The Tefo Mohapi Show

In this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show, we are joined by Troy Hunt, an Australian Microsoft Regional Director and Microsoft valuable Professional for Developer security. Troy is also the founder of Have I Been Pwned (HIBP), a free service that aggregates data breaches and helps people establish if they've been impacted by malicious activity on the web. In this podcast, Troy also discusses how data breaches can be prevented and highlights that 99% of the time data breaches are results of human error, and if we acknowledge that, then data breaches can be prevented. Beyond this, Troy also talks about working for Pfizer, the pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation for fourteen years, his love for craft beer, traveling and speaking around the world, working from home, and about his book. Note: This episode was recorded in 2021.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an eye-opener on many fronts. In South Africa, it has been shown that with enough urgency and willpower, our government can move into action and fast-track some service delivery. However, the coronavirus pandemic has also exposed the South African government's shortcomings as far as service delivery and infrastructure development is concerned. In this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show, we are joined Duduzile (Dudu) Mkhwanazi, Managing Director of Uju Digital. Dudu also serves as an advisory board member for GirlCode and Fiam WiFi in Lagos, Nigeria. In this podcast, Dudu highlights how the South African government's bad decisions, and indecision affects us all through delayed public service delivery and in some cases no service delivery. One such example is the SA Connect broadband project which was supposed to have been rolled out across South Africa in 2013 but has barely moved into phase two in 2022.

According to Baobab Insights, as of 17th December 2020, the total investment into African startups in 2020 was $1,213 billion. This is some way behind the total recorded in 2019 ($1,987 billion) and slightly behind the 2018 total ($1,328 billion). The total number of unique companies that received investment has only slightly decreased from 429 in 2019 to 426 in 2020. So, perhaps the narrative that African technology startups copy and paste Silicon Valley business models might not be entirely true. We have seen companies like Yoco growing exponentially and Nigeria's Paystack being acquired by Stripe. So how can a startup founder ensure they secure VC investment? In this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show, Craig McLeod, CEO of BoxCommerce shares with us what it takes to build a tech startup that scales. Craig also shares insights on venture capital, the importance of having the right team, and more.

Over the past half-decade, or even longer, it feels like something has changed drastically across the world. It could be the influence of social media and how it allows trends to scale quickly across the world, or it could be something else. One of those changes is more visibility being given to black people protesting and fighting against centuries of systemic racism. There's another possible trend I have observed that, for lack of a better word, I call “nationalism." More and more politicians and people pushing for more inward focussed policies. Even in South Africa, we have witnessed many protests against big companies that have had racist advertisements and in some cases, we have observed as social media is being used by many people to try and push for an agenda against foreign nationals. The question that begs to ask though is are there any underlying trends that are driving these changes and sentiments? In this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show we are joined by Dion Chang, Founder at South Africa's Flux Trends, a company that analyses macro trends that influence social dynamics and our business interactions. Dion discusses and helps us understand some of the trends that look like they are shaping our zeitgeist.

A few days after George Floyd was killed by a policeman in the USA, protests erupted. Under the banner of the Black Lives Matter movement, the protests calling for justice for George Floyd and anyone else killed by police in America, soon spread globally. At the same time, a few days later after the fateful day that Floyd passed away, many companies and brands started publishing and broadcasting messages that they stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter. Some, like several VCs, investors, and accelerators, took this a step further and made commitments to Black startups and founders. When it comes to such statements and commitments, it is always important to check if the companies follow through. In this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show, I speak to Denishar Kuhlor, a relationship manager responsible for Early Stage Tech at New York's Grasshopper Bank, about holding investors and companies accountable for the commitments they make. We also discuss music and technology and how the Internet has influenced not only the music business but also how music artists interact with their fans.

On 13 August 2020 something interesting happened. Firstly, Epic Games, the makers of Fortnite, decided to allow players to make in-game purchases by paying it directly on iOS devices and not using Apple's in-app payment system. This led to Apple swiftly banning and removing the popular Fortnite game from its App store citing violation of rules. Things then escalated quickly on the same day as Epic Games would then file legal papers against Apple opposing the ban and saying that the company is abusing its App store monopoly. What was surprising is that Google would also later remove Fortnite from its Play Store. That was surprising because the Play Store is less restrictive than Apple's App Store. One thing that is emerging is that this battle, especially between Apple and Epic Games, appears to be one of those moments in history that will shape a few trends as far as app stores and online marketplaces go. Joining me on this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show to discuss this is Ben Basche, a Product Manager at one of the largest entertainment companies in Africa. We also talk about another trend that looks like it will disrupt how software products are developed, specifically how Amazon Web Services (AWS) is helping people develop software products without needing to do any programming, codeless.

