Archives 2023

Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer MediaTek has already announced that it has successfully developed its first 3nm chipset with TSMC. This new mobile platform is 32% more power-efficient than the previous-generation silicon. However, the company hasn’t announced the exact name of the chipset. Now, the chipmaking company’s CEO Rick Tsai has spoken about the close partnership with its foundry partner. In a statement to Taiwan-based publication Economic News Daily (spotted by Wccftech), he stated that both companies are working together to launch MediaTek’s first 3nm product which is rumoured to be called the Dimensity 9400.
How MediaTek and TSMC is working together to improve 3nm chips
TSMC and MediaTek are reportedly working together to optimise efficiency for the Dimensity 9400. However, just like the Dimensity 9300, the succeeding chipset will also reportedly lack low-power cores.
Tsai said that the AI boom will help the company in the coming year to result in a positive outcome. Earlier, analysts noted that the Dimensity 9300 is currently the most powerful smartphone chipset. Moreover, the company also expects that Android phone makers using it in their flagships will also increase the number of orders. This will also boost MediaTek’s global market share to 35%, threatening rival Qualcomm’s dominance.
The company’s CEO also mentioned that its partnership with TSMC allows MediaTek to focus on the new 3nm chipset. He also said the company has also partnered with Intel for its 16nm node. However, the report didn’t mention which silicon would be launched on that manufacturing process.
For the rumoured Dimensity 9400 SoC, the company will reportedly use TSMC’s ‘N3E’ process. This process is expected to offer improved yields than the N3B variant that Apple uses for the A17 Pro and M3.
How Dimensity 9400 may not be more efficient than its predecessor
The relationship between the two companies will help the Dimensity 9400 to be well optimised for various smartphone brands. The Dimensity 9300 offers powerful performance but isn’t as efficient as it does not feature any low-power cores.
MediaTek is rumoured to retain a similar CPU cluster with the Dimensity 9400. This will offer a Cortex-X5 paired with an unnamed CPU design to deliver improved multi-core performance. However, the lack of efficient cores may have an adverse effect on this chipset’s power draw, the report notes. So, TSMC and MediaTek may be working together to mitigate these effects.
Qualcomm may also have a similar relationship for the upcoming Snapdragon 8 Gen 4. However, both rivals are expected to introduce more improved silicon in 2024.

This article discusses how to use the Google Photos app to declutter your phone storage. It explains the importance of backing up and syncing your photos to the cloud, freeing up space on your device. It also mentions the ‘Suggest deletion’ feature, which identifies and offers to delete blurry, similar, or outdated photos. Archiving large videos to the cloud is another recommended method. The article highlights the powerful search function of Google Photos, allowing users to find specific photos quickly. Lastly, it suggests using the ‘Memories’ feature to rediscover and declutter old photos.

Apple will continue to sell the Apple Watch models that were banned from import in the US as the company secured a win when a US appeals court paused a government commission’s order passed following a patent dispute with medical-technology firm Masimo.
Earlier this week, the iPhone maker filed an emergency request in the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to halt the order after the government decided to not veto the US International Trade Commission’s (ITC) decision to ban some models of the Apple Watch smartwatches that allegedly infringed Masimo’s patents.
In a four-paragraph ruling, the court said it would halt the ban while it considers Apple’s motion for a longer-term pause during the appeals process. ITC now has until January 10 to respond to Apple’s request. Meanwhile, Apple can resume selling the Series 9 and Ultra 2 smartwatches in the country, and the wearables are available at other retailers including Amazon, Best Buy, Costco and Walmart.
Apple Watch ban issue
The ITC barred imports and sales of Apple Watches with technology for reading blood-oxygen levels. Apple also included a pulse oximeter feature in its smartwatches starting with its Series 6 model in 2020.
Masimo accused Apple of hiring away its employees and stealing its pulse oximetry technology to incorporate it into Apple Watches. Apple called Masimo’s legal actions a “manoeuvre to clear a path” for its own competing smartwatch.
The Biden administration had until December 26 to veto the ban but it decided to allow the ban, following which Apple appealed in the court.
What next for Apple
A final decision on the matter could cost either company millions of dollars and potentially force a settlement or some kind of technological workaround by Apple, news agency Reuters cited some analysts as saying. Apple is already working on a range of legal and technical options. It was even said to be working on a fix to circumvent the tech concerned.
The customs agency has set a target date of January 12 for its decision, Apple said. The ban did not affect the Apple Watch SE, a less-expensive model without a pulse oximeter.

It’s time for your daily dose of Quordle hints, plus the answers for both the main game and the Daily Sequence spin off. 

Quordle is the only one of the many Wordle clones that I’m still playing now, around 18 months after the daily-word-game craze hit the internet, and with good reason: it’s fun, but also difficult.

