EP 37 | She Built an Earring That Fights Back: Hidden Camera + SOS

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When safety tech looks like jewellery, victims gain time, evidence - and options.

In this episode of The Angle, Bohlale Mphahlele breaks down the story behind her discreet, safety wearable: an earring with a hidden trigger and nano-camera that captures the perpetrator’s face, records audio, and sends GPS + evidence to trusted contacts in seconds. We go deep on South Africa’s GBV reality and why evidence at the moment of harm can change outcomes - from getting help faster to supporting prosecutions.

On the path to scale, she shares the pilot roadmap (schools, campuses, nightlife venues), partnerships with campus security/SAPS-linked victim support, manufacturing choices, and the business model mix. For founders, there’s practical advice on user testing trauma-aware products, funding (grants vs equity), and how to frame impact with hard metrics.

If you care about safety tech, women’s health, and product design for real constraints, this conversation is essential.

Chapters & Timestamps:

00:00 – Cold open: why evidence in the moment matters
00:48 – Origin story: from problem statement to a discreet safety wearable
02:00 – How the earring works (panic trigger, nano-camera, GPS, auto-share)
04:15 – Prototyping trade-offs: battery, sensors, comfort, and stealth
06:10 – Data & privacy by design: encryption, consent, and chain of custody
08:05 – Low-connectivity playbook: offline buffers, retries, and SMS fallbacks
10:00 – Trials & user testing: trauma-aware research and false-positive reduction
12:20 – Partners & policy: campuses, SAPS-linked support, legal admissibility
14:10 – Manufacturing & cost curve: from small batch to scalable production
16:05 – Business model: hardware pricing, evidence-vault subscription, sponsorships
18:00 – Scaling across Africa: context differences, distribution, local support
19:10 – Founder playbook: funding, metrics that matter, and what’s next

#TheAnglePodcast #BohlaleMphahlele #SafetyTech #WomensSafety #GBV #Wearables #ResponsibleAI #DataPrivacy #AfricaInnovation #JohannesburgTech

Produced and published by Submedia.co.za
11 Dec 2025 English South Africa Technology · Business

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