Jio Platforms, the subsidiary of Indias conglomerate Reliance Industries and the countrys largest telecom operator, Wednesday announced a partnership with Elon Musks SpaceX to offer Starlinks satellite broadband internet services to its customers in India. Under the agreement, which is subject to regulatory approvals, Jio and SpaceX will explore using Starlink to extend the telcos offerings, while Jio will sell Starlink equipment through its retail outlets and online storefronts, the telco said in a press statement.Jio will also help establish a mechanism to support customer service installation and activation for Starlink equipment, it said.Earlier Wednesday, Airtel, Indias second-biggest telco, announced a similar partnership with SpaceX to offer Starlink through its channels. The Airtel partnership is also subject to SpaceXs regulatory approvals in the country, which are in process with IN-SPACe and the Department of Telecommunications.As part of the joint announcement, Jio said it plans to offer SpaceXs internet services to enterprise customers nationwide through its channels. Additionally, Jio and SpaceX are set to evaluate other complementary areas of cooperation to use their infrastructure in the worlds most populous nation.By integrating Starlink into Jios broadband ecosystem, we are expanding our reach and enhancing the reliability and accessibility of highspeed broadband in this AI-driven era, empowering communities and businesses across the country, said Mathew Oomen, Group CEO, Reliance Jio, in a prepared statement.This is not SpaceXs first effort to enter India, with its more than 950 million subscribers. Musks company tried to explore the market earlier but had to refund preorders of its Starlink equipment in 2022 after the Indian government called it out for booking/rendering the satellite internet service before getting the necessary approvals.The latest moves come just weeks after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the U.S., meeting with Musk and President Donald Trump and signing a deal for a global subsea cable project.Alongside the SpaceX partnership, Jio has been working on its own satellite-based broadband through its Starlink-rival service, JioSpaceFiber, resulting from a joint venture with SES. The telco also tested that service in four districts in 2023 and received its In-SPACe approval last year. Similarly, Airtel has been exploring satellite internet through OneWeb for some time.It will be interesting to see how Jio and Airtel support Starlinks rollout when it happens in India, given these other satellite broadband businesses. The two telcos also opposed the Indian governments move late last year to ease Starlinks entry into the market via administrative means instead of through an auction process, which is typically how spectrum is allocated. For now, at least, everyone appears to be on the same page. We are looking forward to working with Jio and receiving authorization from the Government of India to provide more people, organizations and businesses with access to Starlinks highspeed internet services, said Gwynne Shotwell, president and chief operating officer of SpaceX, as part of the announcement.

A ransomware group called Hunters International has published some of the data it claims to have stolen from Tata Technologies, just over a month after the Indian company confirmed a ransomware attack that resulted in the suspension of some services.The leaked data, published on the gangs dark web leak site which TechCrunch has seen includes personal details about some current and former employees at Tata Technologies, as well as confidential information, including purchase orders and the companys contracts with customers in India and the United States. The ransomware gang says the data set includes over 730,000 documents, including Excel spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, and PDF files, cumulativelytotaling about 1.4 terabytes in size.In late January, Tata Technologies informed Indian stock exchanges about a ransomware attack that affected a few of the companys IT assets. At the time, Tata said its client services remained fully functional and unaffected throughout.It is unclear whether the data uploaded by the Hunters International ransomware group is related to the ransomware attack thatTata Technologies disclosed earlier this year. When reached multiple times by TechCrunch, representatives for Tata have not yet provided comment.Founded in 1989 as an automotive unit of Tata Motors, Tata Technologies spun off as a separate company in 1994 and has been operating as a subsidiary of the Indian conglomerate Tata Group since. Tata Technologies provides product engineering and research and development services to automotive, aerospace equipment makers, and engineering companies across 27 countries. The company has 20 delivery centers and over 12,500 employees, per its website.Surfacing in late 2023, Hunters International is relatively a new ransomware-as-a-service group, which leases out its infrastructure to affiliate hackers who carry out ransomware attacks, and Hunters International takes a cut of the proceeds from ransom payments. Hunters International also appears to have some links with the Hive ransomware gang, which law enforcement agencies largely disrupted in 2023. The Hive gang leaked some of the data stolen by another Tata Group company, Tata Power, in 2022.

