A Look at Last Week's Top Tech Stories from Across Africa

William Kabogo’s Balancing Act: Steering Ministry Amidst Political Headwinds

When President William Ruto picked William Kabogo as Kenya’s new Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of ICT and Digital Economy (MICDE), it wasn’t a decision many, if any, saw coming. Even Kabogo himself admits he was surprised by the appointment. A phone call, a brief exchange, and suddenly, his name appeared in the government gazette. No long deliberations, no pre-appointment negotiations—just the swift hand of executive power in motionRead More...

Jon James Appointed CEO Of BT’s Business Division

BT Group plc has announced that Jon James has been appointed CEO of BT Business, as it becomes focused on the UK, and a member of its Executive Committee. He will start in his new role on 3 March 2025.

Seeking The Deep In GenAI

There is a whale and not an elephant in the room. The Year of the Snake speaks to renewal, and we start off by renewing the phrase ‘an elephant in the room’ to ‘a whale in the room.’ Chinese hedge fund High-Flyer recently released a series of open-source models of various flavours called DeepSeek. Just as OpenAI once had everyone downloading their app as they raced to No. 1 on app stores. The same has happened with DeepSeek and their R1 model.

The Transformative Power Of Instant Payments In Africa’s Economy

Africa’s financial services landscape is undergoing digital transformation, and at the heart of this shift is the rise of Instant Payment Systems (IPS). According to the State of Inclusive Instant Payment Systems (SIIPS) in Africa 2024 report, instant payment systems (IPS transaction volumes have surged by 37 percent, and transaction values have risen by 39 percent over the past five years. These figures represent substantial progress in the adoption of digital payments across the continent.

TikTok Signs Partnership With Wowzi And Aleph In Kenya

TikTok has signed strategic partnerships in Kenya with Aleph Holdings and Wowzi to improve its sales and support operations while also taking on the critical role of creator management partner.

Trump Media Announces Expansion Into Financial Services

Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG), the parent company of the social media platform Truth Social and the video streaming service Truth+, has announced its entry into the financial services and financial technology sector. The company revealed plans to launch a new brand, Truth.Fi, as part of a broader strategy to diversify its business operations.

Data Protection Challenges Facing SMEs

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) often struggle to meet the stringent requirements of data protection regulations. Unlike large corporations with dedicated compliance teams and extensive resources, SMEs typically operate with limited budgets, personnel, and technical expertise. As a result,

PiggyVest Surpasses Billion Dollar Mark In Payouts

PiggyVest, a leading savings and investment platform with over five million users, has achieved a significant milestone: surpassing $1.25 billion (?2 trillion) in total payouts to its users since its inception in 2016. This represents a remarkable 53 percent increase from 2023, with over $547.3 million (?835 billion) paid out in 2024 alone.

Cyber Gaps Expose Businesses To AI-Driven Threats, Study Shows

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) reshapes the cybersecurity landscape, organisations worldwide face escalating challenges when protecting against sophisticated AI-powered attacks. Despite understanding the severity of the threat, businesses are struggling to keep pace with the rapid evolution of cybercrime. Barriers such as...

How To Survive And Learn From A Cyberattack

A recent study by South African cybersecurity firm Nclose revealed a sobering statistic: over 60% of businesses surveyed suffered at least one ransomware attack in the past two years, with 12% enduring six or more such attacks. Small and medium enterprises often..