Fully responsible, trustworthy technology is an almost impossible mandate in a tech landscape that prioritizes speed — but that doesn’t mean some companies aren’t trying. 

On the heels of the Trump administration’s national AI legislative framework on March 20, in which “winning the AI race” remains paramount, tech developers face tension between the common ethos of moving fast and breaking things versus strategically implementing responsible tech frameworks from the start. 

Getting ahead has, in many instances, taken the driver’s seat, the cost of which has become clear. Microsoft’s self-admitted realization that AI-generated code often forgoes accessibility makes human oversight and iteration a must. 

For Jenny Lay-Flurrie, who became head of Microsoft’s Trusted Technology Group in February and has worked in accessibility for much of her 21 years with the company, the responsible development and deployment of tech is two-fold: “How do we make sure that we build it right? And how can we make sure that it stays right?” 

Microsoft launched its Trusted Technology Group in early 2025 and has since consolidated all responsible tech initiatives under its umbrella, including Lay-Flurrie’s former directive of accessibility. 

While Microsoft has centralized its responsible tech under a top-down model, competitors like Google maintain a more engineering-led architecture guided by its core AI principles and specialized safety councils. Techniques vary across big tech, but Microsoft’s approach is one that’s been reshaped since 2002, when Bill Gates released the Trustworthy Computing memo that prioritized things like reliability over new feature development. 

AI’s woes (and the people who fix them) 

Lay-Flurrie’s foray into the broader responsible tech space may be recent, but she says that it follows the same general principles she’s used to, including fairness, transparency, inclusiveness and accountability. Microsoft operates on the principle that “people should be accountable for AI” regardless of its outcomes. 

That’s why, when Microsoft realized its AI wasn’t accurately representing blind people, her team moved to fix the problem. 

“Some of the generated imagery of blind people came back with people wearing these horrible full-on blindfolds,” she said. “These models were being trained on a lot of the material that exists in society. Unfortunately, society is not always the most inclusive place, so there are instances where we have to insert data to train it.” 

To do this, Microsoft purchased more than 20 million minutes of multimodal data from Be My Eyes, a nonprofit accessibility platform that blind and low-vision individuals can use for free to connect with live volunteers and AI, giving them audio insight into what they’re seeing. “They had a lot of video material that was taken by blind people of their use with canes and dogs and finding keys in the house, and we anonymized the data by blurring faces and all that so that we could train our models more appropriately on blindness,” said Lay-Flurrie. 

This process is robust, but Annie Brown, CEO and founder of Reliabl, a machine learning training software working to minimize bias and maximize performance in AI models, said there’s room for improvement. 

“More diverse data is just part of it,” said Brown. “If you don’t pay attention to what’s happening at the metadata layer, which is how those images that were uploaded to your data set are labeled, that itself is going to create bias.” 

Despite the AI race that’s changing the world, Microsoft is part of a broader movement of companies publicly sharing their responsible tech learnings. Microsoft Learn is freely available to students, academics and developers and includes training modules on responsible AI principles and more. Brown recommends Microsoft also learn from the smaller social good organizations to see “how they’re bringing inclusivity into AI.” 

As for improvement, Lay-Flurrie says it comes with the territory. “It’s listening clearly to the feedback, receiving that, iterating, testing and resolving those within as short of a period of time as we can,” she said. 

Humans vs. AI 

Microsoft is a top provider of enterprise tech, meaning its very own AI is fueling other companies that often make the decision to cut employees in lieu of advanced solutions. Microsoft itself is part of a broader wave of big tech layoffs, though it’s clarified it’s more of a reshuffling of priorities rather than sheer replacement. The company cut roughly 15,000 jobs in sales, gaming and customer-facing divisions in 2025 and hired new personnel elsewhere with a focus on AI infrastructure. 

Even as layoffs continue across industries, Lay-Flurrie says AI is already leveling the playing field for previously marginalized workers, including those who are neurodiverse and disabled. 

“The first community to get access to Copilot at Microsoft was our disability employee group,” she said. “For the Deaf community, captioning, transcripts, meeting notes, sign language recognition, that gives independence. You don’t have to wait for a cartographer to be there to transcribe what’s being said.” 

For the neurodiverse community who received Copilot early on, it helped so much with the cognitive load that “they wouldn’t let me take the license back,” she said.  

Diego Mariscal, CEO and founder of global startup accelerator 2Gether-International (2GI), which is run by and for entrepreneurs with disabilities, recognizes Microsoft has made a point to include people with disabilities. “The fact that Jenny’s position even exists at this level is a testament to that,” he said. Even so, including disabled people at the decision-making table is important both from the top down and bottom up. “How can we ensure that, as AI evolves, disabled people are included at the table, not from a charity perspective, but because doing so will ensure that technology and innovation is even more cutting edge and accessible for everybody?” 