Dignity is both self-esteem and esteem from others.gettyIn researching dignity in the age of AI, I almost overlooked the people who exhibit it every day in front of me.My hypothesis is that peoples sense of self-worth might be undermined as artificial intelligence outperforms them in several cognitive skills. The solution might lie in a recalibration of peoples aspirations to focus on the skills of human connection and constructive skepticism. The projects next stage requires a deep and wide review of the literature on self-esteem and technology adoption.One of my current students, Tanya Keyur Desai, asked to help. She has already done some good work researching and writing. Here is her summary of two definitions: When we think about dignity, its about more than just self-perception and worth. Its about the fundamental value we place on ourselves and others. The renowned German philosopher, Immanuel Kant, called dignity the most fundamental and absolute value central to our very being. For Kant, dignity was tied to the concept of autonomy, meaning our capacity for free will and self-determination. In essence, its about shaping our own lives and setting our own goals. Kant's philosophy underscores that every individual has intrinsic worth and deserves respect and dignity, not because of their achievements or virtues but simply because they are human. Donna Hicks, a conflict-resolution expert and professor, beautifully described dignity as "the glue that holds all of our relationships together." She highlights the mutual need for recognition, to be seen, heard, and treated fairly. According to Hicks, dignity is about feeling safe in the world, understood, and respected.Tanya is particularly interested in understanding and improving the dignity of women and people of color. She wrote: Studies across diverse countries, including Argentina, Fiji, India, Lebanon, South Korea, and the United States, have shown that African Americans often report higher levels of self-esteem compared to White Americans. This resilience is likely due to strong racial identity and coping mechanisms developed in response to societal challenges related to race. Racial discrimination in the workplace has significant negative impacts on an individual's self-esteem and overall well-being. Racial microaggressions, whether intentional or unintentional, can result in reduced well-being, job satisfaction, and career advancement.In another portion of her essay to me, she wrote: Welcome to the world of Imposter Syndrome, a phenomenon thats becoming increasingly common, overshadowing countless professional achievements. In our fast-paced, hyperconnected lives, the endless comparisons to others can erode our sense of self-worth. The constant craving for external affirmationwhether through social media "likes" or praise from colleaguesfeeds a vicious cycle of doubt and insecurity. Imposter Syndrome doesnt just chip away at personal confidence; it can significantly impact workplace success.While she is not banging on a pulpit, I cannot help but assume that she is talking from more than a small portion of her personal experience. She is physically small (at least compared to me) with dark skin typical of her native India. She is quiet and calm, which might lead bystanders to assume that she is not wise or ambitious. This would be an entirely false assumption. From my experience as one of her professors, I can see that she is smart and accomplished her Masters degree in Marketing Analytics from Hult in San Francisco rests on top of a Masters degree in Neuroscience and a Bachelors degree in Chemistry. Her insights in class are concise, cogent, and nuanced. Her offer to help me conduct research was a gift without strings that was sure to accelerate my project.And then I read the following paragraph in her draft: In schools, workplaces, and communities, dignity can be affirmed when the value of a person is recognized, validated, and honored. Conversely, dignity can be understood in terms of its absencethe treatment and experiences that lead to feelings of indignity. For instance, experiences with dismissiveness, minimization, humiliation, shame, powerlessness, disrespect, denigration, mistreatment, abuse, dehumanization, defenselessness, or insecurity can all undermine a sense of dignity and self-worth in individuals and groups.It took four readings of this paragraph for the bulb in my brain to finally light up. My academic research will hopefully be impactful to improve the dignity of future generations of AI users and providers. Yet, I can act right now to recognize, validate, and honor a persons dignity and the dignity of hundreds of her peers by publishing this article. In other words, I can achieve part of my goal here.Tanya Desai has already changed our school, workplace, and community to advance her own, her peers, and my capacity for self-determination. She is powerful and, just as importantly, empowering. She helps me achieve my goal as a teacher to improve my students' self-esteem.To Tanya and all of my students at Hult and Harvard, I recognize and appreciate the energy, intelligence, and effort you bring to your education to improve your impact and change the world. From where I stand, you are already fulfilling this ambition. And I am grateful to watch and, if Im lucky, participate in this growth of dignity.P.S. Tanya, my reply to your draft will require more time, reading, conversation, and reflection before we advance to the next step. Sorry for the delay.

