ISRO’s rocket to take OneWeb’s 36 satellites to orbit in March

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ISRO’s rocket to take OneWeb’s 36 satellites to orbit in March

The second lot of 36 satellites belonging to the UK-based Network Access Associated Ltd (OneWeb) will be launched by an Indian rocket sometime in March 2023, it is learned.

“The OneWeb satellites are slated for launch during the first or second week of March by our rocket,” an official of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) told IANS preferring anonymity.

Meanwhile, OneWeb on Wednesday said the 36 satellites are on their way to India.

The first batch of 36 satellites was launched on October 23, 2022, from Sriharikota rocket port in Andhra Pradesh with an LVM3 rocket formerly known as Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle MkIII (GSLV MkIII).

“Our satellites have now been loaded ahead of our upcoming launch with @isro

“This is the final time we will load up an Antonov aircraft with our satellites for Gen1, demonstrating how close we are to truly global connectivity. Bon voyage, satellites!” OneWeb tweeted.

The Antonov aircraft will land in Chennai and from there the satellites will be taken to the ISRO’s rocket port in Sriharikota by road.

ISRO’s commercial arm NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL) has signed a contract with OneWeb to launch 72 satellites in two phases for a launch fee of over Rs 1,000 crore, OneWeb Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal said last October.

Early this month, OneWeb confirmed the successful deployment of 40 satellites launched by SpaceX from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

It was OneWeb’s 16th to date, with only two more launches remaining to complete its first-generation constellation enabling global connectivity in 2023.

With 542 satellites now in orbit, OneWeb has more than 80 percent of its first-generation constellation launched.

The age of AI is upon us and Microsoft is powering it: Satya Nadella

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The age of AI is upon us and Microsoft is powering it: Satya Nadella

As the world goes gaga over the real-life use cases of ChatGPT, Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella have said that the next major wave of computing is being born as we turn the world’s most advanced AI models into a new computing platform.

In a conference call with analysts after posting quarterly results, Nadella said that we’re going to lead in the AI era, knowing that maximum enterprise value gets created during platform shifts.

“We have the most powerful AI supercomputing infrastructure in the cloud. It’s being used by customers and partners like OpenAI to train state-of-the-art models and services, including ChatGPT,” said Nadella.

Last week, Microsoft made its Azure OpenAI service broadly available, and already over 200 customers from KPMG to Al Jazeera are using it.

“We will soon add support for ChatGPT, enabling customers to use it in their own applications for the first time. We announced the completion of the next phase of our agreement with OpenAI,” the Microsoft CEO informed.

Earlier this week, Microsoft announced a multi-year, multi-billion dollar investment in OpenAI, the developer behind AI-driven ChatGPT.

The tech giant, which infused $1 billion in OpenAI in 2019, did not divulge the investment amount in the “third phase of our long-term partnership with OpenAI”. Earlier reports had claimed Microsoft may infuse up to $10 billion in OpenAI.

Nadella said that the age of AI is upon us and Microsoft is powering it.

“We are witnessing nonlinear improvements in the capability of foundation models, which we are making available as platforms,” he added.

Russia aims to deploy over 1,000 satellites in orbit by 2030

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Russia aims to deploy over 1,000 satellites in orbit by 2030

Russia should increase the number of satellites in orbit from about 200 now to at least 1,000 by 2030, said Yury Borisov, Director General of Russia’s state space corporation Roscosmos.

In order to achieve such growth, it is necessary to produce 250 satellites per year and then 300-350 satellites annually by 2030, taking into account the gradual replacement of obsolete ones, Borisov said at an event on space exploration, Xinhua news agency reported.

He noted that the 1,000 satellites in orbit should serve various purposes, including communications, remote sensing of the Earth, meteorology, and navigation.

Russia will start to deploy its own orbital station in 2027, according to Borisov, who said in July 2022 that Russia would pull out of the International Space Station after 2024 but later postponed the possible deadline to 2028.

US to test nuclear engine for future Mars missions

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US to test nuclear engine for future Mars missions

NASA and the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) have announced a collaboration to demonstrate a nuclear thermal rocket engine in space, the key steps for sending the first crewed missions to Mars.

NASA and DARPA will partner on the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) programme, Xinhua news agency reported.

Using a nuclear thermal rocket allows for faster transit time, reducing risk for astronauts, according to NASA.

Reducing transit time is a key component for human missions to Mars, as longer trips require more supplies and more robust systems.

“NASA will work with our long-term partner, DARPA, to develop and demonstrate advanced nuclear thermal propulsion technology as soon as 2027. With the help of this new technology, astronauts could journey to and from deep space faster than ever – a major capability to prepare for crewed missions to Mars,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.

5G IoT connections to surpass 100 mn globally by 2026: Report

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The global 5G IoT (Internet of Things) connections will reach 116 million by 2026, rising from just 17 million in 2023, a new report said on Tuesday.

According to Juniper Research, the healthcare sector and smart city services will drive this 1,100 percent growth over the next three years.

“5G will enable more efficient and dynamic healthcare provision that was not feasible with 4G or Wi-Fi. However, healthcare providers must first implement 5G in areas which provide a strong return on investment, most notably connected emergency services,” said Research co-author Olivia Williams.

The report forecasts that the healthcare and smart cities market will account for over 60 percent of 5G IoT devices by 2026.

Moreover, the report predicts that 5G networks will see significant growth in smart city services due to their low cost of deployment and ability to carry large amounts of data.

There will be over 60 million 5G smart city connections globally by 2026, and the report urges city-planning authorities to leverage 5G connectivity as high-bandwidth gateways.

