Tech As It Happens👇
Funding Announcements🤑
➥Egyptian AI startup DXwand has raised a US$4 million Series A funding round
Shorooq Partners led the US$4 million Series A equity round for DXwand, which also included Algebra Ventures and existing investor Dubai Future District Fund.
The investment will allow DXwand to expand further in the region and accelerate its research and development efforts in LLM, knowledge mining, and retrieval augmented generation (RAG), firmly cementing its position as a dominant force in generative AI and knowledge mining in the region.
“This significant investment marks a pivotal moment for DXwand, enabling us to propel our regional expansion and intensify our commitment to advancing Gen AI and RAG technologies. We are excited about the possibilities this funding opens up for DXwand and the broader landscape of conversational AI,” said Ahmad Mahmoud, CEO of DXwand.
Tamer Azer, partner at Shorooq Partners, said his firm had always believed in the region’s ability to produce new to market innovations.
PARTNERSHIPS AND INNOVATIONS👏🚀
➥Africa’s Blockchain pioneer Zone to launch remittance product in 2025
Zone, Africa's first licensed blockchain payment infrastructure company, plans to launch a remittance product in 2025, according to CEO Obi Emetarom. "Work is actively going on" to develop the product, Emetarom explained.
The company plans to address three critical pain points for remittance providers and international money transfer operators (IMTOs): distribution, liquidity, and licensing. Remittance startups require robust distribution networks to deliver funds to recipients, even if they lack direct connections to local banks. They also struggle to manage liquidity in multiple local currencies, which can be costly. The third challenge is navigating the complex licensing requirements of multiple jurisdictions.
In addition, Zone has ambitious plans to alter the financial landscape. The company envisions a future characterized by regulated decentralized finance (DeFi), which combines its strengths. Combining the strengths of blockchain technology with the credibility of traditional finance.
➥The Sony Innovation Fund has invested in South African gaming startup, Carry1st
The $10 million fund was launched in 2023 to invest in early-stage investment startups.
➥Tether Launches Tether Edu to Advance Digital Education Globally 🎓🌍
Tether has created an educational branch that will provide courses, workshops and other resources for skills development in blockchain technology and other digital fields. The new branch of Tether, issuer of Tether
USDT tickers down $1.00, the world’s largest stablecoin by market cap, will offer a “smart education environment” with the cooperation of experts and pioneers in their fields.
Tether Edu will focus particularly on emerging markets in Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, Europe, Commonwealth of Independent States and Asia. In addition to blockchain, its educational efforts will extend to topics such as design, artificial intelligence and coding.
➥Village Capital, Standard Chartered Bank invest in women-led startups.
Bena Care, a Kenyan startup that provides affordable clinical and supportive care to patients with life-limiting illnesses in the comfort of their own homes, and Zambia's Mighty Finance, a fintech startup that provides access to capital for primarily women-led businesses, have each raised US$75,000 through a partnership between Village Capital and Standard Chartered.
The initiative, which focuses on early-stage, impact-focused startups led by women founders, aims to close the gender financing gap in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Joyce Kibe, head of corporate affairs, brand and marketing at Standard Chartered, said she was excited to partner with Village Capital to bolster its Women in Tech program, which has trained more than 70 women-led businesses by providing them with critical support to help scale their businesses.
➥Microsoft partners with Vodafone on generative AI integration
Microsoft and the United Kingdom-based telecommunications company Vodafone announced a new 10-year strategic partnership, which will include the integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, among other initiatives.
➥Eversend has recently introduced a B2B crypto-fiat payments application, allowing businesses to accept cryptocurrency seamlessly.
➥The Sony Innovation Fund has invested in South African gaming startup, Carry1st
The $10 million fund was launched in 2023 to invest in early-stage investment startups.
CALL FOR APPLICATIONS👇
➥Safaricom M-PESA Accelerator Program Now Open for Early-Stage Fintechs and Content Startups in Kenya
➥Announcing the $5 Million Core Africa Innovation Fund( Empowering Local Web3 Builders)
INNOVATION CORNER🧠
⭐Google has released a new AI image generator.
Innovation like this continues to push the boundaries of what AI can achieve.
⭐Discover how Kenyan startup TausiApp, an on-demand beauty tech platform, uses artificial intelligence (AI) to connect freelance beauticians and clients.
UPCOMING EVENTS.
➥AFRICA TECH SUMMIT
Get ready to connect, collaborate, and innovate at the sixth edition of Africa Tech Summit Nairobi! The event will take place on the 14th and 15th of February connecting tech leaders from across the African ecosystem and international players.
What to Expect;
Engaging panel discussions on the latest trends and opportunities in African tech.
Networking opportunities with industry leaders and potential collaborators.
A startup showcase featuring innovative ventures shaping the future of technology in Africa.
Insightful workshops and masterclasses led by industry experts.
Investment opportunities for startups and investors looking to support African innovation.
Interesting Articles 📚
Discover how Kenyan startup TausiApp, an on-demand beauty tech platform, uses artificial intelligence (AI) to connect freelance beauticians and clients.
SCAM ALERT
Criminals using cryptocurrency investments platforms to scam kenyans
The DCI on Thursday reported with concern the increase in reports of loss of hard earned money by Kenyans to scammers. Scores are being lured to join online cryptocurrency investment platforms and end up losing their investments to the fraudsters.
Crypto scams are real and crypto is also real.Citizens need to have due diligence and do research before they engage in some activities.Until you get the right education, people will keep losing money through crypto. Scammers take advantage of people who don't have knowledge on crypto.Education and knowledge should be on the forefront.
Research, education, and knowledge is important. Stay vigilant! Be well-informed to protect yourself in the digital landscape💰
Adoption and Challenges affecting Web3 In Africa🚀
Web3, blockchain, cryptocurrency, and decentralization are terms you might have heard or used frequently.
Let's break it down and explore why Africa, being a developing continent, holds incredible potential in this emerging technological landscape.
Simplified Explanation
⭐Web3
It's like the upgraded internet, aiming to be more secure and fair.
⭐Blockchain
Think of it as a digital ledger, keeping records safe and unchangeable.
⭐Cryptocurrency
Digital money stored on the blockchain, not controlled by any government or bank.
⭐Decentralization
Instead of one authority, power is spread among many, promoting fairness.
Why is this exciting for Africa?
Africa is a developing country which means we are still adopting these technologies. Africa is growing and the highest population is the youth thats why its attracting .With this high growing market,This is huge for web3🚀
Web3 is simply all about how the internet works nowadays. It's like a fresh start, where they can leapfrog over older technologies and jump right into the future🚀
Africa has seen the highest adoption of crypto for the last 3 years like never before and this shows interest in decentralized technologies and therefore potential for web3 applications to thrive.
Not forgetting that most africans are can now access mobile money .For example Mpesa, its the largest mobile in kenya, which can only tell you that the market is ready to adopt the new financial services.
Why there is slow adoption?
1.Regulations surrounding web3 technologies is not clear which is becoming a barrier to potential users and investors.
2.lack of education and knowledge.With Education and knowledge means massive adoption and thriving of the digital technologies.
About NGENI LABs
NGENI is Kenya and East Africa's first pure-play and largest Blockchain & Web3 development engineering Studio with a 106-plus-person team. The studio specializes in building digital products with a significant track record in web3, blockchain, fin-tech sectors for startups, corporates and institutions(government-led).
All engineers have successfully taken on complex coding challenges, and hackathons and have ultimately delivered on complex multi-Blockchain applications, bots, and dApps for international projects.
Thanks for reading👌
Contact us: NGENI Linktree
Shiko Karanja✍