Vesti, an AI-powered neobank specializing in services for immigrants, has announced plans to preorder 100 Tesla Robotaxis, following Tesla’s recent reveal of the vehicle’s design. The goal is to provide accessible transportation options tailored to immigrant needs in major cities worldwide. Accessible Transport Solutions for Immigrant Communities With cities becoming more crowded and public transport systems under strain, Vesti’s Robotaxis aim to simplify local travel for immigrants navigating new environments. Vesti plans to deploy these autonomous vehicles in cities like New York, Toronto, and London, where immigrant communities face unique
Google has added 15 African languages to its Voice Search, Gboard’s talk-to-type, and Translate dictation, bringing online access to around 300 million more Africans. The newly supported languages include Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, Nigerian Pidgin, Chichewa, Kikuyu, Oromo, Rundi, Shona, Somali, Tigrinya, and Twi, allowing more people to interact with Google services in their native languages. More Languages on Voice and Gboard With this update, Google Voice Search and Gboard talk-to-type now support 12 more African languages, raising the total to 25. Google Translate has also added voice input for 13
Quincy Jones, the legendary music producer and multifaceted creative force whose career spanned over seven decades, passed away on November 3, at the age of 91 in his Bel Air home. A Pioneering Force in Music Known for producing Michael Jackson’s Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad, Jones’ work transcended genres and generations. Collaborating with icons like Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, and Ella Fitzgerald, he earned 28 Grammys and a record-breaking 79 nominations. “Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy
A deepfake video portraying Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. endorsing former president Donald Trump has drawn widespread criticism, particularly from King’s daughter, Bernice King. Posted on Sunday night by the pro-Trump X account “MAGA Resource,” the AI-generated video falsely shows King urging Black Americans to support Trump, claiming he did “more for the Black community than any other president.” By late Monday, the controversial clip had gained over 10 million views, sparking outrage. Bernice King Denounces Deepfake as “Vile” Bernice King took to X on Monday, condemning the video as
AI-driven hiring tools overwhelmingly prefer resumes with names associated with white men, a new University of Washington (UW) study has found. Resumes with white male names were selected 85% of the time, while those with female-associated names were chosen only 11% of the time. By contrast, resumes with names associated with Black men fared the worst, with models passing them over in favor of other groups in nearly 100% of cases. Biases in AI Resume Screening AI-powered tools are becoming staples in the hiring process. For example, large language model
Former NASA aerospace engineer and future Blue Origin astronaut Aisha Bowe has raised $2.5 million for LINGO, her EdTech company focused on enhancing STEM education. This funding round, led by Pinnacle Private Ventures LLC, is a step towards a venture capital aimed at supporting women and minority-led startups. Expanding Access to STEM Education LINGO offers project-based coding kits and curricula designed for students aged 13 and up, covering subjects such as artificial intelligence, space systems, and environmental monitoring. The funding will enable LINGO to expand its reach, scaling programs that
Moniepoint, a Nigeria-based fintech company, has successfully raised $110 million in a Series C funding round. This raise gives the company a valuation of at least $1 billion for the first time, according to the Financial Times. The financing was led by Development Partners International’s African Development Partners III (ADP III) fund, with participation from investors such as Google’s Africa Investment Fund, Verod Capital, and Lightrock. Strategic Focus on Business Banking and Financial Access Founded in 2015 by Tosin Eniolorunda and Felix Ike, Moniepoint originally launched as TeamApt. The company
Fashion tech startup Aesthetic has unveiled its AI platform, Alma, which promises to transform social media shopping by enabling users to identify and purchase clothing directly from social media posts. Often described as a “Shazam for clothes,” Alma uses proprietary AI to analyze visuals and offer direct shopping links, allowing users to easily browse and buy items featured on Instagram and, soon, TikTok. Aesthetic’s New Social Commerce Tool Gains Early Momentum Aesthetic’s launch follows a beta phase, during which Alma drew over 80,000 users to its waitlist. The AI concierge,
MaC Venture Capital, a venture capital firm known for its focus on seed-stage investments, has successfully raised $150 million for its third fund, as first reported by Fortune. This latest fundraising round brings the firm’s total assets under management to $600 million, a remarkable achievement for the five-year-old firm founded by Marlon Nichols, Adrian Fenty, and Mike Palank. Strategic Growth and Investment Focus The infusion of $150 million allows MaC to increase its initial investment size to $2-3 million per startup, up from its previous average of $1.5 million in
AI-enhanced search engines from Google, Microsoft, and Perplexity have been surfacing debunked and racist research claiming genetic superiority of white people over other racial groups, according to Wired. This trend, revealed through investigative work by Hope Not Hate, a UK-based anti-racism organization, has added to concerns about racial bias and radicalization in AI-powered search. AI Search Results Show Discredited Research Patrik Hermansson, a researcher with anti-racism group Hope Not Hate, was investigating the resurgence of scientific racism when he found that AI-driven search engines often promote discredited “race science.” When
