United News of Bangladesh

Italy’s data protection authority on Thursday blocked access to the Chinese AI application DeepSeek to protect users' data and announced an investigation into the companies behind the chatbot. The authority, called Garante, expressed dissatisfaction with DeepSeek’s response to its initial query about what personal data is collected, where it is stored and how users are notified. Microsoft reports 10% quarterly profit growth as it works to show AI investments paying off “Contrary to the authority’s findings, the companies declared that they do not operate in Italy, and that European legislation does not apply to them,’’ the statement said, noting that the app had been downloaded by millions of people around the globe in just a few days. DeepSeek’s new chatbot has raised the stakes in the AI technology race, rattling markets and catching up with American generative AI leaders at a fraction of the cost.

Microsoft said Wednesday that its profit for the October-December quarter grew 10% as it works to capitalize on the huge amounts of money it has spent to advance its artificial intelligence technology. But while its overall profits and revenue beat Wall Street expectations, it slightly missed projections for its closely-watched cloud computing business, a centerpiece of its AI efforts. The company reported net income for the quarter of $24.1 billion, or $3.23 per share, beating Wall Street expectations of $3.11 per share. The Redmond, Washington-based software maker posted revenue of $69.6 billion in the quarter, up 12% from the previous year, also beating expectations. Analysts polled by FactSet Research expected Microsoft to generate revenue of $68.87 billion in the last three months of the year. Sales from Microsoft’s cloud-focused business segment that includes its flagship Azure computing platform grew 19% from the same time last year to $25.5 billion, which was less than the $25.83 billion forecast by FactSet analysts. Microsoft’s productivity business segment, which includes its Office suite of email and other workplace products, grew 14% to $29.4 billion. Its personal computing business, led by its Windows division, remained steady at $14.7 billion, with a drop in consumer device sales offset by growth in advertising revenue tied to the Bing search engine. How DeepSeek stacks up against ChatGPT and Gemini Microsoft shares dropped 5% in after-hours trading Wednesday but were still higher than Monday, when the tech giant was hit by a broader tech stock sale caused by a frenzy over the new ChatGPT competitor developed by Chinese tech startup DeepSeek. Microsoft is a close partner of ChatGPT maker OpenAI and also sells its own AI chatbot services, branded as Copilot. Part of what drove the Wall Street panic this week was concern over the startup's claims that it was catching up to U.S. tech titans on a fraction of their budget. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella downplayed those concerns on an investor call Wednesday, saying “DeepSeek had some real innovations” and it is good to have efficiency gains and lower prices in AI development because it “means people can consume more and there’ll be more apps written.” Microsoft also added DeepSeek's latest AI model to those available on its Azure computing platform Wednesday. Building and operating AI systems is costly, and Microsoft has said it plans to spend $80 billion this year as it expands its global network of energy-hungry computing centers and supplies them with specialized chips to train and run AI models. “We have more than doubled our overall data center capacity in the last three years and we have added more capacity last year than any other year in our history,” Nadella said.

