US Vice President JD Vance (File photo)

Iran has not accepted all of the “red lines” outlined by US President Donald Trump for a diplomatic resolution, Vice President JD Vance said on Tuesday following the second round of talks in Switzerland’s Geneva. Vance suggested that the United States remains open to diplomacy, even after Trump warned that military action could be considered if Iran’s clerical leadership fails to address key concerns, starting with its nuclear program. “In some ways, it went well; they agreed to meet again,” Vance told Fox News. “But in other ways, it was clear that the president has established certain red lines that the Iranians are not yet prepared to recognize or work through,” he added. “We will continue to pursue diplomatic efforts. However, the president reserves the right to determine when diplomacy has run its course. We hope it doesn’t come to that, but if it does, the decision will be the president’s,” Vance said.Meanwhile, Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi, who participated in the talks with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in Geneva, said Tehran and Washington had reached agreement on “guiding principles” for a potential deal aimed at preventing conflict. “Ultimately, we were able to reach broad agreement on a set of guiding principles, based on which we will move forward and begin working on the text of a potential agreement,” Araghchi told Iranian state television after the talks, describing them as “more constructive” than the first round held earlier this month. He also cautioned, however, that it “would take time to narrow” the differences between the two countries. Mediated by Oman, the talks were intended to avert possible US military intervention against Iran’s nuclear program, coming weeks after the cleric-run Islamic Republic reportedly killed thousands while suppressing mass protests. For years, Tehran has sought relief from sweeping US sanctions, including restrictions preventing other countries from buying Iranian oil.(With AFP inputs)

Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya (BCCI Photo)

NEW DELHI: India cruised into the T20 World Cup Super Eight stage with a commanding win over Pakistan in their Group A clash at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday.With this third consecutive victory, India confirmed their place in Group 1 of the Super 8s, even with one league match still to be played. Group 1 will feature India, West Indies, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.

India will take on South Africa in their Super Eight opener on Sunday at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

T20 World Cup: How India reached the Super Eight

India vs USA – Won by 29 runsDefending champions India began their campaign with a 29-run win over the USA at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Last-minute replacement Mohammad Siraj led with a brilliant 3-29, supported by Arshdeep Singh and Axar Patel, who took two wickets each. Batting first, India recovered from an early collapse of 77/6, thanks to skipper Suryakumar Yadav’s unbeaten 84, setting a defendable total of 161/9. The bowlers then restricted the USA to 132/9, giving India a winning start.India vs Namibia – Won by 93 runsIndia’s dominance continued as they crushed Namibia by 93 runs. Opener Ishan Kishan (61 off 24) and Hardik Pandya (52 off 28) shared an 81-run fifth-wicket partnership with Shivam Dube (23 off 16), helping India reach 209/9. Namibia’s skipper Gerhard Erasmus impressed with 4/20, but India’s Varun Chakravarthy finished with 3/7, bowling Namibia out for 116 in 18.2 overs.India vs Pakistan – Won by 61 runsIndia sealed their Super Eight spot by defeating arch-rivals Pakistan by 61 runs. Ishan Kishan’s 77 laid the foundation for 175/7, and disciplined bowling then bundled out Pakistan for 114 in 18 overs. The result continued India’s dominance over Pakistan in World Cups, with eight wins in nine T20 World Cup meetings and all eight ODI World Cup encounters.India’s Super 8 schedule and venues

T20 World Cup Super 8: India schedule

The legal pressure on Elon Musk’s X, is mounting as Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC) has launched a “large-scale” investigation into the social media company, focusing on how its AI chatbot, Grok, handles sensitive user data to generate non-consensual sexual photos. The latest action against the company follows a series of high-profile raids and investigations across France and the UK, respectively. Both countries have previously warned xAI Grok to create harmful photos of real people, including children.“The DPC has been engaging with X since reports emerged of users prompting Grok to generate sexualized images of real people,” said Graham Doyle, DPC Deputy Commissioner, as per a report in The Financial Times. He added that the commission “has commenced a large-scale inquiry which will examine [X’s] compliance with some of their fundamental obligations under the GDPR in relation to the matters at hand”.The inquiry will examine if X failed its obligations to keep EU citizens’ data safe from such “potentially harmful” uses.

