Author: Staff Writer

Google today unveiled the “Google for Startups Accelerator: AI First”, an initiative aimed at supporting African startups looking to use artificial intelligence to solve local challenges. This program recognises the transformative  role that AI is playing across the world, innovating industries and reimagining the realms of possibilities. It also highlights the significant contributions of African startups in addressing some of the region’s most pressing challenges through the use of AI. The ‘AI First’ program is aimed at supporting  startups keen on delving into AI’s possibilities. It draws learnings from past initiatives such as the Google for Startups Accelerator: Africa, The…

In an increasingly interconnected world, cybersecurity is paramount. One emerging threat is cyber extortion – a form of online blackmail wherein cybercriminals exploit digital resources for monetary gain. Cyber extortion involves unauthorised access to sensitive data or computing services, followed by threats of disclosure or disruption unless a ransom is paid. This crime can severely disrupt businesses and individuals alike, leading to substantial financial and reputational damage. “Cyber extortionists come with many faces but the same harmful intent,” warns Nolwazi Nzama, Deputy Chief Risk Officer at African Bank. “Whether it’s through ransomware, DDoS threats, sextortion, or data breach threats, the…

On a mission to #DareToStandOut, Huawei has launched the innovative Huawei nova 11 Series, a bold and stylish line made with portrait photography in mind. Catering to the fashion forward and trendsetters, the series offers a smarter, more convenient user experience, making a significant splash in the nova Star universe. Building on the Huawei nova brand’s legacy, the Huawei nova 11 Pro introduces XD Portrait and an upgraded Huawei Multi-Vision Photography, capturing extraordinary portraits. The Super Star Orbit Ring design flawlessly incorporates aesthetics into the lenses. The ultra-durable Kunlun Glass ensures ultimate reliability, while combined with SuperCharge Turbo, the phone…

Which used cars have the highest demand in South Africa in 2023? Which is the most in demand brand? And how many car searches happen every second? The 2023 AutoTrader Mid-Year Car Industry Report reveals the answers to these questions. This report – which covers the first six months of 2023 – delves into used car sales data, providing several interesting local in-market car shopping insights. Toyota is the leading brand in the local used car market in 2023, selling an impressive 28,061 passenger cars and achieving a 17% share of the used car market.Theaverage price of the sold Toyota…

Banking as a Service (BaaS) and embedded finance enabler Ukheshe has partnered with Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) to provide an innovative BaaS platform in East Africa. BaaS, the provision of banking products and services through third-party distributors, is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of a whopping 25% in some markets, and this new partnership will see both parties get ahead of this rapid growth curve. Mark Dankworth, President of Business Development at Ukheshe Africa, says Ukheshe is thrilled to partner with DTB as a progressive bank that shares Ukheshe’s vision for BaaS. “Ukheshe had been looking…

Today, Amazon Web Services (AWS) opened its first international AWS Skills Centre in Cape Town, South Africa, continuing on a mission to remove the barriers of access to cloud skills training. AWS Skills Centres are Amazon’s dedicated, in-person cloud learning spaces designed for anyone who is curious about cloud computing, career possibilities in the industry. Anyone in the local community—regardless of background, education level, or social status— can explore how cloud computing technology is powering everything from weather predictions to smart homes. Members of Parliament joined AWS executives in highlighting the value of cloud skills training to prepare South Africa’s…

Sage, the leader in accounting, financial, HR and payroll technology for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs), today announced it has received ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification in South Africa. The ISO/IEC 27001 standard provides companies with guidance for establishing, implementing, maintaining, and improving information security management systems. The standard is published by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO), the world’s largest developer of voluntary international standards, and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). The certification confirms that Sage South Africa has put in place further systems to manage risks related to data security and that the system respects the rigorous best practices enshrined…

South African women are emerging as trailblazers, entrepreneurs, and innovators in the world of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). They are breaking new ground and helping to inspire the next generation of female scientists, technologists, and leaders. TCL celebrates some of the country’s top female STEM professionals and founders for Women’s Month.  Sarah Collins Sarah Collins developed the Wonderbag in 2008 as a solution to the South African energy shortage forcing blackouts across the country. The Wonderbag is a non-electric slow cooker that uses heat-retention technology to continue cooking once a pan has been removed from the heat source.…

