Microsoft joins India's ONDC WHAT HAS HAPPENED? US firm Microsoft has become the first big tech company to join the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), A government-backed project which is aimed at enabling small merchants and mom-and-pop stores in parts of the country to access processes and technologies that are typically deployed by large e commerce platforms such as Amazon and Flipkart. The software giant intends to introduce social e-commerce - group buying experience in the Indian market, Which would include a shopping app for Indian consumers along with their social circle, harnessing the ONDC network to discover the best pricing among retailers and sellers. WHAT IS OPEN NETWORK FOR DIGITAL COMMERECE ? It is an initiative aimed at promoting open networks for all aspects of exchange of goods and services over digital or electronic networks. ONDC is to be based on open-sourced methodology, using open specifications and open network protocols inde
$280 billion US CHIPS Bill to boost semiconductor WHAT HAS HAPPENED ? The US House of Representatives passed the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) and Science Bill, To provide assistance and subsidies worth $280 billion, particularly focused on its semiconductor industry, which is facing competition from China. The bill would provide "$52 billion in subsidies and additional tax credits" to companies that manufacture chips in the US. Another $200 billion is being allocated for scientific research, especially in artificial intelligence and other novel technologies. In a rare show of unity, the bill was passed with the help of some Republican lawmakers despite their party's general position on subsidies. Many republicans opposed the bill on this principle while some democrats, like Bernie Sanders, opposed the extension of what he called "welfare" to corporations in a time of inflation. WHY THE BILL HAS BEEN PASSED NOW ? It was a resu