Mukuru, a pan-African digital payments company, is preparing to expand its strategy across the continent as the rise of online transactions grows. The company currently serves 17 million users in Africa, Asia, and Europe, refining over $3.5 to $4 billion in payments annually across Africa, as stated by TechPoint. “Customers have become more comfortable using digital means, network, and infrastructure,” Chief Executive Officer Andy Jury told Bloomberg. What does Mukuru do? Mukuru Ltd. is a digital payments platform founded in 2004 by Zimbabwean entrepreneur Rob Burrell. It started as a
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of Nigeria has announced new plans to collaborate with technology companies to reduce potential harm from AI. NHRC’s Executive Secretary, Tony Ojukwu SAN, spoke about the duality of AI at a recent webinar hosted by the International Network for Corporate Social Responsibility (IN-CSR) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA). Nairametrics reported that Ojukwu, the leader of Nigeria’s human rights agency, said, “the NHRC will leverage tech companies to protect Nigerians from harm and discrimination associated with AI usage.” Working with tech companies
Kevin Hart is working with the Fifteen Percent Pledge to support Black founders using AI. The AI Illumination Grant will teach Black-owned entrepreneurs how to use AI to expand their businesses. The Fifteen Percent Pledge is partnering with Kevin Hart’s Hartbeat Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz’s (A16z) Cultural Leadership Fund to launch the grant, according to AFROTECH. “We know AI can seem intimidating, but these dynamic webinars will break it down and empower you to embrace this powerful technology with confidence,” the Fifteen Percent Pledge website says. The AI Illumination Grant Qualified
Tech company Yango Group has launched Yango Venture, a corporate venture intended to support hopeful startups across sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, as stated by Gulf Business. The fund will target Series B investments in the online-to-offline (O2O), B2B software-as-a-service, and financial technology industries. Yango Group also hopes to grow its capital base as entrepreneurial environments expand in these promising markets. “With Yango Ventures, we are leveraging our expertise and network to support startups in scaling, thriving, and creating meaningful impact in their
Adeniyi Abiodun, co-founder and CPO at Mysten Labs, announced that he and his wife, Gloria, are launching a $1.3 million endowment fund to help upskill aspiring tech talent in Nigeria. “It’s a milestone we’ve dreamed of, and now it’s real,” he wrote on X. “By 2040, Africa is set to have half the world’s working-age population. To really unleash that power, young people need access to quality training and opportunities, especially in fast-growing fields like AI and blockchain,” he adds. Helping young Nigerians upskill Nigeria is currently experiencing a shortage
Over 400 Hollywood creatives, including actors and directors, have signed an open letter calling for the government not to scale back on copyright laws related to artificial intelligence. Variety reported that the list included names such as Ava Duvernay, Janelle Monáe, Michaela Coel, Ben Stiller, Mark Ruffalo, and hundreds of others. “We firmly believe that America’s global AI leadership must not come at the expense of our essential creative industries,” they said in the letter to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy last week. Why are Hollywood
Google has agreed to pay $28 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging that it favored white and Asian employees over other racial and ethnic groups by offering them higher salaries and placing them on faster career tracks. Reuters reports that the settlement was reached after lawyers agreed to exclude Black workers from the class. The Case Against Google The lawsuit was led by Ana Cantu, who worked at Google for seven years in its people operations and cloud departments. She claimed she was repeatedly overlooked for promotions and salary
Michael Seibel, one of Silicon Valley’s most influential Black entrepreneurs and investors, announced on Wednesday that he is transitioning to a “partner emeritus” role at Y Combinator (YC) after more than 12 years with the startup accelerator. “This role allows me to continue to do office hours with the 1000+ companies I’ve worked with in the past decade while giving me the free time to explore new adventures,” he shared on X. “It also means that the W25 batch was my last batch funding new YC companies.” Garry Tan, CEO
Kenyan logistics startup Leta has secured $5 million in seed funding to expand its AI-powered platform, which helps businesses move goods more efficiently across Africa, TechCrunch reports. The round was led by European venture capital firm Speedinvest, with backing from Google’s Africa Investment Fund and Africa-focused climate tech fund Equator. Streamling Logistics with AI Founded in 2021 by Nick Joshi, Leta is tackling Africa’s logistics challenges by streamlining supply chains, reducing inefficiencies, and helping businesses save time and money. Its platform integrates with businesses’ sales and ordering systems, pulling real-time data
Megan Garcia is seeking to hold Google and AI firm Character.AI responsible for the death of her 14-year-old son, Sewell Setzer III. Character.AI, an interactive chatbot platform, lets users design or select lifelike personas with which to communicate. Sewell developed a deep attachment to a chatbot he named “Dany,” inspired by Game of Thrones character Daenerys Targaryen. His mother alleges that his obsessive use of the chatbot, along with the platform’s addictive design, worsened his mental health and led to his suicide in February 2024. “The inventors and the companies, the corporations that
