Good morning. Earlybird here, your daily news buddy plopped on this earth to give you the latest scoop on all things business & tech.

In this edition:

• 🔥 Clean energy state turns to coal

• 🔫 A big ‘ol arms deal standstill

• 💵 Multi-billion pound fines for big tech

MARKETS

*Stock data as of market close. Source.

• Markets: Nifty is forming a dodgy Doji candlestick pattern, and that means one thing — indecision in the market. Traders are keeping an eye on whether the index will hold at 17,800. Meanwhile, 17,500-17,600 have been marked as key support levels by analysts.

ENERGY

Scorching heatwaves pull Karnataka back to coal

🔥 India's leading clean energy state, Karnataka, is turning to coal to meet its power demand as extreme heatwaves push up energy consumption. Here’s what you need to know:

Buckling under heat

• The state has faced record-breaking temperatures this year, causing a surge in electricity usage as people crank up their air conditioners.

• This has resulted in a shortage of power supply from wind and solar plants, forcing the state to rely on coal-based power.

Known for green energy

• Massive solar parks and wind turbines erected in Karnataka, a state whose capital city Bengaluru is referred to as India's Silicon Valley, have enabled the state to surpass the 14.8 GW renewable capacity goal set by the federal government last year.

• And while impressive, this only accounts for 48% of its energy cocktail.

• Enter the massive heatwave with temperatures touching 41.5 C. This has forced the notorious clean energy state to call in less renewable sources of power to stay cool.

DEFENSE

India-Russia arms deal at a standstill over currency dispute

No one’s pulling the trigger

🔫 Deliveries of Russian weapons to India have been put on hold because of a currency disagreement between the two nations. Here’s the quick take:

The hold-up. The deadlock has prevented Russia from providing credit necessary to buy $10B in replacement parts and two S-400 air defense systems, while India's payments totaling more than $2B have been suspended for roughly a year.

Stalemate, for now:

• India refuses to settle in USD because it doesn’t want to deal with any secondary sanctions from the US/NATO gang.

• India and won't pay in rubles either because it’s worried about acquiring rubles a fair global exchange rate

• Russia won’t accept rupees either because of forex volatility.

We’ll check in on these two again and see if they’re still staring each other down over this.

INDIA EDITION: WHAT ELSE IS ON THE BIRDWATCH

• 🍫 Nestle milks 25% more in profits for Q1. Nestle India's profits rose 25% thanks to increased demand and price hikes. Kit-kats, Munch chocolates, and instant coffee were best sellers as of late, with people wanting more of it despite inflated prices.

• 🚌 A spanking new fleet of e-buses. Greencell Mobility, an SaaS startup focused on electric mobility solutions, just announced plans to deploy 1,200 electric buses across the country.

• ⚡️ L&T wins massive power orders. Indian multinational energy conglomerate Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has won significant orders across multiple sectors in India and overseas markets, in deliverables valued roughly between Rs 1,000-2,000 crore.

FUNDING DEALS

Catch up on the Indian funding flows from the past 24hrs:

• Lokal, a Bengaluru-based startup focused on creator content and hyperlocal news, has successfully raised Rs 120 crore in its latest funding round. The funding will be utilized by the company to expand its offerings, invest in technology, and scale its operations across the country.

• Deciml, a SaaS startup that turns spare change into cumulative micro-investments, has secured an undisclosed amount of bridge funding from a notable group of investors and influencers. Deciml plans to use the funds to expand its customer base, enhance its product offerings, and onboard new talent.

WORLD

Headline Explorer

🤖 OpenAI may trademark GPT soon. If you’re building your own AI model and thinking of slapping a ‘GPT’ at the end of it, don’t. The tag ‘GPT’ may just get trademarked soon if OpenAI succeeds with its petitions to be the exclusive holder of the popularized AI moniker.

🏰 Disney Layoffs: The Sequel. Disney is facing its second wave of layoffs as the entertainment giant continues its restructuring efforts. The cuts are expected to impact thousands, in business groups such as ESPN, Disney Parks, Experience and Products, and Disney Entertainment. Minnie, Goofy and Pluto declined to comment.

💵 Colossal fines for fake reviews and hard-to-cancel plans. Multibillion-pound fines loom over tech giants in the UK as the country’s competition watchdog aims to bite down on bogus online reviews and sticky subscription policies through new consumer protection laws.

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