India’s smartphone dilemma and AI brings back the dead

Join Leslie D'Monte and Shouvik Das on the latest episode of Mint Techcetra, where they discuss about big changes in India's telecom industry. With Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone raising their prices by up to 27%, they figure out what this means for everyday users and the market as a whole. Can AI avatars or Deadbots of our loved ones help us cope with loss? SenseTime Group founder Tang Xiao’ou made it happen, highlighting the comfort these digital recreations may provide and the ethical concerns they raise. Our host also talks about the current state of the smartphone market, discussing why smartphones seem less exciting these days, with innovation slowing and most people replacing their phones every two to three years. They consider whether upcoming technologies like spatial computing, which seem to be a decade away, might replace them. The episode concludes on both a wondrous and melancholic note, sharing the story of astronaut Sunita Williams, who is currently stuck on the International Space Station due to a fault in the Boeing Starliner. They reflect on the incredible resilience and strength needed to handle being stranded in space.