Table of ContentsTable of ContentsDefying the AI bubbleDo you need AI?Our review of the M4 MacBook Air has just dropped, and its fair to say its one of the best laptops money can buy. For the first time ever, we gave it full marks and a five-star score, with our reviewer dubbing it as close to perfect as any laptop theyd seen. Theres no question that it raises the bar for thin and light laptops.You name it, the MacBook Air has it: impressive performance that belies its lightweight design, build quality that will stand the test of time, a quiet and fanless operation that ensures you can work in peace, a comfortable keyboard and expansive trackpad, and so much more.Recommended VideosYet theres one thing that is conspicuous by its absence from Apples latest laptop: an outstanding artificial intelligence (AI) system.Mark Coppock / Digital TrendsSure, the MacBook Air doesnt lack AI entirely: theres Apple Intelligence, after all. But this is widely viewed as a poor choice among AI platforms and a long way behind its rivals. Its not exactly what anyone would describe as first class. To me, that makes the M4 MacBook Air feel like an interesting antidote to the current AI frenzy. Right now, every laptop maker is trying to promote AI as a reason to buy their devices, Apple included. Read Apples MacBook Air press release and youll see the company tout Apple Intelligences incredible capabilities that make Mac even more helpful and powerful.Yet you just have to spend a few minutes with Apple Intelligence to know that alternatives like OpenAIs ChatGPT and Microsofts Copilot are far more capable and powerful. Apple was caught flat-footed by the AI explosion, and it still hasnt caught up. But does that matter? The MacBook Air suggests it does not.AppleAs our review shows, the MacBook Air has obliterated the competition despite its AI system, not because of it. If anything, it proves that the best laptops in the world dont need AI to create incredible experiences for their users.In my opinion, that comes down to Apple absolutely nailing the basics. The M4 MacBook Air offers performance, longevity and build quality, all for a fair price. Its M4 chip is not only a step up over the previous M3, but it extends Apples lead across the entire industry. You wont find a better trackpad or speakers on a laptop in this class, while the design exudes the kind of quality thats almost unknown in a device this slim.That is what makes a great laptop, not artificial intelligence.I dont think a revelation like this is going to slow down the proliferation of AI-enabled laptops any time soon. AI is an industry that is currently experiencing a massive boom (some might say a bubble) and there is money to be made. Company leaders clearly dont feel like they can afford to miss out.But as the MacBook Air aptly demonstrates, AI is clearly not necessary to make a superb laptop. If anything, thats the lesson we should take from Apples M4 MacBook Air.Mark Coppock / Digital TrendsIf youre a user looking to get a new laptop, the example of the M4 MacBook Air emphasizes that you should continue prioritizing those machines that get the core principles right. Instead of flashy AI, youll get the best experience from a laptop that solves the kinds of problems you actually face in your everyday computing life.When considering a laptop, youll need to ask a few questions. Does it meet your needs? Is it affordable? Will it last well into the future? For most people, those questions will be far more important than whether it can run Apple Intelligence or ChatGPT. Nine times out of ten, AI will only be a minor part of this equation, if it figures at all.In other words, its my opinion that the M4 MacBook Air proves that you shouldnt get swept up by the AI hype. Buy the laptop that meets your needs instead.And perhaps its also a reminder to Apple: continue focusing on what users love and dont let your vision be clouded by AI. The company is on the right track as it is. It shouldnt sacrifice its ability to make great laptops on the altar of AI.Theres no way that Apple will suddenly stop working on AI. But if it can ensure it doesnt divert its efforts away from the features its users care about the most those features that have made the M4 MacBook Air so superb everyone will be better off.Editors Recommendations

It appears more and more Windows 10 users may be finally ready to let go of the legacy operating system ahead of the end of its life status on October 14. Microsoft has been urging system users to update to the latest Windows 11 software before that date and after months of ignoring the call, tens of millions of users are now opting in to the update.Figures from StatCounter indicate that the percentage of Windows 10 usage has now dipped below 60% for the first time with 58.7% of global users running the system as of February 2025. Meanwhile, stats for Windows 11 are slowly creeping up toward 40% with 38.2% of global users running this version of Microsofts OS.Recommended VideosNotably, StatCounter doesnt account for exactly how users transition from one software version to another. Previous research has shown