NUGGET (29 AUGUST 2025)
Nuggets! (Bite size updates on the real important stuff related to Tech, Trends, Business and the Planet.)
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RELIGION IS SUCH A MASSIVE INFLUENCE, (on home, business, and our community) which is why I study it. But, religion was not always there! Then, thinking and imagining thousands of years into the future—once we find life elsewhere, live on other planets, and people give AI and robots equal rights—where will religion be then? It’s something to ponder, because it points to a fact that timing matters and influences what we believe in the moment.
I want to share a recent article on the subject of humanity and our origin. So much of this article’s content is NOT in any religious doctrine or books. Of course, what evidence do these written words have? More or less than 13 teeth? WE KNOW LESS THAN WE THINK, and anyone who believes otherwise has more to learn because it’s too early in our history and evolution to have already decided on the source of all life or this universe.
https://www.reuters.com/science/ethiopian-fossils-reveal-new-species-human-evolutionary-lineage-2025-08-13/
HEARD OF THE TRUE JOHANNESBURG PROJECT?
It was launched by the University of Johannesburg and the ICCT, and uses remote sensing technology to monitor vehicle emissions in Johannesburg and Gauteng.
The aim is to gather high-quality data to inform policies that reduce air pollution, which exceeds national and WHO standards, and they want to focus on vehicle emissions.
Apparently, Johannesburg intends to create a Clean Air Zone and implement measures like restrictions on high-emission vehicles. Remote sensing technology, involving fixed and portable systems, automatically measures pollutants and links DATA TO VEHICLE LICENSE PLATES, providing real-time insights to support environmental policies.
Just like the National Dialogue with an objective that appears delightful, I fear TRUE will also be a lot of hot air.
(Some context: the primary source of air pollution in Johannesburg is industrial and power plants, contributing to well over one-third of the total PM2.5 concentration, and we already have laws and regulations in place, but they are simply not adhered to.)
CONGRATS… PENDING!
The top ten finalists for the 2025 FNF GREENPITCH CHALLENGE have been chosen from over 200 entries across various green sectors, including the circular economy, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, and water and sanitation.
These early-stage, future-thinking startup change champions will pitch to expert judges at a hybrid event on September 4 in Cape Town, organized by Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom and GreenCape. If anyone can get me into that event – please let me know.
The finalists will also attend an investment-readiness workshop, with winners receiving cash and in-kind prizes valued at over R300,000!
The early-stage startups include biodegradable fabric maker AgriTex SoilShield, urban vertical farming innovator Arable Grow, solar PV recycling startup DC Solar Reclaim, fish waste transformation company Dominion Solutions, and energy-efficient motor company Magnetic Repulsion Motor. Also featured are wastewater treatment innovator Selectra.
In the pre-growth stage, finalists are Agrikey Hydroponics, Peco Power, Roc Water Technologies, and Village Bucket Water Filter, each offering solutions in vertical farming, modular solar power, wastewater treatment, and portable water filtration, respectively. All sound like very good ideas!
(PS: The FNF GreenPitch Challenge is a competition that recognizes and supports early-stage green startups and businesses focusing on sustainable solutions across sectors like renewable energy, circular economy, agriculture, and water management. Love it!)
SPACE NEWS!
In case you missed it: India recently launched the NASA-ISRO satellite to track climate threats. A quick video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqjh6ggVbyk&t=1s
WHAT HAPPENS UNDERGROUND EFFECTS ABOVE GROUND!
Illegal MINING is a MASSIVE INFLUENCE on our ECONOMY and also on our SOCIAL FABRIC. There is a plethora of interlinked problems. People’s LIVES ARE LOST, ENVIRONMENTS ARE DESTROYED, and communities are left in turmoil. This VIDEO IS AN EXCELLENT recent update that covers several very important and interesting facts on this subject.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKJC9k5YNj0
DRIVING AN INFLUENCE!
The AARTO launch. Soft and then fluppen hard! The driving demerit system will commence nationwide from September 1, 2026, but before that parts of the ‘system’ roll out in soft launch, either way, the landscape of our transport systems is undergoing a massive change and in many ways.
GADGET COMPANY SHOPPING.
