Emile Ferreira, CTO of Verascient and Keagan Stokoe, CEO. South African-founded artificial intelligence (AI) start-up Verascient has raised $1.2 million (R19.5 million) in its pre-seed round to help companies build faster and more capable teams with AI. It will use the capital to expand its engineering team and deepen its technology to support further enterprise…
Eastern African countries are tapping the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations’ (FAO) Hand-in-Hand Initiative to unlock investment in agrifood systems, with a focus on turning the region’s agricultural potential into jobs, stronger food security and more resilient economies. The drive was highlighted in Kigali on Monday, August 24, during the opening of…
Long lines formed at gas stations in Tehran Tuesday after the United States announced fresh sanctions aimed at pressuring Iran into submission. Washington has turned to pulling economic levers six months into a war on Iran that has ground to a stalemate militarily, with peace talks stalled and most traffic through the crucial Strait of…
African heads of state, former presidents, senior policymakers and business leaders are gathering in Kigali for the Africa Mindset Reset Forum, which will discuss how the continent can strengthen governance, institutions and execution to accelerate development. The two-day gathering, which begins on Tuesday, August 25, is being hosted by the African School of Governance (ASG)…
South African businesses have spent years investing in apps, websites, call centres and chatbots. Mobile behaviour, digital convenience and the demand for immediacy have outpaced what those tools can deliver. Agentic AI is stepping into that gap. Across retail, e-commerce, logistics, hospitality and travel, agentic AI is changing how customer conversations work, and South African…
The Professor argued that Africa does not primarily lack scientific knowledge to address land degradation and drought; rather, the continent faces gaps in data continuity, technology deployment, local-scale evidence and the ability to translate scientific findings into policy and action. In this interview with PREMIUM TIMES on the sidelines of COP17 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Oluseyi…
Sudan’s army has had a good summer. Last month, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) recaptured several towns along the strategic Export Road, known locally as Sadirat, which connects the central Nile valley to the country’s west, and pushed the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) into a defensive crouch across much of the centre of the…
Ramaphosa Vows Arrests Over Anti-Migrant Violence President Cyril Ramaphosa has pledged that perpetrators of violence against foreign nationals will be arrested and prosecuted once police have gathered sufficient evidence. He rejected claims that the government tolerates xenophobia. Ramaphosa also denied that South Africa had been isolated by other African leaders over the recent violence….
SASMA 2026 puts SA’s creator economy under the spotlight, with organisers calling for greater investment, policy support and protection. (Image source: iStock) South Africa’s social media creator economy came under the spotlight as the nominees for the 2026 Openserve South African Social Media Awards (SASMA) were shortlisted over the weekend. The industry is positioned as…
President Paul Kagame has urged Africa’s young people to take ownership of their future, saying meaningful change begins with the courage to make difficult choices and reject circumstances they don’t want. He made the remarks on Tuesday, August 25, during a presidential panel at the Africa Mindset Reset Forum in Kigali, where he challenged young…
