Past event · April 2026

AI & The Future of SomaliaAn evening with the Ambassador

A historic evening with His Excellency, the Ambassador of Somalia to the United States, hosted by Volunteers of Somalia. Local business leaders, community elders, AI and tech professionals, students, and friends of VOS gathered together for the first time in this format.

April 25, 2026 Delta Hotel by Marriott, Minneapolis Local leaders, AI & tech experts
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The night, in our words

It was the kind of room that reminds you why this work matters. The Honorable Ambassador of Somalia to the United States joined us as keynote speaker. Local business leaders, community elders, AI and tech professionals, students, and friends of VOS gathered together for the first time in this format.

Somalia has the youngest population in the world. The diaspora has the technical talent. The AI tools are now within reach. The question is no longer whether Somalia can leapfrog into the future, it is who builds the bridge.

Volunteers of Somalia (VOS) presented the work ahead and the road to the Somali International AI & Development Conference (SIADC) in Mogadishu this December. Partners and supporters from outside the community joined us in person, a quiet sign that the mission is starting to resonate beyond Somalis themselves.

There were short talks, hard questions, candid answers, and the kind of conversations that only happen when people who actually want to build something sit at the same table. By the end of the night the energy in the room was unmistakable. People were not just listening. They were signing up.

Thank you to His Excellency, to every person who showed up, and to the volunteers who made the evening possible. The next stop is Mogadishu in December. Bring a friend.

What is next

Mogadishu, December 2026

The Somali International AI & Development Conference (SIADC) is the natural next chapter. Three days bringing the diaspora and the homeland together around AI and the future of Somalia.