Journalism begins where hype ends

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I visualise a time when we will be to robots what dogs are to humans, and I’m rooting for the machines."

—Claude Shannon

Tamil Nadu Budget: AI & Innovation City ‘Arivagam’ Announced; Focus on Deep Tech and AI Skilling

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay (left) and Finance Minister N. Marie Wilson display the Revised Budget briefcase after the presentation of the 2026–27 Revised Budget, which proposes 'Arivagam', India's first dedicated AI and Innovation City, along with AI skilling, deep-tech and AI governance initiatives.

With a growing global focus on AI, Tamil Nadu’s revised Budget outlines plans for ‘Arivagam’, AI talent development and AI-driven governance reforms.

UK Expands Global Talent Visa to 100+ Companies to Attract Top AI, Quantum and Clean Energy

Red double-decker buses pass the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben in London as the UK government expands its Global Talent visa to attract top international researchers.

In a move to attract world-class international talent in Artificial Intelligence, life sciences and clean energy, the UK government has expanded the Global Talent visa. More than 100 research-intensive companies can now host and support exceptional scientists and engineers on funded projects.

White House AI Framework Exempts Open-Weight Models from Pre-Release Review

The White House in Washington, D.C., where Trump administration officials briefed leading AI companies on a voluntary framework for pre-release cybersecurity testing of advanced AI models.

The new voluntary policy applies to closed frontier AI models, while exempting open-weight models, including those developed by Chinese AI companies.

Don’t Chase Frontier AI Models, World Bank Tells Low & Middle Income Countries

A pupil points to a literacy chart during a lesson at a primary school in [location TK]. The World Bank's World Development Report 2026 identifies education as one of the sectors where low-cost AI tools could help close skill and knowledge gaps in developing economies. Credit: World Bank Archives

The World Bank’s first comprehensive assessment of AI’s implications for developing economies argues that frontier models are the hardest and costliest path. Poorer countries, it says, should adapt existing low-cost tools to local languages and conditions.

European AI Office Opens Recruitment to Strengthen AI Act Enforcement

Illustration of professionals representing workforce recruitment and talent across diverse sectors.

The hiring covers technology, legal, operations and paralegal roles, with a particular emphasis on technology specialists.

Alibaba Launches ‘Most Capable’ Qwen3.8-Max, Set to Become First Open-Weight Max Model Next Week

Alibaba has launched Qwen3.8-Max, its most capable model in the Qwen family to date.

Built on the Qwen 3.5 architecture, Alibaba’s 2.4-trillion-parameter model is compared by the company with frontier AI models from companies such as Anthropic and OpenAI, with pricing set at $2 per million input tokens and $6 per million output tokens.

EU AI Act Rules Take Effect From Aug 2; Violations Can Attract Hefty Penalties

EU AI Act Rules Take Effect From Aug. 2; Violations Can Attract Hefty Penalties

The AI Act introduces a four-tier risk framework for AI systems, establishes governance and enforcement mechanisms, provides for penalties, and seeks to facilitate a single market for AI applications.

OpenAI’s Model Astra Solves Ten Longstanding Mathematical Problems

OpenAI said the tokens needed to find the ten solutions would cost roughly $2,000 at its Sol API rates.

An internal version of OpenAI’s next major model produced solutions spanning high-dimensional geometry, coding theory, group theory, operator algebras, quantum complexity and lattice cryptography. None of the ten results has been independently verified.

Chinese Military Used US AI Models to Build Defense Tech

A Chinese military artillery system fires during a live exercise. Reuters reports Chinese military-linked researchers have used distillation techniques on US AI models to develop indigenous defense technology. (Photo: Official PLA website)

A Reuters review of over 80 academic papers and patents has found Chinese institutes with ties to the PLA using distillation techniques on US AI models, including OpenAI’s GPT-3.5 and Anthropic’s Claude Haiku, to develop domestic defense-linked AI systems.

China Accuses Japanese Right-Wing Groups of Using AI to Distort War History

Beijing has accused right-wing forces in Japan of using artificial intelligence to distort the history of Japan's wartime aggression against China. Representative image.

China’s Foreign Ministry has accused right-wing groups in Japan of using artificial intelligence to distort the record of Japan’s wartime aggression, calling it a threat to the postwar international order.