India faces a lower risk of AI-driven disruption to white-collar jobs than Western economies, IT Secretary S Krishnan said. A smaller share of cognitive roles and strong STEM employment reduce near-term impact.
Rather than replacing workers, artificial intelligence is expected to create jobs through sector-specific applications. Development and deployment of these systems will require many trained professionals.
Human oversight will remain essential as issues such as AI hallucinations limit full automation of cognitive tasks. Productivity gains are expected to support, rather than eliminate, knowledge-based work.
India is positioning itself as a global contributor to applied artificial intelligence solutions. Indigenous AI models under development are expected to support jobs, innovation and long-term economic growth.
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Indian banks and financial institutions are deploying AI at scale to increase revenue generation. Post-pandemic digitisation has accelerated adoption beyond pilot projects.
Executives say AI deployment now focuses on customer engagement, credit decisions and risk management. Indian revenue growth is replacing cost reduction as the primary objective.
Industry leaders highlight a shift towards agentic AI, where autonomous systems perform complex business tasks. Banking workflows are increasingly handled with minimal human intervention.
Cloud providers say Indian finance is entering a mature AI phase. Digital infrastructure investments are expected to deepen competitive advantage across the sector.
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The US administration is criticising foreign digital regulations affecting major online platforms while avoiding trade measures that could disrupt the US economy. Officials say the rules disproportionately impact American technology companies.
US officials have paused or cancelled trade discussions with the UK, the EU, and South Korea. Current negotiations are focused on rolling back digital taxes, privacy rules, and platform regulations that Washington views as unfair barriers to US firms.
US administration officials describe the moves as a negotiating tactic rather than an escalation toward tariffs. While trade investigations into digital practices have been raised as a possibility, officials have stressed that the goal remains a negotiated outcome rather than a renewed trade conflict.
Technology companies have pressed for firmer action, though some industry figures warn that aggressive retaliation could trigger a wider digital trade war. Officials acknowledge that prolonged disputes with major partners could ultimately harm both US firms and global markets.
Despite rhetorical escalation and targeted threats against European companies, the US administration has so far avoided dismantling existing trade agreements. Analysts say mounting pressure may soon force Washington to choose between compromise and more concrete enforcement measures.
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Groq has signed a non-exclusive licensing agreement with Nvidia to share its inference technology, aiming to make high-performance, cost-efficient AI processing more widely accessible.
Groq’s founder, Jonathan Ross, president Sunny Madra, and other team members will join Nvidia to help develop and scale the licensed technology. Despite the collaboration, Groq will remain an independent company, with Simon Edwards taking over as Chief Executive Officer.
Operations of GroqCloud will continue without interruption, ensuring ongoing services for existing customers. The agreement highlights a growing trend of partnerships in the AI sector, combining innovation with broader access to advanced processing capabilities.
The partnership could speed up AI inference adoption, offering companies more scalable and cost-effective options for deploying AI workloads. Analysts suggest such collaborations are likely to drive competition and innovation in the rapidly evolving AI hardware and software market.
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Users of popular AI chatbots are generating bikini deepfakes by manipulating photos of fully clothed women, often without consent. Online discussions show how generative AI tools can be misused to create sexually suggestive deepfakes from ordinary images, raising concerns about image-based abuse.
A now-deleted Reddit thread shared prompts for using Google’s Gemini to alter clothing in photographs. One post asked for a woman’s traditional dress to be changed to a bikini. Reddit removed the content and later banned the subreddit over deepfake-related harassment.
Researchers and digital rights advocates warn that nonconsensual deepfakes remain a persistent form of online harassment. Millions of users have visited AI-powered websites designed to undress people in photos. The trend reflects growing harm enabled by increasingly realistic image generation tools.
Most mainstream AI chatbots prohibit the creation of explicit images and apply safeguards to prevent abuse. However, recent advances in image-editing models have made it easier for users to bypass guardrails using simple prompts, according to limited testing and expert assessments.
Technology companies say their policies ban altering a person’s likeness without consent, with penalties including account suspensions. Legal experts argue that deepfakes involving sexualised imagery represent a core risk of generative AI and that accountability must extend to both users and platforms.
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India’s technology ministry plans to showcase more than 100 homegrown applications at an upcoming AI Impact Summit. The event aims to highlight locally developed tools across public services and industry.
