Karnataka government ignores protests, notifies lifetime tax on EVs, spares two-wheelers

Karnataka has introduced a new lifetime road tax for electric cars, jeeps, and buses, excluding two-wheelers. This move aims to generate an additional Rs 250 crore for the state government. The decision has drawn criticism from Union Minister Pralhad Joshi and the EV industry, who fear it could increase crude oil imports and hinder climate goals.

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TCS and five other firms empanelled to build & run AI for govt departments

The Centre has empanelled six partner firms, including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), to develop and deploy AI solutions across government departments. More than 80 companies had submitted bids for the request for empanelment (RFE), which closed last week, with firms such as KPMG, Deloitte, PwC, EY, Fractal Analytics, Gnani AI and Jio Haptik missing the final shortlist on February 27.

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xAI CFO Anthony Armstrong leaves the company: Report

Anthony Armstrong, xAI's Chief Financial Officer, has left the company. This departure is part of a larger trend of senior staff exits. Armstrong was instrumental in guiding X's finances back to stability. Meanwhile, SpaceX is preparing for a significant initial public offering. The space company aims to raise a substantial amount of capital.

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TCS Q4 Results: Profit jumps 12% YoY to Rs 13,718 crore; revenue rises 10%

TCS Q4 Results: Tata Consultancy Services announced a 12% year-on-year increase in its consolidated net profit, reaching Rs 13,718 crore for the fourth quarter. The IT services giant also reported a 10% YoY revenue growth to Rs 70,698 crore, bolstered by three mega deals worth $12 billion. The company declared a final dividend of Rs 31 per share.

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Tesla is developing a new smaller, cheaper EV, sources say

The effort follows a decision by chief executive Elon Musk to scrap a highly anticipated low-cost EV project in 2024 and pivot the company to focus on robotaxis and humanoid robots. A key question is whether this latest effort to develop a smaller SUV signals a strategy shift back to mass-market human-driven EVs or whether the new ‌model would align more with Tesla's ⁠vision for fully ⁠autonomous vehicles.

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PE-backed IT companies growing faster, thanks to costs control, ops shifts, say experts

Private equity backed IT firms are growing faster than public market companies. This is due to strong cost control and operational changes. These firms show higher risk appetite and focus on leadership. They are also quicker to adapt to AI-led disruption. This efficiency leads to higher market valuations. Investors are interested in their repeatable revenue and scalability.

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Citigroup says AI helps speed account openings and systems upgrades

US banks are embracing AI, the biggest technological upheaval to the world economy since the internet, to boost productivity and, in some cases, cut jobs.

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Digital lender Kreditbee in unicorn club with $280 million at $1.5 billion valuation

Digital lending firm Kreditbee has raised $280 million, becoming a unicorn with a $1.5 billion valuation. This funding marks their last private round before a planned public listing. The company is awaiting regulatory approval for its initial public offering. Kreditbee has expanded its offerings and is investing in new technology.

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Anthropic touts AI cybersecurity project with Big Tech partners

Under its "Project Glasswing", select organizations will be allowed to use the startup's unreleased and general-purpose AI model, "Claude Mythos Preview", for defensive ‌cybersecurity work, Anthropic ⁠said. ⁠Other partners include CrowdStrike, Palo Alto Networks, Google and Nvidia.

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Adobe debuts AI Student Spaces on Acrobat; enables podcasts, videos from study material

Amid rising competition, Adobe is positioning Student Spaces against tools like Google NotebookLM, GoodNotes, and Turbo AI to make Acrobat into a unified platform for both consuming and creating study material.

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Samsung flags eightfold jump in Q1 profit as AI chip demand drives up prices

Samsung estimated an operating profit of 57.2 trillion won ($37.92 billion) for the January ​to March period, compared with an LSEG SmartEstimate of 40.6 trillion won and a more than eight-fold jump from 6.69 trillion won a year earlier.

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