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Perfectly spotless? A startup launched the first commercial AI-powered humanoid home cleaning bot ($20k or R344k, with delivery in 2026) to do your chores. One snag, though: It’s not alone; a company rep will need to control it remotely every now and again. 😬

In This Open Letter

It’s hard getting stand-ins for medical pros, but doctors get sick just like us – so this local player brings the tools to find locums easy-peasy…

Some businesses can never have a sick day…

Ironically, this is the story for doctors’ rooms, pharmacies, hospitals and clinics.

In SA, the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) has 185’420 health practitioners actively registered with the body. If they each take 15 days of annual leave alone (not counting unplanned leave days), that's a couple of million days worth of medical care gaps across a country that’s already under pressure with a growing shortage of medical practitioners.

Doctors specifically clock in 60 hours per week to ensure patients get the care they need. This leaves them physically and emotionally exhausted, with as many as 80% having experienced burnout.

The current solve doesn’t scale

So what to do when a doctor, nurse or other medical practitioner is unable to make it to work?

Well, that’s where locums come in (taken from the Latin “to hold a place”, it means qualified pros who can stand in), and most practices have a shortlist of preferred locums they like to work with. 

But this system has flaws. Their usual contact could be unavailable. The gap could be very short-notice. And in some cases, it’s literally a matter of life and death for patients in a hospital, so not finding a stand-in doctor is non-negotiable. 

The local startup providing stand-ins

LocumBase is a platform that connects verified clinicians (nurses, doctors, pharmacists, optometrists) to practices, hospitals and clinics in real time, managing everything from matching and availability to bookings, payments and dispute-handling.

LocumBase handles the scramble, removes WhatsApp chaos and replaces it with a structured system in one of the most regulated professional environments in South Africa.

And loads more to come

The platform serves over 15’000 verified medical professionals, with over 700 practices actively using it. But the opportunity lies in the learning and the tech.

Locumbase founder, Zulé Vuuren announced on LinkedIn this week that LocumBase is spinning out its infrastructure into a “workforce-as-a-service” platform, FlexBase, targeting other shift-critical sectors like security, hospitality and retail.

What started as a way to keep clinics running might just end up powering the whole shift economy.

The need is there, and with almost a decade of experience building the platform, FlexBase might just be onto something. We’re watching this space…

Have your say…

Most data strategies start with ambition, new dashboards, new models and new promises of AI-driven insight.

But Sidekick starts earlier, at the point most teams overlook: Discovery.

Discovery is what happens when your systems finally show you what you already have. It’s when data stops being scattered across tools and starts to make sense

You can’t optimise, automate or predict until your information is visible, consistent and trusted.

Sidekick builds that foundation, a single, searchable index of truth inside your own environment.

Once your data is known, decisions stop being hopeful. They start being right.

See what your data’s been hiding.

🚆 State-Owned Mall. A state-run shopping centre has just opened at the Isipingo Train Station, adding a dash of retail therapy to the revamped train station, as part of PRASA's urban renewal efforts. Very interesting.

👨‍💻 Google SA's R49m AI Bet. Google SA is pouring R49 million into South African AI and cybersec upskilling, aiming to turbocharge local talent and secure cyberspace, and involving nonprofits and universities. Nice.

🚀 OpenAI’s $1 Trillion Valuation Quest. OpenAI is setting the stage for an IPO that could skyrocket its value to $1 trillion. With plans to raise billions and ambitions backed by major investors like Microsoft, Uncle Sam and Co. are doing pretty well for a “non-profit”.

💊 Pharmacy On A Roll. Dis-Chem's six-month profits increased by 10.4% to hit R659.77 million for the year, with their expansion of 17 new outlets across SA driving revenue up by 8.7%. Unsurprising considering when you go there for a multivit but walk out with 2 shopping bags…

🛒 Location, location. SA’s first true Walmart store will open in Clearwater Mall in Joburg’s West Rand, featuring a mix of locally sourced products and all-new international experiences, like appliances by Hollywood’s Drew Barrymore.

✅ The Stack. Founders need reliable tools, so our Founder’s Stack gives you real-time AI insights from Sidekick Lab, zero-monthly-fee bank accounts and business loans from Lula and more.

Yesterday, we showed you how OpenSeat’s platform for joining or hosting paid dinner parties, asking about the hardest part of meeting new people. And we have a tie…

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 📱 Everyone’s glued to their phones (27%)

🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨⬜️ 😬 Small talk fatigue (25%)

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🏠 No spaces to connect (9%)

🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🥴 The effort it takes (12%)

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 👹Talking to strangers feels like I’m being the weirdo (27%)

Your 2 cents…

Eish, we feel you, Charles. We appreciate you being here. 🤜🤛

☁️ Cloud Support Engineer @ Cloud on Demand

📊 Team Lead – Financial Analytics @ Dataloop

🐮 New Business Consultant + 29 more roles @ Flash Group

🧑‍💻 Software Engineering Roles @ Octoco

🦖 Head of Sales @ OfferZen

🌮 Full-Stack Developer @ The Awareness Company

🦋 Flutter Developer @ Sinov8

Hiring? Let us know here and we’ll feature it next week.

Speculative small-caps rallied as investors chased high-risk gains in volatile market conditions.

Data from Moneyweb (Fri 24 Oct 2025 → Thu 30 Oct 2025)

Gold slid as stronger dollar and easing geopolitical tension curbed safe-haven demand.

–2.96% (R 70 996.74 → R 68 895.59)

Data from Investing.com (Fri 24 Oct 2025 → Thu 30 Oct 2025)

Bitcoin fell as traders took profits and momentum cooled after the earlier ETF-driven rally.

–2.64% (R 1 916 521 → R 1 865 904)

Data from Investing.com (Fri 24 Oct 2025 → Thu 30 Oct 2025)

Ethereum tracked Bitcoin lower amid profit-taking and reduced risk appetite across crypto markets.

–3.17% (R 67 934.5 → R 65 785.7)

Data from Investing.com (Fri 24 Oct 2025 → Thu 30 Oct 2025)

🎓 Tool to Try: Coursebox AI turns your files and scripts into personalised training videos.

🏨 That’s Interesting: The hotel scenes in Dumb and Dumber were filmed at The Stanley Hotel, the place that inspired Stephen King’s The Shining.

🎋 Next Level: This Kung-fu bamboo balancing act from China will bend your brain.

💬 Hack: A cool guide to negotiation strategies, because win-win wins every time.

⚙️ Wow Site: Animagraffs explains how everything works — from cars and planes to speakers and sewing machines.

Most successful founders will agree, to make it big, you need some luck.

But how does one increase one's chances of success when luck plays such a big role? Increase your surface area of luck!

✅ Meet more people

✅ Get faster feedback on your product builds

✅ Make faster progress when you are stuck with expert help.

That’s what The Founder Collab, SA’s premium community for startup founders, does. Weekly opportunities to meet other founders, get feedback, get unstuck and a network unlike any in SA.

It’s a surefire way to increase your surface area of luck..

Vote in the poll, leave a quick comment, or hit reply — we read every single one.