Feb 18, 2021

1. Nigeria’s Olugbenga Agboola features on TIME’s 100 most influential people list   Nigerian techpreneur and co-founder of Flutterwave, Olugbenga Agboola, has, alongside other 99 prominent individuals, been featured by TIME magazine in its latest 100 most influential people listing. Featuring on the list, the Fintech player is rated for leading one of Africa’s major payment gateway companies as an industry engineer and product development specialist. Olugbenga Agboola, who is the co-founder and CEO of Flutterwave , prior to co-founding the payment company (in 2016) had contributed to the development of fintech solutions at several tech companies and financial institutions. Agboola’s footprints can be found in big enterprises such as Google, PayPal and Standard Bank, among others. The CEO is a graduate of the MBA program at MIT’s Sloan School of Management. Tech Trivia: A. Hotmail 2. SunCulture raises $11m to expand across Africa Kenyan solar irrigation startup SunCulture has announced receiving a US$11 million debt funding to see to the company’s expansion plans across Sub-Saharan Africa. The 8 year old SunCulture offers solutions tailored to smallholder farmers, combining technology with pay-as-you-go (PAYG) financing and value-add services. With claims to be the first company to commercialise solar-powered irrigation in Africa, SunCulture, according to press, currently reaches customers across Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Zambia, Senegal, Togo, and Ivory Coast. The new raiser, which comes after a US$14 million Series A funding round of 2020, was led by SunFunder, a financing company specialised in solar energy. The raiser also saw the participation of other financial partners including the Off-Grid Energy Access Fund of the African Development Bank’s (AfDB) Energy Inclusion Facility (OGEF); Triodos Investment Management, the Danish government’s Nordic Development Fund (NDF); and the investment company AlphaMundi. 3. Joburg Smart City Innovation Challenge opens call for applications In a collaboration with Tshimologong Innovation Precinct, the City of Johannesburg’s Smart City Office has opened call for applications for the Smart City Innovation Challenge. The challenge seeks smart city solutions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the lockdown protocols have ignited new thinking about the future of Johannesburg and its residents, the Smart City Innovation Challenge aims to find and develop digital technology solutions that respond to urban and community challenges faced by the city in the “new normal”. Therefore, the challenge looks out for 4IR startups that have been in operation for between three and seven years and are developing Smart City technologies or innovative solutions. According to the organising body, an ideal solution should accelerate service delivery, improve the liveability and safety of the city and enhance operational efficiencies. Tech Trivia Answer: Hotmail Hotmail service was founded by Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith in 1996, and was acquired a year later (1997) by Microsoft for an estimated $400 million. Upon acquisition by Bill Gates, it was further developed into a personal information manager web app from Microsoft consisting of webmail, contacts, tasks, and calendaring services under a new name: OUTLOOK. Before the name change, however, it was first relaunched as MSN Hotmail, and later rebranded to Windows Live Hotmail which was featured as part of the Windows Live suite of products. Microsoft phased out Hotmail in October 2011, relaunching the service as Outlook.com in 2012. 1. Jeff Bezos displaces rival Elon Musk to reclaim world’s richest man title   American billionaire and founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos has displaced his rival Elon Musk to reclaim the title of world’s richest man. The Amazon chief moved up the rank on Tuesday following a slip in Tesla shares, which dropped by 2.4%, going on to erase $4.6 billion from Elon Musk’s fortune. By implication, Jeff Bezos, today, has $955 million more than Mr Musk, sustaining him as the richest man in the world. According to reoorts, the American founder has a net worth of $191.2 billion after Amazon shares climbed 53% in the past 12 months. The Amazon founder first became the world’s richest man in 2017 after displacing Bill Gates. Tech Trivia: A. Hotmail 3. Cape Town tech Aurora launches to promote sustainability   Local tech startup, Aurora Sustainability, has launched to foster sustainability among individuals and organisatons around the globe. The startup will be doing this with its innovative platform that calculates an individual’s carbon footprint via its sustainability quiz. The green-thinking tech startup has helped the average individual lower its carbon footprint by 28kg of Carbon Dioxide in merely one week. Today, the 2 year old startup has gained 35 000 users across the US, UK, Norway, and South Africa as it works towards establishing its authority in the sustainability space. Danielle Laity, founder of Aurora Sustainability explains that the tech startup aims to tackle the problem of lack of education amongst individuals on how to decrease their impact on the environment. Tech Trivia Answer: Hotmail Hotmail service was founded by Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith in 1996, and was acquired a year later (1997) by Microsoft for an estimated $400 million. Upon acquisition by Bill Gates, it was further developed into a personal information manager web app from Microsoft consisting of webmail, contacts, tasks, and calendaring services under a new name: OUTLOOK. Before the name change, however, it was first relaunched as MSN Hotmail, and later rebranded to Windows Live Hotmail which was featured as part of the Windows Live suite of products. Microsoft phased out Hotmail in October 2011, relaunching the service as Outlook.com in 2012. 