Author: Tapiwa Matthew Mutisi

Visa has partnered with the GSMA Mobile for Development Foundation in an effort to promote financial inclusion, aiming to assist 20 million individuals in low- and middle-income countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The plan, titled the Digital Finance for All (DFA) Initiative, targets various underserved groups, including women,…

YouTube Create, a standalone mobile app by Google that caters to creators by assisting them in the production of both Shorts and longer videos, is set to extend its reach to a wider array of markets. Initially, the app was launched for beta testing and was available on Android in…

Growth4Her, a six-month Investor Readiness Accelerator Programme, is currently accepting applications from women in West and Central Africa. The G4Her initiative aims to close the gender financing gap in Africa by equipping women entrepreneurs with the skills and tools needed to evolve their small businesses into high potential, fundable growth…

Applications are now open for the 13th edition of the MINT Incubator, a collaborative initiative between EGBank and Alex Angels. Launched in 2018, the MINT Incubator operates a three-month, equity-free program designed to help startups grow and become ready for investment. Offering a comprehensive series of workshops and mentoring sessions,…

UNICEF StartUp Lab is inviting applications for its six-month accelerator program. The program, targeted at influential Ghanaian startups and businesses, supports those committed to furthering the Sustainable Development Goals for children and young people. The UNICEF StartUp Lab was initiated in 2019 and is spearheaded by UNICEF in Ghana, with…

The Africa Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum (AWIEF) has joined forces with Victoria’s Secret to launch its Growth Accelerator program in Nigeria. The AWIEF Growth Accelerator has been functioning since 2017 as a premier business development initiative, supporting ventures led or owned by women that demonstrate a capacity for high…

Adobe has introduced Project Music GenAI Control, a platform that uses GenAI to turn text descriptions or reference melodies into audio that allows users customization options, at the Hot Pod Summit in Brooklyn. Users can modify tempo, intensity, patterns, and structure, lengthen tracks, remix music, or create endless loops, using…

Telegram’s CEO and founder, Pavel Durov, unveiled the company’s plans today to introduce its advertising platform next month. This development will permit channel owners to receive financial earnings through toncoin on the TON blockchain. The company will begin to disburse 50% of all revenue obtained from ads shown in respective…

Dating app Bumble announced on Tuesday that it plans to lay off approximately 350 employees as part of its restructuring strategy, which comprises about 30% of its workforce. According to the company’s Q4 report, the layoffs are aimed at driving more operational leverage and aligning its business model with its…

Bitcoin continued to enjoy a significant rally on Wednesday, exceeding $60,000 for the first time since November 2021. The leading cryptocurrency’s value was last observed to have increased by 7%, reaching $61,064.20, as per the data provided by Coin Metrics. At one point, it even touched $61,359.00. The digital coin…

The Takeover Regulation Panel of South Africa has ordered Canal+, a French media firm, to make an offer to purchase the remaining shares of MultiChoice that it doesn’t already possess. According to the Panel, Canal+ must promptly adhere to the requirements of the Companies Act and related regulations by proposing…

Estonian-based ride-hailing firm Bolt is introducing its services in Gaborone, the capital of Botswana, pitting it against the only other car-booking service in the city, inDrive. As part of the service rollout, Bolt is waiving its normally 15-20% commission fee for drivers for six months, already onboarding 100 drivers. The…

Apple has announced the discontinuation of its long-standing initiative to create an autonomous electric car, referred to internally as Project Titan. The news was shared in a brief meeting with the project team on Tuesday. This halt may lead to the removal of hundreds of the project’s personnel, totaling around…

Sony has publicly announced that it will be laying off approximately 900 employees in its PlayStation sector as part of significant reductions within the company. The layoffs will amount to an 8% reduction in the division’s global workforce. Additionally, the company’s London Studio in the U.K. will be closing down.…

Egypt-based fintech startup, MoneyHash, has recently announced it has secured seed funding of $4.5 million. This funding aims to enhance their payment technology and promote their growth in the Middle East and Africa (MEA). The funding round was led by COTU Ventures and Sukna Venture, with participation from other investors…

COTU Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm based in Dubai, has announced raising $54 million for its pilot fund aimed at supporting Middle Eastern start-ups from the pre-seed to the seed stages. The firm, which obtained its final financial closure last year, identifies and invests in founders from the conception…

Dream VC, a major provider of venture capital education in Africa, has started accepting applications for its 2024 intake. Now in its third year, the company has trained over 170 African and Africa-oriented investment professionals so far. The courses on offer provide a customized syllabus, practical instruction, and investor networking…

Bolt South Africa has initiated a series of driver engagement sessions to directly support drivers and address issues related to their application that may limit their earning potential. As per the announcement, these sessions will be conducted throughout the local cities where the e-hailing service operates. Bolt acknowledges the necessity…

Three South African mobile operators – Cell C, MTN, and Telkom – have become new members of the GSMA’s Open Gateway initiative. This step is an effort to counter fraud and digital identity theft that has been rising over the years. The GSMA Open Gateway forms a network of application…

Google plans to relaunch its artificial intelligence image generation tool shortly after it was taken offline due to a string of controversies, according to Google DeepMind CEO, Demis Hassabis. The tool, which was unveiled earlier this month through Gemini, Google’s main suite of AI models, faced backlash for displaying historical…