Category: News
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BN Daybreak: Helen Zille on Mashaba; Tech earnings; AI hacking; Iraj Abedian on the Iran conflict
Listen here In today’s BizNews Daybreak, we cover overnight tech earnings with mixed results from Alphabet, Tesla, IBM, and Texas Instruments. Economist Dr. Iraj Abedian weighs in on the global fallout of the Middle East conflict, while SA engineer Peli Collins discusses his new space startup, Beyond Reach Labs. Meanwhile, OpenAI admits its AI model…
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Director’s Cut – Dr Iraj Abedian: Hormuz stand-off could cost SA more than pain at the petrol pump
Seven months into the Iran war, economist Iraj Abedian tells Alec Hogg that Donald Trump has lost more than the battle for the Strait of Hormuz: he’s lost America’s standing as the world’s dominant power. Abedian explains why the narrow waterway carries a third of global oil, why the mullahs are more afraid of each…
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Pele Collins: From SpaceX to Y-Combinator: Unlocking the giant origami structures of orbit
Listen here Pele Collins went from leading the SpaceX parachute engineering team that brought American astronauts safely home to co-founding a Y Combinator-backed deep tech startup, Beyond Reach Labs. In his latest interview with Irakli, the proudly South African engineer reveals how his team is tackling the ultimate pick-and-shovel play for the next era of…
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Deputy finance minister Masondo faces removal as PIC board chair amid governance crisis
South Africa’s R3.6 trillion Public Investment Corporation is in open crisis. Deputy Finance Minister David Masondo, who chairs the PIC board, faces a shareholder vote on his removal at a July 27 meeting called by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, with six non-executive directors, including four in one day, having already resigned. The rupture stems from…
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Returning to South Africa? 7 common tax mistakes to avoid
A practical guide for South Africans returning home, with a focus on income tax, Capital Gains Tax and SARS reporting obligations. For many South Africans living in the UK, the decision to return home is driven by family, lifestyle, cost of living, weather, children or retirement planning. But while the personal reasons may be straightforward,…
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Returning to South Africa? 7 common tax mistakes to avoid
A practical guide for South Africans returning home, with a focus on income tax, Capital Gains Tax and SARS reporting obligations. For many South Africans living in the UK, the decision to return home is driven by family, lifestyle, cost of living, weather, children or retirement planning. But while the personal reasons may be straightforward,…
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Ilan Preskovsky: Wikipedia’s Israel and Zionism pages are ideologically captured
Ilan Preskovsky argues that Wikipedia’s entries on Zionism and Gaza have been shaped by a small, organised group of editors pushing an anti-Israel framing, citing investigative journalist Ashley Rindsberg’s research into the platform’s editing culture. It’s relevant to South African readers because the piece explicitly names the ANC’s genocide case against Israel at the International…
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Director’s Cut – Veteran money manager James Gubb: Oracle’s shock downgrade signals the first crack in the AI bubble
Former hedge fund manager and CFA James Gubb argues the AI boom is real, but many investors are backing the wrong winners. In this interview with Alec Hogg, he explains why Oracle’s credit downgrade could signal deeper cracks, why OpenAI and hyperscalers face mounting pressure, how China’s AI advances are reshaping competition, and why energy…
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BizNews Edge: James Gubb cuts through the AI noise — how top investors are hedging the boom
Listen here Veteran investor James Gubb joins BizNews Edge to cut through the AI hype, weighing today’s data centre spending against history’s biggest capital booms and explaining why he’s backing energy and nuclear stocks over AI names themselves. Also on today’s show: Sasol’s operational turnaround continues even as its share price cools after a strong…
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Novo’s cut-price Ozempic alternative lands in SA – one day after rival clears same hurdle
Novo Nordisk has launched Extensior, South Africa’s first authorised semaglutide copy, cheaper than Ozempic and pitched as widening access to diabetes care. But the announcement came a single day after Sun Pharma’s independent generic cleared SAHPRA approval, and 18 months after a court battle against compounding pharmacy iDexis exposed just how unregulated — and lucrative…
