Twelve real estate startups are set to compete for $15,000 in NAR’s ‘Pitch Battle’ at the upcoming iOi Summit in Chicago. These contestants, many leveraging AI technology, offer innovative solutions such as 3D-printed homes, tools to identify at-risk properties, and mortgage loan readiness assistance. The event aims to showcase groundbreaking technologies that address real estate challenges while providing valuable networking opportunities for startups and investors. The live Pitch Battle will occur on August 28, with the winner announced on August 29, receiving the cash prize along with other perks to boost their business.
Yu-Gi-Oh Obsessed Olympian Noah Lyles’ Exodia Quest Revealed
Thank you for catching that! Here is the revised response:
Colin Waitzman, the podcast host, asked a humorous question about whether Noah Lyles’ Yu-Gi-Oh trading card will be released soon or not, to which the athlete responded with a smirk. The host had one more question about Lyles’ duel desk, which he purchased from the Facebook marketplace just one day before the event for $130, stating it was worth it for his otaku sentiments.
Microsoft Outage Disrupts Florida Airports and Flights, US
TAMPA, Fla. — A widespread Microsoft outage has disrupted multiple airlines and flights at two major Florida airports Friday morning.
The technology company said it was gradually fixing an issue affecting access to Microsoft 365 apps and services.
Tampa International Airport and Orlando International Airport have reported several flight delays and cancellations because of the Microsoft outage.
The Federal Aviation Administration said they are closely monitoring a technical issue that has affected U.S. airlines including Delta, United, American, and Allegiant. They reported that all flights with those carriers are grounded.
Microsoft 365 posted on X that the company was working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact in a more expedient fashion and that they were observing a positive trend in service availability.
Anyone who is traveling Friday morning should check with their airline before heading out the door.
Jean Bernier said he learned that his United Airlines flight was canceled as he was about to travel to his terminal.
He said he did not get any notification from the airline or the airport, but found out about the outage from friends.
It’s definitely frustrating, Bernier said. I guess I’m just trying to keep a cool head. I definitely don’t like it by any means, but there’s not much to do about it other than fix the problem, I guess.
A few airlines have addressed the issue, including American Airlines, saying they have been able to safely re-establish their operations.
However, flights could still be impacted throughout the day due to the temporary grounding of airlines.
Anthropic and Menlo Ventures Launch $100M Anthology Fund to Accelerate AI Innovation, US
AI startup Anthropic and Menlo Ventures have initiated a $100 million investment fund to support startups focusing on artificial intelligence technologies. The Anthology Fund aims to propel the growth of AI applications, with a particular emphasis on areas such as AI infrastructure, consumer AI solutions, trust and safety tools, and applications that provide societal benefits. This collaboration seeks to foster innovative ventures that leverage AI to enhance human capabilities across various sectors. Through this partnership, Anthropic and Menlo Ventures strive to nurture AI pioneers and reshape industries with cutting-edge technology.
Cyber Outage Impacts Australia & New Zealand Businesses
A cyber outage related to an issue at global cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike and Microsoft hit media, retailers, banks, airlines and telecoms companies across Australia and New Zealand on Friday.
Australia’s largest bank, Commonwealth Bank, said some customers were unable to transfer money due to the service outage. National airline Qantas and Sydney airport experienced delays, but flights continued as scheduled.
Victorian state police reported internal system disruptions, while emergency services remained unaffected. Media companies experienced output disruptions as well.
Telecoms firm Telstra acknowledged the issue, attributing delays to global problems with CrowdStrike and Microsoft.
Regarding the outage, Australia’s National Cyber Security Coordinator, Michelle McGuinness, stated there was no evidence of a cyber security incident. New Zealand’s parliament also noted computer system impacts.
State broadcaster ABC reported a major network outage, with Sky News Australia correspondent Tom Connell confirming the outage was not a result of hacking.
Grocery chain Harris Farm in Sydney encountered errors on payment systems during the outage.
CrowdStrike acknowledged reports of crashes on Microsoft’s Windows operating system, indicating potential Falcon sensor-related issues without specifically mentioning Australia.
Despite the disruptions, there is no indication of a cybersecurity breach at this time. The outage appears to stem from a technical issue with a third-party software platform used by affected companies.
Climate Tech Firm 44.01 Secures $37M to Turn CO2 into Rock, Oman
Climate tech company 44.01, a climate tech eliminating CO2 by turning it into rock using the natural power of mineralisation, announced the successful completion of a €33.9 ($37) million Series A funding round. Equinor Ventures led this round, with significant participation from Shorooq Partners in the UAE.
