
NRIIT to hold internationalmeet on Quantum AI
The two-day conference is a joint initiative of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at NRIIT, Pothavarappadu in Krishna district, and the Department of Computer Science at PB Siddhartha College. It is being financially supported by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) under its VAANI (Vibrant Advocacy for Advancement and Nurturing of Innovation) scheme.
A key highlight of the conference is the special focus on promoting regional languages in research. Faculty members, researchers, and postgraduate students are invited to submit their research articles in Telugu. These selected articles will be published as a Telugu textbook at no cost to the authors.
The VAANI scheme, under which the conference is being organised, aims to encourage national and international conferences in regional languages, promote knowledge sharing, and foster collaborative learning, innovation, and research in Indian languages.
R Venkata Rao, Chairman, NRI Institute of Technology, Dr C Naga Bhaskar, Principal, NRI Institute of Technology, Dr KV Sambasiva Rao, Conference Chair & Dean, CSE Department, Dr D Sunitha, Head, CSE Department, NRIIT, Dr B Venu Gopal, Professor, CSE, NRIIT and Dr TS Ravi Kiran, Co-Convener of the Conference and Head, Department of Computer Science, PB Siddhartha College of Arts and Science unveiled the poster for the conference at the NRIIT on Wednesday.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Economic Times
an hour ago
- Economic Times
Artha's Select Fund closes at Rs 432 crore to back top portfolio startups
Agencies Anirudh A Damani, founder, Artha India Venture Artha India Ventures has closed its new Artha Select Fund (ASF) at Rs 432 crore, overshooting its original Rs 330-crore target by 31%. The fund will back the top 15% of Artha's 135 portfolio companies, writing Series B and C cheques of around Rs 20 crore each. ASF plans to invest in 12–14 startups over the next four years across spacetech, fintech infrastructure, premium consumer goods, and applied AI. The fund is designed as a 'capital bridge' for India's missing middle, where many Series A–C companies struggle to scale due to limited growth capital. 'For founders, it means they don't have to run to market every time they want to raise. They already know there's an investor on the board willing to put more capital,' Anirudh A Damani, managing partner of the fund, told ET. He added that since Artha has worked with these companies for three to four years, its diligence costs are lower and founder relationships stronger than traditional Series B/C investors. The firm said Indian family offices and ultra-high-net-worth individuals anchor 80% of the ASF capital, with the remaining 20% from global LPs in Singapore, UAE, Mauritius, Hong Kong, Africa, and the USA. Artha has committed nearly 10% of the close comes days after Speciale Invest raised Rs 600 crore for its third fund, both signalling renewed LP appetite after a tough year. 'Fundraising was difficult for over a year due to the slowdown, but since March 2025, it has eased,' Damani Venture Fund, launched in 2018, was among India's first micro VC funds and now has 33 exits with AUM crossing Rs 1,200 crore. 'The micro VC category that we pioneered back in 2017-18 is now playing out. Family offices and smart investors realise that there is an opportunity for you to multiply your capital because the fund is small,' Damani said, adding that smaller funds have low operating through its various funds, has backed startups such as OYO Rooms, Rapido, Purplle and Leverage Edu. Under the new fund, it has so far evaluated six companies and selected only spacetech startup Agnikul Cosmos, with an investment commitment of Rs 20–40 crore.'We've turned down five others, in some cases, the investment committee wasn't convinced on unit economics or sector fit, and in others, we weren't comfortable with the lead investor. We're a winners' fund, not a follow-on fund, so the scrutiny is far higher,' Damani said. Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. IndiGo's GIFT City unit: Simple expansion or is there more to it than meets the eye? GST cut to benefit; but who gains the most? Good, bad, ugly: How will higher ethanol in petrol play out for you? Why are mid-cap stocks fizzling out? It's not just about Trump tariffs. Stock Radar: This hotel stock is showing signs of bottoming out; time to buy? Logistics sector: Be tactical in the face of head & tailwinds; 6 logistics stocks with an upside potential of over 30% Stock picks of the week: 5 stocks with consistent score improvement and return potential of more than 25% in 1 year History of wealth creators: Everything should be in context, whether it is PE or PEG; on a standalone basis they mean nothing


Economic Times
an hour ago
- Economic Times
Muted IT hiring to focus on skill-driven freshers
iStock Despite soft peddling on hiring mid and senior level employees, software services firms are set to hire cautiously with a focus on skill-driven freshers that is estimated to grow 3-5% compared to the first half (H1) of the year, recruitment experts said. A large part of the new hiring is likely to be focused around junior and entry level positions driven by lesser employee expenses and a steeper learning curve. 'Hiring may remain muted in H2 unless there is a clear uptick in client spending. Lateral hiring will be need-based, while fresh hiring could be calibrated to future deal visibility. Overall, H2 may see 3–5% hiring growth compared to H1, driven largely by demand for AI, cloud, and platform roles,' said Neeti Sharma, chief executive officer at mass staffing firm Teamlease Digital. Sharma said the hiring is concentrated at junior and niche mid-levels with in-demand skills. While the ongoing trade and macro uncertainties have slowed down business demand with cumulative workforce additions by top five IT firms - Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, HCLTech, Wipro and Tech Mahindra – shrinking to below 5,000 in the April-June quarter. While overall net additions have been on the decline for the past four years from over 53,000 employees added in FY21, stronger deal momentum amid hopes of clarity on tariff policy in the second half of the year, and the need for specialised skills is making outsourcing firms optimistic about recruitment of freshers. For the full fiscal year that ends in March 2026, TCS and Wipro