Australian opposition leader Peter Dutton’s call to block fleeing Gazans from entering the country has triggered backlash from the government and civil society organizations. Calling for a stop to migration from the besieged Palestinian coast enclave, Dutton had said the arrival of people from a war zone to Australia was putting national security at risk. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese harshly reacted to Dutton’s remarks, saying the opposition leader always looked to divide the communities. Peter Dutton is always looking to divide. We’ll listen to the security agencies when it comes to national security, Albanese said. And, you know, I seek to try to bring people together, not always looking for a wedge or to divide, the prime minister said. Rawan Arraf, human rights defender and executive director at the Australian Centre for International Justice, called Dutton’s remarks racist. This is racist dog-whistling against survivors of an ongoing genocide, Arraf said on X, adding Canberra continued to grant visas to Israelis, including those who have come here on tours to talk about their military activity (read: genocidal acts) in Gaza. Where are the checks on them? she asked. Nasser Mashni, president of Australia Palestine Advocacy Network, slammed Dutton and called his comment shameful. The anti-Palestinian racism espoused by our ‘alternative’ PM is disgusting! … playing partisan, divisive, racist politics to score domestic political points is shameful, said Mashni, addressing Dutton. Sophie McNeill, a human rights activist, also called the anti-Palestinian remarks by Dutton disgusting. Absolute shame on Peter Dutton and the Coalition for this racist dog whistling. I know some of the families who’ve arrived here from Gaza. They are traumatized, said McNeil, adding: They’ve lost everything. Imagine how they would feel reading this? Meanwhile, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) has canceled its show following a British-Australian pianist made remarks on Israel’s war on Gaza. Jayson Gillham was scheduled to perform on Thursday but MSO said it is re-scheduling the show after Gillham said on Sunday in Melbourne that during the last 10 months Israel killed over 100 Palestinian journalists. The ongoing Israeli offensive, following a Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, has faced international criticism for violating a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire. The conflict has resulted in nearly 40,000 deaths and more than 92,000 injuries, according to local health authorities. The International Court of Justice has accused Israel of genocide and ordered a halt to its military operations in Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge before the city was invaded on May 6.
New Zealand’s Genesis Energy Secures Emergency Gas Supplies for Huntly Power Station amid Grid Pressure
Sydney, 13 August — New Zealand upstream firm and utility Genesis Energy has secured emergency gas supplies for its dual gas- and coal-fired Huntly power station on the North Island.
Genesis has secured 3.2PJ (86mn m³) of gas to allow the 400MW No.5 unit at Huntly to reach full capacity for the first time this winter, it said on 13 August, describing the electricity grid as facing unprecedented pressure.
An agreement has been reached with Canadian methanol manufacturer Methanex, which will shut its Motunui plants in the North Island’s Taranaki province until the end of October to allow for more gas-fired power generation, Genesis said.
The commercial arrangements regarding the gas transfer are structured to provide Methanex with a base price for each unit of gas delivered, with further incremental value shared between the parties depending on electricity pricing over the period, it said on 12 August. Methanex’s twin 1.72mn t/yr units in Motunui have paused production in the past, also diverting feedstock natural gas to support electricity generation in the winter of 2021.
The 953MW Huntly — New Zealand’s largest power station by capacity and the country’s only coal-fired unit, has been under significant strain as dry, cold conditions have led to increased demand during winter as hydroelectricity inflows remain low. New Zealand has also experienced light winds cutting expected wind-powered generation this winter, with Genesis planning coal imports for the first time since 2022 in response to lower domestic gas output and rapidly falling coal stocks.
New Zealand energy minister Simeon Brown told parliament on 7 August his administration was investigating two separate options to ease the gas shortfall in the short to medium term.
Industry body the Gas Industry Company (GIC) is studying the feasibility of importing LNG, while also considering policies to increase investment in flexible gas-fired generation, Brown said. Data from upstream firms released earlier this year show a significant drop in proven plus probable reserves, falling from 1,635PJ to 1,300PJ, he added.
Gas production into open access pipelines was 58.8PJ during January-June, GIC said in its April-June quarterly report, 20pc down on 73.7PJ a year earlier, while gas-fired power demand grew by 10pc against April-June 2023.
New Zealand’s National Party-led government is aiming to overturn a 2018 ban on new oil and gas exploration with legislation to be introduced to parliament later this year.
