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                        <title>Latest Technology News, Tech News Pakistan | The Express Tribune</title>
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			<title>Meta ordered to pay $567m in New Mexico for teen mental health fund</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622588/meta-ordered-to-pay-567m-in-new-mexico-for-teen-mental-health-fund</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622588/meta-ordered-to-pay-567m-in-new-mexico-for-teen-mental-health-fund#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 26 07:52:00 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2622588</guid>
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				<![CDATA[Judge orders youth-safety measures including enhanced review of child sexual abuse reports, notification restrictions]]>
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				<![CDATA[A&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico&nbsp;state court&nbsp;ordered&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;on Thursday to&nbsp;pay&nbsp;$567&nbsp;million&nbsp;into a&nbsp;teen&nbsp;mental&nbsp;health&nbsp;fund&nbsp;and change how its platforms function for young users after finding the company is to blame for harming children&#39;s wellbeing.

Judge Bryan Biedscheid in Santa Fe ruled the company had created a public nuisance in&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico, siding with Attorney General Ra&uacute;l Torrez, a Democrat. Torrez had accused the social media company of designing products to addict young users and failing to protect children&nbsp;from sexual exploitation on its platforms.

The ruling comes five months after a&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico&nbsp;jury in an earlier phase of the case&nbsp;ordered&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;to pay $375 million&nbsp;after finding it violated consumer protection law by misrepresenting the safety of Facebook and Instagram for young users.

The case was being closely watched amid a growing wave of litigation accusing social media companies of harming young users. While many lawsuits have been brought by children and families over alleged injuries to individuals, states, municipalities and school districts have also pursued lawsuits seeking broad changes to the industry.

More than 40 states and over 1,300 school districts have filed public nuisance lawsuits against social media companies, seeking damages as well as court orders requiring changes to products and practices.

Read:&nbsp;Meta, Google fined in social media addiction trial

Biedscheid on Thursday&nbsp;ordered&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;to implement youth-safety measures, including monthly limits on&nbsp;teens&#39; use of Facebook and Instagram, restrictions on notifications, tighter controls on adult contact with minors, safeguards for AI chatbots, and enhanced review of child sexual abuse reports, under a decree that will be in place for five years.

Meta&nbsp;said it will appeal the ruling and that it has been working to identify and remove harmful content from its platforms. &quot;We remain confident in our record of protecting&nbsp;teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts,&quot;&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;said in a statement.

New&nbsp;Mexico&#39;s Torrez said in a statement that&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;chose profit over child safety, and that the ruling was the first to force a social media giant to make changes protecting children. &quot;This is not just a judgment against one company. It is a blueprint,&quot; Torrez said. &quot;Now other states, and other countries confronting the same crisis, have a roadmap they can follow.&quot;

Reuters last year reported on company documents&nbsp;that showed&nbsp;Meta&#39;s AI chatbots could &quot;engage a child in conversations that are romantic or sensual,&quot; part of a series of investigations into&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;profiting from ads peddling fraud and banned products.

In Thursday&#39;s ruling, Biedscheid&nbsp;ordered&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;to prevent children in&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico&nbsp;from &quot;engaging in romantic or sexualised interactions with&nbsp;Meta&#39;s artificial intelligence chatbots&quot; and to prevent adults in&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico&nbsp;from using chatbots to simulate or discuss a sexualised interaction with a child.

Public nuisance

Biedscheid heard three weeks of testimony during the second trial over the lawsuit, which did not involve a jury. It focused solely on whether&nbsp;Meta&#39;s platforms created a &quot;public nuisance&quot; under&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico&nbsp;law.

Public nuisance claims traditionally have targeted conduct that endangers public&nbsp;health&nbsp;or safety, such as ​blocking roads or polluting waterways, but state governments have also invoked them in litigation involving tobacco, opioids, climate change, vaping and most recently artificial intelligence.

&quot;(J)ust as noxious pollution produced by the factory can harm the common public right to reasonably clean air, the harmful effects of&nbsp;Meta&rsquo;s platforms on children do not stay contained by its platforms and, instead, migrate to the internet as a whole and, perhaps most concerning, to the real world and create a common, societal burden on and harm to the affected children and their families and schools, as well as hospitals and law enforcement,&quot; Biedscheid wrote.

Meta&nbsp;had said at trial it could not have created a public nuisance because it had not interfered with a &quot;public right,&quot; such as access to air or water.&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;also argued that its social media platforms are not the only ones used by the state&#39;s young residents, and the case ignores the impact of other apps.

Read More:&nbsp;EU tells Instagram, Facebook to change addictive features or risk fines

It also criticised the changes&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico&nbsp;sought, saying in filings many were &quot;technologically impractical or completely impossible,&quot; and could force the company to exit the state altogether.

Meta&nbsp;had also argued that&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico&#39;s claims were barred by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a federal law that generally shields online platforms from liability for user-generated content. Biedscheid rejected that defense, finding the state was challenging&nbsp;Meta&#39;s platform features rather than trying to hold the company liable as publisher of third-party content.

However, Biedscheid declined to impose some of the remedies sought by&nbsp;New&nbsp;Mexico, finding that changes to&nbsp;Meta&#39;s algorithms and features such as infinite scroll and autoplay could infringe the company&#39;s rights under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, harm its competitive position, and run afoul of Section 230.

The ruling comes as&nbsp;Meta&nbsp;prepares to face a trial next week in federal court in Oakland, California, over claims by 29 states that it designed Facebook and Instagram to addict children and misled users about their safety, a case that could expose the company to massive damages.

The company is also defending a lawsuit brought by Tennessee in a trial that began in July.

Meta&nbsp;has told investors that ⁠legal and ​regulatory blowback in the US and European Union over youth social media issues &quot;could significantly ​impact our business and financial results.&quot;]]>
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			<title>Hackers targeted US private equity, other firms including Blackstone, CME, data shows</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622584/hackers-targeted-us-private-equity-other-firms-including-blackstone-cme-data-shows</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622584/hackers-targeted-us-private-equity-other-firms-including-blackstone-cme-data-shows#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 26 07:28:53 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2622584</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Callers pose as IT help desk staff, steer employees to booby-trapped website to hijack account, Google says]]>
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				<![CDATA[Ransom-seeking&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;who&nbsp;use phone calls to compromise their victims&nbsp;targeted&nbsp;dozens of prominent United States&nbsp;financial institutions and&nbsp;other&nbsp;businesses over the past month, according to Google and internet intelligence&nbsp;data&nbsp;reviewed by Reuters.

The&nbsp;data&nbsp;shows&nbsp;the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;devised websites aimed at stealing passwords from employees of&nbsp;private&nbsp;equity&nbsp;firms&nbsp;and&nbsp;financial&nbsp;companies&nbsp;including&nbsp;Blackstone, Bridgewater Associates, Apollo Global Management, Bain Capital, KKR, TPG,&nbsp;CME&nbsp;Group,&nbsp;Clearlake Capital&nbsp;and Moody&#39;s, as well as&nbsp;other&nbsp;businesses.

Google said in a blog post about the hacking campaign&nbsp;published on Thursday that the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;operate under a range of names,&nbsp;including&nbsp;Redact, Pink, Falcon and Helix.

Google declined to comment on Reuters findings. Its blog said in some cases companies, which it did not name, paid ransoms to the&nbsp;hackers. Reuters could not establish which companies the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;successfully compromised.

Read:&nbsp;US announces new visa restrictions targeting cybercrime, online scam networks

Experts say the&nbsp;hackers&#39;&nbsp;use of low-tech tactics such as phone calls to target the financial industry illustrates how, despite sophisticated security programs and AI-driven threats, the oldest tactics still rank among the most effective. If successful, the hacks could compromise&nbsp;data&nbsp;of some of the biggest US&nbsp;private&nbsp;equity&nbsp;firms&nbsp;that provide capital to companies.

&ldquo;Because the fence is now so fancy and high-tech, we just have to trick the guard into opening the door for&nbsp;us,&rdquo; said Lee Clark, a cyberthreat intelligence production manager with the Retail and Hospitality ISAC, an industry information sharing and analysis group. &ldquo;That human element consistently is why this has exploded in the way it has,&quot; he said.

KKR, Bain Capital,&nbsp;Clearlake Capital,&nbsp;CME, TPG and Apollo declined to comment.&nbsp;Blackstone, Bridgewater Associates and Moody&#39;s did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Hackers shift attention: Google

In its blog post, Google &mdash; a unit of Alphabet &mdash; said the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;had recently turned their attention to&nbsp;private&nbsp;equity, law&nbsp;firms&nbsp;and financial ratings agencies.

Austin Larsen, the principal threat analyst at Google&rsquo;s Threat Intelligence Group, said the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;generally&nbsp;targeted&nbsp;industries based on financial calculations, often successfully. &ldquo;Really, it&rsquo;s a money thing,&rdquo; Larsen said. &ldquo;They think that these&nbsp;firms&nbsp;or organisations have&nbsp;data&nbsp;sensitive enough that, if taken, they would pay to prevent it.&rdquo;

Google did not identify any of the&nbsp;hackers&rsquo; targets by name. Reuters reverse-engineered many of the company-specific online traps&nbsp;used by the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;by running the 72 malicious&nbsp;websites Google listed in its report through web intelligence platforms such as DomainTools and urlscan, which flagged malicious&nbsp;subdomains tailored to each firm.

Speaking in general about the subdomains, Larsen said, &quot;They all were likely&nbsp;used in attempted intrusions&quot; though he cautioned, &quot;They were not all successful.&quot;

Google said the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;used &ldquo;meticulous&nbsp;social engineering tactics,&rdquo; reaching employees on their personal cellphones while pretending to call from their company&rsquo;s help desk, sometimes displaying the correct help desk phone number.

Read More:&nbsp;Meta fixes massive AI assistant vulnerability after hackers seize Instagram accounts

The&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;told their targets there was an urgent directive from IT to update their passkeys or multifactor authentication and steered the employees toward a booby-trapped website with domain names such as &ldquo;passkeyhelpdesk&rdquo; or &ldquo;secure-passkey.&rdquo;

If an employee followed the instructions to enter their password, the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;would harvest their fail-safe passcode &ndash; typically sent by text or generated by an app &ndash; live over the phone and hijack their account before the call terminated.

