As the winters are seeping into our lives, the whole world is bamboozled by no fall season this year.
Two happy news stories came for India this week, i.e., Gukesh D is now the World Chess Champion, and the Indian Cabinet moves towards the One Nation, One Poll approach.
The biggest news of the week is that Google dropped the December Core update of 2024.
While we bring you 12 top news stories of the week to help you soar through the coming week.
Shall we start?
Google is dropping Core Updates like Hot Cakes
Instead of giving in to the anxiety that comes with a Google core update, let us focus on the bright side.
The bright side being if your website wasn’t mostly unaffected by the August Core update and November Core update, then chances of the December core update making an impact are less.
Why are we saying this?
Because Google’s December Core Update of 2024 has been launched on 12th December and no clear information about its impact has been shared.
Google has clarified that those websites that share user-centric content and add valuable insights will not have to worry about this core update.
So, keep churning out user-centric content and wait for the update to roll out.
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Voting has started for the Grammys 2025
Wouldn’t you like your famous song and artists to win Grammys in 2025?
Well, the good news is that the voting for the same has started on 12th December and will end on 3rd Jan 2025 while the Grammys start on Feb 2nd 2024.
The top nominations are as follows:
Record of the Year
The Beatles for “Now and Then,” Beyoncé for “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM,” Kendrick Lamar for “Not Like Us,” and more.
Album of the Year
“New Blue Sun” by Andre 3000, “Cowboy Carter” by Beyoncé, “The Tortured Poets Department” by Taylor Swift, and more.
Song of the Year
“Not like Us” by Kendrick Lamar, “Texas Hold ‘em” by Beyoncé, “Fortnight” by Taylor Swift, and more.
While the categories and nominations of them are unending, we hope that your favourites win, and do let us know in the comments who you are rooting for.
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Elon Musk becomes the first man worth USD 400 billion!
Can you imagine a single individual worth USD 400 billion?
Well, Elon Musk has done it, and it is linked to President-elect Mr. Donald Trump.
Elon Musk has sold USD 50 billion worth of SpaceX in an insider sale, while the rest of the hype is due to his deep connection with the new US president and his ministerial position in the US government.
While xAI has also doubled in value, reaching USD 50 billion since May 2024.
So, if you want to invest in Elon Musk’s companies, now is the time.
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Tokyo Offers 4-Days Work Week to Its Government Employees
While the rest of the world is still experimenting with a 4-day workweek, Tokyo has already made its government employees an offer.
The initiative will start in April 2025 and is aimed at boosting the support for working mothers as well as couples planning babies.
In addition to that, young parents can leave early from work for a reduced salary to take care of their children.
Japan has been famous for overworking to the point of death, i.e., karoshi, and to help ease off the stress, the Japanese government is testing feasible ideas.
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Japan, Italy, and the UK team up to jointly manage the next Generation Fighters!
Many superpowers have tried to develop the next generation of fighters, but solving this puzzle alone is proving difficult.
Thus, Japan, Italy, and the UK have teamed up to manage and develop next-generation jet engines and fighters for 2035 and beyond.
The three-nation body is called the Global Combat Air Program, and its first CEO is Mr. Masami Oka, who was a vice Defense Minister for Japan.
And private players will also be invited to contribute to the future of fighter aircrafts.
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AI News of the Week
Are you ready to know how AI solutions evolved and helped across various industries this week?
Here you go,
Sora Turbo AI
OpenAI launched Sora Turbo AI this week, and it is their fastest gen-AI video generator.
It can develop a 20-second-long video in 1080p resolution and 30 fps while also conjoining multiple AI-generated videos.
It is currently available for free to ChatGPT Plus and ChatGPT Pro users.
Gemini 2.0
Google launched Gemini 2.0 this week.
It is called Gemini 2.0 Flash and has better performance as well as lower latency than Gemini 1.0 (released in Dec 2023).
When compared to Gemini 1.5 Flash 002 and Gemini 1.5 Pro 002, Gemini 2.0 outperforms them on all important capabilities like code, reasoning, audio, video, and more.
So, time for a new Gemini as the new year begins.
Russian BRICS AI alliance
Russia, which has been facing a lot of western sanctions, is lagging behind in the AI race.
So, they have decided to partner with the BRICS nations, i.e., Brazil, India, China, South Africa, and more.
