Google | Pakistan

Information Technology Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja stressed the government’s focus on artificial intelligence (AI) training in education and the workforce, Radio Pakistan reported on Saturday. The interest shown by children in AI tools has doubled during the past year, according to a report, with businesses also employing them on a wide scale. However, experts have warned that AI’s development should not be guided by market forces alone and stressed its regulation. Khawaja met with Google’s Regional AI Developer Ecosystem and Communities team on Friday to explore strategic collaboration in advancing Pakistan’s AI landscape. In the policy discussion, the minister emphasised the government’s strategic focus on AI training across three critical domains: mainstream education from kindergarten to university; workforce development, including freelancers; and industrial innovation. According to Radio Pakistan, the minister also stressed the need for inclusive access to tools such as the AI Seekho programme, sandbo...

Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication, Shaza Fatima Khawaja met with Google’s Regional AI Developer Ecosystem & Communities team to explore strategic collaboration in advancing Pakistan’s artificial intelligence landscape.

Germany’s data protection commissioner has asked Apple and Google to remove Chinese AI startup DeepSeek from their app stores in the country due to concerns about data protection. Commissioner Meike Kamp said in a statement on Friday that she made the request because DeepSeek illegally transfers users’ personal data to China. The two US tech giants must now review the request promptly and decide whether to block the app in Germany, she added. DeepSeek did not respond to a request for comment. Apple and Google were not immediately available for comment. According to its own privacy policy, DeepSeek stores numerous personal data, such as requests to its AI programme or uploaded files, on computers in China. “DeepSeek has not been able to provide my agency with convincing evidence that German users’ data is protected in China to a level equivalent to that in the European Union,” Kamp said. “Chinese authorities have far-reaching access rights to personal data within the sphere of influence of Chinese companies,” ...

Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Tuesday it was proposing to designate Google with “strategic market status” to give it greater control over how the United States tech giant operates search services, according to a report by Reuters. According to a press release by the CMA, Britain’s competition regulator, Google search accounts for more than 90 per cent of all general search queries in the UK — with millions of people relying on it as a key gateway to the internet and more than 200,000 businesses in the UK relying on Google search advertising to reach their customers. The CMA said that steps it could take include making it easier for users to access different search providers and ensuring fair ranking principles for businesses appearing on Google search. It also proposed more transparency and control for publishers whose content appeared in search results if it goes ahead with the designation in October. Google will be the first company designated since the regulator gained new power...

Judge hears final arguments in Google trial over proposals to curb its online search and ad monopoly