She Refused to Normalise Blackouts. So She Built a Home That Doesn't Need the Grid.
South Africa endured a record 332 days of load‑shedding in 2023, costing the economy roughly R2.8 trillion (about $150 billion). Similar grid failures have hit Texas, Spain and large parts of the U.S., highlighting systemic reliability risks. In response, entrepreneur Ansie van Dyk founded Vida Nova, which designs factory‑built, modular homes that operate completely off‑grid with solar panels, battery storage, rain‑water harvesting and an AI platform called SAINT. The company won a Global Recognition Award in 2026 and is piloting homes on family land in South Africa before expanding to Canada.
Microsoft Paused Carbon Removal Purchases. Here's What Founders and Investors Should Do Now.
Microsoft announced a pause on all new carbon‑removal purchases, a market segment where it accounts for roughly 80% of contracted volume. Existing contracts remain honored, but the halt exposes startups that depend on Microsoft as their primary off‑taker. The pause...