Days after India’s successful moon mission, the country is now setting its sights on the sun.
According to the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), the Aditya-L1 spacecraft will be launched from the Sriharikota Spaceport on 2nd September 2023 in a bid to study the sun and its effect on space weather.
Aditya (sun in Hindi)
Aditya, which refers to the sun in Hindi, is to be placed in a halo orbit around the Lagrangian point 1 of the Sun-Earth system, where the sun can be observed without any obstructions, an ISRO report stated.
Lagrange points are positions in space where gravitational forces of two large masses produce ‘enhanced regions of attraction and repulsion’, according to NASA. The resulting force can be used to remain in position and reduce fuel consumption – and can be likened to ‘parking places’ for spacecraft.
To become India’s first space based observatory
The launch will mark India’s first space-based observatory to study the sun, and would offer a ‘major advantage of continuously viewing the sun without any occultation or eclipses’, the ISRO report stated.
India’s mission to the sun
The mission would also allow for the study of solar wind, which could potentially cause disturbances on Earth, such as disrupting communications, navigation systems and weather patterns.
India’s government had granted a $46 million budget for the mission back in 2019.
While a first attempt for India, other countries have successfully placed orbiters to study the sun. NASA’s Parker Solar Probe in 2021 which was sent to the sun’s corona to sample particles and magnetic fields, as well as the European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter which was launched the year before.
Yet more strike action continues to create chaos for travellers
Much of the UK will have no train services on Friday 1st Septemebr 2023 as the latest major strike action takes place.
Members of Aslef, the train drivers’ union, who work at more than a dozen train companies, have walked out and have refused to work.
Up to 20,000 RMT union members at 14 operators will also strike on Saturday in a long-running dispute
Meanwhile, a consultation closing most ticket offices in England ends.
Ticket office closures
Unions and disability groups have also taken action against other proposed working practices in the industry, such as ticket office closures.
Currently, nearly 300 stations in England run by train companies with Department for Transport contracts have a full-time staffed ticket office – 708 are staffed part-time. Under the proposals, most would close.
‘What’s the point in HS2 if there is no one to run it’? ‘Beats me… guess we’re stuck with it!’
Ongoing dispute
The UK train strikes are part of an ongoing dispute between the rail unions and the train operators over pay and conditions.
ASLEF members at 16 rail operators will strike again on Friday, 1st September 2023 and Saturday, 2nd September 2023.
‘What year is it? Strike action continues to hold inflation higher. Been here too many times before’.
RMT members at 14 train companies will strike again on 2nd September 2023. This will severely affect the timetables.
Pay dispute and working practices
The rail unions are demanding a pay rise that reflects the rising cost of living, as well as job security and improved working conditions. The train operators say they need to make changes to the ways of working in order to save money and improve efficiency, especially after the pandemic hit their finances hard.
The Rail Delivery Group, which represents the train operators, has offered a 5% pay rise for 2022, but the unions have rejected it as insufficient and conditional on reforms they oppose.
The train strikes have caused significant disruption and frustration for millions of passengers, especially during the peak summer holiday season. The government has urged both sides to resume talks and find a resolution
The Nationwide Building Society says house prices are 5.3% lower compared to August last year, in the biggest annual decline since 2009.
Nationwide said the drop represented a fall of £14,600 on a typical home in the UK since house prices peaked in August 2022. It also said higher borrowing costs for buyers had led to a slowdown in activity in the housing market. Mortgage approvals are also about 20% below pre-Covid levels.
After 14 rate increases from the Bank of England – a two year fixed rate mortgage is now touching 6.7%
Since December 2021, the Bank of England (BoE) has raised interest rates 14 times in row in a bid to clamp down on rising inflation in the UK. The bank’s base rate now stands at 5.25%. This has led to lenders raising their mortgage rates, putting increased pressure on homebuyers.
The average two-year fixed mortgage rate on Friday was 6.7%, while the average five-year fix was 6.19%.
Average house prices in the UK peaked at £273,751 in August 2022 but fell to £259,153 last month.
Think of the biggest market for a physical product you can possibly imagine – are you thinking mobile phones, cars or game devices even? Think again…?
They are all big commercial markets but in the coming decades a new product is coming and it will be so desirable that it will dwarf these giants – it will be… the ‘robot’.
Robots will be able to understand what we want, comprehend the way the world works and looks and have the skills to execute our commands in a safe and controlled manner – at home and in the workplace.
Biggest market
The labour market is the biggest market that has ever existed in the history of business – it’s the market where we want things ‘done’ – where we do things – and it’s forever evolving. It carries massive stock market and investing potential right now and for the future.
Robot AI tech – a market place to explore
Take Nvidia, Microsoft, Google, Meta, Apple and Tesla as prime examples of companies pioneering technological advancements for instance – we can already enjoy and invest in these – and there’s much more to come.
Dozens of firms around the world are working on the technology
One of the highest profile companies in the market is Tesla, Elon Musk’s electric car company. It is working on the Optimus humanoid robot, which Mr Musk intimates could be on sale to the public in a few years’ time.
