Broadcasting
AI-Driven Code Optimization: Using Machine Learning to Refactor and Enhance Code Performance
In a fast-changing discipline in which technology all too often outstrips comprehension, Chukwubuikem Victory Onwukwe is far from a trend-seeker but instead analyzes and critiques them and molds them as useful tools to bring real systems to their full potential.
Chukwubuikem Victor Onwukwe
An experienced software engineer with a steadfast commitment to compute simplicity and long term performance, Onwukwe has more recently established an unconventional path at the intersection of software engineering and machine learning—one focused on the poorly developed niche of AI-enabled optimisation of code.
While the community at large has been thus far focused on natural language processing, images generated by AI, and agents operating by themselves, a parallel conversation has been taking place in comparative obscurity by Onwukwe: how do models learn to not simply produce code but also understand and rewrite it with the elegance and context-aware precision of an experienced developer?
This question has fueled his research over the past several years as he has constructed and honed systems to do more than produce syntactically correct code—which instead analyze codebases, identify bottlenecks, reason about algorithmic trade-offs, and propose thoughtful optimizations. The essence of his ideology is not automata as a goal but smart augmentation: tools learn from code as a developer does by observing patterns, understanding domain intent, and adapting through feedback.
Behind Onwukwe’s research and engineering lies a conviction that optimisation is as much an art as it is a science. Traditional optimisation methods rely on rules—proven heuristic and hacks at compile time—but they shatter on a daily basis when presented with large, heterogeneous codebases built by dozens of developers over decades. Context matters. Domain convention matters. What would be a fantastic optimization in one subsystem would wreak havoc on another. Here is where Onwukwe’s machine learning infrastructures come into the equation: they don’t merely learn performance profiles but also learn development ecosystems.
One of his more thought-provoking undertakings was the creation of a custom transformer model trained on millions of open-source repository refactoring patterns.
The model was not simply searching for the usual redundant loops and unnecessary overhead.
The model was trained to read semantic intent—proceeding on the basis, say, that code used in real-time data processing has incredibly dissimilar performance constraints than code used in a batch job for a periodical analytics workload.
By feeding the model metadata about module usage and system design as well as runtime patterns as part of its training data set, the model was taught to propose optimizations that respected both performance and functional correctness in the code.
Onwukwe’s approach contradicts the doxa of needing to optimize as aggressively as they possibly can. Models he trains will typically suggest less complicated, easier-to-explain options that build incrementally on performance while enhancing maintainability, a considered tradeoff all too commonly overlooked by software developers today. Speed and memory are as important to him as keeping things less complicated to comprehend in the long term. “Optimization without sustainability is technical debt with better benchmarks.”
Another feature of his work is the presence of feedback loops. Unlike a static linter or black-box AI tool, his systems learn from developer decisions on an ongoing basis. Whenever a developer spurns a recommendation, the system does not simply note the spurning but the why, if it is able to do so.
Over time it begins to gain a localized sense of team taste, architectural convention, and concerns around performance. The result is a co-evolution of code and machine intelligence—a two-way conversation rather than a prescription.
Peers describe Onwukwe as a demanding and careful person who insists on the long path in experimentation to ground conclusions in reproducibility and worldly applicability. He brings a scientific mindset to a discipline more and more hijacked by hype. In a conference setting, he’ll puncture assumptions models “getting” code by insisting on demonstrable, iterative understanding on the basis of developer confidence. Simple alteration of code by a system is inadequate; it has to do it in a way a human co-worker would approve of, if even enjoy.
While his work is necessarily technical in purpose, its importance is philosophical. Onwukwe is challenging the underlying principle of partnership with a machine, not as a tool to simply receive instructions from but as a collaborator whose competence is refined by shared direction.
His vision is one in which the coding process itself is a conversation: developers author the code, AI deconstructs and optimizes it, and together build not only useful software but beautiful, efficient, and coherent systems.
In a world increasingly dependent on software, the costs of optimization are no longer computational, now they are ecological, they are economic, they are ethical.
Work by Chukwubuikem Victory Onwukwe makes it clear that at the heart of good software is not speed alone, but thoughtfulness. And in translating the reasoning of machines and the discretion of engineers, he is not simply optimising code, he is optimising the shape of development itself.
MultiChoice has said that it will not implement its customary yearly price increase on DStv and GOtv subscriptions.
This is the first time the Pay-TV company will not be adjusting its price in April, as it has in previous years, signalling a clear shift in direction under its new owner, Canal+.
The decision, confirmed by David Mignot, group chief executive,MultiChoice in an interview with TechCentral, comes as the pay television operator grapples with steep subscriber losses across its markets.
For many households accustomed to annual April tariff adjustments, the announcement will be a welcome break.
Responding to questions about whether DStv prices would rise in April as they have in previous years, Mignot gave a firm response: there will be no increase.
He explained that the company’s immediate focus is on rebuilding its subscriber base, making this an unsuitable period to adjust prices upward.
He added that while there are no current plans for a price hike, the company has not completely ruled out adjustments later in the year, especially if economic conditions demand it, such as significant currency movements.
MultiChoice has historically reviewed and raised DStv subscription fees in April, often citing inflationary pressures and rising content costs. As recently as April 2025, bouquet prices were adjusted upwards by between 2.1 per cent and 7.9 per cent.