Additional investors include (in alphabetical order): Air Liquide Venture Capital (ALIAD), Alumni Ventures, Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund, Climate Investment, Innovation Development Oman, Planet A Ventures, Salica Oryx Fund, Siemens Financial Services, Sumitomo Corporation, and several others. Existing investors, including Breakthrough Energy Ventures, have also recommitted to supporting 44.01’s technology by participating in this round.
44.01 eliminates CO2 by turning it into rock. The company’s pioneering technology accelerates the natural process of CO2 mineralisation to remove captured CO2 permanently in less than twelve months. 44.01 takes CO2 captured directly from the air, or from hard-to-abate industrial processes, helping decarbonise vital industries and ultimately return the atmosphere to sustainable levels of CO2. The process is safe, scalable, and lasts forever.
Talal Hasan, founder and CEO of 44.01, said: We believe mineralization can play a significant role in protecting and repairing our climate. We are grateful to our investors for committing to that mission and demonstrating their confidence in our technology. In addition to providing finance, our investors bring a wealth of international expertise and experience that will help us to accelerate our development and ultimately mineralize CO2 at scale worldwide.
This substantial round of funding underscores the growing confidence in 44.01’s mineralization technology’s potential to eliminate CO2 safely, permanently, and at scale. The capital raised will allow 44.01 to further refine its technology, develop commercial-scale projects, and expand its deployment internationally.
Mahmoud Adi, founding partner of Shorooq Partners, commented: We are thrilled to make our first lead investment in climate tech with 44.01, a company at the forefront of innovative carbon sequestration solutions globally. The UAE has been vital in advancing climate tech initiatives, and its leadership is paving the way for them. We are proud to contribute to this mission. This investment aligns with our vision of fostering groundbreaking technologies that address critical global challenges and move towards a more sustainable and safer future.
Cindi Bough, managing director at Climate Investment, added: We believe 44.01’s innovative carbon mineralization technology could contribute to efficient industrial decarbonisation worldwide. Climate Investment is well-placed to help commercialize and scale this technology through our unique partner network and significant CCUS experience, and we look forward to working closely with the 44.01 team.
44.01 has completed successful pilot projects in Oman and the UAE. The company was awarded the prestigious Earthshot Prize in 2022 for the Fix our Climate category, and its Project Hajar in Oman was recently announced as an XPRIZE Carbon Removal Top 20 Finalist.
Jawaharlal Nehru University Urges Students to Maintain Peace on Campus Amid New Semester Start in New Delhi, India
New Delhi, Jul 19 (PTI) The Jawaharlal Nehru University has asked students to refrain from holding demonstrations within a 100-metre periphery of the university’s administrative block in view of the new semester likely to start next month.
The students have been urged to report to the security branch of the university if they find anyone indulging in unauthorised activities, according to the appeal dated July 18.
The administration said it has zero tolerance towards any form of violence or indiscipline on the campus and appealed to the students to maintain discipline and peace.
In view of the beginning of the new semester and various activities being organised by the student bodies, all stakeholders of the campus are appealed to maintain discipline and peace on campus while participating in any kind of gatherings, the appeal release on Friday read.
Attention is invited by all the stakeholders of the university to the high court direction which restrains anyone from holding any demonstration/ dharna/mass gathering within a 100-metre periphery of the administrative block of the University, it added.
Poliovirus Detected in Gaza Sewage Poses Major Health Crisis, Palestinian Territory
Poliovirus was found in the following sewage samples: Gaza Thousands of people living in crowded camps are at risk of contracting a highly contagious disease that can cause disfigurement and paralysis.
The Gaza Ministry said tests carried out in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) indicated the presence of the polio virus in the Gaza Strip, which has been under devastating Israeli military attack since the Oct. 7 Hamas offensive.
The Israeli Ministry of Health announced that poliovirus type 2 was detected in sewage samples from the Gaza Strip tested at an Israeli laboratory. health The organization also released similar findings.
The presence of poliovirus in wastewater that is collecting and flowing between tents and residential areas in the camps due to the destruction of infrastructure represents a new health disaster, it said. Gaza The ministry revealed this.
The ministry highlighted severe overcrowding and water shortages contaminated by sewage and the accumulation of garbage. It said Israel’s refusal to allow hygiene products into the Gaza Strip has created an environment ripe for the spread of various diseases.
If poliovirus is detected in wastewater, it poses a real health hazard and puts thousands of people at risk of infection. Polio.
