☕️The Ivy League guides of India

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The number of affluent Indian families investing years and lakhs of rupees to get their children into top global universities, particularly in the US, is on an upward trajectory. Specialised mentoring firms like La Mentoraa, Athena Education, Revadmissions, and Lumiere Education guide students from as early as class nine, shaping their academic and extracurricular profiles to appeal to elite colleges like Harvard, Yale, and Stanford. These mentors go beyond academics, helping students with research papers, community projects, and personalised Statements of Purpose, Devina Sengupta writes. The demand is booming: over 331,000 Indian students are currently in the US, with nearly 900,000 studying abroad globally in 2023. While Indian coaching institutes focus on standardised test prep for medical and engineering exams, foreign admission counselling is a bespoke, high-cost service, ranging up to ₹9 lakh per student.

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The HSBC flash India Composite Output Index, an early estimate of activity across manufacturing and services, in April, up from 59.5 in March.

The number of months it took the makers to complete Love You, a Kannada movie pitched as the first AI-generated feature film. Only two humans were involved in making the film.

$19.34 billion

The revenue reported by Tesla in the January-March quarter, down 9% year-on-year. Net profit dropped 71% to $409 million for the period.

20%

The percentage of total employees that Intel is set to lay off this week, as part of restructuring under its new CEO Lip-Bu Tan.

3.1%

The baseline global default rate for end-2025, according to Moody's March Default Report, up from 2.5% earlier, reflecting concerns about credit quality.

229

The number of patents filed by India's 117 unicorns, put together, over half of them by Ola Group, according to the Indian Patent Advanced Search System.

$571 million

The fine imposed on Apple by the European Commission for preventing app makers from pointing users to cheaper options outside its App Store.

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The Surat Fire

On this day in 1837, a massive fire broke out in Surat, devastating the bustling port city. The blaze destroyed over 9,000 buildings, including homes, markets, and warehouses, crippling trade and displacing thousands. Fuelled by strong winds and wooden construction, it burned for more than 24 hours. Though casualties were low due to swift evacuations, it remains one of the worst urban fires in India’s history. The disaster led to early fire safety reforms under British rule. Today marks 188 years since the great Surat fire.