TECH NEWS

Brussels, Belgium | AFP | Facebook unveiled Monday new tools to counter online political meddling in the European elections, part of a campaign to answer growing pressure to rein in disinformation. The US tech giant’s vice president, former British deputy prime minister Nick Clegg, said in a speech the methods …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The number of internet subscribers who paid the social media tax reduced from 8.04 million in July 2018 to 6.84 million people in September, according to a quarterly report by Uganda Communications Commission (UCC). The amount of money collected from Over The Top-OTT tax …

Davos, Switzerland | AFP | The annual business rendezvous in Davos is a hothouse of insider tech jargon, but this year’s buzzword of “digital transformation” could translate into profound and painful changes for companies and workers. Whether through robots, automation or artificial intelligence, the impact of the transformation is heaping …

Washington, United States | AFP | Artificial intelligence and automation will lead to job losses in “virtually all occupational groups” over the coming decades in the United States, but the overall impact on employment will be “muted,” a prominent think tank study said Thursday. “Almost no occupation will be unaffected by …

  President to MTN, ‘Float shares on local stock exchange to correct trade deficit’ Davos, Switzerland | THE INDEPENDENT | President Yoweri Museveni has said government and business leaders must have a win-win formula devoid of exploitation of the local people to avoid grievances between locals and foreign investors. “We …

Paris, France | AFP | Leaf-cutter ants build super highways to transfer food and building materials hundreds of metres without communicating with each other, scientists claimed Wednesday, in findings that could prompt a rethink about how some insect communities organise themselves. Each leaf-cutter colony can carve out nearly three kilometres of …

San Francisco, United States | AFP | From “Fortnite” to “Pokemon Go,” play in the US drove video-game industry revenue to a record-setting $43.4 billion last year, according to data released Tuesday. Spending on games in the US in 2018 climbed 18 percent from the previous year, according to figures from …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Minister of Works and Transport Monica Azuba has said that the government is committed to constructing the standard gauge railway whether Kenya plays its part or not. Kenya is currently constructing 120 km line from Nairobi to Naivasha at $1.7bn and will be …

Cairo, Egypt | AFP |  Fans were left baffled on Wednesday after Liverpool’s star Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah appeared to have deleted all of his social media accounts where his followers number in the millions. The Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts of Salah, who is idolised in Egypt and Liverpool, …

Paris, France | AFP | France will require telecommunications companies to allow more government oversight and control of the equipment required for next-generation 5G wireless networks due to security concerns, a government official said Tuesday. The move comes as several Western nations have barred China’s Huawei from participating in contracts for …