Skip to content

Malik Afegbua: Storytelling at the Speed of Code

Generative AI. couple laughing

Malik Afegbua, born in Nigeria, considers himself a filmmaker, a visual artist, and a creative technologist. Afegbua is globally recognized for his ground-breaking use of artificial intelligence in storytelling.

Image of Malik Afegbua
Malik Afegbua

A business-school graduate from the University of Surrey, he turned his focus to the creative realm in 2011 after receiving a Canon camera. This gift was the beginning of his career in photography, filmmaking and virtual storytelling. Today, he is the CEO of Slickcity Media, a Lagos‑based studio producing commercials, documentaries, VR experiences, and AI‑driven art for clients like Meta, Marvel Studios, IBM, American Express, and Cadbury.

His breakout project, The Elder Series, also known as “Fashion Show for Seniors”, emerged in early 2023 when he used technology to depict elegantly dressed older adults walking a runway – imagining aging as stylish, powerful, and full of color. This collection went viral worldwide, earning praise from the World Health Organization during its Decade of Healthy Aging initiative.

Afegbua draws creative inspiration directly from life – especially caring for his mother after her stroke. He explains that The Elder Series was deeply personal: “I wanted to create her memories with AI… not in a suppressed state, but in a more elegant one.” By crafting AI‑generated images that challenged bias in training datasets, he positioned technology as a tool to reclaim dignity and perspective for marginalized communities.

Beyond this series, Afegbua’s Afro‑futuristic “Ngochola” project imagines a sophisticated 250,000‑year‑old African civilization conversant with machines that merge ancestral aesthetics with futuristic worlds. He emphasizes ethical AI use, seeing it not as a replacement for human creativity, but as a “co‑creation” process that must be rooted in original content and cultural awareness.

Now leading workshops in his hometown and participating in international discussions (such as Salzburg Global’s “Creating Futures” program), Afegbua is molding the future of storytelling in Africa by grounding it in heritage and powering it with emerging technology. His goal is to create inclusive narratives that global audiences can connect with.

To learn more about Afegbua and to see more of his work, visit his website at http://malikafegbua.com.

Generative AI. two women wearing costume
Generative AI. portrait of a elder

*All images and information are © Malik Afegbua unless otherwise stated.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Public Health Landscape or Valent BioSciences, LLC.


More from

Dr. Regina Barzilay: From Patient to Pioneer

Dr. Regina Barzilay, a professor at MIT and a pioneer in artificial intelligence (AI), is not only moving the needle in science and technology – she is rebuilding the compass. Her work not only advances medical technology but also challenges how we think about diagnosis, treatment, and the human experience behind each.

Barzilay’s journey into medical AI did not begin in a lab. It began in a hospital room in 2014, when she received a breast cancer diagnosis. For most, that moment signals a personal battle. For her, it became something more. It became the beginning of a mission to reimagine cancer care through machine learning.

Six Ways AI is Transforming Healthcare

With 4.5 billion people currently without access to essential healthcare services and a health worker shortage of 11 million expected by 2030, AI has the potential to help bridge that gap and revolutionize global healthcare.

It could even get us back on track to meet the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal of achieving universal health coverage by 2030.

But while the technology is rapidly developing, healthcare is “below average” in its adoption of AI compared to other industries, according to the World Economic Forum’s white paper, The Future of AI-Enabled Health: Leading the Way.

AI in Telehealth: The New Game Changers

AI transforms health-seeking from an ordeal to a convenience for a busy city-dweller and a boon for those with mobility issues or living in remote areas. A few taps of a finger can schedule a consultation, and visiting a physician becomes as effortless as sitting before a TV. Around 75% of healthcare organizations have found that integrating AI into their operations improved their ability to treat diseases effectively while reducing staff burnout.

Since physical examinations contribute to only 11% of the diagnostic process, with the patient’s history making up 76%, AI has become a valuable tool for helping medical professionals assess and interpret patient data more efficiently. AI algorithms can rapidly process large datasets, allowing medical professionals to identify potential health risks early – often before they are detectable by traditional methods.

Telehealth and telemedicine is a booming market, projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 23.2% between 2023 and 2028 as technology advances, regulations evolve, and patients and healthcare professionals accept telemedicine as a safe, economical and viable choice. AI is dramatically re-drawing the telehealth landscape in the areas of prediction, diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of diseases like heart disease, cancer, respiratory disorders and diabetes, which account for nearly 75% of deaths worldwide each year.

Health care technology trends 2025

What is the future of AI in health care? What is the future of RPM? Is telehealth increasing or decreasing? How can AI reduce physician burnout?

This video from the American Medical Association, featuring a discussion between Margaret Lozovatsky, MD, vice president of Digital Health Innovations, and Todd Unger, CXO, answers all of these questions.