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What fruit flies can teach us about the human brain
By Adrian Ephraim Dopamine. It’s the brain’s in-house drug of choice; a neurotransmitter that deals in feelings of pleasure and reward, sending messages that translate into warm and fuzzy emotions. For millennials, it’s that feeling they get when they discover a new notification or a mention on Instagram. That feeling derived from instant gratification, or…
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CR Impeachment would cause big fractures in the GNU: Richard Chelin
Listen here In this interview with Chris Steyn, Independent Governance Expert Richard Chelin predicts that an impeachment of President Cyril Ramaphosa would have grave consequences for the Government of National Unity (GNU) – particularly in the light of Vice President Paul Mashatile’s keenness to work with parties other than the Democratic Alliance. “I think we…
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Dr Duarte da Silva: SA gold mine owners’ windfall funded departure from Reef
Gold’s richest run ever handed South Africa’s mining majors record windfalls — AngloGold’s earnings nearly tripled to $2.7bn, Gold Fields’ to $3.57bn. In Part II of his Gold Papers series, Dr Duarte da Silva tracks where that cash actually went: Harmony spent $1.01bn on Australian copper rather than the uranium already sitting in its own…
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Priced for perfection: A retired fund manager’s warning on the AI boom
Every so often a piece of private research does the rounds that’s too good to keep private. James Gubb’s note on AI valuations, published in full below, is one of those. Gubb is a retired Chartered Financial Analyst, which means two things worth knowing upfront: he’s spent a career being paid to separate genuine value…
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Andrew ’s Epstein fallout: The royal scandal that won’t go away
Fresh revelations from the Epstein files have intensified scrutiny of former Prince Andrew, raising questions about alleged misuse of royal influence, confidential information and powerful global connections. The controversy highlights broader concerns about accountability, privilege and whether influential figures face the same standards as ordinary citizens. For South Africa, the scandal resonates amid ongoing debates…
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China’s new AI superstar: Moonshot’s Kimi K3 stuns the tech world
Moonshot’s Kimi K3 has become the breakout star of China’s AI sector, drawing comparisons to DeepSeek and challenging assumptions about America’s lead in advanced artificial intelligence. For South Africa, the development highlights how quickly global AI competition is shifting and why policymakers, universities and businesses cannot rely solely on US technology ecosystems. Chinese open-source models…
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The Economist: For all new UK PM’s big talk, hits ground strolling
Andy Burnham entered Downing Street on July 20th promising Britons “start to believe again,” but Britain’s new prime minister has offered more mood music than a plan. His cabinet purge was ruthless — sacking Rachel Reeves and Sir Keir Starmer’s economic team wholesale — yet the substance behind it is thin: a “ten-year plan” delayed…
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BN Daybreak: Police generals’ R3.6 bn salary bill; AGOA reforms; Andy Burnham; DA governance
Listen here In this episode of BizNews Daybreak, we cover global strikes in the US-Iran conflict, Red Sea shipping risks, Paramount’s blocked merger, and new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham. Locally, Parliament’s Ian Cameron questions SAPS’s R3.6bn senior leadership salary bill, Mayor Chris Pappas highlights uMngeni’s governance model, Russell Lamberti proposes subnational AGOA trade reforms…
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Director’s Cut — Chris Pappas reverses course: the real reason he’s running for uMngeni mayor again
Listen here Chris Pappas was set to leave politics for the private sector. Instead, he’s back, seeking a second term as uMngeni mayor after talks from colleagues, community leaders and supporters. In this candid interview with Alec Hogg, Pappas explains why he changed course, reflects on the DA’s prospects ahead of the 2026 local elections,…
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Ian Cameron: 722 Generals & Brigadiers @ R3.6bn, more pressure on CR and another cloud over Mchunu…
Listen here In his latest interview with Chris Steyn, Ian Cameron, the Chairperson of Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Police, reveals that the South African Police Service (SAPS) has 722 brigadiers and generals that cost nearly R3.6 billion in pay and maintenance. In addition, only five of 823 senior SAPS officers underwent lifestyle audits in the…