1. Japanese VC launches $15m African startup fund Japanese firm, UNCOVERED FUND, has launched with a targeted size of US$15 million as it unveils its first five investments in African tech startups. Earlier launched in June of last year, UNCOVERED FUND is a venture capital fund targeting early and seed stage startups in Africa. According to the VC, the fund is expected to close at the end of June 2021, with a total size of US$15 million. On the ambition of the scheme, the fund is designed to support the development of new businesses in the “uncovered” world, where entrepreneurial support is not yet sufficient. The body noted that the scheme will invest between US$50,000 and US$500,000 in early and seed stage African startups. Tech Trivia: Which tech platform’s mission statement is summarised thus: our motivation is addressing the biggest challenges facing information professionals today: discovery and access. A. Twitter 2. AURA builds WhatsApp security chatbot in partnership with Tracker In a partnership with Tracker, South African security and medical response startup AURA has built what it describes as the world’s first WhatsApp security chatbot. The partner, Tracker is one of South Africa’s most trusted names in stolen vehicle recovery. On the design, AURA developed a cloud-based security and safety platform that provides on-demand, geographically-variable security responses from an aggregated collection of the best independent armed reaction companies in South Africa. The design is a solution that allows for a shift from location-specific protection to location-independent response and support, offering a means of aggregating the supply of an otherwise fragmented industry without the need for the significant acquisitions activity that would ordinarily be associated with consolidation. Today, the WhatsApp security chatbot connects to AURA’s nationwide network of over 1,500 armed responders. 3. Mama Money records 500% growth during the pandemic Despite how frustrating the economy was during the pandemic outbreak, Mama Money, a South African founded digital money transfer operator reportedly recorded a 500% growth during 2020. The unexpected growth margin was discovered when the fintech startup recorded more than a million users who paid fees as low as 3% for international money transfers. Speaking to press, Mathieu Coquillon, co-founder of Mama Money explained that the Covid-19 conditions accelerated the adoption of digital money transfers. She said: “We’re incredibly grateful that 2020 was our best year yet. It’s terrible to see how tough the pandemic has been for so many people and businesses. “We’re humbled and very lucky to have added over 70 permanent team members during this time. Lockdown restrictions spurred the adoption of digital money transfer services. “While there is a large informal network for money transfers that operates predominantly in cash, services like Mama Money make it easier for people to transfer money from the safety of their homes, which became particularly appealing during lockdown.” Tech Trivia Answer: Wikipedia With the above adapted mission statement, Wikipedia today is the 5th most visited website on the entire internet; has 500 million monthly visitors; records 8000 views per second; has become the #6 top-referrer to all scholarly articles online with millions of citation clicks per month; contains over 29 million citations on the English Wikipedia alone. 1. E-Track accelerator opens call for applications in Cape Town Sponsored by the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business, and managed by Solution Space; E-Track accelerator programme has announced opening calls for applications. The accelerator is designed to help founders validate concepts, develop their products, and scale their ventures. The Solution Space is an ecosystem for early-stage startups as well as a research and development platform for corporates. Built, however, in partnership with MTN’s messaging app, ayoba, the E-Track programme is a three-phase venture acceleration programme. The programme is expected to support individuals and teams to build scalable businesses with a global potential, targeting high-impact individuals, aspiring entrepreneurs, and experienced founders. Tech Trivia: Which tech platform’s mission statement is summarised thus: our motivation is addressing the biggest challenges facing information professionals today: discovery and access. A. Twitter 2. Ugandan energy startup gnuGrid secures $250k funding to further scale Ugandan energy startup gnuGrid has secured a US$250,000 funding round, a development that will see the company to scale its solution to more customers at home and into additional African markets. The 3 year old startup was founded by David Opio and James Dailey, building Solar Sentra, with the aim to streamline and automate the highly fragmented solar industry in Uganda and beyond. The startup leverages AI-optimised sensors to monitor solar systems and collect data on power usage which is used by solar companies to tailor service delivery. Earlier in 2019, the startup raised US$50,000 to develop its tech engine, pilot, and launch the product into the market. With the new raiser, the startup will use it to connect off-grid solar companies with Uganda’s Credit Reference Bureau (CRB). 3. South Africa startup MortgageMarket closes $687k to expand operations MortgageMarket, a South African home loans marketplace, has closed ZAR10 million (US$687,000) in funding to expand across the country. MortgageMarket is a customer-centric online platform that harnesses technology and customer service to allow users to compare home loan offers from South Africa’s top six banks within 48 hours. After about three years since launch, the startup will be embarking on an expansion strategy after securing investment from venture capital firm IDF Capital. The ZAR10 million raiser comes after MortgageMarket raised ZAR7 million (US$481,000) from its founders and private investors in 2019. Speaking on the matter, Tim Akinnusi, chief executive officer (CEO) of MortgageMarket, stated that the intention of the company is to use the new fund to strengthen its local operations. He said: “We will use the funding to strengthen our operations locally, working alongside our partners and SA’s top six banks.” Tech Trivia Answer: Wikipedia With the above adapted mission statement, Wikipedia today is the 5th most visited website on the entire internet; has 500 million monthly visitors; records 8000 views per second; has become the #6 top-referrer to all scholarly articles online with millions of citation clicks per month; contains over 29 million citations on the English Wikipedia alone.