PM Narendra Modi gives AI warning, calls deepfakes "problematic"; know how to spot them and to stay safe

It is no secret that Apple is working towards reducing its dependence on China for the production of its various devices, including iPhones. In recent years, Apple has shifted its focus towards India and wants to expand its partnership by planning to produce the iPhone 16 battery in India. Suppliers in India have been told to upscale their production for the same. China is Apple's massive production and supply chain country, but India is taking away a lot of their business away. The shift is happening due to the many risk factors that were exposed by the COVID-19 years. Know what Apple is planning for its new generation of iPhone.

Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday met social media platforms to review progress made by them in tackling misinformation and deepfakes, and asserted that advisories will be issued in the next two days to ensure 100 per cent compliance by platforms.

Elon Musk may be close to winning a long-running battle of wills with the Indian government led by PM Narendra Modi. Policy makers in New Delhi have been hoping to entice Tesla Inc. to produce electric vehicles in India. Musk, meanwhile, wants to sell his cars here without paying the exorbitant import tariffs that India charges.

In a dramatic turn of events, the Apple Watch fall detection feature proved to be a lifesaver for a hiker in Georgia. Mike Menand, while exploring the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area earlier this year, found himself in a dangerous situation after his two dogs observed a distant coyote. The startled dogs knocked Menand down, dragging him off the trail.

India and the United States are set to embark on a groundbreaking collaboration in space exploration, marking a significant milestone in their space partnership. The announcement came after NASA Chief Bill Nelson met with Union Minister Jitendra Singh in New Delhi. The recent NASA and ISRO collaboration involves the launch of a remote sensing satellite named NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) in the first quarter of the upcoming year. Apart from this, there are various other projects on which ISRO and NASA will work together.

On Wednesday, S Somanath, the chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), emphasised that while the organisation is actively pursuing various targets, the immediate and primary focus remains on Gaganyaan mission- the nation's inaugural human space flight program. Speaking on the sidelines of the 2023 Global Energy Parliament in Kolkata, Somanath stated, "There are many [targets]. It is not one target. But our primary target is Gaganyaan now. Send an Indian to space and bring them back safely. This is our immediate big-ticket target."

Earlier this month, at least nine political leaders from opposition parties received a shocking alert on their iPhones warning them of "state-sponsored attackers trying to remotely compromise” their device. It raised an alarm among leaders as they posted screenshots of the alerts on their X accounts, seeking clarification for the same. Eventually, nothing came of the iPhone threat notifications, and the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team or CERT-in, under the department of MeitY (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology), issued a show cause notice to Apple. As per reports, a team of cyber security executives from Apple are expected to meet with the agency.

India's government on Friday warned social media firms including Facebook and YouTube to repeatedly remind users that local laws prohibit them from posting deepfakes and content that spreads obscenity or misinformation, two sources told Reuters.

Bolstering their technology collaboration, India and the European Union (EU) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the semiconductor ecosystem today, November 24. The initial agreement was signed by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnav and the EU Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton. As part of the agreement, both India and the EU will share experiences and best practices, and identify areas for collaboration to bolster the semiconductor ecosystem among other action points.

Today, November 24, governments took center stage in making major artificial intelligence-related announcements. IT minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that the government of India has launched a crackdown on deepfakes, particularly their usage in videos. In other news, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that the West should not be allowed to develop a monopoly in the sphere of AI at an AI conference in Moscow. This and more in today's AI roundup. Let us take a closer look.

The Government of India has launched a crackdown on an increasingly popular artificial intelligence (AI) technology known as deepfake videos, according to Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar. This development comes a day after Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw held a meeting with top social media companies and announced that the government will soon come up with new regulations to tackle the issues surrounding deepfake videos. 

Today, November 22, marked another massive day for artificial intelligence with big announcements across the ecosystem. OpenAI finally appears to have resolved the week-long turmoil as the company announced that ousted CEO Sam Altman will be reinstated to his position. In other news, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the negative effect of AI at the virtual summit of G20 nations. He said that AI must be made safe for society and its dangers must be understood. This and more in today's AI roundup. Let us take a closer look.