Future of work Archives | Page 164 of 243 | Digital Watch Observatory

Beijing seeks to curb excess AI investment while sustaining growth

China has pledged to rein in excessive competition in AI, signalling Beijing’s desire to avoid wasteful investment while keeping the technology central to its economic strategy.

The National Development and Reform Commission stated that provinces should develop AI in a coordinated manner, leveraging local strengths to prevent duplication and overlap. Officials in China emphasised the importance of orderly flows of talent, capital, and resources.

The move follows President Xi Jinping’s warnings about unchecked local investment. Authorities aim to prevent overcapacity problems, such as those seen in electric vehicles, which have fueled deflationary pressures in other industries.

While global investment in data centres has surged, Beijing is adopting a calibrated approach. The state also vowed stronger national planning and support for private firms, aiming to nurture new domestic leaders in AI.

At the same time, policymakers are pushing to attract private capital into traditional sectors, while considering more central spending on social projects to ease local government debt burdens and stimulate long-term consumption.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech, and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

Meta faces turmoil as AI hiring spree backfires

Mark Zuckerberg’s ambitious plan to assemble a dream team of AI researchers at Meta has instead created internal instability.

High-profile recruits poached from rival firms have begun leaving within weeks of joining, citing cultural clashes and frustration with the company’s working style. Their departures have disrupted projects and unsettled long-time executives.

Meta had hoped its aggressive hiring spree would help the company rival OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic in developing advanced AI systems.

Instead of strengthening the company’s position, the strategy has led to delays in projects and uncertainty about whether Meta can deliver on its promises of achieving superintelligence.

The new arrivals were given extensive autonomy, fuelling tensions with existing teams and creating leadership friction. Some staff viewed the hires as destabilising, while others expressed concern about the direction of the AI division.

The resulting turnover has left Meta struggling to maintain momentum in its most critical area of research.

As Meta faces mounting pressure to demonstrate progress in AI, the setbacks highlight the difficulty of retaining elite talent in a fiercely competitive field.

Zuckerberg’s recruitment drive, rather than propelling Meta ahead, risks slowing down the company’s ability to compete at the highest level of AI development.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

Stethoscope with AI identifies heart issues in seconds

A new stethoscope powered by AI could enable doctors to identify three serious heart conditions in just seconds, according to UK researchers.

The device replaces the traditional chest piece with a small sensor that records both electrical signals from the heart and the sound of blood flow, which are then analysed in the cloud by AI trained on large datasets.

The AI tool has shown strong results in trials across more than 200 GP practices, with patients tested using the stethoscope being more than twice as likely to be diagnosed with heart failure within 12 months compared with those assessed through usual care.

It was also 3.45 times more likely to detect atrial fibrillation and almost twice as likely to identify heart valve disease.

Researchers from Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust said the technology could help doctors provide treatment at an earlier stage instead of waiting until patients present in hospital with advanced symptoms.

The findings, known as Tricorder, will be presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Madrid.

The project, supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, is now preparing for further rollouts in Wales, south London and Sussex. Experts described the innovation as a significant step in updating a medical tool that has remained largely unchanged for over 200 years.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

How local LLMs are changing AI access

As AI adoption rises, more users explore running large language models (LLMs) locally instead of relying on cloud providers.

Local deployment gives individuals control over data, reduces costs, and avoids limits imposed by AI-as-a-service companies. Users can now experiment with AI on their own hardware thanks to software and hardware capabilities.

Concerns over privacy and data sovereignty are driving interest. Many cloud AI services retain user data for years, even when privacy assurances are offered.

By running models locally, companies and hobbyists can ensure compliance with GDPR and maintain control over sensitive information while leveraging high-performance AI tools.

Hardware considerations like GPU memory and processing power are central to local LLM performance. Quantisation techniques allow models to run efficiently with reduced precision, enabling use on consumer-grade machines or enterprise hardware.

Software frameworks like llama.cpp, Jan, and LM Studio simplify deployment, making local AI accessible to non-engineers and professionals across industries.

Local models are suitable for personalised tasks, learning, coding assistance, and experimentation, although cloud models remain stronger for large-scale enterprise applications.

As tools and model quality improve, running AI on personal devices may become a standard alternative, giving users more control over cost, privacy, and performance.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

India to host OpenAI’s new Stargate data centre

OpenAI is preparing to build a significant new data centre in India as part of its Stargate AI infrastructure initiative. The move will expand the company’s presence in Asia and strengthen its operations in its second-largest market by user base.

OpenAI has already registered as a legal entity in India and begun assembling a local team.