that businesses, in particular, were updating to Windows 11 when they replaced hardware, as opposed to upgrading systems from Windows 11 despite having PCs with the minimum requirements to upgrade to the latest operating system. Meanwhile, many companies are marketing desktops and laptops with desirable features, such as the Copilot + AI tool in addition to Windows 11. The biggest challenge about Windows 10 reaching end of life is while Microsoft will no longer actively be developing the system it will also no longer be pushing security updates to devices running the system. This also stands to leave numerous devices vulnerable to cybersecurity threats.Microsoft plans to offer Windows 10 users a 12-month security extension for $30 to maintain the operating system beyond the allotted time. Users will have to enroll to participate in the Extended Security Updates (ESU). That enrollment time will open closer to October 14.Forbes pondered whether Microsoft can be successful at maintaining its strict directives pertaining to the Windows 10 end-of-life and its ESU timeline. However, the Verge previously noted that the company could be forced to provide free security updates for out-of-date software in extreme circumstances, such as defending against ransomware attacks. One such case happened in 2017 when an update had to be sent to the defunct Windows XP OS.Editors Recommendations

Infinite monkey theorem OpenAI pushes AI agent capabilities with new developer API New tools may help fulfill CEO's claim that agents will "join the workforce" in 2025. Benj Edwards Mar 11, 2025 4:42 pm | 7 Credit: adventtr via Getty Images Credit: adventtr via Getty Images Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreThe AI industry is doing its best to will "agents"pieces of AI-driven software that can perform multistep actions on your behalfinto reality. Several tech companies, including Google, have emphasized agentic features recently, and in January, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wrote that 2025 would be the year AI agents "join the workforce."OpenAI is working to make that promise into a reality. On Tuesday, OpenAI unveiled a new "Responses API" designed to help software developers create AI agents that can perform tasks independently using the company's AI models. The Responses API will eventually replace the current Assistants API, which OpenAI plans to retire in the first half of 2026.With the new offering, users can develop custom AI agents that scan company files with a file search utility that rapidly checks company databases (with OpenAI promising not to train its models on these files) and navigate websitessimilar to functions available through OpenAI's Operator agent, whose underlying Computer-Using Agent (CUA) model developers can also access to enable automation of tasks like data entry and other operations.However, OpenAI acknowledges that its CUA model is not yet reliable for automating tasks on operating systems and can make unintended mistakes. The company describes the new API as an early iteration that it will continue to improve over time.Developers using the Responses API can access the same models that power ChatGPT Search: GPT-4o search and GPT-4o mini search. These models can browse the web to answer questions and cite sources in their responses.That's notable because OpenAI says the added web search ability dramatically improves the factual accuracy of its AI models. On OpenAI's SimpleQA benchmark, which aims to measure confabulation rate, GPT-4o search scored 90 percent, while GPT-4o mini search achieved 88 percentboth substantially outperforming the larger GPT-4.5 model without search, which scored 63 percent.Despite these improvements, the technology still has significant limitations. Aside from issues with CUA properly navigating websites, the improved search capability doesn't completely solve the problem of AI confabulations, with GPT-4o search still making factual mistakes 10 percent of the time.Alongside the Responses API, OpenAI released the open source Agents SDK, providing developers free tools to integrate models with internal systems, implement safeguards, and monitor agent activities. This toolkit follows OpenAI's earlier release of Swarm, a framework for orchestrating multiple agents.These are still early days in the AI agent field, and things will likely improve rapidly. However, at the moment, the AI agent movement remains vulnerable to unrealistic claims, as demonstrated earlier this week when users discovered that Chinese startup Butterfly Effect's Manus AI agent platform failed to deliver on many of its promises, highlighting the persistent gap between promotional claims and practical functionality in this emerging technology category.Benj EdwardsSenior AI ReporterBenj EdwardsSenior AI Reporter Benj Edwards is Ars Technica's Senior AI Reporter and founder of the site's dedicated AI beat in 2022. He's also a tech historian with almost two decades of experience. In his free time, he writes and records music, collects vintage computers, and enjoys nature. He lives in Raleigh, NC. 7 Comments

