Renowned Haitian rapper and investor Wyclef Jean has partnered with Caribbean International Commerce (CICH) to establish a technology and infrastructure hub in Nigeria. The initiative is set to catalyze economic empowerment, sustainability, and technological innovation in the North of Nigeria. The Partnership This partnership aims to create a symphony of innovation, combining state-of-the-art music and movie studios with a commitment to eco-friendly practices and equitable wealth distribution in commodity markets. After securing over 4,000 hectares in Plateau State for the development of this hub, Jean and CICH aim to have
Kenyan President William Ruto has announced that Meta has agreed to monetize content in Kenya, benefitting the country’s creators. Following a year-long negotiation with the Kenyan government, Facebook and Instagram content creators will begin earning from these Meta platforms. Paying Kenyan Content Creators The President revealed that Meta had run a pilot program with eligible Kenyan content creators. “I have good news for our creatives and those who imagine and produce content through Facebook and Instagram,” Ruto said during the Jamhuri Day celebrations at Uhuru Gardens in Nairobi. “Just yesterday, Meta committed
Lagos-based fashion and beauty e-commerce platform Maka has raised $2.65 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Pan-African venture capital firms 4DX Ventures and Janngo Capital. Other contributors include Palm Drive Capital, angel investor Jonathan Shipman, and executives from delivery platform Wolt. Maka Maka empowers trusted creators to live-stream and sell directly to their audiences. The platform allows shoppers to purchase through live-streams, on-demand videos, or online catalogs. Founded in 2021 by Diana Owusu-Kyereko, former CEO of Jumia Ghana and ex-CCO of Jumia Kenya, Maka originated as an interactive social commerce platform. During the
Women with dark skin tones are getting more screen time and speaking time in US scripted television, a new study using advanced AI models has revealed. Despite improvements over the past 12 years, the study found that men with light skin tones still get the most screen and speaking time. See It, Be It See It, Be It: What Families Are Seeing on TV is a new study that analyzes trends in the screen and speaking time of the visually presenting attributes of characters. This includes gender, skin tone, and
Nicki Minaj fans, Barbz, have created an AI kingdom, Gag City, ahead of the release of the artist’s Pink Friday 2 album. The impressive pink creations have been trending across social media. Barbz turn to AI Gag City is an AI-generated kingdom created by Barbz. The pink alternative universe’s name is a wordplay for “gagged,” a slang to describe something amazing or stunning. After Nicki shared the cover art on her album – with her standing on a pink subway in a pink-tinted city – fans came up with the
Blac Chyna, who reportedly made millions per month on OnlyFans, quit earlier this year and has now announced joining the subscription-based creator platform Passes. Chyna – whose real name is Angela White – was among the highest earners on OnlyFans but quit at the time, saying it was a dead end for her, and she wanted to set an example for her two kids in the future. Unlike OnlyFans, Passes doesn’t allow nudity or sexual content. Passes Miami-based creator platform Passes was founded in 2022 by Lucy Guo, who formerly co-founded Scale
NBA team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, has partnered with Black-owned educational tech company Rhymes with Reason to help 250 students in Cleveland build their literacy and vocabulary skills through popular music. By the age of three, children with professional parents get vocabulary exposure that is two times larger than working-class children. As working-class children comprise the majority of American kids, the word gap persists through primary education, creating a reality where 65% of all students read below the level in 4th grade. Rhymes With Reason was designed to change this narrative
Fuse Media has turned to AI dubbing for a Spanish-language version of its FAST channel Backstage. Fuse Media is a Latino-owned, global entertainment company, leading in the creation and distribution of inclusive, purpose-driven stories and experiences for and with culturally diverse young adults. Some of the shows have won awards such as the Peabody, Emmys, Critics Choice, and Candian Screen Awards as well as their diversity awards from NAACP, Imagen, GLAAD, the Gracies, and NAMIC. The Latino-owned platform has now teamed with UK-based AI dubbing company Papercup to launch Backstage
Media and ad tech company Hero Media has launched the first-ever machine learning-powered, Black-owned demand-side platform (DSP). DSPs are automated ad-buying platforms where advertisers and agencies go to purchase digital ad inventory. Hero One, powered by AdTheorent, enables advertisers to leverage AI and machine learning to put brand messages in front of the right consumer at the right time in a contextually relevant way. Is Advertising Representative? While 2021 witnessed a surge in diversity and inclusion efforts, momentum seemingly dwindled the following year. In 2022, the advertising sector remained largely white-dominated, comprising 64.63% white professionals. Platforms
Albantsho, the first screenwriting tool created by African screenwriters for African screenwriters, has launched its first feature – The Scriptwriter. Albantsho Julie Ako and Nikita Mokgware from Nigeria and Botswana founded Albantsho in 2020. Their goal is to showcase the potential of African storytelling, foster authentic content representative of Africa, and empower creatives. With growing global investment in motion pictures in Africa, a higher demand is placed on authentic stories from diverse voices. Albantsho is a movement, and they’ve charged themselves with finding bold new narratives of Africa by Africans