Larsen said it was wrong to think of the tactic as particularly advanced. &quot;Sophisticated is not the right word,&quot; he said. &quot;It is just really effective.&quot;

Shifting aliases

Reuters was not able to reach the&nbsp;alleged&nbsp;hackers. Redact &mdash; which once went by the name Blackfile &mdash; said on its darknet website that its&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;&quot;are not politically or morally motivated&quot; and were &quot;not currently taking questions from the press.&quot;&nbsp;On its site, Falcon acknowledged being affiliated with Redact but said it had nothing to do with Helix or Pink.

Larsen said it was unclear who the&nbsp;hackers&nbsp;were exactly or what their relationship was to one another. Although they went under different names, he said they appeared to be tied together by common infrastructure. &quot;There are still some unknowns here,&quot; he said.

The hacking attempts, a few of which were earlier reported by Bloomberg, have caused a stir on Wall Street.

For example, Point72 Asset Management told investors on Wednesday&nbsp;that it had been&nbsp;targeted&nbsp;by&nbsp;hackers, according to a source familiar with the matter. That source &ndash; and a second source familiar with the matter &ndash; said the ​hackers&nbsp;had also attempted to breach&nbsp;other&nbsp;hedge funds, ​including&nbsp;Two Sigma Investments and Citadel, whose names also appeared in the&nbsp;data&nbsp;reviewed by Reuters.

Also Read:&nbsp;OpenAI models &#39;go rogue&#39;

Two Sigma has not returned messages seeking comment. Citadel and Point72 declined to comment.

A host of&nbsp;other&nbsp;firms&nbsp;were in the&nbsp;hackers&rsquo; crosshairs before they pivoted to financial institutions, according to Google&#39;s blog post and the&nbsp;data.

The&nbsp;data&nbsp;shows&nbsp;that the cybercriminals built digital traps for more than 200 companies in the past five weeks alone,&nbsp;including&nbsp;the ride-hailing company Uber, online broker Zillow, and jeans brand Levi Strauss, as well as several law&nbsp;firms,&nbsp;including&nbsp;Paul Hastings and Greenberg Traurig.

Uber, Zillow, Paul Hastings and Levi Strauss did not return messages seeking comment. In a statement, Greenberg Traurig said it &quot;did not have a&nbsp;data&nbsp;breach given the layers of security protocols we have in place to protect client&nbsp;data&nbsp;and the firm.&rdquo; It did not elaborate.]]>
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			<title>India's Modi turns to Instagram to woo young voters after Gen Z protest</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622439/indias-modi-turns-to-instagram-to-woo-young-voters-after-gen-z-protest</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622439/indias-modi-turns-to-instagram-to-woo-young-voters-after-gen-z-protest#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 06 Aug 26 14:31:14 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[Modi's party targets youth with biker jacket clips, rap tracks and Friends-themed campaign videos]]>
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				<![CDATA[&nbsp;Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Instagram recently with selfie-style videos shot after hours in a bid to win over ​young voters following Gen-Z&nbsp;protests&nbsp;that highlighted growing frustration over a lack of&nbsp;job and education&nbsp;opportunities.

From clips showing the prime minister in a biker jacket and &zwnj;sunglasses against a rap soundtrack, to others that borrow the theme song from the sitcom Friends to signal his dependability, the messaging of Modi&#39;s party has pivoted towards the young.

A vertically shot clip posted on July 31 featuring Modi uttering a casual greeting, &quot;Hi, friends&quot; was the latest in his digital charm offensive that aims to win over 400 million Gen-Z voters ahead of general elections in 2029.

&quot;They are platforms where ​you broadcast a well-rehearsed and disciplined political message to millions of followers in a top-down manner,&quot; said Delhi-based political columnist Asim Ali.

The pivot to&nbsp;youth-focused social media&nbsp;​follows protests last month that led to the resignation of the education minister after tens of thousands of students and job seekers took ⁠to the streets.

The outcry was triggered by a&nbsp;leaked examination&nbsp;paper in a country where such tests are seen as opening the gates to professional careers and eventual financial security.

Minister, government departments issue clips 

Modi&#39;s videos have spurred cabinet ministers and government departments to issue a stream of short, lightly edited clips online over the past 10 days, with the foreign ​ministry becoming the latest on Thursday, saying it will take to Snapchat.

Since sweeping to power in 2014, Modi has been credited with transforming political communication in India, using digital platforms to build a direct connection with voters.

Analysts say his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party also developed a highly effective communications network across television news channels and social media platforms such as WhatsApp and X.

But platforms such as Instagram reward spontaneity, ​humour and authenticity over tightly scripted messaging, said Ali.





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Amit Malviya, the BJP&#39;s social media chief, ​declined to comment and queries sent to ⁠four national party spokespersons went unanswered.

The party is also stepping up efforts beyond social media, with plans for an address on Thursday to about 2,000 students in the financial capital of Mumbai by Mohan Bhagwat, the chief of its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

That ​represents one of the parent group&#39;s biggest efforts to engage with the Gen-Z young.

Read More: Meta apologises to India for restricting PM Modi&#39;s post

At a cabinet meeting after the protests, Modi ​urged ministers to be ⁠more active on platforms popular with the young and make sure their videos appeared less polished.

&quot;Earlier, there were a lot more static posts tailored to X or Facebook,&quot; said a member of the communications team of a BJP minister, speaking on condition of anonymity.

&quot;But now the ask is for more reels, preferably with minimal editing, and some rawness.&quot;

Posters of Gen-Z pledges 

Posters proclaiming, &quot;I am Gen ⁠Z&quot; have ​sprung up across Mumbai, bearing pledges attributed to Gen Z, from promises to respect the police, the army ​and Modi, as well as support students.

It is unclear if the strategy will succeed, however.

&quot;The internet has its own language and culture,&quot; said author and podcaster Anurag Minus Verma.

&quot;Serious political messaging, packaged as reels, can still be ​trolled. There will be more focus on Instagram, but it remains to be seen if Gen Z buys into that.&quot;

&nbsp;]]>
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			<title>Google’s $15b India data centre project battles water, wildlife concerns</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622387/googles-15b-india-data-centre-project-battles-water-wildlife-concerns</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622387/googles-15b-india-data-centre-project-battles-water-wildlife-concerns#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 06 Aug 26 08:13:19 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
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				<![CDATA[Activists, children march with banners reading 'We cannot drink DATA' in Visakhapatnam]]>
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				<![CDATA[Work to build Google&#39;s planned Indian data centre hub is in full swing, with a ​hillside above the site stripped to red earth and terraced into steps, but mounting opposition from environmentalists is creating hurdles for the US&nbsp;tech &zwnj;giant&#39;s $15 billion project.

The southern state of Andhra Pradesh, governed by an ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has hailed the project as historic and transformational, has denied allegations that the project was fast-tracked without weighing risks to water supplies and wildlife.

But the growing opposition could become an early test for Google&#39;s biggest-ever India investment, which is facing several legal challenges over its impact on water ​supplies and proximity to a wildlife sanctuary that is home to leopards and pangolins.

In recent weeks, activists and children have marched in Visakhapatnam city, holding ​banners saying &quot;We cannot drink DATA&quot; and painting handcuffs on the Google logo, social media posts show.

On Sunday, Reuters attended a public ⁠gathering where activists chalked out plans for holding door-to-door awareness campaigns and beach protests in the coming days.

&quot;Development should not be at the cost of the livelihood of the ​people,&quot; Raja Rama Mohan Roy, founder of non-profit Green Visakha, said at the event where he presented statistics on Visakhapatnam&#39;s stressed water supply and demand.

Read:&nbsp;Google appeals Indian ruling over its ads platform, citing consumer harm

The government says the city ​receives 410 million litres of water a day from its reservoirs and rivers, against a requirement of 480 million. Rationing of water supplies is common in the city with a population of 2.5 million people.

Rapid data centre buildouts are facing pushback around the world for using huge quantities of water to cool servers and electricity. The potential impact is even more pronounced in a ​developing nation like India. In the US, opponents held&nbsp;142 protests&nbsp;across 42 states in July, raising similar concerns.

State defends, open to redressal

The state&#39;s top court on Monday ​asked the government to defend against allegations levelled by activist group Jal Biradari (Water Community), which says the project will strain water availability by putting stress on a nearby reservoir.

The Andhra Pradesh High &zwnj;Court will ⁠next hear the public interest litigation on August 24.

The state, in its statement to Reuters, called activists&#39; concerns about the project incorrect and misleading, but added it is open to feedback.

&quot;Such protests are their democratic right. In case any of these claims are legitimate, the government is committed to engaging and providing factual clarifications and suitable redressal,&quot; it said.

Google, in a statement to Reuters, said its project will be developed in line with applicable laws and it will implement &quot;advanced air cooling to protect vital local water resources&quot;.

Read more:&nbsp;Google breaks ground on Indian AI megahub

Work ​was well underway when Reuters visited on ​Monday, earthmovers still working the exposed ⁠ground.

The tech giant has partnered with Indian billionaire Gautam Adani&rsquo;s group, which will build the marquee project, which is seen creating up to 188,000 jobs. Adani did not respond to queries.

Wildlife and noise pollution 

The public interest litigation in Andhra Pradesh High Court ​also raises concerns that heavy construction and noise impact the Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary located just 860 metres away.

Asked about the ​site&#39;s proximity to the ⁠sanctuary, the state said it was farther away than the law requires. Google added it will be implementing sound-dampening measures to ensure &ldquo;we are a quiet, unobtrusive neighbour.&rdquo;

The project also faces three more cases filed at India&#39;s environmental court by the Human Rights Forum, demanding a halt. They argue the state cleared the project without properly assessing the impact of drawing ⁠supply from a ​rural drinking-water scheme, court documents show.