Massive tecnological advancement in artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics suggest the development of humanoid robots is accelerating… and fast. It’s a race to the become the first to succeed in the biggest practical labour market ever… and it carries huge potential for everyone, including you and me.
20 years from now…? Where were Tesla and Apple 20 years ago?
Twenty years at the pace the technology is developing now is is an eternity – every week, month and year there are new developments in the AI world that have introduced fundamental changes and enhancements to our world.
Mainstream interest in AI exploded late 2022 when a powerful version of ChatGPT was made public. Its ability to generate almost unlimited useful text and images has spawned rivals and a wave of investment in AI technology.
But developing the AI that would allow a robot to complete useful tasks is a different and much more difficult task. Tesla could be the company best placed to be one of the first to achieve this goal – given its advancements in ‘self driving’ technology. But, unlike ChatGPT and its rivals, humanoid robots have to navigate the physical world and need to understand how objects in that world relate to each other.
Tasks that seem easy to humans are major feats for humanoid robots. This is a problem that engages a lot of different complex issues in an AI driven robotics system. Picking up a cup and having a drink is a major undergoing for a robot.
The market place potential is unlimited
The potential market for robots in the future depends on various factors, such as the level of technological innovation, the demand from different industries and sectors, the regulatory and ethical frameworks, and the social and economic impacts of robot adoption. But if recent developments are anything to go by – it promises to be big!
Robot AI – a massive potential future market place
Based on the some indicative web search results, the current market size for robots is estimated to be around $55 billion to $114 billion in 2023, depending on the type and scope of robots included. The projected market size for robots in 2028 or 2029 ranges from $165 billion to $260 billion, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.4% to 17.6%.
The professional services robots, which include medical, agricultural, and personal assistance robots, are expected to dominate the market and account for more than half of the total sales by 2030. The industrial and logistics robots, which include conventional, collaborative, and mobile robots, are also expected to grow steadily and increase their productivity and efficiency in various manufacturing and transportation applications.
However, these projections are based on assumptions – but one thing is for sure the robots are coming and the market will be massive!
I for one will be keeping a watchful eye on where to invest my hard earned cash to take advantage of this potentially high growth market in the coming years (and now).
Baidu’s Ernie bot is a ChatGPT-like chatbot that can generate natural and fluent text based on user input. It is one of the latest artificial intelligence applications from Baidu, a Chinese tech giant that specializes in search engine and AI development.
Ernie bot was released to the public on 31st August 2023, after getting approval from the Chinese regulators under the new AI regulations and quickly became the most popular app on Apple’s app store in China, surpassing other local generative AI models.
ChatBot apps coming to a device near you
Ernie bot can be accessed through an app or a website, and users can chat with it on various topics, such as news, entertainment, sports, and education. Ernie bot is also able to learn from human feedback and improve its foundation models.
The price of bitcoin surged Tuesday 29th August 2023 after the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was wrong to deny crypto investment giant Grayscale permission to convert its popular bitcoin trust into an ETF.
Bitcoin jumped around 7% following the ruling to $27,852. The move lifted other cryptocurrencies as well as crypto equities higher.
Grayscale
Grayscale’s lawsuit against the SEC has been closely watched by investors and other industry participants as a key catalyst that would shake up a market governed by low volatility and liquidity.
Earlier this month, bitcoin trading volatility fell to its lowest level in more than four years as investors had been waiting on the sidelines for more regulatory clarity on crypto activity .
Several bitcoin futures ETFs have already been approved in the U.S.
‘Shackles being removed from crypto regulation paving way for easier crypto trading’
Court ruling
‘The denial of Grayscale’s proposal was arbitrary and capricious … The Commission failed to adequately explain why it approved the listing of two bitcoin futures ETPs but not Grayscale’s proposed bitcoin Exchange Trade Product (ETP),‘the court said in the ruling. ‘In the absence of a coherent explanation, this unlike regulatory treatment of like products is unlawful. We therefore grant Grayscale’s petition for review and vacate the Commission’s order‘.
Tuesday’s ruling may increase the chances that the SEC will approve other bitcoin ETF applications, including that of BlackRock, whose filing in late June 2023 drove one of bitcoin’s big rallies this year, as well as Fidelity, Invesco and many others.
A U.S. bitcoin ETF would provide a way to get exposure to bitcoin without having to hold it, which would invite retail and institutional investors as well as wealth managers into the market.
A spokesperson for the SEC said it’s ‘reviewing the court’s decision to determine next steps‘.
‘Today’s decision reaffirms that a bitcoin ETF in the U.S. is a matter of when, not if’, said the global head of asset management at Galaxy, which filed with Invesco for its bitcoin ETF. ‘In order for digital assets to continue to flourish, they must be accessible to all investors. We believe that the ETF structure can enable greater access to and transparency across cryptocurrency investing, and truly help further democratize the asset class‘.
