Google is expanding AI learning tools in India by adding full-length Joint Entrance Exam practice tests to Gemini, targeting millions of engineering applicants.
Students can complete full mock JEE exams directly in Gemini. The questions are developed using vetted material from education platforms in India, including Physics Wallah and Careers360, and will be expanded further.
Gemini provides instant feedback after each test. It explains correct answers and generates personalised study plans based on performance, supporting structured exam preparation.
In addition to these exam-focused features, preparation tools will also roll out to AI Mode in Search, specifically including Canvas. These tools will allow students to build interactive quizzes and study guides from their own notes.
Alongside providing enhanced tools for students, Google is also partnering with universities, government agencies, and nonprofits to integrate AI across education systems, aiming to scale access to tens of millions of learners by 2027.
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Amazon is implementing a major round of job cuts while investing more heavily in AI and cloud infrastructure. The latest announcement brings planned reductions to roughly 30,000 roles across corporate teams worldwide.
Senior vice president Beth Galetti said the layoffs aim to reduce management layers, speed up decision-making, and remove organisational bureaucracy. Media reports suggest the cuts represent close to 10 percent of Amazon’s global office workforce, while warehouse and logistics roles remain unaffected.
No specific divisions were named, with the company stating that each team will continue reviewing capacity and operational efficiency. Amazon previously reported spending $1.8 billion on severance linked to restructuring efforts, with full-year financial results due in early February.
The reductions mirror a broader trend across big tech, with Microsoft, Meta, ASML, HP, and Oracle also trimming white-collar management roles. Executives across the sector have framed the changes as cultural and structural rather than budget-driven.
At the same time, Amazon is boosting AI, cloud, and chip investments through AWS, including over $35 billion in data centre expansion in India amid rising competition.
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Meta plans to nearly double its AI investment in 2026, according to its latest earnings report. Spending is expected to reach between $115bn and $135bn as the company expands large-scale infrastructure.
Mark Zuckerberg said the investment will focus on data centres needed to train advanced AI models. The strategy is designed to support long-term AI development across Meta’s platforms in the US.
Zuckerberg described 2026 as a pivotal year for AI, with Meta working on multiple products rather than a single launch. Testing is reportedly underway on new models intended to succeed the Llama family in the US.
Meta said building proprietary AI models allows greater control over future products. The company positioned AI as a tool for personal empowerment, setting its approach apart from more centralised automation strategies in the US.
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Swiss technology and privacy expert Anna Zeiter is leading the development of W Social, a new European-built social media network designed as an alternative to X. The project aims to reduce reliance on US tech and strengthen European digital sovereignty.
W Social will require users to verify their identity and provide a photo to ensure genuine human accounts, tackling fake profiles and bot driven disinformation that critics link to existing platforms. Zeiter said the name W stands for ‘We’ as well as values and verification.
The platform’s infrastructure will be hosted in Europe under strict EU data protection laws, with decentralised storage and offices planned in Berlin and Paris. Early support comes from European political and tech figures, signalling interest beyond Silicon Valley.
W Social could launch a beta version as early as February, with broader public access planned by year-end. Backers hope the network will foster more positive dialogue and provide a European alternative to US based social media influence.
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The certification allows the advertising technology firm to manage personal data without relying on additional transfer mechanisms.
The framework, adopted in 2023, provides a legal basis for EU-to-US data flows while strengthening oversight and accountability. Certification requires organisations to meet strict standards on data minimisation, security, transparency, and individual rights.
By joining the framework, StackAdapt enhances its ability to support advertisers, publishers, and partners through seamless international data processing.
The move also reduces regulatory complexity for European customers while reinforcing the company’s broader commitment to privacy-by-design and responsible data use.
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EU member states are preparing to open formal discussions on the risks posed by AI-powered deepfakes and their use in cyberattacks, following an initiative by the current Council presidency.
The talks are intended to assess how synthetic media may undermine democratic processes and public trust across the bloc.
