Google once paid $100 million to this Indian-American man to retain him
Google paid an Indian-American businessman a mammoth $100 million a decade ago to keep him from joining Twitter, now known as X. The revelation came on a recent episode of Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath's podcast when the host referenced the high-stakes talent war that once surrounded YouTube CEO Neal Mohan.
#Google #IndiaNews #NealMohan #Youtube #Viral #Business
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Hans India
12 minutes ago
- Hans India
Naidu unveils vision to make AP $2.4-tn economy by 2047
New Delhi: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday unveiled a bold development agenda to transform Andhra Pradesh into a $2.4-trillion economy by 2047. Addressing the Special Plenary Session of industry body CII's Annual Business Summit 2025 here, he invited industry leaders to participate in the Swarna Andhra Vision 2047 and called for deeper collaboration in innovation, infrastructure, and inclusive growth. As part of the vision, the government aims to sustain over 15 per cent annual GDP growth and achieve a per capita income of $42,000-positioning Andhra Pradesh as one of the most prosperous and inclusive states in India. Naidu said entrepreneurs generate wealth, and with it, we can implement impactful welfare programmes. During the years when the CII Partnership Summit was held in Hyderabad, it brought immense visibility and investment, he added. 'Now, I seek your support to bring investment to Andhra Pradesh so we can continue creating wealth. We are at a truly inspiring moment in time', the Chief Minister said. Reflecting on his decades-long association with CII, Naidu noted, 'For over three decades, you've understood and engaged with my vision. In the mid-1990s, when CII was still finding its footing, I was warned that associating with industrialists or international forums like Davos might harm my political prospects. Yet, I persisted- attending Davos regularly since 1995 - because I believed in economic development through collaboration'. The Chief Minister said his government would set up a global leadership centre in Amaravati to prepare leaders for tomorrow, on the lines of Davos in Switzerland. "We want to set up a global leadership centre in Amaravati to prepare global leaders for tomorrow. We are all going to Davos to learn, network, meet people, exchange ideas. Now, this is the place I want to make it," he said. Naidu said companies like TCS, IBM and L&T would be setting up quantum computing centres in Amaravati, the new Greenfield capital. He said Andhra Pradesh is well-positioned for industries producing green energy. Naidu said his state has good solar and wind energy potential, along with pumped storage, green ammonia and nitrogen. It also has ports. "Some states have solar, some have wind, but all put together, Andhra Pradesh is the number one state for green energy and downstream industries," he said. Inviting industries to set up facilities in the state, Naidu said, "I will give you all the facilities. I am planning big." He said out of India's target to achieve 500 gigawatts of installed electricity capacity for non-fossil-based energy sources, 160 GW will come from Andhra Pradesh. Naidu highlighted India's evolution since the economic liberalization era under Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao, noting that nearly 30 per cent of top global Indian achievers are of Telugu origin. He underlined the importance of technological advancements - ranging from AI to quantum computing—and stressed the potential of real-time data and innovation to position India as a global leader. 'We are fortunate to have Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the helm during this critical phase. Today, we are the fourth-largest economy. As India ascends to become the world's third-largest economy, the real competition begins - with the USA and China. The Indian industry must prepare for this next phase,' he urged.
