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Meta Veteran Soumith Chintala Joins Mira Murati’s New Startup

Meta Veteran Soumith Chintala Joins Mira Murati’s New Startup

November 21, 2025 7:08 am

Soumith Chintala, influential engineer in modern artificial intelligence, has joined Thinking Machines Lab, the fast-rising startup by former OpenAI chief Mira Murati.

Chintala revealed the move in a brief message on X on Tuesday November 18, 2025, praising the team at the company and updating his online profiles to reflect his new role. It marks his first career step since leaving Meta earlier in November, ending an 11-year tenure that included co-creating PyTorch, the widely adopted open-source AI framework.

His arrival is a major win for Thinking Machines Lab, which Murati launched in February 2025, with a focus on developing …

UK Prime Minister Arrives South Africa For G20 Summit

UK Prime Minister Arrives South Africa For G20 Summit

November 21, 2025 2:57 am

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer arrived in Johannesburg on Friday for the start of the G20 summit, a global meeting of major economies that will proceed without the United States after President Donald Trump chose not to attend.

Starmer’s visit is part of a broader effort to position the UK as an active player in trade and investment across Africa. The prime minister plans to highlight opportunities for British firms at a time when Downing Street views the continent as a key source of future economic growth.

Ahead of the summit, Starmer toured a Johannesburg rail depot where trains …

US Peace Plan For Ukraine Draws Scrutiny As Russia Advances

US Peace Plan For Ukraine Draws Scrutiny As Russia Advances

November 21, 2025 2:37 am

Russia pushed forward on several parts of the front this week while a proposed United States peace plan for Ukraine triggered debate in Kyiv, Moscow and Western capitals. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Washington had presented him with a draft outlining possible terms to end the conflict. He said Ukraine was prepared for what he called honest work with the US on the document.

The plan would involve Ukraine giving up remaining pockets of territory it controls in the Donbas region, accepting a smaller military and agreeing not to pursue membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. According to …

Singapore Sanctions Israeli Settlers Over West Bank Violence

Singapore Sanctions Israeli Settlers Over West Bank Violence

November 21, 2025 2:16 am

Singapore announced on Friday that it will freeze financial dealings with four Israeli settlers and block their entry into the country, saying the men carried out severe acts of violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

The foreign affairs ministry said the actions of Meir Mordechai Ettinger, Elisha Yered, Ben-Zion Gopstein and Baruch Marzel were unlawful and harmed efforts to achieve a two-state solution. All four have previously been sanctioned by the European Union.

In its statement, the ministry said Singapore “opposes any unilateral attempts to change facts on the ground through acts which are illegal under international law,” …

Trump Lifts Brazil Tariffs In Major Reversal On Food Imports

Trump Lifts Brazil Tariffs In Major Reversal On Food Imports

November 21, 2025 1:51 am

U.S. President Donald Trump scrapped his 40 percent tariffs on Brazilian food imports on Thursday, reversing a policy that had sharply increased the price of beef, coffee, cocoa, and fruit in American markets since July.

The decision marks a significant retreat from the administration’s earlier stance, which imposed the duties to pressure Brazil over the prosecution of former president Jair Bolsonaro, a close Trump ally. The reversal suggests the White House is moving to ease costs for U.S. consumers ahead of the holiday season.

The order, published by the White House, applies to Brazilian shipments arriving on or after November …

Japan To Restart Biggest Nuclear Plant In The World

Japan To Restart Biggest Nuclear Plant In The World

November 21, 2025 1:33 am

Japan will learn on Friday whether Niigata Governor Hideyo Hanazumi will approve the partial restart of the Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear plant, a decision that could shape the country’s energy policy for years. His announcement is expected at four in the afternoon local time.

The outcome carries major weight because Kashiwazaki Kariwa is the largest nuclear power station on earth. Approval would clear the final hurdle for operator Tokyo Electric Power Company, better known as TEPCO, to move ahead with plans to bring two of the plant’s biggest reactors back online.

The restart would mark TEPCO’s first since the 2011 earthquake …

Elon Musk Hails Cybertruck As “Alien Tech” For Speed, Strength

Elon Musk Hails Cybertruck As “Alien Tech” For Speed, Strength

November 20, 2025 1:29 pm

Tesla CEO Elon Musk describes the Cybertruck as “alien technology,” boasting bulletproof design, Porsche-level speed, and unmatched towing power.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has described the company’s Cybertruck as “alien technology,” claiming the vehicle defies conventional limits in size, speed, and strength.

