CtrlS Datacenters Lays Out $2 Billion Investment Plan Over The Next Six Years Globally

Identifies three strategic investment areas over the next six years:

(A) Augmented footprint of hyperscale datacenters that are custom-built for AI and cloud workloads

(B) Achieve Net Zero

(C) Augment team strength & capabilities

Close on the heels of a spate of top management leadership hiring, CtrlS Datacenters Ltd, Asia’s leading Rated-4 datacenter service provider, today announced its new investment plan of $2 billion over the next six years.

The company has identified three key areas of focus as it looks to scale its operations, reaffirm its commitment to the region, and further establish its leadership position:

Add 350 MW of AI & Cloud-ready Hyperscale Datacenters:

With the massive surge in adoption of AI applications and Cloud technologies, the demand for AI and cloud ready datacenters is on the rise. CtrlS Datacenters will invest in several key technologies and strategies in areas such as advanced cooling, power management, and overall infrastructure design in its new hyperscale datacenters.

These will include: Liquid Cooling (Direct-to-chip or immersion cooling), AI HVAC, AI Optimised Rack Layout, High-Efficiency Power Infrastructure etc, and will provide a plug-n-play environment for emerging technology service providers to grow their IT footprint seamlessly.

At present, CtrlS Datacenters has 12 state-of-the-art datacenters with 234 MW capacity spread across seven major cities including Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Noida, Lucknow, and Patna. The investment plan involves the addition of approximately 350 MW capacity across new and existing hyperscale and edge datacenters in both India and select Southeast Asian markets.

Achieve Net Zero or Carbon Neutral by 2030:

CtrlS Datacenters is aiming to become carbon neutral by 2030. The company is investing in 153-Megawatt Peak (MWp) solar projects across three markets, that will generate 2,50,000-Megawatt Hours (MWh) energy annually. This includes a 145 MWp solar project in Maharashtra that will be fully owned and operated by the company. By 2025, CtrlS Datacenters plans to invest in additional 300 MWp projects.

CtrlS Datacenters aims to achieve its Net Zero goals through a multi-pronged strategy, going beyond renewable energy. The company will further enhance its water conservation measures by deploying more advanced water recycling technologies in line with its goal of 100 percent usage of recycled water at all of its datacenters.

Double headcount by 2029:

CtrlS Datacenters is aggressively strengthening the organization by constantly hiring and skilling. The company has brought onboard several industry veterans from global MNCs to strengthen its leadership team and drive its growth. The global leadership team received a boost with Royce Thomas (from Equinix) joining as President & Chief Business Officer, Ashish Ahuja (from Google) joining as Chief Technology Officer, Vipin Jain (from AWS) joining as President-Datacenter Operations and Mohit Pande (from Jefferies) joining as Chief Financial Officer, besides other senior leaders.  

As CtrlS Datacenters expands its footprint and broadens its portfolio, the company is expected to hire over 1,000 people in the next six years.

Recognized as a ‘Great Place to Work’ and ‘Great Place to Work for Women’, the company is attracting the best talent in every sphere of datacenter design, build and operations and making them part of its growth journey.

Commenting on the investment plans, Sridhar Pinnapureddy, Founder & Chairman of CtrlS Datacenters, said, "Since 2007, we have been committed to innovation and excellence, and the present surge in AI and cloud technologies warrants that we stay relevant to these changing market dynamics, while leading the charter of sustainability. We aspire to not only bolster our presence across key markets delivering the next generation of datacenter technology, but also to elevate the standard for the entire datacenter industry through pioneering services and sustainable practices." 

CtrlS Datacenters has cultivated a unique organizational capability that allows it to add substantial capacities every year. With its sights set on the critical growth phase, CtrlS Datacenters aims to capitalize on the ongoing digitization revolution in India and the growing demand for next-generation datacenters.

About CtrlS Datacenters

CtrlS Datacenters Ltd, which began its operations in 2007, operates 12 datacenters across seven key markets and will begin operation of three new datacenters in 2023. The company is embracing renewable energy for a sustainable future. CtrlS Datacenters has announced its plans to explore new overseas markets in Southeast Asia and Middle East. Homepage: www.ctrls.in

Duolingo's Big Reveals In Music, Math, And Advanced English At Duocon 2023

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL), the world’s leading mobile learning platform, shares its latest product vision that harnesses its proven, gamified teaching methods to expand to new subjects: Music and Math. Company leaders debut the new experiences at Duocon, the largest free global event at the intersection of language, learning, and technology.