TIME TO UPDATE TO 18.3.2 Apple patches 0-day exploited in extremely sophisticated attack 0-day exploited by maliciously crafted web content to break out of security sandbox. Dan Goodin Mar 11, 2025 4:26 pm | 25 Credit: Samuel Axon Credit: Samuel Axon Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreApple on Tuesday patched a critical zero-day vulnerability in virtually all iPhones and iPad models it supports and said it may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals using older versions of iOS.The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2025-24201, resides in Webkit, the browser engine driving Safari and all other browsers developed for iPhones and iPads. Devices affected include the iPhone XS and later, iPad Pro 13-inch, iPad Pro 12.9-inch 3rd generation and later, iPad Pro 11-inch 1st generation and later, iPad Air 3rd generation and later, iPad 7th generation and later, and iPad mini 5th generation and later. The vulnerability stems from a bug that wrote to out-of-bounds memory locations.Supplementary fixImpact: Maliciously crafted web content may be able to break out of Web Content sandbox, Apple wrote in a bare-bones advisory. This is a supplementary fix for an attack that was blocked in iOS 17.2. (Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals on versions of iOS before iOS 17.2.)The advisory didnt say if the vulnerability was discovered by one of its researchers or by someone outside the company. This attribution often provides clues about who carried out the attacks and who the attacks targeted. The advisory also didnt say when the attacks began or how long they lasted.The update brings the latest versions of both iOS and iPadOS to 18.3.2. Users facing the biggest threat are likely those who are targets of well-funded law enforcement agencies or nation-state spies. They should install the update immediately. While theres no indication that the vulnerability is being opportunistically exploited against a broader set of users, its a good practice to install updates within 36 hours of becoming available.Dan GoodinSenior Security EditorDan GoodinSenior Security Editor Dan Goodin is Senior Security Editor at Ars Technica, where he oversees coverage of malware, computer espionage, botnets, hardware hacking, encryption, and passwords. In his spare time, he enjoys gardening, cooking, and following the independent music scene. Dan is based in San Francisco. Follow him at here on Mastodon and here on Bluesky. Contact him on Signal at DanArs.82. 25 Comments

2025-03-12T03:10:09Z Read in app President Donald Trump said he wants to see more cuts from the DOGE office. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? The White House DOGE office has targeted federal Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs for cuts.Federal workers told BI about programs that were flagged that aren't related to DEI.Some programs, webpages, and jobs that were flagged used specific words in non-DEI contexts.Business Insider has found examples of government programs that contained keywords like "equity" but that weren't actually related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives that have been indefinitely paused after being flagged for review or, in some cases, cut entirely.This comes in the weeks following President Donald Trump's executive order ending DEI initiatives.One USAID employee told BI their program on helping people in sub-Saharan Africa "grow equity through savings accounts" was flagged to be reviewed by the DOGE office shortly after it began targeting DEI-related initiatives. The request for review happened prior to the widespread USAID cuts.The USAID employee, now on administrative leave, said they believe the review was triggered because the program's name contained the word "equity," even though it was geared toward financial equity rather than anything DEI-related. Business Insider has verified the employee's identity and others who spoke to us on the condition of anonymity.It felt like "they just used Control+F, or some AI did exactly that," they said. "My impression was it was them just being ham-fisted."Another federal employee, whose primary job function is managing relations with private equity-held businesses, was placed on administrative leave "pursuant to the President's executive order on DEIA," per a dismissal memo reviewed by BI."My job has nothing to do with DEIA at all," the federal employee said, adding that they had attended DEI-related training, but such work was not part of their job description. BI reviewed a copy of the employee's job description and verified it did not contain any work tasks or priorities related to diversity, equity, or inclusion initiatives. It remains unclear exactly why these two jobs were flagged to be cut.Representatives for the White House and the DOGE office did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.Other DEI languageWhile it remains unclear exactly how the employees and programs were targeted for removal, Business Insider's reporting expands a growing list of cuts initiated by the DOGE office that appear to target terms like "equity" and "gender" even when used