The company plans to open its first office in New Delhi later this year. Details regarding the exact location and timeline of the proposed data centre remain unclear, though CEO Sam Altman may provide further information during his upcoming visit to India.

The project represents a strategic step to support the company’s growing regional AI ambitions.

OpenAI’s Stargate initiative, announced by US President Donald Trump in January, involves private sector investment of up to $500 billion for AI infrastructure, backed by SoftBank, OpenAI, and Oracle.

The initiative seeks to develop large-scale AI capabilities across major markets worldwide, with the India data centre potentially playing a key role in the efforts.

The expansion highlights OpenAI’s focus on scaling its AI infrastructure while meeting regional demand. The company intends to strengthen operational efficiency, improve service reliability, and support its long-term growth in Asia by establishing local offices and a significant data centre.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

Legal barriers and low interest delay Estonia’s AI rollout in schools

Estonia’s government-backed AI teaching tool, developed under the €1 million TI-Leap programme, faces hurdles before reaching schools. Legal restrictions and waning student interest have delayed its planned September rollout.

Officials in Estonia stress that regulations to protect minors’ data remain incomplete. To ensure compliance, the Ministry of Education is drafting changes to the Basic Schools and Upper Secondary Schools Act.

Yet, engagement may prove to be the bigger challenge. Developers note students already use mainstream AI for homework, while the state model is designed to guide reasoning rather than supply direct answers.

Educators say success will depend on usefulness. The AI will be piloted in 10th and 11th grades, alongside teacher training, as studies have shown that more than 60% of students already rely on AI tools.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech, and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

Microsoft launches new AI models MAI-Voice-1 and MAI-1 Preview

Microsoft has unveiled two new AI models, marking a major step in its efforts to build its own technology rather than rely solely on OpenAI.

The first model, MAI-Voice-1, generates high-fidelity audio and supports both single and multi-speaker scenarios. Microsoft said the system can create a full minute of expressive audio in under a second on a single GPU, making it one of the fastest of its kind.

MAI-Voice-1 is already available in Copilot Daily and Podcasts, while Copilot Labs allows users to experiment with storytelling and speech demos. Microsoft sees voice as a vital interface for future AI companions.

MAI-1 Preview is currently undergoing community testing on LMArena and will soon be integrated into selected Copilot use cases. Microsoft said it plans to expand its family of specialised models, aiming to orchestrate different systems for diverse user needs.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

China sets 10-year targets for mass AI adoption

China has set its most ambitious AI adoption targets yet, aiming to embed the technology across industries, governance, and daily life within the next decade.

According to a new State Council directive, AI use should reach 70% of the population by 2027 and 90% by 2030, with a complete shift to what it calls an ‘intelligent society’ by 2035.

The plan would mean nearly one billion Chinese citizens regularly using AI-powered services or devices within two years, a timeline compared to the rapid rise of smartphones.

Although officials acknowledge risks such as opaque models, hallucinations and algorithmic discrimination, the policy calls for frameworks to govern ‘natural persons, digital persons, and intelligent robots’.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

Espionage fears rise as TAG-144 evolves techniques

A threat group known as TAG-144 has stepped up cyberattacks on South American government agencies, researchers have warned.

The group, also called Blind Eagle and APT-C-36, has been active since 2018 and is linked to espionage and extortion campaigns. Recent activity shows a sharp rise in cybercrime, spear-phishing, often using spoofed government email accounts to deliver remote access trojans.

Analysts say the group has shifted towards more advanced methods, embedding malware inside image files through steganography. Payloads are then extracted in memory, allowing attackers to evade antivirus software and maintain access to compromised systems.

Colombian government institutions have been hit hardest, with stolen credentials and sensitive data raising concerns over both financial and national security risks. Security experts warn that TAG-144’s evolving tactics blur the line between organised crime and state-backed espionage.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!

Nigeria drafts framework for AI use in governance and services

According to the IT regulator, Nigeria is preparing a national framework to guide responsible use of AI in governance, healthcare, education and agriculture.

NITDA Director General Kashifu Abdullahi told a policy lecture in Abuja that AI could accelerate economic transformation if properly harnessed. He emphasised that Nigeria’s youthful population should move from being consumers to becoming innovators and creators.

He urged stakeholders to view automation as an opportunity to generate jobs, highlighting that over 60% of Nigerians are under 25. Abdullahi described this demographic as a key asset in positioning the nation for global competitiveness.

Meanwhile, a joint report from the Digital Education Council and the Global Finance & Technology Network found that AI boosts productivity, though adoption remains uneven. It warned of a growing divide between organisations that use AI effectively and those falling behind.

Would you like to learn more about AI, tech, and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!