America voted blue. AI stocks bled red. And the world's biggest technology companies suddenly face a problem money alone cannot solve: public resistance. The US midterm elections have turned massive AI data centres into political battlegrounds, with voters protesting soaring electricity bills, water consumption and unchecked expansion. Could this derail America's AI ambitions and redirect billions in investment towards India? Or will China emerge stronger in the global AI race? Dia Rekhi speaks to Alex Tanenbaum, partner at Torys LLP about the political backlash threatening Silicon Valley's infrastructure boom, the risks confronting investors and India's opportunity to capitalise on the disruption.CreditsAl Jazeera EnglishCNN-News18India TodayNBC NewsOur Rich Journey12 NewsFinance StackNick Bencino FinanceNick Bencino Markets

In 2010, scientists Catherine Alix-Panabières and Klaus Pantel coined the term “liquid biopsy”, which Nature later named one of the key cancer discoveries of the last 20 years. Their blood-based approach can detect cancer early, spare patients painful needle biopsies, help doctors choose the right therapy and flag when a treatment stops working. Professor Pantel says a $1,000 test could save around $10,000 in ineffective treatment. In this conversation with The Economic Times pharma editor Vikas Dandekar, they explain why adoption is still slow, how India can take a bigger role in global clinical trials, and how immunotherapy and AI could shape the future of cancer care. Listen in

In this Morning Brief conversation, Dia Rekhi speaks with political scientist and researcher at CERI, Sciences Po Paris Gilles Verniers about the wave of youth-led protests sweeping the globe. Starting with France’s student-led movement, they explore why young people anchor these uprisings, whether “Gen Z” is too simple a label, and how economic anxiety, shrinking opportunity and AI-driven job fears connect movements from Paris to Serbia to India’s Cockroach Janata Party. Vernier also discusses electoral conversion, why authenticity beats youth-speak in politics, how AI is reshaping campaigns, and why minority protests remain legitimate in a democracy. He closes by declining to predict where they lead.

Donald Trump’s midterm setback has changed the political equation in Washington. But how much can a Democratic Congress actually constrain the president?Anirban Chowdhury speaks to The Economic Times’ Executive Editor, Politics, Pranab Dhal Samanta about the implications for India’s relationship with the United States. They examine the future of trade negotiations, tariffs, H-1B visas, Russian oil purchases, the Iran conflict and Washington’s approach to China and Taiwan.The conversation also explores why India’s diplomacy may have to extend beyond the White House and engage more actively with Congress, as domestic political divisions threaten to complicate American foreign policy.

India's rapidly expanding financial ecosystem faces a growing cybersecurity challenge. While large banks have invested heavily in protecting their systems, fintech companies and non-banking financial institutions remain vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated attacks. Artificial intelligence is changing the economics of cybercrime, allowing attackers to identify weaknesses faster, at significantly lower costs and on a much larger scale. Anirban Chowdhury speaks to Yash Kakadia, founder of Security Brigade, about how these attacks work, the vulnerabilities within financial technology infrastructure, the limitations of compliance-driven security, and whether India's regulators and financial institutions can keep pace with an accelerating threat.

Why does a cancer injection bought by a hospital for ₹11,000 end up costing a patient ₹1.3 lakh? India’s drug pricing system is under scrutiny as the government caps trade margins on hundreds of cancer medicines at 30%. While prices of several drugs have fallen sharply, nearly one in four packs has seen no reduction. And a 30% margin still allows a markup of nearly 43% over the manufacturer’s price. So who profits from expensive medicines? Why have previous interventions failed? And will the latest price cuts actually bring relief to patients? Anirban Chowdhury talks to ET's pharma editor Vikas Dandekar. Listen in:

When AI agents book your flights, buy your groceries and pick your hotels, no one is scrolling, and no one sees an ad. So how does the internet make money? Lightspeed India partners Harsha Kumar and Hemanth Mohapatra explain which purchases agents will take over and which will stay human. They also cover why you can’t upsell an AI agent, what that means for the ad-based internet, and why India may prefer paying per outcome over subscriptions. They make the case for vertical AI built for tier-two and tier-three India, compare today’s AI wave with the dot-com era, and share how they use AI assistants themselves.

