Our top reads of the week

From learning in the metaverse to Audi Q8 review, here are our most-read stories of the week

By Forbes India

Published: Jun 18, 2022 08:49:39 AM IST

Updated: Jun 17, 2022 06:49:13 PM IST

Every week, catch up on the best long form stories from Forbes India. Often peppered with our binge-worthy podcasts, videos or infographics too. Image: Shutterstock

1) A super attempt

It is a general assumption that people like it when things or processes get easier than their current forms. That is probably one of the reasons why WeChat is among the world’s biggest success stories. The China-based app offers a mash-up of WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, Paypal, Twitter, Uber, Kindle, and many more under one platform. But Indian consumers are a different breed. Vijay Shekhar Sharma's Paytm was unable to become a successful super app. And ecommerce giant Amazon's attempt with Amazon Pay in India has not found many takers. Tata group, the salt-to-steel conglomerate, has introduced Tata Neu—banking on the size of its empire. Does it stand a chance? For more

2) Education in the metaverse

Before the Covid-19 pandemic forced us all to change the way we live, education was making a slow progress to embrace the digital revolution. Edtech took off when schools shut down but learning could not. Virtual classrooms are now mainstream and easily integrated into the new normal of society. But the evolution doesn't stop and the next milestone is learning in the metaverse—learning about the Indus civilisation in a virtual recreation of Mohenjo-Daro in the Sindh region of Pakistan from the comfort of your couch (or classroom), for example. Startups are reimagining the future of education once again in India. Are you ready? For more

3) Fighting superbugs

Anand Anandkumar has a PhD in electrical and biomedical engineering and chip design, which made the semiconductor sector his playground. A personal health crisis turned his attention to life sciences in the early 2000s. Now, Anandkumar and his co-founders at Bugworks Research—Santanu Datta, Shahul Hameed, and Balasubramanian V—have been engaged in the first significant step towards making a new broad-spectrum antibiotic that might kill bacteria already resistant to other antibiotics and medicines. If they succeed, it will be the first time in more than 60 years that a new class of antibiotics will come to the market to combat ‘superbugs'. And it will also be a significant milestone for drug discovery out of India. For more

Discover

1) In search of a new dawn

How many people do you know who accept their follies? How many of those analyze the said mistake, understand the deep-seated issue, and have the courage to do the right thing? You could count that number on your fingertips probably. After reading this story, you can add Saumya Yadav to that list as well. This first-time entrepreneur co-founded edtech venture Udayy in 2019 with Mahak Garg and Karan Varshney. This March, Yadav’s dream had turned into a nightmare. This is a story of a young entrepreneur who instead of burning cash to buy growth and cheat investors, decided to shut shop and seek a new dream. For more

2) NFT and India

A slew of celebrity endorsements has helped inflate a multi-billion dollar bubble around digital tokens over the past year. Be it Jay-Z releasing the NFT of his first album 'Reasonable Doubt' on the 25th anniversary of its release or the personalised metaverse of Snoop Dogg and Paris Hilton or the Bored Ape wave that saw many celebs choose NFT profile pictures. The trend is not limited to celebs using it to make a splash. There are staunch believers of blockchain technology who want to keep investing in NFTs—quite a few of them are in India where rules and regulations around the subject matter are still unclear. In this 'News by Numbers', take a look at the top 10 countries with the most users of non-fungible tokens in 2021. For more

3) Made to stand out

Under the hood, Audi Q8 holds a 55 TFSI, which in Audi-speak translates to a 3.0-litre turbo-petrol V6. 340hp, 500Nm, 0-100kph in 5.9 seconds. But the hood itself is a knockout with bold styling. In this episode of Forbes India Momentum, take a look at the Audi Q8 that's a perfect appendage in the game of vanity. Watch here

4) Lessons from the field with Sania Mirza

Sania Mirza is one of India's most celebrated athletes—a six-time grand slam winner and a former world No 1 in doubles. The Indian ace announced earlier that 2022 is her final year on the tour as a professional tennis player. She has finished stints at the Australian Open and French Open and is progressing through the grass-court season with recent wins at Birmingham Classic. Before the 2015 women's doubles champion reaches Wimbledon, take a look at this Forbes India From the Field episode in which she shares what it takes to meet the challenges head-on, survive defeat and stand up for equality. Watch here