G20 meet

"These 138 betting and gambling websites and 94 loan apps were engaging in illegal money laundering and were posing threat to financial security of our nation," an official source had said. (Representative image) The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) met with several digital lenders in relation to the blocking of their websites and on platforms such as Google Play Store on February 8. Over the weekend, several domestic online lending platforms like Kissht and PayU-backed LazyPay were spiked after MeitY banned and blocked 138 betting apps and 94 loan lending apps that reportedly had Chinese links. The blocking orders were given under Sec 69A of the Information Technology Act 2000 on an ‘urgent’ and ‘emergency’ basis. Under Sec 69A of the IT Act, the Central government, represented here by MeitY, or any other specially-authorized officer, can issue blocking orders under specific grounds such as the interest of sovereignty and integrity of India, … [Read more...] about Digital Lenders meet Meity officials to seek more clarity on app ban directive

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The first two decades of synthetic biology were ruled by microbes. Microorganisms have been engineered to make critical materials such as chemicals, fuels, plastics, and therapeutics. They have also provided some rudimentary control tools for turning genes on and off. But now a revolution is on the horizon in the burgeoning new field of mammalian cell engineering. In mammalian cells, the combination of genetic switches that turn on and off different genes creates their structural and biochemical complexity. Until recently, the extreme difficulty of engineering multicellular systems has limited synthetic biology innovation. Now, bit.bio , a synthetic biology company based in Cambridge, England, is radically reimagining what is possible with the engineering of mammalian cells. The company’s opti-ox™ platform is a system for turning on and off specific switches to activate genes, called transcription factors. The opti-ox™ … [Read more...] about Meet The Company Reprogramming The Future Of Synthetic Biology

In 2022 alone, professionals in India spend a total of 4.6 million hours learning on the platform. This is twice the number of learning hours spent by LinkedIn users in the United States (Representative Image) Business, marketing, technology, and people skills were the most in-demand skills for companies and professionals in 2023, as per LinkedIn’s newly launched ‘Workplace Learning Report’. “Despite tough macroeconomic conditions, learning in-demand skills will be critical for professionals to become more employable in any job market and reach their career goals in 2023,” the report noted. Follow our LIVE News blog here Top 10 Skills As per the research, the Top 10 most in-demand skills for the year in India featured a blend of business and marketing skills. This includes management, communications, and sales. Further tech skills such as software development, SQL, and Java. Read More Further, leadership and analytical skills are also featured on the … [Read more...] about Management, communication & tech top list of most in-demand skills for employees: LinkedIn report

Representative image Jio-bp, the fuel and mobility joint venture of Reliance Industries Ltd and UK's bp, has launched petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol, aligning with the government programme to cut oil imports and reduce carbon emissions. "In line with the roadmap set by the Government, Jio-bp has become one of the first fuel retailers in India to make E20 blended petrol available," the company said in a statement. "Customers with E20 petrol-compatible vehicles will be able to opt for this fuel at select Jio-bp outlets, and the offering will soon be expanded across the network." The E20 fuel is a 20 per cent blend of ethanol and 80 per cent of petrol. The blending of ethanol, extracted from sugarcane as well as broken rice and other foodgrains, in petrol is being introduced in the country by the government to reduce the country's oil import cost and lower carbon emissions while giving farmers an additional source of income. "India's market for fuels and mobility … [Read more...] about Jio-bp rolls out E20 petrol with 20% ethanol

Representative image. Unilever Plc said that consumers may buy fewer of its products this year as shoppers balk at price increases on items like Dove soap and Hellmann’s mayonnaise. Volumes will drop in the first half and it’s too early to predict if they might recover in the second, the company said Thursday. Unilever reported its weakest operating margin in at least seven years and forecast a €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion) increase in raw material costs in the first half. Unilever will keep raising its pricing as it has only passed off three-quarters of its higher costs onto consumers, Chief Executive Officer Alan Jope said in a Bloomberg TV interview. “We are now probably past peak inflation, but we’re not yet at peak prices,” he said. Hein Schumacher, set to replace Jope in July, will be under pressure to boost growth and make the company more efficient. Unilever’s shares have lagged behind those of Nestle SA and Procter & Gamble Co., and activist Nelson Peltz last … [Read more...] about Unilever sees consumer backlash worsening on inflation