Wealthy nations slashed their development aid in 2025, probably by record-breaking amounts, a debt group said, ahead of data set to be released on Thursday by the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The deep cuts, for a second consecutive year, are expected to reduce the total amount of official development aid globally to around $170-$190 billion – levels last seen during the COVID pandemic in 2020-21, the European Network on Debt and Development (Eurodad) said at a briefing on Wednesday.

Those ⁠estimates compare with total official development aid of $223.7 billion in 2023 and $212.1 billion in 2024.

The decline contrasts sharply with defence spending, which stood at $1.4 trillion in 2025 across the 32 member states of the NATO military alliance, which comprises the United States, most European nations and Canada.

The closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development last year and a drop in allocations from other developed countries have already hit developing economies, especially in Africa.

“The least developed countries and sub-Saharan Africa are expected to face disproportionate impacts, with official development assistance cuts ranging from 13% to 28%,” said Matthew Simons, senior ⁠policy and advocacy officer at Eurodad.

‘BLANK CHEQUE FOR WAR’

Maria Jose Romero, Eurodad’s policy and advocacy manager, said the reductions in aid were undermining decades of development progress.

“Rich countries are writing a blank check for war while abandoning their long-standing commitment to deliver 0.7% of gross national income as development assistance,” she said.

The North Atlantic ⁠Treaty Organisation says all its 32 members are projected to have met the alliance’s spending target of 2% of national output in 2025.

However, only three of the 34 members and associates of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee – ⁠a grouping of main bilateral aid donors – are expected to meet the 0.7% benchmark for development aid. Eurodad did not identify the three nations.

The committee’s ongoing self-review has raised concerns over legitimacy, ⁠with critics noting that decision-making remains concentrated among wealthy donor nations.

Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund next week are expected to focus on how multilateral institutions can fill the gap left by declining bilateral aid, Eurodad said.

Source: Reuters

–Agencies

Two female Development Officers have been arrested by the Aranayake Police for allegedly hoarding a stock of relief supplies intended for families affected by Cyclone Ditwah in the Aranayake Divisional Secretariat Division, at their residences.

Police stated that one of the arrested officers had also been serving as the storekeeper of the Aranayake Divisional Secretariat.

The relief items had been provided by the government and several other institutions for distribution among families affected by the disaster.

Following information received by Kegalle Additional District Secretary Dilith Nishantha, an investigation was launched under the supervision of Kegalle District Secretary Jagath M. Herath. 

During a joint investigation carried out by officers from the District Secretariat together with the Aranayake Police, the relief supplies were discovered hidden inside the officers’ residences.

Accordingly, the two female officers have been taken into custody by the police.

Further investigations are being conducted under the personal supervision of Senior Superintendent of Police of Kegalle, while authorities have also decided to assess the value of the seized relief goods.

On Jan. 14, a crane collapsed onto a passenger train in the country’s northeast, killing at least 32 people. Just one day later, another crane fell on a highway project in Samut Sakhon province, leading to two deaths. Italian-Thai Development helmed both projects, and so on Jan. 16, Thailand’s Transport Ministry ordered a 15-day construction halt on more than ten projects overseen by the company, citing a “danger to the public.”

Italian-Thai Development released a statement to Thailand’s stock exchange on Jan. 15, noting that it had started the process of assessing damage and will take responsibility by providing compensation. Fortune has reached out to Italian-Thai Development for further comment.

The construction company is also linked to the collapse of a partially-constructed skyscraper in Bangkok last March, following a devastating earthquake in nearby Myanmar. The disaster killed almost 100 people.

Following the skyscraper incident, Premchai Karnasuta, the CEO of Italian-Thai Development, was indicted alongside 22 others, on charges including document forgery and professional negligence causing death. (Executives from China Railway No. 10, a Chinese state-owned construction firm that partnered with Italian-Thai Development, were also charged.)

Italian-Thai Development, with $2 billion in 2024 revenue, ranks No. 174 on Fortune’s Southeast Asia 500 list, which measures the region’s largest firms by revenue. 

Thai businessman Uthai Vongnai and Italian engineer Giovanni Tani founded Italian-Thai Development in 1958, after the two worked together salvaging five ships that sank in the Chao Phraya River. The firm expanded to sectors like real estate, manufacturing and mining, and has had a hand in building some of Thailand’s largest public infrastructure projects, like Bangkok’s subway system.

