Author: Akin Naphtal

Jambo, a Congo-based startup building Africa’s web3 user acquisition portal through “learn, play, earn” and democratizing access to crypto-based income-generation opportunities, has raised $7.5 million in seed funding. Experts say Africa is poised to be disrupted by web3 in a similar fashion that has seen Southeast Asia become one of the best markets for web3. The latter is home to startups like Axie Infinity and Yield Guild Games, which have raised millions of dollars in venture capital owing to the adoption of crypto and play-to-earn models. The mix of positives such as a fast-growing population–the youngest globally–, solid smartphone penetration,…

The US government is investigating reports of Tesla cars braking unexpectedly on motorways. The so-called “phantom braking” problem is being looked at by US regulator the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). It received 354 complaints in the past nine months and its investigation will cover approximately 416,000 Tesla Model 3 and Model Y vehicles from 2021-22. Drivers say the issue occurs using the Autopilot driver assistance system. The feature gives the vehicle control over some elements of braking and steering when driving, although it is not a substitute for a human driver. Despite the name, Tesla recommends drivers remain…

Snapchat on Friday announced a buddy system-like feature that allows its users to share their real-time location with friends for a period of time. The safety feature is being rolled out as more people are returning to school campuses, traveling, going out on dates and otherwise resuming what they did before the pandemic, the company said. The feature, which is similar to Apple (AAPL)’s Find My app, allows users to share their real-time locations with a friend for 15 minutes, one hour or up to eight hours. Snapchat partnered with It’s On Us, a non-profit founded in 2014 to combat sexual assault on campuses,…

Google’s plan to limit data tracking on its Chrome browser has been extended to cover apps on its Android-based smartphones. Its Privacy Sandbox project aims to curb the amount of user data that advertisers can gather. The news will be a blow to firms like Meta, which rely on putting their code on apps to track consumer behaviour. Meta said this month that Apple’s changes would cost it $10bn (£7.3bn) this year. Google’s Android operating system is used by about 85% of smartphone owners worldwide. No detail Third-party cookies, which use people’s browsing history to target adverts, will be phased…

Powered by 25,000 motorcycle taxis at the start of 2020, SafeBoda was at its peak, ferrying thousands of pillion passengers in cities across Uganda and Nigeria. And then the COVID pandemic hit, throwing everything into a spin. Containment measures like work from home directives meant a slump in business, which was worsened by the lockdowns, curfews and bans on public transport, bringing the motorcycle taxi business to an unprecedented lull. While this pause badly affected SafeBoda, it fueled the startup’s change of strategy from a single service provider to an integrated multi-service and digital payment technology platform. The startup, which was co-founded…

Facebook is the subject of two new Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) complaints filed by Whistle-blower Aid, the non-profit that represents Facebook whistle-blower Frances Haugen. The complaints accuse Facebook, now Meta, of misleading investors about its efforts to tackle misinformation about climate change and COVID-19. The first complaint, obtained alleges the presence of readily available climate change misinformation on Facebook, making Facebook’s claims that it’s fighting climate denial fall flat. It also contains internal documents detailing employees’ own experiences with climate-related falsehoods on the platform. As noted one employee reports searching for “climate change” in the Watch tab and then…

The Deputy Managing Director (DMD) of the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), Alhaji Alhassan Yakubu Tali, has commended the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for his digitalisation drive in the country, which has brought about substantial ease of doing business. He added that the introduction of various initiatives such as the Ghana Card, the mobile money interoperability, ghana.gov portal and the digital address systems have enhanced banking transactions and improved customer confidence in the sector. Speaking in an interview, Mr Yakubu-Tali stated that, the initiatives under the government’s digitisation agenda spearheaded by the Vice President would in the long-term positively streamline…

For Africa economy to experience holistic and speedy development, Africa must embrace digital technology. According to Nigeria’s Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, although digitalisation had contributed significantly to the economic fortunes of Nigeria and the African economy, there was still room for more growth especially as digital technology offered the most effective way for Africa to fast-track development.  He was speaking at the United Bank for Africa (UBA) Group Chairman’s Forum 2022, held at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, where he was hosted to dinner by the bank’s Group Chairman, Tony O. Elumelu. The UBA Group Chairman’s forum is an annual interactive and…

By: Samuel Saint-Ayisi The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has indicated that it has a target of achieving GH¢80.3 million revenue mobilisation in the year 2022 through digitalisation in the country. Speaking at the opening ceremony of the GRA 2022 Management Retreat at the Volta Serene Hotel in Ho, the Commissioner-General of GRA, Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, stated that the Authority has put together strategies and several innovative ideas awaiting implementation to expand the country’s revenue mobilization system. Owusu-Amoah, pointed out that the digitization drive for Domestic Tax and Customs Divisions will relentlessly continue and that there would be a new phase where…

The autonomous driving space might be seeing the marriage of two titans. Reported on Thursday, Volkswagen is in talks with Huawei to acquire the latter’s nascent autonomous driving unit for billions of euros. The potential merger will be a powerful one. Huawei’s autonomous unit sits under the telecom equipment and smartphone behemoth’s “smart vehicle solution” business unit, which started only in 2019. The founding of the smart car BU spurred much speculation over whether Huawei would develop its own cars, though the firm has repeatedly denied any manufacturing plans and said it instead wants to be the “Bosch of China”, or a…