“Duocon is about celebrating our millions of dedicated learners worldwide,” says Luis von Ahn, co-founder and CEO. “We are focused on building the best education possible and making it universally available. With our expansion into Music and our updates to Math, we’re one step closer to that goal.”

Expanding beyond language

In a headline talk, Severin Hacker, co-founder and CTO, delves into the company’s expansion into Math and Music, subjects that transcend cultures and people, just like language. He details updates to the Math course, which will include more advanced real-world math skills, including calculating tips and hourly wage, to sharpen adult learners’ mental math. And Engineering Director Vanessa Jameson offers a look under the hood of Duolingo’s brand-new Music course. Jameson shares how the company approached music education while maintaining Duolingo’s signature, gamified interface.

Teaching better

English is the number one language learned on Duolingo because English proficiency often opens doors to better job or education opportunities. To help these learners advance towards their goals, Duolingo announces a new Immersive Learning Experience for Advanced English, a curriculum designed for English learners at more advanced levels of language proficiency.

Bozena Pajak, VP of Learning and Curriculum, also walks audiences through the Duolingo Method, Duolingo’s proven teaching principles that guide content creation, lesson design, and course development. Learning experts unveil new features designed to improve learning outcomes in some of our biggest courses, including:

* DuoRadio, dynamic, podcast-style audio lessons in select language courses.

 A game-changing tool for learning the unique writing systems of Japanese and Mandarin, some of the fastest-growing languages on the app.

More fun than ever

Duolingo’s global community of more than 74 million monthly active learners complete 9 billion exercises a week. Product experts at Duolingo reveal upcoming features and content designed to make learning on the new multi-subject app even more delightful, such as:

* Adventures, a new mini-game where learners play as Duolingo characters and put their language skills to the test in interactive scenarios.

* A new season of The Duolingo French Podcast, hosted by Oscar-winning actress Ariana DeBose, tells the untold story of 1920s dance icon Josephine Baker—who was also a spy for the French Resistance.

An exclusive interview with Malala

And finally, Duolingo co-founder and CEO, Luis von Ahn, hosts a wide-ranging conversation with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai about her work advocating for the right of all children to education.

For more information on the talks and product announcements, tune in at duolingo.com/duocon.

About Duolingo

Duolingo (www.duolingo.com) is the most popular language-learning platform and the most downloaded education app worldwide. The app makes learning new languages fun with bite-sized lessons that feel like playing a game. The company's mission is to develop the best education in the world and make it universally available. Duolingo offers over 100 language courses across 41 distinct languages, from Spanish, French, German, and Japanese to Navajo and Yiddish.

byteXL’s Appoints Senior Education Experts To Its Leadership Team To Augment Its College Transformation Programme

* LEAD Academy's Vaibhav Gupta And Turito Inc's Nishant Reddy Have Been Roped In By The Fast-Growing EdTech Platform

byteXL, one of India’s leading EdTech platforms focused on transforming engineering institutes, has announced the appointment of senior education experts to its leadership team. The edtech startup has roped in Vaibhav Shukla and Nishant Reddy - both with decades of experience and proven abilities - to strengthen its position in the market. 

Mr. Vaibhav Shukla will be byteXL’s Head of Learning and Student Success and will focus on elevating the edtech platform by spearheading curriculum and content development. As a content strategy expert, skilled in design, development, delivery, and management, and with more than two decades of experience in education, Vaibhav brings a wealth of knowledge and skills to the company. An alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad and IIT Bombay, Vaibhav previously served as Director of Content Development at LEAD Academy and holds many industry certifications. 

Mr. Nishanth Reddy, an alumnus of IIM and NIT has joined byteXL as the Head of Operations and will be responsible for optimizing college partnerships, business efficiency and scalability, and customer satisfaction. Nishanth is an experienced business leader with a demonstrated history of working in the SaaS sales and product domains specializing in EdTech, and has served as President APAC & GCC at Turito Inc. He has a proven track record of over a decade in marketing, business development, customer retention, operations, and product management. He is also the recipient of the Top 100 Leaders in Education award at the Global Forum for Education & Learning, Dubai. 

byteXL is on a mission to transform colleges in emerging technologies. With a strong presence in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, they recently forayed into Tamil Nadu. While the edtech startup has already signed up with 22 colleges covering over 42,000 students under the transformation program this academic year, they are aiming for a total of 50 colleges with the number of students almost doubling. Following byteXL’s tie-up with the colleges, the student placement rates have significantly gone up from 25% to 70%, along with a positive impact on salary packages. 