Still, the firm has had a rocky few years. They lost a total of 6 billion Thai baht ($192 million) between 2020 and 2022, according to the Bangkok Post, in part after its work in Myanmar was stalled after a 2021 coup and imposition of military rule.  

Karnasuta, Italian-Thai Development’s CEO, was also jailed for illegal poaching in 2021, after he was caught with hunting gear and animal carcasses in one of Thailand’s wildlife sanctuaries. He was released on parole in 2023. 

Italian-Thai Development has been forced to slash costs and dump several overseas units. The firm’s market value plunged from a peak of 12 billion baht ($384 million) in 2021 to just 1 billion baht ($32 million) in 2026.

China has demonstrated strong commitment and global leadership in advancing women’s rights and gender equality through concrete actions such as hosting the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women, said Sri Lankan Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya.

In an exclusive interview with Xinhua at the Sri Lankan parliament ahead of her visit to China for the summit in Beijing, Amarasuriya said the event will boost confidence in the global cause of women’s development.

“Beijing hosted an extremely important summit on women’s development and on women and gender 30 years ago. What was discussed then holds true even now,” she said, deeming it “really significant” that Beijing once again hosts a summit focused on women’s development after three decades.

“It’s really important that we remind the world of the importance of taking into consideration women’s issues when it comes to development or anything else,” she added.

Unequal access to economic opportunities, she said, remains a major barrier to women’s progress. In some developing countries, women still face low wages, informal employment, and limited social protection, leading to the persistent undervaluation of their contributions.

“This situation impacts women’s ability to participate as full citizens,” she said. “To achieve genuine changes, we need to bring about structural changes that give women access to the economy, education and health systems, and ensure women’s substantive participation in the decision-making process.”

On China’s achievements, Amarasuriya said that Chinese women today are more confident, independent and active in public life. “With that comes then higher levels of freedom as well,” she said, describing this as China’s unique contribution to global women’s empowerment.

She noted that China’s political and economic systems allow it to address systemic inequalities and reduce marginalization. “China has made real advances in empowering women economically. It continues to support women and is also willing to take global leadership on these issues,” she said.

Amarasuriya said Sri Lanka and China enjoy broad prospects for cooperation in advancing women’s empowerment and gender equality.

“There are strong female leaders in China, and Sri Lanka has a historic number of women in parliament this year,” she said. “On issues like education and health, which directly affect women’s and children’s wellbeing, there’s a lot of scope for our collaboration.”

She also thanked China for its assistance in providing school uniform fabric to Sri Lanka, which is a “tremendous gift” from the Chinese people. “We deeply appreciate it,” she said.

Looking ahead to the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women, Amarasuriya said she is full of expectations.

“It will be my first opportunity to take part in a global summit centered on women,” she said, adding that meeting and sharing experiences with female leaders from around the world will be deeply meaningful.

“I believe this summit will be very useful for us as a reflection of the last 30 years and how we need to move forward,” she said. “We hope to send a clear message through this meeting that women still need to be counted, and women still need to be prioritized in our political and development agendas.”

Source: Xinhua

–Agencies

The President of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Jin Liqun, affirmed AIIB’s commitment to supporting Sri Lanka’s development, particularly in the promotion of the green energy sector. 

This statement was made during a meeting at the Presidential Secretariat this morning (07), where AIIB Head Jin Liqun, accompanied by senior management, met with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, according to the President’s Media Division (PMD).

The delegation reviewed the progress of projects implemented in Sri Lanka under AIIB loans and Liqun expressed his intention to continue collaborating with the country to support its overall progress.

He highlighted that future support will focus on sectors such as green energy and green transportation, while ensuring energy stability in Sri Lanka, the PMD said.

President Dissanayake provided an overview of the country’s economic progress, including reduced interest rates and controlled inflation, emphasizing the government’s goal of delivering the benefits of economic growth to the people. 

The President also outlined plans to restructure the public sector and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of public services, with a focus on Artificial Intelligence and digitalization to streamline service delivery, reduce the gap between villages and cities and facilitate international transactions.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake further stated that, in attracting foreign investments to develop Sri Lanka as a region with low-cost electricity supply, the government hopes to introduce a data centre. He also noted that the government has a planned program to enhance productivity in key sectors such as agriculture and fisheries.

Additionally, the President briefed the delegation, including the President of the AIIB, on the new reforms being implemented in the education sector, it added.

The delegation was accompanied by Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Economic Development Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, Senior Additional Secretary to the President R. Aponsu and other officials.

–PMD–