The DStv Premium package rose from R929 to R979 per month, while DStv Access, the entry-level satellite package, recorded one of the steepest increases.
This year’s pause represents a break from that pattern and forms part of a broader reset following Canal+’s acquisition of MultiChoice in September 2025.
Mignot, who brings three decades of experience in the pay television industry, summed up his mission in simple terms: halt subscriber losses and return the business to growth.
The urgency behind the move is evident in MultiChoice’s recent performance.
The group has lost 2.8 million linear broadcasting subscribers in the two years ended 31 March 2025, with roughly half of those losses occurring in South Africa.
In the financial year to end-March 2025 alone, MultiChoice shed 1.2 million subscribers, representing an eight per cent year-on-year decline and leaving the group with 14.5 million active customers.
The previous year saw an even steeper drop of 1.6 million subscribers. By June 2025, Canal+ indicated that the pace of decline had intensified further.
The financial impact has been significant. Revenue for the year ended 31 March 2025 declined by R4 billion to R52 billion, while trading profit fell sharply by 49 per cent to R4 billion.
According to Mignot, the company’s difficulties stem less from its programming slate and more from weaknesses in its commercial execution.
He argued that in subscription businesses, a churn rate of between 12 and 15 per cent annually is inevitable as customers relocate, experience job losses, adjust household budgets, or change priorities. Without attracting a comparable number of new subscribers each year, losses accumulate.
Mignot maintained that the content offering remains strong, particularly in sport and general entertainment. He cited flagship brands such as SuperSport, M-Net and Africa Magic as evidence of sustained investment in programming. However, he stressed that content strength alone cannot offset a weakening subscriber acquisition engine.
He noted that MultiChoice’s commercial machinery had performed robustly across Africa until around 2022, describing the current challenges as relatively recent.
Drawing on Canal+’s experience in French-speaking African markets, Mignot pointed out that pricing there has remained largely unchanged for close to 14 years, supported by a volume-driven approach. He described his strategy as one focused on growing subscriber numbers while maintaining profitability.
While he did not dismiss the possibility of reviewing prices downward in future, he indicated that no such decision has been taken.
Spotify marked five years in Nigeria since its February 2021 launch with dramatic year-on-year listening growth averaging 163.5% through 2025, featuring triple-digit surges early on and sustained momentum, propelled by Afrobeats streams rocketing +5,022% alongside booming genres like Amapiano (+10,330%), Gospel/Praise (+5,499%), Hip-hop/Rap (+3,020%), and R&B (+2,602%).
Spotify
Indigenous language music listening surged +554% in Nigeria in 2024 and +87% in 2025, with global growth at +141% and +41% respectively, underscoring rising demand for local storytelling sounds.
The platform’s Nigerian artist roster expanded +158%, fueling a discovery boom where average listeners (aged 26) streamed 150 different artists recently; users created over 25 million playlists, logged 1.4 million play hours in 2025 alone, and streamed 59 billion podcast hours total.
Top Artists (2021-2025): Asake, Wizkid, Seyi Vibez, Burna Boy, Davido.
Top Songs: “Remember” (Asake), “Dealer” (Ayo Maff & Fireboy DML), “Awolowo” (Fido), “Kese (Dance)” (Wizkid), “Lonely At The Top” (Asake), “Joy is Coming” (Fido), “With You” (Davido feat. Omah Lay), “Terminator” (Asake), “MMS” (Asake feat. Wizkid), “Doha” (Seyi Vibez).
Nigeria’s debut stream was Shiga Lin’s Cantopop epitomizing borderless discovery from day one.
Nigerian singer, songwriter and producer Pheelz (Phillips Kayode Moses) is set to feature this weekend on African Voices Changemakers, the flagship magazine programme on CNN International.
The 30-minute episode, sponsored by digital solutions company Globacom, premieres on Saturday, February 21, 2026. In a candid sit-down with host Larry Madowo, Pheelz opens up about his journey from church musician to global hitmaker, reflecting on the intersections of faith, fame and the expanding influence of Afrobeats on the world stage.
Now 31, Pheelz began his musical path as a multi-instrumentalist in church before earning widespread acclaim in 2012 as the producer behind the hit tracks “First of All” and “Fucking with the Devil” on Olamide’s YBNL album. His rapid rise saw him named among NotJustOk’s Top 10 Hottest Producers in Nigeria in 2013.
He further solidified his reputation by producing nearly every track on Olamide’s Baddest Guy Ever Liveth, earning nominations at The Headies 2013 and in the Producer of the Year category at both The Headies 2014 and the Nigeria Entertainment Awards. In 2020, he clinched The Headies Producer of the Year award, and in 2021 secured the Soundcity MVP Award for Best Collaboration for “Finesse,” his smash hit with Bnxn (formerly Buju).
On the programme, Pheelz reflects on the experiences that shaped his sound and creative philosophy, discusses landmark collaborations, shares his perspective on artificial intelligence and artistry, and explains why sound, storytelling and culture remain central to African music’s global resonance.
The show airs on DSTV Channel 401 at 8:30 a.m. (WAT) on Saturday, with repeat broadcasts at 12:00 noon the same day; Sunday at 4:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.; Monday at 4:00 a.m. and 6:45 p.m.; and Tuesday at 6:45 p.m. The broadcast schedule continues through Monday of the following week.
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