China challenged America's dominance in manufacturing, technology and artificial intelligence. Now, it is threatening another American stronghold: the pharmaceutical industry.Chinese biotech companies are developing breakthrough drugs faster and cheaper than their American counterparts. One Chinese cancer drug, ivonescimab, is emerging as a potential challenger to Keytruda, Merck's $31-billion blockbuster. Meanwhile, Western pharmaceutical giants are striking multibillion-dollar licensing deals with Chinese innovators.But Washington is worried. Could America's growing dependence on Chinese biotechnology become a national security threat? And could India benefit from this escalating rivalry?In this episode of The Morning Brief Decode, Anirban Chowdhury speaks to The Economic Times' pharma editor Vikas Dandekar about China's biotech revolution, the battle for the future of medicine, the US response and India's opportunity to become a bigger player in global drug innovation.

India’s smartphone market is heading into Diwali on a sour note. Shipments fell sharply in the July–September quarter, with the sub-₹20,000 segment hit hardest. A global memory-chip crunch is raising costs, pushing up prices and forcing buyers to delay upgrades, settle for fewer features or choose refurbished phones. But does this slump signal a wider squeeze on household spending, or is it a supply shock tied to the race to build AI data centres? We examine what falling shipments reveal about affordability, consumption and India’s mobile growth, with Counterpoint Research’s Tarun Pathak and Bank of Baroda chief economist Madan Sabnavis.

The Supreme Court has set aside Yes Bank’s 2020 write-down of ₹8,415 crore in AT1 bonds. Anirban Chowdhury speaks to Sugata Ghosh of The Economic Times about how AT1 bonds work, why the Court ruled against the write-down, what the judgment means for investors and regulators, and how the case compares with Switzerland’s Credit Suisse AT1 dispute.

AI agents undergoing tests accessed Indian organisations’ live systems and read confidential business records and personal data. The companies did not detect these intrusions; AI developers disclosed them after internal reviews. What happens when an AI agent exceeds its instructions, and who should bear the consequences? Anirban Chowdhury speaks to lawyer Pavan Duggal and Prof NK Goyal of CMAI about the warning from the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team, the challenges of assigning liability and the safeguards businesses need. From disclosure requirements to protecting sensitive information, this episode examines whether India’s laws and corporate defences can keep pace with autonomous AI.

The rupee has bounced. So why does the RBI seem so worried? Unusually timed announcements, a special dollar window for oil companies and tougher currency trading rules reveal an aggressive effort to arrest the slide. But could making currency protection more expensive leave Indian businesses exposed? Anirban Chowdhury speaks to The Economic Times’ Sugata Ghosh about how these interventions work, how offshore bets influence the rupee and why a lasting recovery requires more than central bank firepower. Is the RBI restoring stability—or buying time?

Blackstone wants to double its India investments to $100 billion in five years. What does Jonathan Gray see that nervous investors are missing? In this episode of ET Conversations, executive editor Sruthijith KK speaks to Blackstone’s president and COO about India’s growth prospects, the market pullback and the sectors attracting his capital. Gray explains why he remains optimistic about AI infrastructure, how Indian IT services firms can become AI deployment partners, and why a rising middle class creates opportunities across healthcare, travel, housing and finance. They also discuss rising interest rates, currency depreciation, private credit concerns and the discipline behind investing conviction

Airfares are rising just as the festive travel season approaches. ATF prices have jumped sharply in recent months, while a weaker rupee is adding to airlines’ fuel costs. At the same time, fewer flights and slower aircraft deliveries are tightening capacity even as demand picks up.In this episode, Host Anirban Chowdhury speaks to ET's Forum Gandhi, about what is driving the surge in airfares, how airlines are balancing higher costs with weaker domestic traffic, and why Mumbai flyers could face an additional hit as capacity shifts to Navi Mumbai Airport. The conversation also looks at what passengers should watch over the next six months.