UN agencies 40 years of polio eradication campaignIt is most often spread through sewage or contaminated water, but has recently resurfaced in Afghanistan and Pakistan, with some sporadic cases in Nigeria.
The ministry called for an end to Israeli attacks to allow safe water supplies and sewage treatment to resume.
Authorities in the central Gaza town of Deir el-Bala said this week that a sewage treatment plant had been closed due to fuel shortages. They warned that roads would be flooded with sewage and that 700,000 civilians, mostly displaced, would be at risk of contracting sewage-borne diseases.
The Israeli Health Ministry said the samples raise concern about the presence of the virus in the region, adding that Israeli health authorities were monitoring and assessing the necessary measures to prevent the risk of disease in Israel.
Brain Memory Formation Linked to Unique DNA Structure, Australia
CANBERRA, July 19 (Xinhua) — A specific type of DNA structure could be key in regulating how the brain forms memories, Australian research has found.
In a study published on Friday, international researchers led by a team from the Australian National University (ANU) discovered that G-quadruplex DNA (G4-DNA) plays a role in transcribing memories.
G4-DNA is generally found in cells when DNA sequences fold into a different, four-stranded structure. It is usually associated with DNA damage and is frequently observed in cancer cells.
Paul Marshall, lead author of the study from the ANU College of Health and Medicine, said that G4-DNA’s involvement in stalling the basic functions of some cells had previously been discovered but that the new findings were the first evidence of its role in making new memories.
The study found that the accumulation of G4-DNA in neurons in the brain is required for the activation and silencing of genes that are critically involved in learning and memory.
We found that casually manipulating G4-DNA can lead to a substantial impairment in memory, Marshall said in a media release.
But in other scenarios it can result in increased transcription. It can have different effects on memory depending on the area of the brain, and type of memory involved.
The research was conducted on living cells from mice in collaboration with scientists from the University of Queensland, Linköping University in Sweden, the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, and the University of California.
African Startups Raise $266 Million Through Google Black Founders Fund, Nigeria
African startups backed by the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund have collectively raised $266 million from VCs in the last three years. This was revealed in a report by Google for Startups and Notion Capital, which measured the impacts of the Google initiative in Africa and Europe. According to the report, startups backed in Europe have raised $91 million, bringing the total raised by the African and European startups to $379 million with the addition of the $100,000 initial investments. The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund was established in 2021 to support Black entrepreneurs and address the longstanding disparities they face in accessing capital and resources. Since then, Google said the Fund has supported 220 European and African companies, comprising 135 from Africa and 85 from Europe. While noting that the Black Founders Fund companies have raised $2.51 million on average, the report highlighted the impact of the startups in the area of job creation. Companies funded by Black Founders Fund have over 6,000 employees, which has grown from 902 in 2021 — an increase of nearly seven times growth since the Fund commenced. African Black Founders Fund companies currently employ 4,059 employees. This is a more than four-time increase from the initial 1,050 in 2021 when the African fund commenced, the report stated. It added that Black Founders Fund companies are outperforming peers at the same growth stage — on average, growing 61% faster over a three-year period. The report indicated that black founders in both Africa and Europe are less likely to receive funding, unlike their white counterparts. According to the report, this has created an investment opportunity gap of $4.2 billion in Europe and nearly $10 billion in Africa. Since 2000, $2.5 billion has been invested into Black-led tech businesses in Europe and Africa; however, this seemingly large figure represents just 0.51% of the total investment made into all startups. In Europe, 0.43% of all investment was made into Black-led startups ($2.09 billion, out of $482.5 billion), and in Africa, 3.11% of all investment was made into Black-led startups ($413 million out of $13.3 billion), the report pointed out. The report advised startup stakeholders to collaborate with policymakers to advocate for policies that incentivize diversity in tech and address systemic barriers faced by Black founders in accessing capital. It also called for the implementation of educational programs for investors to raise awareness about biases and challenges faced by underrepresented founders, fostering a more inclusive investment landscape. The report emphasized strengthening community building to create a supportive ecosystem where Black founders can connect, collaborate, and share experiences. The Google Black Founders Fund offers startups $100,000 equity-free cash awards and up to $200,000 per startup in Google Cloud credits. In addition to equity-free cash awards, Black Founders Fund recipients receive ongoing Google mentorship, Google Cloud credits, and product support to help them navigate every stage of their startup journey. In 2022, 23 Nigerian startups were part of the 60 African startups selected for the second cohort of the program. Some of the startups include Eden Life, Estate Intel, Healthtracka, Haul247, and Flexfinance, among others.
