Digital cooperation Archives | Page 170 of 221

Nigeria launches AI Scaling Hub with Gates Foundation

In partnership with the Gates Foundation, Nigeria has launched the Nigeria Artificial Intelligence Scaling Hub, backed by a funding commitment of up to $7.5 million over three years.

Announced during a signing ceremony in Abuja, the initiative will focus on responsibly scaling AI solutions across healthcare, agriculture, and education.

The AI Scaling Hub aims to unite government agencies, tech firms, academia, and development partners to support the nationwide deployment of proven AI innovations.

Rather than developing isolated pilot projects, the hub intends to build a collaborative system that encourages mature AI tools to be applied widely.

The Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy stated that the move aligns with Nigeria’s draft National AI Strategy and broader technology agenda.

Minister Bosun Tijani said the hub would help turn local AI concepts into real-world results by offering innovators mentorship, resources, and support.

The Gates Foundation echoed the sentiment, with Nigeria Country Director Uche Amaonwu stressing the importance of ensuring AI benefits reach underserved communities.

The project also involves Lagos Business School and is expected to bolster Nigeria’s leadership in ethical AI adoption across Africa.

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Microsoft lets European users silence Edge prompts

Microsoft is extending its Digital Markets Act compliance measures by further loosening Windows’ grip on its in-house apps across the European Economic Area.

Users can now uninstall the Microsoft Store and will no longer face Edge pop-ups unless they launch the browser themselves.

Edge version 137.0.3296.52, released on 29 May, activates the changes immediately in the region. Choosing an alternative browser such as Chrome or Firefox now pins it to the taskbar by default and automatically handles a wider range of link and file types, including ftp and svg.

Wider deployment across Windows 10 and 11 is scheduled for July. Microsoft says Store-delivered apps will keep receiving updates even if the storefront is removed, and it can be restored at any time.

Bing, Widgets and the Lock Screen will also respect the new default browser once early June updates arrive.

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Microsoft and CrowdStrike align naming of threat actors

Microsoft and CrowdStrike have announced a joint initiative to align their threat actor taxonomies, aiming to improve clarity and coordination in the fight against cyberattacks.

While the two cybersecurity giants are not creating a unified naming standard, they are publishing a cross-referenced mapping that shows how threat actors tracked by both companies correspond under their respective naming systems.

The inconsistency in threat actor names across the cybersecurity industry has long created confusion, often slowing response times and complicating collaboration between teams.

A single actor might be known as Midnight Blizzard by Microsoft, Cozy Bear by another firm, and APT29 or UNC2452 by others — all referring to the same group. This fragmentation of identifiers has made tracking and defending against threats more difficult.

To address this, Microsoft and CrowdStrike have released a reference document that maps common threat actors across both organisations’ taxonomies and includes aliases from other vendors.

The goal is to provide security teams with a clearer understanding of which groups are being discussed, regardless of the terminology used.

Although the mapping effort currently involves only Microsoft and CrowdStrike, other major players in the cybersecurity industry — including Google’s Mandiant and Palo Alto Networks’ Unit 42 — are expected to contribute to the initiative in the future.

‘Security is a shared responsibility, requiring community-wide efforts to improve defensive measures,’ said Vasu Jakkal, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Security. ‘We are excited to be teaming up with CrowdStrike and look forward to others joining us on this journey.’

As more companies adopt this collaborative approach, experts believe it will enhance collective defence by making threat intelligence easier to interpret and act upon across the security ecosystem.

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Microsoft takes down massive Lumma malware network

Microsoft has dismantled a major cybercrime operation centred around the Lumma Stealer malware, which had infected over 394,000 Windows devices globally.

In partnership with global law enforcement and industry partners, Microsoft seized more than 1,300 domains linked to the malware.

The malware was known for stealing sensitive data such as login credentials, bank details and cryptocurrency information, making it a go-to tool for cybercriminals since 2022.

The takedown followed a court order from a US federal court and included help from the US Department of Justice, Europol, and Japan’s cybercrime unit.

Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit also received assistance from firms like Cloudflare and Bitsight to disrupt the infrastructure that supported Lumma’s Malware-as-a-Service network.

The operation is being hailed as a significant win against a sophisticated threat that had evolved to target Windows and Mac users. Security experts urge users to adopt strong cyber hygiene, including antivirus software, two-factor authentication, and password managers.

Microsoft’s action is part of a broader effort to tackle infostealers, which have fuelled a surge in data breaches and identity theft worldwide.

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Colt, Honeywell and Nokia to trial quantum cryptography in space

Colt Technology Services, Honeywell, and Nokia have joined forces to trial quantum key distribution (QKD) via satellites to develop quantum-safe networks. The trial builds on a previous Colt pilot focused on terrestrial quantum-secure networks.

The collaboration aims to tackle the looming cybersecurity risks of quantum computing, which threatens to break current encryption methods. The project seeks to deliver secure global communication beyond the current 100km terrestrial limit by trialling space-based and subsea QKD.

Low-Earth orbit satellites will explore QKD over ultra-long distances, including transatlantic spans. The initiative is designed to support sectors that handle sensitive data, such as finance, healthcare, and government, by offering encryption solutions resistant to quantum threats.

Leaders from all three companies emphasised the urgency of developing safeguards to protect against future threats. A joint white paper, The Journey to Quantum-Safe Networking, has been released to outline the risks and technical roadmap for this new frontier in secure communications.

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Uber’s product chief turns to AI for reports and research

Uber’s chief product officer, Sachin Kansal, is embracing AI to streamline his daily workflow—particularly through tools like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and, soon, NotebookLM.