By 2030, Russia wants AI solutions to help generate USD 109 billion, while in 2023, it was just USD 1.9 billion in Russia.
Hyderabad’s AI-powered Airport
Hyderabad’s GMR International Airport now boasts AI-powered twin digital platforms.
These platforms will help in running their state-of-the-art APOC, or airport predictive operation centre.
Various IoT devices and sensors are used to collect data for 40 parameters that help in real-time monitoring of the airport operations.
This technology will soon be implemented at IGI Airport in New Delhi.
So, AI is making our lives better, little by little.
Google News of the Week
Google has a lot in store for you, except their December core update and we ensure that all of these highlights reach you in time.
YouTube’s Auto Dubbing feature
Now, you can break down the language barriers via YouTube’s auto-dubbing features.
You just upload the video, and YouTube creates its dubbed version in various languages.
If you wish to check the status, you can go to YouTube Studio for the same.
Project Astra
You must have heard about Project Astra if you are a tech enthusiast, but for the novice readers, we share key details about it.
- It works on real-time conversations as well as remembering from the past.
- You can ask Astra a question, and it will answer using Google Search, Lens, and Maps.
- It works on mobiles as well as smart glasses.
So, give it a go!
9 FAQs related to Google’s new Site Reputation Abuse Policy
FAQs include,
- What is third-party content?
- Does the use of any third-party content violate the above policy?
- Does freelance content violate it?
- Does affiliate content violate it?
- What does abusing the search rankings mean?
- Does the noindex tag help in getting the manual action removed automatically?
- Will a new location for the manual action resolve the issue?
- If the policy-violating content is moved, can the old site be redirected to a new site?
- If the policy-violating content is moved, can the old site be linked to the new site?
For these answers, click on the link.
File sharing feature between Windows and iPhone?
Mighty soon, you will be able to send and receive files between Windows PCs and iPhones as Microsoft is testing this new feature.
This feature is currently available to those who have the Windows Insiders program and iOS 16 or above.
So, the rest of us wait patiently.
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Have you come across the Trial Reels, yet?
Didn’t you wish you could test your reels before sharing them with your followers?
Well, Instagram is making it happen via Trial reels.
It allows sharing of content with non-followers to know the user response before sharing it with followers.
This way, influencers can test out various ideas, storytelling formats, genres, and more.
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Schneider Electric to gift Karnataka 5000 more jobs
Who doesn’t like a foreign company that brings in jobs?
Well, people from Karnataka sure love Schneider Electric, as they are bringing 5,000 more jobs by setting up a new PCB, or plastic circuit board, plant.
A delegation headed by Mr. MB Patil, Minister of Large & Medium Industries, Karnataka, is currently in Europe finalizing the details before the Global Investors Meet in Feb 2025.
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4X Profit but the Salaries are Stagnant in India: An Indian Express Report
Although what we are about to share may give you some uneasiness, it is a real finding by an Indian Express report.
As per the report,
- Private companies are seeing a 15-year high in profit margins.
- But the salary increase is not justified as per the inflation.
- The last four years have witnessed almost 4X profits.
- Low salaries are putting financial as well as mental pressure on Indian households.
This will indirectly hit India’s economic growth as the purchasing power of Indians is decreasing!
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Stocks to buy on Monday
Here are the stocks to buy on Monday:
IT Stocks
- Nelco
- 63 Moons Technologies
- Coforge
- Persistent Systems
- LTIMindtree
- Wipro
- Infosys
- Tech Mahindra
- HCL Technologies
Other Stocks
- Kalpataru Projects
- HAL
- Tata Motors
- NESCO
- Bajel Projects
- Pennar Industries
- CRISIL
- Ashok Leyland
So have a bountiful Monday!
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This brings our 31st weekly roundup to an end!
Winters are here, but the trees still have leaves on them, which means that the weather is going to be far more erratic than we hoped for.
In short, please take extra care this winter because the viral fevers, colds, and more will prolong for a longer duration.
The top news week clearly states that Google will stop at nothing to improve its user experience, and it’s great news for users. While businesses and marketers need to bring in a more user-centric approach in their digital identities.
Wildnet Technologies is a leading Digital Transformation company in India that is helping its clients become their users’ favourite brand.
If you missed us last week, here you go.
And do not miss out on our thought leadership’s latest weekly POV on the hottest in the digital world, aka Wildnet’s Digital Yum.
Until next week, Tech Freaks!