SoftBank CFO Yoshimitsu Goto SoftBank invested $300 million across ‘a handful’ of deals in the December quarter as the Japanese technology investor did not want to ‘rush and waste money’ amid uncertain macroeconomic conditions, the company’s senior executives said in an earnings presentation on February 7. In what seemed to be a big change, SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son was absent from the presentation. Son is popular for laying out the company’s strategy and reiterating its bold vision in the quarterly meetings with analysts and press. The earnings discussion on February 7 was led by SoftBank Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto. He extensively talked about the company’s financial health – and said it was currently in a ‘solid defence mode’. Goto explained that the company was closely watching inflation trends, key interest rates, possible recessions and geopolitical risks to decide when to switch back to an ‘offence mode’. The operator of Vision Funds, among the … [Read more...] about SoftBank invested $300 million in Q3, doesn’t want to ‘rush and waste money’

From left: AgniKul Cosmos co-founder and COO Moin SPM and CEO Srinath Ravichandran Chennai-based space tech start-up Agnikul Cosmos successfully completed the flight acceptance test of their 3D printed rocket engine that is going to be used in their upcoming space flight. The launch of Agnikul's rocket Agnibaan in the coming months, will be the second private rocket launch from India after Hyderabad-based Skyroot Aerospace's Vikram-S . Like Vikram-S, Agnbaan's flight will also be suborbital, which means that it will reach below the Earth's orbit. During the test, the 3D printed rocket engine Aginlet burnt for 108 seconds, generated sea level thrust of 6 kilo Newton (kN). Unlike other rocket engines, Agnilet was built in a single step, eliminating the thousands of parts that are typically assembled in a conventional rocket engine; and they recently obtained a patent for the engine . "Humbled to announce the successful completion of the flight acceptance test of our … [Read more...] about Agnikul Cosmos successfully carries out key test ahead of planned launch

KT CEO Ku Hyeon-mo speaks during a New Year's greeting event held at the company's office in Songpa District, southern Seoul, on Jan. 2. [KT] KT decided to reopen the candidacy for its CEO post in a board meeting Thursday, restarting the candidate review process from scratch. This is the second time that the candidate selection process for the top post has restarted. The latest announcement came after the National Pension Service (NPS), the largest shareholder of KT, voiced opposition to the telecom company’s decision to select incumbent CEO Ku Hyeon-mo as the final and only candidate for the post in December. “The board of directors decided to restart the process for CEO appointment through an open competition,” said KT in a release Thursday. Ku is expected to contend with other competitors. The application window will be open from Friday to Feb. 20. Internal directors of the company will not take part in the candidate review, and information regarding the screening … [Read more...] about KT reopens its CEO candidacy. Again.

Congress and defense experts warned that reliance on China, including for critical mineral processing, is undermining defense companies’ ability to produce the weapons the Pentagon asks for at a hearing on Wednesday. The defense industrial base — firms that make weapons and equipment for the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) — have struggled to overcome deepening supply chain setbacks that grew more severe during the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, China is not only rapidly modernizing its own military but dominating critical supply chains the U.S. weapons industry depends on to meet the Pentagon’s demands, lawmakers and industry representatives said Wednesday. (RELATED: US Relies On One Country For Key Materials In Defense Production — But There’s A Problem) “ Today, t here is a mismatch between what our national strategies aim to achieve and how our defense industrial base is postured,” David Norquist, president of the National Defense Industrial … [Read more...] about ‘Unacceptable’: GOP Reps, Defense Experts Raise Red Flags Over Pentagon’s Reliance On China For Critical Minerals

Many once-promising financial startups are cash-strapped; others have broken business models. By Jeff Kauflin & Emily Mason ; Illustration by Matt Chase for Forbes ON November 15, the cofounders of Ribbon Home, a five-year-old financial technology company that promised to fix a “broken” homebuying market by offering buyers the ability to make all-cash offers, sent a cryptic and disconcerting email to its entire staff. “During this time of uncertainty, we ask team members who are not customer- or finance-facing to shift their focus from work to self-care, spending time with family and doing things that bring you comfort,” it read in part. Six days later, New York City-based Ribbon dismissed 85% of its staff—190 people—and cut severance to one week’s pay versus the six weeks employees had been previously promised. Fewer than 30 people remain today, and the company recently announced that it has paused all new business. Ribbon’s days are … [Read more...] about Merge Or Perish: 25 Struggling Fintech Startups