Speaking on ‘Lenny’s Podcast,’ Kansal revealed how AI summarisation helps him digest lengthy 50- to 100-page reports he otherwise wouldn’t have time to read. He uses AI to understand market trends and rider feedback across regions such as Brazil, South Korea, and South Africa.

Kansal also relies on AI as a research assistant. For instance, when exploring new driver features, he used ChatGPT’s deep research capabilities to simulate possible driver reactions and generate brainstorming ideas.

‘It’s an amazing research assistant,’ he said. ‘It’s absolutely a starting point for a brainstorm with my team.’

He’s now eyeing Google’s NotebookLM, a note-taking and research tool, as the next addition to his AI toolkit—especially its ‘Audio Overview’ feature, which turns documents into AI-generated podcast-style discussions.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi previously noted that too few of Uber’s 30,000+ employees are using AI and stressed that mastering AI tools, especially for coding, would soon be essential.

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Gmail adds automatic AI summaries

Gmail on mobile now displays AI-generated summaries by default, marking a shift in how Google’s Gemini assistant operates within inboxes.

Instead of relying on users to request a summary, Gemini will now decide when it’s useful—typically for long email threads with multiple replies—and present a brief summary card at the top of the message.

These summaries update automatically as conversations evolve, aiming to save users from scrolling through lengthy discussions.

The feature is currently limited to mobile devices and available only to users with Google Workspace accounts, Gemini Education add-ons, or a Google One AI Premium subscription. For the moment, summaries are confined to emails written in English.

Google expects the rollout to take around two weeks, though it remains unclear when, or if, the tool will extend to standard Gmail accounts or desktop users.

Anyone wanting to opt out must disable Gmail’s smart features entirely—giving up tools like Smart Compose, Smart Reply, and package tracking in the process.

While some may welcome the convenience, others may feel uneasy about their emails being analysed by large language models, especially since this process could contribute to further training of Google’s AI systems.

The move reflects a wider trend across Google’s products, where AI is becoming central to everyday user experiences.

Additional user controls and privacy commitments

According to Google Workspace, users have some control over the summary cards. They can collapse a Gemini summary card, and it will remain collapsed for that specific email thread.

In the near future, Gmail will introduce enhancements, such as automatically collapsing future summary cards for users who consistently collapse them, until the user chooses to expand them again. For emails that don’t display automatic summaries, Gmail still offers manual options.

Users can tap the ‘summarise this email’ chip at the top of the message or use the Gemini side panel to trigger a summary manually. Google also reaffirms its commitment to data protection and user privacy. All AI features in Gmail adhere to its privacy principles, with more details available on the Privacy Hub.

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SCO members invited to join new AI cooperation plan

China has proposed the creation of an AI application centre in cooperation with member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The plan was introduced at the 2025 China-SCO AI Cooperation Forum, held in Tianjin, with the goal of deepening collaboration in AI across the region.

The proposed centre aims to support talent development, foster industrial partnerships, and promote open-source service cooperation.

Presented under the theme ‘Intelligence Converges in China, Wisdom Benefits SCO,‘ the forum brought together officials and experts to discuss practical AI cooperation and governance mechanisms that would serve the shared interests of SCO nations.

According to Huang Ru of China’s National Development and Reform Commission, closer cooperation in AI will drive economic and social growth across the SCO, reduce the digital divide, and contribute to inclusive global progress.

China reaffirmed its commitment to the ‘Shanghai Spirit’ and called for joint efforts to ensure AI development remains secure, equitable and beneficial for all member states.

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New York Times partners with Amazon on AI integration

The New York Times Company and Amazon have signed a multi-year licensing agreement that will allow Amazon to integrate editorial content from The New York Times, NYT Cooking, and The Athletic into a range of its AI-powered services, the companies announced Wednesday.

Under the deal, Amazon will use licensed content for real-time display in consumer-facing products such as Alexa, as well as for training its proprietary foundation models. The agreement marks an expansion of the firms’ existing partnership.

‘The agreement expands the companies’ existing relationship, and will deliver additional value to Amazon customers while bringing Times journalism to broader audiences,’ the companies said in a joint statement.

According to the announcement, the licensing terms include ‘real-time display of summaries and short excerpts of Times content within Amazon products and services’ alongside permission to use the content in AI model development. Amazon platforms will also feature direct links to full Times articles.

Both companies described the partnership as a reflection of a shared commitment to delivering global news and information across Amazon’s AI ecosystem. Financial details of the agreement were not made public.

The announcement comes amid growing industry debate about the role of journalistic material in training AI systems.

By entering a formal licensing arrangement, The New York Times positions itself as one of the first major media outlets to publicly align with a technology company for AI-related content use.

The companies have yet to name additional Amazon products that will feature Times content, and no timeline has been disclosed for the rollout of the new integrations.

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ASEAN, the GCC, and China unite to advance digital innovation

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and China convened their inaugural trilateral summit in Kuala Lumpur with a shared vision to strengthen regional cooperation and integration.

The three parties committed to deepening economic ties through sustainable development, free trade, and enhanced collaboration across key sectors such as the digital and green economy, technology, and finance.

A major focus of the summit was boosting connectivity, notably through infrastructure development and expanded cooperation under China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

Key policy areas include the promotion of AI, the advancement of financial technology (fintech), and the development of digital skills to prepare their populations for the evolving digital economy.

They also expressed a shared interest in supporting clean energy innovation, highlighting the role of technology in driving sustainable and inclusive energy transitions.

These technology-focused policies aim to build resilient, future-ready economies by enhancing cross-border collaboration in emerging digital industries and strengthening regional capabilities in science, technology, and innovation.

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