On the onboarding of senior education experts in the leadership team, Mr. Karun Tadepalli, CEO and co-founder of byteXL said, “We need the right kind of talent and people who will steer the vision of byteXL in transforming colleges with an industry-relevant IT curriculum. Vaibhav and Nishant have exceptional capacities, experience, and a proven track record in the education domain. Their skills and vision are very much aligned with byteXL’s vision and mission. We are on the right track to achieve better and more concrete outcomes through their ability to deliver unique industry solutions by identifying the relevant need; and giving a competitive edge to the engineering students.” 

About byteXL: 

byteXL is an edtech company transforming engineering colleges in India by revolutionizing the education system and creating a pathway of opportunity for students. They are achieving this by partnering with colleges and industry to integrate curriculum, content, and practical learning, thus providing students with the necessary skills and awareness on employability and empowering them to excel in their careers. Through its innovative approach, byteXL aspires to empower students, bridging the gap between academia and industry, and shaping the next generation of highly skilled professionals who will contribute to the development of the nation. It envisions a future where every engineering student has access to a holistic and industry-relevant education that enhances their skills and employability.  

To learn more, visit: www.bytexl.com.  

India Leads The World In Observing cGMP Day And Displays Its Commitment To Quality

The Centre for cGMP at Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MCOPS), Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), organized the first-ever "National Current Good Manufacturing Practices Day" or "National cGMP Day", on October 10, 2023, at Manipal. This momentous occasion coincides with the Diamond Jubilee of MCOPS and the 125th Birth Anniversary of its visionary founder, Dr. TMA Pai, Padmashree Awardee. This was jointly organized along with IDMA (Indian Drug Manufacturers Association).

The purpose of "National cGMP Day" was to raise awareness about the critical role of current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) in the pharmaceutical industry, ensuring the quality and safety of medicinal products.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Viranchi Shah, National President IDMA, mentioned that the industry is forever and highly committed to providing quality drugs and having all manufacturing processes error-free. Dr Veeramani SV, Chairman Pharmexcil, said that the IDMA has been helping domestic companies by providing tools and training to mitigate regulatory scrutiny and to meet the increased compliance levels. Celebrating National cGMP day would serve as a message to the world as India’s continued commitment to quality of error-free drug manufacturing.

Dr Viranchi Shah, National President IDMA, also inaugurated the Manipal cGMP digital museum, which is the first of its kind and dedicated it to the founder of MAHE, Manipal, Dr TMA Pai.

Lt. Gen (Dr.) M D Venkatesh, Vice-Chancellor MAHE and also the guest of honour, spoke about the values inculcated by Dr TMA Pai and now inherited by MAHE. He also lauded the Centre for cGMP for taking up such a great initiative, and this is the first-ever national day that MAHE has initiated. He also thanked IDMA for co-organizing and supporting this event in every way. He also mentioned that he was proud to be a part of the inauguration of the world’s first-ever digital cGMP museum. Dr Sharath Rao, Pro-VC (Health Sciences) MAHE, Manipal, was the first visitor to the museum.

Dr HS Ballal Pro-Chancellor, MAHE, Manipal, in his presidential address, spoke about the vision of Dr TMA Pai, the founder of MAHE, Manipal, and the event coincides with the 125th birth anniversary of Dr TMA Pai as well as the 60th year of inception of MCOPS. Mr Rajsekhar, Deputy Drugs Controller (India), mentioned that the regulatory bodies worldwide have stressed the need to maintain quality medicine and observe good manufacturing practices.

Dr Sharath Rao, Pro-VC (Health Sciences) MAHE, Manipal welcomed the gathering and Dr Muddukrishna BS, joint organizing secretary of the National cGMP day, proposed the vote of thanks.

The first-ever NATIONAL cGMP DAY included three symposiums, one mini workshop and a panel discussion by Industry Experts. The sessions dealt with current trends like Recent international regulatory updates, GMP Compliance, Products for global markets - Quality and regulatory challenges, cGMPs in manufacturing and distribution and the Future of cGMP Compliance.

IDMA has also organized workshops and symposiums across the country and brought in a pledge taking event for academia and industry that re-emphasizes the need for maintaining quality in every process, thereby ensuring 100% compliance.

