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NEW DELHI : Google on Thursday announced an India-tuned version of its generative artificial intelligence (AI)-powered version of its primary product, Search. The platform, which will be available as a pilot to select users, will offer a chatbot-like experience—instead of the typical search bar that has been synonymous with the search engine so far. The India-specific version of Google’s AI-powered Search, called Search Generative Experience (SGE), will offer users the ability to search in English and Hindi, and also offer both voice readouts of search results, and voice inputs for search queries.

NEW DELHI : OpenAI, the US-based artificial-intelligence (AI) research firm, has fired its latest salvo towards seeking to monetize its widely popular chatbot, ChatGPT, by launching ChatGPT Enterprise. Through the latter, OpenAI seeks to address one key concern that enterprises and analysts have raised over time—that of ChatGPT using business data to train their large language models (LLMs).

NEW DELHI : Embraer Defense & Security is in talks with five Indian entities, including Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and Tata group, to manufacture defence transport aircraft in India, a top executive at the Brazilian plane maker said. The company hopes to finalize and announce its partner by the end of this year. “It is important to say we are watching a lot what those big players are doing here in India; we are learning from them; and we are in touch with them as well.

NEW DELHI : As India’s annual festive season takes off with the 10-day Onam festival, hopes are high at the country’s automobile manufacturers, at a time of rising rural sentiments and fading supply chain woes. Sales of both passenger vehicles (PVs) and two-wheelers are expected to be significantly higher this year, according to industry executives. The festive season traditionally begins with the Chingam, the beginning of the Malayalam new year.

Mint explains: A transit hub is an airport that provides smooth connectivity from one foreign destination to another. Ideally, a transit hub should enable a seamless transfer experience to someone flying from country A to country C via country B. A transit hub often requires a stronghold of a large carrier with a widespread network so that the airline can offer one-stop connectivity to passengers with a wait time of no more than 2 to 3 hours between flights.

NEW DELHI : Bengaluru International Airport Ltd, in partnership with homegrown computer vision firm Industry.ai and US tech firm Nvidia Corp., on Wednesday announced the integration of the former’s computer vision-based artificial intelligence (AI) platform into the airport’s operations. In a joint statement, the companies said the technology will be deployed at the Bengaluru airport’s Terminal 2—which commences international operations from 31 August.

NEW DELHI : Germany will not sign a joint statement that ignores Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, said Germany’s G20 sherpa Jorg Kukies. In an interview with Mint, Kukies said that while G20 countries are willing to compromise on language relating to the Ukraine war, Germany does not agree with the position, as articulated by China, that discussion of the Ukraine war does not belong in an economic grouping like the G20. Kukies, who also serves as Germany’s state secretary for finance, noted the need for reforming multilateral development banks and increasing their lending capacity.

NEW DELHI : India on Wednesday permitted exports of limited quantities of non-basmati white rice to Bhutan, Mauritius and Singapore, according to a notification by Directorate General of Foreign Trade. Bhutan will get 79,000 tonnes, Mauritius 14,000 tonnes and Singapore 50,000 tonnes, even as the export ban imposed on 20 July remains in place. The export will be done through National Cooperative Exports Ltd, a government export body which was set up under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) Act, 2002 to export agriculture produce and allied items.

New Delhi: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) is planning to provide air quality early warning through the System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) to 92 more polluted cities in the next two years. SAFAR, developed by Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorological (IITM) Pune and was operationalized by IMD in 2010 during Commonwealth Games, is India’s first metro air quality service. It currently issues 1-3 days advance forecast in 40 cities including Delhi, Pune, Mumbai and Ahmedabad of a total of 132 ‘air contaminated’ cities.

NEW DELHI : The finance ministry is considering introducing a production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for the chemicals sector, but there aren’t any proposals yet for such a scheme for the petrochemical industry, two senior officials told Mint. A PLI scheme for the chemicals sector is currently being considered by the finance ministry, but it hasn’t been approved yet, said the first person mentioned above, who spoke under the condition of anonymity. Since funds for PLI schemes are limited, the government can make funds available only to sectors that really need such schemes, the person said. Allocating funds to specific sectors for the scheme is decided by the Niti Aayog, the person added.