According to sources, capitals will also begin coordinated exchanges on the proposed Democracy Shield, a framework aimed at strengthening resilience against foreign interference and digitally enabled manipulation.
Deepfakes are increasingly viewed as a cross-cutting threat, combining disinformation, cyber operations and influence campaigns.
The timeline set out by the presidency foresees structured discussions among national experts before escalating the issue to the ministerial level. The approach reflects growing concern that existing cyber and media rules are insufficient to address rapidly advancing AI-generated content.
An initiative that signals a broader shift within the Council towards treating deepfakes not only as a content moderation challenge, but as a security risk with implications for elections, governance and institutional stability.
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The pace of the AI infrastructure boom continues to accelerate, with semiconductor supply chains signalling sustained long-term demand.
NVIDIA remains the most visible beneficiary as data centre investment drives record GPU purchases, yet supplier activity further upstream suggests confidence extends well beyond a single company.
ASML, the Dutch firm that exclusively supplies extreme ultraviolet lithography equipment, has emerged as a critical indicator of future chip production.
Its machines are essential for advanced semiconductor manufacturing, meaning strong performance reflects expectations of high chip volumes across the industry rather than short-term speculation. Quarterly earnings underline that momentum.
ASML reported €32.7 billion in net sales, while new bookings reached a record €13 billion, more than double the previous quarter.
New orders reflect how much capacity manufacturers expect to need, pointing to sustained expansion driven by anticipated AI workloads.
Company leadership attributed the surge directly to AI-related demand, with customers expressing growing confidence in the durability of data centre investment.
While order fulfilment will take years and some plans may change, industry signals suggest a slowdown in AI infrastructure spending is not imminent.
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The UK competition watchdog has proposed new rules that would force Google to give publishers greater control over how their content is used in search and AI tools.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) plans to require opt-outs for AI-generated summaries and model training, marking the first major intervention under Britain’s new digital markets regime.
Publishers argue that generative AI threatens traffic and revenue by answering queries directly instead of sending users to the original sources.
The CMA proposal would also require clearer attribution of publisher content in AI results and stronger transparency around search rankings, including AI Overviews and conversational search features.
Additional measures under consultation include search engine choice screens on Android and Chrome, alongside stricter data portability obligations. The regulator says tailored obligations would give businesses and users more choice while supporting innovation in digital markets.
Google has warned that overly rigid controls could damage the user experience, describing the relationship between AI and search as complex.
The consultation runs until late February, with the outcome expected to shape how AI-powered search operates in the UK.
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In a commentary highlighted by a BBC article, Cisco’s chief executive, Chuck Robbins, reportedly compared the current AI boom to the early dot-com bubble, suggesting that while AI’s long-term impact could be transformative, the market may also face a period of significant turbulence and ‘wreckage’ before durable winners emerge.
Robbins warned that massive capital flows into AI companies, many of which lack clear revenue paths, resemble past speculative cycles and could lead to sharp contractions or failures among weaker players in the tech ecosystem.
He also noted that productivity gains from AI may be real but come with job reshaping, security risks and economic disruptions along the way.
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Social media and visual discovery platform Pinterest disclosed a major global restructuring plan in early 2026 that will cut between 700 and 800 jobs, roughly 10–15% of its workforce, and shrink its physical office footprint, with most reductions expected to occur in the first half of the year.
In regulatory and internal communications, CEO Bill Ready framed the layoffs as necessary to ‘position the company for long-term success in an increasingly AI-driven world’, enabling the business to redirect funds and talent from legacy roles toward AI-focused teams and AI-powered products, including visual search, personalisation and ad technologies.
Pinterest’s workforce cuts are part of a wider industry trend where tech firms trim staff in traditional areas and bolster AI capabilities, reflecting pressure to improve efficiency, respond to slowing advertising growth and compete with rivals leveraging generative and recommendation technologies.
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