The Cybertruck’s sharply angular design and stainless steel exoskeleton have drawn both awe and skepticism since its unveiling. Its bold, industrial look diverges sharply from traditional trucks, reflecting Musk’s focus on futuristic design over conventional styling.

On The Joe Rogan Experience, Musk explained the vehicle’s capabilities, emphasizing both performance and resilience. “I thought it’d be cool to have …

Al Jazeera/ G20 Summit South Africa: Security Tightened Ahead Of Protests

G20 Summit South Africa: Security Tightened Ahead Of Protests

November 20, 2025 7:21 am

South African police and army units staged a high-profile parade in Johannesburg on Wednesday, showcasing helicopters and motorcycle units in preparation for expected protests surrounding the Group of 20 (G20) leaders’ summit this weekend.

Authorities have reinforced security with 3,500 additional police officers and placed the army on standby under the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure, which coordinates the country’s police, military, and intelligence agencies for major events.

Deputy National Commissioner for Policing Lieutenant General Tebello Mosikili said demonstrations are anticipated not only in Johannesburg but also in other major South African cities. “We will allow that right [to …

Andy Burnham Leadership Bid Questions Continue To Grow

Andy Burnham Leadership Bid Questions Continue To Grow

November 20, 2025 7:07 am

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham again refused to rule out a future Labour leadership bid on Thursday as questions intensified over whether he plans to return to Parliament. The discussion reignited after a Labour MP said he would be willing to vacate his seat to give Burnham a route back to Westminster.

Burnham has been a focal point of internal party speculation since Labour’s autumn conference. Under Labour rules, any challenger to the sitting leader must be a Member of Parliament and secure the support of at least eighty MPs. Burnham, who left Westminster in 2017 to run for mayor, …

David Carrick Life Sentence Extended After New Convictions

David Carrick Life Sentence Extended After New Convictions

November 20, 2025 6:51 am

Former Metropolitan Police officer David Carrick received another life sentence on Wednesday after a jury found him guilty of abusing a twelve year old girl in the late nineteen eighties and raping a former partner decades later.

Carrick who is fifty had already been serving thirty six life sentences with a minimum term of thirty two years for seventy one offences of sexual violence committed across seventeen years. The new sentence adds to a criminal record that prosecutors describe as one of the most severe ever brought against a British police officer.

Carrick was convicted of five counts of indecent …

REUTERS/Ukraine Peace Talks Intensify As Pentagon Team Visits Kyiv

Ukraine Peace Talks Intensify As Pentagon Team Visits Kyiv

November 20, 2025 6:34 am

A senior Pentagon delegation arrived in Ukraine late Wednesday to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky and discuss potential steps toward ending the war with Russia, according to US military officials. The visit comes as unconfirmed reports circulate of a new peace framework drafted by envoys for Washington and Moscow that would require major concessions from Kyiv.

The group, led by US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, is holding meetings in Kyiv on Thursday. It is the highest-ranking military team to visit Ukraine since President Donald Trump took office in January.

Speculation about a draft US-Russia peace plan intensified on Wednesday after Axios, …

Gaza Ceasefire Violations Escalate As Israeli Strikes Kill Four

Gaza Ceasefire Violations Escalate As Israeli Strikes Kill Four

November 20, 2025 6:19 am

Israeli airstrikes killed four people and wounded 18 others in the southern Gaza Strip on Thursday, local health authorities said, as Israel and Hamas blamed each other for violations of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire that has lasted nearly six weeks.

The latest attacks struck two towns east of Khan Younis. Medics reported that one strike on a home in Bani Suhaila killed three people, including a baby, and injured 15 others. A second strike in nearby Abassan killed a man and wounded three. Israel’s military confirmed carrying out the strikes but said it had no information on casualties.

The exchange of …

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𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐍𝐞𝐰𝐬, 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐘𝐨𝐫𝐤, is a nonpartisan online news portal founded on the truth to provide you with weekly, insightful articles written with precision and current updates on current events from Africa in particular and the rest of the world in general. All of our reports undergo extensive fact-checking to ensure their veracity, and we adhere strictly to the facts, no matter whose ox is gored.

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