Neuralink's human trial 🧠 | Apollo Agriculture $10m raise💰 | Vodafone Ghana rebrands to Telecel📱

In today’s menu 🥘

💰Kenyan agri-fintech startup, Apollo Agriculture, raises $10 million from Swedfund and ImpactConnect
🧠 Elon Musk’s Neuralink successfully implants brain chip in first human subject
👾 Nigeria’s Data Protection Regulator Probes into 17 Instances of Data Breaches
📱Telecel Group announces full rebranding of Vodafone Ghana to “Telecel” by end of February 2024
👨🏻‍💻 Opportunities

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💰 INVESTMENTS

🇰🇪 Kenyan agri-fintech startup, Apollo Agriculture, raises $10M from Swedfund and ImpactConnect

Apollo Agriculture, a top agri-fintech startup in Kenya, has raised $10 million in funding from Swedfund and ImpactConnect to bolster its rapid growth across Africa. This financial boost will enable the startup to provide more smallholder farmers with vital resources to enhance profitability, adopt sustainable farming methods, and improve food security.

With the help of modern technology like machine learning and automation, Apollo Agriculture is combatting the unique challenges faced by these farmers. They provide access to high-quality farm inputs, strategic financing, and digital advice through their platform....….continue reading 

🇪🇬 Egypt’s Roboost secures $3 million investment round led by Silicon Badia

Egyptian AI-powered logistics startup, Roboost, has successfully raised $3 million in an investment round lead by Silicon Badia, with contributions from RZM Investment, Flat6Labs, and Saudi Angel Investors. The funds will further propel Roboost’s regional expansion goals.…..continue reading

🇰🇪 InspiraFarms Cooling receives $1 million investment from CEI Africa to tackle food wastage

InspiraFarms Cooling, a top sustainable cooling solutions provider for Africa’s fresh produce industry, has secured a €1 million investment from the Foundation for Clean Energy and Energy Inclusion for Africa (CEI Africa). The strategic partnership is focused on widening access to efficient cold storage infrastructure across the continent, addressing food wastage and empowering rural communities…..continue reading

🇿🇦 Sony invests in South African gaming startup Carry1st

Sony, through its venture arm, the Sony Innovation Fund, has made an investment in South African gaming startup Carry1st, aimed at unlocking new commercial opportunities in collaboration with the PlayStation creator. Despite the details of the partnership being unclear at this stage, it represents a significant development in the early stages….continue reading

🧠 HEALTHTECH

Elon Musk’s Neuralink successfully implants brain chip in first human subject

Elon Musk’s neurotech startup, Neuralink, successfully implanted its device in a human for the first time on Sunday. ⁠
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The first product from Neuralink is named “Telepathy.” Should the technology function as intended, patients suffering from severe degenerative diseases, such as ALS, could potentially use the implant to communicate and browse social media via mind-controlled cursor movements and typing.⁠..….continue reading

👾 DATA

Nigeria’s Data Protection Regulator Probes into 17 Instances of Data Breaches

The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) is currently investigating 17 key data breach cases across various sectors, including finance, technology, education, government, logistics, and gaming.
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Additionally, the National Commissioner revealed that the number of Data Protection Compliance Organizations in the country has surged from 103 to 163 to enhance compliance, leading to an annual increase of up to 2,000 audit filings.

The Commission’s National Commissioner, Vincent Olatunji, revealed this in Abuja on January 28, 2024, during the Global Data Privacy Day..⁠..….continue reading

OTHER STORIES

• Telecel Group announces full rebranding of Vodafone Ghana to “Telecel” by end of February 2024……read more

• Despite Netflix’s recent $5 billion deal with WWE for exclusive rights to events like Raw, Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) shows will continue to be available on SuperSport, MultiChoice has confirmed.…read more

• The Malawian government, in collaboration with the World Health Organization, has initiated a fresh COVID-19 vaccination drive on Monday across ten of the nation’s 29 districts…read more

🚀 OPPORTUNITIES

• The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) is calling on all aspiring African entrepreneurs seeking to turn their business dreams into reality to apply to the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme (TEF2024), for the opportunity to receive a non-returnable seed capital of $5,000. Application deadline: 1 March 2024 Click here to apply.

• The Federal Government through the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, has opened applications for Nigerian girls to participate in its new initiative called the National Girls in ICT Competition. Application deadline: 18 February 2024. Click here to apply.

• Safaricom, M-PESA Africa and Sumitomo Corporation calls for tech startups looking to join the Spark Accelerator program, which aims at accelerating early stage startups to grow and scale their businesses. Application deadline: 16 February 2024 . Click here to apply

• Norrsken22 invites African startups to apply for its $125k Accelerator Program. Interested entrepreneurs can apply here.

• Cohort 2 of the Visa Accelerator Program is now open for applications. Click here to apply. Application deadline: February 18, 2024

• CcHUB is currently accepting applications from EdTech companies interested in becoming members of its 2024 cohort. Click here to apply. Application Deadline: 17th February, 2024

• Application open for the MEST Training Program. The MEST Training Program is a one year, fully sponsored, graduate-level program in tech entrepreneurship. Click here to apply. Application Deadline: 18th March 2024