AI is making call centres more expensive
The business process outsourcing (BPO) industry has embraced AI as a technology capable of improving operational efficiency, enhancing customer experiences, and supporting business growth. But inside South African call centres, the opposite is quietly happening,...
Jem secures $8,4m Series A to scale workforce management
Jem, the WhatsApp-based workforce management platform for deskless teams, has raised an $8,4-million Series A funding round led by global fintech investor Quona Capital. The investment will support Jem’s ongoing growth from an HR and benefits provider into a...
Industrialisation high on the SADC Summit agenda
Southern African leaders have agreed that industrialisation is key to the region’s success. Concluding the 46th Summit of SADC Heads of State and Government held over the weekend in eThekwini, South African president Cyril Ramaphosa said that, while it is important to...
China’s AI hardware export boom offers Wall Street hedge
China’s new wave of AI hardware exports offers investors a hedge against Wall Street’s “dangerously circular” artificial intelligence trade, says a leading global financial advisor. Nigel Green, CEO of deVere Group, says that as fresh analysis maps out a new...
Stokvels could help improve healthy eating
South Africa’s stokvels could become an important platform for improving nutrition and food security in low-income communities, but their collective buying power is currently used largely to purchase foods chosen for affordability, quantity, and shelf life rather than...
SA doesn’t have an AI problem. It has a data problem
Artificial intelligence (AI) has become the boardroom conversation of the decade. Across South Africa, organisations are investing in generative AI, copilots, predictive analytics and intelligent automation, driven by the promise of increased productivity, faster...
Africa’s mining, oil and gas companies need a holistic cyber security strategy
Africa’s mining, oil and gas sector is becoming one of the continent’s most attractive targets for cyber criminals. By Ignus De Villiers, managing executive: cyber security at Liquid C2 As operations become automated, connected, and data-driven, cyberattacks are no...
The agentic enterprise will reward AI readiness – and widen the cracks
Handing a Formula 1 race car to a novice driver does not increase their chances of winning the Grand Prix. In fact, it might well make them dangerous. By President Ntuli, MD of HPE South Africa That is the paradox facing South African businesses as they move beyond...
The most expensive metre in retail is the one that leads to the till
There are three questions that preoccupy South Africa’s retailers in 2026. How do you get customers through the door, how do you keep them there, and how do you persuade them to spend? By Dieter Oelofse, POS systems architect at Ecentric Payment Systems, and Shaun...
Consumers haven’t outgrown loyalty. They’ve outgrown how loyalty is delivered
Our phones have made everyday life easier, but loyalty programmes have some catching up to do, writes Byron Rode, founder and CEO of (my)cards. Think back to life before smartphones. We carried cash and bank cards in our wallets, printed boarding passes before heading...
From intelligent to autonomous: what southern African firms need to get right next
Over the past decade, Southern African organisations have become measurably more digital. By Nazia Pillay, MD for southern Africa at SAP Cloud adoption has accelerated. Core systems have modernised. Data, once scattered across departments and spreadsheets, has moved...
BlueVision partners with Canada’s ShadowHQ
In a disaster scenario seconds count, system outages and business downtime increase the risk of financial loss and reputational damage. This is according to BlueVision which has announced a strategic alliance with ShadowHQ that will see the cyber specialist become an...