July 4, 2025

The Download: India’s AI independence, and predicting future epidemics

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. Inside India’s scramble for AI independence Despite its status as a global tech hub, India lags far behind the likes of the US and China when it comes to homegrown AI. That gap…

People are using AI to ‘sit’ with them while they trip on psychedelics

July 1, 2025
Peter sat alone in his bedroom as the first waves of euphoria coursed through his body like an electrical current. He was in darkness, save for the soft blue light of the screen glowing from his lap. Then he started to feel pangs of panic. He picked up his phone and typed a message to…

What comes next for AI copyright lawsuits?

July 1, 2025
Last week, the technology companies Anthropic and Meta each won landmark victories in two separate court cases that examined whether or not the firms had violated copyright when they trained their large language models on copyrighted books without permission. The rulings are the first we’ve seen to come out of copyright cases of this kind.…

Sri Mandir keeps investors hooked as digital devotion grows

July 1, 2025
AppsForBharat, the Indian startup behind the Hindu devotional app Sri Mandir, has raised $20 million in a new round — just over nine months after securing $18 million — as the app continues to attract not only devotees but also strong investor interest. Susquehanna Asia Venture Capital led the Series C round with participation from […]

Fintech Bolt progresses its turnaround by landing Klarna as a partner

June 30, 2025
Klarna and Bolt announced a partnership Monday, which will see Klarna’s payment options integrated into Bolt’s checkout operating system. This deal means Klarna will show up a buy-now-pay-later choice on Bolt devices. Merchants using Bolt can offer Klarna’s Pay in 4 or monthly financing options to shoppers in physical stores, and shoppers can choose that […]