The National Institute of Standards and Technology could fire as many as 500 staffers, according to multiple reports — cuts that further threaten a fledgling AI safety organization. Axios reported this week that the US AI Safety Institute (AISI) and Chips for America, both part of NIST, would be “gutted” by layoffs targeting probationary employees […]
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As many as 2.8% of Africans are uninsured, which is less than half the global average of 6.3%, making it the least insured continent in the world. Despite the abysmal number, there’s some good news. According to a McKinsey report, most African countries have experienced double-digit insurance growth in CAGR in local currency over the […]
Nigeria’s Curacel raises funding to power insurance offerings and expand into North Africa by Tage Kene-Okafor originally published on TechCrunch
After working in Africa’s microfinance space for seven years, including at Botswana’s Letshego, Brian Dempsey took a break in 2020 to build Power Financial Wellness, operating out of Kenya. Dempsey said the launch of Power was informed by the trends he noticed in the micro-lending space, and experience garnered from his stint in the micro-finance […]
Kenya’s fintech Power set to scale after $3M seed round by Annie Njanja originally published on TechCrunch
In true Valentine’s Day fashion, we’re diving into the theme of love…and crypto? According to a new study by Binance, the world’s largest blockchain by trading volume, crypto could have a positive impact on one’s attractiveness. Yes, really. Approximately 83% of participants said liking crypto was an “attractive feature in a relationship,” while 70% said […]
Crypto makes you more attractive, according to a new Binance survey by Jacquelyn Melinek originally published on TechCrunch
Africa’s smartphone market shrunk by 18% in 2022 compared to the previous year, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC). The slump was driven by a reduction in consumer spending due to inflation, and economic uncertainties, but it was not unique to Africa as smartphone shipment dipped across major markets last year. According to IDC, […]
Africa’s smartphone market shrunk by 18% last year by Annie Njanja originally published on TechCrunch
It’s always nice to have a lot of capital to invest, but managing a large new fund can be even more advantageous right now given that many later-stage companies that put off fundraising last year will likely be in the market come hell or high water in 2023. No doubt traditional venture firms like NEA, […]
Bain Capital has closed its second Tech Opportunities fund with $2.4 billion by Connie Loizos originally published on TechCrunch
Last week, China’s lidar maker Hesai raised an upsized IPO in the U.S. at a time the industry is reeling from layoffs, bankruptcy, and consolidation. The Shanghai- and California- based company, which makes the sensing technology critical to autonomous driving and increasingly advanced driver assistant systems, raised $190 million from its public offering on Nasdaq. […]
Amid merger and bankruptcy in the West, lidar maker Hesai nails $190M IPO by Rita Liao originally published on TechCrunch
Terraa, a Moroccan B2B tech-enabled food distribution platform, has raised $1.5 million pre-seed funding in a round led by FoodLabs, a European early-stage VC investor and venture studio for food, sustainability and health. Other participants in the round were UM6P Ventures, Outlierz Ventures, Musha Ventures, and Africa-centric DFS Lab. Founded by Youssef Benkirane and Benoit […]
Morocco’s foodtech Terraa raises $1.5M led by FoodLabs by Annie Njanja originally published on TechCrunch
A year ago, Akamai acquired Linode for $900 million. At the time, Akamai said it wanted to combine Linode with its edge platform and security services. Unsurprisingly, that’s exactly what it is doing now, with the launch of its new Akamai Connected Cloud — a massively distributed edge and cloud platform that includes Linode’s existing […]
Akamai reaches for the cloud by Frederic Lardinois originally published on TechCrunch
Aspire, the Singapore-based neobank that wants to become the financial operating system for SMEs, has raised an oversubscribed $100 million Series C round. Investors included Lightspeed and Sequoia Capital SEA, along with Paypal, Tencent, LGT Capital Partners and returning investors. TechCrunch last covered Aspire when it raised its Series B in 2021. Founded in 2018 […]
Singapore-based neobank Aspire raises $100M from Lightspeed and Sequoia SEA by Catherine Shu originally published on TechCrunch