Who Gets to Learn in the Age of AI? Kume Luvhani on the Future of Work
Vaxowave co-founder Kume Luvhani on why AI must not erase the junior work that builds judgement, closing the skills gap, and Africa creating technology.
Artificial intelligence is changing how work gets done, and how people learn to do it. In a recent interview with Director Woman, Vaxowave co-founder and executive director Kume Luvhani talked about what this means for young professionals, for the businesses that employ them and for Africa’s place in the global technology economy.
AI can provide answers, but experience teaches judgement
Kume does not object to automation in itself. “My concern isn’t that AI is replacing repetitive work. In many instances, it absolutely should,” she says. Her worry is what disappears with that work. Junior roles have long been where people build professional judgement, by doing the groundwork, making small mistakes and learning why things are done the way they are.
If AI takes over that entry-level work without anything to replace the learning it provided, organisations risk a generation of professionals who can use AI tools fluently but can’t question what those tools produce. “There’s a difference between knowing the answer and understanding how to arrive at the answer,” she says.
The missing link between technology training and employment
Kume sees a persistent gap between what education produces and what employers need. Certifications show that someone knows a technology. They do not build the problem-solving, communication and collaboration skills that businesses look for. She argues for work-integrated learning and continuous reskilling, so that people build capability in context rather than collecting credentials alone.
That thinking shaped Lumina, Vaxowave’s AI learning platform. It combines an AI tutor, adaptive assessment and voice simulation to make learning more practical and interactive, and easier to access.
She is direct about where responsibility sits. Employers “cannot continually demand experienced talent while being unwilling to invest in developing inexperienced people.” Meaningful responsibility, mentorship and clear progression paths are how organisations grow the experienced people they will need. The Vaxowave Futures Foundation exists to do this, and Kume sees it as building future leaders rather than as a corporate social responsibility exercise.
Building a technology business beyond the technical solution
Kume became a director at one of South Africa’s largest banks at 29, before co-founding Vaxowave. That background shapes how she views technology investment. Every investment should be tied to a clear business outcome, adoption is a leadership and people challenge as much as a technical one, and value has to be measured after rollout, not assumed.
“Implementation is not the finish line. In many ways, that’s where the real work begins,” she says. It is the same principle behind Vaxowave’s approach to AI advisory and governance, where measuring value and managing risk continue long after a system goes live.
Building a company, she adds, is about more than financial results: “When you build a company, you’re not just building a balance sheet.”
Africa must move from adopting technology to creating it
Looking ahead, Kume wants Africa to create technology and intellectual property, not mainly adopt what is built elsewhere. “We have exceptional engineers, entrepreneurs and innovators building sophisticated solutions right here in Africa,” she says. Turning that talent into globally competitive businesses depends on access to capital, access to markets and clients who are willing to trust local innovators.
This article draws on Masekane Nkwana’s interview with Kume Luvhani, “Who Gets to Learn in the Age of AI? Vaxowave’s Kume Luvhani on the Future of Work”, first published by Director Woman on 28 October 2026.