Ahead of the GST Council meeting, Bipin Sapra, Partner and Indirect Tax Policy Leader, EY India, explains to Anirban Chowdhury the proposed changes to input tax credit, refunds, exports and e-way bills—and what they could mean for business costs, working capital and consumer prices. These are expected changes, not final decisions.

The Flydubai incident has raised a difficult question for aviation security: what happens when the threat comes from within the aircraft? As investigators work to establish the facts, the incident is already forcing a rethink of how airlines identify and mitigate insider threats. Host Anirban Chowdhury speaks to CW Aviation Security Consulting Shannon Wandmaker about the vulnerabilities exposed by the incident, why one-time background checks may not be enough in an age of rapid online radicalisation, and whether continuous vetting and stronger security cultures can close the gap. He also explains why aviation security is ultimately about layers of mitigation—not the promise of preventing every possible attack.

Xi Jinping has sat across the table from both Narendra Modi and Donald Trump within two weeks. For years, a more assertive China pushed India closer to Washington. But what happens if the US and China learn to manage their rivalry?On this episode of Morning Brief Decode, Pranab Dhal Samanta, National Editor (Politics) at The Economic Times explains to Anirban Chowdhury whether the reset is really happening in Washington, what the summit's optics signal, and how India should balance China, the US and BRICS. He also flags what to watch in the next six months: the India-EU relationship, Eurasian trade access, and possible exemptions in the US trade deal.

The independence of India’s Election Commission rests on a constitutional framework that gives it wide powers — but questions remain over how that independence works in practice. On The Morning Brief, host Neil Ghai speaks to ET’s Anubhuti Vishnoi on the changing appointment process for Election Commissioners, the internal friction within the poll panel and the impact of electoral-roll revisions on voters. Anubhuti breaks down Article 324, the 2023 law governing the appointment of Election Commissioners and the debate over the executive’s role in selecting them. She also examines the reported objections within the Commission over electoral-roll management, Form 6, centralised technology and the Special Intensive Revision. Together, these issues raise a broader question about the institution’s ability to function collectively, independently and transparently as it prepares for elections ahead.

The investigation into the death of IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakode is examining competing allegations and evidence. But beyond the immediate case lies a broader question: what are India’s premier institutions really preparing students for? On The Morning Brief, host Anirban Chowdhury speaks to BITS Pilani Group Vice Chancellor V Ramgopal Rao, former JNU professor Rajeev Kumar and ET’s Rashmi Rajput about the intense pressure surrounding IIT admissions, the limitations of using exam performance as a measure of intellectual ability, and the challenges students face once they enter these highly competitive institutions. The discussion also looks at AI and education: when should students be allowed to use AI, what should examinations test, and does the JEE system need to evolve as machines become increasingly capable of solving the very tests students compete to clear?

India’s IPO market has hit the accelerator. After just 27 mainboard IPOs in the first half of 2026, July-September alone is seeing 61 issues worth roughly ₹88,000 crore. And the pipeline is staggering: 148 companies with SEBI approvals worth ₹2.8 lakh crore are waiting to tap the market. Anirban Chowdhury speaks with ET markets editor Nishanth Vasudevan about what triggered the boom, whether Jio could suck liquidity from other issues, why smaller IPOs are still finding buyers, whether mega listings signal a market top, and whether foreign investors could finally return to India.

Meta has agreed to report child sexual abuse material directly to Indian authorities, rather than routing alerts through America's NCMEC. But does reporting stop algorithms amplifying such content in the first place? On the Morning Brief, lawyer Sajan Poovayya explains why Meta had little choice under POCSO and its 2020 Rules, why reporting is neither an admission of guilt nor a privacy breach, and what platforms must do beyond reporting: purge content and build checks into their algorithms. He argues India's law is adequate, but enforcement lacks the urgency shown by NCMEC. The episode opens with a clip from Sajan's July interview.