Elon Musk’s social media platform, X (formerly Twitter), is set to introduce financial services within its app, with the launch of its first digital wallet later this year. The company has announced a strategic partnership with Visa, enabling seamless transactions through Visa Direct, a real-time money transfer solution. Linda Yaccarino, CEO of X, confirmed in a post that the forthcoming service, X Money, will allow users to securely fund their X Wallet via Visa Direct. Additionally, the platform will offer integration with debit cards, facilitating person-to-person payments and instant fund transfers to bank accounts. DeepSeek: China’s AI breakthrough shakes tech industry, Wall Street “This is the first of many big announcements about X Money this year,” Yaccarino stated. The prospect of integrating financial services into X was initially discussed following Musk’s acquisition of the platform. With the Visa partnership, X Money is expected to debut in select US states before expanding globally. Reports suggest that app researchers have repeatedly found embedded code referencing X Money’s functionalities, including wallet funding and peer-to-peer transactions. X Payments LLC, a subsidiary managing the service, is currently licensed in 41 states and registered with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), ensuring compliance with financial regulations. The platform is also reportedly planning further partnerships to enhance its payment ecosystem. One of the primary objectives of X Money is to provide a financial solution for creators on the platform, allowing them to receive and store payments independently. According to a CNBC report, the service will roll out in the first quarter, with further enhancements expected throughout the year. Despite these ambitious plans, Musk has acknowledged ongoing financial challenges for the platform. According to the Wall Street Journal, he recently sent emails to X employees, admitting that the company is “barely breaking even” due to stagnant user growth and underwhelming revenue. Trump says Microsoft is one of the companies eyeing TikTok “Our user growth is stagnant, revenue is unimpressive, and we’re barely breaking even,” Musk reportedly stated. Since acquiring Twitter in a $44 billion deal in late 2022, Musk has implemented significant changes, including discontinuing the free verification programme, introducing a paid membership model, and rebranding the platform as X. The addition of financial services marks another step in Musk’s broader vision of transforming X into an all-in-one digital ecosystem. As X Money prepares for its launch, industry experts will be closely monitoring its impact on the digital payment landscape and whether it can help revitalise X’s financial standing. Source: Indian media

Pakistan’s upper house of parliament on Tuesday passed a controversial bill that critics argue is designed to suppress freedom of speech. The bill, which was passed by the lower house of parliament last Thursday, grants the government extensive powers to impose heavy fines and incarcerate social media users for spreading disinformation. Journalists rallied on Tuesday in the country’s major cities, including Islamabad, Karachi, Faisalabad and Lahore, vowing to resist government efforts aimed at suppressing freedom of speech. The approval on Tuesday by the Senate removes the last obstacle in the bill’s path. It will now be sent to the President Asif Ali Zardari, who is likely to sign it quickly. Under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, authorities would create an agency with the power to order the immediate blocking of content deemed “unlawful and offensive” from social media, such as content critical of judges, the armed forces, parliament or provincial assemblies. Those failing to comply could face temporary or permanent bans. The law also makes spreading disinformation a criminal offense, punishable by three years in prison and a fine of 2 million rupees ($7,150). The latest development comes days after National Assembly passed it despite protests by the opposition. On Tuesday, Shibli Faraz, an opposition leader in the Senate, opposed the bill, saying it was being passed in a haste and without consulting all the stake-holders. Trump says China’s DeepSeek should be a 'wake-up call' for US AI industry Zulfiqar Bukhari, a spokesman for former Prime Minister Imran Khan, said their Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, would challenge the legislation in the court. "The bill has been passed from the both houses of the parliament to silence the freedom of expression on the pretext of combating fake news, and no democracy-lover can support it,” he said in a statement. Pakistan's media has faced growing censorship in recent years, but the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif says the law is necessary to limit the spread of disinformation.

