Monday, November 25
Sports gaming platform SportsBaazi appoints Afghanistan's cricket player Rashid Khan as brand ambassador, aligning with revamped brand identity. Khan embodies cricketing skills, versatility, passion, and hunger for the game, resonating with the brand's 'LIVE' concept. His popularity surged after Afghanistan's spirited World Cup '23 performance. With 72% of 8.7 Mn followers being Indians, Khan connects with fans, including SportsBaazi users.
iQoo is launching iQoo 12 5G, India's first Snapdragon 8 Gen 3-powered smartphone. It will come pre-installed with FunTouch OS 14 based on Android 14. FunTouch OS 14 offers visual enhancements, optimized RAM usage for better performance, motion blur, and improved multitasking. Personalization options include customizable lock screen clocks, always-on display styles, and a minimalist theme. iQoo 12 5G will be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, run FunTouch OS 14, and feature a 144Hz refresh rate display.
IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has announced that the government will draft new regulations to tackle deepfakes, which are digitally manipulated media used to misrepresent facts. The minister met with social media platforms to discuss the need for action in areas such as detection, prevention, reporting mechanisms, and awareness. He emphasised that deepfakes pose a new threat to democracy and mentioned a follow-up meeting in December to discuss the decisions made.
The Cricket World Cup final between India and Australia set some records, with Disney Hotstar reaching an all-time high of 5.9 crore concurrent live viewers. Quick-service restaurants and delivery platforms also saw blockbuster sales, including Indian jerseys. CEOs of Zepto and Blinkit shared their record-breaking sales during the match on social media. Zepto delivered over 100,000 cans of Thums Up for free, while Blinkit saw a spike in sales of puja flowers and chips. The sales of India jerseys also peaked during the match.
Sunbird, an iMessage app for Android, has temporarily shut down due to privacy concerns. Researchers discovered that the app's messages may not be securely encrypted as promised by the developers. Nothing, the smartphone maker that released Nothing Chats, an iMessage client based on Sunbird, had to remove it from the Play Store. The app's encryption method and storage of messages and media files on a Firebase database contradicted the company's claim of not storing data. Sunbird and Nothing Chats are currently not available on the Play Store.
OpenAI announced that Sam Altman will be reinstated as CEO, following his recent ousting by the company's board. Altman's return comes after an employee revolt and support from investors. The new board will consist of Bret Taylor, Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo. The exact reason for Altman's initial firing remains unknown, but the board cited a breakdown in communication between Altman and themselves as the main issue. It is unclear what will happen to Emmett Shear, the former Twitch CEO who was named OpenAI CEO before Altman's return.
Several major companies, including Apple, IBM, Sony, and Warner Bros., have temporarily stopped advertising on X (formerly Twitter) after Elon Musk endorsed an antisemitic conspiracy theory. A report by Media Matters also claimed that these companies' ads were appearing next to pro-Nazi posts on the platform. In response, X CEO Linda Yaccarino sent a memo to employees, stating that the data will reveal the truth and emphasising the platform's efforts to combat antisemitism and discrimination.
The future of Sam Altman, the founder of ChatGPT and former CEO of OpenAI, remains uncertain as Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella expresses uncertainty about Altman joining Microsoft. Nadella states that Microsoft is committed to OpenAI and Altman, regardless of whether Altman joins Microsoft or returns to OpenAI. Altman has not made any public comment on his next move, but reports suggest he may go back to OpenAI if certain board members resign. Altman emphasizes unity and commitment but leaves his plans open-ended. The priority for both Altman and Nadella is ensuring the success of OpenAI.
Indian IT giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has signed an agreement with Australia's primary securities exchange, ASX, to provide next-generation clearing and settlement platforms. TCS will replace ASX's existing platform for cash equities clearing and settlement with its BaNCS for Market Infrastructure software. This move comes after ASX abandoned its blockchain-based effort due to repeated delays. TCS's software is used by exchanges in over 20 countries and is expected to improve scalability and support future market growth for ASX. The implementation will be done in two releases to reduce delivery risk and impact on stakeholders.
