House Committee Opens Probe Into Chinese AI in U.S. Firms

Jeff Bezos's space venture, Blue Origin, is reportedly looking to raise $10 billion in its first-ever external funding round. The company has been valued at $130 billion pre-money, according to a New York Times DealBook report. The move comes as investor interest in space companies has surged after SpaceX's recent IPO last month.

Allianz, a leading global insurance and asset management company, has announced plans to cut up to 1,800 jobs in its travel insurance division. The move comes as the company expands its use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology. Allianz Partners CEO Tomas Kunzmann confirmed the decision at an event in Munich on Tuesday evening.

Google has announced the selection of 20 artificial intelligence (AI) start-ups for its India Accelerator program. The move marks the 10th year of the initiative in India. The chosen companies were selected from a pool of around 2,500 applications, showcasing their potential and innovation in the field. The cohort represents a growing technical maturity within India's start-up ecosystem, tackling high-impact challenges across various sectors such as climate change and healthcare.

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has released a revised edition of its Class 8 social science textbook, "Exploring Society: India and Beyond." The new edition includes several changes, including a revised narrative on the Partition. It now states that the Partition was "widely opposed even by the Indian National Congress" and questions if accepting it was "the only way forward." It drops the line that said Congress leaders were "helpless" as communal violence engulfed the subcontinent.

An alleged embezzlement of donations at Madhya Pradesh's Maa Baglamukhi Temple has come to light amid ongoing investigations over similar allegations at Ayodhya's Ram Temple and Uttarakhand's Badrinath Temple. A three-member inquiry committee will probe the matter. In the Ayodhya case, eight people have been arrested, while in the Badrinath case, an employee of Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC) has been suspended after a four-member team began its investigation into alleged irregularities in the management of donations at Badrinath Dham.

As activist Sonam Wangchuk's indefinite hunger strike at New Delhi's Jantar Mantar entered its 10th day on Tuesday, the focus shifted to Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke, who was seen snacking near the fasting activist. Videos of Dipke eating bread pakodas and noodles on stage with Wangchuk went viral, leading to memes and criticism. Critics questioned why only Wangchuk was fasting if the protest was led by the CJP.

Tata Group has announced its ambitious plan to grow its automotive business into a $100 billion entity by FY31. The company will invest ₹40,000 crore in its domestic passenger vehicle business and about £20 billion for Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) over the next five years. The announcement was made by Tata Group Chairman N Chandrasekaran at the annual general meeting of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles.

Ola Electric has rejected the insolvency petitions filed against its manufacturing arm, Ola Electric Technologies Pvt. Ltd. The company has termed these claims as a retaliatory legal tactic. The disputed amount of ₹40.6 crore is already under arbitration proceedings with Anevolve Mando E-Mobility and Sterling E-Mobility Solutions, over alleged performance- and warranty-related issues with supplied components.

The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) will credit an interest rate of 8.25% on PF deposits for FY2025-26, Union Labour and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya announced today. The total payout of over ₹1.44 lakh crore will benefit some 34 crore EPFO members by July 15, the minister said. This comes after the Centre approved the EPF interest rate for the fiscal year, allowing the annual crediting process to begin.

SambaNova Systems, a leading artificial intelligence (AI) chip company, has raised $1 billion in its Series F funding round. The investment was led by General Atlantic and values the company at $11 billion. This is the first close of the Series F round with more investors expected to join soon. Rodrigo Liang, CEO and co-founder of SambaNova, said additional investors are likely to come in over the next few weeks.