Owolabi Salis, a Nigerian lawyer, was on the six-man crew of Blue Origin’s 13th human spaceflight for the New Shepard program. The flight lasted 10 minutes and reached a peak altitude of 105.2 kilometres, crossing the Kármán line, the internationally recognized boundary of space, according to a press release. Who is Owolabi Salis? Salis is a lawyer and politician who has now become the first Nigerian to travel to space. The lawyer who comes from Ikorodu, Lagos, described his journey as a “convergence of science and spirit.” “This mission is more
Liquify, a woman-owned trading finance platform, has secured $1.5 million in seed funding. Future Africa led the raise, with participation from Launch Africa Ventures, 54 Collective, Digital Africa, Equitable Ventures, and angel investors. The Ghanaian company was founded by Nadya Yaremenko and Alberta Asafo-Asamoah in 2023 to connect small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Africa with global capital markets. How does Liquify work? The startup operates an invoice finance marketplace that connects African SME’s with global capital markets. Its platform exports allow exporters to turn unpaid invoices into same-day cash, and international investors can receive
Akon’s plans to build a multibillion-dollar city development in Senegal have been scrapped by the country’s authorities, according to Bloomberg. Serigne Mamadou Mboup, head of the Senegalese tourism authority Sapco, said, “The Akon City project no longer exists,” and shares that the plans will now be replaced with a more realistic partnership with Akon. Akon’s plan for a futuristic city in Senegal Akon first shared plans for the city in 2018. It’s designed to feature futuristic skyscrapers and pan-African symbolism, which was compared to Wakanda, Marvel’s fictional African nation from
Coming to the US and trying to find a job as an immigrant is no easy task. Colombian immigrants Stephanie Murra and Lorenza Vélez saw how many Spanish-speaking people struggled to find their first job in the United States, so they sought a solution. In 2023, the pair launched Miami-based Ponte Labor during their final year at Harvard, according to TechCrunch. Connecting Hispanic workers with future employers The pair observed that employers in blue-collar industries, such as hospitality, construction, and retail, often struggle to find workers to fill hourly roles. Ponte connects
Brazil’s Supreme Court has ruled that digital platforms are responsible for the content of their users, as reported by The Rest of World. The ruling will go into effect within weeks and orders tech giants such as Google, X, and Meta to track and remove any content with hate speech, racism, and incitement to violence. Companies must clearly indicate that they’ve taken swift action to remove any harmful content. If they fail to do so, they will be held liable, as stated by the justices. Brazil’s relationship with big tech
The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment aims to position Nigeria as a leading exporter of skills in technology, medical and professional services, and creative industries with the relaunch of the National Talent Export Programme (NATEP), according to TechPoint. Positioning Nigeria in the global services economy Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, spoke about the recent move at the Itana Free Zone, stating that the relaunch of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s vision aims to position Nigeria firmly in the global services economy. “The opportunity is
Agbo Obinnaya and his co-founder, Ngwu Anthony Mark, are helping Nigerians learn about the law through their AI platform, Case Radar. Founded in September 2024, it’s helped 1,400 users receive legal advice and find lawyers for their cases. While its platform is similar to that of ChatGPT, both founders believe its knowledge of legal advice is limited to what is widely available online. In contrast, Casa Radar operates on digitized Nigerian court documents that were previously unavailable on the internet, according to TechPoint. Using AI to teach Nigerians about the
Senegalese mobile money platform Wave has secured $137 million in debt financing, led by Rand Merchant Bank, with support from British International Investment (BII), Finnfund, and Norfund, according to TechCabal. The funding will enable the company to expand its operations, allowing it to continue serving underserved communities across Africa. What does Wave do? Founded in 2018 by Drew Durbin and Lincoln Quirk, Wave serves over 20 million monthly active users through a network of more than 150,000 agents and a team of 3,000 employees across eight markets in West Africa.
A group of British Caribbean professionals has launched the Caribbean Tech Collective, an initiative designed to bring together Caribbean founders, professionals, and investors in the tech industry, according to The Voice. The Caribbean Tech Community Only 4% of people in the tech industry identify as Black in the UK, with Africans making up a significant amount of that number. The Voice reported that tech startups receive under 0.1% of global venture capital funding in the Caribbean. In 2023, venture capital investment in Caribbean tech just reached $215 million, and there
Better Auth, an authentication tool, has raised $5 million in seed funding from Peak XV, Y Combinator, P1 Ventures, and Chapter One, according to TechCrunch. Bereket Engida, the self-taught programmer from Ethiopia and founder of the tool has built what some developers believe is that the best authentication tool to date. Engida’s jounrey to building Better Auth Engida told TechCrunch that he had built the entire product in Ethiopia before coming to the US. He started programming at 18 after a friend declined to help him create an e-commerce search
