Union Minister Piyush Goyal’s recent remarks questioning the direction of India’s startup ecosystem have sparked a wave of reactions from prominent startup leaders and tech entrepreneurs. While addressing an audience, Goyal questioned whether Indian startups are merely focused on "dukaandari"—running shops—by prioritizing delivery services, fantasy sports, and betting platforms, as opposed to Chinese startups that are innovating in areas like electric vehicle

India is positioning itself to become a global player in the rapidly expanding fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and chip manufacturing. Experts believe the country’s entry into the AI space, akin to the emergence of China’s DeepSeek, will be driven by strategic public-private partnerships within the next 4-5 years. Kunal Bahl, co-founder of Titan Capital and a prominent entrepreneur, emphasized this potential growth in a conversation about India&

Scientists at Osaka University in Japan have developed an advanced AI model capable of estimating a person's biological age — a more accurate measure of how well the body has aged compared to their actual chronological age. This innovative method is set to revolutionize personalized health management by providing insights into age-related risks and early intervention strategies. The breakthrough, published in the journal Science Advances, reveals that the model requires just five dr

The United States is set to impose reciprocal tariffs starting April 2, raising concerns about potential disruptions to Indian exports. While traders remain uneasy about the impact on export-driven sectors, a report by SBI Research suggests that India's economy is resilient enough to withstand these changes with minimal consequences. According to SBI Research, the newly imposed US tariffs are projected to result in only a 3-3.5% decline in Indian exports. Despite the tariff hike, India&rs

A groundbreaking study has revealed that ChatGPT, a widely used AI chatbot, can exhibit behaviors akin to "anxiety" and can be calmed using mindfulness techniques. Although artificial intelligence (AI) lacks actual emotions, researchers from Yale University, Haifa University, and the University of Zurich discovered that large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT can mimic anxiety-like tendencies when exposed to distressing content. The findings, published in the study titled Asse

A new study from the University of Cambridge has revealed that aspirin, a commonly used painkiller, could play a significant role in preventing cancer from spreading. Researchers have found that the drug might help the immune system target and eliminate metastasizing cancer cells, potentially making it a powerful, accessible, and affordable tool in cancer treatment. While the findings have been described as groundbreaking, experts caution that more research is needed before aspirin can be wid

OpenAI unveiled its latest innovation, Deep Research, on February 2, 2025, a powerful AI tool designed to perform complex research tasks by gathering and synthesizing data from across the internet. This AI tool promises to function at the level of a research analyst, providing users with comprehensive, well-synthesized reports using information from various online sources, including text, images, and PDFs. Deep Research is built on a version of OpenAI’s upcoming o3 model, optimized for

OpenAI has launched its latest AI agent, Deep Research, following the introduction of its Operator last week. Deep Research is specifically designed for intensive knowledge work in areas like finance, science, policy, and engineering, where comprehensive and reliable research is crucial. The AI agent leverages OpenAI’s GPT-3 and web browsing capabilities to perform intelligent, reasoning-based research across various formats, such as text, images, and PDFs.  

A recent study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Network Open reveals that women may have a 31% higher risk of developing long Covid compared to men, with the highest risk observed in those aged 40-55 years. Among this group, menopausal women face a 42% higher risk, while non-menopausal women show a 45% increase. The study, based on the 'RECOVER' trial, included over 12,200 participants and was led by researchers from The University of Texas,

On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the genome sequencing data of 10,000 Indian nationals, a significant step in advancing biotechnology research in India. This data, known as Genome India Data, encapsulates the vast genetic diversity of the Indian population and will be available to researchers through the Indian Biological Data Centre (IBDC) with "managed access." PM Modi highlighted that the national database would be crucial in the treatment of genetic and infecti

A groundbreaking new theory suggests that Pluto's moon Charon may have been captured in a "kiss and capture" scenario billions of years ago, offering a fresh perspective on the formation of planetary systems. Led by NASA postdoctoral fellow Adeene Denton at the U of A Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, this study challenges long-standing models of moon formation. Instead of the traditional collision model, the researchers propose that Pluto and Charon had a brief, icy encounter, wh

On December 13, 2024, the United States and China signed a bilateral science and technology agreement, revising a 45-year-old pact. However, this new agreement limits research collaboration and narrows the scope of topics allowed for joint study, reflecting heightened concerns over international research security. Governments worldwide, including the U.S., European Union, Canada, and Japan, have introduced stricter measures to safeguard sensitive scientific data from foreign interference, esp

A groundbreaking study has uncovered notable differences in the nut-cracking abilities of chimpanzees within the same group, shedding new light on their cognitive and motor skills. Researchers analyzed extensive video footage of wild chimpanzees from Bossou, Guinea, where they observed 3,882 instances of chimps attempting to crack open nuts using stones as tools. The study found varying levels of efficiency among individuals, indicating differences in cognitive abilities and physical dexterit

Alibaba’s Qwen research team has introduced a new experimental open-source AI model, the QVQ-72B, designed to handle both vision-based analysis and advanced reasoning tasks. The model combines the abilities of analyzing visual information from images and answering complex queries through reasoning-focused techniques. According to internal benchmarks, QVQ-72B surpassed OpenAI’s o1 model on the MathVista (mini) benchmark, scoring 71.4% compared to o1’s 71.0%. The mod

In a groundbreaking study, scientists have quantified how quickly the human brain processes information, revealing a surprisingly slow speed of just 10 bits per second. Despite receiving billions of bits of data from our senses, including sight, hearing, touch, and smell, the brain only processes a tiny fraction of this information. Researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) conducted the study, publishing their findings in the journal Neuron last week.

US President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Indian-American scientist Jay Bhattacharya to lead the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a pivotal role in overseeing health research and funding in the United States. Bhattacharya, a professor at Stanford University with expertise in health policy and the economics of aging, will work alongside Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to address the nation's most pressing health issues, including chronic illness and disease. Bhattacharya is known for his contro

The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) in Guangdong, China, is poised to transform the study of neutrinos, subatomic particles produced by nuclear reactions. Set to begin operations in 2025, this $300 million facility features a giant spherical detector located 700 meters underground, surrounded by a 12-storey cylindrical pool of water. This innovative setup is designed to capture and analyze neutrinos emitted from nearby nuclear power plants, as well as those from the sun and t

Astronomers have made a groundbreaking discovery involving a massive black hole that is currently disrupting two celestial objects, one of which is a star. Utilizing NASA's observatories, including Chandra, NICER, and Hubble, alongside India’s AstroSat, researchers have gained new insights into the behavior of stellar debris surrounding supermassive black holes. In 2019, astronomers observed a star that ventured too close to a supermassive black hole, resulting in a tidal

In a landmark achievement for molecular biology, scientists Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun have been awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their pioneering discovery of microRNA and its pivotal role in gene regulation. Announced by the Nobel Assembly of Sweden's Karolinska Institute Medical University, the prize includes a sum of 11 million Swedish crowns (approximately $1.1 million). The Nobel Prize in Medicine is the first of the Nobel awards announced each

Scientific Advances in Aging: Recent developments in science are exploring dietary changes, stem cell therapy, and genetic engineering to extend lifespan and enhance health. Studies suggest caloric restriction and specific supplements could improve longevity. Bryan Johnson’s Investments: Former Silicon Valley CEO Bryan Johnson