🤖 Children in New Zealand ECE Up 5%. NCHS Budget Rose by 7.5%. 25% of CS Related AI Publications From China.

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AI powers ASEAN’s $300B digital economy, boosting jobs, innovation, and regional investment. UCA And Hendrix to upskill health workforce through new graduate pathways. City Bank and UNICEF partner to equip marginalized youth with green skills training. Meteor Inkjet and Quantica partner to enhance additive manufacturing technologies and printing capabilities.

South Korea allocates ₩1.4T to expand universal AI education, including ₩900B for K‑12 education. NextEd partnered with OpenAI to launch ChatGPT Edu in Australian vocational education. Guyana govt partners with Coursera for public servant upskilling.

Today's Topics

👶 Pre School. 3-year-olds attending ECE in New Zealand increased by >5%
⚕️ Healthcare. NCHS annual budget increased by nearly 7.5%
🤖 Artificial Intelligence. China accounted for nearly 25% of global CS related AI publications

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👶 3-Year-Olds Attending ECE in New Zealand Increased by >5%

The share of three-year-olds attending early childhood education (ECE) in New Zealand increased by over 5% between 2022 and 2024, gradually returning to pre-pandemic levels. Recent policies, such as the “20 Hours ECE” subsidy, have improved the ECE sector by improving affordability and closing pay gaps among educators. However, challenges remain as ECE provision becomes increasingly market-driven and dominated by private, for-profit centers, causing parents to worry about the quality of the education. This shift has led to oversupply in affluent areas, shortages in low-income regions, and funding that lags behind inflation, driving higher fees for parents and financial strain on centers, sometimes causing closures.

⚕️ NCHS Annual Budget Increased by Nearly 7.5%

The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), funded by the US government, plays a vital role in analyzing the nation’s healthcare system. Its budget grew by 7.5% from 2020 to 2023, reaching nearly $190M. NCHS conducts national surveys, including the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, to monitor health insurance coverage, life expectancy, mortality, and workforce trends. These insights guide better policy decisions and data integration. However, the budget has stagnated recently, raising calls for renewed investment to sustain progress.

🤖 China Accounted for Nearly 25% of Global CS Related AI Publications

In 2023, China produced nearly one-fourth of global AI publications in computer science, nearly equal to the combined output of the US and Europe. While AI’s momentum began largely in the US, where major companies like NVIDIA lead the industry, China is rapidly building a self-reliant research ecosystem. India also contributes around 10%. Considering its faster growth in scientific and economic strength across sectors like space and defense, experts are saying India will show its growth in the AI sector as well. Together, these shifts signal an increasingly multipolar landscape in global AI research leadership.

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