🖥️ Tech Futures #15

Happy Monday 👋

Meta is developing its own AI search engine to enable chatbots to provide real-time answers, reducing reliance on Google and Bing. China's new mineral export regulations are alarming the global chip industry, potentially disrupting supply chains for critical semiconductor materials. Due Network enhanced Nigeria's payment infrastructure using blockchain technology to improve connectivity and empower local businesses in the digital economy. Delta Air Lines sued CrowdStrike over an incident causing 7,000 flight cancellations and $380M in losses due to software issues. Wa'ed Ventures, Saudi Aramco's venture capital arm, allocated $100M to invest in AI startups, supporting Saudi Arabia's goal to enhance its global AI presence.

What's new?
HolonIQ’s new Green Skills Map and Workforce section reveal industry-wide sustainability skills and jobs, as well as workforce development initiatives, supporting upskilling for a sustainable economy.

⚙️ Artificial Intelligence

🤖 LinkedIn Introduces AI Hiring Assistant for Recruiters. LinkedIn upgraded its Recruiter tool with a new AI Hiring Assistant that will allow recruiters to use AI agents to find the most qualified candidates based on their LinkedIn profiles.

🚗 Toyota and NTT to team up on AI self-driving tech to prevent crashes. Toyota Motor and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT) collaborated to develop automotive software using artificial intelligence to prevent crashes.

🧠 Meta Developing AI Search for Chatbots. Meta is directly developing AI search so that AI chatbots can answer people's questions in real time. The company indexed the web for eight months and recently partnered with Reuters to improve AI responses on current events.

💾 Semiconductors

⚛️ Generative AI transformed the semiconductor industry by accelerating materials discovery, enhancing chip design efficiency, and responding to unprecedented demand for high-performance chips. This innovation is crucial for developing advanced semiconductors to support complex AI applications.

🎞️ TSMC severed ties with at least two chip clients due to concerns about their potential connections to Huawei. This decision reflects ongoing geopolitical tensions and stringent export regulations affecting the semiconductor industry.

⚠️ China's New Mineral Export Rules Raise Concerns for Global Chip Industry. China introduced new rules for exporting minerals essential for the global semiconductor industry, raising concerns among chip manufacturers worldwide. China produces nearly all of the global supply of these critical materials.

⚡ Blockchain

🔌 Due Network Strengthening Nigeria's Payment Infrastructure Through Blockchain. Due Network, a fintech founded in 2022, aims to enhance payment connectivity and empower local businesses through blockchain in Nigeria's rapidly evolving digital economy.

⏚  Busan Digital Asset Exchange unveiled Blockchain Trading Platform. The Busan Digital Asset Exchange debuted its services recently, which tokenizes real-world assets like precious metals, raw materials, and carbon credits for trading on the blockchain.

🚨 Cybersecurity

✈️ Delta Air Lines Sues Cybersecurity Firm Over Global Computer Outage. Delta Air Lines filed a lawsuit against cybersecurity firm Conti over a cyberattack that caused a global computer system outage affecting millions of computers worldwide.

🖥️ Aark Digital Offers Bounty to Hacker After $1.5M Cyberattack. Aark Digital, a technology company, offered a 15% bounty to the hacker responsible for a $1.5M attack on its vaults.

💻 Quantum Computing

📶 The University of Basel and QuantumBasel collaborated to develop the Q2C into a global center of excellence for quantum computing. To enhance quantum computing through a global center, hardware expertise, and talent development.

🛠️ Skills and Workforce

With reskilling and upskilling playing a key role in closing workforce gaps, HolonIQ is now tracking these impactful initiatives shaping the tech industry. Read on for this week’s insights.

🤖 AWS launched its Skills to Jobs Tech Alliance in Malaysia to address its digital talent shortage and support digital transformation. In collaboration with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and top tech institutions, the Alliance aims to modernize tech education and connect students to high-demand careers, particularly in the cloud and AI sectors. AWS programs like AWS Academy and AWS Educate provide training and certifications, while industry partnerships offer practical experiences through tech talks, workshops, and job fairs, preparing over 25,000 students for future tech jobs.

HolonIQ has also launched the Green Skills Map, an open-source framework initiated for the purpose of cataloging, evaluating, and contextualizing the different components of the rapidly expanding field of green jobs. This comprehensive taxonomy will serve as a resource for understanding the full spectrum and complexity of green skills required across various sectors, thereby enabling a cohesive approach toward achieving net zero and decarbonizing the global economy. Green Skills Map spans 11 areas, 54 sub-areas, and 243 green skills clusters. A snippet of the map covering four areas has been included above. Explore the full map on greenskills.org.

💰 Tech Deals

💲 The International Finance Corporation (IFC)  proposed a $200M sustainability loan to LG Innotek's Vietnam arm. Enhancing public services and promoting sustainable development through partnerships with local governments.

💹 Vingroup, Vietnam's largest conglomerate, established a $150M venture fund to invest in startups, expanding its business empire and aiming to boost innovation and support local entrepreneurs.

💷 Wa'ed Ventures, a venture capital fund owned by Saudi Aramco, pledged $100M to invest in early-stage artificial intelligence startups, supporting Saudi Arabia's goal to enhance its global AI presence.

Thank you for reading. Have a great week ahead!
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