News24 | Cape Town bins paper learner’s licence tests
Cape Town ditches paper for digital learner’s licence tests to combat corruption, errors, and delays. The touchscreen system launched on Monday.
South Africa
News24 | Allegedly drunk driver crashes into accident scene in Cape Town, kills off-duty officer
An off-duty Law Enforcement Advancement Programme (LEAP) officer was killed on Sunday when an allegedly drunk driver crashed into the scene of another accident where the officer had stopped at to offer his help.
News24 | UPDATE | KZN temple collapse: Death toll rises to 5
The death toll after the collapse of the four-storey temple building in Redcliffe, Verulam, has risen to five after one more body was recovered from the rubble on Sunday.
News24 | KZN temple collapse death toll rises to three as search continues
The death toll from the collapse of a four-storey temple building in Redcliffe, Verulam, has risen to three after two more bodies were recovered from the rubble on Saturday.
CSIR Partners With US Firm PromptBio to Advance AI-Driven Precision Medicine in Africa
The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research has signed a memorandum of understanding and licensing agreement with PromptBio, a California-based data and life sciences company, to strengthen artificial intelligence-driven multiome data analysis in Africa. According to a statement, the partnership will enhance integrated multiome data analysis and AI-powered insights for the Clinical...
AfDB Maps $1 Trillion AI Opportunity for Africa in New G20-Backed Report
The African Development Bank has released a new report outlining a strategic roadmap to unlock the economic and social potential of artificial intelligence across Africa. Developed under the G20 Digital Transformation Working Group, the report, Africa’s AI Productivity Gain: Pathways to Labour Efficiency, Economic Growth and Inclusive Transformation, examines how artificial intelligence could...
AI Chatbot Helps Strengthen Community Health Work in Malawi’s Dowa District
Community health workers have long played a critical role in delivering health services in Malawi, particularly in remote areas where access to clinics is limited. Despite their importance, many community volunteers receive minimal training and limited ongoing mentorship. Recent advances in artificial intelligence are beginning to address this gap. Dimagi has developed an interactive chatbot […]
Libya Launches First AI Youth Club to Build Digital Skills in Bani Walid
Libya has launched its first artificial intelligence Youth Club in the city of Bani Walid, marking a strategic move to equip young people with future-focused digital skills. The initiative was announced by the Ministry of Youth through the Dinar Martyrs Centre for Youth Care and is aimed at providing Libyan youth with practical training in […]
Morocco Signs Agreement to Build Advanced Technology School in Dakhla
Morocco signed a partnership agreement Saturday to build and equip the National School of Advanced Technologies in Dakhla, strengthening higher education and scientific research in the country’s southern provinces. The project aligns with the royal vision to accelerate development in southern regions and reinforce the role of regional authorities in expanding access to higher education […]
News24 | Living on R2 320 a month: Here’s how a pensioner spends her grant
Pensioner Noah Libbie, 61, left her home in Bonteheuwel shortly after 9:00 last Tuesday to catch the bus to Parow Centre and collect her Older Person’s Grant. She was one of about four million people who received the grant. GroundUp followed her as she collected her grant, seeing how she stretches it to cover the needs of her household.
Alphabet CEO Warns AI Bubble Could Hit Every Company
Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai says no company, including Google, would be immune if the artificial intelligence market were to suffer a valuation correction. In an exclusive interview with BBC News at Google’s California headquarters, Pichai said the rapid surge in AI investment is “an extraordinary moment,” but he acknowledged “irrationality” in parts of the market. […]
Gates Warns AI Valuations Likely to Cool as Competition Intensifies
Bill Gates has cautioned that some of the world’s most highly valued artificial intelligence companies are unlikely to sustain their current worth, even as the technology reshapes major industries. Speaking at Abu Dhabi Finance Week, Gates said the AI sector is “hyper competitive,” and many companies with elevated valuations will not emerge as winners. “AI […]
McDonald’s Removes AI Christmas Ad After Backlash in Netherlands
McDonald’s has removed a Christmas advertisement generated with artificial intelligence after receiving criticism online. The 45-second ad was published on Dec. 6 on the McDonald’s Netherlands YouTube channel and featured generative AI clips. Viewers on social media denounced the video, with one commenter calling it “the most god-awful ad I’ve seen this year.” On Dec. […]
South Africa Among Fastest Adopters of Generative AI, OECD and Cisco Study Finds
New research from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and Cisco shows South Africa is among the world’s fastest adopters of generative artificial intelligence, with 45.4 percent of adults using the technology. The study also highlights generational differences and well-being concerns. According to the research, young adults globally are heavy digital consumers, with those […]
South African Tourism Launches Siyanda AI Tool for North American Travelers
South African Tourism has partnered with US-based digital media company Matador Network to launch Siyanda, an artificial intelligence travel chatbot designed to help North American visitors plan trips to South Africa. Built on Matador Network’s GuideGeek platform, Siyanda supports travelers researching visits to South Africa by providing answers to destination questions in real time. Users […]
South Africans Show High Trust in AI, Study Finds
More than three quarters of respondents in South Africa say artificial intelligence is useful, and trust levels are similar to other emerging markets, reflecting a population that is curious and optimistic about technological change. A new international study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and Cisco shows that emerging economies like Brazil, India […]
News24 | Kimberley’s big hole of municipal failure
Far from its diamond mining history making it a dazzling gem of the Northern Cape, Kimberley has sunk into a deep hole of debt and failing service delivery due to municipal mismanagement.
News24 | 28 deaths in one week: Western Cape authorities appeal for safer festive season driving
The Western Cape mobility department has expressed concern about the “significant and persistent challenge” of pedestrian deaths after 12 pedestrians were killed in 21 incidents on Western Cape roads in the first week of December.
News24 | SACP’s Mapaila skips ANC National General Council as alliance tensions escalate
SACP General Secretary Solly Mapaila has notably chosen not to attend the ANC’s National General Council, which began this week at the Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg.
News24 | Deadline set for Eskom’s unbundling — but muncipal debt remains a stumbling block
A timeline for the unbundling of Eskom has been set, following years of slow progress, with the hope of finishing the process by 2030.
Introducing the Alliance for Inclusive AI: An Open Global Coalition to Build AI That Serves Billions, Not Just the Few
Yesterday, BFA Global, Caribou, and MSC—organizations whose work spans more than 150 countries— announced the launch of the Alliance for Inclusive AI, an open coalition committed to ensuring that the next wave of artificial intelligence (AI) expands opportunity. By 2030, the Alliance aims to deliver responsible, practical AI solutions to 100 million people and mobilize US$100 million in...