Japanese space company Astroscale has partnered with Indian firms Digantara and Bellatrix Aerospace to develop orbital debris removal and servicing technologies.
The collaboration aims to offer services to Indian clients within the next two years, marking Astroscale’s first major operation in the Asia-Pacific region outside Japan.
India‘s growing space sector and policy shifts towards commercialisation have made it an attractive market for the company.
Digantara specialises in space situational awareness, while Bellatrix Aerospace develops satellite propulsion systems.
The partnership will initially focus on providing services for Indian government clients, with potential expansion into private and international markets. Astroscale is also exploring opportunities in South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, and Australia.
India has recently opened its space industry to private players, introducing a ₹10 billion fund to support startups.
Astroscale has already secured contracts with space agencies in Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France, and is working with JAXA on a commercial debris removal mission set for 2027.
As space activity increases, industry estimates suggest satellite collisions could result in more than $500 million in risk over the next five years.
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Chinese AI startup Manus has registered its AI assistant for the domestic market and gained state media attention, signalling government support for its expansion.
The company, which recently gained global recognition, was featured on China’s CCTV in a segment comparing its AI agent to the chatbot made by DeepSeek’s chatbot.
Beijing’s growing interest in homegrown AI firms follows the success of DeepSeek, which developed competitive AI models at a lower cost than its United States counterparts.
Manus has made headlines for developing an AI agent capable of making autonomous decisions with minimal prompting, a step beyond traditional chatbots like ChatGPT.
The firm recently announced a partnership with Alibaba’s Qwen AI team, a move that could accelerate its rollout in China. Currently, the AI agent is available only through invite codes, with a waiting list of two million users.
Regulatory approval was also secured for Monica, Manus’ AI assistant, allowing its launch in China. All generative AI applications in the country must comply with strict content regulations to align with Beijing’s policies.
Manus’ growing presence in China highlights the government’s strategy of fostering domestic AI innovations while ensuring regulatory oversight.
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The competition between AMD and Intel remains intense, despite Intel’s larger market share. In recent years, AMD has emerged as the preferred choice for gamers, often topping sales charts, including Amazon’s CPU best-sellers list.
Just yesterday, AMD dominated the top 15 spots instead of Intel. Surprisingly, the top processor was AMD’s Ryzen 7 9800X3D, a high-end gaming chip, priced at $480, despite its occasional stock shortages.
The top 15 list featured a mix of older and newer AMD processors, such as the Ryzen 5 5500 and Ryzen 5 5600X, indicating that AMD has successfully kept older hardware relevant and in demand.
However, today’s best-seller list paints a slightly different picture, as Intel has managed to secure several spots, with older models like the Alder Lake chips offering more affordable alternatives to current AMD processors.
Interestingly, Intel’s latest Arrow Lake processors did not make it to the top 50 best-sellers on Amazon. This suggests that many customers prefer the more affordable Intel options or turn to AMD, which has shifted the market dynamics significantly in recent years.
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Google has unveiled a new feature called Mind Maps for its AI-powered research tool, NotebookLM. Mind maps are visual diagrams that help users understand complex subjects by displaying ideas and their connections.
An addition like this follows the recent release of Audio Overviews, which provide AI-generated podcasts summarising key points from documents, articles, and videos.
NotebookLM, which works in both free and paid versions, assists users in summarising content and offering interactive conversations with AI to deepen understanding.
The new Mind Maps feature lets users generate and explore visual connections between ideas. Once created, users can zoom, expand or collapse branches, and click on nodes for detailed information on specific topics.
The feature is particularly useful for students or anyone who needs to absorb a lot of information quickly. With the combined power of Mind Maps and Audio Overviews, NotebookLM offers a multi-faceted approach to learning, making it easier to navigate and retain key insights.
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The Abu Dhabi Government has signed a landmark agreement with tech giant Microsoft and Core42, a subsidiary of AI powerhouse G42, to fast-track the adoption of AI across its public services.
The partnership will focus on merging Microsoft’s advanced cloud technology with G42’s AI capabilities to drive innovation and efficiency.
As part of its digital transformation strategy, Abu Dhabi aims to process more than 11 million digital interactions daily, making public services more innovative and responsive. Officials say this collaboration marks a pivotal step toward redefining how the government engages with citizens through technology.
With a dedicated budget of around $3.54 billion (Dh13 billion), Abu Dhabi has set its sights on becoming the world’s first fully AI-powered government by 2027. The initiative signals the emirate’s ambition to lead globally in AI-driven governance and digital innovation.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella called the agreement a new benchmark for public sector AI use, emphasising that Abu Dhabi is setting the pace for governments worldwide in embracing transformative technologies.
