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Ashwini Vaishnaw, Anil Kapoor among Times 100 most influential people in AI

Ashwini Vaishnaw, Anil Kapoor among Times 100 most influential people in AI

by | Sep 5, 2024 | Technology


Ashwini Vaishnaw, Anil Kapoor (Photos: Wikimedia Commons)

3 min read Last Updated : Sep 05 2024 | 11:12 PM IST


Union minister of electronics and information technology Ashwini Vaishnaw and actor Anil Kapoor are among Indians who have been honoured in Time magazine’s prestigious list of the 100 “Most Influential People in AI 2024”. Released on Thursday, the list highlights the most impactful figures in the field of artificial intelligence (AI).


Vaishnaw’s leadership in semiconductor manufacturing


“Under Vaishnaw’s leadership, the country hopes to become one of the top five nations for semiconductor manufacturing—a key component for modern AI systems—within the next five years. Construction has begun on several factories. Yet, Vaishnaw faces significant challenges in realising these ambitions. India’s tech sector struggles with low private R&D investment and a lack of advanced manufacturing ecosystems. Its educational system is also catching up to produce the specialised workforce needed for cutting-edge AI and semiconductor development,” the magazine stated about Vaishnaw.

 


According to Time, India’s journey to becoming a leader in the AI sector could face additional challenges due to high import tariffs on electronic components, global competition for talent and resources, and the complexities involved in rapidly upgrading infrastructure, especially the extensive power and water supply systems required for semiconductor manufacturing.


Anil Kapoor recognised for legal battle against AI misuse


Kapoor has been included in Time’s AI list a year after achieving a significant legal victory in September 2023, when the Delhi High Court issued an interim order preventing 16 entities from misusing his name, voice, image, or other personal traits for commercial purposes without his consent. The actor took legal action in response to the widespread circulation of altered videos and emojis featuring his image and his iconic phrase “jhakaas,” popularised by his 1985 film Yudh.


“Bollywood is one of the world’s largest film industries, rolling out more than 1,500 movies every year. But Kapoor’s ruling comes at a time when the industry is grappling with how to regulate the misuse of AI. Last year, uncanny deepfake videos of popular female Indian actors including Alia Bhatt and Rashmika Mandanna went viral, while AI-generated videos of Indian actors Aamir Khan and Ranveer Singh alarmed the country during this year’s Indian election, where they appeared to criticise Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” said the magazine.


Nandan Nilekani’s role in digital public infrastructure highlighted


Co-founder of Infosys and co-founder & chairman of EkStep, Nandan Nilekani, has also made it to the list. “Nilekani, the billionaire co-founder of Infosys, has spent fifteen years in and out of government developing digital public infrastructure for the world’s most populous country, earning him nicknames like ‘India’s Bill Gates’,” wrote Time about the entrepreneur.


“Nilekani led India’s Aadhaar program, the world’s largest biometric identity card program. He promoted the program as a salve to welfare fraud, alongside a means to help improve tax collection, ease bank customer verification, among other benefits,” the magazine added.


Other Indians in the list


The list also includes Anant Vijay Singh, Product Lead at Proton; Rohit Prasad, Senior Vice President and Head Scientist of Artificial General Intelligence at Amazon; Shiv Rao, Co-founder and CEO of Abridge; and Aravind Srinivas, CEO of Perplexity.


Global AI influencers: From Hollywood to Silicon Valley


The list also features globally renowned names such as Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson, YouTuber Marques Brownlee, artist Lawrence Lek, comedian and AI creator King Willonius, and tech industry leaders like Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai, and Satya Nadella.

First Published: Sep 05 2024 | 11:11 PM IST



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Tech wrap Sep 05: Apple Watch, Snapdragon X Plus, Amazfit GTR 4 New, more

Tech wrap Sep 05: Apple Watch, Snapdragon X Plus, Amazfit GTR 4 New, more

by | Sep 5, 2024 | Technology


4 min read Last Updated : Sep 05 2024 | 8:03 PM IST


Apple is set to introduce significant upgrades to its smartwatch lineup with the upcoming Apple Watch Series 10, Watch Ultra 3, and potentially a new Apple Watch SE model. Although the iPhone 16 series is anticipated to be the highlight of the company’s “It’s Glowtime” event on September 9, notable enhancements across all Apple Watch models are also expected.


