From Ubuntu to upgrades: is Transhumanism compatible with African humanism?

Can a philosophy of radical self-optimisation coexist with a culture grounded in community, dignity and the belief that “a person is a person through others”?

Article link: https://open.substack.com/pub/johanosteyn/p/from-ubuntu-to-upgrades-is-transhumanism?r=73gqa&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Audio summary: https://youtu.be/MnBARZP2ezs

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I write about various issues of interest to me that I want to bring to the reader’s attention. While my main work is in Artificial Intelligence and technology, I also cover areas around politics, education, and the future of our children.

Transhumanism is often described as the next frontier of technology: a philosophical, cultural and scientific movement that wants to use tools like genetic engineering, neurotechnology, nanotech, robotics and artificial intelligence to overcome human limits. The aim is not only to treat disease, but to radically extend life, enhance cognition and blur the boundary between human and machine.

At the same time, African humanism – captured in the idea of Ubuntu, “I am because we are” – emphasises community, relationship and shared vulnerability. As these two worldviews meet, we should ask a simple question: what happens to Ubuntu in a world of upgradeable humans?

CONTEXT AND BACKGROUND

Transhumanism rests on two convictions: being “merely human” is a starting point rather than an endpoint, and deliberate technological self-modification is both possible and desirable. Its advocates support research into gene editing, brain–computer interfaces, cybernetic implants, even mind-uploading, as steps towards a “posthuman” condition. In this vision, ageing and many disabilities are problems to be engineered away; death itself becomes a technical challenge.

Ubuntu tells a very different story. In much of Africa, personhood is not just an individual property but something formed in community. Dignity is not earned by performance or status; it is inherent. Weakness, dependence and care are not embarrassing bugs in the human system; they are part of what makes life meaningful. As African societies urbanise and digitise, these values are already under pressure. The arrival of technologies that promise to “improve” the human being raises the stakes.

INSIGHT AND ANALYSIS

The first tension lies in where each worldview locates value. Transhumanism tends to see the body and brain as hardware to be upgraded. Better memory, sharper focus, stronger muscles, longer lives: these are framed as obvious goods. Yet, if we are honest, many of these upgrades would be purchased by those who are already privileged. In a continent still wrestling with basic healthcare, food security and education, the idea that some will pay to become “more than human” while others fight to stay alive is troubling.

Ubuntu pushes back by insisting that the worth of a person does not rise or fall with their capabilities. A child with a disability, an elderly neighbour, a worker whose skills the digital economy no longer values – all remain fully part of the moral community. If we adopt a transhumanist mindset uncritically, we risk slipping into a quiet hierarchy: enhanced lives are seen as more important than unenhanced ones. That would be a radical betrayal of African humanism.

There is also a question of identity. Transhumanism often celebrates autonomy: my body, my brain, my upgrades. But in many African contexts, the self is not an isolated project; it is woven into family, tradition and place. If enhancement technologies become status symbols, we may deepen a culture of competition and exclusion. The danger is not only technical risk, but the slow erosion of solidarity as we measure ourselves and others by what our bodies and brains can be engineered to do.

IMPLICATIONS

For policymakers, the challenge is to get ahead of the curve. Enhancement technologies will not arrive all at once, but in messy, incremental ways: experimental gene therapies, cognitive enhancers, implants for specific conditions, and AI companions. We will need regulatory frameworks that distinguish clearly between therapy and enhancement, protect vulnerable people from exploitation, and prevent new forms of discrimination against those who cannot or will not be “upgraded”.

For business and technology leaders in Africa, the question is where to focus scarce resources. There is nothing wrong with pursuing responsible innovation, but it cannot come at the cost of neglecting basic healthcare, education and digital inclusion. If we speak loudly about extending the lives of the wealthy while remaining quiet about children who still die from preventable diseases, our priorities will be exposed. Ubuntu demands that technology serve the community as a whole, not only those at the top.

CLOSING TAKEAWAY

Transhumanism forces us to confront a hard question: are we building a future where worth is measured by the quality of our upgrades, or by the quality of our relationships? African humanism offers a powerful compass at this crossroads. It reminds us that we become fully human not by escaping our fragility, but by how we respond to the fragility of others.

As advanced technologies spread into Africa, our task is not to reject them outright, but to insist that they are guided by Ubuntu: by dignity, solidarity and a stubborn refusal to leave anyone behind – especially our children.

Author Bio: Johan Steyn is a prominent AI thought leader, speaker, and author with a deep understanding of artificial intelligence’s impact on business and society. He is passionate about ethical AI development and its role in shaping a better future. Find out more about Johan’s work at https://www.aiforbusiness.net