Technology

CALIFORNIA / WAM Google has announced that it is bringing more of its Gemini AI features to its Chrome browser, the latest in the company’s efforts to put its new-age tech front and centre for users. The Gemini-powered features include the image generation tool Nano Banana, Google’s “Personal Intelligence” feature and “Auto browse,” an agentic AI tool that lets users …

WASHINGTON / WAM Elon Musk, owner of social media site X, announced that his artificial intelligence startup, xAI, has officially open-sourced its Grok 2.5 model. The effort aims to motivate researchers, developers, and AI enthusiasts to explore and broaden the platform’s capabilities. In a post on his social media platform X, Musk revealed that Grok 3 would follow suit, with …

ABU DHABI / WAM The global education sector is witnessing a transformative shift as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes an integral part of school curricula. Beginning with the 2025–2026 academic year, UAE public schools will introduce Artificial Intelligence as a formal subject across all grades, from kindergarten to grade 12. This initiative aims to equip students with the knowledge and skills …

ABU DHABI / WAM UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan welcomed the winners of the 11th season of the Prince of Poets and Million’s Poet competitions, as well as the fourth season of the Al-Mankous programme, along with their respective judges. During the meeting, held at Qasr Al-Bahr in Abu Dhabi, His Highness discussed with attendees …

BEIJING/WAM China sent a test satellite for satellite internet technology into space from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre, located in the country’s northwest, on Tuesday. The satellite was launched at 12:00 pm (Beijing Time) by a Long March 2D carrier rocket and entered the planned orbit successfully. Test satellites for satellite internet technology are primarily used to conduct technical verification …

WASHINGTON/WAM SpaceX launched another batch of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida’s Space Coast. A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 28 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on March 31. To plan, the Falcon 9’s first stage came back to Earth about eight minutes after liftoff. It touched down on the Just Read the Instructions droneship stationed …

BEIJING / WAM Chinese scientists have successfully conducted an ice-cap detection experiment in Antarctica using a domestically developed ultra-wideband hyperspectral microwave radiometer, as reported by China’s 41st Antarctic expedition team. According to Xinhua, the team conducted joint air-ground experiments using helicopters and snowmobiles to successfully carry out remote sensing detection of temperature distribution beneath the Antarctic ice. Zhu Di, a …

BARCELONA / WAM Commuters in the centre of the Spanish city of Barcelona have been able to ride the bus for free this week. There’s just one catch: this mini-bus has no one at the wheel, AP reported. Renault is testing a new driverless mini-bus in Barcelona this week. The autonomous vehicle is running on a 2.2-km (1.3-mile) circular route …

DUBAI / GULF TIME SonicWall released the 2025 SonicWall Annual Cyber Threat Report, revealing a continued onslaught of cyberattacks on small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs). Once exclusively targeting large enterprises, threat actors now use more efficient targeting and AI-driven attacks making it clear that SMBs and organisations of all sizes can’t fight this battle alone — relying on the expertise …

BAKU/WAM UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Monday hosted a special dinner in Baku in honour of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, His Excellency Alexander Lukashenko, President of the Republic of Belarus, and His Excellency Edi Rama, Prime Minister of the Republic of Albania. The …