Lava Bold 5G was announced in India on Wednesday as the latest 5G smartphone from domestic smartphone brand Lava. The new handset runs on a MediaTek Dimensity 6300 chipset and has a 6.67-inch display. The Lava Bold 5G has an IP64-rated build, and it sports a 64-megapixel rear camera unit. It houses a 5,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging support. The Lava Bold 5G will go on sale next week via Amazon.
Lava Bold 5G Price in India
The Lava Bold 5G comes at an introductory starting price tag of Rs. 10,499. It is confirmed to be available in 4GB + 128GB and 6GB + 128GB RAM and storage configurations and a Sapphire Blue colour option. It will go on sale via Amazon starting April 8 at 12pm IST.
Lava Bold 5G Specifications
The Lava Bold 5G runs on Android 14, but it is confirmed to get an upgrade to Android 15 and two years of security updates. It sports a 6.67-inch 3D curved AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate. The handset runs on a MediaTek Dimensity 6300 chipset paired with up to 6GB RAM and 128GB of onboard storage. With the virtual RAM feature, the onboard memory can be expanded up to 8GB using unused storage.
For optics, the Lava Bold 5G has an AI-backed rear camera unit led by a 64-megapixel Sony sensor. For selfies and video chats, it has a 16-megapixel front camera. The new phone has an IP64-rated build for water and dust resistance.
The Lava Bold 5G features an in-display fingerprint sensor for authentication. It houses a 5,000mAh battery that offers 33W wired fast charging support.
Amazon Prime Video announced the availability of Apple TV+ as an add-on subscription in India and select other countries on Wednesday. Customers who have already purchased an Amazon Prime subscription can sign up for Apple's video streaming service by paying Rs. 99 per month. Amazon says this enables viewers to stream popular Apple TV+ films and shows such as Disclaimer, Severance, Silo, and Ted Lasso without leaving the Prime Video app or website.
Apple TV+ Add-On Subscription on Amazon Prime Video
According to Amazon Prime Video, the addition of Apple TV+ as an add-on subscription enables customers to stream the platform's exclusive library of films and shows on a single destination, eliminating the need of switching to different apps for their respective video content. Further, it is claimed to reduce the hassle of juggling between multiple login credentials for various video streaming platforms.
Additionally, a single account allows them to have a consolidated watch list, in addition to a library of offline downloads. Subscribers can also manage data consumption and much more across all their add-on subscriptions, as per the company.
The subscription in India is priced at Rs. 99 per month. Alongside India, Apple TV+ has also been introduced as an add-on subscription in the US, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and other territories in Europe and Latin America.
In addition to Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video also offers add-on subscriptions to more than 25 other video streaming platforms such as Lionsgate Play, Discovery+, BBC Player, MGM+, Sony Pictures – Stream, Anime Times, Crunchyroll, Animax+GEM, CN Rewind, FanCode, Channel K, Chaupal, Hoichoi, and Manorama Max.
This move comes amidst reports that Apple is losing more than $1 billion (roughly Rs. 8,604 crore) a year on its video streaming service. Since its launch in 2019, the iPhone maker has spent more than $5 billion (roughly Rs. 43,020 crore) a year on content, with Apple TV+ productions earning over 2,500 nominations and 538 wins. Owing to this, Apple is said to have trimmed its annual spend by around $500 million (roughly Rs. 4,302 crore) in 2024.
OpenAI is planning to release an open-source artificial intelligence (AI) model. This would be the San Francisco-based AI firm's first open-source reasoning-focused AI model, and it is expected to be released in the next few months. This will be the company's first open-source release since the GPT-2 model, which was introduced in November 2019. The AI firm is currently seeking feedback from the developer community to better understand their needs and requirements. OpenAI said that a major focus in the development of the AI model will be on safety.
OpenAI Planning to Release an Open-Source AI Model
The open-source space in AI has become quite competitive. From companies focused on the community, such as Meta, Mistral, and Alibaba, to tech giants, such as Google and Microsoft, have all released multiple open models. However, OpenAI has been missing in this area ever since the release of GPT-2, and has focused on only releasing closed software that cannot be downloaded or modified for either research or commercial purposes.