The Chinese AI model, DeepSeek, has skyrocketed to global prominence, becoming the most downloaded app on Apple’s App Store since its release on January 20. Initially captivating AI enthusiasts, it soon grabbed the world’s attention, with U.S. President Donald Trump calling it a “wake-up call” for American companies to focus on innovation. What sets DeepSeek apart is its cost-effective design—built at a fraction of the cost of leading models like OpenAI’s, thanks to fewer advanced chips. This development sent shockwaves through the market, causing Nvidia to lose nearly $600 billion in market value, marking the largest single-day loss in U.S. history. Tech stocks slide as Chinese rival threatens AI industry; Nvidia falls 17%  Strategic Implications DeepSeek raises questions about the efficacy of Washington’s tech sanctions on China, particularly its export ban on advanced chips. Undeterred, China has doubled down on AI, with President Xi Jinping emphasizing its strategic importance as the country pivots from traditional manufacturing to advanced tech industries. What Is DeepSeek? At its core, DeepSeek is an AI chatbot similar to ChatGPT, powered by the R1 model with 670 billion parameters, making it the largest open-source language model to date. It rivals OpenAI’s models in mathematics, coding, and reasoning while adhering to Chinese government censorship. Despite its capabilities, DeepSeek operates on a modest budget of $6 million, significantly less than the billions spent by competitors. This was reportedly achieved by combining a stockpile of Nvidia A100 chips with cheaper alternatives. The Visionary Behind DeepSeek DeepSeek’s founder, Liang Wenfeng, a Zhejiang University alumnus with expertise in electronic engineering and finance, launched the company in December 2023. Known for his innovative approach, Liang previously led China’s first quant hedge fund, High-Flyer, and has long advocated for China to close the innovation gap with the U.S. Global Repercussions DeepSeek’s rise challenges the notion that massive budgets and cutting-edge chips are essential for AI advancement. Analysts suggest this could disrupt the business models of U.S. tech giants like OpenAI. The uncertainty triggered a tech sell-off on January 27, with the Nasdaq falling over 3% and Nvidia losing its top valuation spot to Apple and Microsoft. Trump says Microsoft is one of the companies eyeing TikTok China’s Reaction While the Chinese government has remained silent, state media is hailing DeepSeek as a symbol of the nation’s growing technological prowess. Experts warn, however, that such developments could fuel “tech isolationism,” as China emphasizes self-reliance. DeepSeek’s emergence signals a transformative moment for the AI industry, reshaping global tech dynamics and challenging the U.S.’s dominance. With input from agencies

President Donald Trump said that Microsoft is among the U.S. companies showing interest in acquiring TikTok to prevent a potential ban on the app, which could take effect in April. When asked by reporters, Trump confirmed Microsoft's involvement in discussions for TikTok's ownership transition, a condition mandated by Congress to keep the app operational in the U.S. He also mentioned that other companies are exploring this opportunity but declined to name them. Trump, speaking aboard Air Force One during a return trip from Miami, expressed his support for competitive bidding, saying it leads to better deals. Meta to invest up to $65 billion in AI projects in 2025 While representatives from Microsoft and TikTok did not immediately comment, Trump recently extended the deadline for TikTok’s ownership changes by 75 days—from January 19 to April 4. He also proposed that the U.S. acquire a 50% stake in the platform, though details remain unclear on whether this would involve government ownership or another U.S.-based entity. Reports suggest that AI startup Perplexity AI has proposed a merger with TikTok’s U.S. operations that would allow the U.S. government to hold up to 50% ownership. Additionally, investors like Frank McCourt and former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin have expressed interest in TikTok's U.S. operations. TikTok-loaded phones listed online for thousands amid app ban

