Apple CEO Tim Cook will step down from his position on September 1, 2026, ending nearly 15 years at the helm of the company. The 65-year-old executive will hand over leadership to John Ternus, Apple’s head of hardware engineering. Cook described leading Apple as the greatest privilege of his life. Although stepping down as CEO, he will remain with the company as executive chairman, following a transition model similar to those of Jeff Bezos at Amazon and Reed Hastings at Netflix.

John Ternus, 50, has been with Apple for 25 years and has overseen engineering for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac over the past five years. His long tenure and technical leadership positioned him as the leading candidate to succeed Cook. Ternus expressed gratitude for the opportunity to advance Apple’s mission.

The leadership change comes as the global technology sector undergoes major transformation driven by artificial intelligence. Apple, which initially lagged in AI development, recently sought Google’s assistance to enhance Siri’s capabilities after delays in implementing new features.

Popular Bangladeshi band Nagar Baul, led by Mahfuz Anam James, has undergone a significant lineup change. Guitarist Sultan Raihan Khan Rana has left the band after more than fifteen years of performing with James in numerous concerts at home and abroad. He parted ways recently due to personal reasons, ending a long professional association. Rana had not been seen performing with the band for some time and was absent from their recent Pahela Baishakh concert in Pabna.

At that event, guitarist Ismamul Farhad Elin performed with James, and it has now been confirmed that he has officially joined Nagar Baul as Rana’s replacement. According to the band’s spokesperson Robin Thakur, Rana could no longer dedicate enough time to the group because of personal commitments and decided to leave after discussions with other members. Elin formally joined the band in March 2026, having previously played as a guest artist in 2020 and gained recognition as a guitarist for the band Shunno. The current lineup includes James, Ahsan Elahi Fanti, Talukdar Sabbir Shawon, and Ismamul Farhad Elin.

At least twelve leading universities in the United Kingdom, including Oxford, Imperial College London, and the London School of Economics, have hired a private intelligence agency run by former military officers to monitor their own students and staff. According to a joint investigation by Al Jazeera English and Liberty Investigates, the surveillance targeted individuals expressing solidarity with Palestine. The firm, Horus Security Consultancy Limited, reportedly received about £440,000 since 2022 to conduct social media monitoring and secret counterterrorism threat assessments using artificial intelligence.

The investigation found that Manchester Metropolitan University requested a secret counterterrorism assessment on Palestinian-origin scholar Rabab Ibrahim Abdulhadi, while Bristol University asked the firm to monitor pro-Palestinian and animal rights activists. The United Nations special rapporteur Gina Romero described the surveillance as a matter of serious legal concern, and the University and College Union’s general secretary Jo Grady called it shameful. Horus declined to respond to Al Jazeera’s questions.

Imperial College and the University of Sheffield denied conducting surveillance, stating they only analyzed publicly available data to maintain campus safety. Horus, founded in 2006, is led by former military intelligence officers, including Colonel Tim Collins, who previously criticized pro-Palestinian protests.

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung received a red-carpet welcome in New Delhi as he began his state visit to India. On Monday, he held key talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi focusing on shipbuilding and artificial intelligence (AI) as major agenda items. The meeting also included discussions on trade, investment, semiconductors, and emerging technologies, according to India’s Ministry of External Affairs.

In a social media statement, President Lee said that amid global economic instability and supply chain disruptions following conflicts in the Middle East, South Korea and India are becoming vital strategic partners for each other. Ahead of the visit, South Korea’s National Security Advisor Wi Sung-lak noted that the two leaders would also discuss maintaining regional peace, including on the Korean Peninsula.

The two countries are working to strengthen their 2010 economic partnership agreement. Bilateral trade has grown from 14.2 billion to 26.89 billion dollars in the 2024–25 fiscal year, marking nearly a 90 percent increase.

Legendary Bangladeshi actor Humayun Faridi was posthumously honored by Jahangirnagar University, his beloved alma mater, during the opening session of the three-day Jahangirnagar Film Festival 2026. The event took place at the university’s Zahir Raihan Auditorium, where the award recognized his outstanding contributions to film and performing arts.

Organized by Bangla Theatre, the festival ran from April 14 to 16 and featured film screenings, discussions, and recognition of distinguished figures in cinema. On the closing day, special honors were presented in 18 categories, including awards for Shahiduzzaman Selim, Abu Rizwan Eureka, and Avanti Sithi for their contributions to Bangladeshi film.

Faridi, who completed both his undergraduate and postgraduate studies in economics at Jahangirnagar University, began his acting journey on this campus through theatre. His career spanned stage, television, and film, with iconic performances such as his role in the drama “Sangsaptak.” He passed away on February 13, 2012.