Junaid Munshi has been appointed as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at MAZIV, the parent company of Vumatel and Dark Fibre Africa (DFA). Dietlof Mare, Chief Executive Officer of Vumatel, DFA and MAZIV has announced Junaid Munshi as Group Chief Commercial Officer. Mushi will report to Mare and will be responsible for sustaining the remarkable growth that the company has achieved in the competitive market. Since starting in 2014, Vumatel has connected nearly two million homes in South Africa and provided free, unlimited 1gbps fibre connections to over 700 schools. DFA is the leading provider of enterprise fibre to major telecom…

Dark Fibre Africa (DFA) announced today that it has embarked on a R400 million fibre network infrastructure expansion project to enhance their provision of connectivity hardware. The investment will allow high-speed connectivity to more businesses and contribute to the country’s digital transformation efforts, enabling greater access to online services and improving economic growth. The project has been in trial phase since February and is now being rolled out at scale. The infrastructure upgrade, which will be carried out in three phases over an estimated period of 18 months, will ensure faster delivery of network services to customers and improved network…

Allmed Healthcare Professionals, a healthcare agency, has launched its Pay Slip App, designed to provide convenience and efficiency to its valued staff. The app, available for both Android and iPhone devices, revolutionises the pay slip distribution process, eliminating the need for staff to physically visit the office. The development of the Pay Slip App began in January 2022 with the vision of addressing the challenges staff faced while collecting their pay slips. “We saw that our staff were spending time and money to come to our offices, which led to inefficiencies and unnecessary expenses,” explained Zukisani Sirwaxa, Operations Manager at…

The National Credit Regulator (NCR)  in partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Government of Japan announces the launch of the NCR Onboarding TechSprint, also known as a hackathon. This collaboration seeks to leverage technological advancements to enhance resilience and regulatory compliance of small credit providers in South Africa. The NCR Onboarding TechSprint will bring together inventive software developers and tech companies, along with industry experts to ideate and build innovative digital solutions for the credit industry. The key focus of the TechSprint is centered on addressing the problem statement, “How can we leverage on technological innovation to…

South Africa’s automotive gig economy is seeing an uptick in activity thanks to tech startups like Screan, an innovative digital platform that connects prospective used car buyers and dealerships with second-hand car inspection experts nationwide. According to statistics 3.9 million South Africans already participating in the gig economy providing much needed income and employment for individuals who may face challenges in finding traditional full-time employment, such as those in rural areas or with limited access to formal job markets. While the gig economy is nothing new what has changed is that technology is now enabling more widespread, flexible and on-demand…

Vodacom announces the launch of the first-ever SME Summit, dubbed #SME Thrive Summit.  This free impactful gathering aims to provide invaluable resources, knowledge, and networking opportunities to help small businesses thrive and contribute to the sustained growth of the South African economy. The day will be jampacked with activities to help SMEs grow their businesses. It will feature a series of informative sessions, exhibitions (exhibitors by small business owners), keynote presentations, live master classes as well as panel discussions. “SMEs remain a crucial foundation of the South African economy. We recognise their vital contribution in fostering innovation, creating jobs, and…

The data centre sector is at the heart of an increasingly digital world, and South Africa is witnessing a rush of construction of data centres in an otherwise stagnant economy. However, without diversity and greater representation of women in its workforce, meeting the growing demands of future digital lifestyles will become ever more challenging. It is also incumbent upon data center owners and operators — whose industry is responsible for between 1% and 2% of global energy consumption — to achieve sustainable, green, and efficient ICT operations within their sector. Energy efficiency and gender equality are both clear objectives of…

The go-to-market strategy implemented by 4Sight continues to deliver strong business performance, with the company maintaining its momentum from the previous financial year, again reporting double-digit growth in revenue and profit. Revenue for the six-month period under review increased by 37.1% to reach R451.3 million, compared to R329.2 million for the corresponding period in 2022, with revenue growth experienced from all business clusters. The company’s maiden dividend declared at 2,5c per share is another milestone achieved by the 4Sight team. “Since my appointment as CEO in November 2019, my focus remains driving innovation through product-focused digital transformation, with the support…

