Tech Leaders Push Longer Workweeks: Brin Advocates 60-Hour Grind for AI Race

Google co-founder Sergey Brin is urging employees to work 60-hour weeks, believing it’s crucial for winning the race toward Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). His stance aligns with Infosys’ Narayana Murthy, who suggested 70-hour workweeks for young Indians, and L&T’s SN Subrahmanyan, who went even further with 90-hour weeks. In an internal memo, Brin stressed that with OpenAI and Microsoft closing in, Google must double down on effort. He encouraged engineers to use the company’s AI models for coding efficiency, reinforcing the message that AI’s future won’t wait. But will employees embrace this relentless work culture?

Adani Eyes U.S. Expansion Amid Legal Woes

Despite bribery allegations, Adani Group is reviving plans to invest in U.S. infrastructure, including nuclear power, utilities, and an East Coast port. Founder Gautam Adani faces accusations of bribing Indian officials to secure power deals, while the U.S. SEC is investigating a $265 million fraud scheme involving his nephew, Sagar Adani. The group denies the charges and is exploring legal options. Adani has pledged $10 billion toward U.S. energy security, potentially creating 15,000 jobs, banking on Trump’s pro-energy policies. This isn’t its first U.S. venture—the group previously considered Texas petrochemical investments. However, with mounting legal scrutiny, its American ambitions face uncertainty.

India’s Semiconductor Push: A Slow Climb Up the Value Chain

India’s $10 billion semiconductor Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, launched in 2021, signals a long-term ambition to build a Silicon Valley-like ecosystem. Semiconductor manufacturing is capital-intensive, with a single fab costing up to $20 billion. Countries like Taiwan and South Korea dominate through subsidies, tech transfers, and strategic alliances—tactics India has been slower to adopt. So far, India has focused on the assembly, testing, and packaging (ATP) segment, with actual payouts totaling just $2 billion since 2023. Meanwhile, semiconductor imports have shifted away from China, with Taiwan and South Korea now supplying nearly a third of India’s chips. With the U.S. restricting tech transfers to China, India has a unique opportunity to move up the value chain. But will global players bet big on India? That remains the billion-dollar question.

Bitcoin vs. Gold: One Soars, the Other Stumbles

Bitcoin and gold, often compared as stores of value, are charting very different paths. Since peaking at $109,000 in January, Bitcoin has plunged 24%, while gold has climbed nearly 8%. The reason? Market sentiment. Bitcoin behaves like a speculative asset, swayed by AI spending trends, tariffs, and Trump’s unpredictable policies, which have triggered a broader market pullback. In contrast, gold benefits from central bank purchases and geopolitical instability. Analyst Eric Wallerstein predicts gold could reach $4,000 by the decade’s end. Meanwhile, Bitcoin remains volatile—BlackRock estimates its annual price swings at 50%, far above gold’s 15%. As uncertainty looms, investors are opting for the stability of gold, leaving Bitcoin in pursuit of reliability.

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