Every morning in Mahim, Vijay Raut sold cutting chai to taxi drivers, construction workers and bank staff, until the BMC's pavement drive took away his stall. Now he serves from a flask. He's not alone: across Mumbai, Bengaluru and Thiruvananthapuram, street vendors are caught between clean-city drives and a system that never gave them secure space. In this episode, we look at India's Rs 8,000 crore-a-day street food economy, the real hygiene risks, why regulation without infrastructure backfires, and what Singapore's hawker centres might teach us about keeping street food safe and visible. Lijee Philip and Nirmal John report, Anirban Chowdhury narrates for audio.

Volkswagen is one of the world’s largest carmakers, yet has less than 2% of India’s passenger vehicle market. Its proposed partnership with JSW could mark a striking reversal: JSW may own 51% of the venture, leaving the German giant as the junior partner. Anirban Chowdhury speaks to ET’s Arijit Barman and Shally Seth Mohile about what each side gains, why JSW wants European technology alongside its Chinese partnerships, and whether the deal can accelerate Volkswagen’s painfully slow India journey. They also examine JSW’s audacious automotive ambitions—and the risk that its three ventures could eventually compete with one another.

Chhattisgarh has declared an end to armed Maoism in Bastar, but the ground reality is far more complicated than a deadline. Over 1,000 surrendered cadres remain in rehabilitation centres while 1,800 others have already returned to their villages — some welcomed, others met with deep, unhealed anger. In this episode, based on Shantanu Nandan Sharma's on-ground reporting, we travel through Sukma's former conflict zones, from a courtyard once used for Maoist gatherings to a café run by surrendered women fighters, to understand what genuine reintegration looks like in a region reshaped by decades of insurgency, loss, and fragile hope. Anirban Chowdhury narrates for audio.

HDFC Bank's Shashidhar Jagdishan is stepping down, Kotak Mahindra is searching for Ashok Vaswani's successor, and ICICI's Sandeep Bakshi has taken just a two-year extension. In this episode, Anirban Chowdhury talks to ET's Banking Editor Sangita Mehta about the wave of CEO exits hitting India's biggest banks through 2028, what really went wrong at HDFC, whether Deputy MD Kaizad Bharucha can take over given RBI's 15-year board cap, and why RBI's tenure and age rules may be quietly ending the era of the long-serving Indian bank CEO.

India’s latest GDP estimate shows the economy growing at 7.8%. Rajeswari Sengupta, associate professor of economics at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research is unconvinced. She tells Anirban Chowdhury why weak job creation, subdued investment, falling import volumes and an unresponsive stock market sit uneasily beside the headline number. She also explains why a low GDP deflator is economically logical, how double deflation is supposed to improve measurement, and why India’s new producer price indices raise questions. The government may have corrected important weaknesses in the earlier GDP series. But without detailed sources, methods and historical comparisons, Sengupta argues, economists cannot independently establish what changed—or whether the new number is credible.

Climate change is making extreme weather more frequent and unpredictable. But are we making its consequences worse? Across the Himalayas and the Western Ghats, glaciers are collapsing, rainfall patterns are shifting and landslides and flash floods are becoming increasingly destructive. At the same time, roads, hotels, hydropower projects and settlements are pushing deeper into fragile landscapes. Reported by Alenjith K Johny, narrated by Anirban Chowdhury.

HDFC Bank is staring at an unusual leadership vacuum. CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan is set to leave in October, even as India’s largest private sector bank grapples with slowing profit growth, squeezed margins and the lingering impact of its mega merger with HDFC Ltd. Who could take over — internal heavyweight Kaizad Bharucha or an outsider? And can a successor even be found in time? Anirban Chowdhury speaks to ET’s banking editor Sangita Mehta about the names in contention, a wider leadership crunch across Indian banking, what has gone wrong with HDFC Bank’s financial engine, and the challenges awaiting its next chief.Listen in

Subhash Chandra’s latest insolvency battle has produced a startling equation: ₹22,006 crore in admitted claims against just ₹6.25 crore for creditors. But the headline hides a more complicated story. These claims largely arise from personal guarantees for corporate borrowings, even as major lenders question the repayment plan, creditor voting and what happened to Chandra’s once-vast personal wealth. Meanwhile, Zee is rebuilding after the collapse of its Sony merger, and its promoters are seeking to increase their stake again. Anirban Chowdhury talks to Shiram Subramanian, founder and MD of InGovern about the Essel debt crisis, the controversial NCLT order and what a promoter’s personal guarantee is really worth.