NBC Nightly News Dominates Ratings as Paris Olympics Boost Viewership, France
The 2024 Paris Olympics continued to fuel NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt to the top spot in both total viewers and key demographics last week, maintaining its winning streak. ABC World News Tonight showed some gains, while CBS Evening News experienced declines in both categories. Notably, it was the first time Nightly News outranked World News Tonight consistently in seven years. Despite the tough competition, NBC Nightly News remained the frontrunner, signaling a strong viewership response to its engaging coverage.
Tamil College Launches Global AI Research Center TAMARAI in Madurai, India
Thiagarajar College of Engineering (TCE) Madurai has launched TAMARAI, a global research centre for Tamil and Artificial Intelligence.
Marking the founder’s day, the TAMARAI was launched with the aim to revolutionise the landscape of technological innovation in the region, said TCE Correspondent and Chairman Hari Thiagarajan. He told The Hindu that the long-term mission of the centre was to develop a Large Language Model, a sort of Tamil ChatGPT.
The state-of-the-art facility would foster growth and propel the institution into a future driven by AI. Further, the mission of the centre was to pioneer the development of inclusive and representative AI models for Tamil language bridging the gap between ancient wisdom and modern technology.
By democratising access to centuries of Tamil literature and knowledge through open source innovation, the Centre would aim to empower Tamil community globally by providing AI tools that respect and elevate their language and culture.
The AI centre, Mr. Thiagarajan said, would be a testament to this commitment, fostering collaboration between academia and industry, thereby leveraging AI to modernise Tamil language making it more accessible in various digital platforms.
The Centre would be funded by industries and guided by leading researchers from higher learning institutions in India and from Silicon valley. It would also focus on challenges related to language translation, document summarisation, paraphrase identification and Tamil corpus creation.
Soma Velayutham, an executive in the AI field from California said that TCE is uniquely positioned to contribute to the Tamil GenAI domain, with its wealth of Tamil resources and scholars from Thiagarajar College of Arts and Science, the release said.
Over 497k Still on NHS Waiting Lists: Improvements Seen in Manchester, UK
Nearly half a million people are still waiting for treatment, almost 30,000 of them for over a year.
But there is hope as waiting lists are falling in the region. There were a total of 497,015 people on the waiting lists at trusts in our city-region in June, according to the latest data.
That’s down from 498,079 people in May and 523,488 people the same time last year. It’s still more than double the 236,647 people in February 2019 though, just before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Some 27,688 people on waiting lists in Greater Manchester have been on there for over a year.
More than four out of every 10 of patients going to major type 1 accident and emergency wards in Greater Manchester during July faced waits of over four hours between arrival and either admission, transfer or discharge.
In Bolton, 46.9% of patients had to wait in A&E for over four hours last month. In Tameside it was 46.2%, at the Northern Care Alliance – which runs Salford Royal Hospital, Fairfield General Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary and the Royal Oldham Hospital, it was 44.2%, in Stockport it was 42.5%, and across Manchester and Trafford hospitals it was 42%.
All five trusts had worse records than England as a whole, with 38.6% of patients having to wait more than four hours in A&E.
NHS bosses have warned that this could be the busiest summer on record for the health service. Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS National Medical Director said: A&E staff are under significant pressure and the NHS is in the middle of what could be its busiest summer ever, with a total of 4.6 million attendances in the last two months alone and 2024 now having seen the three busiest months for A&E on record.
While we have seen improvements in the number of patients seen and treated within four hours in A&E, slightly faster ambulance response times, and more than three quarters of cancer patients receiving an all clear or diagnosis in four weeks, it is clear that waits for patients across a range of services remain unacceptable and there is much more to do to deliver more timely care for those who need it.
Nobody in the NHS wants to see patients experiencing long delays and we are committed to working with the government to create a 10-year plan for health that includes a clear plan to bring waits down. In the meantime, staff continue to work incredibly hard to deliver the best possible care for patients, and it is vital that people continue to come forward when they have health concerns.
Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s Two-Hour Conversation Sparks Controversy on Social Media, US
Billionaire entrepreneur and Donald Trump supporter Elon Musk engaged in a lengthy conversation with the former president on the social-media platform X. The chat, which experienced technical difficulties at the beginning, drew over 1 million listeners. During the discussion, Musk praised Tesla and expressed concerns over the energy consumption of artificial intelligence.
Telecel TurnUp Electrifies UENR Campus with Stonebwoy Headlining, Ghana
Telecel Ghana is set to electrify the campus of the University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) in Sunyani with its immersive student festival, Telecel TurnUp with the reigning TGMA Artiste of the Year, Stonebwoy.
