Young kasi entrepreneur designs smartphone
The smartphones and tablets that he has designed work perfectly, just like the other well-known brands. His phone has features such as internet connection, WhatsApp, Facebook and many others. He is currently looking for a market.
BUSHBUCKRIDGE – A young entrepreneur from the dusty and rural streets of this part of town has designed and invented his own range of smartphones and tablets. Mr Thulani Excellent Khoza (28) stands resolute, buoyant and ready to take on the world with his ingenious creations.
He has designed the smart range through his company, Thulestelecoms. He exclusively told Mpumalanga News that he also developed the software used on the form from scratch. “The technology on the smartphones and tablets, I believe, is truly about to change the face of technical advancements. The software part of it is indeed uniquely packaged, unseen in our industry,” he said.
The smartphones and tablets that he has designed work perfectly, just like the other well-known brands. His phone has features such as internet connection, WhatsApp, Facebook and many others. He is currently looking for a market.
He said his biggest dream is to establish a factory in the province where his range of smart phones and tablets would be manufactured. “This alone would in turn create much-needed employment opportunities for our young people in the province. We are looking at employing over 600 full-time workers in the factory and people with skills in the technology environment will be employed as well,” he went on.
Even though Khoza has established himself as a powerful entrepreneur, his story among many others, is one retrieved with great wounds.
“The first chapter of my life emerged as a young boy abandoned by his parents. Growing up was hard. It felt as though I was born and made for poverty, expected to live and fend on an empty stomach to and from school. I was sexually abused by relatives and involved in two accidents that sidetracked my life for 6 months in hospital. I had no place to call home. No sense of security that every child needs,” he recalled.
Thankfully this is not all his story will be, much has happened since then.
“I enrolled at Wits for a BSC in computer science with a scholarship, while living at a church. I furthered my studies in the UK to pursue an honours in software engineering. I then completed a master’s degree in business administration in the US. In addition, I returned to Wits to complete a master’s degree in computer science. In my years at varsity, I survived on fixing student laptops and computers.
“That’s where I found my true love of technology. Little did I know that such a love would result in a booming telecommunications company, Thulestelecoms,” said Khoza.
Khoza can be contacted on 073-962-4860 or email him at thulani@thulestelecoms.co.za.
