Author: Staff Writer

The “Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special” is coming to Disney+ on 24 March. The special will celebrate the iconic series that defined a generation — exactly two decades after its Disney Channel debut. The special will be filmed in front of a live studio audience and will feature an exclusive, in-depth interview with Miley Cyrus, hosted by Alex Cooper. The conversation will offer an intimate look at the creation of one of pop culture’s most iconic characters and the lasting impact the show and character have had on fans around the world. With heartfelt nostalgia and fresh perspective, Cyrus will revisit the moments, music…

Cape Town-based research technology company Yazi has raised its first institutional funding round from 3 Capital Ventures (3CV), the early-stage venture firm that originated inside Allan Gray, as enterprises and development organisations increasingly adopt WhatsApp as a channel for customer and population research. Founded in 2022 by Timothy Treagus (CEO) and Mzwandile Sotsaka (CTO), Yazi has built an AI-powered research platform that runs entirely through WhatsApp, enabling organisations to conduct surveys, qualitative interviews, diary studies and ongoing tracker research through the messaging platform their audiences already use. Yazi is a WhatsApp-native, AI-first research platform that enables organisations to conduct surveys,…

Tracker has appointed Silvia Schollenberger as its new Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) from 3 March 2026. The first CCO for Tracker, the appointment signals Tracker’s commitment to shaping a structure that enables stronger execution and quicker decision making – positioning the company for accelerated, sustainable growth. Schollenberger will lead the new Tracker commercial business area, overseeing the product, sales, marketing and customer operations. This brings Tracker’s customer-facing capabilities into a single area and strengthens collaboration across the full customer journey, ensuring the company continues to deliver the care and protection its customers rely on. Drawing on extensive commercial and leadership…

As part of its ongoing efforts to build digital skills and literacy among women in rural communities, the Women’s Development Business (WDB) Trust Training Academy will host two ICT graduation ceremonies in Mpumalanga and Limpopo. The events celebrate learners who have successfully completed a year-long ICT skills development programme. A total of 184 learners will graduate across the two sites, including 90 graduates from Acornhoek in Mpumalanga on 9th March 2026 and 94 graduates from Makhado in Limpopo on the 10th March 2026. The graduating class reflects both intergenerational inclusion and the high demand for digital skills, with young people…

Capitec, South Africa’s leading financial services group, has launched its in-branch Smart ID service in partnership with the Department of Home Affairs (DHA). Following a successful piloting phase, the service is now live in select branches, marking the beginning of a phased national rollout that will expand to 100 locations by mid-2026. Capitec clients can now apply for a Smart ID via a dedicated in-branch Self-Service Terminal (SSTs) with no prior booking required. The seamless, paperless process takes less than five minutes to complete, and is fully integrated with DHA systems, enabling secure, real-time processing right in the heart of…

Orca Fraud, a real-time fraud intelligence platform, has raised $2.35 million in an oversubscribed seed round to advance its transaction monitoring and fraud intelligence capabilities across Africa and other emerging markets. The round was led by Norrsken22, with participation from OneDayYes, Enza Capital, and CV VC Africa. The funding follows 16 months of rapid enterprise growth driven by increasing demand from banks, fintechs, telcos and payment providers operating in complex, high-velocity payment environments. “Rarely do you encounter a combination of technical brilliance and mission-driven clarity than what Carla and Thalia have built in Orca Fraud. Combatting fraud in Africa is…

With the recently launched Galaxy S26 series, Samsung unveiled a breakthrough feature that is set to change the way users experience privacy on their phones. Building on decades of display innovation, the AI(artificial intelligence)-powered Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra introduces the mobile industry and world’s first built-in Privacy Display[1] – a revolutionary technology that protects personal information at a pixel level. As the slimmest Ultra yet[2], the Galaxy S26 Ultra is not just engineered for performance and design excellence. It is designed for real-life scenarios. In a country where mobile phones are the gateway to banking, business, healthcare, and connection, Privacy…

The Vodacom Foundation, in partnership with the Gauteng Department of Education, has invested R2million in the School of Excellence model at Usizolwethu Special Needs School in Daveyton, empowering learners with intellectual disabilities through technology and digital skills. This landmark initiative strengthens Vodacom’s commitment to inclusive, quality education and demonstrates the transformative power of public-private partnerships in addressing systemic challenges in South Africa’s education. The School of Excellence is a core pillar of Vodacom’s comprehensive, multi-layered education ecosystem, launched in 2019 in support of the government’s Education Vision 2030. This integrated strategy aligns with the government’s ambition to promote academic excellence…