Dark cloud for crypto finally lifting?
The ruling also comes as a relief to many crypto market traders who have been frustrated by the SEC, particularly under Chair Gary Gensler, and its insistence on regulating by enforcement.
The crypto industry has long sought out clarity in rules businesses can apply to establish and build long-lasting, compliant companies. The U.S. regulatory crackdown on crypto in 2023 – which includes SEC enforcements and a lawsuit against the biggest U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase and also its case against XRP Ripple has been a dark cloud over the market.
Lawsuit filed June 2022
Grayscale initiated its lawsuit against the SEC in June 2022 after the agency rejected its application to turn its bitcoin trust, better known by its ticker GBTC, into an ETF. The company decided to pursue the ETF, which would be backed by bitcoin rather than bitcoin derivatives, after the SEC approved ProShares’ futures-based bitcoin ETF in October 2021.
The ruling faced multiple delays but the SEC ultimately rejected the application last summer, citing failure by Grayscale to answer questions related to concerns about market manipulation and investor protections.
Nvidia shares rose 4.2% Tuesday 29th August 2023 to close at a record high, after the company announced a partnership with Google that could expand distribution of its artificial intelligence technology (AI).
The stock’s bountiful run continued, now up 234% in 2023, making it by far the best performer in the S&P 500. Facebook parent Meta is second in the index, up 148% so far this year.
The record close comes less than a week after the company said quarterly revenue doubled from a year earlier and gave a forecast indicating that sales this period could rise 170% on an annual basis. The day after the better-than-expected earnings report, the stock climbed to a record intraday high of $502.66 before declining later in the afternoon.
Nvidia’s business is booming because its graphics processing (GPU’s) are being gobbled up by cloud companies, government agencies and startups to train and deploy generative AI models like the technology deployed in OpenAI’s ChatGPT as fasta as Nvidia can make them.
NVIDIA stock chart
Nvidia announcment
On Tuesday 29th August 2023, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang appeared at a Google conference to announce an AI agreement between the two companies.
Through the partnership, Google’s cloud customers will have greater access to technology powered by Nvidia’s powerful H100 GPUs.
‘Our expanded collaboration with Google Cloud will help developers accelerate their work with infrastructure, software and services that supercharge energy efficiency and reduce costs’, the Nvidia CEO reportedly said in a blog post.
Nvidia’s GPUs are also available on competing cloud platforms from Amazon and Microsoft.
At 4.33%, the 10-year Treasury yield in the U.S. is at its highest in 16 years. That represents a risk-free, long-duration asset with relatively high returns and this is challenging the stock market.
Why should traders invest in stocks that may not return as much, or just slightly more and take unecessary risks, when there is an asset class that guarantees around 4% return or slighlty more?
Cash is king?
Cash is now yielding 5% in the U.S., short term bonds are yielding 5% plus, so equities for the first time in a long time, have actually got some competition.
Typically stocks if they do well, are likely to return more than a risk-free asset, precisely because it isn’t certain stocks will rise. That’s called the equity risk premium, a return that’s supposed to compensate stock investors for the chance that they might lose money. But, as the premium is below 1% now. Historically, it’s been between 2% and 4% – meaning stocks are looking much less attractive than Treasuries.
Harder job for the Fed?
Another potential issue that could crop up with high Treasury yields is that it could make the Federal Reserve’s job tougher. During the recent Jackson Hole gathering, the Fed head has indicated that more interest rate hikes are still high possibility.
But don’t panic just yet… this is likely a pullback phase of a bull market analysts suggest. That is, it’s still too early to be bearish on stocks.
Yardeni Research president Ed Yardeni is reported to have said that the market is ‘going to hang in there’ and ‘a year-end rally will bring the S&P 500 back to something like 4,600‘.
That implied an increase of almost 5% in stocks – while not certain – would give Treasuries a run for their money again.
William Penn was an English writer, religious thinker and philosopher, and influential Quaker who founded the Province of Pennsylvania during the British colonial era.
Penn was an advocate of democracy and religious freedom.
An apparent ‘technical issue’ halts flights to and from UK as the UK National Air Traffic Services control system (NATS) goes offline!
Holidaymakers are stuck all over the UK and abroad, with the National Air Traffic Services (NATS) saying it had applied restrictions to traffic flow. Passengers have been advised to check if their flight has been affected on one of the biggest UK travel days of the year.
National Air Traffic System
NATS reportedly apologised for the fault just after midday on bank holiday Monday 28th August 2023, before it announced at 15:15 BST that it had identified and remedied the issue that was affecting its ‘ability to automatically process flight plans’. We don’t yet know what caused the failure. NATS added that engineers would be monitoring the system’s performance as it returns to normal.
NATS had earlier stressed that ‘UK airspace was not closed, we have had to apply air traffic flow restrictions which ensures we can maintain safety’.
Several airports across the UK, and most airlines have all warned passengers of delays or cancellations to flights.
How fragile are the infrastructures systems in the UK?
