The global artificial intelligence (AI) boom has significantly reshaped equity markets, with Taiwan surpassing India to become the world's fifth-largest stock market. India has seen its market capitalisation decline by 7% year-to-date, while AI-linked economies like Taiwan and South Korea have surged.
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 saw investment pledges of USD 240 billion from major players like Reliance, Adani, Google, Lightspeed Ventures, and Tata, signalling a significant boost to India's AI infrastructure and development.
J R D Tata, chairman of the Tata group from 1938 to 1991, said that whenever he had to make a difficult decision, he would ask himself, what will be good for India, and what will be good for the Tatas. If he had a doubt, he would decide in favour of India. In the long run, it would turn out well for the Tatas too, he said, points out Arun Maira.
The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch has filed a chargesheet against four individuals in a 16-year-old fraud case involving Johar Veer Goga (JVG), an unauthorised non-banking finance company in Jammu. The case stems from an investor's complaint in 2010 regarding an unpaid fixed deposit from 1996-97, revealing that JVG operated without proper regulatory registration.
Chief Economic Adviser V Anantha Nageswaran has urged the industry to invest in skilling, capability development, and innovation to counter the challenges posed by artificial intelligence, particularly for Global Capability Centres (GCCs). He noted that while the government has supported GCCs through Budget measures like simplifying transfer pricing and promoting expansion into tier-II/III cities, industry must move beyond low-cost execution to thrive in an an AI-driven landscape. Nageswaran emphasised that AI displaces routine tasks, necessitating a focus on higher-value work and continuous skill enhancement to maintain India's competitive edge.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as a potential new demand driver for India's office market, with AI-focused technology (tech) firms actively leasing new office space and established information technology (IT) companies expanding their footprint as they ramp up investments in AI.
Legendary Brazilian captain Cafu has urged India to shed its "tiny status" mindset in football and believe in its potential for growth, offering Brazil's cooperation. He responded to Bhaichung Bhutia's concerns about an India-Brazil friendly, emphasising the importance of grassroots development and international collaboration, drawing parallels with Japan and China's success. Cafu also shared his personal journey of overcoming doubts to become a football legend.
Economic think tank GTRI has urged the Indian government to withdraw the proposed UPI charges, set to begin on October 15, arguing that the digital payment system should remain free for merchants and consumers. GTRI warns that these charges could lead to higher prices, reduced earnings for small businesses, and weakened household demand, while also benefiting international card networks by eroding UPI's price advantage. The think tank also called for an independent audit of UPI's running costs.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council's October 7 meeting will focus on 'GST 2.0' process reforms, including e-invoicing and input tax credit rules, while also addressing complex issues surrounding the taxation of the digital economy and cryptocurrency.
India's Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has announced the formation of a 10-member Task Force, chaired by Niti Aayog's Yugal Kishore Joshi, to assess the feasibility and challenges of reviving Formula 1 in the country. The committee aims to develop a roadmap for India to host a Grand Prix by 2028, focusing on sustainable growth, policy interventions, and addressing past issues like taxation. The Adani group, owners of the Buddh International Circuit, will also be involved.
An ad-hoc committee overseeing Indian table tennis has removed official ranking points from national tournaments, including the upcoming Panchkula edition, causing significant anxiety among players like Ankur Bhattacharya. The committee, formed after the Table Tennis Federation of India's suspension, states its mandate is to protect athletes but will only award points once an official calendar is finalised, impacting team selections.
State Bank of India Chairman C S Setty stated that banks will take three to four months to deploy the significant funds mobilised through foreign currency non-resident (bank), or FCNR(B), deposits, which is unlikely to cause "abnormal lending". He also highlighted the need for agentic artificial intelligence (AI) costs to fall sharply for its widespread deployment in India, envisioning its role in transforming banking from fraud detection to personalised financial assistance.
The unprecedented rally in artificial intelligence (AI)-linked stocks has led to Indian companies being excluded from the top 10 constituents of the MSCI Emerging Markets (EM) Index for the first time in over two decades, raising concerns about concentration risk.
ServiceNow Vice Chairman Nick Tzitzon highlights India's potential to develop an AI-native government model, emphasising enhanced public services, data privacy, and economic growth.
Accel's early investment in RentoMojo, a furniture and appliance rental platform, has paid off handsomely with the company's strong debut on the stock exchanges, listing nearly 19 per cent above its issue price after a significantly oversubscribed IPO.
AI firm Pramaana Labs, with a significant Indian workforce, has successfully raised $27 million in seed funding led by Khosla Ventures. The company aims to use these funds to advance its unique technology that converts complex knowledge into machine-verifiable truth, addressing the accountability gap in AI across regulated sectors like tax, healthcare, and financial compliance.
The merged InsuranceDekho-RenewBuy entity aims to significantly expand its distribution network across India, offering insurance, mutual funds, and loans, with a strong focus on 'Bharat' (rural India), according to CEO Ankit Agarwal.
Indian football icon I M Vijayan has voiced his enthusiasm for the upcoming India-Brazil international friendly in Kolkata on October 3. He believes the visit by the five-time World Cup champions will provide invaluable experience and lasting memories for young Indian players, significantly boosting the sport's profile and attracting global attention to Indian football.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has launched India's first Oracle AI Data Platform Lab and Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Kolkata, in collaboration with Oracle. This facility aims to help enterprises accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence and data-driven transformation by addressing challenges like fragmented data and limited AI scalability. The lab will leverage Oracle's AI Data Platform and TCS plans to expand similar CoEs to four more Indian cities.
