital transformation and spawned a second growth curve with 5G and cloud as the main engines,” Wu explained.
He said the third growth wave—defined by comprehensive intelligence—is now unfolding, driven by an exponential surge in AI computing needs.
“By the end of this year, we expect that the demand for AI computing power may exceed the demand for general computing power. Building an elastic and efficient multi-calculation infrastructure with optimal AI computing power, which is about building an AI-native cloud infrastructure, is the key to AI development,” Wu added.
The recognition of Lagos as the world’s leading emerging tech hub marks a significant milestone for Nigeria’s digital economy and solidifies the city’s position as a powerhouse for innovation on the African continent and beyond.