It goes without saying that the COVID-19 pandemic during 2020 has been devastating for many businesses. Many businesses have announced downsizing measures while others have completely shut down. The media industry has not been spared. However, it has been interesting to observe as some media organizations have gone on to blame the pandemic for their troubles. In some cases, some of them have been slightly more honest in admitting that digitization, and their not being quick enough to understand the digitization trend, has led to some of the troubles they are experiencing now. In this latest episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show I caught up with Oresti Patricios, CEO of South Africa's Ornico Group, to discuss the state of the media industry. Oresti touches on the effect of fake news, programmatic advertising, and more. We also talk about life and mortality.

In recent decades the topic of humans living in space has slowly become a possibility. With the advent of the International Space Station and various countries looking to explore Mars, other organizations talking about commercial space travel, it is an exciting time to be alive. However, for many of us visiting space in our life might be a longshot given the costs that are associated with it. However, it doesn't hurt to sometimes wonder and explore what living in space would be like. Things like: given that there is no gravity, how does one move around and do simple tasks like eating that we don't even think twice about while on Earth. Also, what do you see once you leave the Earth's atmosphere? That's why for this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show we are joined by Terry Virts, a retired NASA astronaut and former commander of the International Space Station. Terry not only spent hundreds of days in space aboard the International Space Station doing spacewalks among many other activities, but he is also arguably one of the most prolific photographers of space. So much so that he has an amazing IMAX documentary on space. Terry continues to do some work that is important for the human species including a project he is involved in Africa. He shares more about that in this episode as well.

Corruption, despite it being one of the frequently occurring topics discussed across the continent, is not unique to Africa. Also, it did not originate in Africa. However, its effects, especially when it comes to the misuse of public funds, is more pronounced on the continent given how it robs citizens from having functional infrastructure and public services. Given corruption's negative effects on public service delivery, is it something we can completely stop? In this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show, I have an in-depth discussion with Oby Ezekwesili on to help us understand the origins of corruption in Africa, the incentives that exist to help it spread, and some ways we can curb it. Mama Ezekwesili also shares some thoughts on how we can fix politics.

Africa produces a lot of tobacco annually. Across the continent, you will find tobacco farms that produce and mostly export their leaves outside the continent to cigarette and cigar makers across the world. More interestingly, one of the finest tobacco leaves grown in Cameroon is responsible for making (a wrapper) some of the world's finest cigars, yet, Africa for a long time never had a cigar brand or maker. Kamal Moukheiber, the founder of Mozambique based Bongani Cigars, also realized this and started researching and building an African cigar brand. Not only an African cigar brand but one that is made in Mozambique. Kamal shares some insights into what it takes to go from farming tobacco to having a cigar. As well as the patience, tenacity, and skill required to start a cigar brand.

At 47 years old, Isaac Mophatlane is easily a veteran in South Africa's ICT sector and the broader ICT sector across Africa. It is not because of his age but rather his experience in the industry that qualifies him as such. From starting, together with his late twin brother Benjamin Mophatlane, as consumer and small business software salespeople at a retail software store in the mid-to-late 1990s in Pretoria, right up to selling a company he co-founded with his brother, BCX (formerly Business Connexion), for approximately $200 million to Telkom, he been in the trenches. In this episode, Isaac shares how his journey is continuing as an investor into ICT companies, his thoughts on governance in South Africa, and more.

By default, when one thinks of Thebe Ikalafeng thoughts of his passion for Africa, marketing, and being an experienced and professional brand strategist come to mind. This is not only by default, but it is also by design. In this episode Thebe joins Tefo to unpack what personal branding is about, especially explaining that it doesn't necessarily mean not being yourself. He further explores how we can continue to tell our stories as Africans. Thebe also explores the topic of marketing Africa as one brand.

Even before the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic happened, the world was already experiencing an economic slowdown. In South Africa for example, many big corporations were already laying off thousands of their staff. Interestingly, technology companies, although some were experiencing some downturn in fortunes, weren't exactly the worst affected. But, how does one ensure that their startup can survive tough times? In this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show Alexandre Lazarow, a Venture Capitalist, Adjunct Professor, and Author argues that startups should focus more on becoming camels (to survive tough times) rather than unicorns. Alex also shares other thoughts on how tech startups should handle other functions such as recruitment, raising money, and more.

