Episoder
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In today's episode, we're joined by Arundhati Bhattacharya, Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of Salesforce, India. In this role, Arundhati oversees the growth strategy of the company. Prior to Salesforce, Arundhati Bhattacharya was the first woman chairperson at SBI.
During this interaction, Arundhati shares her insights on agentic AI framework, the challenge of deploying cloud-based AI applications in public sector banks in India, and the impact of autonomous AI agents on the job market.
Host: John Xavier
Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian. -
JSW MG Motor India recently launched the MG Windsor, a crossover utility vehicle, that looks to disrupt the EV market with a new ownership model. In today's episode, we're joined by Gaurav Gupta, the Chief Growth Officer of JSW MG Motor India, to get more details about the company's take on EVs, government policies, consumer preference, and battery as a service business model.
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In this episode, we explore the use of vintage tech gadgets in modern warfare in the context of recent blasts in Lebanon. From walkie-talkies to pagers, these outdated devices have been repurposed to deadly effect, fuelling tensions, and pushing the region to the brink of a larger conflict. We'll delve into the strategic use of these technologies and what it means for future warfare.
Guest: Bruce Schneier is an Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and a Fellow at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society -
In this episode, we dive into the Uttar Pradesh government’s new social media policy, which encourages influencers to promote the state’s initiatives and achievements with incentives. However, this move has sparked controversy, with opposition parties criticizing it as an attempt to sway public opinion ahead of the upcoming elections.
How does UP’s policy compare to other states? What are the rules for government advertising, and how does this new policy affect influencers and current practices?
Guest: Apar Gupta, a lawyer, tech policy expert, and co-founder of the Internet Freedom Foundation
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Edited by Jude Francis Weston -
As Apple gears up to unveil the iPhone 16 on Monday, September 9th expectations are high. The device will likely come with significant AI capabilities, potentially leveraging on-device processing for enhanced privacy and performance.
The integration of generative AI features, like those seen in Google's Pixel devices, could be a major add on. Additionally, improvements in camera technology with computational photography, low-light performance and zoom capabilities, are anticipated. Joining me to discuss what's in store at Apple's event is Phil Solis, Research Director for connectivity and smartphone semiconductor, at IDC.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu.
Produced by Jude Francis Weston -
In today's episode, we will be looking at investments in AI projects and unpack some real-world impact of Gen AI to businesses' bottom lines. We will deep-dive into the challenges of AI deployment, costs of digital transformation, and whether the promised returns are materializing through AI use cases across industry verticals.
Guest: Mr. D.R. Balakrishna (Bali), EVP, Global Services Head, AI and Industry Verticals at Infosys
Produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian. -
2023 was AI's breakout year. Just after ChatGPT landed on the scene, several companies sought to understand the nascent tech and test where they could deploy it in their business contexts. What followed then was a series of pilots and experiments. After testing for nearly a year, these early adopters seem to have a better understanding of Gen AI and where it works well in their lines of business.
In today's podcast, we will look into some of these use cases, learnings from pilots, and path ahead for Gen AI in business.
Guest: Saikat Banerjee, Partner at Bain & Company.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian. -
Among several features smartphone buyers look for in their product of choice, keeping their phone battery charged up for long is a key criterion. Roughly eight after OnePlus introduced fast chargers, transforming the market for smartphones, another Chinese handset maker, Realme, is pushing the boundaries of fast charging.
The company on Wednesday (August 14, 2024) unveiled 320W SuperSonic charging tech that can fully charge a smartphone in under five minutes.
In today's episode, we discuss this new paradigm in fast charging with Francis Wong, Realme's Global Head of Product Marketing.
This episode was recorded in Shenzhen, China at Realme's headquarters.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian. -
In today's data-driven world, we're witnessing a peculiar paradox -- on one side, tech giants and established corporations are drowning in vast oceans of data, struggling to extract meaningful insights from information overload. These data-rich entities often find themselves paralyzed by the sheer volume and complexity of their datasets, unable to harness their full potential. On the flip side, emerging startups and traditional industries are desperately seeking more data to fuel their AI initiatives and decision-making processes.
In this episode, we discuss:
1. How we moved from a data scarce to a data abundant world?
2. How this massive, growing ocean of data is fuelling data-hungry language models
3. Why are businesses finding it difficult to harness the power of Big Data?
4. Are businesses re-thinking investments in AI?
Guest: Nitin Seth, author of Mastering The Data Paradox and CEO of Incedo Inc.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu.
Produced by Jude Francis Weston -
Two weeks ago, the Karnataka Cabinet passed a labour legislation that effectively reserved 50% of jobs in managerial positions and 70% in non-managerial positions for local candidates in private firms. The controversial bill was severely criticised by businesses for being heavy-handed, forcing the government to stop the legislation temporarily.
State Employment of Local Candidates in the Industries, Factories and Other Establishments Bill, 2024 government shelved a labour reservation bill. But what does this piece of legislation say about India's job?
Guest: Dr Suresh Babu, Director, Madras Institute of Development Studies, Chennai.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu.
Produced by Jude Francis Weston -
Artificial intelligence has sparked an insatiable appetite for computing power and data storage, driving rapid expansion of data centres - the physical backbone of the digital world. At the forefront of this expansion are hyperscalers - data centres of tech giants like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft. Their massive, scalable data centre infrastructures power cloud services and AI applications that are becoming increasingly integral to business operations and daily life.
