🤖 Tech roadblocks

Good morning. It’s going to be a great day - let’s go after it 💪 

Ruchirr Sharma & Shatakshi Sharmaa  

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• 🤖 OpenAI’s Jony Ive device hits tech roadblocks

• 🌡️ India eyes climate insurance for a warming future

• Bite-sized summaries

  • 📱 India’s mobile momentum

  • 🤝 Groww expands wealth footprint

• 🧑‍🍳 What else is cookin’?

AI HARDWARE

🤖 OpenAI’s Jony Ive device hits tech roadblocks

OpenAI’s much-hyped AI gadget, designed by Apple legend Jony Ive, is reportedly hitting some serious speed bumps on its way to launch.

A Financial Times report says the device — a screenless, voice- and camera-driven AI companion — is facing issues on multiple fronts: from software and privacy to raw computing power.

The concept sounds futuristic: a portable AI assistant that sees and hears your world, offering intelligent help without a screen. Ive’s team has finished the hardware, but OpenAI is reportedly struggling to make the software and infrastructure work smoothly enough for real-world use.

Biggest challenge? Compute. OpenAI already burns through enormous computing power to keep ChatGPT running. Scaling that tech into millions of portable devices is an entirely new headache. That’s partly why OpenAI just inked a $100 billion deal with Nvidia to secure chips and solve its compute crunch.

There’s also the tricky question of personality and privacy — how “talkative” should your AI be, and how much should it listen?

OpenAI has tapped Luxshare and Goertek (Apple’s suppliers) to build components, aiming for a 2026 launch, but insiders say delays look likely.

If successful, this could mark the next big leap in AI-native hardware — but for now, OpenAI and Ive’s dream device is still wrestling with the messy reality of getting AI off the screen and into the real world.

Read more: Economic Times

CLIMATE CHANGE

🌡️ India eyes climate insurance for a warming future

India may soon launch one of the world’s first nationwide climate-linked insurance schemes, a bold step to tackle the growing financial fallout from extreme weather.

The government is in early talks with local insurers to design a parametric insurance model — meaning payouts would trigger automatically when certain weather thresholds (like rainfall or temperature) are breached, no lengthy damage assessments required.

Think of it as “weather insurance on autopilot.” For instance, if temperatures cross 40°C or rainfall exceeds a certain limit, the payout happens instantly. This could dramatically speed up relief efforts after floods, heatwaves, or droughts — disasters that are becoming all too common.

India ranks sixth globally in climate vulnerability, with over 400 extreme weather events since 1993 causing 80,000 deaths and $180 billion in losses. States like Punjab, Assam, Uttarakhand, and Kerala have already run small-scale pilots: payouts to women workers during heatwaves, or coverage for farmers when milk production drops due to heat stress.

A national rollout could help the government cut disaster-relief costs by shifting risk to insurers. Funding could come from tiny utility bill deductions or disaster relief funds.

If it takes off, India would join a growing global club — from Fiji to France — experimenting with financial tools to weather climate shocks. Expect this to feature heavily at COP30 in Brazil later this year.

Because in the climate era, the question isn’t if disasters will hit — but how quickly we can bounce back.

Read more: Economic Times

GENERAL OVERVIEW

🗞️ Bite-sized summaries

📱 India’s mobile momentum - India’s telecom sector maintained steady growth in August 2025, with active mobile subscribers reaching 1.09 billion—93% of the total 1.17 billion wireless base, according to TRAI data. Overall wireless subscriptions grew 0.52% month-on-month, driven by gains in both urban and rural areas. Mobile number portability requests remained high at 15 million, reflecting dynamic consumer activity. Broadband subscriptions rose 0.5% to 989.6 million, while the wireline segment declined 3.3% to 46.5 million, continuing its downward trend. Wireless tele-density improved to 83.12%, underscoring India’s deepening digital connectivity and the sustained expansion of mobile and broadband networks nationwide.

🤝 Groww expands wealth footprint - Investment platform Groww has completed its acquisition of Bengaluru-based wealthtech firm Fisdom after receiving SEBI approval. Valued between $140–160 million, the deal allows Fisdom’s founders to continue leading operations with their existing team. The move comes as Groww prepares for its IPO, seeking to raise around ₹7,000 crore. Founded in 2015, Fisdom has raised $48 million from investors including PayU and Saama Capital, and reported ₹84 crore in revenue in FY24, up 28% year-on-year, while cutting losses by 19% to ₹57.4 crore. The acquisition strengthens Groww’s push to diversify beyond stock trading into broader wealth management services.

HEADLINES

🧑‍🍳 What else is cookin’?

What’s happening in India (and around the world 🌍️)

• Telegram CEO Durov on 2024 arrest: 'no other tech leader targeted like this.

• Why Trump’s H-1B visa fee hike is facing a lawsuit.

• Indian market's shift towards premium devices to drive Snapdragon 8 chipsets adoption.