Also read:&nbsp;Bombay High Court allows Preity Zinta to pursue deepfake case against Google and Meta

The state added that no water for rural or residential purposes ​will be used for the upcoming data centres, and the water reservoir nearby will also not be used.

During the Sunday event, Green Visakha said it was concerned about the government&rsquo;s promise of &quot;guaranteed&quot; water supplies for ​20 years to the project as the city already faces shortages.

&quot;Who will be the sufferers? The people,&quot; said Roy.]]>
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			<title>Severe COVID may reactivate dormant viruses, study finds</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622423/severe-covid-may-reactivate-dormant-viruses-study-finds</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622423/severe-covid-may-reactivate-dormant-viruses-study-finds#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 06 Aug 26 11:52:20 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Anadolu Agency]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[World]]></category>
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				<![CDATA[Analysis of 1,154 hospitalised patients links viral reactivation to greater disease severity]]>
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				<![CDATA[Severe COVID-19 may reactivate viruses that have remained dormant in the body, with some of that activity associated with long-term symptoms, according to a study.

Researchers detected renewed activity from several common viruses in nearly half of the hospitalised COVID-19 patients they studied.

The findings, published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, showed that reactivation was associated with more severe COVID-19, increased inflammation and poorer clinical outcomes.

The researchers stressed, however, that the study did not prove that the reactivated viruses caused severe illness or long COVID.

More than 1,150 patients studied

The study examined 1,154 adults hospitalised with COVID-19 at 20 hospitals across the US between May 2020 and March 2021.

All participants were unvaccinated and had been infected before newer variants of the coronavirus became dominant.

Read:&nbsp;Fact Check: Hantavirus infection is not a confirmed side effect of Pfizer&rsquo;s COVID-19 vaccine

Researchers analysed blood, nasal swabs and samples taken from the lungs of ventilated patients. Participants were followed during hospitalisation and for up to 12 months afterwards.

Evidence of at least one reactivated virus was found in 550 of the 1,148 patients with sufficient data, or 47.9%.

Most of those patients had only one additional virus detected during the acute stage of COVID-19.

The reactivated pathogens included members of the herpesvirus family, such as Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus and herpes simplex virus, as well as anelloviruses.

These viruses commonly infect people early in life and can remain in the body without causing symptoms because the immune system keeps them under control.

Viruses reactivated at different times

The researchers found that the viruses did not reactivate simultaneously.

Epstein-Barr virus activity was most common near the time patients were admitted to the hospital. Detectable viral material was found in 24% of participants during the first eight days after admission before gradually declining.

Anellovirus activity was also common early in hospitalisation and remained relatively steady until about day 20.

Read more:&nbsp;Covid-19 cases in India on the rise, with 2 new variants detected

Cytomegalovirus and herpes simplex virus generally reactivated later, peaking approximately three weeks after hospitalisation and appearing mainly in respiratory samples.

The researchers found associations between severe COVID-19 and the reactivation of Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, herpes simplex virus and anelloviruses.

Patients with reactivated viruses also showed higher levels of inflammatory molecules and changes in immune cells, suggesting that the body was responding to more than SARS-CoV-2 alone.

The study found that the reactivations were not limited to patients taking immunosuppressive medicines. They also occurred frequently among people with otherwise functioning immune systems.

Possible link to long COVID

Anelloviruses were of particular interest because their activity after hospitalisation was associated with physical problems reported by patients with long COVID, including fatigue and reduced physical function.

This association remained after the researchers accounted for factors including age, medication-related immune suppression and the severity of the initial COVID-19 infection.

Anelloviruses are a large family of generally harmless viruses found in about 80% to 90% of the population.

Also read:&nbsp;Newly discovered bat virus shares the same entry method as Covid-19

The study did not find that Epstein-Barr virus activity during acute COVID-19 was more common among patients who later developed long COVID.

Researchers said the findings could eventually support new methods of predicting or treating severe COVID-19 and long COVID, including monitoring patients for the reactivation of latent viruses.

Existing antiviral medicines may also offer treatment options for some herpesviruses, but clinical studies would be required to determine whether treating reactivation improves patient outcomes.

The researchers cautioned that the findings might not fully apply to people with mild COVID-19, vaccinated populations or patients infected with more recent variants.

They called for further research to establish whether viral reactivation contributes directly to severe COVID-19 and long COVID or is mainly a consequence of the stress and inflammation caused by the disease.]]>
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			<title>Trump administration drafting ban on Chinese data center devices, sources say</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622046/trump-administration-drafting-ban-on-chinese-data-center-devices-sources-say</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622046/trump-administration-drafting-ban-on-chinese-data-center-devices-sources-say#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 04 Aug 26 12:35:51 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2622046</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[US China hawks seek to avoid a repeat of Huawei's deep foothold in telecom infrastructure]]>
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				<![CDATA[The Trump administration is drafting a ban on US imports of new models of Chinese data center components, four people familiar ​with the matter told Reuters, as it seeks to protect the infrastructure that undergirds the AI boom.

The Federal Communications Commission, which oversees the US telecom &zwnj;industry, is working on the measure to bar imports of new Chinese optical transceivers, which allow data to travel over fiber-optic cables at the speed of light within data centers. Officials hope to publish it this year, when it would take effect.

The move, not previously reported, aims to prevent Chinese firms from stealing data, installing malware or disrupting service at US data centers, which house the chips to train and ​run AI models.

The FCC could still modify or shelve the restriction, the sources stressed, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters. But it is ​the latest example of the Trump administration trying to limit Chinese technological incursions into cutting-edge US industries before they become embedded in the ⁠supply chain.

&quot;Transceivers definitely pose a risk,&quot; said Divyansh Kaushik, an AI policy expert at Washington, DC, advisory firm Beacon Global Strategies. &quot;As the data center buildout scales up, you want ​to make sure the data center supply chain is secure from the get-go,&quot; he added.

China will respond if necessary: Embassy

The White House and the FCC did not respond to requests for ​comment. The Chinese embassy in Washington said Beijing urges the United States to &quot;heed the objective and rational voices of the business communities in both countries&quot; and &quot;stop smearing Chinese companies and threatening them with sanctions.&quot;

&quot;China will take all necessary measures in response to any action that causes material harm to its interests,&quot; it added.

China hawks in the administration are keen to avoid another situation like Huawei, where telecom equipment ​made by the heavily sanctioned Chinese firm was so deeply embedded in US&nbsp;infrastructure that efforts to remove it were slow, expensive and incomplete.

Read More: Alibaba unveils its largest AI model yet, DeepSeek&#39;s latest model is ultra-low cost

The FCC has historically been independent, but ​in June the&nbsp;US Supreme Court&nbsp;backed&nbsp;President Donald Trump&#39;s firing of a Democratic Federal Trade Commission member, expanding his powers over the government, including certain regulatory agencies.

A US ban on new models of Chinese &zwnj;data center ⁠devices would likely hit China&rsquo;s Zhongji Innolight&nbsp;, one of the biggest global sellers of transceivers, which was added to the Pentagon&rsquo;s list of alleged Chinese military-backed companies in June. The list can be a harbinger of tougher action. Innolight did not respond to requests for comment.

A ban could also raise costs for American cloud firms such as Amazon Web Services&nbsp;, as it may force them to transition to other producers such as US-based Coherent&nbsp; and Lumentum, which stand to benefit from the measure.

Innolight has a leading 27% share of the global data ​center transceiver market, according to Counterpoint Research. ​Coherent and Lumentum sell competitive technology but ⁠lack the scale to replace Chinese vendors, according to a report by the Foundation for American Innovation. Innolight generates 90% of its revenue outside China, the report added.

AWS, Coherent and Lumentum did not respond to requests for comment.

The FCC has imposed similar curbs on ​Chinese&nbsp;drones,&nbsp;routers,&nbsp;robots&nbsp;and&nbsp;inverters, as first reported by Reuters.

In line with those restrictions, the agency would ban all imports of new transceiver models ​and then exempt many ⁠non-Chinese suppliers from the restrictions, three of the sources said.

Trump drew attention during his first term to alleged intellectual property theft by Chinese firms and state-sponsored spying by Huawei, which the company denies.

But Trump has taken a less aggressive approach during his second term after Beijing&#39;s use of export controls on rare earth minerals last year.

Reuters reported in February&nbsp;that the Commerce Department, which ⁠has tools to ​police the tech supply chain for perceived threats from China, shelved a group of import restrictions on ​China &mdash; including one targeting Chinese data center equipment &mdash; following a trade war d&eacute;tente last October.

But the FCC has stepped in, announcing the drone and router bans in December and March, respectively, via its so-called Covered List, created ​by Congress to bar future equipment sales by foreign companies whose products pose national security risks. Moves against Chinese inverters and robots followed last week.

&nbsp;]]>
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			<title>Alibaba unveils its largest AI model yet, DeepSeek's latest model is ultra-low cost</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2621839/alibaba-unveils-its-largest-ai-model-yet-deepseeks-latest-model-is-ultra-low-cost</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2621839/alibaba-unveils-its-largest-ai-model-yet-deepseeks-latest-model-is-ultra-low-cost#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 03 Aug 26 13:24:52 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2621839</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The developments show Chinese AI firms racing to build more powerful systems without sharply raising costs]]>
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				<![CDATA[China&#39;s Alibaba on Monday unveiled its largest ​and most capable AI model to date, sending its shares surging, while a research firm said DeepSeek&#39;s latest product offers cut-throat pricing that &zwnj;is more than 100 times cheaper than Anthropic&#39;s Claude Fable 5.

The two developments highlight the rapid pace of advancement in artificial intelligence by Chinese tech firms, which are locked in a fierce and fast-moving battle to build more powerful systems without making them prohibitively expensive to run.

Trillions of parameters 

Alibaba&#39;s new Qwen3.8-Max immediately shot up leaderboards assessing the capabilities of AI models after being unveiled on Monday, helping its shares ​jump 7% in Hong Kong trade.

The model has 2.4 trillion parameters, the numerical settings a model learns from data and uses to recognise patterns, generate answers, and carry out tasks. That puts it not too far behind domestic rival Moonshot AI&#39;s Kimi K3, which was launched last month and has 2.8 trillion parameters.