Orkla India Announces Reorganisation With Three Business Units - MTR, Eastern And International Business

Earlier this year, Orkla ASA the Norwegian industrial investment company, transformed itself into a leading industrial investment company with twelve autonomous portfolio companies. Orkla ASA, announces the reorganization of its Indian operations under one business entity - Orkla India, which is now one of the portfolio companies.  

Orkla India is being reorganized by creating three business units: MTR, Eastern, and International Business (IB). This marks Orkla's presence as a distinct entity in the country, bringing together the rich heritage and expertise of two iconic brands, MTR, and Eastern. This move will enhance the collective business capabilities and drive sharper growth focus across Business Units. 

As a part of this reorganization, Sanjay Sharma, CEO of MTR will lead Orkla in India as Orkla India, CEO. Mr. Sharma will be responsible for overseeing the operations of the three business units with each having its own independent CEO, reporting to Mr. Sharma. Orkla India will now have a wider product portfolio, featuring products from MTR and Eastern and a robust international presence through the newly established IB unit. Both MTR and Eastern will maintain their independent brand identities while benefiting from the mutual synergies, scale, expertise, and cost advantage that this reorganization brings along. This realignment will enable the business units to share experiences, leverage strengths, and enhance their position with leading brands in their respective segments and geographies.  

Atle Vidar Nagel Johansen, Chairman of Orkla India, expressed, "Our acquisition of Eastern has significantly scaled our business in India reaffirming our position in this market. Sanjay Sharma will spearhead Orkla India, and we look forward to continued success in the market with this realignment. The three business units will play a pivotal role in fortifying Orkla's overall portfolio which believes in the strength of local brands and leadership within distinct markets.” 

Sanjay Sharma, CEO of Orkla India, expressed, "We believe, in India food is local. It is intrinsically tied to our culture, language, and customs, rooted deeply in our local heritage. We are a collection of such heritage brands that are considered to be the custodians of culture and regional food on their soil. Each of our business units is at a different stage of evolution, and under one umbrella of Orkla India, we will have a deep dedicated focus to accelerate their growth.” 

Orion Innovation Inks Alliances With inTaar & IbizAmica In India

Orion Innovation (Orion), a leading digital transformation and product development services firm, today announced strategic partnerships with FinTaar Technologies Private Limited and bizAmica Software Private Limited. This is in sync with the company's ambitious plan to have India contribute 10% of its revenue growth from the Financial Services vertical by the end of 2024.

Fintaar Technologies offers end-to-end lending solutions right from their Loan Originating Systems that automate and streamline the loan application and origination processes across multiple channels to the Loan Management System that simplifies all the procedures to manage multiple stages of the loan journey. The company's robust Debt Recovery and Collection Management System streamlines delinquency management and debt collection by minimizing the cost and efforts involved in the recovery process. Following this, Lending Analytics easily generates meticulous and dynamic data-driven reports to optimize costs, streamline processes and help identify new product opportunities.

bizAmica, founded in 2018, is focused on powering businesses using its globally recognized product izDOX AI platform. izDOX automates process flows involving documents across Banking, Finance, Insurance, Logistics and Healthcare domains. On account of their deep technology and domain expertise, izDOX auto identifies business risks from transactions and does auto compliance for go and no-go decisions.

Commenting on the partnerships, Mr. Anoop Gala, Global Head – Financial Services, Orion Innovation said, ''Digital transformation has rapidly accelerated within India's BFSI sector over the past decade, ushering in a new era of customer experience, automation and insights. As part of our aggressive growth strategy, Orion is making substantial investments in SAAS offerings that are powered by cloud, AI & Machine learning, hyper-automation and modern data platforms. Recognizing the immense potential in India's financial services sector, we hope to position ourselves as leading player in the market through partnerships with Fintaar and bizAmica combined with our deep domain expertise in Banking, Trade finance, lending & insurance.'' FinTaar Technologies and bizAmica Software bring with them a wide array of solutions built using AI-driven business, document & workflow automation for trade finance, supply chain financing, loan origination & servicing, insurance claims processing.

''Collaborating with Fintaar and bizAmica, we are launching these solutions to be available in a SAAS model fully integrated in the financial services ecosystem. Our aim is to deliver accelerated digital outcomes, including achieving an impressive 98% accuracy in document processing, enabling precise delinquency prediction, guiding next best actions (NBA), and ultimately, fostering improved cash flow for financial institutions and businesses operating in this dynamic and ever-evolving digital landscape,'' Gala added.