‘Why travel when you can stay at the airport free of charge’!?- ‘It wasn’t that long ago UK airports were brought to a standstill through strikes and border control issues. C’mon UK Plc… get your act together’!
Japan has started releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean on Thursday 25th August 2023.
This is a controversial decision that has been opposed by China, South Korea, and some Pacific island nations. They fear that the water release will harm the marine environment and human health, and affect seafood exports.
Safe?
Japan says that the water release is safe and necessary for the decommissioning of the plant, which was damaged by a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011. The water has been treated to remove most of the radioactive substances, except for tritium and carbon-14, which are considered to have low risks. The water will also be diluted to meet the international standards for drinking water before being discharged.
IAEA
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has endorsed Japan’s plan and said that the water release will have a negligible impact on people and the environment. The IAEA will also monitor the water release and verify Japan’s compliance with the safety standards.
30 years
The water release is expected to take about 30 years to complete, and will involve pumping out about 1.34 million tonnes of water from more than 1,000 tanks at the Fukushima site.
Japan Fukushima nuclear plant controversial release of potentially contaminated water
Slow-Growing UK Faces Over £2.6 Trillion Debt Pile
£2,600,000,000,000 in debt
The amount the UK owes exceeds GDP for first time since 1961. Inflation-linked bonds mean the UK is paying more than its peers.
From the financial crisis to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the UK has borrowed and spent its way out of every jam. The bill for that is becoming a massive concern for the UK treasury and for the economy.
£2.6 trillion public debt
The UK’s public debt has soared by more than 40% to almost £2.6 trillion ($3.3 trillion) since the pandemic struck, leaving the country owing more than its entire annual economic output for the first time since 1961. A heavy reliance on index-linked bonds, at a time of high inflation, also means Britain will pay more to service the debt.
The high level of debt poses a risk to the UK’s credit rating, which could affect its borrowing costs and fiscal credibility. The three main credit-rating firms are due to update their assessments of the UK over the next four months in 2023, and some analysts are concerned that the UK could face a downgrade, especially after the U.S. lost its AAA status from Fitch.
A downgrade could undermine Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s effort to rebuild Britain’s fiscal reputation after his predecessor, Liz Truss, triggered a bond-market crash in 2022 by promising huge unfunded tax cuts.
Bond sell-off pressure
The pressure on the UK’s finances is also being compounded by a selloff in bonds amid aggressive rate hikes by the Bank of England to quell inflation. The yield on the 10-year benchmark this week rose above 4.70% to its highest since 2008.
UK debt higher than UK GDP March 2023
The UK bond market is among the developed world’s worst performers this year. The rise in yields could increase the cost of servicing the debt, which is already high due to the UK’s heavy reliance on index-linked bonds that adjust with inflation.
The UK’s economic growth is forecast to remain flat through next year, which limits the scope for reducing the debt through higher revenues or lower spending. The National Health Service is stretched to breaking point and the tax burden is already at a 70-year high. The ONS warned that debt could balloon to more than three times GDP over the next half century without action.
ONS data
According to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the UK’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.2% in the second quarter of 2023 (April to June), following a revised growth of 0.1% in the first quarter of 2023 (January to March). This means that the UK’s GDP growth rate for the whole year of 2023 is estimated to be 0.3%, which is lower than the previous forecast of 0.5%.
ONS data to March 2023
The main factors that contributed to the weak GDP growth in the second quarter were the slowdown in consumer spending, the decline in business investment, and the negative impact of the additional bank holiday in May due to the King’s Coronation. The services sector, which accounts for about 80% of the UK’s economy, grew by only 0.1% in the second quarter, while the production sector grew by 0.7%, and the construction sector fell by 0.2%.
Uncertain outlook in uncertain times
The outlook for the UK’s economy remains uncertain, as it faces several challenges such as high inflation, rising interest rates, a slowing global economy, and the ongoing effects of Brexit and the effects of the war in Ukraine.
ONS data for EU countries
Some economists have warned that the UK faces a ‘very real risk’ of recession due to higher interest rates, which could dampen consumer and business confidence and increase the cost of servicing the debt.
The OECD has projected that the UK’s GDP growth will improve moderately to 1.0% in 2024, but still remain below its pre-pandemic level.
The quote is often used to inspire people to take action and avoid procrastination, as it implies that delaying something may result in missing the opportunity or losing the motivation to do it.
The quote also suggests that the present moment is the best time to pursue your goals and dreams, rather than wait for a more convenient time.
The latest U.S. mortgage rates are the highest they have been in decades.
The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 7.23% in the week ending 25th August 2023, up from 7.09% the week before, according to latest bank reports from U.S. This is the highest level since June 2001, when it was 7.24%.
The rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage increased to 7.31% in the week ended 18th August 2023, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data. This is the highest level since late 2000.
The 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaged 7.16% with 0.68 points as of August 16, according to U.S. News. This is up from 7.09% with 0.7 points the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage increased to 7.6%.