A higher parameter figure does not automatically make a model better, but ​it has become a closely watched measure of the scale of the computing and data behind advanced AI systems.



Introducing Qwen3.8-Max, the largest and most capable flagship model to date!

With 2.4 trillion parameters and a 1 million-token context window, it is designed for advanced coding, real-world tasks, in-depth research, and tackling long-horizon challenges.#AlibabaAI #Qwen https://t.co/MQX0XiaQkg
&mdash; Alibaba Group (@AlibabaGroup) August 3, 2026


Qwen3.8-Max was unveiled on crowdsourced, model-comparison platform Arena.AI. It ​soon became the highest-ranking Chinese model in terms of text models, though it still lags Claude Fable 5 and three Opus variants which are all from Anthropic.

On Arena.AI&#39;s leaderboard for AI &zwnj;models that ⁠analyse images and other visual material, Qwen3.8-Max ranked second globally, only behind a Claude Fable 5 variant.

Read More:&nbsp;AI-powered system increases accuracy in predicting typhoon tracks

Both Qwen3.8-Max and Kimi K3 can handle text, images and video, and process up to 1 million tokens at a time.

Tokens are chunks of data, often parts of words or short words, and a big figure means the model can take in large amounts of material in one go, such as long legal files, a large software codebase or hundreds of pages of documents.

The tech giant said the ​model, due to be released next week, completed ​a software-engineering project in 16 days. ⁠It uses a &quot;mixture-of-experts&quot; design, which divides work among specialised parts of the system instead of switching on the entire model for every request. Only 95 billion parameters are used at a time, reducing costs and response delays.

Deepseek is ultra cheap

DeepSeek&#39;s V4-Flash model, ​released on Friday, is by far the least expensive to run on benchmark tests among well-known models globally, according to research ​firm Artificial Analysis.

The startup, ⁠which sources have said is preparing for a potential IPO, saw its R1 and V3 models become a global sensation in early 2025, triggering a selloff in global tech stocks and raising questions about the large amounts US companies were spending on AI.

V4-Flash charges $0.14 per million input tokens and $0.28 per million output tokens, according to San Francisco-based Artificial Analysis.

Artificial Analysis ⁠estimated V4-Flash&#39;s ​average cost at 3 cents per test, compared with 86 cents for Kimi K3, $1.86 for OpenAI&#39;s ​GPT-5.6 Sol and $3.15 for Claude Fable 5.

The comparison provides a more realistic measure of value than pricing alone because it accounts for the amount of data a model must process and generate to complete a ​task. A model with low headline price can still prove expensive if it requires significantly more steps to produce an answer.]]>
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			<title>2.5 hours saved! Cliff elevator becomes students' "cloud shuttle"</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2621668/25-hours-saved-cliff-elevator-becomes-students-cloud-shuttle</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2621668/25-hours-saved-cliff-elevator-becomes-students-cloud-shuttle#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 02 Aug 26 12:12:51 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[xinhua.]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[Nizhu River's new 288-meter cliff elevator and cable car now give local students a free &quot;cloud shuttle&quot; to school]]>
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				<![CDATA[From three hours to just 30 minutes -- a newly opened 288-meter cliff elevator in Xuanwei, southwest China&#39;s Yunnan, serves as a &quot;cloud shuttle&quot; for transporting students in valley villages to cliff-top schools.

Nizhuhe Village is a small hamlet nestled in a deep valley carved by the Nizhu River meandering from south to north. In the past, the villagers&#39; shortest route from the valley floor to the mountaintop was a perilous cliffside path, a journey that took nearly six hours for a round trip. Children and their parents living here had to make this arduous trek at least once every ten days.



This undated file photo shows children of Nizhuhe Village climbing a cliffside path on their way to school in Puli Township, Xuanwei City, southwest China&#39;s Yunnan Province. PHOTO: XINHUA



From three hours to just 30 minutes -- a newly opened 288-meter cliff elevator in Xuanwei, southwest China&#39;s Yunnan, serves as a &quot;cloud shuttle&quot; for transporting students in valley villages to cliff-top schools. #China #Infrastructure pic.twitter.com/gV9C9iLn9U
&mdash; China Xinhua News (@XHNews) August 1, 2026



A local scenic area along the Nizhu River was officially completed and began operations. A 288-meter-high sightseeing elevator and a cable car system were put into use, offering free access to the villagers of Nizhuhe and nearby areas. This provided the children with a direct &quot;cloud shuttle&quot; to the mountaintop.



Students from Nizhuhe Village prepare to take a sightseeing elevator on their way to school in Puli Township, Xuanwei City, southwest China&#39;s Yunnan Province. PHOTO: XINHUA

Nowadays, thanks to the sightseeing shuttle vehicles, elevator and cable cars of the scenic spot, the children&#39;s journey to school was shortened to just half an hour.]]>
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			<title>Will SpaceX paint its rocket pink? Investor questions go beyond Moon and Mars ahead of first results</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2621522/will-spacex-paint-its-rocket-pink-investor-questions-go</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2621522/will-spacex-paint-its-rocket-pink-investor-questions-go#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 01 Aug 26 11:36:14 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2621522</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[SpaceX opens online Q&amp;A ahead of earnings call with Musk, letting investors submit and vote on questions]]>
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				<![CDATA[SpaceX&#39;s&nbsp;&nbsp;first earnings call as a public company may be expected to focus on AI spending and profits from its Starlink satellite communications network, but many retail investors have other things on their minds.

Taking a ​page from Elon Musk&#39;s other big company, Tesla, newly public rocket maker SpaceX has opened an online &zwnj;venue for investors to ask questions ahead of a call about results that is expected to feature Musk. Users can&nbsp;submit questions, &nbsp;and vote on which ones will be answered, creating a list ranked by popularity.

Among the most popular shareholder questions submitted ahead of Tuesday&#39;s call were ​requests for more footage of Starship&#39;s Human Landing System, the vehicle designed to carry astronauts to the moon ​for NASA&#39;s Artemis program next year.

Investors also asked whether Asteroid, SpaceX&#39;s recently unveiled Shiba Inu mascot, ⁠celebrated with a $35 plush toy, could take on a larger role in education, children&#39;s charities and outreach.

Other shareholders wanted ​to know when the new Starship would begin refueling in orbit, when it would catch both its booster and upper stage, ​and how to improve the rocket&#39;s look.

&quot;Can we paint the rocket pink?&quot; a user asked.

Read More:&nbsp;Amazon&#39;s Zoox wins first US approval for paid robotaxis without human controls

Another suggested selling sponsorships for individual heat shield tiles so fans could have their names flown into space.

The eclectic mix of questions comes after SpaceX set aside roughly 30% of its IPO ​shares for retail investors, one of the largest individual investor allocations in a major U.S. listing.

SpaceX&#39;s shares lost more than ​half their value from their post-IPO intraday peak. Still, questions about its business outlook and finances were relatively unpopular, and those that &zwnj;did get ⁠some support focused on issues such as timing of sending orbital AI data centers into space rather than finances.

When the company&#39;s AI business could begin paying for itself was question number 183 as of late on Friday afternoon.

Tesla posted its own results Wednesday last week and investors then repeatedly pressed Musk about a potential merger with SpaceX, including several questions that ​attracted more than 100 votes.

But ​the same topic barely ⁠registered on SpaceX&#39;s forum, where it appeared just once with a single upvote on Friday morning, the morning after the Wall Street Journal reported that executives at Tesla have been told ​to prepare for a separation of its China business ahead of a potential merger. ​Musk denied&nbsp;the report.

Most ⁠retail investors were optimistic about SpaceX&#39;s future, but one user questioned whether Musk&#39;s own long-term vision made investing worthwhile. Musk has said advances in AI and robotics could eventually create a world of abundance where goods and services become so inexpensive that ⁠money may ​lose much of its importance.

&quot;If money won&#39;t matter in 10 years like ​Elon recently stated... then why should people buy more shares and invest more money?&quot; the investor asked. The question received no upvotes with four days ​left till the company publishes its first quarterly results.]]>
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			<title>Meta's AI spending spree lays bare its compute dilemma</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2621141/metas-ai-spending-spree-lays-bare-its-compute-dilemma</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2621141/metas-ai-spending-spree-lays-bare-its-compute-dilemma#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 30 Jul 26 14:00:30 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[Meta's AI spending cut free cash flow 91% to $784 million, sending shares down 9% in premarket trade]]>
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				<![CDATA[Meta can simultaneously advance its own artificial intelligence ambitions while renting out scarce computing capacity to boost returns, Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg signalled on Wednesday. Investors, however, are not convinced.

The Facebook and Instagram owner is spending billions of dollars on AI infrastructure, including chips, servers, energy and data centres, leaving it with free cash flow of just $784 million in the second quarter, a 91% decline from a year earlier. The slump sent Meta shares down about 9% in premarket trading on Thursday.

Pressed by analysts on Meta&#39;s strategy, Zuckerberg described computing capacity as a scarce strategic asset that the company should retain and expand rather than sell for short-term gains.

He acknowledged, however, that Meta had received several offers from businesses willing to pay &quot;a meaningful premium&quot; to use its computing capacity for their own AI projects.

The tension highlights Meta&#39;s challenge in diversifying its revenue. Selling compute could ease pressure on cash flow but would also divert resources from its own efforts to develop AI models and services.

Having built its business on digital advertising through Facebook and Instagram, Meta is now competing with Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon, which have established enterprise cloud businesses and are already generating significant AI-related revenue.

Microsoft demonstrated the strength of that model on Wednesday. Despite a 23% drop in free cash flow, the company exceeded expectations for Azure cloud growth and Copilot adoption, sending its shares up about 8%.

Selling intelligence over compute

&quot;We believe that there will continue to be a significantly higher margin on selling intelligence rather than selling compute directly, but we think that there&#39;s a big opportunity to sell compute as well,&quot; Zuckerberg said.

He said Meta expects AI-powered personal assistants to become products used by billions of consumers, while business AI agents could eventually support customer service, sales and marketing.