''We are happy to be partnering with Orion. The demand for cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) has soared. This augurs well for Orion Innovation with prospects in the Indian market and their existing clients globally. Empowering enterprises and teams to engage in decision-making using AI and not data processing has been and continues to be our mission. We look forward to working closely with Anoop and his team to build and expand Orion's client base in India and globally,'' says Mr. Rahul Bhanose, CEO, bizAmica.

''With our extensive experience in the financial services domain, and cloud offerings in emerging areas like Supply chain finance, embedded financing, Co-lending and recovery, we firmly believe that we are the right partners for Orion in the lending technology space. At the end of the day, it's all about enhancing the customer experience and providing our clients with a seamless digital journey, which is why digital transformation is unquestionably the need of the hour for the BFSI sector. There is also a need for the lending products to continuously evolve with the changing customer demands, which our flexible and modern technology architecture facilitates. With this alliance, we look forward to delivering innovative solutions and delightful experiences that will meet the ever-evolving expectations of Orion's clientele,'' adds Mr. Hemant Jain, CEO, FinTaar Technologies Private Limited.

Orion recently signed a new deal with Philippines-based Cebuana Lhuillier Bank in its transformative journey towards financial inclusion and modernized banking services. Cebuana Lhuillier Bank, which serves 6 million Filipinos, signed the deal with Orion to implement the advanced Temenos core banking platform to revolutionize its operations and expand its outreach to unbanked and underserved Filipinos with an aim to grow more than 11 million customers over five years.

Orion firmly believes that financial institutions must proactively adapt their business models to not only survive but thrive in the face of today's dynamic and ever-evolving landscape. With a relentless focus on helping clients ideate, innovate, and accelerate, Orion empowers organizations to stay at the forefront of the competition. By embracing a digital-first mindset and possessing a deep understanding of compliance requirements in the financial services industry, Orion uniquely positions itself to assist financial institutions in rethinking, reimagining and reinventing their businesses.

About Orion Innovation Orion Innovation (''Orion'') is a leading digital transformation and product development services firm. Rooted in engineering and design thinking, along with a unique combination of agility, scale and maturity, its team of approximately 6,400 associates helps Fortune 1000 companies improve efficiencies, enhance customer experiences, and develop new digital offerings. Through its delivery centers in North America, EMEA, Asia Pacific and Latin America, Orion serves clients across Financial Services, Telecom, Media & Technology, Sports & Entertainment, Professional Services, and Healthcare industries. For more information, visit www.orioninc.com.

Toyota Unveils Details Of JAPAN MOBILITY SHOW 2023 Booth

* Presenting the mobility society of tomorrow under the theme “Let’s Change the Future of Cars—Find Your Future”

Toyota will be exhibiting at the JAPAN MOBILITY SHOW 2023, to be held from Thursday, October 26 to Sunday, November 5*1, with a booth themed “Let’s Change the Future of Cars—Find Your Future.”

At the TOYOTA booth, visitors can enjoy stage performances throughout the entire area, which include music and dance. Another feature is the chance to experience life in the mobility society of the future through attractions that can be enjoyable by all, such as a chance to customize mobility vehicles and racing games with fully hand-operated controls.

The vehicle exhibits will embody Toyota’s “Mobility for All” spirit, including the new model of the Century and the Crown series—displayed alongside the machines that will evolve into the one-of-a-kind cherished cars of tomorrow. A photo spot with Toyota’s lunar buggy and various other surprises scattered throughout will provide take-home mementos of the future experience. TOYOTA’s booth will offer a taste of the future mobility society that we are creating together.

CAPSULE BAR

The rear of a vehicle will be custom outfitted as a Capsule Bar, where visitors can answer simple questions to receive a toy gift: a capsule containing one of nine different miniature cars and fun secret items.

NEO Steer*2 Driving Experience

Toyota is developing new technologies that enable drivers to control vehicles without gas or brake pedals, including in a standing position or from a wheelchair. These new driving experiences will be available to

visitors through the realistic driving simulator "Gran Turismo 7" (software for PlayStation 5/PlayStation 4)*3.

Details on specific exhibit vehicles will be released in upcoming announcements. Come see, experience, and enjoy the mobility society of the future.

*1 Held at Tokyo Big Sight (Koto-ku, Tokyo)

October 25-26: press, October 26-27: special invitation, etc.        October 28-November 5: general public

*2 Official name: New Era Operating Steering

*3 "Gran Turismo" and "PlayStation" are registered trademarks of Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.