As AI technologies continue to evolve and proliferate, the demand for data centre capacity is skyrocketing, leading to a global boom in data centre construction and investment. These modern data fortresses are growing not just in number, but in scale, with some facilities now consuming as much electricity as small cities. This growth, while enabling remarkable technological progress, also brings significant challenges. From the pressing need for sustainable energy solutions to the constant drive for greater efficiency and innovation, the intersection of AI, hyperscalers, and data centres represents a critical frontier in technology infrastructure - one that will play a pivotal role in shaping our digital future.
India's data centre capacity is set to touch 2,000 MW by 2026. And the country is making plans to transition into a green economy. Joining me to explore the impact of data centres in India and in the Asia Pacific region is Vivek Dahiya, Managing Director & Head Data Centre Advisory Team, Asia Pacific, at Cushman & Wakefield.
In this discussion, John and Vivek discuss:
How the emergence of AI changed the market for data centres globally?
How different are developed and emerging markets in their approach towards data centre infrastructure?
What is the impact of data centre on climate change?
What policies around green energy can make this industry green?
This episode is powered by AMD EPYC Processors.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian -
Behind the seamless experience of an internet call lies a complex ecosystem of networking infrastructure. When you call a friend using a WhatsApp service, your voice is converted into digital data packets that zip through a maze of routers, switches, and servers before reaching your friend's device, where they're reassembled into sound. This process, which happens in milliseconds, relies on a harmonious interplay between wireless technologies that efficiently use the radio spectrum and the robust wired networks that form the internet's backbone. From the 5G tower that picks up your smartphone's signal to the undersea cables that might carry your call across oceans, each piece of this vast infrastructure plays a crucial role in making your conversation possible.
Given how much India has digitised in the past decade, is the country now prepared for the next frontier in telecommunication? That's the question I will be exploring with my guest today, Sajan Paul, Managing Director and Country Manager of Juniper Networks.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian -
In the past two decades, personalisation of technology has changed the way we relate to each other and with our own devices. We unmoored from tethered telephones and set sail on the high tides of wireless connectivity that made electronic gadgets smart, small and easy to carry around. Right from checking emails, making video calls, to finding directions with maps app, advances in personal computing notably changed the way we communicate using smart devices. Now, with the advent of Gen AI, we are in the open ocean once again. This time, AI is transforming human to machine interaction in a novel way.
In this new co-pilot paradigm, how are personal computing devices being re-imagined, re-built and transformed? That's the question I will be exploring with Alex Katouzian, Group General Manager of Mobile, Compute, XR and Wearables at Qualcomm Technologies.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu.
Produced by Jude Francis Weston -
AI, robotics, and automation are transforming how work gets done across industries. One area driving major shifts is the automation of business processes. From manufacturing to finance to customer service, companies are using AI tools to streamline and optimize workflows that were previously handled manually.
This change is redefining the workplace and the skills needed to thrive in the modern economy. While some jobs will inevitably be replaced by automation, new roles are emerging that require humans to work with AI tools in novel ways.
Joining me today to discuss whether the rise of automated business processes is a double-edged sword disrupting certain careers while creating new opportunities is Mihir Shukla, CEO and co-founder of Automation Anywhere, a leading robotic process automation company that serves companies in over 100 countries.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian -
Imagine prompting ChatGPT with a query about the nature of the cosmos. Your prompt will travel digitally to a virtual machine that will leverage the bot's vast training data, hosted in a data centre, euphemistically called - - the Cloud. With that input, ChatGPT will generate a response for you.
And all of this happens within seconds. Thanks to the powerful and ever-improving GPUs, the cloud enables fast computation and low latency. Within two decades, the industry has revolutionised the way data is stored, organised, analysed and accessed. Data centres are now altering the way work is organised and done.
While the cloud has helped businesses make their operations more efficient, it has also left behind noxious exhaust emissions and carbon footprints. Cloud services use massive amounts of electricity for powering servers, cooling systems, and other infrastructure. And much of this energy still comes from fossil fuel sources, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions.
Joining me to discuss the evolution of data centres, cloud business model, and the future of cloud computing is the Founder and CEO of CloudThat, Bhavesh Goswami.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Produced by Jude Francis Weston -
In the last four centuries, corporations have used innovative tools and advanced technologies to build products that transformed societies. Thanks to globalisation, some transnational corporations today are larger than many nation-states. But how are these large enterprises approaching the current wave of artificial intelligence?
That's the question I will be exploring with my guest Dr. Gopichand Katragadda, the President of the Institution of Engineering and Technology and Founder of Myelin Foundry, a deep tech start up. Previously, he was the Group Chief Technology Office of Tata Sons where he spearheaded innovation across the $100 billion conglomerate. Before his stint at TATA, Dr. Gopi led General Electric's Technology Centre that built several innovative products.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian -
Making machines intelligent has been the pursuit of inventors for ages. Pioneering mathematician Alan Turing developed a method to test machine intelligence in the 1950s. Seven decades later, no clever algorithm or complex machine has passed the Turing test. But signs of artificial intelligence surpassing human intelligence are visible in several quarters. Will this be the generation that sees AI triumphing over human intelligence?
That's the question John will be exploring with Dr. Anima in this inaugural podcast.
Guest: Dr Anima Anandkumar is the Bren Professor of Computing and Mathematical Sciences at the California Institute of Technology.
Host: John Xavier, Technology Editor, The Hindu
Produced by Jude Francis Weston