Beyond broad references to subscription services and enterprise products, however, Zuckerberg provided few details on how those businesses would generate returns sufficient to justify Meta&#39;s massive AI spending.

Responding to J.P. Morgan analyst Doug Anmuth, Zuckerberg said Meta was deliberately investing ahead of demand because data centres require years to build before becoming operational.

&quot;There is a lead time where we&#39;re investing in building out these data centres now. They come online at some point in the future. You obviously are not getting value out of them until they&#39;re online,&quot; he said.

Spending like a cloud giant

&quot;Meta is spending like a hyperscaler without a hyperscaler&#39;s business model,&quot; said Josh Gilbert, APAC market analyst at eToro.

&quot;Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon can point their data centre dollars at cloud businesses that sell compute straight back out the door, but Meta doesn&#39;t have the same outlet, so every dollar of build-out leans on the ads business,&quot; he said.]]>
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			<title>Saudi-led consortium finalises $55b acquisition of gaming giant EA</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622244/saudi-led-consortium-finalises-55b-acquisition-of-gaming-giant-ea</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2622244/saudi-led-consortium-finalises-55b-acquisition-of-gaming-giant-ea#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 05 Aug 26 14:05:03 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Anadolu Agency]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[World]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2622244</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Saudi Arabia has steadily expanded its investments in the global gaming industry as part of its Vision 2030 strategy]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[A Saudi-led investment group on Wednesday finalised the $55 billion acquisition of American video game publisher Electronic Arts (EA), according to official statements and industry reports.

The deal, which takes the publisher of major franchises such as EA Sports FC, The Sims, and Mass Effect private, marks the largest leveraged buyout in corporate history and the second-largest acquisition in gaming history, behind Microsoft&#39;s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

Under the terms of the transaction, the acquiring consortium, led by Saudi Arabia&#39;s Public Investment Fund (PIF) alongside Affinity Partners, provided $36 billion in equity and secured $20 billion in debt financing from JPMorgan to complete the acquisition.

The investor group, which includes Affinity Partners, the private equity firm founded by President Donald Trump&#39;s son-in-law Jared Kushner, will take EA private by acquiring all outstanding publicly traded shares, ending the company&#39;s stock market listing.



EA has officially completed its $55 billion acquisition to an investor group comprised of Saudia Arabia&#39;s Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners. https://t.co/qLZEfPMAPo pic.twitter.com/1EsrMWDluI
&mdash; IGN (@IGN) August 4, 2026


EA Chief Executive Officer Andrew Wilson, who will retain his position following the privatisation, said the company plans to &quot;create transformative experiences to inspire generations to come&quot; under the new ownership structure.

The transaction has drawn scrutiny from industry analysts and advocacy groups over the potential impact of heavy debt servicing on EA&#39;s operational strategy, as well as concerns about creative freedom and content moderation across the company&#39;s major game franchises.

READ: Saudi Arabia emerging as global eSports dynamo

Controlled by the Saudi government, the $514 billion PIF has expanded its presence in sports and entertainment in recent years, including through the acquisition of Premier League football club Newcastle United and by hosting international e-sports competitions.

Saudi Arabia has steadily expanded its investments in the global gaming industry as part of its Vision 2030 strategy to diversify the economy beyond oil.

READ MORE: Vision 2030: how far has Saudi Arabia come?

PIF already holds stakes in several major gaming companies, including Nintendo and Capcom, and has invested in e-sports, game publishing and international gaming events as it seeks to position the kingdom as a global gaming hub.

Electronic Arts&#39; net revenue totalled $7.46 billion last year.]]>
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			<title>Microsoft to cut 4,800 jobs, overhaul Xbox unit</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2616822/microsoft-to-cut-4800-jobs-overhaul-xbox-unit</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2616822/microsoft-to-cut-4800-jobs-overhaul-xbox-unit#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jul 26 18:13:27 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2616822</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Microsoft Xbox expansion, including Activision deal, still trails Sony and Nintendo in gaming market]]>
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			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Microsoft said on Monday it would cut 4,800 jobs, or ​about 2.1% of its global workforce, overhauling its Xbox gaming business and divesting up to five studios as it looks to &zwnj;boost returns after years of heavy investment in the division.

The restructuring of its gaming division will involve 3,200 job cuts, including laying off 1,600 employees on Monday.

Despite spending tens of billions of dollars to expand Xbox, including its blockbuster acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft has struggled to narrow the gap with Sony&#39;s PlayStation, and Nintendo, prompting a broader rethink of ​the gaming business.

The company has increasingly shifted its strategy toward distributing its games across more platforms rather than relying on console-exclusive titles ​to drive Xbox hardware sales.

The Xbox restructuring will involve divestment of four studios, Xbox&#39;s new head, Asha Sharma, said in ⁠a note to employees.

&#39;South of Midnight&#39; producer Compulsion Games and &#39;Psychonauts&#39; maker Double Fine Productions will become independent studios, while Ninja Theory and Undead Labs will ​be spun off to grow &#39;Senua&#39; and &#39;State of Decay 3&#39;, Sharma said.

The management of Arkane Studios, which developed &#39;Dishonored&#39; and is currently working on a game based on ​Marvel Comics character Blade, has started consultations with its workers union in France to review options, she added.

AI-driven efficiency push 

Big Tech&#39;s historic AI outlays, set to top $700 billion this year, are piling pressure on companies to show returns from the technology and offset the rising cost of rolling it out across their businesses. Amazon and Meta Platforms have also laid off ​thousands of employees this year.

Chief People Officer Amy Coleman, however, told employees in a memo that &quot;the roles eliminated today are not being replaced by AI.&quot;

&quot;At the same time, ​what is true is that AI is changing how work gets done.&quot;

Burgeoning AI spend 

&quot;That (targeted cuts) makes the announcement read more like portfolio reallocation and operating discipline than a fresh &zwnj;catalyst for ⁠the stock,&quot; said Parth Talsania, CEO of Equisights Research.

Read More: Indian IT firms face muted Q1 as AI shift, weak demand weigh

&quot;In the near term, the market is likely to reward Microsoft less for headcount reductions and more for evidence that AI monetization is scaling faster than AI-related costs.&quot;

The company&#39;s shares were down 1.4% on Monday, following a nearly 23% slump in its shares in the first six months of 2026, their worst first-half performance since 2022.

The software giant earlier this year offered voluntary buyouts to about 7% of its US ​workforce, or about 9,000 employees. Microsoft often ​trims jobs near the end of ⁠its fiscal year in June as it sets spending plans for the new year.

&quot;Microsoft has been managing down its workforce in order to pay for its AI investments. By keeping its headcount down they have been able to ​accelerate revenue growth while maintaining the same margins,&quot; said Gil Luria, managing director of DA Davidson.

Booming AI demand has ​powered growth at ⁠Microsoft&#39;s Azure cloud-computing business, which was the exclusive seller of OpenAI&#39;s models until April, but the mounting cost of building data centers to run those services is squeezing its cash flows.

The company, expected to report results later this month, had in April forecast quarterly Azure sales above Wall Street estimates, but also issued a $190 billion ⁠spending projection ​for 2026 that massively surpassed expectations.

AI tools that can increasingly automate routine business tasks have ​also emerged as a threat to its lucrative software business, while a surge in memory chip prices driven by data center demand has forced Microsoft to raise Xbox console prices at a ​time when demand for the console was already soft.]]>
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			<title>PlayStation to end physical game discs for new releases from 2028, Sony confirms</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2615929/playstation-to-end-physical-game-discs-for-new-releases-from-2028-sony-confirms</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2615929/playstation-to-end-physical-game-discs-for-new-releases-from-2028-sony-confirms#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 01 Jul 26 13:15:43 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Pop Culture &amp; Art]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Entertainment]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2615929</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Sony says all new PlayStation games will be digital-only from January 2028 as physical disc production ends]]>
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				<![CDATA[Sony has confirmed that it will stop producing physical discs for all new PlayStation game releases from January 2028, marking a major shift towards digital distribution for the platform.

In a statement published on the official PlayStation Blog, the company said all new games released from January 2028 onwards will be available exclusively in digital formats through the PlayStation Store and participating retailers offering digital game codes.

The change applies only to new releases. Sony confirmed that games launched before the January 2028 cut-off will continue to be produced and sold on physical discs.

Explaining the decision, the company said it reflects changing consumer habits and the wider entertainment industry&#39;s ongoing move away from physical media.

&quot;As consumer preferences and the broader entertainment industry continue to shift away from physical discs to digital, physical game disc production for all new games releasing on PlayStation consoles will be discontinued starting January 2028,&quot; Sony said.

The company described the decision as &quot;a natural direction&quot; for Sony Interactive Entertainment.

&quot;This is a natural direction for Sony Interactive Entertainment to adapt to consumer trends as the general preference for digital media significantly outpaces physical discs. This transition will enable us to align more closely with how most of our community prefers to access and play games today,&quot; the statement continued.

Sony also said players will still have multiple purchasing options, with digital titles remaining available through both the PlayStation Store and participating retailers.

&quot;We&#39;ll continue to prioritize our resources to drive innovation in how players can access games and provide choices as to where players prefer to purchase new games, whether that&#39;s at retailers or PlayStation Store. We remain committed to delivering a world-class gaming experience to our fans and we thank you for your continued support.&quot;]]>
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			<title>Meta expands generative AI tools with Muse Image rollout</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2617010/meta-expands-generative-ai-tools-with-muse-image-rollout</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2617010/meta-expands-generative-ai-tools-with-muse-image-rollout#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 07 Jul 26 18:28:27 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2617010</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Meta said Muse Image can interpret prompts, use photos as inputs and edit AI-generated images through sketches]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Meta Platforms said on Tuesday it is rolling out Muse Image, its first image-generation model from ​Meta Superintelligence Labs, as the Facebook owner &zwnj;expands generative AI tools across its apps.

The company said Muse Image, which is integrated into its Meta AI chatbot, can ​interpret complex prompts, use photos as inputs and ​let users edit generated images directly through ⁠sketches or annotations.

