Author: Staff Writer

De Beers Group is investing $315,000 R4.4 million) over three years in programmes that aim to encourage young women to study STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects and to pursue engineering careers in South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. “With a global shortage of engineers, and women representing only 11 per cent of the engineering workforce, attracting more young women into engineering is vital,” Katie Fergusson, Senior VP Social Impact, De Beers Group, said. “In our fast-changing world, we need diversity of thought to find new solutions, so we are therefore thrilled to be able to partner with WomEng and…

Audi has launched a virtual reality-enabled Audi Customer Private Lounge (CPL) at Audi Centre Centurion in Gauteng, bringing the brand in South Africa in line with global trends, by offering an innovative, digital, retail solution which allows customers to customise the Audi of their choice. With the VR solution, customers can get an extremely realistic experience of their individually configured car, down to the last detail. The Audi CPL allows for a one-to-one engagement between a customer and a sales consultant in a digital, premium and intimate environment. Once in the CPL, digital technologies like the VR headset and 75-inch…

South Africa’s Naspers through its Naspers Ventures division and EQT Ventures have invested €30 million (R474 million) in Dott, a European micro-mobility company. EQT Ventures is European multistage venture capital fund with commitments of just over €566 million. Other investors include existing investors Axel Springer Digital Ventures, Felix Capital, FJ Labs, U-Start Club, and angel investors. Dott is a micro-mobility European start-up founded by Maxim Romain and Henri Moissinac, gathering the most experienced team in mobility and tech in Europe. Its mission is to beautifully design micro-mobility for safety, comfort, and durability, to make green travel an easy choice for…

The BMW Group and Daimler have signed a contract to jointly develop technologies for driver assistance systems, highly automated driving on highways, and automated parking. This cooperation was initially announced in February and now finally an agreement has been signed by both German car automakers. In addition, further talks are planned to extend the cooperation to higher levels of automation in urban areas and city centres. This underscores the long-term and lasting nature of the undertaking, which will extend to encompass a scalable platform for automated driving. The non-exclusive cooperation is also open to other OEMs and technology partners, with…

Frogfoot Networks, a licensed open access fibre network provider, announced on Wednesday it is rolling out fibre infrastructure in Protea Glen, Soweto, in a phased approach, with up to 20 000 homes and business, standing to benefit from access to affordable, reliable broadband connectivity. The areas being covered as part of the infrastructure rollout are Protea Glen East and West, with work starting in the West. This region will be divided into 10 Zones, while Protea Glen East will comprise 11 zones. Work on the project is set to commence in early July, and it is expected that the first…

VALR, a Johannesburg-based cryptocurrency trading platform with over 50 cryptocurrencies, announced on Wednesday that it is launching Ethereum-Rand (ETHZAR) trading to allow customers to buy and sell Ether. The company said the Ether-Rand (ETHZAR) trading will go live on 11 July at 11:11 a.m. In the last three weeks we have facilitated over R170 million worth of Bitcoin trades, VALR’s Co-Founder & Chief Product Officer, Badi Sudhakaran said. “Today we are excited to announce the launch of our second ZAR trading pair: ETHZAR,” he added. VALR is financially supported by ex-FNB CEO Michael Jordaan and US-based Bittrex. Bittrex is one of the…

uKheshe, South Africa’s economic and convenient QR cash card, on Tuesday announced the launch of the uKheshe Health Benefits card, an innovative and affordable medical aid solution for as little as R99 per month. Available from 1 July, uKheshe Health offers a host of rich benefits to bring greater healthcare inclusion for individuals and families, including cover for private ground and air ambulance, private stabilisation and hospitalisation cover as a result of an accident or emergency. uKheshe Health is available in two benefit options: Individual at R99 per month offers unlimited emergency medical services, R25,000 trauma cover, and R300,000 private…

4 Africa Exchange (4AX) announced on Tuesday that as part of their 6-month succession and handover over plan, Fay Mukaddam has stepped down as the CEO. Sean Emery, CEO of RainFin, has been appointed as interim CEO of the exchange, it said. Mukaddam remains an active shareholder in 4AX and continues to support the business operations in other positions, as well as is leading a rigorous recruitment process for her successor. “When I accepted the founding CEO role, I was excited about the challenge of leading this disruptive business out of the business plan phase to evolve into operating reality,”…

EOH announced on Tuesday it has entered into an agreement with German listed RIB Software SE (RIB) to sell 70% of Construction Computer Software (CCS) for R444 million. The JSE-listed technology group said the transaction will be facilitated through its wholly owned subsidiary, EOH Mthombo. The companies have also entered into a reciprocal put/call option, in terms of a shareholder’s agreement, for the disposal of the remaining 30% of the issued share capital of CCS at the same multiple applied to 31 December 2022 adjusted EBITDA.  The sale is capped at $30 million (R424 million). The company said 90% of…

The Gauteng Provincial Government wants to turn the province into a hub of Fourth Industrial Revolution. This was announced by Gauteng Premier David Makhura on Monday when he delivered his first State of the Province Address (SOPA) following the 6th General Election in May. “Our dream is that Gauteng should be a hub of Fourth Industrial Revolution skills and a centre of excellence for digital economy breakthroughs such as Artificial Intelligence, cryptocurrency, and big data,” Makhura said. At a packed University of Johannesburg campus in Soweto, Makhura said Gauteng — as the engine of South Africa’s economy — will contribute…