Popular Bangladeshi band Ashes canceled their much-anticipated concert scheduled for April 18 at Rabindra Sarobar in Dhanmondi, Dhaka. The announcement came late on April 17 through a verified Facebook post by the band’s vocalist, Junayed Evan, confirming that the event would not take place as planned.

According to Evan, organizers informed the band that they expected an overwhelming turnout that would be difficult to manage in the open venue. The limited space and potential traffic disruptions in the surrounding area also prompted administrative concerns, leading to the decision to cancel the show. In an emotional message to fans, Evan expressed regret over the cancellation and promised future performances.

Ashes have already completed 12 concerts across Bangladesh since the beginning of April. The band is also scheduled to perform in Rome, Venice, and Paris in June, according to the same report.

A new study titled “Assistance Reduces Persistence and Hurts Independent Performance” has found that while artificial intelligence (AI) tools can boost immediate task performance, they may harm long-term cognitive abilities such as independent thinking, persistence, and problem-solving. The research, jointly conducted by teams from the United States and the United Kingdom, involved 1,222 participants across multiple randomized controlled trials. After only ten minutes of AI use, participants showed signs of dependency, and when AI assistance was withdrawn, their accuracy and willingness to continue solving problems dropped sharply.

The study used an OpenAI GPT-5-based system to assist one group in solving fraction-based math problems, while another group worked without help. When AI support was removed midway, performance among AI users declined significantly, a pattern repeated in larger follow-up tests. Co-author Rachit Dube of the University of California, Los Angeles, warned that rapid AI adoption in education could create a generation unaware of its own capabilities, potentially harming creativity and innovation.

Researchers noted a positive finding: participants who used AI for hints or explanations, rather than direct answers, maintained better independent performance. The study has not yet undergone peer review and is considered preliminary.

Factory, a startup developing autonomous AI coding agents called Droids, is in discussions to raise $150 million at a $1.5 billion valuation. The funding round will be led by Khosla Ventures, with venture capitalist Keith Rabois joining the board. Other investors include Sequoia Capital, Insight Partners, and Blackstone. Factory’s technology allows its Droids to switch between AI models such as OpenAI’s GPT, Anthropic’s Claude, and China’s DeepSeek, depending on task complexity and customer needs.

The company’s flexibility has attracted enterprise clients including Morgan Stanley, Ernst & Young, and Palo Alto Networks. Factory’s CEO and co-founder, Matan Grinberg, said the ability to dynamically route between models has proven valuable, especially during outages at Anthropic. The startup positions itself as an enterprise-focused AI agent developer, contrasting with competitors like Cursor, which targets individual developers.

Grinberg, who left his PhD program at the University of California, Berkeley after being encouraged by Sequoia investor Shaun Maguire, founded Factory in 2023. The company now competes with Cursor, Cognition, and major AI labs developing their own coding tools.

Canva has announced a new integration with Anthropic Labs’ Claude Design, combining the Canva Design Engine and Visual Suite with Claude’s AI drafting capabilities. The collaboration allows users to transform AI-generated drafts and ideas from Claude into fully editable designs within Canva. These designs can then be customized, branded, and shared collaboratively, streamlining the process from concept to publication.

The update also introduces HTML importing and artifact editing, expanding Canva’s drag-and-drop editor to support interactive code and AI-generated content. This makes Canva the first platform to unify visual, document, and interactive content in one collaborative environment. Users can now edit coded creations from Claude directly in Canva, adjust layouts, and embed them into presentations or websites without regenerating code.

The announcement follows the launch of Canva AI 2.0 and builds on two years of collaboration between Canva and Anthropic. It reflects Canva’s broader goal of becoming the design layer of the internet, enabling users to refine and scale AI-generated content efficiently.

Starbucks announced Wednesday the launch of a beta app within ChatGPT designed to help customers discover new drink options. Users can enable the Starbucks app through ChatGPT’s app directory and interact with it by including “@Starbucks” in their prompts. The tool allows customization and location selection, but final orders must still be completed through the Starbucks app or website, maintaining integration with the company’s loyalty program. Paul Riedel, senior vice president of digital and loyalty, said the initiative aims to meet customers at their moment of inspiration rather than starting from a menu.

The move is part of Starbucks’ broader “Back to Starbucks” turnaround strategy to attract U.S. customers back to its cafes. The company has reintroduced seating, streamlined its menu, and added new loyalty tiers. It has also promoted drink discovery through its mobile app’s trending beverage and secret menu features, targeting Gen Z consumers who favor unique beverages.