Economic Times
17 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Anthropic hits $3 billion in annualized revenue on business demand for AI
Artificial intelligence developer Anthropic is making about $3 billion in annualized revenue, according to two sources familiar with the matter, in an early validation of generative AI use in the business world. The milestone, which projects the company's current sales over the course of a year, is a significant jump from December 2024 when the metric was nearly $1 billion, the sources said. The figure crossed $2 billion around the end of March, and at May's end it hit $3 billion, one of the sources said. While consumers have embraced rival OpenAI's ChatGPT, a number of enterprises have limited their rollouts to experimentation, despite board-level interest in AI. Anthropic's revenue surge, largely from selling AI models as a service to other companies, is a data point showing how business demand is growing, one of the sources said. A key driver is code generation. The San Francisco-based startup, backed by Google parent Alphabet and is famous for AI that excels at computer programming. Products in the so-called codegen space have experienced major growth and adoption in recent months, often drawing on Anthropic's models. This demand is setting Anthropic apart among software-as-a-service vendors. Its single-quarter revenue increases would count Anthropic as the fastest-growing SaaS company that at least one venture capitalist has ever seen. "We've looked at the IPOs of over 200 public software companies, and this growth rate has never happened," said Meritech General Partner Alex Clayton, who is not an Anthropic investor and has no inside knowledge of its sales. He cautioned that these comparisons are not fully precise, since Anthropic also has consumer revenue via subscriptions to its Claude chatbot. Still, by contrast, publicly traded SaaS company Snowflake took six quarters to go from $1 billion to $2 billion in such run-rate revenue, Clayton said. Anthropic competitor OpenAI has projected it will end 2025 with more than $12 billion in total revenue, up from $3.7 billion last year, three people familiar with the matter said. This total revenue is different from an estimated annualized figure like Anthropic's. Reuters could not determine this metric for OpenAI. The two rivals appear to be establishing their own swim lanes. While both offer enterprise and consumer products, OpenAI is shaping up to be a consumer-oriented company, and the majority of its revenue comes from subscriptions to its ChatGPT chatbot, OpenAI Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar told Bloomberg late last year. OpenAI has not reported enterprise-specific revenue but said in May that paying seats for its ChatGPT enterprise product have grown to 3 million, from 2 million in February, and that T-Mobile and Morgan Stanley are among its enterprise customers. In the consumer race, Anthropic's Claude has seen less adoption than OpenAI. Claude's traffic, a proxy for consumer interest, was about 2% of ChatGPT's in April, according to Web analytics firm Similarweb. Anthropic, founded in 2021 by a team that departed OpenAI over differences in vision, closed a $3.5 billion fundraise earlier this year. That valued the company at $61.4 billion. OpenAI is currently valued at $300 billion.
Time of India
19 minutes ago
- Time of India
Magnet crisis: Auto giants rush to China for rare earth rescue
The Indian automotive industry is preparing to send a high-level delegation to China next week to address escalating concerns over delays in rare earth magnet imports, people familiar with the development said. They noted that China's new export restrictions on rare earth materials, effective April 4, have created procedural bottlenecks, resulting in delayed shipments to Indian manufacturers. Several consignments of India-bound rare earth magnets - critical for electric motors and various automotive components - are reportedly stuck at Chinese ports, raising fears of production disruptions as early as the first week of June. A joint delegation from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam) and the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA) will meet with senior Chinese government officials to expedite necessary clearances and restore the flow of shipments, people cited above said. India's commerce and external affairs ministries are currently coordinating with their counterparts in Beijing through the Indian embassy to facilitate the meetings. "The situation is serious, but we are receiving strong support from the government. We are hopeful of an early resolution," said Vinnie Mehta, director general of ACMA. China accounts for an estimated 70-80per cent of global rare earth processing and over 90per cent of rare earth magnet production, making automakers heavily dependent on imports from the country. Automakers and component suppliers warn that further delay in getting the magnets could severely impact vehicle production, especially in the electric mobility segment. "The rare earth situation is a very difficult one," Rakesh Sharma, executive director at Bajaj Auto , said during the company's recent earnings call. He flagged the "onerous" approval process that currently involves multiple certifications from Indian ministries, the Chinese embassy, and Chinese provincial authorities. While the supply crunch poses a serious challenge, some players have begun diversifying their sourcing strategy. JBM Group, a leading electric bus manufacturer, has started procuring rare earth magnets from other Asian countries. "Post-pandemic, we undertook a comprehensive risk assessment that led us to explore alternative supply bases beyond China," said Nishant Arya, vice-chairman of JBM Group. With inventory levels depleting rapidly, Siam and ACMA have been in active dialogue with the commerce ministry. As reported by Reuters on May 29, Siam informed government officials that component makers' inventories could run out by the end of May and urged intervention at the highest level, including from the Prime Minister's Office. Representatives from major OEMs and suppliers, particularly those involved in motor manufacturing, are expected to be part of the industry delegation headed for China.
