Microsoft server hack impacts around 100 organisations; Stargate aims to build small data centre this year; Google and OpenAI models excel at Mathematical Olympiad
Microsoft has sounded an alert and released a fix after hackers exploited a vulnerability in it SharePoint software in order to target businesses and government agencies. According to researchers, about 100 organisations were impacted and these included major industrial firms, banks, auditors, healthcare companies, and multiple U.S. state-level and international government entities. The hack was a zero day exploit, which refers to a cyber-security attack that is considered serious because it exploits an unknown security vulnerability, meaning that security engineers have had 'zero days' in order to work on a fix.
Other cybersecurity figures have also backed the number of affected organisations, but warned that the effects of the hack could be far-reaching and involve more serious consequences over longer time periods. The exact identity of the perpetrator is not confirmed, but Google said some of the activity could be linked to a 'China-nexus threat actor.'
Stargate aims to build small data centre this year
The $500 billion Stargate Project backed by OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle that aims to accelerate America's AI infrastructure has set a more basic goal: building a small data centre by the end of the year. This will probably take place in Ohio, per The Wall Street Journal. However, the collaboration may not have been smooth sailing as the report cited sources who claimed that SoftBank and OpenAI did not agree on key partnership terms, such as where to build the sites. Project Stargate was intended to create more than 100,000 jobs in the country.
Both SoftBank and OpenAI have confirmed that they were moving 'with urgency on site assessments' apart from also advancing projects in multiple U.S. states. Meanwhile, Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison said the first data centre was already under construction in Texas.
Google and OpenAI models excel at Mathematical Olympiad
Google and OpenAI both announced that their artificial-intelligence (AI) models crossed the threshold needed to score gold at the International Mathematical Olympiad for high-school students. They both solved five out of six problems and used general-purpose 'reasoning' models to work through the mathematical concepts using natural language. While the International Mathematical Olympiad has been used as a benchmark to test the mathematical abilities of AI models in the past, this marks the first time the competition coordinated officially with some AI technologists.
For the competition this year, Google used a general-purpose model called Gemini Deep Think while rival OpenAI relied on a new experimental model that focused on scaling up 'test-time compute.' The new achievements unlocked by the companies come with promising potential for mathematicians as well as those from other scientific disciplines to better integrate AI models in their research process.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
China PM warns against a global AI 'monopoly'
China PM warns against a global AI 'monopoly' China will spearhead the creation of an international organisation to jointly develop AI, the country's premier said, seeking to ensure that the world-changing technology doesn't become the province of just a few nations or companies. Artificial intelligence harbours risks from widespread job losses to economic upheaval that require nations to work together to address, Premier Li Qiang told the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on Saturday. That means more international exchanges, Beijing's No 2 official said during China's most important annual technology summit. Li didn't name any countries in his short address to kick off the event. But Chinese executives and officials have taken aim at Washington's efforts to curtail the Asian country's tech sector, including by slapping restrictions on the export of Nvidia chips crucial to AI development. On Saturday, Li acknowledged a shortage of semiconductors was a major bottleneck, but reaffirmed President Xi Jinping's call to establish policies to propel Beijing's ambitions. The govt will now help create a body - loosely translated as the World AI Cooperation Organization - through which countries can share insights and talent. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The Most Beautiful Female Athletes Right Now Undo "Currently, key resources and capabilities are concentrated in a few countries and a few enterprises. If we engage in technological monopoly, controls and restrictions, AI will become an exclusive game for a small number of countries and enterprises," Li told hundreds of delegates huddled at the conference venue on the banks of Shanghai's iconic Huangpu river. China and the US are locked in a race to develop a technology with the potential to turbocharge economies and - over the long run - tip the balance of geopolitical power. This week, US President Donald Trump signed executive orders to loosen regulations and expand energy supplies for data centers - a call to arms to ensure companies like OpenAI and Google help safeguard America's lead in the post-ChatGPT era. At the same time, the breakout success of DeepSeek has inspired Chinese tech leaders and startups to accelerate research and roll out AI products. The weekend conference in Shanghai - gathering star founders, Beijing officials and deep-pocketed financiers by the thousands - is designed to catalyze that movement. The event, which has featured Elon Musk and Jack Ma in years past, was launched in 2018. This year's attendance may hit a record because it's taking place at a critical juncture in the global race to lead GenAI development. It's already drawn some notable figures: Nobel Prize laureate Geoffrey Hinton and former Google chief Eric Schmidt were among heavyweights who met Shanghai party boss Chen Jining Thursday, before they were due to speak at the event.
Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
India, China marking a beginning, sense of caution would have to be built in: FM Nirmala Sitharaman
India and China are beginning to move towards more access and interactions that might help the economy, even as a sense of caution would have to be built in, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday. She also underlined that maintaining growth is India's top priority along with the need to be a dynamic player in global institutions and redefining its role in the global South, and having a friendly and attractive FDI policy to be able to get more and more investments. When asked about the thaw in Indo-China relations at the launch of the book A World in Flux: India's Economic Priorities with the recent relaxation of visa norms, Sitharaman said not just India but China has also shown interest in these interactions and one will have to 'wait and see' how far it will go. Citing the restrictions earlier enlisted in Press Note 3 that had put curbs on investments from China, which also affected some of the projects including those in the renewable energy sector, Sitharaman said there was lull during the tariff war between the US and China. But, now it has been felt by both India and China for the 'need to have more access and a lot more interactions that could possibly open some windows'. 'And that's not just from our side, even the Chinese have been approaching through the MEA. So, you had External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar go. There is something, some kind of a beginning, as to how much it will take us far; how far it will go is something we will have to wait and see. But it might help the economy; however much, a sense of caution would have to be built in,' she said. Last week, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar travelled to China where he had underlined that 'differences should not become disputes' nor should 'competition ever become conflict' and that while India and China have made good progress in the past nine months towards the normalisation of bilateral relations, they should work to address de-escalation on the border. India had earlier put restrictions on investments from China through Press Note 3 in April 2020 to curb potential opportunistic takeovers of Indian companies during the Covid-19 pandemic by making a government approval mandatory for all investments from countries sharing a land border with India, including China. It continued to be in force in the wake of national security concerns due to border tensions after the Galwan clash. Enlisting India's priorities, Sitharaman said growth is the topmost priority. 'Growth is the topmost priority, and therefore, it will have an overlap with: do you create jobs, do you have that value addition,' she said. The Indian economy grew by 6.5 per cent in FY25, the slowest in four years as against 9.2 per cent growth in FY24. For the current financial year 2025-26, the Economic Survey has projected GDP growth at 6.3-6.8 per cent, while the RBI has lowered its growth forecast to 6.5 per cent from an earlier level of 6.7 per cent for FY26. The second objective for India would be to be relevant on the global stage, she said. 'Not just to be there in the leadership position but to be able to define how this move is going to take India forward along with the rest of the countries. We need to define the global institutions which are going to govern us for the next hundred years,' she said. Within India, Sitharaman said the government will have to focus on whether it is giving the economy the necessary support and attending to every aspiring section's aspirations, not just by giving money but by giving an overall ecosystem through which they can aspire to grow. Finding resources for meeting domestic economic aspirations within fiscal constraints is another priority for the government, she said. Another priority would be to make sure that the FDI policy is friendly and attractive to be able to get more and more investments happening in India. On the issue of trade pacts, Sitharaman said agreements are taking priority over multilateral trade even though she can't comment if it's good or bad as of now. 'On the bilateral trade front, we are moving forward and we have seen bilateral agreements being signed in the last four to five years with Australia, UAE, EFTA and the UK. Negotiations are progressing well with the United States as well as the European Union,' she said.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Economic ties with Beijing may be easing but with caution, says FM Sitharaman
New Delhi: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday indicated the possibility of stepping up India-China business engagement, stating that various domestic stakeholders have been calling on the government to facilitate greater access to the Chinese market and investments, and that Beijing has also reached out for the purpose. "There is something, some kind of a beginning. As to how far it will go that's something we have to wait and see. But it might help the economy. However, a sense of caution would have to be built into it," Sitharaman said. She was speaking at a function held in Delhi for the release of a book in honour of economist Shankar Acharya. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Others Data Science Healthcare CXO PGDM Design Thinking Data Science Artificial Intelligence Public Policy Degree Digital Marketing healthcare Product Management Project Management Technology Management Leadership Finance Data Analytics Cybersecurity MCA MBA Operations Management others Skills you'll gain: Duration: 7 Months S P Jain Institute of Management and Research CERT-SPJIMR Exec Cert Prog in AI for Biz India Starts on undefined Get Details Skills you'll gain: Duration: 9 months IIM Lucknow SEPO - IIML CHRO India Starts on undefined Get Details Skills you'll gain: Duration: 16 Weeks Indian School of Business CERT-ISB Transforming HR with Analytics & AI India Starts on undefined Get Details Skills you'll gain: Duration: 28 Weeks MICA CERT-MICA SBMPR Async India Starts on undefined Get Details Bilateral trade a priority India had put in place greater checks on foreign direct investment (FDI) from China and other bordering nations, suspended tourist visas and banned scores of Chinese apps after the Galwan clash in 2020 in Ladakh, initiated by Beijing's troops. The measures coincided with the onset of Covid-19. Later, the government extended visas to certain Chinese professionals to push the completion of Indian renewable projects. This week, India resumed tourist visas to the neighbouring country. In March, Beijing lifted visa curbs on Indian citizens. External affairs minister S Jaishankar this month visited China for the first time in six years and met President Xi Jinping amid efforts from both sides to reset ties. Sitharaman also said trade talks with the US and the European Union are going well. 'It is bilateral trade which is taking priority over multilateral trade,' she said, referring to the changed global environment.