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MIT researchers have developed a breakthrough quantum interconnect device that could significantly advance quantum computing by enabling direct communication between multiple quantum processors.
Unlike point-to-point architectures, which suffer from compounded error rates, their new ‘all-to-all’ communication system allows superconducting quantum processors to exchange quantum information efficiently using microwave photons.
By successfully demonstrating remote entanglement between two quantum processors, the researchers have taken a crucial step toward building large-scale quantum computing networks.
Their method involves using superconducting wires to shuttle photons, allowing quantum processors to remain entangled even when physically separate. However, this advancement paves the way for scalable quantum computing with higher flexibility and reduced error rates.
To maximise efficiency, the team employed reinforcement learning algorithms to optimise photon absorption, achieving over 60% absorption efficiency—enough to confirm successful entanglement.
Future improvements may involve refining photon pathways and integrating modules in 3D to further enhance performance. The research, supported by multiple US agencies and AWS, brings quantum computing closer to practical, large-scale implementation.
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Synopsys has introduced AgentEngineer, an AI-powered technology designed to streamline semiconductor design by automating complex engineering tasks.
The company, which provides software for chip design, aims to help engineers cope with increasing demands as semiconductor firms like Nvidia build advanced AI server systems with thousands of chips.
CEO Sassine Ghazi highlighted the growing pressure on engineers to manage complexity, meet tight deadlines, and control costs.
The AI-driven tool will initially assist human engineers by handling specific tasks, such as verifying circuit designs. Over time, it is expected to coordinate the development of intricate systems comprising multiple chips and components, ensuring efficient project delivery.
The company’s technology and development lead, Shankar Krishnamoorthy, emphasised that AI will be crucial in expanding research and development capacity without requiring larger engineering teams.
With the pace of AI computing accelerating, semiconductor companies face mounting challenges in chip design. Synopsys believes AI will play a critical role in overcoming these difficulties, making the process faster and more efficient.
The new technology is part of a broader industry shift toward AI-driven automation in engineering.
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SoftBank has announced a $6.5 billion acquisition of US chip startup Ampere Computing, marking a major step in its investment in AI infrastructure.
The deal, paid entirely in cash, reflects founder Masayoshi Son’s growing focus on AI as a transformative technology. Ampere produces data centre CPUs based on an architecture from SoftBank’s majority-owned Arm Holdings, with customers including Oracle.
The acquisition follows a series of multi-billion-dollar AI investments by SoftBank, including funding for OpenAI, the Stargate AI data centre project, and Cristal, an AI services joint venture in Japan.
Ampere, founded in 2018 by former Intel president Renee James, developed its own custom CPU cores—an approach typically seen in larger firms like Apple and Qualcomm.
Under SoftBank’s ownership, the company will operate alongside Arm, strengthening SoftBank’s growing collection of AI-focused chip technology firms.
Masayoshi Son described the move as part of his vision for ‘artificial super intelligence,’ highlighting the need for advanced computing power.
While SoftBank has seen mixed results in past investments, such as its troubled backing of WeWork, the company continues to place high-stakes bets on emerging technologies.
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A recent incident in Data Center Alley, a region outside Washington DC housing over 200 data centres, exposed a new vulnerability in the US power grid.
Last summer, 60 data centres unexpectedly disconnected from the grid and switched to on-site generators, causing a surge in excess electricity. However, this triggered the need for grid operators to scale back power output to avoid cascading outages.
The disconnection event, caused by a failed surge protector, forced regulators to address the growing risk of power imbalances due to the rapid expansion of data centres, especially those involved in AI and crypto mining.
As these centres consume increasing amounts of energy, grid operators face new challenges in maintaining stability.
Federal regulators like the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) are now studying the impact of such events and the risks posed by unannounced data centre disconnections.
The power consumption of data centres has tripled over the last decade and is projected to continue rising, prompting calls for updated reliability standards.
Industry stakeholders, including major tech companies, have expressed concerns about the potential costs and risks of requiring data centres to remain connected during voltage fluctuations.
With the growing presence of large data users, grid operators face a tough balancing act to ensure power stability while accommodating the demands of the data centre industry.
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Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang believes that humanoid robots will soon be widely used in manufacturing, possibly within the next five years.
Speaking at the company’s annual developer conference, Huang unveiled new software tools designed to improve robots’ ability to navigate the world.
Huang stated that the manufacturing industry would likely lead the way in adopting humanoid robots, due to its controlled environment and well-defined tasks.
He emphasised the economic value, with robots potentially costing around $100,000 to rent, making them a good investment.
The CEO’s predictions highlight the growing role of AI in automation, with Huang confident that humanoid robots will soon be an integral part of factory operations.
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