From AI hype to uncertain China’s reopening: join the international broker OctaFX as it compiles the 12 most important events that shaped the Forex market in the past year. The past year thoroughly shook the financial markets and had a lasting impact on the Forex market. As OctaFX celebrates its 12th anniversary, the company took this opportunity to compile a list of the most important events in the world of finance, along with their implications for investors and traders in 2023 and 2024. 1. The end of the U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate hike cycle. Starting in March 2022, the…

The South African Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT), represented by Acting DG Ms Nonkqubela Jordan-Dyani, and Huawei represented by CEO Will Meng, have signed a partnership agreement on the sidelines of the BRICS Ministers of Communications Meeting which took place in Cape Town last week. Huawei’s wealth of technical expertise and global experience in digitisation and its application across the private and public sectors make the company well placed to take on an advisory as well as practical role in assisting South Africa reach its goals in respect of the BRICS ICT Development Agenda and Action Plan (DAAP), which…

After becoming the country’s first retailer to tap into the Roblox space in 2022, Game launches Season 2 of ‘the Game game’ on the platform on 4 August 2023, bringing with it a new first for South Africa – locally-inspired and designed user generated content (UGC). Within the first hour of the GAME Game going live, it amassed more than 10 000 plays, with all limited UGC items (over 1000 units) claimed within this time frame. I attached an image of this limited piece, which was a groove-powered jetpack – complete with a boom box. Comments from players included feedback…

Our youth will be tomorrow’s leaders. This is something we frequently hear, but how are we preparing them?  South Africa is a nation with many issues, and the ongoing problems that South African youth face today are extremely troubling. In this article, we speak to industry experts and ask them how we can help prepare our children for the future.  Future-proofing youth with software development skills The most in-demand expertise and one of the most challenging sets of skills to get on the South African market actually remain inside the software development field. Andrew Bourne, Regional Manager, Africa at technology…

Continued growth in used passenger car sales and the drop in the average used car price in July bodes  well for consumer affordability and the sustainability of the used car market.   Used car sales momentum continued to pick up in July with sales growing by 8% month-on-month. A total of 32,090 units were sold, reflecting an increase of 2,434 units over June, according to AutoTrader Used Car Sales data.    The current value of these used cars sold to date swelled a further 7.3% month-on-month to a whopping R12,932,363,057. And year-on-year growth rose 7.8% over July 2022’s cumulative total…

Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) are embracing the call from their CEOs and board members to take a more strategic role in the business – from being more involved in environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives – to spearheading digital transformation to shape the future of the business. However, the CFO’s traditional role of financial scorekeeping, regulatory reporting, and cost optimisation is just as crucial as ever in light of chronic inflation, slow economic growth, and a heavier compliance burden. Forward-thinking CFOs increasingly seek new technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) to co-pilot this complex…

Knife Capital reached final close for its $50 million or R941 million African Series B expansion fund, Knife Fund III. The Fund supports the expansion of African innovation-driven companies to fill a critical follow-on funding gap, as lead investor and through co-investment with other credible funders across the continent. The focus is on high-growth scalable South African B2B technology companies that have impact potential and show strong returns through exit optionality. The fund will also back entrepreneurs in other African countries who fit this investment profile in collaboration with experienced local partners. Support to African startups at the early growth…

MultiChoice Africa Holdings B.V (MAH) announced today that it had notified DStv subscribers of its withdrawal of services from Malawi with immediate effect. This follows the injunction issued by the High Court in Lilongwe in a matter between MultiChoice Malawi (MCM) and the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) prohibiting an adjustment to the DStv tariffs. MCM said it does not offer the DStv service to the public and therefore cannot set or adjust tariffs for this service, a point repeatedly made to MACRA. As a result, the order handed down to MCM is incapable of being implemented by them but…

On Sunday, August 6th 2023, The Women’s Netball World Cup Finals, one of the world’s biggest female sporting events, took place on African soil. On the sidelines of the court was a spread of female camerawomen, an initiative spearheaded by the event’s production partner, SuperSport, to have women lead editing, camera, and production crews.  The impact that this may have had on young women and girls watching the event could be far-reaching. Research suggests that the creation of same-gender role models for youth is linked to career choices in previously male-dominated fields such as STEM, later in their lives. A…