The Growing She-conomy
What’s trending? According to PR Newswire, the female economy is poised to outpace the economy of some of the biggest nations in the next five years. In the US women’s pay growth outpaced men’s in 2022. In South Africa, a study by Lightstone Property has found that more single women own property than men in […]
#BizTrends2024: Bronwyn Williams – Techno-optimism not acceleration: How to make friends with machines
This exclusive #BizTrends2024 interview is with future thinker and Flux Trends partner, Bronwyn Williams. Willaims chats to Bizcommunity Marketing & Media editor, Danette Breitenbach on the concept of techno-optimism, which she describes as an optimistic view of the joint trajectory of humanity and technology. While technology has historically been aligned with progress, optimism isn’t the […]
Digitlab launches Insight 2024: The State of Digital report
Digitlab has announced that it unveiled its industry report, Insight 2024: The State of Digital, at the Digital Marketing Conference. The conference was hosted at the CTICC on Wednesday, 22 November with a comprehensive virtual webinar to follow on Tuesday, 28 November. In collaboration with the Digital Marketing Conference, the 16-question survey on the current state of digital […]
Is there a growing distaste for corporate culture?
What’s trending? There’s a growing movement, particularly in the first world, of people rejecting corporate culture, the notion of working overtime and in many instances, being underpaid. This ‘anti-work’ sentiment is gaining momentum. The term ‘lazy girl jobs’ was coined earlier this year by Gabrielle Judge, also known as @antiworkgirlboss on TikTok. It refers to […]
Beyond connectivity: The role of business leaders in Africa’s digital evolution
As the digital evolution accelerates, business leaders have a crucial role in propelling tech transformation beyond connectivity. They must adapt swiftly to avoid falling behind. This was the main topic at the recent Business Day Dialogue, “Connect Africa”, in partnership with Open Access Data Centres (OADC). In 2023, SA led the world in internet access, […]
SA sees rise of service robots as AI adoption advances
There has been slower adoption of service robots in Africa in comparison to its Western counterparts. However, SA is beginning to see growth in the adoption of professional services robots, amid increased acceleration in artificial intelligence (AI) adoption. This is according to Faeeza Khan, head of research at local trends research firm Flux Trends, commenting […]
Voice artists fear AI will ‘steal’ their voices
United Voice Artists (UVA), a global group of over 20 voice acting guilds, associations and unions, has begun a worldwide campaign to lobby governments to regulate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the creative industries. In a statement, voice associations across the globe have raised concerns around the unregulated use of AI, highlighting the threat […]
Rising risks as digital clones gain prominence in SA
As digital clones and virtual ambassadors gain popularity in South Africa, experts warn of new threats posed by the artificial intelligence (AI)-generated beings created for celebrities, business leaders and politicians. According to trends research firm Flux Trends, the ability of AI to recreate, manipulate and reuse − in different ways − currently existing audio, photos and […]
10 tips to connect with zoomers
It is vital that brands and businesses understand the psyche of Generation Z, who are a substantial segment of our population. Generation Z, otherwise known as Zoomers, are the generational cohort succeeding millennials and preceding Generation Alpha. They were born between 1997 and 2012, making them between 11 and 26 years old. They are the […]
BRONWYN WILLIAMS: Largesse in rich countries makes poor nations poorer
Annual consumer inflation reached 7% in February. This is likely to increase when Eskom’s controversial 12.74% price increase is applied in April and trickles down into a cost-of-everything price increase for citizens. This cost-of-living crisis only adds to the country’s collection of economic woes, which include world-leading inequality, an official unemployment rate around 33% and […]