Author: Francis Muli

Photos and videos of what is believed to be a wrecked Google Balloon have emerged on social media. The Balloon is said to have fallen near the town of Buta, close to Kisangani, in Bas-Uele, Congo. Panafrican Techologist, Kambale from The Congo reported on his twitter handle that an unidentified flying object that looked like communication equipment had fallen. On closer inspection by other netizens, the object was confirmed to be a Google Balloon with flight number HBAL166 assigned to Kenya’s Project Loon operation. The Balloon fell and crashed in Congo, over 1600 Kilometers from Kenya. https://twitter.com/kambale/status/1298180942310318085 Reports indicate that…

A new mobile app, Paylend, now allows customers to borrow from their local shopkeepers and retailers and paying for them half of the debt. The balance is cleared when the borrower pays for what he/she borrowed. Paylend services include Okoa shopping, Okoa Kilimo, Okoa Afya, Okoa Bills and Okoa Salon. Paylend charges the customers 5 percent interest for the amount borrowed, making the rates lower than the conventional mobile lenders. The shopkeeper can offer optional discount ranging between 0-3 percent, controlling the flow of goods. Paylend Charges interest (Access fee) on all requests made via the platform which begins after…

Tuskys has confirmed that it has signed a Sh 2 billion deal with a Mauritius based fund. The cash strapped retailer has in the past few months faced increasing challenges paying its workers, suppliers and bills such as rent. The deal with the Mauritius fund will see Tuskys inject fresh working capital which the retailer says, will help them in the short term. “This funding will help alleviate our current capital constraints impacted by Covid-19 and further reposition the business for increasing stakeholder’s value,” read a statement by Tuskys chairman Bernard Kahianyu. Following investigations by the Competition Authority of Kenya…

Microsoft is reportedly adding a new update on the ‘Your Phone’ app to allow selected Android devices to stream their apps such as Whatsapp to a separate window on the Windows 10 PCs. Microsoft unveiled the new added functions on the ‘Your Phone’ app during the Samsung Unpacked event on August 5th. The new feature enables users of Windows 10 with select android phones to stream their apps on Windows 10 PCs in a separate window that is outside the ‘Your Phone’ app. [videopress u8T3yRsn] The update should be available from this week to all PCs running the Windows 10…

Safaricom Foundation has handed over personal protective equipment (PPEs) worth Ksh1.5 million to health workers in Murang’a County in support of the fight against Covid-19. The Foundation also supported the construction of an examination and antenatal room at Don Bosco dispensary in Makuyu at a cost of Ksh1 million to boost maternal health care in the region. In addition, Ndakaini Dispensary received medical equipment worth Ksh500, 000 under Safaricom Foundation’s Ndoto Zetu initiative. The equipment include thermal guns, a blood pressure machine and nebulizer for asthmatic patients. Read: Safaricom Foundation Donates Sh3 Million Protective Gear To 500 Mombasa County Health…

What does our favorite boy band get to in their spare time? How did they get into music? Who are their significant others? The premiere of Sol Family, a new weekly reality docu-series by Sol Generation Records seek to answer such questions. The show delves into the lives of Africa’s biggest band, Sauti Sol and the artistes signed to their fast-rising record label. Sol Family, which airs weekly on Maisha Magic Plus and is available on Showmax allows superfans a rare glimpse into the everyday realities of Kenyan musical icons Polycarp, Chimano, Savara and Bien Aime (Sauti Sol), Nviiri the…

Capital Markets Authority (CMA) board chairman Mr James Ndegwa now wants the Court to throw out activist Okiya Omtatah’s petition seeking to oust him for “illegal appointment”. In January 2020, Omtata filed a petition in the High Court seeking to oust the CMA board led by Ndegwa over irregular and unconstitutional appointments that entail conflict of interest. Others who would exit the regulator if Omtatah’s petition succeeds include John Kipkosgei Birech, Freshia Mugo Waweru, George Mose Moibi, Thomas Nzioki Kibua, Christine Okoth and Peter Mungai, who are said to be beneficiaries of a flawed appointment process by the then Cabinet…