in contexts unrelated to their meanings in DEI frameworks. The USAID employee compared the nature of the cuts to a keyboard shortcut find and replace to target DEI-related language.The Washington Post reported the DOGE office has fed sensitive data into AI software to identify programs to cut.The Associated Press reported that references to the Enola Gay, the name of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber that dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, were among tens of thousands of photos and online posts marked for deletion as the Defense Department works to purge DEI-related content. The AP reported that it appeared the photos were flagged because of the word "gay"; the Enola Gay was named after a colonel's mother.Per Bloomberg, a DOGE office review led to millions of dollars in canceled affordable housing contracts after their websites and social media posts were combed for terms linked to equity and diversity. It remains unclear what ultimately caused each of the contracts which addressed homelessness, disaster recovery, and other housing issues to be flagged.Business Insider identified over a dozen removed pages of the Internal Revenue Manuals, the official staff instructions for members of the Internal Revenue Service. The pages previously contained notes indicating that their last update made in response to a Biden-era executive order promoting equity removed "unnecessary gendered language," such as changing the phrase "he or she" to the gender-neutral pronoun "they."Business Insider's review of the manual found that the pages were removed after the Trump executive order went into effect. Theupdate note contained the word "gender."The Wall Street Journal reported that the IRS also removed pages from the manual about the "inequity" of holding on to taxpayer money longer than necessary and the "inclusion" of a taxpayer identification number on a form."I feel like this must be reactionary panic at the agencies," one tax attorney told BI about the pages removed from the IRS manuals. "This doesn't seem possible or legal in some cases."DOGE office cuts reversed and rolled backTrump said during his address to Congress last week that the DOGE office is being "headed by" White House senior advisor and Tesla CEOElon Musk.(The White House has said that Amy Gleason is the acting administrator.) The office has been tasked with rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government. But though the office has publicly celebrated its wins, it has quietly reversed some of its efforts and hedged its claims of cost savings.Although not every cut has been permanent, Trump has cheered Musk on, saying he hopes the billionaire businessman gets "more aggressive" in his effort to slash federal spending.Critics have lambasted the DOGE office and Musk for employing Silicon Valley's "move fast and break things" maxim rather than a slower, more targeted strategy.The USAID employee whose equity program was flagged for review said they believed the program was likely permanently cut, along with the vast majority of USAID contracts cut through DOGE office efforts."The program was about increasing the impact-per-dollar in these developmental impact programs," the employee said, adding that they were making things efficient "in a measured impactful way."Have a tip? Contact Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert via email at ktangalakislippert@businessinsider.com or Signal at byktl.50. Contact Jack Newsham via email at jnewsham@businessinsider.com or Signal at jnewsham.77. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

2025-03-12T02:38:37Z Read in app Bill Bensley is the architect and interior designer behind three hotels featured in "The White Lotus" season 3. Bill Bensley This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? Bill Bensley, now 65, left the US and moved to Asia shortly after graduation.The architect and designer has built over 200 hotels, including three featured in the latest season of "The White Lotus."Bensley says he's unsure he could have built a comparable portfolio back in the US.Some careers are shaped by chance. For Bill Bensley, it all started on graduation day in 1984, when a classmate mentioned he was moving to Singapore."It sounded so exotic, I asked if I could go too," he told Business Insider.That spontaneous decision launched a forty-year architecture career in which Bensley has built over 200 hotels in 30 countries. That includes nine projects for Four Seasons hotels, one of which Four Seasons Koh Samui is featured in the third season of the massively popular HBO series "The White Lotus." CoCoRum, a bar at Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, was designed by Bensley. Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui The odder, the betterBensley's design mantra is simple: "The odder, the better."His designs are known for being whimsical, theatrical, and deeply immersive.At Cambodia's Shinta Mani Wild a jungle retreat that opened in 2019 Bensley and his team installed a 400-meter zipline over the jungle that transports guests to luxury tents.AtBangkok, his team turned Bensley designed a zipline to transport guests to the Shinta Mani Wild jungle retreat in Cambodia. Shinta Mani Wild From farm to fameBensley was born in California and grew up on a small farm, raising bees, quails, and chickens and growing vegetables and mushrooms. His family spent weekends traveling in a trailer, with summer trips turning into cross-country adventures."I was lucky to learn how to survive in the wild," he says. "That shaped everything I do."Bensley earned a master's in landscape architecture from California State Polytechnic University, followed by a degree in urban design from Harvard. On his graduation day in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he didn't have a job lined up. "I couldn't even fathom a career in hospitality design back then," he said.But he followed his classmate's advice and traveled to Asia. Bill Bensley was in Indonesia in 1985, the year after he moved to Asia. Bill Bensley Competition was scarceSoon after arriving in Singapore, Bensley landed a job with an American landscape architecture firm. His first major project was the Bali Hyatt.At 29, he set up Bensley Studio in a Bangkok parking garage. "In 1989, there were not very many landscape architects in town," he said. Bensley set up his first studio in a Bangkok parking garage, now, he runs a team. Bill Bensley His portfolio expanded quickly, and after a few years, Bensley received an offer to design a resort in Hawaii. "The Four Seasons Hualalai was my breakthrough project on the Big Island of Hawaii," he said. Construction for the resort on the Kona-Kohala coast began in 1993.In 2000, Bensley's company landed another commission with the company, this time to build Four Seasons Koh Samui. The site was covered with hundreds of coconut trees, some over 50 years old. "When the hotel was finished, all 856 trees were still standing," he said.Today, that resort, featuring villas with private pools nestled into the tropical jungle overlooking the Gulf of Thailand, backdrops for the third season of HBO's "The White Lotus."He has high praise for the show's look: "Some of the garden cinematography is out of this world and looks even better than real life," he said.Monkeys used to harvest coconuts on the site where the resort now stands."So the monkey statues you see in 'The White Lotus' are my designs that pay homage to the agricultural history of the island," he said.In 2023, Mike White, the writer and director of "The White Lotus," spent time in Thailand, scouting locations and studying Thai culture. Bensley says they became friends.Production booked the resort out for two months last year for filming."Mike has now filmed at three of my hotels in Southern Thailand," Bensley said, referencing the Anantara Bophut Koh Samui Resort and Anantara Mai Khao Phuket Villas. Bensley shared some backstory about the monkeys at Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, which are featured in the latest season of "The White Lotus." Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui Designs inspired by AsiaBensley says his travels across Asia from Thailand to Cambodia and Indonesia have shaped his designs."Today, I think I understand Southeast Asia really well," Bensley said. He said that learning to speak Thai and Indonesian has helped him navigate the different cultures and communicate his design vision more effectively.Environment plays a big role, too. Tropical locations give designers the opportunity to blur the boundary between natural landscape and architecture, said Alex Yuen, a lecturer at Harvard Graduate School of Design."Outside of Hawaii, where he has worked, there are not many locations in the States that would match the environment that he thrives in," Yuen told BI.Cost is also a factor."Given the amount of ornaments and details found in the designs, you simply will not get that sort of deal if one were to develop properties in the US," Yuen said.Bensley isn't sure he could have built a portfolio comparable to what he has amassed in Asia if he had stayed in the US."In my experience, working in the USA is so very much more restrictive and cost-focused," Bensley said. Bensley lives in Bangkok with his husband and five Jack Russells. Bill Bensley Not slowing downBensley has no regrets about moving abroad. "I'm glad I made the bold move to work in Asia right after school," he said. "I'm happy with the life I've built."Despite his packed schedule, Bensley knows how to make time for the things he loves. He paints, tends to his garden, enjoys fishing, and loves to travel. He lives in Bangkok with Jirachai Rengthong, his partner of over 35 years, and five Jack Russells.He always travels with a sketchbook. "Sketching is the key to understanding architecture or any kind of space," he said. "If you cannot sketch it, you are not understanding it. iPhones are useless as a learning tool."Bensley, now 65, has no plans to leave Thailand or stop working. This year alone, he's juggling over 10 new projects, with hotel openings spanning the UAE, China, Puerto Rico, Turkey, and India."I am never going to retire, as I have the most interesting job in the world."