Over the past 5 years or so, we have witnessed an exponential growth of what is commonly known as fake news to influence not only political discussions online but every aspect of our lives. Some might say that fake news is a victimless offense but as we have come to experience over the years, there are real-life consequences to the rise in misinformation and disinformation that is circulated on the Internet. There have been several suggestions on how we can stop fake news. Some have pushed for the use of fact-checking services while others have stated that emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence should be used to identify and stop fake news. In this episode, I spoke to Dr. Vukosi Marivate who is a Data Scientist to understand some of the methods being used to identify and attempt to stop the distribution of misinformation and disinformation. Vukosi also takes some time to explain the difference between Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and what they are usually confused with - Automation.

Not only is the coronavirus (COVID-19) now a global pandemic as declared by the World Health Organization (WHO), it has also disrupted life as we know it globally. As many countries around the world have announced various measures to try and "flatten the curve," some people are faced with uncertainty over where their next income cheque will come from. Freelancers, small businesses, and self-employed people are some of the categories of people around the world who are about to be severely be affected by the many restrictions and lockdowns that are being implemented by various countries. This will even be more felt in countries like South Africa where not much financial relief is expected to be announced by governments for these categories of people. As such, for this bonus episode I caught up with Thabo Ngcangiso (Thiza), a property deal maker by profession (he's also a podcaster with the following podcasts under his belt: Property Khona - real estate related, and the No Hidden Agenda podcast - hip hop related), to hear what financial advice he has for freelancers, small businesses, and self-employed people. Although some of the advice is South Africa specific, the bulk of it is applicable to anyone around the world. Later in this bonus episode, Itumeleng Mojaki, a Money Market Portfolio Manager for one of the best black owned investment funds in South Africa, joins the discussion as he offers some tips and options to the Finance Minister, Tito Mboweni, and the South African Reserve Bank governor, Lesetja Kganyago, on some of the measures they should look at implementing to navigate these uncertain times but more importantly to ensure the well-being of South African citizens is taken care of.

On 31 December 2019, the first reported outbreak of the current coronavirus (COVID-19) was said to be in Wuhan, China. Since that first reported outbreak in China, the disease has spread rapidly across the world and caused thousands of death and put many people in critical condition. However, it is also important to note that many who contracted the disease have also succesfully recovered from it. In this bonus episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show I spoke to Dr. Mary Stephen, Technical Officer at the World Health Organization's Regional Office for Africa, about the coronavirus. Dr. Stephen explains what the disease is, clarifies some major myths, explains why we should take it seriously, and more. What is also insightful, despite a lot of the fake news (disinformation and misinformation) that is being circulated about COVID-19, is that from a scientific point of view as Dr. Stephen explains in the podcast there is currently no known effective treatment or vaccine of coronavirus as research and investigations into its origins, transmissibility, and treatment are ongoing.

Higinio "w0rmer" Ochoa was once upon a time banned from using the Internet by the FBI. This was because as a formerly convicted hacktivist he, as part of the Anonymous movement supporting the Occupy Wall Street movement hacked into some police databases in the USA as well as being involved with shutting down several companies websites and and online services around 2011 and 2012. However, that is some time ago as he is now an Information Security professional in the USA who cares about a secure, private and open Internet. In this podcast I got to chat with Hig' about various subjects ranging from exploring what culture is all about, how metadata in a photo lead to his FBI arrest, and we also explore various scenarios on the future of the Internet. With 20 years of experience in the Information Technology and specifically the Information Security field, he is undoubtedly one of the leading people to explore these topics with. Hig' also had an episode of Showtime's Dark Net on Netflix dedicated to documenting how he lives without using the Internet and the devices he used in his "lab" on a daily basis during that time.

Nothando Migogo is arguably one of the foremost knowledgeable and experienced people across Africa when it comes to understanding copyright licensing in the creative industries. She has spent the last decade leading copyright licensing organisations, most recently as CEO of the Southern African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO). She has made a significant impact on the music royalty collection landscape both in South Africa and the African continent. Naturally, she was the person I sought to speak to when it comes to understanding the legal side of music as well as seeking the answer to the perennial question: "why do South African music artists die poor?" However, as important, given Nothando's wide-ranging experience, I also talk extensively to her about culture and especially about how most African cultures have taken a "backseat" as Western colture continues to be a dominating culture. We also talk about, as I was curious to find out, how she is able to practice as both a sangoma and an attorney. As well as how she navigates the negative connotations many people have about sangomas.

The podcast will be bringing you conversations with various people from across the world who have famously or infamously made an impact on our world. This is through the work they do through their businesses or organizations or through some of the technology they have developed. The aim is to try and understand the world we live in a bit better and find solutions to some of the problems we face. I trust you will find the conversations insightful! Kgotso!

