🤖 OpenAI, Meta, and Orange Advance AI for African Languages

Today’s Menu ☕️

🤖 OpenAI, Meta, and Orange Collaborate to Revolutionize AI for African Languages
📱Huawei Advances Independence with HarmonyOS Next on New Mate 70 Series
🌮 PepsiCo Invests R746 Million ($41 million) in South Africa Expansion
🔋 Kenyan energy startup Hydrobox secures $9 million in debt funding for eight hydro projects
🛜 Mawingu Secures $15m to Expand into Tanzania with Acquisition of Habari ISP
💸 Tranglo Extends Cross-Border Payment Services to 7 African Countries

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🤖 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

OpenAI, Meta, and Orange Collaborate to Revolutionize AI for African Languages

OpenAI, Meta, and French telecom giant Orange are joining forces to address the underrepresentation of African languages in artificial intelligence. By creating custom AI models to recognize and process languages spoken across Africa, the partnership aims to bridge gaps in linguistic diversity and make AI more inclusive and accessible.

The project kicks off with a focus on Wolof and Pulaar, spoken by over 22 million people in Senegal, the Gambia, and Mauritania. Utilizing open-source frameworks like OpenAI’s Whisper and Meta’s Llama, these AI models will undergo fine-tuning to integrate linguistic and cultural nuances that traditional systems often overlook. This approach lays the foundation for an AI ecosystem that represents Africa’s rich linguistic diversity, with plans to expand to languages like Swahili and Lingala.....……continue reading

📱OPERATING SYSTEMS

Huawei Advances Independence with HarmonyOS Next on New Mate 70 Series

Huawei Technologies is set to make a bold shift in the smartphone and tablet market by completely replacing Google’s Android with its homegrown HarmonyOS Next, as from 2025. This landmark decision underlines Huawei’s strategic move to reduce reliance on U.S. technology and reinforce its presence in China’s premium tech market, especially in competition with Apple.

The announcement was made during a live-streamed event unveiling Huawei’s new flagship smartphone, the Mate 70, and its Pro variants. This new series, powered by the entirely self-developed HarmonyOS Next, will be available starting December 4. This operating system represents Huawei’s first full departure from Android, as the company works to establish a comprehensive ecosystem independent of U.S. tech giants..........continue reading

🌮 FMCG

PepsiCo Invests $41 Million in South Africa Expansion

PepsiCo South Africa, the owner of Lay’s and Simba, has announced a significant expansion of its Isando factory in Gauteng with the addition of a state-of-the-art potato chip production line. This expansion represents a R746 million ($41 million) investment aimed at enhancing production capabilities and meeting the increasing demand for snack foods across Southern African markets.

In a statement, PepsiCo South Africa highlighted that this investment is expected to create 100 new jobs, thereby positioning the company to better serve the growing appetite for its snack products. The Isando facility, strategically located near key potato-growing regions in Johannesburg, will now eliminate the need for long-distance transportation of potato chips from the company’s Parow and Durban plants. This logistical improvement is projected to reduce transportation costs and carbon emissions significantly, cutting out over 2.2 million kilometres and more than 2,300 cross-country shipments annually.....……continue reading

🔋 POWER

Kenyan energy startup Hydrobox secures $9 million in debt funding for eight hydro projects

Kenyan energy startup Hydrobox has successfully secured US$9 million in debt funding to support the development of eight small hydro projects across four mini-grids in Kenya. This initiative aims to provide reliable and affordable electricity to over 10,000 people and local businesses.

Hydrobox specializes in building, owning, and operating mini-grids in underserved regions. These mini-grids cater to a diverse range of clients, including anchor clients such as factories and farms, small businesses like schools, hospitals, shops, and restaurants, as well as households. The independent grids offer accessible and reliable power to these communities..……continue reading

💸 REMITTANCES

Tranglo Extends Cross-Border Payment Services to 7 African Countries

Tranglo, a prominent cross-border payment hub, has made significant strides in fostering financial inclusion across Africa by extending its services to Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Senegal, and Zambia. This expansion reflects Tranglo’s commitment to providing efficient and cost-effective payment solutions to underserved populations in one of the world’s fastest-growing economic regions.

Founded in 2008, Tranglo operates in over 100 countries with a network encompassing more than 250 mobile operators, 1,500 banks and wallets, and 60 cash pickup services. It has offices in offices in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Jakarta, and London. Its collaboration with Ripple, a blockchain-based payment solution provider, further enhances its service delivery...……continue reading

🛜 INTERNET

Mawingu Secures $15m to Expand into Tanzania with Acquisition of Habari ISP

Kenya’s leading rural-focused Internet Service Provider (ISP), Mawingu, has secured $15 million in financing to drive its ambitious expansion into Tanzania. This strategic growth includes the acquisition of Habari, an Arusha-based ISP with over 25 years of experience delivering internet and ICT solutions to rural and underserved communities across Tanzania.

This acquisition represents a major milestone in Mawingu’s mission to bridge the digital divide in East Africa, offering reliable, affordable, and sustainable internet to regions historically overlooked due to logistical and financial complexities. Habari’s established presence in seven regions across Tanzania provides a strong foundation for Mawingu to replicate its successful model in Kenya and extend its reach to broader East African markets...……continue reading

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