Meta said its Muse Image model will power more than 30 new AI effects for Instagram Stories and enable image generation in direct chats with Meta AI on WhatsApp, initially in select countries.

Read More: Meta&#39;s Zuckerberg says AI agent tech progressing slower than expected

The company plans to expand Muse Image to more markets and integrate the technology into Facebook and Messenger.

While basic use of Muse Image through Meta AI will remain free, additional image creation capabilities will be offered through Meta&rsquo;s subscription plans.

In April, Meta launched Muse Spark, the first text-and-reasoning AI model developed by its Meta Superintelligence Labs team, which was assembled last year as the company sought to compete with rivals in the artificial intelligence race.

Advanced AI models are driving the current AI boom, powering autonomous tasks such as software development, content generation and customer support operations.

Meta also announced an early preview of Muse Video, its AI model designed to generate videos.]]>
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			<title>Apple plans affordable iPhone 17e with upgraded chip</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2591746/apple-plans-affordable-iphone-17e-with-upgraded-chip</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2591746/apple-plans-affordable-iphone-17e-with-upgraded-chip#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 10 Feb 26 05:58:33 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Web Desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2591746</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[It is also expected to include Apple’s in-house cellular, Wi-Fi chips]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[Apple is preparing to introduce a more affordable version of the iPhone 17 alongside an upgraded version of its Siri voice assistant, according to a recent report by Bloomberg.

The company is planning to launch the iPhone 17e, which will follow last year&rsquo;s iPhone 16e &mdash; a lower-priced model that used older hardware to reduce costs.

According to Bloomberg, the new iPhone 17e will feature a more powerful processor, matching that of the standard iPhone 17. It is also expected to include Apple&rsquo;s in-house cellular and Wi-Fi chips.

The report adds that, for the first time, a lower-priced iPhone model will support wireless MagSafe charging.

Despite the upgrades, the device is expected to retain its price tag of $599 or &pound;599, with no increase anticipated.

Read:&nbsp;Everything Apple announced at its September 2025 iPhone 17 keynote event

Earlier on September 9, 2025,&nbsp;Apple unveiled its latest products during the highly anticipated iPhone 17.

They introduced the iPhone 17 lineup, a new ultra-slim model called the iPhone Air, updated Apple Watches, and the long-awaited AirPods Pro 3.

The highlight was the iPhone Air, Apple&rsquo;s thinnest iPhone ever, at just 5.6mm. Positioned as part of a multi-year redesign strategy, the Air aims to redefine Apple&rsquo;s smartphone form factor. Alongside it, the standard iPhone 17 iPhone 17 Pro and iphone 17 Pro Max also made their debut with upgraded cameras and design refinements.

On the wearable front, Apple announced the Apple Watch Series 11, featuring 5G connectivity, improved durability, and new health-monitoring capabilities, including hypertension alerts. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 introduced satellite connectivity, a larger edge-to-edge display, and up to 42 hours of battery life.

Meanwhile, the entry-level Apple Watch SE 3 received upgrades including an always-on display, the faster S10 processor, sleep apnea detection, and 5G support, starting at $249.

&nbsp;]]>
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			<title>Samsung unveils Galaxy Z TriFold, its most expensive foldable yet</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2580147/samsung-unveils-galaxy-z-trifold-its-most-expensive-foldable-yet</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2580147/samsung-unveils-galaxy-z-trifold-its-most-expensive-foldable-yet#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 02 Dec 25 08:43:54 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[AFP]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2580147</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Samsung says the 10-inch triple-fold model is a ‘special edition’, not aimed at mass sales]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Galaxy Z TriFold will go on sale on December 12 and costs more than twice as much as the new iPhone 17 at $2,443.

Super thin, it unfolds to a 10-inch (25.4 centimetre) display, offering &quot;increased possibilities for creating and working&quot;, the South Korean tech giant said. The triple fold function is not a world-first, as&nbsp;China&#39;s Huawei beat Samsung to the punch last year with a phone at a similar price.

Growth has been patchy in the competitive smartphone market, prompting manufacturers to find innovative, eye-catching ways to differentiate their products.

Offered solely in a black design, Samsung&#39;s new device comes in at 309 grams&nbsp;and at its thinnest point measures less than 0.2 inches. Generative artificial intelligence features are integrated into the phone, which can give real-time help through screen or camera sharing.

Samsung admitted the Galaxy Z TriFold was &quot;not intended for mass sales&quot;. Alex Lim, executive vice president at Samsung Electronics, said it was a &quot;special edition&quot; product.

The launch comes as recent industry numbers suggest Apple is on track to overtake Samsung for the first time in 14 years as the world&#39;s top smartphone maker through 2029.

Apple has also long been rumoured to be planning a foldable iPhone, possibly as early as next year.

The US company&#39;s smartphone shipments are expected to reach a global share of 19.4% in 202,5, while Samsung is expected to hold 18.7%, with Apple effectively dethroning its rival for the first time, according to research firm Counterpoint.]]>
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			<title>WhatsApp rolls out fun filters and backgrounds for video calls</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2500381/whatsapp-rolls-out-fun-filters-and-backgrounds-for-video-calls</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2500381/whatsapp-rolls-out-fun-filters-and-backgrounds-for-video-calls#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 03 Oct 24 06:55:50 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[News Desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2500381</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[These new features are expected to be available to all WhatsApp users in the coming weeks.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[WhatsApp is rolling out new features designed to make video calls more engaging and fun. The messaging app has introduced filters and backgrounds, allowing users to add a personal touch to their video calls, whether it&#39;s a one-on-one conversation or a group call.

Although these features are already available on competitor apps like Zoom, WhatsApp is bringing them to an app primarily used for social, rather than work-related, calls.

Similar to Instagram&#39;s filters (also owned by Meta), WhatsApp&rsquo;s filters allow users to adjust the look of their video during a call.

This means there&rsquo;s no need to worry about tidying up your space or arranging a backdrop to impress&mdash;users can simply select a background that hides any mess or distraction, making it easier to focus on the conversation.

With 10 backgrounds available, users can choose from options like Blur, Office, Living Room, Caf&eacute;, Beach, Sunset, Pebbles, Foodie, Celebration, Forest, and the quirky Smoosh.

These backgrounds give users the flexibility to transform their environment instantly, hiding clutter or adding a polished touch to their surroundings.

In addition, there are 10 filter options, including Warm, Cool, Black &amp; White, and Vintage TV, providing a playful way to change the atmosphere of your video.

WhatsApp has also introduced Touch up and Low Light features, which &ldquo;can help you feel more confident and comfortable by naturally enhancing the look and brightness of your environment, making your video calls more vibrant and enjoyable,&rdquo; according to the announcement.

To access these effects, users can simply tap the effects icon during a video call and choose from the available options.

These new features are expected to be available to all WhatsApp users in the coming weeks, further enhancing the video call experience.]]>
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			<title>Meta bans Russian state media outlets over 'foreign interference'</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2496794/meta-bans-russian-state-media-outlets-over-foreign-interference</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2496794/meta-bans-russian-state-media-outlets-over-foreign-interference#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 17 Sep 24 08:50:46 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[News Desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2496794</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Meta accuses outlets RT and Rossiya Segodnya of employing tactics to manipulate public opinion and evade detection]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads, announced a global ban on Russian state media outlets, including RT and Rossiya Segodnya.

This decision is part of an intensified crackdown on alleged foreign interference, with Meta accusing these outlets of employing deceptive tactics to manipulate public opinion and evade detection.

The ban follows recent US actions, including money-laundering charges against two RT employees who allegedly orchestrated a scheme to influence the 2024 election.

According to Meta, Russian state-controlled media have previously attempted to evade detection through covert activities, prompting the company to take more stringent measures.

Meta&#39;s move marks a significant escalation in its approach to Russian state media, which had previously faced only limited restrictions, such as ad bans and reduced post visibility.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called for treating Russian media operations as covert intelligence activities, reinforcing the government&#39;s stance on combating foreign influence.

He recently announced new sanctions against RT, labeling it as an extension of Russian intelligence operations aimed at undermining democratic processes.

RT has dismissed these accusations, labeling them as attempts to stifle its journalistic activities.

In response to Meta&#39;s ban, RT&#39;s spokesperson denounced the actions as unfounded and politically motivated.

The ban on these Russian media outlets is expected to be enforced over the coming days.

Meta has also been censoring Palestinian creators and activists during Israel&#39;s brutal onslaught on besieged Gaza.

The social media company was recently found censoring posts made by the Prime Minister of Malaysia,&nbsp;several Turkish government officials along with journliats and activitsts. Some of these take downs were attributed to glitches, which coinidently were always targeted pro-Palestinian voices in favour of Israel.

A Human Rights Watch report last year revealed that Meta&rsquo;s policies and practices have been suppressing voices advocating for Palestine and Palestinian human rights on Instagram and Facebook.&nbsp;]]>
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			<title>Meet Noor Pakistan: The multilingual chatbot ready to assist at the defence exhibition</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2495041/meet-noor-pakistan-the-multilingual-chatbot-ready-to-assist-at-the-defence-exhibition</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2495041/meet-noor-pakistan-the-multilingual-chatbot-ready-to-assist-at-the-defence-exhibition#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 10 Sep 24 12:02:30 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[News Desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2495041</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Around 40 mobile chatbot robots offering support in 25 different languages are being prepared for the IDEAS exhibition]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Chatbots, created by engineering universities in Pakistan, will now be able to&nbsp;assist and guide international delegates at a defence exhibition taking place this November.

The AI-powered chatbot project is a collaborative effort between Dawood University of Engineering and Ziauddin University, and it has been named &ldquo;Noor Pakistan.&rdquo;

The Noor Pakistan robot, designed to assist delegates at major national events in Pakistan, is being led by Dr. Samreen, Vice Chancellor of Dawood University of Engineering.

The team developing the chatbot is guided by Dr. Sheikh Mohammad Nafeh from the Computer Science and Software Engineering Department at Ziauddin University.

The student team includes Sharif Khan, Zoha, Mohammad Saeed, and others.