It seems to be full blown poaching wars at Indian IT giants. Just days after Indian IT major Wipro sued two of its senior executives for joining Cognizant, rival IT giant Infosys too has made a kinda similar move. The country’s second largest IT services firm Infosys has reported to have accused Cognizant of using “unethical poaching tactics” after several of its executives quit to join the Nasdaq-listed firm.
According to a report in MoneyControl.com, Infosys had sent a written communication to Cognizant after a few of its senior leaders departed to join the company.The report quotes three sources said to be aware of the matter. “Non-compete clauses are not enforceable but this communication to Cognizant was more of a deterrent”, one of the sources cited reportedly said.
The long list
Since taking charge in January this year, an Infosys veteran and now Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar has hired over twenty executive vice presidents and four senior vice presidents. Many of these are from Wipro and Infosys. In the past 12 months, Infosys and Wipro have cumulatively lost more than 15 senior-level executives to major rival companies.
The key executives that Cognizant hired from Infosys include Anurag Vardhan Sinha, Nageswar Cherukupalli, Narsimha Rao Mannepalli and Shweta Arora. While the first two have already joined Cognizant, the latter two were reportedly tipped to join as head of delivery and head of consulting. However, Infosys’ move to send a missive may have delayed those plans, according to one of the sources cited above.
Wipro has now filed suits in the US and India against two of its former executives- Mohd Haque and Jatin Dalal- who joined Cognizant recently. Besides losing its veteran CFO Dalal, Wipro lost its chief growth officer Stephanie Trautman, leading the IT major to dissolve its large deals growth office into strategic market units to be headed directly by chief executive Thierry Delaporte.
Talking about Dalal’s exit in an interview with ET in October, Delaporte had stated that he wanted “to develop communication with a new approach, with a generation who will lead Wipro for the next years”.

Amid growing concerns over deepfakes, the government has directed all platforms to comply with IT rules. The missive underlines hardening of government stance on the issue, amid growing concerns around misinformation powered by AI – Deepfakes. The advisory mandates that intermediaries — such as WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and others — communicate prohibited content specified under IT Rules clearly and precisely to users.
The advisory stated, “The content not permitted under the IT Rules, in particular those listed under Rule 3(1)(b) must be clearly communicated to the users in clear and precise language including through its terms of service and user agreements and the same must be expressly informed to the user at the time of first-registration and also as regular reminders, in particular, at every instance of login and while uploading/sharing information onto the platform.”
The advisory emphasizes that digital intermediaries must ensure users are informed about penal provisions, including those in the IPC and the IT Act 2000, in case of Rule 3(1)(b) violations.
“The users must be made aware of the various penal provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) 1860, the IT Act, 2000 and such other laws that may be attracted in case of violation of Rule 3(1)(b). In addition, the terms of service and user agreements must clearly highlight that intermediaries/platforms are under obligation to report legal violations to the law enforcement agencies under the relevant Indian laws applicable to the context,” the advisory further added.
Rule 3(1)(b) within the due diligence section of the IT rules mandates intermediaries to communicate their rules, regulations, privacy policy, and user agreement in the user’s preferred language. They are also obliged to ensure reasonable efforts to prevent users from hosting, displaying, uploading, modifying, publishing, transmitting, storing, updating, or sharing any information related to the 11 listed user harms or content prohibited on digital intermediaries. This rule aims to ensure platforms identify and promptly remove misinformation, false or misleading content, and material impersonating others, including deepfakes.
Over a period of one month, Union Minister of State for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Electronics & IT, and Jal Shakti, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, convened pivotal stakeholder meetings with industry leaders to address the pressing issue of deepfakes. During the meeting, he highlighted the urgency for all platforms and intermediaries to strictly adhere to the current laws and regulations, emphasizing that the IT rules comprehensively address the menace of deepfakes.
Minister Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar stated, “Misinformation represents a deep threat to the safety and trust of users on the Internet. Deepfake which is misinformation powered by AI, further amplifies the threat to safety and trust of our Digital Nagriks. On 17th November, the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi alerted the country to the dangers of deepfakes and post that, the Ministry has had two Digital India Dialogues with all the stakeholders of the Indian Internet to alert them about the provisions of the IT Rules notified in October 2022, and amended in April 2023 that lays out 11 specific prohibited types of content on all social media intermediaries & platforms.”
The Minister further emphasized that Rule 3(1)(b)(v) explicitly prohibits the dissemination of misinformation. Consequently, all intermediaries were asked to exercise due diligence in promptly removing such content from their platforms. He also emphasized that platforms have been duly informed about the legal consequences associated with any violations under the IT rules.
“Rule 3(1)(b)(v) prohibits misinformation and patently false information. During the two Digital India Dialogues, Government and industry have agreed to more measures to ensure compliance by platforms and users with the IT rules which have been explained earlier in the media. Today, a formal advisory has been issued incorporating the ‘agreed to’ procedures to ensure that users on these platforms do not violate the prohibited content in Rule 3(1)(b) and if such legal violations are noted or reported then the consequences under law will follow. MeitY will closely observe the compliance of intermediaries in the coming weeks and follow this up with further amendments to the IT Rules and/or the law if and when required. It is Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi government’s mission to ensure that the internet is safe & trusted and all intermediaries are accountable under law for the safety and trust of the Digital Nagriks that use the Indian Internet,” the Minister further added.