Inflation driving interest rates up
The rise in mortgage rates is driven by indications of ongoing economic strength and inflation pressures, which have also pushed up Treasury yields and the Federal Reserve’s interest rate expectations.
Higher mortgage rates make home buying more expensive and reduce the affordability of homeownership. They also discourage existing homeowners from selling or refinancing their homes, which contributes to the low inventory of available homes for sale.
As a result, home sales have declined and home prices have soared in many markets. Will interest rates touch 8%?
The former boss of NatWest is set to receive a £2.4m pay package this year, despite having quit in disgrace over her handling of the closure of Nigel Farage’s bank account.
Technology giant Nvidia reports its sales have hit a record after more than doubling as demand for its artificial intelligence (AI) chips take off!
It figures
The company says revenue jumped to above $13.5bn (£10.6bn) for the three months to the end of June. Nvidia also expects sales to perform very well in the current quarter and plans to buy back $25bn of its stock. The firm’s shares rose by more than 6.5% in extended trading in New York, adding to their huge gains this year. Nvidia also said it expects revenue of around $16bn for the three months to the end of September 2023.
That is substantially higher than Wall Street expected and would equate to a rise of around 170%, compared to the same time last year.
Even before 23rd August’s figures, Nvidia’s stock price had more than tripled for the year, making it the top performer in the S&P 500. It’s share price jumped to around $500 after hours, a level that would mark a record if it closes there on 24th August 2023. Its prior closing high was $474.94 on 18th July 2023.
‘A new computing era has begun’, Nvidia’s chief executive, Jensen Huang, said in a statement. ‘Companies worldwide are transitioning from general-purpose to accelerated computing and generative AI’, he reportedly added.
Strong performance
The strong performance was driven by Nvidia’s data centre business, which includes AI chips.
The power of Nvidia’s AI microchips
Revenue for that unit came in at more $10.3bn, a rise of more than 170% from year ago, as cloud computing service providers and large consumer internet companies snapped up its next-generation processors.
This year, Nvidia’s stock market value has jumped to more than $1 trillion as its shares more than tripled in value, mking it the fifth publicly traded U.S. company to join the so-called ‘Trillion dollar club’, along with Apple, Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft.
AI ‘mania’ helps Nvidia
Nvidia have been making micro chips for a long time and it’s only really been in the last couple of years that the market has caught on.
Nvidia was originally known for making the type of computer chips that process graphics, particularly for computer games. They have been making chips for a long time and have now become the leader in AI chip design and manufacture.
Now Nvidia’s hardware is the foundation for most AI applications, with one report suggesting it had cornered 95% of the market for machine learning.
ChatGPT which generates human-like responses to user queries within seconds was trained using 10,000 of Nvidia’s graphics processing units clustered together in a supercomputer belonging to Microsoft.
AI products are expected to dramatically change how we use computers and the role they play in our lives.
Inspirational achievement, as India becomes only the fourth country in the world to successfully land on the moon and the first at the south pole
India became a new national superpower in space on 23rd August 2023, landing its Chandrayaan-3 mission safely on the moon’s unexplored south pole. The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft launched last month and touch downed on the lunar surface around 13:34 GMT.
The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft launched last month and touch downed on the lunar surface around 13:34 GMT. The feat makes India the fourth country, after Russia, the U.S. and China – to land on the moon, and the first to land on one of the moon’s lunar poles.
South pole is the place to explore
The lunar south pole has emerged as a place of recent exploration interest thanks to recent discoveries about traces of water ice on the moon. India previously attempted a lunar south pole landing in September 2019, but a software failure caused the Chandrayaan-2 mission to crash into the surface.
The south pole is the place to be right now as it is such a very interesting, historical, scientific and geologic area that a lot of countries are trying to get at that can serve as a base for future exploration.
The discovery of water on the south pole of the moon is important for future exploration, as it could serve as a source of fuel for rockets and spacecraft.
Days prior to Chandrayaan-3′s scheduled landing, Russia attempted to land its first spacecraft on the moon in almost 50 years. But the Luna-25 mission crashed into the lunar surface on Saturday, with Russian space agency Roscosmos confirming the spacecraft spun out of control.
To infinity and beyond
During a June visit from India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he signed agreements alongside President Joe Biden to join the Artemis Accords and further collaborate on missions between Indian Space Research Organisation – ISRO and NASA. Next year, the space agencies are expected to work together to fly Indian astronauts to the International Space Station.
No looking back! India becomes only 4th country in the world to land on the moon’s south pole August 23rd 2023
India has also done more with less than its top global counterparts, with ISRO’s annual budget a fraction of NASA’s. In 2020, ISRO estimated the Chandrayaan-3 mission would cost about $75 million. The Covid pandemic delayed the Chandrayaan-3 mission from launching in 2021.
The lander – called Vikram after Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) founder Vikram Sarabhai – carries within its belly the 26kg rover named Pragyaan, the Sanskrit word for wisdom.