Earlier this year, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was also asked a question on the same topic during an ask-me-anything (AMA) session on Reddit. Altman admitted that the company has been “on the wrong side of history” in this aspect and “need to figure out a different open-source strategy.” But he also added that it was not the company's highest priority.
However, on Monday, the company CEO shared an “Open model feedback” form in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), suggesting that the AI firm is now planning to build an open-weight AI model with advanced reasoning. For the unaware, the weights are just the numerical values of the connections the AI makes to generate an output.
While it is a significant part of the AI model, without the dataset and training techniques in the public domain, the model cannot be replicated or built from scratch to add onto another system. Such black boxed AI models are generally considered partially open.
Altman said that the safety of the model will remain a core focus area for the company, given that the model will be modified post-release. The AI firm plans to refer to its Preparedness Framework for this.
Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, is planning to go public this year. The US-based crypto firm recently filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). If approved, Circle's stocks will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) as “CRCL”. As part of the listing process, Circle has filled SEC's S-1 form – which is a registration statement that firms planning to go public need to submit to the SEC. It essentially provides key details about the firm and their businesses to the SEC as well as the investor community.
The filing shows that Circle plans to introduce three classes of common stock -- Class A (one vote per share), Class B (five votes per share, capped at 30 percent voting power), and Class C (non-voting). Despite the founders' voting power, Circle said it will not be classified as a “controlled company” under the NYSE rules.
As of now, Circle has not disclosed how many shares it plans to offer and what its IPO target price would be.
Key Details Circle Mentioned in the S-1 Form
Circle claimed in its filing that assets under its management reached the valuation of approximately $1.6 billion (roughly Rs. 13,694 crore) as of December 31, 2024.
The company also informed investors that between 2022 and 2024, its stablecoin-related reserves rose from $735.9 million (roughly Rs. 6,299 crore) to $1.7 billion (roughly Rs. 14,554 crore). While 99 percent of Circle's revenue last year came from its stablecoin reserves, the firm also churns a portion of its income via yield-bearing Treasury bills, the filing shows.
Explaining its decision to the public, Circle stated that the move seeks to enhance transparency and accountability while engaging with the investor community.
“Operating as a US-listed public company represents our continued dedication to transparency and accountability, as we will become subject to the reporting, corporate governance, and other requirements that are applicable to a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange,” the company said in its filing.
As per reports, Circle's IPO could go live between April and June.
Data by CoinGecko shows that Coinbase, Galaxy Digital, and Mara Holdings are among the top ten largest blockchain firms by market cap as of February 4.
Associated Risks
Now that Circle is planning its IPO, it has compiled a list of risk factors that the investors should beware of.
“Stablecoins may face periods of uncertainty, loss of trust, or systemic shocks resulting in the potential for rapid redemption requests (or runs). Extreme scenarios, such as market shocks that affect the value of USDC's reserves may lead to redemption delays and USDC reserves being insufficient to meet all redemption requests,” the firm explained.
The company acknowledged its exposure to credit risks and cautioned that its compliance and risk management strategies may be ineffective. It also warned investors that purchasing Class A common stock carries significant risk.
Circle's Journey So Far
Circle launched as a peer-to-peer payments technology company in October 2013 by Jeremy Allaire and Sean Neville. Over the last twelve years, the USDC supply has swollen to over 60 billion tokens. According to CoinMarketCap, USDC is the seventh largest crypto by market valuation.
In September 2024, Circle partnered with Sony to expand the USDC ecosystem through the Soneium blockchain. Under the deal, the USDC stablecoin was finalised as a key token within the Soneium network.
Ahead of its planned IPO, USDC received an approval from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) for use within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). This allows all firms operating in the DIFC to integrate the USDC token into their daily economic activities.
Fossils of a 444 million-year-old marine creature, which is preserved in an unusual state, have been unearthed in South Africa. The remains belong to an extinct species of arthropod that lived long before dinosaurs, claims a new study. The fossils, which were discovered nearly 250 miles north of Cape Town in the Cederberg Mountains, shows an inside-out preservation technique. This means that the the soft tissues, such as muscles and guts, survived but the hard outer shell and limbs did not. This rare preservation offers a glimpse into ancient marine life and environments that existed during the Late Ordovician period.