Meta Platforms, led by CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is planning a substantial investment of up to $65 billion (£559,051 crore) in artificial intelligence initiatives for 2025. The funds will primarily be directed towards building a massive new data centre and expanding the company’s AI workforce, Zuckerberg revealed in a Facebook post on Friday. The proposed data centre is set to be so expansive that it could occupy a significant portion of Manhattan. Meta aims to bring online approximately one gigawatt of computing power by 2025 and anticipates concluding the year with over 1.3 million graphics processing units (GPUs). TikTok-loaded phones listed online for thousands amid app ban “This is a massive effort, and over the coming years it will drive our core products and business, unlock historic innovation, and extend American technology leadership,” Zuckerberg stated. Significant AI Investment Meta has been heavily investing in AI over recent years, recently committing $10 billion (£86,440 crore) to a new data centre in Louisiana. Additionally, the company has acquired advanced computer chips to support products such as its AI assistant and Ray-Ban smartglasses. Zuckerberg also highlighted plans to significantly expand Meta’s AI teams in 2025. The announcement arrives shortly after OpenAI, SoftBank Group, and Oracle Corp. unveiled a $100 billion (£864,404 crore) joint venture, named Stargate, aimed at developing data centres and AI infrastructure across the US. Musk clashes with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman over Trump-supported Stargate AI data center project Increased Capital Expenditure Meta’s planned 2025 capital expenditure marks a 50% rise compared to its estimated spending for 2024, and more than double the amount allocated in 2023. The company is expected to release finalised 2024 capital expenditure figures when it announces its fourth-quarter earnings on 29 January. Wall Street analysts had anticipated Meta would allocate $51.3 billion (£443,444 crore) for 2025, according to Bloomberg-compiled estimates. While Meta shares initially dipped during pre-market trading following the announcement, they later rose by as much as 1.7% after markets opened in New York. Broadcom Inc., a key provider of chip design services to Meta, also saw its stock climb by up to 3.9%. Trump, a populist president, is flanked by tech billionaires at his inauguration Balancing Overspending and Strategic Positioning Zuckerberg acknowledged concerns about potential overspending in AI, reiterating comments he made in July. “There’s a meaningful chance that a lot of the companies are over-building now,” he noted, “but the downside of being behind is that you’re out of position for the most important technology for the next 10 to 15 years.” Unconventional Disclosure The decision to share Meta’s spending plans on Facebook, five days ahead of the company’s quarterly earnings announcement, deviates from typical corporate practice. Such projections are usually issued alongside financial results or via formal regulatory filings. However, federal regulators have ruled that social media platforms are suitable for companies to disclose material information to investors. Robert Schiffman, Senior Credit Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, commented positively on the announcement. “Meta’s sharp increase in 2025 capital spending … may be its best use of capital, driving future growth and positioning itself as a leader in AI capabilities,” he remarked. Source: With inputs from news wirers   

After a half-century of public silence, a freelance photographer from Vietnam has asserted he took one of the most renowned and impactful photos of the 20th century — the image of a naked girl fleeing a napalm attack in South Vietnam that has long been credited to a staff photographer from The Associated Press. Nguyen Thanh Nghe claimed authorship of the Pulitzer Prize-winning “napalm girl” photograph in the new documentary “The Stringer” and on the sidelines of its premiere Saturday night at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The AP conducted its own investigation and said it has no reason to conclude that anyone other than the long-credited photographer, Nick Ut, made the picture. The news agency said it was “surprised and disappointed” that filmmakers portrayed it as having reviewed the film’s materials and being dismissive. The AP said it saw the film for the first time at Sundance. Nghe joined the filmmakers for the post-screening Q&A where he said, through a translator, “I took the photo.” The audience cheered enthusiastically. He did not say why he waited so long to make the claim. The AP said it was calling on the filmmakers to release their contributors from non-disclosure agreements for the film, including Nghe. It also called on the filmmakers to share a visual analysis they commissioned — and the film itself. “We cannot state more clearly that The Associated Press is only interested in the facts and a truthful