Author: Chris Anu
Artificial intelligence has been deployed across multiple Vodacom business units. Vodacom is investing in modernising its infrastructure to democratise artificial intelligence (AI) and make its benefits accessible to more Africans.This is according to Mohamed Sami, group CIO of Vodacom, speaking recently at the launch of Google’s first Africa-based cloud region.According to Sami, Vodacom’s AI strategy is premised on providing innovative customer experiences, driving financial and digital inclusion, and leveraging emerging technologies to provide sustainable value.“In order to deliver on our promise, and to make use of the advancement of technology, it is natural that we continue heavily investing in the…
US President Donald Trump. Leah Millis/Reuters US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on US imports sparked threats of retaliation on Thursday as companies and governments rushed to count the costs from an escalating trade war that threatens to shake up global alliances. The penalties announced on Wednesday unleashed turbulence across world markets and drew condemnation from other leaders facing the end of an era of trade liberalisation that has shaped the global order for decades. Trump said he would impose a 10% baseline tariff on all imports to the US and higher targeted duties on some of the country’s biggest…
The GSMA has added the MTN Group’s Ralph Mupita to its board. MTN Group president and CEO Ralph Mupita has been named deputy chairperson of the GSM Association’s (GSMA’s) board.This follows last month’s announcement of Gopal Vittal, CEO of the Bharti Airtel Group, as the new chairperson of the board.Vittal and Mupita will serve for the remainder of the board term, until the end of 2026.Mupita will support the chairperson and board in overseeing the strategic direction of the organisation, says the GSMA in a statement. Vivek Badrinath, director-general of the GSMA, comments: “My warmest congratulations to Mr Mupita on…
MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita has been appointed to the board of one of the most important global bodies in telecommunications, the GSMA, and will serve as the organisation’s deputy chairman. MTN announced on Thursday that Mupita, who is also group president of MTN, will serve as deputy chair of the GSMA until the end of 2026. He will support chairman Gopal Vittal, who was elected to the position last month after serving as deputy chair since 2023. The GSMA is a global industry body representing mobile sector role players, including telecoms operators “This appointment…
EV24.africa looks to provide a competitive online EV marketplace for buyers across the continent. Africar Group and AUTO24.africa have collaborated to introduce EV24.africa, an online Pan-African marketplace for electric vehicles (EVs). According to a statement, the platform enables buyers in all 54 African countries to access a range of over 200 EV models from more than 25 global brands − including BYD, Tesla, Toyota, Dongfeng, Wuling, Leapmotor, Peugeot, Citroen and Fiat − with delivery across the continent.With the increasing shift toward sustainable mobility, EV24.africa says it simplifies the process of purchasing EVs by offering a customer-focused marketplace where individuals and…
The way people interact with news has changed dramatically. We search, stream and scroll across multiple sites, platforms and screens to understand what’s going on in our communities and around the world. The Competition Commission’s provisional report on media and digital platforms ignores that and instead seeks to resurrect outdated business models. Read: SA hits Google with R500-million demand for news media The commission’s recommendations, if implemented, would force one platform to subsidise certain publishers artificially based on inaccurate calculations on the perceived value of news to Google’s business. This would also restrict access to information, stifle innovation, and disrupt…
Tecnotree Recognized by Gartner as a Representative Vendor in 2025 Market Guide for CSP Revenue Management and Monetization Solutions Tecnotree, a global digital platform and services leader for AI, 5G, and cloud-native technologies, has been named as a Representative Vendor in the 2025 edition of Gartner Market Guide for CSP Revenue Management and Monetization (RM&M) Solutions. This recognition, we believe, underscores Tecnotree’s leadership in providing next-generation RM&M solutions that empower Communication Service Providers (CSPs) to achieve agility, scalability, and business transformation in the rapidly evolving telecom landscape. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250402015720/en/The Gartner® Market…
South Africa’s long overdue move to digital television broadcasting was once again thwarted last week when the high court in Pretoria interdicted communications minister Solly Malatsi from switching off analogue broadcasts at the end of last month. The court said switching off analogue broadcasts would violate the constitutional right to freedom of expression of an estimated 4.4 million South Africans. People would, the court argued, lose access to broadcast TV, which many rely on as their main source of information. Government committed to the International Telecommunication Union – a body of the United Nations – that the migration would be…
South Africa readies for its own communications satellite. South Africa’s capital investment in its communications satellite could cost up to R6 billion, an official from the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) confirmed to ITWeb.This, as the departments of science, technology and innovation, and communications and digital technologies yesterday provided a project update to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications. The once-off R6 billion capital investment pales in comparison to the R100 billion per year that SA currently spends on foreign communication service providers, as revealed by the DSTI.“It depends on the type of satellite,” explains the department official.…
Google has launched a product called Nowcasting in its search engine, using artificial intelligence to offer “highly localised and immediate weather updates”. The internet search giant said on Wednesday that Nowcasting addresses a “critical need for accurate and timely information in regions often impacted by unpredictable weather patterns”. “This initiative is particularly significant for Africa, where traditional weather forecasting can be challenging due to limited infrastructure and data availability,” Google said in a statement. “Google’s nowcasting uses satellite imagery and AI to deliver real-time, minute-by-minute predictions. Google’s nowcasting uses satellite imagery and AI to deliver real-time, minute-by-minute predictions “The forecasts…