Fossil Findings and Preservation
According to the study published in the journal Papers in Palaeontology, researchers have identified the specimens of the recently discovered fossils to be known as Keurbos susanae. The fossils were found in the Soom Shale, a geological formation recognised for preserving soft-bodied fossils. The researchers stated that the remains had been preserved without their shell and head while internal features like muscles and intestines remained intact. It has been reported that the species possibly lived in oxygen-deficient waters high in dissolved hydrogen sulphide which may have contributed to the unique preservation of soft tissues.
Challenges in Fossil Interpretation
Lead researcher Dr Sarah Gabbott, a Palaeontologist at the University of Leicester, told Live Science that the fossil was described as an "inside-out, legless, headless wonder". She mentioned that muscles, tendons and even guts had been mineralised in remarkable detail while the outer shell and legs were missing due to decay. According to the report, the fossil dates back to a period when nearly 85 percent of marine life was wiped out by a mass extinction event. The absence of the exoskeleton has made it difficult for scientists to establish evolutionary links with other species from that time.
Limited Prospects of Further Discoveries
It has been reported that the fossil site where Keurbos susanae was discovered has been buried due to quarrying activity. Dr Gabbott mentioned that she had searched for additional specimens over the past two decades, but no new examples had been found. The species was named after her mother, Sue, who had encouraged her to pursue a career that brought her happiness. The research team noted that unless new specimens surface, the evolutionary significance of Keurbos susanae may remain unresolved.
A powerful X-class solar flare was unleashed by an emerging sunspot region leading to radio blackouts over large parts of North and South America. The flare was classified as X1.1 and was reported to have erupted from sunspot region AR4046. This unexpected solar event was recorded on March 28. The flare impacted shortwave radio signals across the sunlit areas at the time of eruption, which disrupted communication in several regions.
Solar Flare Triggered By Sunspot AR4046
Reportedly, according to the Space Weather Prediction Center under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the solar flare originated from sunspot region AR4046. It was reported that the flare was accompanied by a filament eruption and a coronal mass ejection. A coronal mass ejection refers to an expulsion of plasma and magnetic field from the sun's corona. Reports have stated that this specific ejection is not expected to directly affect Earth because of the sunspot's location on the eastern limb of the sun during the flare.
Potential For Future Solar Activity
Solar physicist Halo CME, in a post shared on X social media platform, stated that the coronal mass ejection observed after the flare may not impact Earth due to the sunspot's position. Solar astrophysicist Ryan French also posted on X saying that the sunspot region responsible for the flare is expected to rotate towards Earth in the coming days. Space weather forecasters are currently monitoring the region for possible future eruptions that may impact Earth.
Impact On Communication Signals
The Space Weather Prediction Center reported that shortwave radio blackouts were detected across much of North and South America. These blackouts occurred when intense X-rays and extreme ultraviolet radiation from the flare ionised Earth's upper atmosphere. The increased ionisation resulted in disturbances in high-frequency radio communication across the affected regions.
Two planets outside the solar system have been identified orbiting a star located nearly 250 light-years away from Earth in the Draco constellation. These planets are categorised as a super-Earth and a sub-Neptune. Both types are commonly observed in the Milky Way galaxy yet neither is present in our solar system. The host star, known as TOI-1453, is slightly cooler and smaller compared to the Sun. These planets were found around a binary star system which features two stars orbiting each other.
Details of the discovery
According to the study published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics these exoplanets have been named TOI-1453 b and TOI-1453 c. Their detection was carried out using data from NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite and the High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher for the Northern hemisphere spectrograph based in Spain. The TESS satellite identified these planets through the transit method which monitors reductions in a star's brightness when a planet passes in front of it. Complementary measurements were obtained through the HARPS-N spectrograph which detects shifts in a star's light caused by the gravitational pull of orbiting planets.
Characteristics of TOI-1453 b and TOI-1453 c
As per information shared by the University of Liège astrophysicist Manu Stalport, TOI-1453 b is categorised as a super-Earth slightly larger than Earth and believed to be rocky. It completes an orbit around its star in just over four days suggesting that it is extremely close to its host star. The planet's proximity is likely to make its surface temperature very high.
In contrast, TOI-1453 c has been classified as a sub-Neptune and is nearly twice the size of Earth. Its mass is comparatively low at approximately 2.9 Earth masses which has raised questions about its density and composition. Astronomers believe that it may contain a hydrogen-rich atmosphere or a water-dominated interior.