Telecel TurnUp is a campus music festival which offers students an unforgettable entertainment experience through a thrilling blend of music, dance, digital games, bazaar, and technology.
This year’s event will also feature a lineup of rising Ghanaian musicians from the university for a night of non-stop music and dance, which forms part of the university’s annual Students Representative Council (SRC) week-long celebration, themed Umoja – celebrating student unity and contributions.
Telecel TurnUp is an excellent opportunity for us to celebrate the vibrant youth culture, engage with the student community and provide them with a series of events that combines entertainment, connectivity and convenience, said Tawa Bolarin, Director of Enterprise Business & Wholesale at Telecel Ghana.
Our aim is to create a unique festival experience where students can enjoy great music and also benefit from our exclusive offers.
Before the main TurnUp concert, Telecel Ghana is bringing additional excitement to the SRC week celebration with a cashless bazaar, offering students the opportunity to shop and pay conveniently using Telecel Cash.
This is in alignment with the telco’s commitment to promoting digital financial inclusion among the youth.
Five gifted UENR students with unique music and dance talents will get the opportunity to showcase their creative craft at the TurnUp concert and a chance to become the next TurnUp Star.
Additionally, Telecel has rolled out special connectivity packages for UENR including free calls on and off campus, bespoke and lower-cost data bundles tailored to their needs to facilitate learning, research, and increased interaction between students and staff.
Telecel TurnUp is a landmark celebration on the university calendar. The partnership with Telecel for SRC week enriches the student experience by boosting the campus spirit and morale through the line-up of interactive social activities and network benefits.
Students are looking forward to connecting socially, creating lasting memories, and celebrating music and dance talents on the big stage, said Gideon Aidoo, SRC president of UENR.
With the countdown on, Telecel TurnUp promises an impressive night of music, fun, and tech, as students eagerly await the ultimate campus experience.
Ed-tech Sector Slows Globally: Rising Startups & Investors Amid Decline, Finland
After record growth, Ed-tech sector slows down – but not worldwide
Following the pandemic-driven surge in the Ed-tech sector, enthusiasm for education technology has waned. After $20.8 billion was raised in 2021 and $10.6 billion in 2022, global Ed-tech funding tumbled to just under $3 billion in 2023, according to HolonIQ. This year, the decline appears to be continuing; at the half-year mark, Ed-tech startups around the world have garnered just over $1 billion, per Crunchbase data, whose numbers are pretty aligned with HolonIQ.
Still, some advancements are taking place as innovators find new ways to weave AI into the education infrastructure, from personalization to gamification, simulation training, and data analysis. What are some rising Ed-tech companies and some big investors showing interest amid the overall slump?
A lot of the excitement has gone overseas. Let’s zoom in on a few of these fast-growing new Ed-techs and note the trends.
SWANA
Corrsy, with Finnish and Iraqi roots, seeks to improve the quality of education through a gamified mobile application for young students across the South West Asia and North Africa region (SWANA). Now, it has $500,000 in pre-seed capital it raised from Iraqi VC firm EQIQ, Finnish Ed-tech angel investor Risto Vahanen, UK-based accelerator SuperChargers Ventures Ed-tech, Durubi Management Holding Company, and angel investors.
Egypt’s Sprints raised $3 million in a bridge fundraising in March, with backing from EdVentures and CFYE. Graduate job-ready for the future! – its website proclaims as the four-year-old company offers personalized learning courses with job placement across AI and data science, devOps, web and mobile development, software testing, embedded systems, product management, and more. Working with individuals, businesses, and governments, Sprints aspires to fill the gap in tech education in the Middle East and Africa and secures jobs worldwide for its students.
Sprints’ backer EdVentures is an Ed-tech-focused corporate VC in Giza, Egypt, launched under the learning conglomerate Nahdet Misr Group. CFYE, or the Challenge Fund for Youth Employment, supports employment initiatives in the MENA region out of the Netherlands.
Moving forward, Educatly just scored $2.5 million in a round led by TLcom Capital and Plus VC, with participation from Egypt Ventures and the HBAN in Ireland. A higher education network operating from Egypt, Educatly helps students study abroad and get into major universities.
Leoron in Dubai also made news recently, raising new capital to advance its e-learning, corporate training courses, and professional development services platform, as covered in detail by VatorNews’ Steven Loeb.
Europe
Spanish startup Masterplace raised a $2 million seed this week, backed by its founder and a group of angel investors. The blockchain-based platform began to offer a variety of online courses, both paid and free, from home winemaking to stress management and road trip planning. It invites instructors of all trades to join in and create their own content with the help of AI, while retaining their intellectual property rights and monetizing.