Every year since its inception, hackers have stolen more cryptocurrencies than the previous year, until 2023, new research has claimed.

Data presented on the REKT platform, which keeps track of all the different crypto-related hacks and thefts, says that in 2023, hackers stole a total of $1.83bn.

Escrowpay has announced completion of a $600 thousand capital raise from its existing investors. The latest infusion brings the total raised to an impressive $6.6 million, contributing to the ongoing Series A round targeting $15 million.
The company recently secured the first digital escrow regulatory fintech authorization from IFSCA, Gift City. The company claims to have over 3000 clients, including SMEs, unicorns, listed enterprises, and emerging digital-first businesses across India, Escrowpay has processed transactions exceeding Rs. 15,000 crore. The fresh capital injection will be strategically utilized to accelerate Escrowpay’s initiatives, support key growth areas, and foster innovation within the payments ecosystem. As part of its expansion plans, Escrowpay is intensifying its focus on cross-border transactions with a presence in overseas geographies such as UAE and the UK. The groundwork for this expansion has already begun, reflecting the company’s commitment to meeting the evolving needs of its clients on a global scale.
One of the significant developments is the launch of BizSuraksha, an industry-first ‘on-the-go and on-demand escrow’ digital solution. This self-serve platform is designed to empower startups and SMEs, enabling them to secure collections and payments seamlessly. BizSuraksha addresses the specific needs of businesses that may not be tech-savvy or lack their own tech team, ensuring a streamlined and efficient cash flow equilibrium for sustained business growth.
Ashwin Chawwla, Managing Director of Escrowpay, expressed gratitude for the continued support from existing investors. “We have been building relentlessly to digitize cash optimization solutions since 2015. We are grateful for the continued support and confidence shown by our existing investors. This capital infusion positions us well for the next phase of growth, allowing us to execute on our strategic vision and deliver exceptional value to our customers and stakeholders. With the launch of BizSuraksha, Escrowpay has delivered an innovative ‘on demand’ digital escrow solution for smaller businesses that are not tech savvy or do not have their own tech team,” he said.

Bharti Airtel has said that it does not agree with an order it received under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act for levy of Rs 24.94 lakh penalty. The telecom major said that it will take suitable action for rectification or reversal. The violation pertains to alleged irregular input tax credit claim from 2017-18 to 2021-22 and other related matters. The company informed the bourses same in a BSE filing.
Submitting details of the orders received by the company under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, Airtel said that the order was received on December 24.
The order entails a levy of a penalty of Rs 24,94,316, it said, adding, “the company does not agree with the order and will take appropriate action for rectification/reversal of the same.”
“The maximum financial impact is to the extent of the penalty levied,” it said.

It’s placement season at India’s most-premiere engineering institutes, IITs. After IIT-Madras and IIT-Delhi, the first phase of placement concluded at IIT-Roorkee. The placement season started on December 1 at the institute.
IIT-Roorkee has reported one of its best-ever placement seasons. An IIT-Roorkee student has secured a salary package of Rs 2.15 core from an international company during the first phase of the placement drive this year. In a statement, IIT-Roorkee said that this marks the “highest ever for the institute”.
The institute is reported to have recorded a remarkable placement season with 281 participating companies and an average salary of Rs 21.33 lakh. “We have witnessed a good placement season this year. The drive is still on as companies are still coming to the campus with job offers,” said Sonika Srivastava, head of the IIT-Roorkee’s media cell.
Companies that participated in the placement
The companies that participated in the first phase of the campus placement drive at IIT-Roorkee include Accenture Japan Ltd, Amazon, American Express, Bank of America, Flipkart, Goldman Sachs, Havells India Ltd, Hindustan Unilever Limited, ICICI Bank, Intel, JP Morgan, Jio Platforms, Larsen & Toubro Limited, Microsoft, Paytm, PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) and Reliance Industries Limited.
According to IIT-Roorkee officials, based on the data compiled till December 16, the institute has secured a total of 1,243 job offers, including 32 international offers.
The institute also shared the details of student participation. This year, around 1,420 students have been registered for the drive, compared to 1,358 students in 2021-22.