PhonePe, at the Global Fintech Fest 2026, unveiled its strategic vision for the next decade, focusing on inclusive digital progress for individuals, households, and businesses across India. The roadmap details innovations in financial inclusion, wealth creation, credit access, and merchant solutions.
Investors should do thorough due diligence when selecting a platform.
Kumkum Mohod, 17, made history by becoming the first Indian to win an individual recurve gold at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, also securing an Olympic quota for LA 2028. Her victory over South Korea's Oh Yejin in a tense shoot-off has boosted India's confidence to challenge the long-standing Korean dominance in recurve archery. Mohod attributes her success to mental preparation, visualisation, and family sacrifices, and is now focused on securing her individual spot for the 2028 Olympics.
Sarvam AI, an Indian full-stack sovereign artificial intelligence company, has achieved unicorn status after raising $234 million in a Series B funding round led by HCLTech and Bessemer Venture Partners, with HCLTech acquiring a 10.46 per cent stake.
'For Indian institutions this year, global peers are outpacing in key areas such as RoI, entrepreneurship, and alumni outcomes.'
Vertex Group has launched its 'Responsible AI Lab' with a Rs 100 crore investment in research and development, focusing on ethical, transparent, and accountable AI solutions for businesses.
Frenchman Samai Reboul, coach of the Indian national surfing team, views India's Asian Games debut as a crucial step towards qualifying for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The team, comprising two men and two women, is preparing in Mahabalipuram for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, where surfing makes its continental debut and offers Olympic quota places.
The White House has launched a major crackdown on the 'Great Transhipment Scam', accusing India and over 40 other nations of helping Chinese exporters bypass US tariffs by misrepresenting the origin of goods. The US plans to use AI-driven monitoring and anti-transhipment clauses in future trade agreements to strengthen enforcement.
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is actively working on plans to expand Aadhaar's reach globally, particularly to benefit non-resident Indians (NRIs) and overseas citizens of India (OCIs). This initiative aims to enhance interoperability, attract investment, and streamline digital identification processes, with new guidelines for merchants and products like Aadhaar Lite also in development.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is promoting India as a global hub for digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence, highlighting the government's incentives for data center investments and inviting the world's data to reside in India.
Indian information technology (IT) stocks, led by Infosys, experienced a significant selloff, dragging the Nifty to a two-month low, primarily due to escalating West Asian tensions pushing crude oil prices higher, and concerns over upcoming large IPOs diverting funds from secondary markets. The sector is also grappling with the long-term implications of AI disruption.
Adani Group Director Jeet Adani and Bharti Enterprises Vice Chairman Rakesh Bharti Mittal highlighted the importance of infrastructure, energy, and connectivity in shaping India's AI ecosystem, emphasising Visakhapatnam's potential as a major digital gateway.
World Bank President Ajay Banga has advocated for the deployment of 'Small AI' locally deployed artificial intelligence running on inexpensive hardware to address daily problems faced by farmers and rural communities in emerging markets.
US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, highlighted the evolving US-India space partnership, moving from cooperation to "co-creation" at the Bengaluru Space Expo. He emphasised joint design, funding, and co-authoring the future of human discovery, citing the NISAR satellite and India's participation in the Artemis Accords as key examples of this growing synergy.
National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIF) has appointed Gauravjit Singh as managing partner to lead its global capital formation efforts. Simultaneously, PB Fintech's payment aggregator platform, PB Pay, has gone live, offering consolidated payment acceptance for merchants. In a move to enhance trade efficiency, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has introduced open API integration for Certificate of Origin, allowing exporters to streamline their application processes.
India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) recorded an unprecedented 24.51 billion transactions valued at Rs 29.8 lakh crore in August, largely propelled by the Raksha Bandhan festival. This surge marks a 22% annual increase in volume and 20% in value, highlighting the expanding reach and depth of the UPI ecosystem. Experts anticipate further growth during the upcoming festive season, while UPI's international acceptance now spans 11 countries.
Learners in India prefer to pursue newer courses, such as Gen AI by building apps and code using the technology, along with learning about it.
Experts laud the decision to impose a 0.4 per cent Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on UPI transactions exceeding Rs 2,000, effective October 15. This move, along with a dedicated fund for small merchants, is seen as crucial for creating a sustainable digital payments ecosystem, incentivising expansion in rural areas, and funding innovation while keeping most transactions free for users.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have injected Rs 30,919 crore into Indian equities in August, marking their second consecutive month of net buying. This follows a Rs 20,200 crore investment in July, indicating a potential reversal after four months of significant outflows, driven by improving corporate earnings, resilient economic activity, and a stable rupee.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi inaugurated the first 'Odisha T-20 League CM Trophy' at Barabati Stadium, aiming to provide a platform for cricketing talents. The league, with ambassadors like Suresh Raina, seeks to identify rural talent and is supported by a significant government investment of Rs 4,124 crore for sports infrastructure development, including new stadiums and the renovation of Barabati Stadium.
'A favourable base, last year's policy measures, the carryover impact of a good monsoon and improving earnings should all help.'