Raids on X office in France and UK’s investigation into X, xAI

Ireland joins a growing list of companies that have knocked on Musk’s door. Earlier this month, investigators raided X’s Paris offices, and French prosecutors summoned Elon Musk and former CEO Linda Yaccarino for “voluntary interviews” in April. Meanwhile, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) launched its own probe last week, citing “serious concerns” about Grok’s potential to produce harmful content.A separate investigation is already underway in the European Union (EU) under the Digital Services Act (DSA), which forces big tech to remove illegal and harmful material quickly.Elon Musk has historically denied any wrongdoing, often citing his commitment to absolute free speech. However, following a massive backlash in January, X announced that it implemented new “technological measures” to limit the generation of explicit images. Moreover, X dismissed the French raids as “law enforcement theatre” and “baseless,” claiming the investigations are politically motivated attacks on free speech.

The hiring push comes amid a surge in investments by global companies looking to strengthen their AI presence in the country. (AI image)

India’s first AI Summit is turning into a talent scouting ground for Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Group and Gautam Adani-led Adani Group. The country’s two biggest business houses are actively looking for young engineers who can drive the next wave of artificial intelligence tools. The aim is to identify and recruit promising young engineers as competition to develop artificial intelligence tools and applications accelerates. The hiring push comes amid a surge in investments by global companies looking to strengthen their AI presence in the country.The week-long India AI Impact Summit has drawn some of the most prominent figures in global technology, including Sundar Pichai of Alphabet Inc. and Sam Altman from OpenAI Inc., who are scheduled to address attendees. France President Emmanuel Macron is set to deliver the keynote speech.For PM Narendra Modi, the gathering serves as a global platform to highlight India’s large pool of tech-savvy professionals and software expertise as a driving force in shaping the future of artificial intelligence. India has already attracted investments amounting to $50 billion in the AI sector.

Reliance, Adani Group On a Talent Hunt At India AI Summit

According to a Bloomberg report, senior representatives from Reliance Industries Ltd. and the Adani Group are actively scouting candidates at the event, where aspiring professionals are presenting their résumés and GitHub portfolios to highlight their technical projects and expertise.“It is a great place to find talent,” Priyanshi Bavishi, a marketing executive at AdaniConnex Pvt. Ltd. was quoted as saying. “Industry is still niche, so the qualified people have great prospects.”With specialised AI skills still limited relative to the large number of technology graduates in India, the summit has become an important opportunity for job seekers to submit resumes and build connections, allowing companies to retain candidate profiles for future hiring needs. Demand at the event has been particularly strong for AI engineers, data scientists and cloud developers, the Bloomberg report said.“We are a service-oriented nation. But we are looking for ideapreneurs,” said Siddharth Sood, a consulting partner at Delhi-based Ernst & Young LLP. “We are hiring a few dozen right now. AI for Cyber, and Cyber for AI — this is the area I’m hiring for.”Executives at Dell Technologies and Salesforce are also looking to recruit talent that may not be reachable through standard online hiring channels, where many applications are filtered out by automated screening systems.Students have been arriving in large numbers since early morning and recruitment remains a priority, said Viral Tank, a senior manager with Analytics at Deloitte Haskins & Sells LLP. “It works both ways. I am looking for people. They are looking for jobs.” On Monday, Anthropic PBC announced a collaboration with Infosys Ltd. to build advanced artificial intelligence solutions tailored for specific industries. A day later, the Adani Group said it intends to invest $100 billion by 2035 to expand data centre infrastructure. Meanwhile, Google has committed $15 billion toward developing what it described as its first AI hub in India.Technology minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Tuesday that Nvidia is working with several AI infrastructure and software firms on potential investments, though he did not disclose the names of the companies involved.

