Cape Town
AI Winter School 2027
Putting the power of AI to create in the hands of our township youth
An AI literacy programme for Grade 12 learners from township schools in Cape Town.
About the school
The AI Winter School is a non-profit that brings frontier AI and industry expertise to township schools. For 1 week in July, small teams of learners choose a problem from their community and build a working solution with AI, guided by working professionals.
Learners leave with a certificate, a working project for university applications and AI literacy for the job market.
The journey
From the township to a working product, and beyond
- The way in: Selected. Teams from partner schools pitch an idea from their community.
- Mon: Team up. Thinking Environment and escape rooms.
- Tue: Plan. What AI is, ethics, planning the build.
- Wed: Build. Building the prototype with AI.
- Thu: Test. Testing to a proof of concept.
- Fri: Release. Showcase to the panel and guests.
- After the week: Career support. Mentors, Career Clubs and bursary guidance.
What learners receive
- Frontier AI
Claude, the AI model from Anthropic - A laptop
Their own for the week - Guest speakers
Working professionals from industry - Meals
2 meals a day - Transport
From the township to the venue, every day
Our mission
Putting the power of AI to create in the hands of township youth
AI is redefining what work means across every industry. In South Africa, where youth unemployment is an acute national crisis, the danger is urgent: young people furthest from opportunity risk being displaced rather than empowered.
The AI Winter School exists to change that trajectory. We do not teach passive consumption. We equip Grade 12 learners from township schools with frontier tools, engineering guidance and the agency to build working solutions for their communities.
When learners spend 1 week building real software, they stop being bystanders in the technology transition and become the builders who will lead it.