Exploring India’s chai destinations; The company behind IPL teams' meals

Hello,

Would you prefer a shiny product to safety?

As per Jan Leike, a key safety researcher and the former co-head of OpenAI’s Superalignment team, OpenAI is allegedly taking the former approach.

According to a TechCrunch report, OpenAI’s superalignment team was promised 20% of the company’s compute resources, but requests for a fraction of that were often denied, blocking the team from doing their work.

In fact, the ChatGPT maker recently disbanded the team, responsible for developing ways to govern and steer “superintelligent” AI systems, just a year after announcing it. 

This, of course, culminated in the resignation of Leike after the launch of GPT-40, as well as Ilya Sutskever, OpenAI’s co-founder and fellow co-head of superalignment.

In other news, OYO, the Softbank-backed company, will refile its much-awaited IPO as it comes close to finalising its refinancing plans to raise up to $450 million. As per sources, JP Morgan is the likely lead banker for the refinancing through the sale of dollar bonds at an estimated interest rate of 9% to 10% per annum. 

ICYMI: All that unfolded in the first week at the Cannes Film Festival.

Lastly, meet the tabby cat with a PhD! 

Vermont State University, US, has conferred an honorary doctorate in “litter-ature” to the campus-dwelling cat Max in recognition of his friendliness.

A purr-fect day for Max! 

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Vacationing in tea gardens this summer
• The company behind IPL teams' meals
• Naggar: Himachal Pradesh's hidden gem

Here’s your trivia for today: Which is the oldest airport in India?

Travel and Leisure

Vacationing in tea gardens this summer

Ahead of International Tea Day, celebrated on May 21, there has been a surge in searches for Ooty, Palampur, and Chikmagalur, renowned for their tea culture and historical significance, followed by the tea garden destinations of Darjeeling and Munnar.

“Indian travellers love to go abroad to unexplored destinations, but they also appreciate how much there is to see and do within their own borders and discover India’s landscapes and culture,” says Krishna Rathi, Senior Country Director, India Subcontinent and Maldives, at Agoda.

Chai destinations:

• Go on a tea trail in Ooty, walking along the factories and ending with a picnic amid the tea gardens. Whether you are a tea lover or just curious, check out Tranquilitea’s hour-long tea-tasting tour.
• A guided tea plantation and village tour in Munnar offers a closer look at the process of tea making, from the plucking of leaves to the final product.
• Chikmagalur is a walkers’ delight. At the Kuduremukh National Park, the Kudremukh range of hills overlooks the Arabian Sea and is a trekker’s paradise with lush green forests, grassy slopes, meandering rivers, and grassy slopes. 

Food and Beverages

The company behind IPL teams' meals

To play cricket well, each player's diet has to be meticulously crafted to suit their nutrition needs. This is what Mumbai-based Catering Collective’s Blue Sea vertical (a division of K Hospitality), which caters to the players of IPL teams like Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals, specialises in.

The company also provides catering for audiences in the stands and VIP boxes to enhance their experience during the IPL tournament.

Balancing nutrition and taste:

• Blue Sea’s culinary strategy for Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals is based on a deep understanding of diverse palates and local flavours, intertwined with international favourites that resonate with the global nature of the sport.
• On match days, Delhi Capital's menu includes sandwiches and quiches, lamb neck gosht nihari and chicken rendang curry with edamame truffle rice for the main course.
• “For lunch, a power meal to keep them energised during the match is essential. Non-vegetarian food paired with complex carbohydrates like brown rice or quinoa form the foundation of these power plates,” shares Ashay Desai, Director, Culinary and F&B at Catering Collective.

Travel and Leisure

Naggar: Himachal Pradesh's hidden gem

Naggar is a relatively lesser-known town in Himachal Pradesh’s Kullu district. It’s only a little over 20 km away from the tourist hotspot of Manali, but it’s far more pristine and peaceful than its sought-after neighbour. 

Himachali culture:

• The 16th-century Tripura Sundari Temple, with its gabled roof and wooden pagoda-style structure, is visible from a distance. The stunning temple is made with Deodar wood.
• Naggar Castle—a tourist favourite—garnered attention after being featured in the song Ye Ishq Hai from Kareena Kapoor Khan’s film Jab We Met. It is built in the traditional Kath Kuni style that uses alternate layers of wood and stone masonry.
• The quaint village of Chachogi is punctuated with vibrant houses and temples offering a glimpse of typical Himachali architecture. Most of the houses here are made with alternating layers of wood and stone and bound without mortar. 

News & updates

• Sessions: Indian shares were little changed in a special session conducted on Saturday for stock exchanges to test a failsafe system for equity trading. Indian equities traded in two special sessions from 9:15 am to 10 am from a primary site, and then from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm from a ‘disaster recovery site’. 
• Slim: Apple is developing a slimmer version of the iPhone that is likely to be launched by 2025, The Information reported. The potentially thinner version is likely to be priced higher than Apple's iPhone Pro Max and is expected to be launched with the iPhone 17 in September 2025.
• On the clock: The US Justice Department and TikTok asked a US appeals court to set a fast-track schedule to consider the legal challenges to a new law requiring China-based ByteDance to divest TikTok's US assets by January 19 or face a ban. They have asked the court to rule by December 6. 

Which is the oldest airport in India?

Answer: Juhu Aerodrome in Mumbai. It was established in 1928.

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