Today, Vodacom launched the 2026 cohort of the UN Global Compact SDG Innovation Accelerator at Vodacom World in Johannesburg, welcoming 98 young professionals from across Africa to develop commercially viable business solutions aligned to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As a three-time Top Employer and consistent top-ranked participant in the prestigious global programme since 2023, Vodacom is leveraging its participation to strengthen its talent pipeline, foster a culture of innovation, and equip high-potential young professionals with the skills and opportunities to drive sustainable business solutions. “This programme embodies what Vodacom stands for, which is empowering people to innovate…

n a quiet corner of the South African construction sector, Nzwalo Investments (Lumacon) is serving as a case study for the future of technical work. While global industry reports often treat gender diversity as a numerical target to be met, Lumacon has built a culture where nearly 80% of the organisation is female. And now it is a high-performance engineering firm where technical mastery happens to wear a different face. As we celebrate International Women’s Day, the stories of three women at different career markers – a senior leader, a project manager, and a junior engineer – reveal a shift…

iStore, South Africa’s only Apple Premium Partner, has announced the launch of MacBook Neo, an all-new Mac designed to bring powerful Apple silicon performance to more customers than ever before. Starting from R11 999, MacBook Neo combines Apple silicon performance, a colourful aluminium design and a brilliant 13-inch Liquid Retina display — making it ideal for students, professionals, and small businesses. Available in four vibrant colours, MacBook Neo is powered by the A18 Pro chip, delivering fast performance for everyday tasks such as managing spreadsheets, editing photos, streaming content and running business applications. With up to 16 hours of battery life, MacBook…

Axiz, the leading value-added distributor in sub-Saharan Africa, has launched its 2026 Graduate Programme in collaboration with SUSE, a global leader in enterprise open-source solutions. The strategic collaboration combines Axiz’s established distribution reach with SUSE’s enterprise-grade, open-source technologies and training expertise to develop production-ready ICT professionals for the regional market. The 2026 cohort will begin a 12-month structured development cycle in mid-February, specifically engineered to produce specialists in enterprise Linux, cloud-native infrastructure and cybersecurity. This initiative addresses a critical market mismatch: the high demand for cloud and DevOps professionals versus the shortage of practical, workplace-ready experience among graduates. Sustaining the…

iStore, South Africa’s only Apple Premium Partner, has announced that iPhone 17e is now available for pre-order, giving customers a more affordable way to experience iPhone. Customers can purchase iPhone 17e from R14 599, or from only R7 099 when trading in their current iPhone through iStore’s trade-in programme. With market-leading trade-in offers, flexible upgrade options and added protection included, iStore continues to offer the most value when upgrading to iPhone. More ways to get the new iPhone 17e at iStore: iStore offers some of the highest trade-in values in South Africa, helping customers pay significantly less for their new iPhone.…

The trailer and poster for “Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice” are now available to download and share. The original R-rated action-comedy from 20th Century Studios will debut 27 March, streaming exclusively on Disney+ internationally. “Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice” stars Vince Vaughn, James Marsden, Eiza González, Keith David, Jimmy Tatro, Stephen Root, Lewis Tan, Ben Schwartz, Emily Hampshire, and Arturo Castro, and is written and directed by BenDavid Grabinski, produced by Andrew Lazar, p.g.a., and executive produced by Richard Middleton and Vanessa Humphrey. The film is a hilarious, stylized, R-rated action-comedy about two gangsters and the woman they love trying to survive…

Huawei released a series of all-scenario U6 GHz products today at MWC Barcelona 2026 to help carriers unlock the full potential of 5G-A and set the stage for a seamless transition to 6G. The company also launched enhanced AI-Centric Network solutions that will help carriers prepare for the agentic era by enabling intelligent services, networks, and network elements (NEs). Huawei is also showcasing its SuperPoD cluster for the first time outside China, which they have created to offer “a new option for the intelligent world”. The theme of Huawei’s booth for this year’s conference is “Advancing All Intelligence”, reflecting the…

Otinga, a new AI-powered innovation partner for enterprise businesses, has officially launched with a clear mission: to help organisations run impactful, practical and scalable innovation programmes that deliver measurable business value. Built for large enterprises navigating constant disruption, Otinga helps organisations move beyond “innovation theatre” and into structured, outcomes-driven innovation. Through AI-powered hackathons, innovation challenges and human-centred programmes, Otinga enables businesses to unlock internal creativity, align innovation to strategy, and turn ideas into real business outcomes. “We believe innovation should not feel chaotic or disconnected from the business,” said Francois van der Merwe, Founder and CEO of Otinga. “People are…

During MWC Barcelona 2026, Huawei released 115 industrial intelligence showcases, together with its customers, during Industrial Digital and Intelligent Transformation Summit 2026. The summit, titled Advancing Industrial All Intelligence, was held by Huawei to explore new practices in industrial intelligence with its customers, partners, and peers. In addition, Huawei also announced the launch of upgrades to its SHAPE 2.0 partner framework. Huawei also showcased 22 new industrial intelligence solutions with partners, for the electric power, manufacturing and retail, finance, transportation, oil and gas, ISP, media, public service, and smart city sectors Huawei proposed the ACT Pathway: A replicable intelligence framework…

