Abu Dhabi / WAM Masdar has announced the arrival of Abu Dhabi high-tech sector drivers, the Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC) and its two-pillar entities, Technology Innovation Institute (TII) and ASPIRE, to Masdar City in the capital of the UAE. The council, which shapes the R&D strategy in the emirate; TII, the dedicated ‘applied research’ pillar of ATRC; and Aspire, ...

In cities at least, India’s nightmarish second wave of Covid-19 finally seems to be ebbing. Delhi has brought its test positivity rate below 2% for the first time in two months. The pandemic’s scars won’t be easily erased, however — and they should be a warning to other developing nations. Those countries must learn from India’s experience if they don’t ...

The Covid-19 pandemic has shown us two sides of technological progress. There’s the positive side that’s delivered safe and effective vaccines in record time, helped economies with new stay-at-home online tools and improved disease surveillance and public health. And there’s the negative side that’s turbocharged malicious actors’ and authoritarian regimes’ disinformation campaigns, hacking and disruption of opponents, and fostered a ...

India’s internet future — free and open, or stymied and controlled — may be decided by a 224-page lawsuit filed by WhatsApp last week. Saying that it wanted to curb fake news, revenge porn and other ills, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government introduced new rules in February that would compel social media platforms such as Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp to trace ...

The news from Washington last week, as usual, was grim. Senate Republicans blocked legislation to create a bipartisan commission to investigate the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Bipartisan talks over President Joe Biden’s infrastructure proposals are dragging out. Senators negotiating a police-reform bill missed their deadline. It’s disappointing to progressives who want to see the government get things done, ...

Bloomberg Food giant Monde Nissin Corp’s record-breaking entry into the Philippine stock market is driving a shakeup that’s impacting everything from the nation’s consumer sector to holdings of some of the biggest money managers. Investors say the $1 billion initial share offering — the biggest ever debut in the Southeast Asian country — is pushing them to reallocate funds from ...

Bloomberg Deutsche Lufthansa AG said it continues to have permission to operate several weekly flights to Moscow and St Petersburg, after at least two European airlines scrapped routes when Russian aviation authorities withheld authorisation for changes to avoid flying over Belarus. The German carrier operates seven weekly connections to Moscow and four to St Petersburg, according to a spokeswoman. Air ...

Bloomberg Qantas Airways Ltd is offering unlimited flights for a year among a pool of prizes for people who’ve had Covid-19 shots, the biggest incentive yet from an Australian business in a bid to accelerate the country’s sluggish vaccination rollout. Giving details about the program on Monday, Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce said 10 “mega prizes” would give families of ...

Bloomberg The US will have a busy vacation season this summer as cities make a strong comeback, according to Stephen Kaufer, chief executive officer of TripAdvisor Inc. “Now we have a lot more activities all around the country, and it’s not just outdoors. The cities are making a very real comeback,” Kaufer said on CBS’s “Face the Nation”. Hotel searches ...

Bloomberg The back-to-school season has always been important for US retailers, and this year’s is likely to be a doozy. Consumer wallets fat with stimulus checks helped Walmart Inc and Target Corp blow past sales estimates in the first quarter, but those funds will dry up at some point. Stepping into the fold, analysts expect an unprecedented shopping season as ...