One of the mission’s major goals is to hunt for water-based ice, which scientists say could support human habitation on the Moon in future and allow for easier future space exploration.
AI Chatbot ChatGPT reportedly has a political bias
ChatGPT, the popular artificial intelligence chatbot, shows a significant and systemic left-wing bias, UK researchers have found. According to the new study by the University of East Anglia, this includes favouring theLabour Party and President Joe Biden’s Democrats in the U.S.
Concerns about an inbuilt political bias in ChatGPT have been raised before, notably by SpaceX and Tesla tycoon Elon Musk, but the academics said their work was the first large-scale study to find proof of any favouritism.
Lead author o the report reportedly warned that given the increasing use of OpenAI’s platform by the public, the findings could have implications for upcoming elections on both sides of the Atlantic. Any bias in a platform like this is a concern’, he said. If the bias were to the right, we should be equally concerned.
Sometimes people forget these AI models are just machines. They provide very believable, digested summaries of what you are asking, even if they’re completely wrong. And if you ask it ‘are you neutral’, it says ‘oh I am!’ Just as the media, the internet, and social media can influence the public, this could be very harmful. I have personally witnessed incorrect responses from ChatGPT where the AI ‘system’ 100% believed ‘it’ was correct and would not engage in a debate as ‘it’ was right!
How was ChatGPT tested for bias?
The chatbot, which generates responses to prompts typed in by the user, was asked to impersonate people from across the political spectrum while answering dozens of ideological questions. These questions ranged from radical to neutral, with each ‘individual’ asked whether they agreed, strongly agreed, disagreed, or strongly disagreed with a given statement.
UK researchers descovered Chatbot ChatGPT had a political bias
Its replies were compared to the default answers it gave to the same set of queries, allowing the researchers to compare how much they were associated with a particular political stance.
Each of the more than 60 questions was asked 100 times to allow for the potential randomness of the AI, and these multiple responses were analysed further for signs of bias.
Dr Motoki described it as a way of trying to simulate a survey of a real human population, whose answers may also differ depending on when they’re asked.
Arm is a British semiconductor and software design company that is known for its Arm processors, which are widely used in smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other devices. Arm was founded in 1990 as a joint venture between Acorn Computers, Apple Computer, and VLSI Technology. The company was originally called Advanced RISC Machines, but later changed its name to Arm Ltd in 1998.
In 1985, the first Arm silicon chip was created by Acorn engineers Sophie Wilson and Steve Furber, who designed a 32-bit processor with a simple and elegant instruction set.
In 1990, Arm was spun off from Acorn as a separate company, with Apple as a major investor. Arm’s first product was the ARM6 processor, which was used in Apple’s Newton personal digital assistant.
Impression of the Apple Newton PDA device
In 1993, Arm introduced the ARM7 processor, which became one of the most successful embedded processors in history. It was used in devices such as the Nokia 6110 mobile phone, the Nintendo Game Boy Advance, and the Lego Mindstorms robotics kit.
In 1994, Arm launched the ARM9 processor family, which offered higher performance and lower power consumption than previous generations. The ARM9 was used in devices such as the Sony PlayStation Portable, the Palm Treo smartphone, and the Amazon Kindle e-reader.
In 1997, Arm introduced the ARM10 processor family, which featured a superscalar architecture and a floating-point unit. The ARM10 was used in devices such as the Apple iPod, the Samsung Galaxy S smartphone, and the Raspberry Pi computer.
In 1998, Arm changed its name from Advanced RISC Machines to Arm Ltd, reflecting its global expansion and recognition.
In 1999, Arm launched the ARM11 processor family, which featured a vector floating-point unit and a TrustZone security extension. The ARM11 was used in devices such as the iPhone 3G, the Nintendo DS, and the Raspberry Pi Zero.
In 2000, Arm became a public company, listing on the London Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. The company raised £213 million in its initial public offering.
In 2001, Arm introduced the Cortex processor family, which offered a range of performance, power, and cost options for different applications. The Cortex processors are used in devices such as the Samsung Galaxy S10, the Apple Watch, and the Tesla Model 3.
In 2005, Arm acquired Artisan Components, a provider of physical intellectual property (IP) for chip design. This enabled Arm to offer a complete solution for system-on-chip (SoC) development.
In 2006, Arm announced the Mali graphics processing unit (GPU) family, which complemented its CPU offerings with high-performance graphics capabilities. The Mali GPUs are used in devices such as the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, the Oculus Quest, and the Samsung Smart TV.
Artistic image of ARM chip
In 2009, Arm partnered with IBM, Samsung, Texas Instruments, and others to form the Linaro consortium, which aimed to improve the Linux software ecosystem for Arm-based devices.
In 2010, Arm unveiled the Cortex-A15 processor, which was the first Arm processor to support virtualization and big.LITTLE technology. The Cortex-A15 was used in devices such as the Google Nexus 10, the LG G3, and the Nintendo Switch.