Dr. Sheikh Mohammad Nafeh, speaking about the project, explained that the goal is to create a bot capable of generating its own responses about major events. This bot was first unveiled at the IEEEP exhibition.

This bot will be officially presented at the IDEAS 2024 defence exhibition in November. Noor Pakistan, equipped with artificial intelligence, will function like a brain, capable of understanding and responding in multiple languages.

The chatbot will be designed in the form of a robot to provide on-the-go assistance and guidance to delegates.

For the IDEAS exhibition, around 40 mobile chatbot robots will be prepared, offering support in 25 different languages. In addition to answering questions about the IDEAS exhibition, they will guide delegates to specific halls or stalls.]]>
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			<title>China's DeepSeek considers new fundraising after first round, FT reports</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2618208/chinas-deepseek-considers-new-fundraising-after-first-round-ft-reports</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2618208/chinas-deepseek-considers-new-fundraising-after-first-round-ft-reports#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 26 13:06:06 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2618208</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The company began talks with new investors on a funding round that could value it at about $71 billion]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Chinese AI startup DeepSeek is weighing raising new funds one month after ​closing its first round, the Financial &zwnj;Times reported on Tuesday.

The company started preliminary talks this week with new investors about opening ​another round that would value the ​company at about $71 billion before the deal, ⁠according to the report.

DeepSeek did not ​immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read More: AI firms&#39; mass purchase, destruction of books for model training fuels copyright debate

DeepSeek, ​China&#39;s best-known AI startup, completed its first-ever round of financing around the end of May, which ​raised about $7 billion at a valuation ​of $52 billion, including the raised funds, the FT added.

DeepSeek did not ​immediately respond to a request for comment.

DeepSeek, ​China&#39;s best-known AI startup, completed its first-ever round of financing around the end of May, which ​raised about $7 billion at a valuation ​of $52 billion, including the raised funds, the FT added.]]>
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			<title>From shampoo to cookies, consumer products get an AI makeover</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2616797/from-shampoo-to-cookies-consumer-products-get-an-ai-makeover</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2616797/from-shampoo-to-cookies-consumer-products-get-an-ai-makeover#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jul 26 14:37:32 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2616797</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Nestle, Haleon and Mondelez use AI to speed product innovation, recipe design and supply chain planning]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[French cosmetics company L&#39;Oreal&nbsp;has used AI to identify molecules in its &zwnj;skincare products that can be repurposed for use in shampoo and can now create products four times faster than before, a senior executive told Reuters.

Consumer companies, including Nescafe owner Nestle&nbsp;,Sensodyne toothpaste maker Haleon&nbsp;and chocolate maker Mondelez&nbsp;, are using ​AI in product innovation, helping them in some cases test ingredients faster, generate recipe ideas ​and address supply chain vulnerabilities, executives said.

The push to integrate AI into product development ⁠comes as consumer goods companies face pressure to innovate faster and cut costs amid shifting consumer tastes.

​L&#39;Oreal, which started using AI in its labs four years ago, has identified new molecules for beauty products ​by predicting the effect they will have on skin and hair, said Fabrice Megarbane, president of its consumer products unit.

L&#39;Oreal&#39;s recent innovation was repurposing molecules used in skincare products for a shampoo that uses collagen to add lift and fullness ​to hair, Megarbane said.

&quot;You can really go much faster by imagining ... new associations of molecules and new ​benefits of molecules,&quot; Megarbane said at the Consumer Goods Forum&#39;s Global Summit in Vienna in late June.

Read More: Indian IT firms face muted Q1 as AI shift, weak demand weigh

L&#39;Oreal CEO Nicolas Hieronimus &zwnj;launched ⁠a &quot;beauty stimulus plan&quot; last year to spur innovation after L&#39;Oreal posted its slowest group sales growth in years.

AI compressing product development 

Human product innovation augmented by AI is a &quot;game-changer&quot; at chocolate maker Mondelez, Chief Information and Digital Officer Filippo Catalano told Reuters.

The technology has helped the Cadbury and Toblerone owner speed up processes and ​reimagine recipes. The firm ​said AI can create ⁠recipes, including &quot;out-of-the-box&quot; ideas, which a human expert assesses.

&quot;You can optimise how you develop your recipes,&quot; Catalano said, pointing to the possibility for reduced dependency on single ​sourcing in supply chains and the ability to adapt formulas to respond to ​changing consumer tastes.

Mondelez&#39;s ⁠AI tool is reducing the number of samples typically generated through innovation, he said. It helped develop its Gluten Free Golden Oreo cookies and a refreshed recipe for Chips Ahoy cookies, the firm said. In the ⁠biscuit category, ​60% of recipes produced using its AI tool performed better ​in areas such as nutrition, sustainability and cost.

&quot;(AI capabilities are) accelerating things you could do already, but compressing the time from months ​to weeks or years to months,&quot; Catalano said.]]>
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			<title>Google appeals Indian ruling over its ads platform, citing consumer harm</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2617347/google-appeals-indian-ruling-over-its-ads-platform-citing-consumer-harm</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2617347/google-appeals-indian-ruling-over-its-ads-platform-citing-consumer-harm#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 09 Jul 26 14:09:36 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2617347</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The Delhi High Court ruled against Google in the case, ordering it to pay damages of $31,600 and other costs]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[&nbsp;Google&nbsp;has challenged an Indian ​court ruling that it infringed on a company&#39;s trademark rights by allowing rivals to use its &zwnj;name as an advertising keyword, arguing the decision will hurt consumers, documents reviewed by Reuters show.

The&nbsp;May decision&nbsp;could reshape the online ads market in a country where Google last year earned $4.1 billion in gross advertising revenue but where it is also facing a raft of ​antitrust cases and court battles.

The Delhi High Court ruled against Google in the ​case, ordering it to pay damages of $31,600 and other litigation costs.

In its 4,761-page challenge, which is not public but was reviewed by Reuters, Google said the decision makes India the &quot;sole outlier&quot; among global jurisdictions &quot;with serious consequences for the digital advertising industry, online consumer choice, ​and competitive markets.&quot;

Researchers have observed that consumers may search for a brand in order to identify and assess alternatives, ​Google wrote in the July 7 filing, arguing the ruling will effectively grant trademark owners a &quot;monopoly over advertising space to the detriment &zwnj;of consumers.&quot;

In ⁠a response to a Reuters request for comment, Google confirmed it is appealing the order, which it said &quot;diverges from established legal precedents in India&quot;. It added that its ads policies reflect standard practices that enable competition.

Read More: Meta to put AI chip into production in September as it looks to double computing capacity, memo shows

Google India&#39;s appeal will be heard in the coming days.

Google selling something it doesn&rsquo;t own, judge says

If upheld, Indian lawyers and tech experts ​say the original ruling will ​have wide-ranging ramifications for how ⁠the online ads market operates.

Indian matchmaking service Shaadi.com, for example, said that it would change the economics of online ads for millions of businesses that were suffering when their ​competitors bid on their name and Google took a fee.

Justice Mini Pushkarna noted in ​the decision in ⁠May that Google could not be permitted to shrug off responsibility after making a tool available that leads to trademark infringement.

&quot;Google has attempted to sell something that it simply does not own,&quot; Pushkarna wrote.

Google&#39;s appeal rejects the position that it has ⁠infringed ​on trademarks, arguing that &quot;a keyword is merely used as an internal and ​backend trigger to display an ad&quot; and is simply &quot;making advertising space available&quot;.

Google also faces antitrust cases in India as well as legal challenges over&nbsp;AI ​training&nbsp;and stricter-than-ever&nbsp;content takedown regulations&nbsp;that began applying to tech companies from February.]]>
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			<title>Google loses fight against record €4.1 billion EU antitrust fine</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2616097/google-loses-fight-against-record-41-billion-eu-antitrust-fine</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2616097/google-loses-fight-against-record-41-billion-eu-antitrust-fine#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 02 Jul 26 11:33:47 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2616097</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Google has racked up close to €11 billion in EU fines in the last decades for various antitrust infringements.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Alphabet&#39;s Google on Thursday lost its fight against a record fine imposed by EU antitrust regulators ​eight years ago for using its Android mobile operating system to &zwnj;block rivals, a court ruling likely to boost Europe&#39;s crackdown on Big Tech.

The European Commission had originally handed out a &euro;4.34 billion fine to Google in 2018 for its agreements, ​which forced phone manufacturers to pre-install Google Search, the Chrome browser and ​the Google Play app store on their Android devices and ⁠prevented them from using rival Android systems.

A lower tribunal subsequently trimmed the fine ​to &euro;4.1 billion in 2022 after the world&#39;s most popular search engine challenged the ​EU penalty. Google then appealed to the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union, Europe&#39;s highest.

The court sided with the EU antitrust enforcer.

&quot;The appeal brought by Google and its ​parent company Alphabet against the judgment of the General Court is dismissed, ​thereby confirming the penalty imposed for Google Search&#39;s abuse of a dominant position in the &zwnj;context of ⁠the Android operating system,&quot; judges said.

Read More: EU targets Amazon, Microsoft cloud units for Big Tech &#39;gatekeeper&#39; rules

A Google spokesperson said that the judgment failed to take into account its investment to ensure Android remains open, interoperable and free.

&quot;In any event, we adapted our agreements to comply with the initial ​decision back in 2018 ​and we remain ⁠focused on continued innovation and openness for our users, partners and developers&quot;, Google said.

Google has racked up close to &euro;11 ​billion in EU fines in the last decades for various ​antitrust infringements.

It ⁠will likely see more fines in the near future for allegedly favouring its own services and products in search results and for practices related to its app ⁠store, ​both of which fall under the Digital Markets ​Act aimed at reining in the power of Big Tech.

The case is C-738/22 P Google and Alphabet ​v Commission.]]>
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			<title>Indonesia to restrict social media access for children under 16, minister says</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2596121/indonesia-to-restrict-social-media-access-for-children-under-16-minister-says</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2596121/indonesia-to-restrict-social-media-access-for-children-under-16-minister-says#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 06 Mar 26 09:20:25 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2596121</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[&quot;The process will be done gradually until all platforms perform their obligations&quot; said Indonesia's digital minister]]>
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				<![CDATA[Indonesia will restrict access to social media platforms for children under 16, its communications and digital ministry said on Friday, making it the latest country to install online guardrails to reduce the risks of addiction and cyberbullying.

