A vintage streetcar beside a driverless car on the Embarcadero, San Francisco / Photo by Surbhi Guha.

South Asian Talent Almost Everywhere; Missing is an AI Invention from the Region the World Depends on

The ambition exists across the region. Young Indian companies are building rocket engines and computer chips, products India has long bought from abroad. Pakistan sent a delegation to Silicon Valley to show what its technology industry can do

Where Is India's Apple? A Nation's Strategic Independence is Directly Proportional to its Economic Independence

A country can only be as independent in its diplomacy as it is in its economy. A nation that imports its phones, its chips and much of its energy, will always have less room to manoeuvre than one that makes what the world needs.

China's Open-Source AI Initiative and the Limits of BRICS Consensus

The difference between Xi's New Delhi proposal and the language of the declaration illustrates the distinction between China's ambitions for AI cooperation and the level of agreement achieved among BRICS members. The declaration did not reject China's AI diplomacy; it simply did not explicitly endorse the proposed open-source community.

AI on the Battlefield: The Mirage of Unlimited Capability

The AI revolution may indeed change warfare. But the laws of physics, engineering and economics have not been repealed. AI may be extraordinarily powerful in the data centre. The real challenge is carrying that capability to the battlefield.

More on AI, Tech and Innovation

UAE money transfer firms waive remittance charges to India

Money transfer companies in the UAE are trying to contribute in their own way to fight the COVID-19 pandemic situation in India by waiving charges to funds being transferred to India’s PM Cares Fund and Kerala Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund to help the South Asian country

Pfizer in talks with India on vaccine approval; company pledges $70M in medicine donations

Pfizer is discussing with the Indian government expedited approval of its vaccine, company CEO Alber Bourla has said while announcing a donation of medicines worth $70 million to fight the resurgent pandemic

Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla hints at start production in Britain

Amid India's catastrophic Covid19 crisis and unprecedented demand for vaccines, Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla on Saturday said he was under pressure and "aggression" over vaccines is "overwhelming"

Reliance Industries now largest producer of medical oxygen from a single location

As India grapples with an unprecedented new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the nation’s largest private sector company Reliance Industries has emerged as the country’s largest producer of medical oxygen from a single location

Reliance Foundation to set up 1000-bedded Covid Care facility in Jamnagar

In a bid to help India battle the massive second COVID-19 wave, Reliance Foundation is setting up a 1000-bed Covid Care facility with oxygen supply in Jamnagar of Gujarat state

India, Australia, Japan launch Supply Chain Resilience initiative

Australia, India and Japan have formally launched the Supply Chain Resilience initiative (SCRI), in what is being interpreted as a move to counter China's dominance in supply chain trade in the Indo-Pacific

Tesla Inc to set up India headquarters in Mumbai: Report

Tesla is setting up its office in the Lower Parel-Worli area in Mumbai with its production base in Karnataka, an Economic Times report said

Nine Bangladeshi youths in Forbes Asia list

For the first time, nine Bangladeshis have made the Forbes 30 under 30 Asia list, The Daily Star reported

Despite pandemic, Bangladesh will be major apparel supplier: Study

Notwithstanding the uncertainty triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, Bangladesh will remain a principal source of apparels in the coming months, The Daily Star reported quoting a new study

India’s requests for vaccine raw materials: US says first obligation to Americans

Virtually declining India’s requests to lift the ban on export of raw materials to meet the country’s anticipated COVID-19 vaccine shortage, the US politely said that it has to first to take care of the requirements of its own people

Breaking the glass ceiling: Encouraging women entrepreneurs in east/northeast India

Twenty-five selected women entrepreneurs came together in a hybrid-styled boot-camp in Kolkata as part of an ongoing 'Breaking the Glass Ceiling' project to support women entrepreneurs in eastern and northeastern India

SII borrowed money from banks to ramp up vaccine production

Serum Institute of India (SII) has borrowed money from banks to ramp up the production of Covishield instead of waiting for the government's aid of Rs 3,000 crore to arrive

Pakistan outperforms India in apparel exports to USA

Pakistan has outperformed India in apparel exports to the United States in February, media reports said

Pakistan shares debt management plan with World Bank

Pakistan has shared with the World Bank a revised outline of the Circular Debt Management Plan that seeks rationalization of taxes, negotiated takeover of old independent power plants (IPPs) and closure of all old public sector plants to increase electricity tariffs, Dawn reported

Serum Institute of India thanks PM Modi for financial support to vaccine makers

Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla has lauded the Modi government's policy change in vaccination, bringing all above 18 under the mass drive and extending financial support to the vaccine manufacturers