Sharjah (PTI): The International Cricket Council (ICC) has introduced a social media moderation tool at the Women's T20 World Cup to "protect the cricket community from toxic content" and create a safer and inclusive online environment for players and fans.

The tournament gets underway in Sharjah on Thursday with the final slated in Dubai on October 20.

This AI-powered tool, in collaboration with GoBubble, monitors toxic content like hate speech and harassment across official and player social media channels, aiming to protect mental health and foster a positive atmosphere.

ICC head of digital, Finn Bradshaw said: "We are dedicated to fostering a positive and inclusive environment for all participants and fans of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup, it’s been great to see so many of the players and teams embrace our new initiative.”

Over 60 players have already opted in for the social media protection service.

South Africa’s Sinalo Jafta said: “There is nothing worse than opening up your phone after a loss - or after a victory -- and regardless of what side you find yourself there is always some degrading comment about your personality.

"That protection for me is very big because players get to share their life with the world without the fear of being judged or criticised,” she added.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



New Delhi/Amaravati (PTI): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday said the state is taking steps to transform itself into a knowledge and creator economy hub with a strong focus on artificial intelligence and quantum technology. 

He noted that Andhra Pradesh has abundant tech-driven youth and the government is formulating plans to train them in futuristic technologies with support from global technology firms. 

"Our goal is to transform Andhra Pradesh into a knowledge hub by focusing on AI, quantum computing, data centres, drone cities and space cities. The youth will remain our biggest asset over the next 25 years, and we seek global partnerships to scale up the creator economy," said Naidu during his interactions at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in Delhi.

Naidu, who participated in the summit in the national capital, also held meetings with several global technology leaders and industrialists to explore collaborations in artificial intelligence, clean energy and innovation ecosystems. 

He met Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, Autodesk AI Head Mike Haley, Aramco India Director Abdul Rehman AiThukair, LEGO Education Vice President Tom Hall, Aadhaar Founder and CTO Srikanth Nadhamuni, Khosla Ventures Managing Partner Vinod Khosla and others at the AP Pavilion. 

The chief minister also held discussions with Saudi Aramco representatives on clean energy projects, including solar initiatives, and invited the company to expand operations in Andhra Pradesh, stating that the state is highly suitable for green energy production. 

He sought support from NVIDIA Vice President Callista Redmond for establishing AI Living Labs and proposed partnerships through the Ratan Tata Innovation Hub to promote youth innovation, including collaborations with IIT Tirupati and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Tirupati under the Andhra Pradesh Future Innovation and Research for Science and Technology (AP FIRST) initiative. 

Naidu urged Autodesk leadership to support the development of Global Capability Centres in design engineering and requested the establishment of an Innovation Academy in Amaravati aligned with quantum technology, besides proposing AI and robotics learning labs in partnership with LEGO Education. 

He also discussed AI-driven smart governance solutions with Quantela Inc Chairman Sridhar Gadhi, while World Bank Group Digital AI Regional Director Mahesh Uttamchandani met Naidu on the sidelines of the summit. 

Following the meetings, Naidu visited various exhibition stalls at the summit, including those of NVIDIA, Tata, Intel and Microsoft, and reviewed AI applications across agriculture, healthcare and industry.