ET’s Swathi Moorthy cannot code. Yet she has built four web applications using AI. That is the seductive promise of vibe coding: describe what you want and let the machine build it. The reality involves muddled prompts, unreliable advice, stubborn bugs, confusing backends, hosting headaches and subscription bills. In this episode, Moorthy joins Anirban Chowdhury to explain how a non-coder can create and publish an app, which tools make it easiest, and where human expertise remains indispensable. It is a candid account of what AI has democratised and what it still cannot do on its own for ordinary aspiring app builders.

Trilegal began as an outsider in a legal industry dominated by closely held, family-run firms. More than two decades later, it has become one of India’s largest law firms—and part of the establishment it once challenged. Partners Nishant Parikh and Sridhar Gorthi talk to ET’s Vinod Mahanta and Maulik Vyas about the model behind that rise, the founder-rainmaker trap holding back midsized firms, competition from global firms and the Big Four, and why AI could reshape both fees and the traditional associate pyramid. They also confront two deeper questions: whether elite credentials still determine who enters corporate law, and whether Trilegal’s founders can truly surrender power when success arrives.

Love can arrive at any age. But when it arrives after 60, it often comes with decades of accumulated wealth, grown-up children and expectations about inheritance. As more Indians seek companionship, remarry or choose live-in relationships later in life, families are confronting difficult questions around homes, wills, trusts and succession. Based on Lijee Philip’s report, this episode explores India’s emerging world of silver romance—and the financial negotiations that accompany it. Can older Indians build a new life without unsettling the families and fortunes built in the old one? And can love and inheritance peacefully coexist? Lijee Philp reports, Anirban Chowdhury narrates.

Brent above $90 doesn’t tell the full story of India’s oil bill. Tight physical supplies have pushed some Gulf crude to a hefty premium, while the Russian discounts that helped Indian refiners after the Ukraine war have largely vanished. Disruptions in West Asia have also forced India to source more oil from farther-flung suppliers, adding freight costs. Anirban Chowdhury speaks to ICRA’s, senior VP and Co-Group Chair Prashant Vasisht about why the physical crude market has diverged from benchmark prices, what it means for refinery and marketing margins, whether consumers could eventually feel the pain, and what could bring India’s crude costs down. Listen in

India’s tax calendar looks different this year. While most salaried taxpayers wrapped up their returns by July 31, taxpayers with certain business or professional income have until August 31. But who exactly qualifies? What happens if you earn a salary alongside income from F&O trading, consulting, freelancing or content creation? Which ITR should you file, and how is F&O turnover calculated? In this episode of The Morning Brief, ET Wealth’s Preeti K talks to with Aarti Raote, Partner, Deloitte about ITR-3 versus ITR-4, presumptive taxation, reconciling AIS and brokerage statements, and the expensive mistakes taxpayers should avoid before the deadline.Listen in.

For Indian professionals chasing a US green card, even the fast lane is getting harder. Approval rates for EB-1A — the category reserved for people with extraordinary ability — have fallen sharply, from 49% to 35% in a year. That compounds an already punishing green-card backlog for Indians on H-1B visas, many of whom face waits stretching decades. So what is driving the tougher scrutiny? Can legal challenges change the trajectory? And are Canada, the UK or the investment-linked EB-5 route credible alternatives? On The Morning Brief Swathi Moorthy joins Anirban Chowdhury to unpack America’s tightening immigration maze.

