PAPERTECH

Digital Newspaper

Issue #01

Monday, 30 June 2025

The Indian government's Rs. 10,372 crore ($1.2 billion) IndiaAI Mission is making AI resources more accessible by subsidizing GPU access for startups and researchers. With over 7,100 AI startups raising $2.4 billion, this initiative supports India's rapid innovation and growing influence in the global AI arena.

Baby Care Emerges as Quick Commerce's New Growth Area

Baby care has emerged as the next frontier in quick commerce. Bengaluru-based Cavi, which delivers baby essentials in 30 minutes, is close to raising $3-4 million from Stellaris Venture Partners. While Chalo is finalizing a $4-5 million round led by Blume Ventures, targeting instant delivery for families. With brands like Zeta, Zy's promising 60-minute delivery for all kid-related needs, is evaluating fundraising talks to tap into this rapidly growing market.

BSNL Builds AI to Detect and Fix Service Defects

BSNL is developing an AI system to identify and correct defects in its services, aiming for enhanced network reliability. The CMD emphasizes the need for robust safety guardrails in AI management.

Adobe Firefly AI App Launches on Mobile

Adobe's Firefly AI app is now on iOS and Android, letting users generate images from text. The app integrates models from OpenAI, Google, and others, expanding creative possibilities.

Sarvam AI Adopts Full-Stack Approach

Sarvam AI, incubated at IIT Madras, is developing AI institutional models and as well as consumer-facing applications. The company benefits from the government program and subsidized computing resources.

xAI Seeks $5B Debt Financing After $33B X Merger

Elon Musk's xAI acquired X in a $33B all-stock deal. Now, xAI is seeking to raise $5B in debt financing and funding talks to manage X's $13B debt burden.

Chip War: US Tightens Controls, China Races to Catch Up

The US-China chip war has intensified, with Washington tightening export controls on advanced semiconductors to limit Beijing's technological growth. Recently, a US official stated that the country with the fastest AI chips could dominate, but warns China is rapidly catching up. Nvidia has excluded China from its restricted chip list, highlighting the complexities of tech restrictions in our increasingly connected world.

Meta Taps Scale AI CEO for Superintelligence Lab in $15 Billion Bet

Last week was transformative for Scale AI, marked by Meta's announcement of a massive $15+ billion investment to acquire the company, valuing Scale at over $29 billion. As part of this deal, Scale's founder and CEO, Alexander Wang, will join Meta to lead its new Superintelligence Lab, though he will remain on Scale's board. This move sparked immediate industry upheaval: Google, Scale's largest customer, and other major firms like Microsoft and Elon Musk's xAI began cutting ties, citing concerns that Meta (a direct competitor) could gain access to proprietary AI data and research strategies. OpenAI had already started winding down its collaboration with Scale months prior, and industry insiders now fear the company's business model could be challenged. While early investors such as Accel are set for multi-billion-dollar windfalls, gig workers who power Scale's data labeling operations are unlikely to benefit from the deal.

What is Scale AI?

Scale AI is a San Francisco-based AI company founded in 2016 that provides high-quality data labeling and model evaluation services essential for training AI systems. Its comprehensive AI automation and human expertise to deliver annotated data for applications like autonomous vehicles and large language models. In AI, data is crucial and Scale AI provides this.

Rise of the Robo-Net: Are Bots Taking Over the Internet?

Picture this: the internet, once a vibrant hub of human chatter, is now a playground for bots and AI. The "Dead Internet Theory" isn't just a wild idea, it's gaining traction. Imperva's 2024 Bad Bot Report shows that 49.6% of all web traffic are bots, with 30% being malicious, both all-time highs. Capterra's 2024 survey reveals 55% of business websites are powered by AI-powered chatbots, up 67% from 2022. Experts warn that by 2026, 90% of online and social media will be AI-generated, making it challenging to determine who's truly speaking. The big concern is trust in what you read online is crumbling. To fight back, we need sharper detection tools and a solid grasp of digital literacy to navigate this wild, AI-driven web. Buckle up, the internet's getting weirder!