This beta app marks Starbucks’ continued use of generative AI and collaboration with OpenAI, following its earlier Green Dot Assist tool for baristas. Other major retailers like Walmart, Etsy, and Booking.com are also experimenting with ChatGPT integrations to enhance shopping experiences.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has introduced Amazon Bio Discovery, a new application that integrates computational design and wet-lab validation into a single platform. The system provides access to more than 40 AI biology models and allows users to upload custom or third-party models. It includes agentic assistants that guide researchers in model selection, configuration, and candidate evaluation. The platform connects directly with contract research organization partners for seamless lab testing, with results automatically feeding back to improve subsequent research cycles.

According to AWS, the tool aims to remove collaboration bottlenecks between computational biologists and bench scientists by offering a no-code environment for workflow creation and experiment management. Computational experts can build reusable workflows with standardized data processing, while bench scientists can run parallel experiments and adjust parameters without coding. Both groups work from the same data and results, improving reproducibility and speed.

Amazon Bio Discovery is built on AWS infrastructure used by major pharmaceutical companies and is available immediately with enterprise-grade security. The platform is designed to make lab-in-the-loop drug discovery scalable and accessible across research organizations.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapan has said that the digital sector remains one of the top priorities of the current government. Speaking as the chief guest at the inauguration of the three-day Broadband Expo 2026 at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Center, he noted that the sector lacks an incentive-based tax structure necessary to attract investment. The event was organized by the Internet Service Providers Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB).

Prime Minister’s Adviser on Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Rehan Asif Asad stated that over the next five years, the government will focus on three key areas: ensuring universal connectivity, implementing a ‘One Citizen, One Digital Identity’ system, and building an AI-driven digital wallet ecosystem. He added that the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) will take steps to implement active sharing in the telecom sector.

Additional Secretary Zahidul Islam said initiatives will be taken to address issues related to ISP license renewal and active sharing. ISPAB President Mohammad Aminul Hakim highlighted that only 30 percent of ISP networks are currently utilized, and active sharing could significantly reduce unused capacity.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly developing an AI clone of himself to attend meetings and provide feedback to employees, according to the Financial Times. The AI version is being trained on Zuckerberg’s image, voice, mannerisms, tone, and public statements so that employees can feel more connected to him through digital interactions. Zuckerberg is personally involved in training the avatar and spends several hours each week coding and reviewing Meta’s AI projects.

The Financial Times report adds that if the experiment with Zuckerberg’s AI avatar proves successful, Meta may allow creators to build their own AI avatars. In 2024, Meta demonstrated a live example of an AI persona for creators and began letting them create AI versions of themselves to respond to Instagram comments. The company also offers custom AI chatbots, though it recently restricted teen access to the feature.

A separate project, reported by The Wall Street Journal in March, involves Zuckerberg creating an AI agent to help him complete tasks, distinct from the avatar being developed for Meta’s internal use.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming daily life in Bangladesh, offering new opportunities in education, health, business, and communication. However, recent incidents highlight growing misuse of the technology. On April 10, 2026, a student at Pabna University of Science and Technology was expelled for using ChatGPT during an admission test, while on April 5, 2026, a man in Chattogram was arrested for creating a fake image of the home minister using AI. These cases reflect a broader trend of fraud, misinformation, and unethical use of AI tools.

The report warns that excessive reliance on AI is weakening critical thinking and creativity, especially among students. Deepfake technology and AI-generated content are blurring the line between truth and falsehood, making it difficult for people to verify information. This poses risks not only to individuals but also to national security and social stability.

The article calls for stronger digital awareness, tighter cybersecurity, and a clear national policy to regulate AI use. Without proper guidance and ethics, the country’s technological progress may come at the cost of social and moral decline.

Legendary Indian playback singer Asha Bhosle passed away on Sunday, April 12, 2026, at Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai. She was 92 years old. Hospital sources said she had been suffering from age-related ailments for several months and was admitted on Saturday with heart and respiratory complications. Her condition worsened that night, leading to her transfer to the ICU. Her son Anand Bhosle confirmed her death, and her funeral is scheduled for Monday.

Born in 1933 into the musically renowned Mangeshkar family, Asha Bhosle began her professional singing career at the age of nine and recorded her first film song in 1943. By the 1950s, she had established herself as a major voice in Bollywood, known for her versatility and distinctive style alongside her sister Lata Mangeshkar. Over her long career, she won seven Filmfare Awards for Best Female Playback Singer and two National Film Awards.

Her death marks the end of a golden era in Indian music, leaving behind a legacy that spanned decades and genres.