For 75 days, an Indian oil tanker captain and his 23-member crew were stranded in the Strait of Hormuz as war raged around them. Missiles flew overhead. Explosions shook the ship. Supplies dwindled, families waited anxiously and the crew faced pressure to carry out a risky cargo transfer. Through it all, the tanker remained loaded with 110,000 tonnes of cargo. This episode is a first-hand account of life aboard a merchant vessel caught in a conflict it had no part in — and of the seafarers who keep global trade moving while remaining largely invisible, unarmed and vulnerable. Raman Kapoor’s first person account, narrated by Anirban Chowdhury.

N Chandrasekaran’s decision not to seek another term as Tata Sons chairman brings an extraordinary year of tensions inside the Tata Group to a head. Behind the succession question lies a deeper struggle over how Tata Trusts exercises control over Tata Sons, how much capital the group should commit to businesses such as Air India, digital and semiconductors, whether Tata Sons should remain private, and how the Shapoorji Pallonji Group gets liquidity from its stake. Anirban Chowdhury speaks to governance experts Amit Tandon, founder and MD IiAS and Shriram Subramanian, founder and MD, InGovern about what Chandra leaves behind and the problems awaiting Tata’s next chairman.Listen in

Indian exporters are facing a fresh shipping squeeze. Congestion at major transhipment hubs such as Singapore and Colombo is delaying cargo, disrupting schedules and pushing up costs, just as global trade routes are being reshaped by geopolitical tensions and shifting freight demand. But the disruption exposes a deeper weakness in India’s export infrastructure. Despite its vast coastline — and the arrival of the Vizhinjam transhipment port — much of India’s cargo still relies on overseas hubs before heading to global markets. Anirban Chowdhury speaks to ET’s Twesh Mishra about what’s causing the jam, what exporters are losing, and whether India can finally bring its transhipment business home.

India’s humble autorickshaw is getting its biggest reinvention in decades. Electric three-wheelers are surging because the economics work: lower running costs, less maintenance and better predictability for drivers and fleets. But the real disruption goes deeper. As Bajaj Auto defends its turf and Mahindra, TVS and others push harder, competition is shifting from price and mileage to range, comfort, software, financing, service and uptime. Lijee Philip reports, Anirban Chowdhury narrates how electrification is rewriting the rules of India’s three-wheeler industry—and why the winners may be those who rethink the autorickshaw itself.

In this candid interview, ET's tech editor Surabhi Agarwal and Subhayan Chakraborty sit down with India's IT Secretary to discuss ISM 2.0, the government's $13 billion second phase of the India Semiconductor Mission. He breaks down lessons from ISM 1.0's 12 approved projects, the new market-linked funding model for chip design startups, and why silicon fabs now get differentiated incentives over other packaging units. The conversation also covers the government's approach to regulating social media platforms under the IT Act, recent friction with Meta and X over content takedowns, and where India stands in the intensifying global AI race between the US and China. Listen in

Prashant Kishor has spent years shaping election victories for others. Now, he has delivered one of his own. In this episode of The Morning Brief, Nidhi Sharma speaks with Economic Times’ Kumar Anshuman to unpack Jan Suraaj Party’s stunning victory in Bankipur, a BJP bastion for more than three decades. How did Kishor engineer a massive electoral swing just months after his party failed to win a single Assembly seat? What does this upset reveal about the BJP’s vulnerabilities, the RJD’s shrinking space, and the changing political mood in Bihar? And should this bypoll be seen as an anomaly—or an early warning?

In the second part of the series, Ratna Bhushan, ET's FMCG Editor, brings in two industry voices to dissect the impact of FSSAI and Maharashtra FDA's crackdowns. Anjan Chatterjee, founder of Speciality Restaurants, argues surprise audits are overdue but says license suspension should be a last resort, not a first response. Ashwin Bhadri, founder of Equinox Labs, backs the enforcement push while calling for improvement notices before suspensions, faster novel-ingredient approvals, and mandatory food-safety education in schools. With the Cricket Club of India already in Bombay High Court challenging its suspension, and more legal disputes brewing, this episode asks: can India's food and drink industry clean up fast enough, without the crackdown becoming counterproductive? Listen in.