American chip manufacturer Qualcomm has introduced the Snapdragon X Plus 8-core, a new addition to its range of AI PC processors. This latest chip features eight CPU cores, making it the smallest in the Snapdragon X-series, which also includes the Snapdragon X Elite (12-core) and Snapdragon X Plus (10-core).

 


China-based health and fitness wearable manufacturer Amazfit has introduced the Amazfit GTR 4 New in India. As an update to the GTR series, this smartwatch boasts a metallic middle frame, a stainless steel navigation crown, and a glass ceramic back panel. Additionally, the company has announced that the smartwatch’s display is safeguarded by an anti-fingerprint coating.


Taiwanese consumer tech company ASUS has introduced new laptops featuring the recently released Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus 8-Core processor. The latest ASUS Vivobook S15 and ProArt PZ13 models provide Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC experience, incorporating an exclusive AI feature that leverages the dedicated neural processing unit (NPU) on the new Qualcomm Arm chip.


Taiwanese electronics company Acer has ventured into the handheld gaming console market with the introduction of the Nitro Blaze 7. This new device, powered by AMD Ryzen 8040 Series processors, comes with 16GB LPDDR5x RAM and offers up to 2TB of storage. Operating on Windows 11, the Nitro Blaze 7 includes a specialized Acer Game Space app that provides a unified interface for accessing games across multiple platforms.


Meta-owned WhatsApp is testing new features to improve the visibility and accessibility of recent status updates. According to WhatsApp update tracker WABetainfo, a new capability in the WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.24.19.4, available on the Google Play Store, lets users view status updates directly from the viewer list.


Microsoft has announced that it will be hosting a special “Microsoft 365 Copilot: Wave 2” event on September 16, focussing on the “next phase of Copilot innovation.” The event will kick-off at 8AM PT ( 8:30 PM IST) and will be livestreamed on Linkedin.


Google has reportedly confirmed that Google Drive will soon gain native support for ARM chips. Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon announced at the company’s IFA event that Google will be launching an Arm64 version of Google Drive on Windows later this year, according to the technology news website The Verge. He added that NordVPN and ExpressVPN have arrived on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon laptops. 


According to recent research by data firm Kantar, over 25% of global advertisers are considering cutting back their spending on Elon Musk’s social media platform, X (formerly Twitter). This shift is driven by increasing concerns about content quality and trustworthiness of the information shared on the platform.


India and Singapore have committed to enhancing their collaboration in the semiconductor and digital technology sectors. Their goal is to play a larger role in the global chip supply chain, which is being reshaped by ongoing tensions between the US and China.


YouTube has announced it will cease recommending videos to teenagers that glorify particular fitness levels, body weights, or physical features. This decision follows expert concerns about the potential harm from repeated exposure to such content, according to The Guardian.


On Thursday, social media giant Meta announced a two-year partnership with the Telangana government to advance e-governance and citizen services through artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.


Ganesh Chaturthi is a major Hindu festival celebrated extensively across India, particularly in the southern regions such as Maharashtra. The festival honors the birth of Lord Ganesh, which is believed to have occurred at midday, hence the tradition of performing Ganesha Puja during this time. This year’s ten-day celebration will commence on September 7, 2024.

First Published: Sep 05 2024 | 8:03 PM IST



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Revenue per employee increases for IT services, masks underlying challenges

Revenue per employee increases for IT services, masks underlying challenges

by | Sep 5, 2024 | Technology


Revenue per employee or RPH is an important parameter in the industry as it is considered to be a proxy for pricing trends.

2 min read Last Updated : Sep 05 2024 | 5:58 PM IST


The Indian IT sector has reported a 6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) increase in revenue per head (RPH) in the first quarter of 2025 (1Q25), said a report by HSBC Securities and Capital Markets.


While this may seem like a positive trend, a closer examination reveals that the increase in RPH is largely driven by factors such as higher utilisation, pass-through revenues, and sub-contracting ratios, rather than underlying pricing trends.