In 2011, Arm announced the Cortex-M0+ processor, which was the world’s most energy-efficient microcontroller. The Cortex-M0+ was used in devices such as the Arduino Nano 33 IoT, the Fitbit Flex 2, and the Nest Thermostat.
In 2012, Arm launched the Cortex-A53 and Cortex-A57 processors, which were the first Arm processors to support the 64-bit ARMv8 architecture. The Cortex-A53 and Cortex-A57 were used in devices such as the iPhone 6s, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+, and the Microsoft Surface Pro X.
In 2013, Arm acquired Geomerics, a developer of real-time lighting technology for video games. This enhanced Arm’s graphics portfolio with dynamic illumination and global illumination effects.
In 2014, Arm introduced the Cortex-A72 processor, which delivered a 50% performance improvement over the previous generation. The Cortex-A72 was used in devices such as the Huawei P9, the Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus, and the Amazon Fire HD 10.
In 2015, Arm announced the Cortex-A35 processor, which was the most efficient Arm processor for smartphones and tablets. The Cortex-A35 was used in devices such as the Nokia 2.1, the Samsung Galaxy J2 Core, and the Lenovo Tab M7.
In 2016, Arm was acquired by SoftBank Group for £24.3 billion, becoming a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate. The deal was motivated by SoftBank’s vision of investing in technologies that would drive the future of artificial intelligence (AI), internet of things (IoT), and smart cities.
In 2017, Arm launched Project Trillium, a suite of machine learning (ML) solutions that included an ML processor , an object detection processor , and an open-source software framework. The Project Trillium products aimed to enable low-power and high-performance ML applications on edge devices.
In 2018, Arm unveiled the Cortex-A76 processor , which offered a 35% performance boost over its predecessor. The Cortex-A76 was used in devices such as the OnePlus 7T, the Huawei MateBook D14, and the Acer Chromebook Spin 13.
In 2019, Arm announced the Cortex-A77 processor , which improved on its predecessor with a higher clock speed, a larger cache, and better branch prediction . The Cortex-A77 was used in devices such as the Samsung Galaxy S20, the Asus ROG Phone II, and the Lenovo Yoga C940.
In 2020, Arm introduced the Cortex-X1 processor , which was its most powerful CPU design to date. The Cortex-X1 was designed to deliver peak performance for premium device , such as flagship smartphones, laptops and gaming consoles. The Cortex-X1 was used in devices such as the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, the Xiaomi Mi 11, and the Google Pixel 6.
In 2021, Arm launched the Cortex-A78C processor , which was optimized for high-performance computing (HPC) applications. The Cortex-A78C featured up to eight CPU cores , a larger L3 cache, and support for ECC memory. The Cortex-A78C was used in devices such as the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro, the HP Elite Folio , and the Acer Chromebook Spin 513.
Microchip
In 2022, Arm unveiled the Cortex-A710 processor, which was its first big core to support the Armv9 architecture. The Cortex-A710 offered a 30% energy efficiency improvement over its predecessor, as well as enhanced security and ML features. The Cortex-A710 was used in devices such as the OnePlus 10 Pro, the Huawei MatePad Pro 2, and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio.
In 2023, Arm announced the Immortalis GPU family , which was its next-generation graphics solution that included hardware-based ray-tracing and variable rate shading capabilities . The Immortalis GPUs aimed to deliver realistic and immersive graphics for gaming, VR and AR applications on mobile devices . The Immortalis GPUs were used in devices such as the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra , the Sony Xperia 1 IV, and the Oculus Quest 3.
Powerful world presence
Arm is a leading semiconductor and software design company that has revolutionized the computing industry with its innovative and efficient processor architectures. Arm’s processors power billions of devices across various domains, such as mobile, IoT, AI, HPC, and gaming. Arm has been at the forefront of technological advancements for over three decades, delivering performance, energy efficiency, and security to its customers and partners.
Arm is a subsidiary of SoftBank Group and has a massive global presence.
British microchip designing giant Arm has announced that it has filed paperwork to sell its shares in the U.S.
The Cambridge-based company, which designs chips for devices from smartphones to game consoles, plans to list on New York’s Nasdaq in September. The highly anticipated IPO in the U.S. comes after UK Prime Minister, failed to convince Arm to float in London or pursue a dual UK-U.S. listing.
Arm’s decision to list in New York rather than London has fuelled fears that the City is losing its competitiveness to Wall Street, where valuations are typically higher. SoftBank-owned chip designer Arm on 21st August 2023 disclosed a modest 1% fall in annual revenue as it made public the paperwork for a U.S. listing that is expected to be the year’s biggest initial public offering. The company is reportedly looking for a valuation of between $60bn (£47bn) to $70bn.
Arm was bought in 2016 by Japanese conglomerate Softbank in a deal worth £23.4bn. Prior to the takeover, it was listed in both London and New York for 18 years.
Companies that use ARM processors in their products
Some of the companies that use ARM processors include Apple, Qualcomm, Samsung, Broadcom, and Fujitsu. ARM technology is used in a wide range of devices, from smartphones to game consoles to supercomputers.