Officials say the initiative supports domestic innovation while reducing reliance on foreign technology platforms. Priority areas include governance, healthcare, education and small business productivity.
The ministry intends to promote practical AI adoption rather than experimental research. Developers will demonstrate solutions already deployed or nearing commercial readiness.
The showcase reflects India’s broader strategy to position local firms within global AI supply chains. Indian policymakers view applied AI as central to economic growth.
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AI-powered tools are adding new features to long-running Santa Tracker services used by families on Christmas Eve. Platforms run by NORAD and Google allow users to follow Father Christmas’s journey through their Santa Tracker tools, which also introduce interactive and personalised digital experiences.
NORAD’s Santa Tracker, first launched in 1955, now features games, videos, music, and stories in addition to its live tracking map. This year, the service introduced AI-powered features that generate elf-style avatars, create toy ideas, and produce personalised holiday stories for families.
The Santa Tracker presents Santa’s journey on a 3D globe built using open-source mapping technology and satellite imagery. Users can also watch short videos on Santa Cam, featuring Santa travelling to destinations around the world.
Google’s rendition offers similar features, including a live map, estimated arrival times, and interactive activities available throughout December. Santa’s Village includes games, animations, and beginner-friendly coding activities designed for children.
Google Assistant introduces a voice-based experience to its service, enabling users to ask about Santa’s location or receive updates from the North Pole. Both platforms aim to blend tradition with digital tools to create a seamless and engaging holiday experience.
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Researchers at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Massachusetts are using AI and advanced visualisation tools to study how memories are formed in the human brain. Their work focuses on understanding how experiences produce lasting biological changes linked to long-term memory.
The project is led by Andre Fenton of New York University and Abhishek Kumar of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Using NVIDIA RTX GPUs and HP Z workstations, the team analyses large-scale brain imaging data with custom AI tools and the syGlass virtual reality platform.
Researchers centred on the hippocampus, a brain structure central to memory. Scientists are examining specific protein markers in neurons to reveal how memories are encoded, even though these markers represent only a small fraction of the brain’s overall protein landscape.
High-resolution 3D imaging previously created a major data bottleneck. AI-supported workflows now allow researchers to capture, inspect, and store terabytes of volumetric data, enabling more detailed analysis of brain cell structure and function.
Researchers say understanding memory at a molecular level could support earlier insights into neurological and psychiatric conditions. The tools are also being used for education, allowing students to explore brain data interactively while contributing to ongoing research.
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The European Union’s new tax-reporting directive for crypto assets, known as DAC8, takes effect on 1 January. The rules require crypto-asset service providers, including exchanges and brokers, to report detailed user and transaction data to national tax authorities.
DAC8 aims to close gaps in crypto tax reporting, giving authorities visibility over holdings and transfers similar to that of bank accounts and securities. Data collected under the directive will be shared across EU member states, enabling a more coordinated approach to enforcement.
Crypto firms have until 1 July to ensure full compliance, including implementing reporting systems, customer due diligence procedures, and internal controls. After that deadline, non-compliance may result in penalties under national law.
For users, DAC8 strengthens enforcement powers. Authorities can act on tax avoidance or evasion with support from counterparts in other EU countries, including seizing or embargoing crypto assets held abroad.
The directive operates alongside the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which focuses on licensing, customer protection, and market conduct, while DAC8 ensures the tax trail is monitored.
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AI chatbots modelled on Jesus are becoming increasingly popular over Christmas, offering companionship or faith guidance to people who may feel emotionally vulnerable during the holidays.
Experts warn that such tools could gradually reshape religious belief and practice. Training data is controlled by a handful of technology firms, which means AI systems may produce homogenised and biased interpretations instead of reflecting the diversity of real-world faith communities.
Users who are young or unfamiliar with AI may also struggle to judge the accuracy or intent behind the answers they receive.
Researchers say AI chatbots are currently used as a supplement rather than a replacement for religious teaching.
However, concern remains that people may begin to rely on AI for spiritual reassurance during sensitive moments. Scholars recommend limiting use over the holidays and prioritising conversations with family, friends or trusted religious leaders instead of seeking emotional comfort from a chatbot.
Experts also urge users to reflect carefully on who designs these systems and why. Fact-checking answers and grounding faith in recognised sources may help reduce the risk of distortion as AI plays a growing role in people’s daily lives.
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