A number of governments have imposed curbs on social media for children amid mounting concerns over the impact that social media is having on the safety and mental health of minors.

Australia introduced a ban on social media for under-16s in December, and Spain also said last month that it would ban access to social media for minors under 16.

Indonesia&#39;s neighbour Malaysiaannounced in November that it would also ban social media for users under the age of 16 starting from 2026.

Meutya Hafid, Indonesia&#39;s Communications and Digital Minister, said in a video statement that the government will &quot;delay access&quot; to social media accounts for children under 16 through a ministerial regulation issued on Friday.

Starting March 28, accounts owned by children under 16 on &quot;high risk platforms&quot; will be gradually deactivated, Meutya said, adding the platforms include TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Roblox.

&quot;The process will be done gradually until all platforms perform their obligations,&quot; she said, without elaborating on what they need to do to meet the new requirements.

&quot;We realise this may cause discomfort in the beginning. Children may complain and parents may be confused dealing with their complaints.&quot;

&quot;Our children are facing risks, from porn, cyberbullying, online fraud to most importantly, addiction,&quot; she said, adding Indonesia will be the first non-Western country to impose such restrictions.

TikTok, Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, and Roblox did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The details of the new regulation have yet to be revealed. Ministry officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Internet penetration in Indonesia, a country of about 280 million people, reached 79.5% in 2024, according to a survey of 8,700 people by the Indonesia internet service providers&#39; association.

The survey showed 48% of children under 12 had access to the internet, with some respondents of that age group using Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. The survey showed internet penetration stood at 87% among &quot;Gen Z&quot; users aged 12 to 27.]]>
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			<title>Norway imposes near ban on AI in elementary school</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2614102/norway-imposes-near-ban-on-ai-in-elementary-school</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2614102/norway-imposes-near-ban-on-ai-in-elementary-school#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 19 Jun 26 16:04:52 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2614102</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said using AI risks young children skipping important steps in their education]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[Norway is imposing a near ban on the use of generative AI tools by elementary school pupils while also restricting their use in the education of older children to prevent a negative impact on learning, the country&rsquo;s prime minister said on Friday.

Facing a broad decline in education test scores, the government in 2024 banned smartphones from schools and gave teachers more powers to enforce discipline in the classroom.

Using AI increases the risk that young children skip important steps in their education, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store told a press conference.

&ldquo;The most important thing in school is that our children learn to read, write and do mathematics,&rdquo; Store said, adding that the new standards will be imposed from the new school year beginning in late August.

Read More: The Indian workers training AI robots to take their jobs

Pupils from first through seventh grade (ages 6 to 13) should generally not use AI, while those in lower secondary school (ages 14 to 16) may cautiously adopt tools under teacher supervision, the government said.

In upper secondary education (ages 17 to 19), students should learn to use AI appropriately to prepare for further education and work, it added.

Norway began adopting computers in classrooms in the 1990s and tablets after the introduction of the iPad from 2010 onwards, reducing reliance on books and handwriting.

But in a related statement, the government also said it will propose legislation to fund more use of books in classrooms, reversing the trend towards computer tablets.

The Norwegian government in April also announced plans to ban children from using social media until age 16, following similar moves by Australia and other countries.]]>
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			<title>Meta offers support for AI models as Pakistan deepens digital push</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2555152/meta-offers-support-for-ai-models-as-pakistan-deepens-digital-push</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2555152/meta-offers-support-for-ai-models-as-pakistan-deepens-digital-push#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 25 11:23:48 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[Meta presented its latest developments in AI, including LLaMA, generative AI tools, and Urdu-language AI models]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, met with a high-level delegation from Meta, led by Sarim Aziz, Director of Public Policy for South and Central Asia, to discuss strengthening Pakistan&rsquo;s digital infrastructure, scaling artificial intelligence adoption, and empowering youth through technology.

Meta presented its latest developments in AI, including the LLaMA open-source models, Generative AI tools for public sector innovation, and work on Urdu-language AI models.

The company also expressed interest in helping Pakistan build local AI capacity and expanding technical training initiatives.

Shaza Fatima reiterated the government&#39;s full commitment to a digital Pakistan, emphasizing that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif personally chairs weekly meetings on the country&rsquo;s shift toward a cashless economy.

She stressed that digital skills for youth remain a top national priority, and that public-private partnerships like this are essential to unlocking the country&rsquo;s future potential.

&ldquo;The effective use of AI is not optional&mdash;it is foundational for Pakistan&rsquo;s next phase of development,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Initiatives that enhance youth capacity and improve public service delivery are not just welcome&mdash;they&rsquo;re necessary.&rdquo;

Both sides agreed to explore deeper collaboration in digital skilling, AI adoption in governance, and innovation-driven partnerships that can accelerate Pakistan&rsquo;s digital transformation.]]>
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			<title>Spain to probe X, Meta, TikTok over AI-generated child sexual abuse material</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2593046/spain-to-probe-x-meta-tiktok-over-ai-generated-child-sexual-abuse-material</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2593046/spain-to-probe-x-meta-tiktok-over-ai-generated-child-sexual-abuse-material#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 17 Feb 26 09:05:05 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=2593046</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Announcement comes as European regulators are cracking down on big tech companies]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Spanish government has ordered prosecutors to investigate social media platforms X, Meta META.O and TikTok for allegedly spreading AI-generated child sexual abuse material, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Tuesday.

The announcement comes as European regulators are cracking down on big tech companies, alleging the prevalence of abusive practices on online platforms ranging from anti-competitive behaviour in digital advertising to deliberate design of addictive features on social media.

The three companies named by Sanchez did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.

&quot;These platforms are undermining the mental health, dignity, and rights of our children,&quot; Sanchez wrote on his X account. &quot;The state cannot allow this. The impunity of these giants must end.&quot;

He said the government would ask prosecutors to &quot;investigate the crimes that X, Meta, and TikTok may be committing through the creation and dissemination of child pornography using their AI&quot;.

Read: France moves to ban social media for users under 15

Spain is not the only country probing sexually explicit content generated by Elon Musk&#39;s xAI chatbot Grok on X - other governments have launched investigations, bans and demands for safeguards in a growing global push to curb illegal material.

Earlier this month, Sanchez announced several measures aimed at curbing online abuse and protecting children, including a proposed ban on access to social media platforms for those under the age of 16.

On the same day, French police raided the offices of Musk&#39;s X and prosecutors ordered the tech billionaire to face questions in a widening investigation amid growing scrutiny of the platform by authorities across Europe.

In November, Sanchez said that Spain&#39;s parliament would investigate Meta for possible privacy violations of its Facebook and Instagram users.

Meanwhile, Ireland&#39;s Data Protection Commission said on Tuesday it had opened a formal investigation into Grok over the processing of personal data and its potential to produce harmful sexualised images and video, including of children.]]>
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			<title>‘The Core’: Al Jazeera rolls out AI system for news production</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2583477/the-core-al-jazeera-rolls-out-ai-system-for-news-production</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/2583477/the-core-al-jazeera-rolls-out-ai-system-for-news-production#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 22 Dec 25 08:55:18 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Web Desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category><category><![CDATA[World]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[Partnership aims to combine AI-driven content creation with human editorial expertise]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Al Jazeera Media Network has announced&nbsp;a new ArtificiaI Intelligence&nbsp;initiative,&nbsp;developed in&nbsp;partnership with Google Cloud&nbsp;aimed at integrating AI more deeply into newsroom operations.

The project, named &ldquo;The Core,&rdquo; was announced on December 15 as an integrative AI‑driven model designed to AI&#39;s role in journalism from a passive tool to an active partner in news production, while retaining editorial control.





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Built on what Al Jazeera describes as a &ldquo;cognitive operating model,&rdquo; The Core embeds generative AI across multiple stages of the news lifecycle, including information gathering, data analysis, content creation and distribution, with human editors overseeing all editorial decisions.

According to Al Jazeera and Google Cloud, The Core integrates Google&rsquo;s AI suite across six interdependent pillars that form the system&rsquo;s backbone. These include:


	AJ Now: a central platform that assists with suggesting questions, generating angles and drafting summaries, which will use Google Cloud&#39;s compute engine, Gemini Enterprise, Vertex AI Search and other generative tools.
	AJ‑LLM (Editorial Brain): a large language model (LLM) fine‑tuned on Al Jazeera&rsquo;s own archives to help with translation, summarisation and real‑time contextual analysis.
	AJ Vision: supports immersive content creation with generative AI tools, including Imagen, Veo, and others.
	AJ Data Lake: uses data analytics to uncover trends and support data‑driven reporting using BigQuery and Gemini Data Agents.
	Operations&nbsp;Engine: focused on automating internal workflows through Gemini for Workspace.
	Academic and Knowledge Arm: Offers training for journalists on advanced AI tools.


Some observers have raised questions about potential bias associated with the use of Google Cloud, citing the company&rsquo;s broader regional technology partnerships, including Project Nimbus. Al Jazeera has said the system&rsquo;s language model will be trained on its own editorial archives and remain under continuous human oversight, which it says will help mitigate such concerns.

Sheikh Nasser bin Faisal Al Thani, director general of Al Jazeera Media Network, said the initiative reflected the organisation&rsquo;s ambition to build &ldquo;a global technological ecosystem&rdquo; that strengthens its position in the AI era, while preserving editorial judgment.

Alex Rutter, managing director for AI in Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Google Cloud, said the initiative&rsquo;s tools were designed to reshape how journalists research, produce and publish news, as well as how audiences engage with it.

Under the expanded partnership, Al Jazeera will deploy Google Cloud&rsquo;s AI infrastructure and agent-based systems across its global operations. Both organisations stressed that editors and reporters would remain central to all editorial decisions, with AI serving a supporting role.

Details regarding data-centre locations, regional infrastructure and deployment timelines have not been publicly disclosed.]]>
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