Arvind's Newsletter

1.India Goes Hypersonic

India successfully tested its first long-range hypersonic missile over the weekend, the government said yesterday, maneuvering mid-flight and impacting with precision.

Hypersonic missiles can fly at more than five times the speed of sound—more than 3,000 miles per hour—and have a range of over 930 miles. Hypersonic missiles are able to fly lower than ballistic missiles, making them harder to detect and intercept. They are also highly precise, do not need to follow a predetermined trajectory, and can change course mid-flight. 

Saturday's test took place on Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of India's eastern state of Odisha. India now joins three countries—the US, Russia, and China—in demonstrating hypersonic capabilities. North Korea and Yemen's Houthis claim to possess hypersonic weapons; other countries—including Germany, France, Japan, and South Korea—are reportedly pursuing them.

2.Indian Students Rush to US Colleges, Driving Attendance Record

In a sign of shifting fortunes, the number of Indian students at US colleges has overtaken those from China for the first time since 2009. India sent a record 331,602 students to study at US colleges in the 2023-2024 school year, up 23% from a year earlier and the most from any single country, according to Open Doors data from the Institute of International Education. China posted a 4% decline to 277,398 students, the second-highest. Overall, the number of foreign students rose 7% to more than 1.1 million, surpassing the all-time high set just prior to the pandemic. 

3.India's box office collections drop 7% to Rs 8,951 cr in Jan-Oct 2024

Despite exhibitor initiatives to boost audience numbers—such as re-releasing films and offering discounted food and beverages—collections remain sluggish.

However, industry reports suggest that a wave of upcoming Hindi and Telugu releases in November and December could revitalise ticket sales, potentially surpassing 2023 figures or at least closing the gap.

While significantly lower than 2022 and 2023, the 2024 collections align more closely with 2021 figures, indicating a gradual recovery for the Indian film industry from the lingering impact of the pandemic.

4.Ambani Joins Race for Human-Like Robots

An Indian startup controlled by Asia’s richest man is entering the market for human-like robots, taking on US and Chinese rivals who have a head start in the burgeoning field. Addverb Technologies, backed by billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Group, will introduce its first humanoid robots in 2025, according to Sangeet Kumar, its co-founder and chief executive officer. The humanoids will be able to perform tasks across industries such as fashion, retail and energy, he said, without giving specific examples or their price.

The startup, known for its industrial and warehouse automation robots, will manufacture the humanoids in its facility in the Noida suburb of Delhi, starting with a small number of about 100 in the first year.

5.The rise of Bluesky, and the splintering of social media

You may have read that it was a big week for Bluesky. If you’re not familiar, Bluesky is, essentially, a Twitter clone that publishes short-form status updates. Last Wednesday, sreported it had crossed 15 million users. It’s just ticked over 19 million now, and is the number one app in Apple’s app store.

Meanwhile, Threads, Meta’s answer to Twitter, reportedly signed up 15 million people in November alone. Both apps are surging in usage.

Many of these new users were seemingly fleeing X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, in reaction to Elon Musk’s support of Donald Trump, and his moves to elevate right-leaning content on the platform. But there’s a deeper trend at play here. We’re seeing a long-term shift away from massive centralised social networks. Read the full story.

6.China’s smartphone makers head upmarket in European push

Chinese smartphone manufacturers are intensifying efforts to gain a stronger foothold in Europe and sell higher-margin premium devices, with one of the world’s fastest-growing brands aiming to more than double its market share on the continent in the next three years.

Shenzhen-based Realme, which has increased European sales by 275 per cent from 2020 to last year, according to analysts, says it is targeting a market share of more than 10 per cent in the next three to five years, up from 4 per cent.

Currently the continent’s fourth biggest supplier, the handset maker became the fastest ever to reach 100 mn global phone shipments in 2021 and the fifth fastest to reach 200 mn last year, despite a slowdown in the smartphone market, according to research from Tech Insights and Counterpoint Research.

Apple and Samsung still dominate in Europe, especially at the premium end, according to figures from Counterpoint. 

They accounted for 94 per cent of phones sold over $700 in the second quarter of this year. The last external challenger to claim close to 10 per cent of the European premium market was Huawei, which grew its share of sales rapidly until it was gradually pushed out by US sanctions and bans in some countries on the use of the company’s equipment in 5G networks from 2020.

7.The worrying puzzle behind the rise in early-onset cancer

There are rising cases of breast, colorectal and other cancers in people in their 20s, 30s and 40s. What is going on?

Over the past 10 years, rates of colorectal cancer among 25 to 49 year olds have increased in 24 different countries, including the UK, US, France, Australia, Canada, Norway and Argentina.

The investigation's early findings, presented by an international team at the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) congress in Geneva in September 2024, were as eye-catching as they are concerning.

The researchers, from the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the World Health Organization's (WHO's) International Agency for Research on Cancer, surveyed data from 50 countries to understand the trend. In 14 of these countries, the rising trend was only seen in younger adults, with older adult rates remaining stable.

8.Indian experts hail breakthrough in bid to save huge native bird

Last month brought good news for the great Indian bustard, a critically endangered bird found mainly in India.

Wildlife officials in the western state of Rajasthan have performed the first successful hatching of a chick through artificial insemination.

A lone adult male in one of two breeding centres in Jaisalmer city was trained to produce sperm without mating, which was then used to impregnate an adult female at the second centre some 200km (124 miles) away.

Officials said the development was important as it has opened up the possibility of creating a sperm bank.

Over the years, habitat loss, poaching and collisions with overhead power lines have effected great Indian bustards. Their numbers have fallen from more than 1,000 in the 1960s to around 150 at present.