It's a wrap: News this week (Sept 2 - Sept 8)

There have been multiple developments this week on the tech front. From Google Cloud's cybersecurity training to Slack's new generative AI capabilities, this is the list of the most important developments for a quick catch up:

Google Cloud-CERT-In deal

During chief executive officer Thomas Kurian’s India visit this week, Google Cloud signed a partnership with the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) to undertake cybersecurity training in the country. Under the deal, 1,000 government officials will be trained in cyber defense best practices, including using generative AI and conducting cybersecurity AI hackathons led by front-line experts from Google Cloud and Mandiant. Google will also provide 100,000 new scholarships for Google Cybersecurity Certificates to learners in the community. 

In other public-private collaborations, Meta has partnered with the skill development ministry to offer free digital marketing courses and promote entrepreneurship in the country.

Slack adds generative AI capabilities

Enterprise software firm Salesforce on Wednesday announced a range of tools and features for Slack, aiming to enhance enterprise productivity through artificial intelligence (AI) and automation. 

Dubbed Slack AI, the tool is natively integrated into Slack and provides users with AI-powered search capabilities. That said, it allows business users to extract valuable information from conversations effortlessly. This feature will enter pilot testing this winter and become generally available in 2024 globally including in India.

Patient records on the dark web

The official website of the Ministry of Ayush in Jharkhand was reportedly breached and has exposed over 3.2 lakh patient records on the dark web, a new report said on Monday. 

According to the cybersecurity company CloudSEK, the website's database, amounting to 7.3 MB, holds patient records that include personally identifiable information (PII) and medical diagnoses. The data breach was initiated by a threat actor named "Tanaka" and the compromised data also contains sensitive information about doctors, including their PII, login credentials, usernames, passwords, and phone numbers, cybersecurity researchers at the firm said.

Google Cloud is partnering with CERT-In within the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), in the area of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Cyber security. This collaboration marks a significant step towards advancing cybersecurity skills of learners and Government officials.

Nvidia partners with Reliance and Tata Group

During the visit of chief executive officer Jensen Huang to India, Nvidia announced two major deals with Indian conglomerates Reliance Industries and Tata Group. With Reliance, the chipmaker will be developing a foundational large language model trained on Indian languages and for generative AI applications. Further, Nvidia and Tata will work together to build an AI supercomputer powered by the next-generation NVIDIA® GH200 Grace Hopper Superchip. Speaking to journalists on Friday, Huang said, “I think this is going to be one of the largest AI markets in the world.”