have continued to maintain fresher hiring targets of up to 40,000 and 12,000, respectively. Neck-to-neck rivals Cognizant – Indian-origin US-headquartered – and homegrown Infosys aim to hire 15,000-20,000 freshers each. Cognizant has over 70% of its employee base in India. This comes on the back of strong deal bookings expected to convert into execution sooner than later. For now, experts are unanimous that most IT services companies are focused on optimising costs, improving utilisation, and recalibrating talent for future-ready roles. Peer companies are not expected to follow suit expansively with TCS' July decision to lay off 2% of its employees – around 12,000 there are visible fissures of the slowing or deferred business impact.'Over the next couple of quarters, we expect a measured approach rather than a widespread wave of retrenchments. Hiring is concentrated at the entry level, a strategic move to manage costs and invest in future talent. Companies are equipping freshers with new-age skills through robust training programs,' said Aditya Narayan Mishra, MD & CEO of mass recruitment firm CIEL Sharma added that restructuring is 'more visible at mid to senior levels, especially in roles with lower billability, overlap due to M&A, or outdated tech stacks.'Mishra anticipates a slight uptick in hiring activity in H2, particularly in high-demand skill areas like AI/ML, cybersecurity, cloud engineering, and digital consulting.'With many AI pilots underway, companies will begin identifying the real ROI (return on investment) and start hiring talent that can scale viable projects. However, the growth will be selective and skills-led, not volume-driven,' Mishra said.A Randstad Digital 'India Talent Insights Report 2025' report by showed that AI and ML roles alone saw a 39% demand surge in 2024 despite overall IT hiring declining by 7% due to macroeconomic pressures and global points to a sustained shift that will continue over the next 12–18 months.'Tier-2 cities are gaining momentum, with locations like Chandigarh and Coimbatore leading growth in junior and mid-level IT hiring—driven largely by GCC expansion and distributed workforce models. We expect selective hiring in niche areas, a focus on outcome-based talent, and growing demand for AI-led transformation skills,' the report said. Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. IndiGo's GIFT City unit: Simple expansion or is there more to it than meets the eye? GST cut to benefit; but who gains the most? Good, bad, ugly: How will higher ethanol in petrol play out for you? Why are mid-cap stocks fizzling out? It's not just about Trump tariffs. Stock Radar: This hotel stock is showing signs of bottoming out; time to buy? Logistics sector: Be tactical in the face of head & tailwinds; 6 logistics stocks with an upside potential of over 30% Stock picks of the week: 5 stocks with consistent score improvement and return potential of more than 25% in 1 year History of wealth creators: Everything should be in context, whether it is PE or PEG; on a standalone basis they mean nothing


Mint
2 hours ago
- Mint
Former Kae Capital partner Natasha Malpani launches ₹200-cr fund for new AI startups
Mumbai: Natasha Malpani, a former partner at Kae Capital, has launched Boundless Ventures, a ₹200 crore early-stage venture capital fund to back Indian AI (artificial intelligence)-native startups at the intersection of science, systems and identity. The fund, which has already made four investments, will invest in the pre-seed and seed stages, and its focus spans from consumer AI, AI infrastructure, agent tooling to vertical AI applications in sectors such as healthcare and logistics, and make-in-India hardware and deeptech. 'The first cheque size ranges between $200,000 and $400,000 with reserves for follow-ons and the maiden fund will make 20- 30 investments," Malpani, founder of the firm, said in an interview with Mint. Launched earlier this year, the investor mix includes friends, family and personal capital. The companies invested include SuperHealth – a healthcare delivery startup, Armatrix focused on last metre industrial automation, Piersight – a startup that operates in real-time ocean intelligence via satellites and Knot – an AI-native fashion discovery and logistics platform. The rationale for these investments is multifold. Malpani explained that it depends on the business model, product, and the industry they operate in. 'There are some categories where one needs to show some monetization to prove that there is an addressable opportunity. But there may also be some industries in AI verticals where it takes a long time, and you have to look for other proof points such as technical depth and adoption velocity," she said. In her previous role, Malpani led Kae Capital's generative AI thesis and was involved in companies such as Knot, Grapevine/ Round1, Supernova, BPR Hub and Fondant. Malpani said this is the moment to create a pool of capital to catch the AI disruptors early, as there aren't that many funds specializing at this stage. 'The whole ecosystem is so young. There is a need for funds to specialize in AI as the market is moving rapidly. If one isn't keeping track of what's happening, they could be very quickly left behind, both from an investor as well as from a founder's perspective," she said. 'India is not just catching up, it's compounding. Talent, infra, and demand are aligning, but founders need conviction capital now. If we don't move early, we risk losing the window for India to build AI for the world." Boundless joins the growing list of other early and mid-stage venture capital funds such as Tenacity Ventures, Stellaris Venture Partners, India Quotient, Prime Ventures, Accel, A91 Partners, Cornerstone VC and Bessemer Venture Partners that have launched new funds in recent months, underscoring a revival in the fundraising momentum. Broadly, specialized venture funds focusing on emerging niches have risen in India as they compete with larger sector-agnostic peers, in a sign of growing maturity in the country's startup funding ecosystem. Last year, Mint reported that several specialized funds have sprung up in sectors such as prop-tech, supply chain, media-tech, STEM and climate-tech. While such strategies have existed in the Indian investment landscape for some time, they are increasingly coming to the fore as investors seek to make more focused bets on sunrise industries to maximize returns.