The latest update of Samsung’s find my mobile feature enables it to work for Galaxy devices that are not connected to the internet. The feature is handy for users trying to locate their lost phones. Max Weinbach of XDA Developers shared the news on Twitter after he spotted an ‘offline finding’ function on the feature. The function will leverage on the network of nearby Galaxy devices. This means that if you cannot locate your phone over WiFi or a data connection, nearby Galaxy devices may be able to locate it. Once you enable ‘offline finding’, your phone will also be…

Britam CEO Benson Wairegi has announced his retirement from the firm in December 2020, after serving for 40 years. Wairegi has opted not to seek a new term at the helm once his current three-year contract expires in December. However, he will still be eligible for a board position courtesy of his  4.01 percent stake worth Ksh715.7 million. “The board is seized of the matter. They have actually engaged and started a search for my successor. Whether it’s internal or external (replacement), that’s now for the board to decide. But the process actually began as long as two years ago.…

Africa’s tech startup pitching competition, the MEST Africa Challenge offers entrepreneurs and young businesses the opportunity to win a $50,000 prize in equity funding and a slot in one of MEST’s hubs. This year, the competition was held virtually, and expanded its reach from five to nine African countries, making room for more startups to receive support in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The competition kicked off with seventy-five finalists, tech startups from Ethiopia, Kenya, Côte D’Ivoire, Rwanda, Ghana, Tanzania, Senegal, Nigeria and South Africa chosen from among one thousand applicants. The country finals lasted two months, after which DeboEngineering…

Popular Video Conferencing app Zoom is experiencing issues. Several users have taken to social media to report that the go-to app is down. According to a report by down-detector, the app started experiencing problems this afternoon and is affecting users worldwide. The reason for the outage remains unclear although among the reported claims, 70 percent have reported problems logging in, 15 percent have had issues with the website and 13 percent have reported having issues connecting to the server. Several affected users have taken to Twitter o complain of the issue. Read: Zoom Reassures Users Of Safety and Stability Days…

Virtual influencers in the form of robots have entered the online job market and are already raking in millions of shillings. As the digital economy continues taking root, more companies are using influencers to push their products online and offline. Social media networks were developed with the aim of allowing users to socialize digitally. However, the space has seen an evolution after corporate entities joined in and found ways of connecting with clients who are active in the digital space. Influencers have traditionally been picked from celebrities or social media personalities with huge followings and a real influence over their…

Whatsapp is testing a new feature that will help you manage your device storage much better. The online channel that tracks changes and updates on Whatsapp, WABetaInfo reports that the Facebook-owned app will soon roll out new tools for storage usage. The new feature will enable you to see what content from the app is using occupying maximum storage so you can free up space according. The report says that the revamped storage Usage section will have a storage bar at the top which will categorize space used in media files and “other” types of content on the app. Below…

Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader Raila Odinga now says that the party will not protect those found culpable of embezzling Covid-19 funds. In a statement, Raila, however, said that audits must be done first to ascertain the allegations, saying that none of the “social media noise makers” have evidence of any embezzlement. “The position of the party in the current allegations of corruption in COVID-19 related resources is that the government needs to conduct a thorough and urgent audit of all the funds that have been put at the disposal of various state agencies, departments and ministries to fight…

Apple has issued an apology after it emerged last week that the company had successfully forced WordPress to monetize its free app on their app store. The move prompted a backlash from users upon learning that WordPress would be selling premium plans and domain names on iOS. This was to ensure that Apple gets its 30 per cent cut which they make from in-app purchases. Apple has backed off the whole matter and issued an on-the-record apology saying that WordPress is not required to have in-app purchases. “We believe the issue with the WordPress app has been resolved. Since the…