DeepMind CEO Says Google Will Spend More Than $100 Billion on AI
The chief of Google’s AI business said that over time the company will spend more than $100 billion developing artificial intelligence technology — another sign of the investing arms race that has gripped Silicon Valley.
Former OpenAI Board Member Calls for Audits of Top AI Companies.
Helen Toner says leading AI companies should be required to share information with the public about the capabilities and risks of the technology they’re building and collect more data when these tools go awry.
AI companies should have to “share information about what they’re building, what their systems can do, and how they’re managing risks,” Toner said in a talk at the TED conference in Vancouver on Tuesday, one of her first public appearances since resigning from OpenAI’s board late last year. Toner also called for “AI auditors” to be allowed “to scrutinize their work so that the companies aren’t just grading their own homework.”
Pakistani logistics firm to launch initial public offering In end April 2024, aiming to raise $2.1 million
Secure Logistics Group (SLG), an integrated logistics firm with synergistic business lines in logistics, asset tracking, and security services, plans its IPO through a book-building process on March 27 and 28, offering 50 million shares at a floor price of Rs12 each. Prior to that, the group has already secured Rs585 million ($2 million) from Jeddah-based Saudi Bugshan Group and Karandaaz Pakistan.
The SLG plans to utilize the proceeds raised from the IPO to de-leverage its balance sheet and expand its logistics business to accelerate its transformation of traditional logistics segment.
IMF maintains Pakistan’s economic growth forecast at 2% for FY24
The International Monetary Fund (IMF), in its latest World Economic Outlook report released on 16 April 2024, projected Pakistan’s economic growth forecast at 2% for the current fiscal year, unchanged from its revised January prediction, down from an earlier estimate of 2.5%. The IMF also projected a growth rate of 3.5% for FY25, adjusted down from 3.6% forecast in October 2023.
Pakistan to request for 3-year IMF program, says finance minister
Pakistan has initiated discussions with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over a new multi-billion dollar loan agreement to support its economic reform program, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has said, adding that the country will at least be requesting for a three-year program. During his visit to Washington, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb will attend the spring meetings organized by the IMF and World Bank, which kick off in earnest on 16 April 2024, with two clear objectives: to help countries combat climate change, and to assist the world’s most indebted nations.
Only 50 retailers register with FBR
Less than 50 retailers have so far voluntarily registered with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and only two weeks remaining before the deadline expires, underscoring the challenges facing the government in registering all retailers in six major cities. The registration scheme is viewed as the ruling party’s initial test of political will to broaden the narrow tax base. Construction, real estate, and the wholesale and retail sectors will also be the focus of the new International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme aimed at expanding the narrow tax base, according to sources. However, failure in any of these areas may result in additional burdens on the salaried class, already burdened by heavy taxation and constant double-digit inflation.
Social media platform X blocked in Pakistan over national security, ministry says
Users have reported problems using X, formerly known as Twitter, in Pakistan since mid-February, but the government has made no official announcements.
Marks and Spencer to shut down 111-year-old store in London
The Marks and Spencer store in south London, a local favourite for over a century in London, is set to close its doors permanently. The shutters of the century-old shop will come down for the last time on June 8, marking the end of a 111-year presence in the community. Londoners took to social media to express their dismay. The retail landscape is changing, with many companies, not just M&S, adjusting their high street presence. Rising rents and living costs have put pressure on retailers that led to closures.