ARM
Arm is a British semiconductor and software design company that is known for its Arm processors, which are widely used in smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other devices. Arm was founded in 1990 as a joint venture between Acorn Computers, Apple Computer, and VLSI Technology. The company was originally called Advanced RISC Machines, but later changed its name to Arm Ltd in 1998.
Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher and scientist, who is considered one of the greatest intellectual figures of Western history.
He wrote on a wide range of subjects, including logic, metaphysics, ethics, politics, biology, natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology and the arts.
He founded the Lyceum, a school of philosophy in Athens, and tutored Alexander the Great.
China’s central bank has cut one of its key interest rates for the second time in three months as the world’s second-largest economy struggles to bounce back from the pandemic.
The country’s post-Covid recovery has been hit by a property crisis, falling exports and weak consumer spending. In contrast, other major economies have raised rates to tackle high inflation. Raising interest rates to tackle inflation is likely creating a econmic problem all of its own for many contries caught in the inflation trap.
The PBOC last cut its one-year rate, on which most of China’s household and business loans are based, in June 2023 – demonstrating China’s commitment to reviving the economy. Economists had also expected the bank to lower its five-year loan rate, which the country’s mortgages are pegged to. However, this was unchanged at 4.2%. In a surprise move mid-August 2023, short and medium-term rates were also cut.
More stimulus
China will need a much bigger stimulus package to boost confidence to drive up consumption and growth. Without it, the economy is risking faltering into deflation which will make it even harder to recover. More rate cuts could be announced in conjunction with government spending, as well as targeted measures to help the property market.
China struggling to shake off the effect of the 2020 pandemic
Beijing is trying to restore confidence, but officials will also be mindful of the long-term implications of the policies may create. China’s economy has struggled to overcome several major issues in the wake of the pandemic, which saw much of the world shut down.
Property problems
Concerns with China’s property market still remain and were highlighted again when ongoing crisis-hit real estate giant Evergrande filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S in August. The heavily-indebted company is attempting to arrange a multi-billion dollar deal with creditors.
Also, earlier this month, another of the country’s biggest property developers, Country Garden, warned that it could see a loss of up to $7.6bn (£6bn) for the first six months of the year. At the same time data showed China had slipped into deflation for the first time in more than two years. That was as the official consumer price index, a measure of inflation, fell by 0.3% last in July 2023 from a year earlier.
Exports, imports and youth employment figures
Official figures indicated that China’s imports and exports fell sharply in July 2023 as weaker global demand threatened the country’s recovery prospects.
China exports and imports slow July 2023
Beijing has also stopped releasing youth unemployment figures, which were seen by some as a key indication of the country’s slowdown. In June 2023, China’s jobless rate for 16 to 24-year-olds in urban areas climbed to a record high of more than 20%.
There is a serious ongoing message here of concern and worry for global stock markets, and not just from China – do we need to act now?
The 89 threats to life in the UK are listed in a recent report called the National Risk Register (NRR), which was published by the Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden on 3rd August 2023.
The NRR is an assessment of the risks facing the UK that would have a significant impact on the UK’s safety, security or critical systems at a national level. The NRR is based on the government’s internal, classified risk assessment and offers more detail on the potential scenarios, response and recovery options relating to the risks.
The 89 threats are divided into four categories: natural hazards, malicious attacks, accidents and system failures, and global events.
Some of the threats
Natural hazards: These include extreme weather events, such as heatwaves, floods, storms, droughts, and wildfires; geological hazards, such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and landslides; biological hazards, such as pandemics, animal diseases, plant diseases, and invasive species; and space weather events, such as solar flares and geomagnetic storms.
Malicious attacks: These include terrorism, such as bombings, shootings, chemical weapons, biological weapons, radiological weapons, cyberattacks, and drones; espionage and sabotage, such as interference with critical infrastructure, communications, or data; and conflict and instability, such as war, nuclear weapons, state-sponsored attacks, civil unrest, and violent extremism.
‘Cyber security hack – just one of the potential risks facing the UK’.
Accidents and system failures: These include industrial accidents, such as explosions, fires, spills, or leaks; transport accidents, such as plane crashes, train derailments, ship collisions, or road collisions; infrastructure failures, such as power outages, water shortages, gas leaks, or internet disruptions; and technological failures, such as software bugs, hardware malfunctions, or AI errors.
Global events: These include economic crises, such as recessions, inflation, debt defaults, or trade wars; political crises, such as coups, revolutions, sanctions, or human rights violations; social crises, such as migration flows, refugee crises, humanitarian emergencies, or famines; and environmental crises, such as climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, or resource depletion.
Threat level
The NRR also provides information on how likely each threat is to occur in the next five years (from very low to very high), how severe the impact would be on the UK (from minor to catastrophic), and what actions the government and other stakeholders are taking to prevent or mitigate the risks.
The NRR is intended to help the public and businesses better understand and prepare for potential threats facing the country now and in the future.