Some tech acquisition news about a business on our continent:
Meta has completed its purchase of PlayAI, an Egyptian voice AI startup, integrating its team and products into its AI division. As the Borg would say, they have been assimilated. Meta plans to use PlayAI’s technology across its AI Characters, wearables, messaging, and audio platforms to create more natural and expressive multilingual voice experiences. The company previously raised $21 million in seed funding and was well known for its advanced voice generation tools, including Play Dialog and Play 3.0 mini. Their site: https://play.ai/
NEWS FROM GHANA.
Google has recently announced a state-of-the-art ($37 million commitment) AI Community Center in Accra, Ghana. Article: https://amchamghana.org/2025/07/31/google-launches-ai-community-center-in-ghana-with-37m-investment-deepening-u-s-africa-tech-collaboration/
YOUR ENEMY’S ENEMY IS YOUR FRIEND.
Or in this case, YOUR CLIENT? Business often takes money from anyone.
I’ve recently learned that Edelman, a PR firm and long-time advisor to Shell, was chosen by Brazil’s COP30 team and UNDP to support media strategy for the climate summit. Now, that should raise concerns and be a conflict of interest?
Credits: amchamghana.org
MONEY MAKES THE WORLD GO ROUND.
So, they say. The July 2025 (which I only get to see in August) IMF World Economic Outlook has now projected that global growth will be 3.0% in 2025 and 3.1% in 2026, so an upward revision from April due to improved financial conditions, lower tariffs (not for us), and fiscal policies.
Good old INFLATION is expected to decrease globally, though USA inflation will probably remain above target because of all these shenanigans and ongoing risks like higher tariffs and geopolitical tensions.
So, you can now FACTOR THAT INTO YOUR PLANNING if you run a business affected by such factors.
WHAT REALLY MAKES THE WORLD GO ROUND?
Our blue marble spins because of the conservation of angular momentum from the formation of the solar system around 4.6 billion years ago, when our Sun and planets formed from a rotating cloud of gas and dust, which carried the initial angular momentum.
As Mother Earth formed from this material, it continued to rotate in the same direction. This rotation has persisted for billions of years because, without significant external forces, Earth’s spin is maintained by the law of conservation of angular momentum.
ON OUR BACKS.
Few understand that the very clothes we put on our backs have an impact on our environment. This video will demonstrate just how bad the impact can be for us: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwVdHonqEns
Some REALLY GOOD NEWS for people SUFFERING FROM CANCER.
I just learned of some researchers who have discovered a new cancer-fighting method using a sugar compound from deep-sea bacteria. This compound, called EPS3.9, triggers pyroptosis— a fiery, inflammatory cell death that destroys cancer cells from within! (Sounds dramatic, and I hope it does not hurt too much!)
In lab tests and mouse studies, EPS3.9 showed strong anti-tumour effects, especially in liver cancer and leukemia, by targeting cell membranes and stimulating immune responses.
This new breakthrough highlights the potential of marine microbes and carbohydrate-based drugs in developing innovative cancer treatments and gives us another reason to have hope!
You can read more here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40697044/
(PS, I do not support tests that involve animals.)
CHECKERS… YOUR NEXT MOVE?
In such a competitive market, and the make-or-break moment for this business, I think this is a VERY INNOVATIVE MOVE (info in the linked article) by PICK N PAY, and for so many reasons!
https://www.bizcommunity.com/article/pick-n-pay-mobile-rolls-out-app-with-esim-loyalty-perks-690871a
I would rather be a student of everything than trying to be a master of just one.
The End!
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Who is Jean-Pierre Murray-Kline?
Jean-Pierre is a South African serial e-entrepreneur, published author, and change champion who has worked in over 300 types of industries in some capacity or another. His own online businesses have generated millions of Rands and involved sectors such as law, web & app development, events & entertainment, property, technical services, media, and tourism.
He has traveled to over 180 cities worldwide and is extremely active as a business and environmental technologist. In addition to his own projects, he researches and consults on all things online: marketing, reputation, compliance, law, and e-security, and also offers strategy workshops and scenario sessions on future thinking with a key focus on technology, the environment, and global influences.
Jean-Pierre is often asked to be a guest speaker on a variety of subjects he continuously studies and writes about.
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