history of this iconic photo," the agency said. Investigating an image captured in the fog of war Nguyen says he took the iconic photo of Kim Phuc on June 8, 1972. Nghe said he went to the town of Trang Bang that day as a driver for an NBC news crew and captured the image of Phuc running down the street, crying and naked with arms outstretched. He said he sold his image to the AP for $20, and they gave him a print of the photo that his wife later destroyed. Representatives for the AP, who saw the film for the first time Saturday at the premiere, are contesting the film's implication that the company reviewed their findings and dismissed them. “As recently as December, we reiterated our request to see the filmmakers’ full materials and they did not respond, nor did they include AP’s full response in the film," Lauren Easton, an AP spokesperson, said Sunday. "We were surprised and disappointed that the film portrayed AP as having reviewed the film’s materials and being dismissive of the allegations, which is completely false." The film’s investigation was led by husband-and-wife team of Gary Knight, founder of the VII Foundation, and producer Fiona Turner. Bao Nguyen, a Vietnamese American filmmaker, directed. “I’m not a journalist by any stretch of the imagination,” Nguyen said. “I had a healthy skepticism, as I think anyone would, going against a 53-year-old truth. ... But as a storyteller and a filmmaker, I thought it was my both or my responsibility and my privilege to be able to uplift the story of individuals like Nghe.” AP investigated independently Before having seen the film, the AP conducted its own investigation over six months and concluded it had “no reason to believe anyone other than Ut took the photo.” Now, the AP is calling on the filmmakers to lift the non-disclosure agreements they placed on their subjects to allow the company to investigate more fully. Read: Families sue TikTok in France over teen suicides they say are linked to harmful content “AP stands ready to review any and all evidence and new information about this photo," Easton said. Knight and Turner met with AP in London last June about the allegations. According to the AP, filmmakers requested the news organization sign a non-disclosure agreement before they provided their evidence. AP would not. The film suggests that evidence was presented to the AP, which the AP says is not true. A primary source in the film is Carl Robinson, then an AP photo editor in Saigon, who was overruled in his judgment not to use the picture by Horst Faas, AP's Saigon chief of photos. Robinson says in the film that Faas instructed him to “make it staff” and credit Ut for the photo. Both Faas and Yuichi “Jackson” Ishizaki, who developed the film, are dead. Robinson, 81, was dismissed by the AP in 1978. On Saturday, a Sundance Institute moderator asked why he wanted to come forward with the allegations now. “I didn’t want to die before this story came out,” Robinson told the audience after the screening. “I wanted to find (Nghe) and say sorry.” A variety of witnesses interviewed by AP, including renowned correspondents such as Fox Butterfield and Peter Arnett and the photo’s subject herself, Phuc, say they are certain Ut took the photo. The documentary included forensics of the scene Robinson was one such person the AP attempted to speak to during their investigation but “were told we could only do so under conditions" that they said would have prevented them from “taking swift action if necessary.” Read: Trump signs executive order on developing artificial intelligence 'free from ideological bias' The film’s investigation took over two years. The journalists enlisted a French forensics team, INDEX, to help determine the likelihood of whether Ut had been in a position to take the photo. The forensics team concluded that it was highly unlikely that Ut could have done it. Ut's attorney, James Hornstein, had this to say Sunday after the premiere: “In due course, we will proceed to right this wrong in a courtroom where Nick Ut’s reputation will be vindicated.” Knight referenced AP’s investigation Saturday, telling the audience that the company's statement is available online. “They said they’re open always to examining the truth. And I think it was a very reasonable thing to say,” Knight said. “Our story is here and it’s here for you all to see.” He added: “Things happen in the field in the heat of the moment. ... We’re all stronger if we examine ourselves, ask tough questions, and we’re open and honest about what goes on in our profession. Now more than ever, I would argue." “The Stringer” does not yet have distribution plans.

