A beauty pageant controversy has ignited a cross-border feud between Nigeria and South Africa, with ride-hailing apps Uber and Bolt becoming the unlikely battlegrounds. The Miss South Africa controversy Last month, Chidimma Adetshina was forced to withdraw from the Miss South Africa contest after becoming a finalist due to xenophobic backlash. The 23-year-old law student says she was born in Soweto, South Africa to a Nigerian father and South African mother with Mozambican roots. After withdrawing from Miss South Africa, Adetshina later accepted an invitation to participate in Miss Universe
In this episode of Techish Podcast, Abadesi and Michael discuss Beyoncé’s recent brand launches Telegram CEO Pavel Durov gets arrested – privacy vs. accountability Financial literacy in the music industry The rise of frenemies The Play School accelerator and more! Listen to the episode You can find the Techish podcast on Spotify, Apple, and all good podcast apps. Watch On YouTube Disclaimer: The information provided in this podcast episode represents the personal opinions and experiences of the presenters and is for informational and entertainment purposes only. It should not be considered
“Very Demure, Very Mindful”: TikTok Creator Jools Lebron Is Fighting To Trademark Her Viral Phrase
Chicago-based TikTok star Jools Lebron, known for her “very demure,” “very mindful,” and “very cutesy” lingo that has taken social media by storm, is now facing a trademark battle. Others have rushed to trademark variations of her viral catchphrases before she could, but the Puerto Rican creator recently reassured fans that the matter is being “handled.” A not-so demure Trademark Battle Lebron was a store cashier before her sudden rise to internet fame. Shortly after her phrases went viral, several individuals filed trademark applications for variations of “very demure.” Jefferson
Enerpoly, a cutting-edge battery technology company led by Eloisa de Castro, has opened the world’s first zinc-ion battery megafactory. This new facility, located in Rosersberg, near Stockholm, is a massive step in the global efforts to transition from reliance on fossil fuels to renewable energy. Safer, Greener Batteries Batteries are vital to the transition away from fossil fuels, but energy storage needs to increase six-fold to meet COP28 goals of tripling global renewable energy capacity by 2030. The new 6,500m² Enerpoly Production Innovation Center (EPIC) aims to produce 100 MWh of
A Pennsylvania mother has won the right to sue TikTok over the tragic death of her 10-year-old daughter, Nylah Anderson. Federal law has long shielded Big Tech companies from lawsuits for hosting content created and uploaded by third parties. However, this landmark ruling by the US appeals court asserts that companies can be held accountable for “knowing distribution and targeted recommendation” of harmful content. The Deadly TikTok Challenge Nylah Anderson died in December 2021 after attempting the “blackout challenge,” a viral trend that encouraged users to choke themselves until they
On Friday, Brazil’s top court ordered the immediate suspension of X—formerly Twitter—in the country following a months-long feud with owner Elon Musk. Now, rival platforms are benefiting. Bluesky Sees Surge in Sign-Ups Bluesky, which fully opened to the public in February 2023, is seeing massive surge in users, reportedly gained one million new users in just three days. The decentralized social app started off as a project by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey in 2019 when he was Twitter’s CEO. It has since become an independent public benefit corporation, with Twitter founder
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is intensifying its efforts to combat the use of facial recognition technology (FRT) by law enforcement in California, Maryland, and Minnesota. This move comes amidst growing concerns over racial bias and wrongful arrests, particularly among Black communities. Facial Recognition: A Threat to Civil Liberties? In recent years, facial recognition technology has been embraced by police departments across the United States, described as a powerful tool for identifying suspects. However, the technology has also come under fire due to its potential for racial bias and
Black male enrollment at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) has plummeted to a historic low, falling below the previous record set in 1976. Recent data reveals that this decline, marked by a 25% drop since 2010, underscores a growing crisis within the Black male academic pipeline and poses a threat to the future of these institutions. Sharp Decline in Black Male Enrollment While HBCUs overall have seen an 11% decrease in enrollment since 2010, the situation is far more severe for Black male students. This 25% drop in Black
Nvidia, a global leader in AI, has announced a strategic partnership with California Black Media (CBM) aimed at supporting Black-owned newspapers across California. This collaboration will create a resource that uses AI to preserve nearly a century of journalism by Black journalists in the state. Training AI on a Century of Black Journalism The partnership will see Nvidia train a large language model (LLM) on nearly a century of journalism produced by Black journalists within the state. This effort will not only preserve the rich history of Black journalism but
Google has reintroduced its Gemini AI software following widespread criticism of the tool’s initial release, which produced problematic and historically inaccurate images. The tech giant’s image-generating feature was initially paused after it generated offensive depictions, including images of Black Nazis and diverse renditions of America’s Founding Fathers, which sparked backlash. New Features and Safeguards Implemented In response to the controversy, Google has announced significant updates to Gemini’s image generation capabilities. The company revealed that an early access version of the tool will be made available to subscribers of Gemini Advanced,