South Africa has one of the world's best laws when it comes to data protection. However, unfortunately, it is only good enough on paper. This is because since the Protection Of Personal Information Act (POPI Act) has been signed into law in South Africa, some of its provisions cannot be fully implemented pending the SA Information Regulator office being fully functional and resourced. As a result, the country has experienced some of the worst abuses of personal data collection, storage, and distribution without the responsible organizations being taken to task. In this podcast episode, I spoke to Murray Hunter, one of the leading voices on digital privacy and free speech in South Africa. Murray was also a respondent on a big case that had to do with South Africa's State Security Agency conducting indiscriminate and mass surveillance on citizens during his time at Right 2 Know.

When Maged first told me that he would be cycling and hitch-hiking across Africa I thought to myself this is a weird way to punish oneself considering he could at minimum do the trip using a car. However, having spoken to him during this podcast there are clearly some important lessons one learns on such an excursion. Maged Ahmed Korga is an Egyptian ex-Google software engineer who decided, in between switching jobs from Google in San Francisco to a startup that develops technology for self-driving vehicles, to take a 90-day trip across Africa on a bicycle. In this podcast, he shares some of his observations on this trip including experiencing racism in South Africa, the kindness of strangers, how the technology won't necessarily lift most Africans out of poverty and more. Interestingly, Maged also makes a case for how it is better to travel away from the typical tourist areas in any country if you really want to learn about a country and its people.

If you look back just under 40 years ago, the global Information Technology sector was completely different, from the perspective of the dominant countries and companies, from what it is today. However, it is exactly at that time that China started building a city that plays an extremely important role in the global supply chain of electronic goods and especially mobile phones. In this podcast, David Li, who works in Shenzhen, explains how the Chinese government selected Shenzhen, a rural fishing village of a few thousand people, 39 years ago as one of its Special Economic Zones. This decision, along with other factors that David elaborates on, led to Shenzhen today being responsible for over 60% of the global mobile phone market. One of the other highlights of this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show is that David explains how Shenzhen's open innovation model differs from how things are done in Silicon. Part of this model is how Shenzhen technology ecosystem endeavors to turn high-tech into a commodity and as such has become a supplier to some companies that are creating technology products for underserviced communities like we have in parts of Africa.

The digital music business has undergone three phases in Africa, namely: the mobile phone ringtone/ringback phase, the digital downloads phase, and now the online streaming phase. Yoel Kenan, Founder, and CEO of Africori (an Africa-focussed digital music aggregation and distribution business) explains these phases and how, in most parts of Africa, the first phase is still prevalent. This podcast spans the history of the digital music business, the role of distributors, discussion on music rights, and many more topics relating to Africa's booming music industry. Yoel also provides balanced and nuanced insights and further elaborates why in his view it is still early days as far as the digital music industry in Africa is concerned. With experience of over 30 years working in the music industry for various major record labels, European radio stations, and many other music organizations, Yoel also takes some time to explain why the digital music industry is different in South Africa as compared to the rest of Africa.

It's not often one gets to sit down with a person who has built as well as invested in some tech unicorns (a company with a $1 billion-plus valuation). It is also not often that such a person would be humble enough to admit their failures in business and celebrate them as lessons despite the temptation to paint themselves as a flawless hero. Kamran Elahian is both these things and much more. Kamran is also an innovator. One of his innovations, the Momenta tablet computer which was way ahead of its time in the 1980s, is also one of the great business lessons he shares in this podcast regarding what can go wrong in business and what risks tech startup founders need to look out for in their own businesses. Momenta, although it started off superbly, eventually failed as the market at the time was not ready for such an innovation, not to mention Kamran and his team having to build a lot of the technology components themselves at the time given how none of it existed at the time. Kamran also shares his thoughts in this podcast in what he believes can be a solution to kickstarting innovation and the digital economy across Africa. He further explores the role that Africa's technology hubs can play working hand-in-hand with startups, investors, and governments. He is currently an investor (one of his unicorn holdings is an early investment into SoundHound) as well as an advisor to many organizations, startups and governments around the world.

