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Cape Town may be famous for mountains, beaches and good wine, but the City wants global investors to know it means business, too. Its new AI-powered concierge, Maya, promises to make setting up and growing a business in the Mother City faster and less complicated.
Available around the clock in eight languages, including Afrikaans and isiXhosa, Maya acts as a single digital entry point into Cape Town’s investment ecosystem. The platform can help investors navigate municipal processes, identify opportunities, find business-support programmes and connect with relevant City officials and industry bodies.
Maya's launch forms part of Cape Town. Built for Business, a new international campaign positioning the city as a competitive African business destination. The campaign is set to roll out across more than 60 cities in North America, Europe, South America, Africa, China, India and the Middle East.
“We wanted something practical and responsive that could answer questions immediately, guide investors and connect them with the right people,” says the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth, Alderman James Vos. “Innovation in government simply needs to solve real problems, save people time and make it easier to do business.”
The platform joins several measures intended to strengthen Cape Town’s investment environment, including the City’s Ease of Doing Business programme and policies supporting businesses and manufacturers. The City says its industry partnerships facilitated just under R16 billion in new investment during the previous financial year.
Find out more via Invest Cape Town website.
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Maya’s launch comes as South Africa emerges as Africa’s most AI-ready economy, ranking 46th out of 147 economies in Microsoft’s 2026 Global AI Diffusion Report.
The broader campaign is supported by a planned R120 billion infrastructure investment programme over the next decade, covering water security, which is a core concern with the increase uptake of artificial intelligence, along with energy resilience required for economic growth.
Add to this, investment and job creation in the digital economy must also contend with South Africa’s significant digital divide. Only 26 percent of households have a computer at home, while more than 11,000 public schools lack a computer centre.
As AI becomes increasingly embedded in business and public services, initiatives such as Maya demonstrate its practical potential. But wider access to devices and digital skills will be essential if the economic opportunities created by this technology are to benefit all South Africans.
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