August, 2023 - CDP Institute

Dates : August 2023

Google Cloud has a blizzard of announcements from its Google Cloud Next ’23 event. Much focus was on generative AI, including optimized infrastructure, model building tools, and end-user assistants such as writing helpers. They’re also offering access to third-party large language models including Meta’s Llama2, Antropic’s Claude 2, and Technology Innovative Institute’s Falcon LLM.

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Also at Google Cloud Next, AI-based content creation tool Typeface announced it has collaborated with GrowthLoop (originally data extraction tool Flywheel) to create a unified marketing solution that automatically builds audience segments, generates custom content, and distributes the results across multiple channels. It’s a good example of how AI and cloud platforms enable companies outside of the traditional marketing technology space to quickly develop sophisticated products.

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Hospitality marketing vendor (and CDP) Cendyn has purchased WIHP, a specialist in “metasearch”, which is the hospitality industry term for connecting hotels with price comparison websites. We don’t see too many acquisitions by CDP vendors, but, then again, CDP is just one of many features offered by Cendyn.

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Visa is working with local banks and fintech companies in Kenya to launch contactless payments. Customers will be able to transact without a physical wallet or a card. Customers can use the Thales-powered service by tapping their Near-field communication (NFC) enabled smartphones at any contactless payment terminal to make in-store purchases using their banking app.

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South African personal finance companion FinMeUp is bridging the gap between financial education and executions through its community-based platform of almost 100,000 users. Founded in 2020, FinMeUp offers a comprehensive range of solutions including an education platform, financial advisory, investments, insurance, and credit solutions.

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Nigeria’s SeerBit, a pan-African payment solutions provider, has launched Alpha, a white-label product that makes it easier for financial institutions, travel and hospitality companies, online marketplaces and other businesses to launch their own digital financial technology solutions.

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CtrlS Datacenters Ltd, the world’s fastest growing Rated-4 datacenter company, is improving the performance and security of the Internet’s Domain Name System (DNS) in India. Working with the US-based Packet Clearing House (PCH), CtrlS has launched a PCH DNS Services Cluster at its Hyderabad 1 datacenter, which will improve network operators’ access to critical DNS services, handling up to 100,000 DNS queries per second.

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Oracle has selected regional data center provider Center3 to host its upcoming Riyadh cloud region and help expand its Jeddah region in Saudi Arabia. Rather than build its own data centers, Oracle leases its data centers from providers. Plans for the Riyadh cloud region were first announced in February, while Oracle’s Jeddah region opened in 2020.

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Newgen Software, a global provider of low-code digital transformation platforms, announced that it has recently established a new office in Riyadh (KSA) to expand its presence in the Middle East. This new regional office is an addition to the company’s existing Dubai (UAE) subsidiary.

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Following the pilot of Virgin Australia’s program that began in May, guests in two thirds of the country now will be able to track status of their checked baggage using Virgin Australia’s app. This is a part of a more than $400M (USD $255,640,000) investment in digital innovation, technology and customer experience and provides the airline’s passengers the ability to self-manage their bookings end-to-end in cases of travel disruption.

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A recent survey from tech research firm, Telsyte, found as of June that a fifth of Australia’s population, or 5.5 million people have used generative AI systems, which dwarfs the 2.5 million that had adopted Neflix when it launched. OpenAI ChatGPT was the most popular AI app, used by 71%, with Snapchat’s My AI second, but with only 15% users.

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iPrice Group (iPrice), the Malaysia-based ecommerce technology platform, has launched its platform in Australia. The launch of iPrice.au marks the first significant expansion beyond Southeast Asia and comes four months after Indonesian tech unicorn Bukalapak acquired iPrice.

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