The report points out that Infosys led the large-tier companies with a 9 per cent increase in RPH, while mid-tier companies like Persistent Systems (PSYS), KPIT, and Mphasis (MPHL) reported strong RPH growth of 14 per cent, 8-9 per cent, and 8-9 per cent, respectively.


“However, adjusted for utilisation, the RPH increase is significantly lower, at around 2-3 per cent for Infosys and nearly flat for the sector as a whole. The increase in RPH is largely driven by internal efficiency measures, multi-year mega deal wins, and onsite-heavy projects with pass-through revenues,” stated Yogesh Aggarwal and Prateek Maheshwari of HSBC in their report.


Revenue per employee or RPH is an important parameter in the industry as it is considered to be a proxy for pricing trends.


The report also added that the RPH increase has come at the cost of margins. For instance, Persistent Systems’ RPH has gone up due to the ramp-up in large deal wins, but it is also margin dilutive. For Q1 FY25, the company’s Ebit margins were at 14 per cent, down from 14.5 per cent in the preceding quarter.


Going ahead, the report says that the companies will need to focus on pushing pricing as all the operating metrics are at or near peak.


With operating metrics at or near peak and demand gradually improving, margin pressure is expected to intensify across companies.


“We expect margin pressure to get intense across the companies; with this backdrop, we expect companies to push harder for COLA increases (cost of living adjustment). We expect this should lead to better billing rates, at least for onsite business. Increase in GenAI penetration in the custom application development business should be margin-accretive as well, though that would probably be a more medium-term trend,” said the report.

First Published: Sep 05 2024 | 5:51 PM IST



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Google limits on Android Auto access may breach EU rules: Court adviser

Google limits on Android Auto access may breach EU rules: Court adviser

by | Sep 5, 2024 | Technology


Google: Representative Image

2 min read Last Updated : Sep 05 2024 | 5:43 PM IST


Google’s refusal to allow an e-mobility app developed by Enel access to its Android Auto platform may breach competition rules, an adviser to Europe’s top court said, siding with Italy’s antitrust authority.

 


The Italian antitrust regulator fined Alphabet unit Google 102 million euros ($113.2 million) in 2021 for blocking Enel’s JuicePass on Android Auto, software allowing drivers to navigate with maps on their car dashboards and send messages while behind the wheel.

 


“Google’s refusal to provide third-party access to Android Auto platform may be in breach of competition rules,” Court Advocate General Laila Medina said.

 


Medina said an undertaking abuses its dominant position if its conduct excludes, obstructs or delays access by an app developed by a third-party operator to the platform, provided that that conduct can produce anti-competitive effects to the detriment of consumers and is not objectively justified.

 


Google, which had cited security concerns and the absence of a specific template for refusing to make JuicePass compatible with Android Auto and appealed to the Italian Council of State, said it has since taken action to resolve the issue.

 


“We note the opinion of the Advocate General and await the final decision of the Court. Since this case started, we have worked to add the template Enel asked for, and many similar apps are already available globally on Android Auto,” a Google spokesperson said.

 


CJEU judges, who will rule in the coming months, usually follow the majority of such non-binding opinions. The case is C-233/23 Alphabet and Others.

 

First Published: Sep 05 2024 | 5:43 PM IST



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US, Britain, EU to sign first legally binding international AI treaty

US, Britain, EU to sign first legally binding international AI treaty

by | Sep 5, 2024 | Technology


The AI Convention mainly focuses on the protection of human rights of people affected by AI systems. | Image: Wikimedia commons

3 min read Last Updated : Sep 05 2024 | 4:56 PM IST


The first legally binding international AI treaty will be open for signing on Thursday by the countries that negotiated it, including European Union members, the United States and Britain, the Council of Europe human rights organisation said.

 


The AI Convention, which has been in the works for years and was adopted in May after discussions between 57 countries, addresses the risks AI may pose, while promoting responsible innovation.

 


“This Convention is a major step to ensuring that these new technologies can be harnessed without eroding our oldest values, like human rights and the rule of law,” Britain’s justice minister, Shabana Mahmood, said in a statement.

 


The AI Convention mainly focuses on the protection of human rights of people affected by AI systems and is separate from the EU AI Act, which entered into force last month.

 


The EU’s AI Act entails comprehensive regulations on the development, deployment, and use of AI systems within the EU internal market.