Actor Rajpal Yadav has been released from Tihar Jail today on an interim bail in Rs 9 crore cheque bounce case. The next hearing will take place on March 18 and till then, the actor has been released. As he thanked the country, fans and Bollywood for all the support, now the businessman who had filed a case against the actor, has finally spoken on the matter. Businessman Madhav Gopal Agrawal, who had loaned Rs 5 crore to the actor for his 2012 directorial venture ‘Ata Pata Laapata’, has spoken out about the prolonged legal dispute.Agrawal revealed how his association with Rajpal began and how the financial disagreement unfolded over the past 14 years. He revealed in a conversation with News Pinch, A that during the early phase of the conflict, he visited the actor’s residence and “cried in front of him like a child,” explaining that the funds he had lent were themselves borrowed from others. He said he repeatedly requested Rajpal to provide a specific date so a fresh agreement could be drafted.

Agrawal, who represents M/s Murali Projects Pvt Ltd, said he was first introduced to the actor by MP Mithilesh Kumar Katheria. According to him, Rajpal had insisted that the film was nearly complete and that without immediate financial support, “everything would go to waste”.Initially hesitant, Agrawal claimed he eventually agreed to the loan after Rajpal’s wife, Radha, sent him emotional messages appealing for help. He emphasized that the agreement clearly stated that repayment would not be influenced by the film’s box office performance, censor certification, or any other hurdle. The actor, he said, had also provided a personal guarantee.The businessman added that the transaction was strictly a loan and not an investment, noting that investments typically do not involve personal guarantees or post-dated cheques.When repayment deadlines passed without payment, Agrawal contacted Rajpal, who allegedly told him he lacked the funds. This led to three supplementary agreements being signed, along with the issuance of new cheques.Agrawal further recounted that when megastar Amitabh Bachchan attended the film’s music launch event, he realised that, as per the agreement, the negatives and payment were to be handed over once the film was completed. Consequently, he approached the court seeking a stay on the film’s release.According to Agrawal, Rajpal later assured him that repayment would only be possible after the film hit theatres. Trusting this assurance, he agreed to a settlement and had the stay order lifted. However, the film failed commercially.By 2013, with no resolution in sight, Agrawal moved court again. Following judicial intervention, a settlement amount of Rs 10.40 crore was agreed upon. Though Rajpal issued several cheques toward the payment, all were dishonoured, pushing the matter further into legal proceedings.Concluding his remarks, Agrawal stated that as a businessman, his sole objective is to recover his money.

NEW DELHI: Zimbabwe on Tuesday advanced to the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup after their decisive Group B clash against Ireland was abandoned due to persistent rain, a result that also knocked former champions Australia and Ireland out of the competition.With both sides sharing a point each, Zimbabwe moved to five points — enough to seal qualification. They are set to open their Super 8 campaign against India on February 26 in Chennai.

“As much as we have achieved, it is just a tick in the box and not the whole box. There will be a small celebration, but we will then focus on the next game. It is just a small tick in what we have set out to achieve,” Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza said.Having missed out on the 2024 edition, Zimbabwe became the seventh team to qualify for the Super 8s, completing Group G1 alongside India, South Africa and West Indies. They will wrap up their league engagements against co-hosts Sri Lanka on February 19.Group G2 features Sri Lanka, England, New Zealand and either Pakistan or USA, with matches scheduled in Colombo and Pallekele.“Myself and the coach, we will sit down, we have the data on them (Sri Lanka) and we will try to win that game. Qualifying has not changed our ultimate goal,” Raza said.“Everyone loves an underdog story. Every condition we find ourselves in, if we get a day or two to train, we try and learn those conditions. We train, try and assess the conditions, see the previous games (at that venue), and try to put together a good game of cricket.”With Sri Lanka (6) already through to the Super 8s, the fixture carried high stakes for Zimbabwe (4) and Ireland (2). Australia, also on two points after losses to Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka, needed Zimbabwe to lose their remaining matches to stay alive, but relentless rain dashed those hopes.The toss at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium was delayed due to drizzle, and despite brief optimism, continuous showers and a soggy outfield meant no play was possible, confirming Zimbabwe’s progress.Zimbabwe supporters, however, braved the weather to celebrate, singing and dancing in the stands.“Whichever corner they are sitting at, they will be the loudest. They keep lifting us up. But when we hear them, it gives us energy,” Raza said.“These guys have done it out of their own pockets. Hopefully, it is the start of many more fans coming in. We will try everything to raise the Zimbabwe flag high.“Hopefully, the numbers will increase and hopefully this is the start of a culture of fans going wherever the team plays,” he added.