Private equity is expanding into India’s K-12 school sector, following the same playbook it used to reshape private hospitals. Since Indian schools must legally operate as not-for-profit trusts, PE firms like KKR, Blackstone, and Kedaara invest indirectly through separate for-profit “OpCo” service companies that charge trusts for management, infrastructure, and operations—mirroring hospital structures. The appeal: predictable, long-term cash flow from families who rarely withdraw children mid-cycle, rising fees, and unmet demand for quality private education. Regulatory hurdles, fee caps, and mandated free seats for low-income students complicate profitability. Unlike hospitals, no major PE-backed education platform has yet achieved a successful exit, leaving the model’s long-term viability untested. Alenjith K Johny and Mohit Bhalla report; Anirban Chowdhury narrates for audio.

Since late May 2026, Maharashtra has been in the middle of one of its most aggressive food and drug enforcement drives in years — adulterated prasad seized near Shirdi, synthetic milk units shut down, the license of Mumbai’s Parsi Dairy Farm suspended, hospitals pulled up for forcing patients to buy from in-house pharmacies, and over 1,100 raids conducted statewide in just two months. The trigger: a widening gap between food safety standards on paper and enforcement on the ground, rising antimicrobial resistance from unchecked antibiotic sales, and a regulator willing to finally use the full force of the law.This is the first of a two-part series on that crackdown. In this episode, ET’s pharma editor Vikas Dandekar speaks to the man driving it: Tukaram Mundhe, Commissioner of Maharashtra FDA. A 2005-batch IAS officer transferred 25 times in 21 years, Mundhe is known for his uncompromising style. They discuss what’s fueling the crackdown, whether it can survive political pressure, and if this enforcement is sustainable.Listen in

In this conversation with ET's editor technology Surabhi Agarwal, Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian discusses the company's expanding footprint in India, including bringing Gemini Flash 3.5 and Gemini Enterprise to sovereign infrastructure, and scaling local engineering talent through forward-deployed teams and partnerships like Mission Karmayogi. Kurian addresses the $15 billion investment with Adani and Airtel, India's growing role as an AI export hub, and ambitions around server manufacturing. He also weighs in on sovereign AI becoming a global norm, Google Cloud's $460 billion order backlog, competition with AI-native challengers, and how the company plans to strengthen its position against larger rivals like Microsoft and Amazon. Listen in

We look back at the Jantar Mantar protests through the lens of media, technology and youth agency. What began as a Chief Justice’s jibe calling unemployed young Indians “cockroaches” turned into a movement that forced a Union minister’s resignation — powered by satire, memes and a 26-day hunger strike, and a social media following that outgrew the ruling party’s own. As the government rolls out fast-track courts, a tougher anti-cheating law and a Nilekani-led task force, the question is whether this marks a genuine break from the past or a repeat of 2024 — when a similar paper leak led to the Radhakrishnan committee's 101 recommendations, many of which remain only partially implemented two years on. Anirban Chowdhury speaks to Dr Anindya Kundu, sociologist, best-selling writer, Assistant Professor at Florida International University, Dr Usha Raman, former professor,Dept of Communication, University of Hyderabad and ET’s Anubhuti Vishnoi on virality, power, protest and reforms.

For decades, Northeast India was seen mainly as a corridor for drugs flowing out of Myanmar’s Golden Triangle. That has changed. The transit route is becoming a destination. In this episode of ET Deep Dive, we travel to the Assam–Arunachal Pradesh border, speaking to recovering heroin users, anti-drug volunteers and communities confronting a crisis that is quietly tearing families apart. From schoolchildren drawn into addiction to tribal justice systems stepping in where institutions struggle, this is a story of shifting narcotics networks, broken lives, and remarkable resilience. The battle against drugs is no longer only at the border—it is inside homes. Shantanu Nandan Sharma reports, Anirban Chowdhury narrates for audio.