Today, the Huawei Cloud Summit, themed “Huawei Cloud: Solving Industry Challenges with AI”, took place in Barcelona. At the summit, Huawei Cloud unveiled its Industry AI Foundry, introduced the next-generation hybrid cloud offering Huawei Cloud Foundation (HCF), and showcased CodeArts, an AI-powered coding agent, for customers across industries to thrive in the AI era. Prioritizing Strategic Investments to Boost Value Creation In his opening remarks, Dr. Peter Zhou, CEO of Huawei Cloud, emphasized that cloud and AI stand at the core of Huawei’s strategy, driving steady investment in R&D and innovation. Over the past year, Huawei Cloud has achieved remarkable…

Ecommerce in South Africa is on a rapid growth trajectory, transforming how consumers shop and how businesses operate – and South African ecommerce platform Bob is positioning itself to meet this surge with the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer. A 2025 report by World Wide Worx shows how rapidly South Africa’s online retail market has grown over the past few years. Ecommerce made up less than 1 percent of total national retail sales in the early stages of development. By 2023, that share had increased to 6 percent, with online turnover reaching R71 billion. Growth accelerated in 2024,…

South Africa will get its first taste of the iCAUR brand this year with the V23 2WD and AWD models. The all-new iCAUR V23 electric SUV is coming to South Africa in May 2026 with bold retro styling and strong value positioning. Two models will be available at launch, the 2WD and AWD, offering up to 155 kW and 292 N.m with fast DC charging capability. High standard specification includes leather seats, a 15.4-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and a comprehensive safety package across the range. A new era of motoring is on the horizon, arriving…

London, UK – Sentry Bridge Capital (SBC), has officially announced its entry into the United States market. The company is introducing its independently developed Quantum Market Intelligence System 5.0, also known as the QMI 5.0 intelligent investment system, and will collaborate with leading global financial institutions to provide United States investors with advanced artificial intelligence driven asset management solutions. This strategic expansion marks SBC’s advancement from a globally recognized intelligent investment platform into the United States, the world’s largest and most mature capital market. It also represents the formal launch of a new era of intelligent investing in Wall Street and…

Johannesburg, 02 March 2026 — At MWC Barcelona 2026, Huawei debuts its latest SuperPoD product Atlas 950 SuperPoD, TaiShan 950 SuperPoD and a series of computing solutions to the global market. This embodies the company’s latest endeavor to open source and open collaboration with the aim of building a resilient computing foundation and creating a new option worldwide. Tech innovation builds a resilient computing foundation With AI technologies evolving rapidly and models now using trillions of parameters, agentic AI is beginning to penetrate into core production processes in many industries. This is driving up demand for larger computing scale and…

Johannesburg, 02 March 2026 — On the eve of MWC Barcelona 2026, Huawei officially launched its 5G-A Mobile Backhaul Network architecture tailored for the Agentic MBB (Mobile Broadband) era. Defined by core capabilities including 10GE/25GE to the site, L3 to the site, and end-to-end SRv6, the new architecture is designed to enhance differentiated experience assurance, enabling operators to drive revenue growth through experience-based operations. 5G-A Oriented MBH Architecture, Building a New Foundation for the Agentic MBB Era Experience Monetization Becomes the Mainstream Trend in the Agentic MBB Era While the 4G era focused on “Connecting People” and traditional 5G on…

Huawei has provided digital connectivity to 170 million people in remote areas across more than 80 countries, surpassing its pledge to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Partner2Connect (P2C) Digital Coalition. The announcement was made by Yang Chaobin, CEO of Huawei ICT BG, at the company’s TECH Cares Forum in Barcelona. He noted that this achievement exceeds the commitment Huawei made when joining the ITU P2C Digital Coalition in 2022: to connect 120 million people in remote areas by 2025. Yang extended his gratitude to Huawei’s telecom customers and partners for their collaborative efforts. The forum brought together around 80 guests…

JSE-listed Growthpoint Properties is expanding its logistics and industrial property portfolio with the development of Indlovu Logistics Park on the site of the former PPC facility in Montague Gardens, Cape Town. Indlovu Logistics Park is being developed to meet growing demand for high-quality logistics and warehousing space in one of the city’s most established industrial precincts with modern maxi-units. The R578 million new development will comprise approximately 38,600m² of gross lettable area across nine maxi-units, offering flexible, future-focused space for logistics, distribution and light industrial occupiers. Growthpoint identified the significant redevelopment opportunity for this site after PPC decided to move…