 


The Council of Europe, founded in 1949, is an international organization distinct from the EU with a mandate to safeguard human rights; 47 countries are members, including all the 27 EU member states.

 


An ad hoc committee in 2019 started examining the feasibility of an AI framework convention and a Committee on Artificial Intelligence was formed in 2022 which drafted and negotiated the text.

 


The signatories can choose to adopt or maintain legislative, administrative or other measures to give effect to the provisions.


Francesca Fanucci, a legal expert at ECNL (European Center for Not-for-Profit Law Stichting) who contributed to the treaty’s drafting process alongside other civil society groups, told Reuters the agreement had been “watered down” into a broad set of principles.

 


“The formulation of principles and obligations in this convention is so overbroad and fraught with caveats that it raises serious questions about their legal certainty and effective enforceability,” she said.

 


Fanucci highlighted exemptions on AI systems used for national security purposes, and limited scrutiny of private companies versus the public sector, as flaws. “This double standard is disappointing,” she added.

 

The UK government said it would work with regulators, the devolved administrations, and local authorities to ensure it can appropriately implement its new requirements.


(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Sep 05 2024 | 4:56 PM IST



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iPhone 16 launch event on September 9: Expected Apple Watch lineup for 2024

iPhone 16 launch event on September 9: Expected Apple Watch lineup for 2024

by | Sep 5, 2024 | Technology


Apple Watch Series 9 (Photo: Bloomberg)

3 min read Last Updated : Sep 05 2024 | 4:28 PM IST


Apple plans on bringing major upgrades to its watch lineup with the new Apple Watch Series 10, Watch Ultra 3, and possibly a new Apple Watch SE model. While, iPhone 16 series would likely be the star of the show at the company’s “It’s Glowtime” event on September 9, Apple watches are expected to receive notable changes across the board. 


Here is how Apple Watch lineup for 2024 would possibly look like-


Apple Watch Series 10: What to expect


The year 2024 marks the tenth year anniversary of the Apple Watch, and the company reportedly has big changes coming its way. According to media reports, Apple Watch series 10 will feature a larger display on both smaller and bigger sized models. 


The smaller Apple Watch model would likely measure 45mm, up from 41mm last year. Similarly, the larger model is expected to get to 49mm in size, compared to 45mm on Apple Watch Series 9. With bigger displays, Apple is expected to incorporate low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) technology for its OLED display, allowing dynamic refresh rate adjustments.


To avoid getting bulkier with its larger sized displays, Apple Watch Series 10 will adopt a new sleek design for its chassis. This change is expected to reduce the thickness of the Apple Watch Series 10 significantly. 


Apart from the cosmetic changes, Apple Watch Series 10 is expected to be powered by a new S10 chip. The anticipated S10 chip would likely feature a dedicated Neural Engine (Neural Processing Unit) with improved AI processing capabilities.


Apple Watch Ultra 3: What to expect


Apple Watch Ultra 3 would likely feature a design similar to its predecessor with little to no changes. However, similar to the Apple Watch Series 10, Watch Ultra 3 is expected to get better performance and improved AI processing with the new S10 chip. Although Apple isn’t anticipated to launch Apple Intelligence features for the Apple Watch right away, the new processor would position the Watch to support AI capabilities in the future.


Additionally, this year’s Apple Watch Ultra might get a minor bump in battery size that might result in slightly better battery life than the Apple Watch Ultra 2 from 2023.


New Apple Watch SE: What to expect


Alongside its flagship Apple Watches, Apple might launch a new model of its more affordable Apple Watch SE. 


Earlier, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that Apple is working on a “rigid plastic” body for the next-generation Apple Watch SE model which could significantly reduce the cost of manufacturing. However, instead of reducing the cost of the Apple Watch SE, the company might offer improved capabilities and better performance. 


The new Apple Watch SE model could be powered by last year’s S9 chip. However, it would not be surprising if Apple uses the new S10 chip on its affordable Apple Watch model. Apple might take this step to make the device future-proof, given that the SE models are less frequently updated compared to regular models. With more processing capability, Apple might introduce some advanced features like always-on display and electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring.

First Published: Sep 05 2024 | 4:28 PM IST



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