Smartphone brains in a Nokia-style body: Could this bring 1 bn people online? That’s what San Diego-based KaiOS Technologies is banking on, partnering with phone makers and operators to roll out affordable feature phones with smartphone power across Africa, Shira Ovide writes for Bloomberg. Internet penetration in Africa is staggeringly low at under 25%, with the over 800 mn people currently offline representing a huge untapped market. But both the high cost of smartphones and poor infrastructure (such as slow internet speed and lack of reliable electricity) remain significant barriers to access.

KaiOS is pares everything right down to the essentials: A KaiOS phone has relatively low memory (about one-quarter that of the cheapest Android smartphone) its processor costs around USD 3 (unlike the USD 50 of high-end smartphones), and instead of an expensive, battery-consuming touchscreen, it has an inexpensive plastic keypad. But it packs a punch, with functionalities that include 3G, 4G, WiFi and Bluetooth technology, Google Assistant voice navigation, its own app store (KaiStore) and pre-installed apps and services such as Facebook and YouTube. And there’s no need to worry about daily recharging, as it can apparently run for five days on a single charge.

KaiOS supporters are poised for phone sales to skyrocket: The company has stated that over 80 mn phones have been shipped to more than 100 countries so far. It attracted an investment of USD 22 mn from Google last year, with the tech giant also contributing to a fresh USD 50 mn funding round announced on May 22.

Egypt will be among the first countries to benefit: Egypt’s SICO is one of six partner companies in Africa launching phones that will run the KaiOS operating system, starting 2Q2019. At 48.7%, internet penetration in Egypt is relatively low compared to the rest of the region (it is a reported 68% in Tunisia, 80% in Jordan and 91% Lebanon), so clearly SICO has a healthy market here. The company has also announced it is targeting expansion in new African markets. SICO, which produces the first Egyptian-made mobile phone and is aiming to manufacture 1.2 mn phones this year, had previously announced it was planning to enter into joint-manufacturing agreements with foreign companies, without specifying what the agreements were.