NEW DELHI: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast a fresh spell of heavy rain over Odisha, Chhattisgarh, north Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana starting Saturday, due to the persistence of the monsoon trough at lower tropospheric levels from south interior Karnataka to the Comorin area. The monsoon trough, running along the Himalayan foothills at mean sea level, is set to amplify rainfall patterns from Saturday. Expect light to moderate showers with occasional thunderstorms and lightning, accompanied by isolated heavy downpours over Andaman and Nicobar Islands until Sunday, Gangetic West Bengal on Sunday, and Odisha throughout the weekend, IMD said.

RAPIDX corridor project, a major breakthrough has been accomplished with the successful completion of the last 2km-long tunnel segment between Anand Vihar and Sahibabad. As per a TOI report, with completion of tunneling at the Vaishali retrieving shaft in Ghaziabad, the entire tunnelling work for this 82-km long Delhi-Meerut Rapid rail corridor is now concluded.

G20 summit, a quirky challenge has arisen for the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) – how to prevent monkeys from obstructing G20 convoys on the central ridge while safeguarding the meticulously placed potted plants in the area. Situated in the natural habitat of these mischievous monkeys, relocating them is off the table. Thus, the NDMC, in collaboration with the forest department, has taken an inventive approach by introducing cutouts of langurs in the vicinity, with the hope that their simian counterparts would take notice, a TOI report stated. However, officials are concerned that the stationary langur cutouts might lose their efficacy over time.

India is preparing to start the auction process for some 100 critical mineral blocks in the next four months, as part of plans to secure domestic supplies of the raw materials needed to fuel the green energy transition. The blocks are for minerals including nickel, lithium, cobalt and platinum, along with rare earths, Mines Secretary Vivek Bharadwaj said in an interview in New Delhi. “The legal framework has been laid out and the blocks have been identified,” Bharadwaj said. The tender seeking bids is expected to be out by December and auctions may start three months later, he added. The South Asian nation is racing to ensure critical minerals security to power its ambition to make the country a key battery and electric vehicles manufacturing hub and help attain a net zero goal.

LPG cylinders by Rs 200 per refill. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) was the top loser as stock price declined 2.5% to the day's low of Rs 350.20.

The Hindustan Times citing senior officials, the municipal authority intends to employ 40 skilled personnel to replicate the vocalizations of grey langurs. This strategy aims to discourage monkeys from approaching hotels and venues linked to the G20 Summit. NDMC vice chairman Satish Upadhyay noted that these temporary steps are being taken in coordination with the Delhi forest department to ensure that monkeys remain inside the Ridge and do not cause disruptions to the motorcades of dignitaries.

India has allowed traders to ship out their non-basmati white rice cargoes sitting at ports due to a sudden ban on exports of the category, a government order said late on Tuesday. On July 20, India surprised buyers by banning exports of widely consumed non-basmati white rice to control rising domestic prices.

G20 Summit in India is all set to commence on September 9 in the national capital. The summit will be held for two days and will be joined by representatives of member nations as well as guest nations who will engage in discussions about diverse economic reforms. The summit will be concluded on September 10 with the adoption of a G20 Leaders' Declaration.

G20 Summit gets underway in New Delhi next week under India's presidency. The September 8-10 meeting will see more than 30 heads of delegations, including the presidents of USA, China, France, UK and Brazil, and leaders of invitee countries from Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Arab world, debate pressing global issues, according to officials. The summit is being seen as a major achievement of the Indian government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is expected to hold meetings with each of the visiting leaders.

NEW DELHI : Private companies will be a major partner in India’s future space missions, including those to Mars and Venus, and India is not behind any world power, including China, in technical capability although the country needs to build scale, NITI Aayog member and defence scientist V.K. Saraswat said in an interview.

NEW DELHI : Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd is targeting air freight contracts from large multinationals such as Apple Inc. and Foxconn that are expanding manufacturing in India, a top official at the Hong Kong-based airline said. “We are already significant carriers for these companies through their forwarders out of the southern part of China.