By Passant Rabie Published March 11, 2025 | Comments (1) | Honeybee Robotics' Lunar PlanetVac instrument shown at the end of Blue Ghosts surface access arm. Firefly Aerospace Fireflys Blue Ghost lander has been parked on the Moon for a little over a week, probing the lunar surface for traces of water and other resources. A new video captures a glimpse of Blue Ghosts surface operations as it deploys its space toolbox to gather material and data. Firefly Aerospace shared a brief, 30-second clip of Blue Ghost drilling onto the lunar surface earlier this week. In the video, NASAs Lunar Instrumentation for Subsurface Thermal Exploration with Rapidity (LISTER) payload is seen in action, digging into the Moon while bits of its interior fly off and land on the surface. LISTER is a pneumatic, gas-powered drill developed by Texas Tech University and Honeybee Robotics to measure the temperature and flow of heat from the Moons interior. The instrument began probing the lunar surface shortly after landing; the video captures the first time LISTER operated on the Moon on March 3. Fireflys Blue Ghost touched down on the lunar surface on Sunday, March 2 at 3:34 a.m. ET. The lander touched down in Mare Crisium, a large impact site that was later filled with basaltic lava. The spacecraft captured an awe-inspiring video of its descent toward the heavily cratered lunar surface.The companys first mission to the Moon, aptly named Ghost Riders in the Sky, is packed with 10 NASA instruments designed to probe the lunar surface and gather data to support future human missions to the Moon as part of NASAs Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. Blue Ghost is also running its own surface operations; the stationary lander will carry out subsurface drilling, sample collection, X-ray imaging, and dust mitigation experiments. Blue Ghost is set to spend a full lunar day on the surface of the Moon, or the equivalent of 14 days on Earth. Over the weekend, the lander began approaching lunar noon, according to Firefly. Thats when things really heat up on the Moon, with temperatures climbing up to 250 degrees Fahrenheit (121 degrees Celsius). To prepare for the extra warm weather, Blue Ghost began power cycling to keep the lander as cool as possible. The mission is currently operating two of its payloads during the power cycling, but will gradually resume full power operations once the surface temperatures on the Moon start to cool down.With its touchdown on the Moon, Firefly Aerospace became the second private company to land on the lunar surface, and the first to do it with its lander ending up in an upright position. Intuitive Machines was the first company to land on the Moon, doing so in February 2024, but its Odysseus lander tipped over on its side after a not-so-ideal touchdown. The companys follow-up mission to the Moon also ended up on its side and was declared dead shortly after arrival. The Moon is rapidly becoming a crowded place as more missions head to the lunar surface, initiating a new era of commercial drop-offs to space. Daily NewsletterYou May Also Like By Passant Rabie Published March 11, 2025 By Passant Rabie Published March 10, 2025 By Passant Rabie Published March 8, 2025 By Passant Rabie Published March 7, 2025 By Passant Rabie Updated March 6, 2025 By Passant Rabie Published March 6, 2025