The report also discovered that transportation network monitoring, including road and rail networks, will be a critical service that will necessitate 5G-enabled high-bandwidth cellular connectivity.

Apple releases macOS Ventura 13.2 update

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Apple releases macOS Ventura 13.2 update

Apple has released macOS Ventura 13.2, the second major update to the operating system that was first released in October 2022.

According to MacRumors, macOS Ventura 13.2 is released more than a month after macOS Ventura 13.1, which included the Freeform app and other changes.

The new macOS update can be downloaded for free on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Settings.

The update includes Security Keys for the Apple ID, which enable physical two-factor authentication and provide additional protection against phishing and unauthorized account access.

The new update also addresses a bug with Freeform and a problem that could cause VoiceOver to stop providing audio feedback when typing, the report mentioned.

Meanwhile, Apple also released watchOS 9.3, the third major update to the watchOS 9 operating system that first launched in September.

With watchOS 9.3 updates, users will get new Workout functionality and Crash Detection optimizations.

The new update can be downloaded for free through the Apple Watch app on the iPhone by opening it up and going to General and then Software Update, said the report.

Moreover, to install the new software, the Apple Watch must have at least 50 percent battery power, be connected to a charger, and be within range of the iPhone.

Meta introduces more features to end-to-end encrypted Messenger app

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Meta introduces more features to end-to-end encrypted Messenger app

Meta has announced more new features in Messenger for end-to-end encrypted chats, including chat themes, custom emojis, reactions, group profile photos, and more.

The company said that it has also started to expand global testing of end-to-end encrypted chats on Messenger.

With chat themes, it will help personalize and enhance users’ conversations in end-to-end encrypted chats, also users will be able to set themes, including static color and gradient themes, for end-to-end encrypted chats.

Moreover, users will see the full menu of emoji reactions and customize the quick reaction tray in end-to-end encrypted chats.

With the introduction of Group profile photos, users will be able to choose profile photos for different chats with friends or work colleagues.

Among other features, it includes Link previews, Active Status, and Bubbles on Android.

The company added Link previews for end-to-end encrypted chats so that users can see where a link is taking them, before clicking on it.

The tech giant further mentioned that “over the next few months, more people will continue to see some of their chats gradually being upgraded with an extra layer of protection provided by end-to-end encryption”.

“We’ll provide updates as we continue to make progress towards this goal over the course of 2023,” said the company.

Canada to commercialise world’s first photonic-based quantum computer

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Canada to commercialise world’s first photonic-based quantum computer

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced a new federal investment to build and commercialize the world’s first photonic-based, fault-tolerant quantum computer.

According to a news release from the Prime Minster’s website, the investment of 40 million Canadian dollars ($32 million) will enable Xanadu Quantum Technologies Inc., a Toronto-based Canadian quantum computing company, to develop the quantum computer which will have the potential to provide world-leading capabilities to help solve complex data problems and could be used in a variety of sectors such as finance, transportation, environmental modeling, and health, Xinhua news agency reported.

Supported through the government’s Strategic Innovation Fund, this project of 177.8 million Canadian dollars ($142 million) is expected to create 530 new highly skilled positions in the high-tech and quantum computing fields, the release said.

Earlier this month, Canada launched its National Quantum Strategy, which invests an additional 360 million Canadian dollars ($288 million) to help solidify Canada as a global leader in quantum technologies.

Founded in 2016, Xanadu, with the mission to build quantum computers that are useful and available to people everywhere, leads the development of PennyLane, an open-source software library for quantum computing and application development.

ChatGPT’s paid version available for $42 a month for some early users

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ChatGPT’s paid version available for $42 a month for some early users

Some ChatGPT users on Monday posted on social media that they have been granted access to a “ChatGPT Professional” version which costs $42 a month.

OpenAI, the Microsoft-owned AI company that developed the sensational chatbot, was yet to confirm the pricing.

AI developer Zahid Khawaja posted the screenshot of ChatGPT pricing, showing $42 per month. He said that paid system responds faster than the free version.

However, another Twitter user posted that “I very much wanted to pay for a plan but 42$ is just too much”.

AI research organization OpenAI has said it will soon monetize its ChatGPT platform, after seeing a mammoth response to its AI chatbot that can write poems, essays, emails, and even codes.

The Microsoft-owned company said it is “starting to think about how to monetize ChatGPT” as a way to “ensure long-term viability.”

“Working on a professional version of ChatGPT; will offer higher limits and faster performance,” said Greg Brockman, President, and Co-Founder, of OpenAI. ChatGPT last reported over a million users.

ChatGPT Professional will be always available (no blackout windows), with fast responses from ChatGPT (no throttling) and as many messages, as you need (at least 2X the regular daily limit).

“If you are selected, we’ll reach out to you to set up a payment process and a pilot. Please keep in mind that this is an early experimental program that is subject to change, and we are not making paid pro access generally available at this time,” said the company.

Meanwhile, reports surfaced that Microsoft is planning to infuse $10 billion into OpenAI which will value the company at nearly $29 billion.

Twitter account of Andhra Pradesh DGP hacked

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Twitter account of Andhra Pradesh DGP hacked

The Twitter account of the Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police was hacked on Monday, and hackers posted an obscene photograph on it.

Cybercrime police have registered a case and taken up an investigation.

Deputy Inspector General P.H.D. Ramakrishna said that the account was created in 2019 and it was inoperative since February 2020. The account was hacked on Monday by some unknown persons, who posted an objectonable photograph on it.

The matter came to light after some people posted photos and videos of the hacked page on various social media platforms. Some social media users even started liking the photo posted on the hacked accounts.

The technical wing of the police department took note of this and removed the photo from the page.

The cybercrime police registered a case and began an investigation.

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