If you had to think back a decade or even 6 or 7 years back, the digital technology media landscape across most parts of Africa was considerably different to what it is today. Most online publications, if any, that covered technology innovation were doing so from a developmental and social impact point of view. If not that, they were covering mostly enterprise technology. The era of personal digital technology blogs gained popularity somewhere around a decade ago and around 6 or 7 years ago, online media publications focussed purely on digital technology innovation and startups started emerging in different countries across Africa. One such publication that emerged in 2013 is TechCabal. Founded by Bankole Oluwafemi (Banks), TechCabal took an angle of covering the growing Nigerian tech ecosystem from what was happening in the startups ecosystem and it would eventually grow into an authoritative voice on most things technology in Nigeria. Not only that, the company itself has gone on to become a great storyteller of Nigerian youth culture, and West African culture at large, through its other publication - Zikoko. In this podcast, I look back with Bankole at how the innovation and startup ecosystem in Nigeria, and the rest of Africa, has transformed over the years as well as how the publications (those that are still alive) that cover it have also grown. We also touch on the important issue of how policymakers should be interacting with innovators and startups.

With the recent passing of Zimbabwe's former President, Robert Gabriel Mugabe, the southern African country once again came under the spotlight. Questions about how good (or how bad) Mugabe's legacy was have been asked, and depending who you ask, Zimbabwe is or was a great country or a horrible country. The same mixed sentiment applies especially if you ask South Africans about Robert Mugabe. As such, I thought it best to catch up and talk to someone who I think has a better experience and understanding of Zimbabwe than myself. I've known Emmanuel Banda for several years as a waiter at one of my favorite restaurants that I frequent. But more than being a waiter, Emmanuel is also the director responsible for elections and recruiting for MDC (Movement For Democratic Change) in South Africa. Emmanuel was born in Bulawayo in 1981 and he grew up in the dusty streets of Mabutweni in Mpopoma, were he also went to school. His story of growing up in Bulawayo and noticing the changes as life got harder in Zimbabwe and eventually fleeing to South Africa provides a rather nuanced perspective of life during the late 1990s up until 2007. In his words, he has witnessed a country go from prosperity to no food on store shelves, more importantly, he has sadly observed as his friends and colleagues “disappeared” and were killed. Emmanuel also touches on how it is to live in South Africa as a Zimbabwean especially considering reports of xenophobia against foreign nationals during September 2019.

If you have been following South African politics for the past few years, especially on Twitter, you would probably have come across the name Gwen Ngwenya. She is a former Member of Parliament representing the Democratic Alliance (DA), the official opposition in South Africa. More interesting, is how, despite the insults that have been hurled at her on social media and some times in Main Stream Media (MSM), Gwen has kept her cool and argued her points with little emotion. As such, I thought since she has now declined to be an MP, it would be great to discuss a few things with her around South African politics and some issues such as affirmative action. Gwen now runs her technology advisory and policy firm in South Africa called TechPol. In this podcast we also talk about some of the emerging technology trends such as the on-demand (gig) economy and how governments should approach them from a policy point of view.

Mteto Nyati is one of those leaders in South Africa's society whose career path is nothing short of excellence. From starting as an engineer during South Africa's much darker Apartheid days, to changing industries into the Information Technology field and then later Telecommunications. He has proven that he has a knack for taking on challenges and finding solutions. In this episode of "The Tefo Mohapi Show" I got to speak with Mteto about his younger days as detailed in his book "Betting on a Darkie." We also discuss the state that South Africa finds itself in and what he proposes should be done to move the country forward.

In this episode of The Tefo Mohapi Show, I speak to Marek Zmyslowski, a Polish entrepreneur who packed up his bags in 2013 to go to Nigeria to start an online travel startup. Having met with the Samwer brothers, founders of Rocket Internet, Marek was recruited to be the co-founder and Managing Director of Jovago in Nigeria. Jovago initially focussed on servicing customers in Nigeria with a vision to expand across Africa. However, things didn't go as Marek planned. Africa Internet Holdings (which would later rename and rebrand to Jumia), the group company under which Jovago and other Rocket Internet startups in Africa operated under, decided that it was best to consolidate all of its startups in Africa under the Jumia brand. Marek disagreed with this and it led to a fall-out with the executives at Rocket Internet and Africa Internet Holdings. However, that was the least of his troubles in doing business in Nigeria as he would later experience after having an Interpol Red Notice on his passport.

I, Tefo Mohapi, will be your host for this podcast show. Having previously founded iAfrikan.com and other technology and media businesses and having now worked in the Information Technology sector across Africa for now just under 20 years. I hope to bring you unique and interesting insights into some of the people that make our world tick. We will together explore the views of my guests regarding the state of the world currently, the impact of digital technology on culture and how the world works, and what they think needs to be done to make our world better, or at minimum, how we can all get along better and do better. I trust you will find the conversations insightful! Kgotso!