Milan, Italy-based Futura recently closed its $15.3 million Series A round, led by France’s Eurazeo. Other investors were United Ventures and Axon Partners Group. Futura is developing algorithms that personalize and optimize learning to speed up the process. The algorithm is said to mimic the expertise of a skilled professor and has a proven record of helping students pass their exams.
In late June, Berlin-based Bling scored $12 million to advance its family-friendly app with easy-to-understand learning to simplify day-to-day operations in the areas of savings, investments, communications, and security. Leading the round was Owl Ventures, a notable Ed-tech-focused VC firm in the Silicon Valley. Other backers were Commerzbank Group’s VC, Neosfer, as well as existing investors PEAK and Angel Invest.
Another Berlin startup backed by Owl, Morressier, raised $16.5 million in early 2024 to streamline workflows for authors, reviewers, and editors of research works, aiming to improve the integrity and processes of scholarly communications.
In London, a three-year-old startup Visibly is building modern certification programs for blue- and green-collar workers, addressing the skills gap in the infrastructure sector. The company, whose website proclaims in a frank British manner – Stay compliant, without f*cking up your productivity – recently raised about $7.6 million from lead investor Creandum in Stockholm and existing investors Seedcamp, Brighteye Ventures, Triple Point, and others.
Paris-based Brighteye Ventures is one of Europe’s top Ed-tech-focused VC firms, investing in seed and Series A stage. In a recent report, Brighteye said the [Ed-tech] market is far from barren; indeed, it’s quite the opposite – also saying the European Ed-tech market is showing more resilience than most others.
Brighteye also recently participated in a $7.3 million capital raise by UpHill Health. The Portuguese company provides software that aids healthcare teams and patients by creating structured care journeys. Its solutions are designed to improve efficiency and quality in chronic care, surgical management, and overall healthcare system coordination. Among its products is a clinical simulation tool for training. Other investors include Explorer Investments, Redstone, and Mustard Seed Maze.
The Ed-tech Focus in U.S.
Notable U.S. investors focusing on Ed-tech are NewSchools Venture Fund in Oakland, California. The firm is now focusing on creating a student-centered education system and is enthusiastic about helping Black and Latino innovators. Also in Oakland, Kapor Capital focuses on closing gaps of access and invests across various sectors including education.
GSV Ventures in San Francisco, focusing on digital learning, is known for backing Coursera, ClassDojo, and Course Hero. Bisk Ventures is also located in San Francisco, aiming to support the innovative use of technology to engage students in impactful learning experiences and to strengthen education to employment pathways. Learn Capital, based in San Mateo, has backed Ed-tech companies Coursera, Udemy, NewGlobe, and Andela.
Next, Bonsal Capital in Baltimore, Maryland, invests in education and workforce technology and is known for providing an ecosystem of support to its edupreneurs. Rethink Education and University Ventures in New York, Reach Capital in San Francisco, Edovate Capital in Denver, and New Markets Venture Partners in Maryland – these firms are a few key players in the Ed-tech investment landscape, supporting a range of innovative solutions aimed at improving educational experiences and outcomes.
Driven by a commitment to transform education, these VC firms and innovative startups have continued to attract funding and develop groundbreaking solutions. These efforts are paving the way for a more personalized and accessible learning experience, demonstrating resilience and creativity even in challenging times.
Nano Nuclear Energy Inc. Faces Investor Misleading Allegations in New York Federal Court, US
Nano Nuclear Energy Inc. misled investors about its progress towards regulatory approval and commercialization of its energy products and that its higher-ups are independent contractors working as executives of other companies, according to a proposed class action filed in New York federal court. The lawsuit alleges that the company made laughable regulatory claims and failed to disclose key information to investors. Investors are seeking damages for securities fraud, negligent misrepresentation, and violations of federal securities laws. The company has yet to respond to the allegations.
Researchers Discover Algorithms Struggle to Detect Anti-Asian Violence Speech
A research group is calling for internet and social media moderators to strengthen their detection and intervention protocols for violent speech. Their study of language detection software found that algorithms struggle to differentiate anti-Asian violence-provoking speech from general hate speech. Left unchecked, threats of violence online can go unnoticed and turn into real-world attacks. Researchers from Georgia Tech and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) teamed together for the study. They made their discovery while testing natural language processing (NLP) models trained on data they crowdsourced from Asian communities.
