Omar Abdullah govt backs quota review outside, opposes it in court

The Omar Abdullah government faces criticism for requesting the HC to dismiss a petition challenging J&K’s high reservation policy, which limits access for open merit candidates. Minister Sakina Itoo suggested the affidavit was an error, promising a fresh one and affirming the government's commitment to reviewing the reservation system.

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Microsoft's 50th anniversary celebrations hit by Pro-Palestine protests

Microsoft's 50th anniversary was disrupted by two Pro-Palestine protests from employees criticizing the company's ties to Israel. Software engineers Ibtihal Aboussad and Vaniya Agrawal accused Microsoft of providing technology that supports violence in Gaza. The protests were part of a larger movement within the company, urging Microsoft to end its relationship with Israel.

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BSF foils infiltration bid, shoots dead Pak intruder along intl border in Jammu

Alert BSF forces thwarted an infiltration attempt, killing a Pakistani intruder crossing into the RS Pura sector of Jammu. Despite warnings, the intruder persisted and was shot dead. A flag meeting with Pakistan Rangers followed, who refused to accept the body. Security officials are enhancing measures in the region.

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Will Cody Bellinger play today against Pittsburgh Pirates? Latest update

The New York Yankees are awaiting the final decision on Cody Bellinger's availability for today's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates due to a recent hamstring strain. Bellinger has been undergoing light training, and a last-minute check-up will determine his participation.

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Amazon Prime Video Launches Apple TV+ as an Add-on Subscription in India and Other Countries

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.

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OpenAI Is Planning to Release an Open-Source Reasoning-Focused AI Model

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.

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USDC-Issuer Circle Plans IPO, Files Paperwork with US SEC: All Details

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.

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