Phones preloaded with TikTok are being sold on platforms like eBay and Facebook Marketplace for thousands of dollars, with some listings reaching as high as $50,000. However, it's unclear if buyers are willing to pay such steep prices. The surge in listings follows a brief period during which TikTok was unavailable for new downloads in the U.S. As of Sunday, users who had already installed the app could continue using it, but the app remains inaccessible for new downloads from Apple and Google app stores. This has created a market for devices preloaded with TikTok and other ByteDance apps like Lemon8 and CapCut. While some listings are exorbitantly priced, phones selling for a few hundred dollars have garnered the most interest. For example, Nicholas Matthews, a New York resident, listed an iPhone 14 Plus with TikTok for $10,000. As of Friday, the highest bid he received was $4,550. Matthews expressed modest expectations, saying, “I’m just expecting to sell this one phone.” With approximately 170 million TikTok users in the U.S., the app remains popular despite ongoing regulatory challenges. The ban does not target individual users, meaning those with the app already downloaded can still use it freely. Trump pauses US TikTok ban with executive order eBay has yet to comment on the influx of TikTok-loaded phone listings. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has directed the Justice Department to delay enforcing the ban until early April. However, significant uncertainties remain, including the legality of Trump’s order and the potential sale of TikTok by its China-based parent company, ByteDance.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on artificial intelligence Thursday that will revoke past government policies his order says “act as barriers to American AI innovation." To maintain global leadership in AI technology, "we must develop AI systems that are free from ideological bias or engineered social agendas,” Trump's order says. The new order doesn't name which existing policies are hindering AI development but sets out to track down and review “all policies, directives, regulations, orders, and other actions taken” as a result of former President Joe Biden's sweeping AI executive order of 2023, which Trump rescinded Monday. Any of those Biden-era actions must be suspended if they don't fit Trump's new directive that AI should “promote human flourishing, economic competitiveness, and national security.” Last year, the Biden administration issued a policy directive that said U.S. federal agencies must show their artificial intelligence tools aren’t harming the public, or stop using them. Trump’s order directs the White House to revise and reissue those directives, which affect how agencies acquire AI tools and use them. Biden’s executive order, the Trump administration said, “established unnecessarily burdensome requirements for companies developing and deploying AI that would stifle private sector innovation and threaten American technological leadership.” Trump's order also calls for the development of an AI action plan within 180 days. Leading the work will be a small group of White House tech and science officials, including a new Special Advisor for AI and Crypto — a role Trump has given to venture capitalist and former PayPal executive David Sacks. Trump repealed Biden’s 2023 guardrails for fast-developing AI technology just hours after returning to the White House on Monday. Read: ChatGPT faces outage, users worldwide report problems The new actions threaten to erase some of the Biden administration’s efforts -- championed by then-Vice President Kamala Harris -- to curb government use of the kinds of AI tools that have been found to unfairly discriminate based on race, gender or disability, from medical diagnosis chatbots spouting false information to face recognition technology tied to wrongful arrests of Black men. Until Thursday, it wasn't clear if Trump planned to replace Biden's signature AI policy with his own order. Trump had also signed executive orders on AI in his previous term, including a 2019 order directing federal agencies to prioritize research and development in AI that is still on the books. Alondra Nelson, former acting director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy under Biden, said Trump’s order seemed “backward looking” because agencies would be tasked with reviewing initiatives “that are already helping people, with an implicit intent to unwind them.” The Biden administration’s AI policies, she added, were aimed at protecting both innovation and the public. “In 60 days, we’ll know which Americans’ rights and safety the Trump Administration believes deserves to be protected in the age of AI, and if there will be a level playing field for every technologist, developer, and innovator or just the tech billionaires,” Nelson said. Much of Biden’s 2023 order set in motion a sprint across government agencies to study AI's impact on everything from cybersecurity risks to its effects on education, workplaces and public benefits, with an eye on ensuring AI tools weren't harming people. That work is largely done. Read more: Trump announces 500 bln USD AI infrastructure investment in U.S. One major piece that remained — until Trump rescinded it Monday — was a requirement that tech companies building the most powerful AI models share details with the government about the workings of those systems before they are unleashed to the public. The Trump order's focus on “human flourishing” echoes the language of his campaign's long-held promise to cancel Biden's AI policy once back in the White House. It's also in line with ideas espoused by Trump adviser Elon Musk, who has warned against the dangers of what he calls “woke AI” that reflects liberal biases. In a statement, Americans for Responsible Innovation, a nonprofit organization, said Trump has “made it clear from day one that his top priority on AI is out-innovating the rest of the world.” “Today’s executive order is a placeholder until the administration has a chance to develop a full strategy for executing that vision,” said the organization’s executive director, Eric Gastfriend. Agencies had already frozen work on AI policies initiated by the last administration following Trump’s repeal of Biden’s executive order on Monday, Gastfriend said. “This new instruction shouldn’t come as a surprise,” he said.