For Faith Ekpoma, the costliest part of learning artificial intelligence had nothing to do with AI subscriptions. The machine-learning student left her parents' home to move in with her cousin, driven by a simple need: more reliable electricity to study and build her skills.

Ekpoma grew up in a village with little exposure to technology but developed an interest in AI by reading online about how the technology works. She now relies mostly on free courses and opportunities shared on X, and has spent about ₦25,000 on her learning journey so far. Electricity remains one of her biggest obstacles, and data costs have become a burden because her internet allowance runs out so quickly.

Her experience highlights a less obvious question behind Nigeria's ambition to build an AI economy: can Nigerians take part in it if they cannot consistently afford the infrastructure needed to learn and use the technology?

Nigeria is betting on artificial intelligence to create jobs, improve productivity and build a new digital economy. But for the people already using AI, the biggest barrier may not be access to the technology itself — it may be what comes after the free chatbot. The country's strategy acknowledges problems that could make that ambition difficult, including unreliable infrastructure, limited broadband, shortages of skilled AI professionals and high energy costs.

The question, then, is not simply whether Nigerians can access AI. Increasingly, they can. The bigger question is how far they can go with it.

Free AI Is Already Doing the Job for Many Nigerians

For Chukwuma Alexander, a corps member serving in Delta State, AI has become a regular part of his work. He uses it frequently for editing texts and research and spends about ₦10,000 a month on data and electricity. Yet those costs do not affect how often he uses AI, and he does not pay for the tools themselves: for his needs, the free versions are enough.

"If the AI can get my work done, I don't see the need to pay for the premium version," he said.

Chiagozie Nwosu, a banker, has a similar experience. She uses AI almost every day for research and photo generation and estimates that she spends about ₦15,000 monthly on data and electricity. That spending has little impact on her AI use because the free versions of the tools she uses are sufficient. For Nwosu, the single change that would make AI more accessible would simply be making premium features available for free.

Omoregie Okezie, a graphic designer and sports journalist, also uses AI daily, spending roughly three hours a day with the technology to optimise his work. He estimates that he pays around ₦400 daily on data, though he does not consider electricity a significant part of his AI costs. Like the others, he does not pay for AI tools because the free versions currently meet his needs.

Together, these experiences show a relatively low barrier to basic AI adoption. For many users, getting started does not require an expensive subscription: free AI tools can already handle everyday tasks such as research, writing assistance, image generation and design support. The picture changes, however, when the goal shifts from using AI to building a career around it.

The Cost of Learning AI Is Different

Igie Osarenoma, a software engineering student in Benin City, is learning AI because he wants to build applications, automate tasks and eventually earn from freelance work, employment or products of his own. Most of his learning has relied on free tutorials, YouTube, online documentation and experimentation — none of which makes the process cost-free. Osarenoma says data and electricity remain significant expenses because he needs internet access to download software, test projects and use AI platforms.

His biggest challenge, however, is not the price of an AI subscription. It is knowing what to learn.

"AI is such a broad field," he said, adding that he sometimes finds himself moving between different topics instead of staying with one skill long enough to master it.

That points to another form of access: knowing how to turn exposure to AI into useful skills.

Emmanuel Emeghala, an AI content writer and enthusiast, estimates that he has spent about ₦75,000 on his AI learning journey, although he also relies heavily on free versions of AI tools. For him, the difficulty is keeping up with the speed of the industry.

"Knowing the right thing to learn in AI is the biggest barrier," he said, pointing to the number of new developments and tools appearing regularly.

Nigeria Wants Millions of People to Become AI-Ready

The challenge is significant because Nigeria's AI ambition goes beyond getting people to use chatbots. The country's National AI Strategy covers building AI infrastructure, developing talent, encouraging adoption across sectors and creating an ecosystem for AI innovation. It specifically identifies unreliable power, high energy costs, limited infrastructure and a shortage of skilled professionals as challenges to developing that ecosystem.

Government programmes are already attempting to close parts of the gap. The 3 Million Technical Talent programme, for example, is designed to build Nigeria's technical workforce, while the Nigeria Artificial Intelligence Research Scheme supports the development of an AI ecosystem. The government has also introduced a National Digital Cloud Policy, which identifies artificial intelligence compute capacity as an area for investment and aims to mobilise $750 million in private investment in Nigerian cloud and data infrastructure within 24 months.

That infrastructure matters because AI adoption depends on more than having an account on an AI platform. An August 2026 IMF study on AI in sub-Saharan Africa identified unreliable electricity, limited digital infrastructure and shortages of technical skills among the region's major constraints to AI adoption. The IMF has similarly argued that reliable power, affordable internet and stronger skills will be necessary for African countries to capture AI's economic benefits.

The Real Affordability Question

The experiences of these users complicate the idea that AI is simply too expensive for Nigerians. For someone who wants to edit a document, conduct research or generate an image, free AI tools may already provide enough functionality. But the cost can rise as ambition rises. Becoming an AI professional may require sustained internet access, electricity, a capable computer, specialised training and access to more advanced tools. Building an AI product adds another layer of costs, including computing, cloud infrastructure, data and potentially specialised talent.

That creates different levels of participation in the AI economy. A person can use AI for free without necessarily having the resources to build with AI or earn from it. For Nigeria, that distinction could become increasingly important as the country tries to turn AI adoption into jobs and economic growth.

Osarenoma believes the skills can lead to real opportunities, particularly in software development, AI automation, freelancing and AI-powered products. But he is still learning and has not yet reached the point where those skills have translated into a guaranteed income. For Okezie, the potential is also personal. He already uses AI to improve his graphic design work but would like the technology to help him more with storytelling and fiction writing, an area where he says he currently struggles.

This suggests that Nigeria's immediate AI economy may not look like a country full of AI engineers building large models. It could instead begin with existing workers using relatively accessible tools to do their jobs faster, while a smaller group develops the deeper technical skills needed to build AI products and services. The challenge for Nigeria is ensuring that the second group does not become limited to people who can afford the infrastructure, training and time required to get there.

AI may already be accessible to many Nigerians. The harder question is whether the opportunity to profit from it, build with it and develop the skills to shape it will be just as accessible.