Meta, the parent company of Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Reality Labs, is set to make a significant announcement regarding job cuts on Wednesday. The downsizing is part of an ongoing restructuring effort that will see the company lay off 10,000 employees, impacting a range of technical teams. The news was…
Author: Smart Megwai
Smart Megwai
Smart is a technology journalist covering innovation, digital culture, and the business of emerging tech. His reporting for Innovation Village explores how technology shapes everyday life in Africa and beyond.
Nigeria has granted approval for the R21 malaria vaccine, developed by Oxford University and manufactured by the Serum Institute of India. This move comes after Ghana became the first country to approve the vaccine, which has demonstrated an efficacy of 80% in trials. Nigerian health experts believe that the vaccine’s…
Flutterwave, the foremost payments technology firm in Africa, has revealed its decision to establish its East African regional headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya. This announcement arrives just a month after the company obtained two additional licences to broaden its operations in Rwanda. The payment company, few months ago, faced accusations of…
Twitter CEO Elon Musk recently revealed his intentions to establish a new artificial intelligence (AI) company, with aims to present a competitive alternative to industry leaders OpenAI and Google. This confirms speculations that the ambitious billionaire hired a small team of engineers to begin work on a potential AI venture.…
Twitter, under Elon Musk’s influence, may adopt a more lenient approach to account bans, but it remains committed to addressing content that breaches its guidelines. The social media platform will now label tweets identified as violating its Hateful Conduct policy. The company explains, in a blog post, that users will…
WhatsApp is developing a new beta feature that allows users to provide personalised context for forwarded messages, enhancing the clarity and usefulness of shared content. For example, if you’re forwarding a PDF document containing a meeting agenda to multiple colleagues, you can add a custom description like “Today’s meeting agenda…
For those who tend to delay replying to messages, activating read receipts on messaging platforms is often a beneficial move for maintaining transparency with friends and colleagues. Popular messaging apps, such as Signal and Facebook Messenger, have incorporated this feature, allowing users to know when their messages have been read…
Instagram, Meta’s popular photo and video sharing platform, has announced a series of updates to its Reels feature, aimed at content creators and influencers. These updates, designed to help creators stay on top of trends, optimise their content and monetise their Reels, include a dedicated trends section, streamlined editing tools,…
Elon Musk, the ambitious billionaire, is reportedly planning to assemble a rival to OpenAI, the AI research lab he co-founded but later divested from in 2018, he TechCrunch reports. According to sources, Musk has already hired former DeepMind employee Igor Babuschkin and a small team of engineers to begin work…
Apple, the technology giant known for its focus on sustainability and environmental responsibility, has announced a new challenge: to use only recycled cobalt in its batteries by 2025. The company has also set a target to use 100% recycled gold in its circuit boards by the same deadline. These ambitious…
Twitter has unveiled a new feature called “Subscriptions,” allowing users to offer paid subscriptions to their followers for exclusive content. The feature appears to be a revamped version of the platform’s previous “Super Follows” monetisation tool. CEO Elon Musk announced the initiative on Thursday, inviting users to “apply to offer…
WhatsApp, the widely adored instant messaging app, continuously strives to enhance its user experience. The developers prioritise keeping the app ahead of its competitors, making it increasingly useful for everyone. The company has recently introduced a new feature to simplify the process for users. Previously, when saving a person’s phone…
Nigerian Science, Technology & Innovation Television (NSTI-TV) is a dedicated television channel launched by the Nigerian government, focusing on scientific knowledge and technological advancements. The channel aims to promote scientific awareness and innovation within the Nigerian cultural context. NSTI-TV was officially launched on 11 April in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, by…
Microsoft, together with Snap will incorporate Snapchat Lenses into Microsoft Teams. Over 20 Snapchat Lenses are now integrated into the Microsoft Teams app, featuring a variety of amusing effects such as a cat on your head, a sloth on your shoulder, or virtual sunglasses on your face during video calls.…
The initial beta version of Google’s Android 14 OS is now accessible for download, showcasing fresh features centred around system navigation, privacy, performance, and user personalisation. Although the first two developer-exclusive previews provided a glimpse of what was to come, this beta release marks the public’s maiden opportunity to explore…
Google intends to incorporate conversational AI into its flagship Search product, according to CEO Sundar Pichai in a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal. The tech giant has previously mentioned integrating large language models (LLMs) into search, but this is the first announcement of plans to add conversational features.…
The Government of India, yesterday, declared its intention on the steps it is taking to regulate the growth of artificial intelligence in the country. The Minister of Electronics and Information Technology announced in a statement that India does not intend to regulate AI growth in the South Asian market, as…
Google has announced plans to limit personal loan apps from accessing sensitive user data such as photos, videos, and contacts in response to the growing issue of predatory lending practices and harassment of borrowers. The tech giant updated its Personal Loans policy on Wednesday for apps on the Play Store,…
Meta has unveiled a novel AI model called “Segment Anything” that can identify objects in images and videos even if they weren’t part of the training set. This innovative technology allows users to select items by clicking on them or using free-form text prompts. For example, typing the word “cat”…
Google has announced a new Play Store regulation, which mandates that apps must include an easily accessible option for users to delete their accounts, both within the app and on the web. In the announcement, the Tech Giant explained that the reason behind this change aims to grant users “greater…