Excitement as new Toyota Cup kicks off

African football giants are set to collide this month as the Toyota Cup – a brand-new annual cup competition - launches in partnership with Kaizer Chiefs Football Club and Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM).

A ground-breaking pre-season Cup competition set to be hosted and contested by Kaizer Chiefs FC, the Toyota Cup will see South Africa’s largest football brand, going head-to-head against some of the best football clubs on the continent. The Toyota Cup is set to take place during the off-season for the next three years as an innovative extension to the Glamour Boys’ current sponsorship with the automaker.

For its inaugural edition, set to be played at the Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein on Sunday, 28 July at 15:00, the Amakhosi will face Tanzania’s most successful football team, Young Africans Sporting Club.

One lucky fan will leave the Toyota stadium with a brand-new Toyota Corolla Cross XI CVT worth over R400 000. Entry to the competition requires purchasing a Toyota Cup match ticket at any TicketPro outlet.

Participants must then send an SMS with their name, surname, ID number, unique Toyota Cup match ticket number, and their province of residence to 48952. It is a premium-rated SMS charged at R1.50 per entry, and free SMS options do not apply.

Local fashion designers use Volvo materials

In a unique collaboration, two innovative South African designers used artificial intelligence (AI) to help create distinctive fashion items using sustainable upholstery sourced from the fully electric Volvo EX30.

Under the slogan “Designed with AI, Crafted by Humans”, fashion designers Fikile Sokhulu and Nao Serati Mofammere – both known for their thought-provoking designs and well-considered use of materials – were briefed to create an EX30-inspired Autumn/Winter 2024 ready-to-wear garment. They were furthermore tasked with incorporating both AI technology and sustainable design practices into their respective creative processes.

“With sustainability front of mind, the interior of the new Volvo EX30 includes several renewable and recycled materials. This forward-thinking fully electric car is also fitted with many advanced driver-assistance and safety features, which we see as forerunners to AI technologies that could be used in future models,” said Marishka Govender, Volvo Car SA Chief Financial Officer.

Through this partnership with two highly innovative designers, Volvo has successfully demonstrated the versatility and creative potential of sustainable materials as well as the carefully considered integration of AI technology. Both of the resulting outfits will be displayed at various Volvo dealerships around South Africa.

Omoda showcased its wares at Durban July

Omoda South Africa showcased its wares as the official vehicle partner of the prestigious Hollywoodbets Durban July in KwaZulu-Natal at the weekend, captivating the event’s glamourous attendees with both its futuristically designed stands and its distinctively styled vehicles.

Race 2 of South Africa’s premier horseracing event – which dates all the way back to 1897 and is held annually on the first Saturday of July at Greyville Racecourse in Durban – was named in honour of the fast-growing automotive brand. Won by DIANI just after midday, the 1400-metre race was officially dubbed the “OMODA MR 96 Handicap”.

“As is clearly evident from OMODA’s avant-garde design philosophy – which integrates elements of both minimalism and futurism – fashion and style are key pillars of our brand. That made OMODA the ideal official vehicle partner for the Hollywoodbets Durban July, allowing us to speak directly to our ever-growing audience,” says Shannon Gahagan, National Brand and Marketing Manager OMODA & JAECOO.

At the event, OMODA displayed both the strikingly styled C5 – which is now also available in a competitively priced Style specification, named in honour of the sense of fresh fashion inherent to the OMODA O-CLUB, the brand’s exclusive fan community – and the new C9 flagship. Set to hit the market in South Africa soon, the latter model features a distinctly coupé-like shape and, like the popular C5, is filled to the brim with high-end technology.

OK Peugeot, ChatGPT launched in new models in Europe

PEUGEOT is a major player in innovation and a pioneer in the development of artificial intelligence for drivers and passengers alike. After trialling its ChatGPT functionality during a successful pilot phase conducted earlier this year, which saw over 10 000 customers involved, PEUGEOT is now making generative artificial intelligence standard on all of its models.

PEUGEOT is introducing ChatGPT in all its latest generation models equipped with voice command. ChatGPT artificial intelligence is integrated into all eligible PEUGEOT models and will be deployed in 17 markets in 12 different languages, across Europe.

Now integrated into the PEUGEOT i-Cockpit®, ChatGPT generative artificial intelligence, developed by OpenAI, is a technology that has learned from a massive amount of data and as a result is able to return it to its users in a sophisticated, precise and synthetic way.

Interaction with ChatGPT is seamless via the embedded voice assistant of the PEUGEOT i-Cockpit®. Just say "OK PEUGEOT" and ask your question for ChatGPT to act...

ChatGPT is capable of answering a wide array of complex questions and has the ability to follow a conversation. For example, if you arrive in a city, you can ask it to tell you which monuments to visit, then tell you the history of these places, and finally, if you wish, guide you to one of them using the car's navigation system.

ChatGPT can, however, do much more than just answering questions. Are your children getting bored on a long trip? Ask ChatGPT to organise a quiz for them on a topic they are passionate about... In seconds, the artificial intelligence will offer you hours of entertainment for those longer journeys.