Africa
Eleven African startups to partake in Norrsken Impact Accelerator
Eleven African startups including Kadi Ghana and Wala Digital Health have been accepted into the Norrsken Impact Accelerator for 2021. Each startup will receive $100,000 pre-seed investment for a 5% equity stake.
Jobberman to train 120,000 NYSC corpers
Jobberman has partnered with the Nigerian Youth Service Corps to train some 120,000 corpers every year. The soft skills training courses will be free and will be accessible across 36 states.
Safaricom in talks to integrate M-Pesa into Amazon
Kenya’s Safaricom is in talks with tech giant Amazon in a bid to include integrate M-Pesa mobile payment solution into its ecommerce business. The move would allow buyers to pay for purchases on Amazon using M-Pesa credit.
Europe
Uber recognises UK driver union for the first time
Uber has finally agreed to recognise driver unions for the first time in the UK. This will give drivers signed onto the GMB union to negotiate terms of service with the ride-hailing giant.
Cambridge to trial self-driving vehicles
Cambridge will test-drive self-driving electric vehicles for the first time. Three Auto-Shuttles that carry up to 10 passengers will drive alongside regular vehicles on pre-approved routes.
UK experiment could improve nuclear fusion results
A new UK experiment could clear nuclear fusion hurdles by reducing the amount of heat produced by fusion reactors. When it becomes applicable, the new upgrades could reduce heat emissions by ten folds.
The Americas
Twitter to start ‘Twitter Blue’ subscription service
Twitter has listed a new subscription service called Twitter Blue on the App Store and Play Store. Priced at £2.49 in the UK and $2.99 in the US, the new service will help the social media giant diversify its income source by offering more features than is currently available in the current version.
Instagram allows users to hide likes count
A new Instagram feature will allow users to hide their likes count in a bid to reduce social media pressure. When enabled, you will only see the names of those who lied your post rather than the number of likes as is currently the case.
Amazon acquires MGM for $8.5bn
Amazon has agreed to acquire historic US movie studio MGM for $8.5 billion in a landmark deal for the tech giant. The purchase grants Amazon’s streaming site a backlog of classic content in its competition with Netflix.
Asia
Iran bans cryptocurrency mining after blackouts
Iran has banned the mining of cryptocurrency following blackouts that affected certain cities in the country. The ban will be in place for another four months, officials said.
WhatsApp sues Indian government over new rules
Facebook-owned WhatsApp is suing the Indian government over new digital service rules. The messaging app fears the new rules would force it to violate privacy rules.
AI-emotion detectors tested on Uyghurs in China
A camera system integrated with facial recognition software to detect emotion has been tested on Uyghurs in China. The revelation was made by an engineer who claims to have installed one in a police station in Xianjiang.
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