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From Solar-Powered Digital Classrooms to AI Learning: Dr. Pramod Shinde on Eprashala’s Vision

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The Eprashala founder discusses the organisation’s journey from rural-school technology to multilingual AI teaching, conversational books and a wider digital knowledge ecosystem.

Thane, Maharashtra | October 2026

As artificial intelligence creates new possibilities for education, Eprashala is drawing on more than 16 years of work with rural and government-school education to tackle a practical question: how can quality learning tools reach students who face language barriers, limited resources or unreliable internet connectivity? Founded by Dr. Pramod Shinde, the organisation’s work spans digital classrooms, solar-compatible education hardware, Dhwani AI Teacher, a growing multilingual knowledge library and tools that turn digital books into conversational learning resources.

Following its Digital Nalanda initiative, Eprashala reports access to more than 40 million searchable book records or knowledge resources. Its broader ecosystem also includes Book-to-AI technology and Bharat.eprashala.com, an “Ancient AI Gurukul” designed to help readers explore traditional Indian literature through conversational learning.

In this interview, Dr. Pramod Shinde discusses how the organisation’s early classroom work connects with its current AI initiatives and its wider ambition for accessible education.

Q1. What is the larger vision behind Eprashala’s evolution from digital classrooms to AI-powered learning?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: Our vision is to make knowledge easier to access, understand and use. A student’s opportunities should not be determined only by the language they speak, the school they attend or the strength of the internet connection in their village. Our experience in schools taught us that technology is most useful when it addresses real learning barriers. We are now bringing that same thinking to AI-assisted teaching, digital books and multilingual learning.

Q2. Eprashala began with education technology hardware. How do digital classrooms and solar-powered systems fit into the story today?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: Our work did not begin with AI. We developed classroom technologies such as projector-based digital teaching systems, interactive learning equipment and low-power devices for schools where infrastructure can be a challenge. Our product portfolio has included an LED-based projector designed to run directly on solar energy, along with solar-compatible and energy-efficient classroom systems. The purpose was to make digital learning more practical in rural settings. That field experience continues to influence our AI work: tools must be accessible, dependable and designed for the conditions in which students actually learn.

Q3. What has changed with Digital Nalanda and the expanded global knowledge library?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: Digital Nalanda began by making selected ancient Indian texts easier to discover and explore. We highlighted more than 200 texts associated with traditions such as the Vedas, Upanishads, Ayurveda and philosophy. We have since expanded our library experience and now report access to a searchable catalogue of more than 40 million book records or knowledge resources across hundreds of languages. A catalogue record does not necessarily mean that a complete digital copy is available for every title. Where content is accessible, the next step is to help readers engage with it through summaries, explanations and questions.

Q4. What does the Book-to-AI platform allow someone to do?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: Our Book-to-AI creation platform is designed to turn supported digital documents, PDFs and images into book-specific conversational knowledge resources. It uses retrieval-augmented generation, or RAG, to retrieve relevant information from the selected material and help answer questions about it. A student can ask about a difficult chapter, a researcher can explore a long reference document and a teacher can turn lesson notes into an interactive resource. Teachers can also share supported AI-created books so that students can ask questions about a common source.

Q5. How does Dhwani AI Teacher support India’s varied curricula and languages?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: Dhwani is designed to give learners another way to understand educational material through conversational explanations. Our current platform brings together resources associated with Indian state-board curricula, CBSE, ICSE and NCERT, alongside international pathways such as IGCSE and the International Baccalaureate. We also reference education systems in Singapore, Japan, Finland and Canada so learners and educators can explore different teaching approaches. The availability of specific modules can vary, and our aim is to continue expanding support for India’s linguistic and educational diversity.

Q6. How is Eprashala approaching rural connectivity and offline learning?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: Rural education requires technology designed around real conditions. Continuous high-speed internet cannot always be assumed. We are working with smart caching, downloadable learning data and device-level audio features to make supported learning experiences more responsive. Some content can be accessed offline when it has been downloaded or cached. Features that need live cloud processing still require connectivity. We have reported substantial speed improvements for suitable cached responses, but actual results depend on the question, device, cached material and test conditions.

Q7. What is the purpose of Bharat.eprashala.com, the Ancient AI Gurukul?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: India has a rich intellectual heritage, but ancient literature can be difficult to approach because of language, terminology and the complexity of the material. Bharat is designed to help readers explore works associated with the Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads and Indian epics through conversational explanations and supported voice features. We want people to be able to ask questions and explore ideas at their own pace. The goal is not just to put a book on a screen, but to make its contents easier to engage with.

Q8. How do Bhasha, Dr. Pihu, Panini and the other initiatives fit into the wider ecosystem?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: These initiatives address different learning needs. Bhasha focuses on language learning. Our competitive-examination resources support exam preparation. Dr. Pihu is an AI-based guide built around selected classical medical literature, while Panini explores connections between Sanskrit-oriented programming and computer education. We are also working on regional-language and board-specific resources. They share a common aim: make knowledge more approachable to people with different backgrounds and needs.

Q9. What is your long-term goal as India moves towards Viksit Bharat 2047?

Dr. Pramod Shinde: Our long-term goal is to connect classroom technology, AI teaching, books, curriculum resources and language learning in a more inclusive educational ecosystem. We report more than 16 years of work in rural and government-school education, with a reach of over five million children across more than 5,000 schools. The real measure of our work will not simply be how advanced the technology is. It will be whether students and teachers can use it to learn more effectively.

About Eprashala

Eprashala is an education technology organisation founded by Dr. Pramod Shinde. Its work spans digital classrooms and solar-compatible education hardware, Dhwani AI Teacher, a multilingual knowledge library, Book-to-AI creation technology, Bharat.eprashala.com, Bhasha and other educational resources.

Explore: https://www.eprashala.com/| ai.eprashala.com | bharat.eprashala.com

Eprashala — Educating India, towards Viksit Bharat 2047.

 

How to Chase Late Payments Without Losing the Client

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Late payments doesn’t always mean that the client is bad, or it is intentional. It may happen that the invoice went to the wrong inbox, payments are released once a month by the finance team, or the invoice is waiting for approval. If you treat every overdue invoice like a dispute, you’ll sour relationships that were perfectly fine.

Having said that, you cannot either slide late invoices. Here’s how you can get paid without turning a good client into an awkward one.

At First Check The Invoice You Prepared

Before sending a reminder, look at the invoice as the client’s accounts team would. Is every detail fine and true? Is your company name the same as it’s mentioned in their records? Is there a PO number if they use them? Is the due date obvious, and does the invoice contain payment details?

If not sure about invoice structure, use an online invoicing software built for small businesses. For instance, you sent the invoice and it went to the marketing manager, it was then forwarded to accounts. Accounts need a vendor registration form that was never sent. You were not informed about it earlier. Three weeks later you write a stern email to someone who has no idea of what is wrong.

A two-minute invoice check saves that. Using a dedicated software for invoicing and tracking payments also tells you whether a gentle nudge or a firmer message is the right place to start.

A Timeline That Takes The Emotion Out of It

Chasing feels personal when you do it on impulse. Maintaining a fixed schedule makes it routine, for you and for the client.Know how and when sending reminders to your clients does the job, without sending you on guilt trips afterwards.

  • A few days before the due date: only a short heads-up. “Invoice #204 is due on Friday, here’s the link in case it helps.” Such reminders look friendly and also land in the right inbox, if the invoice was missed.
  • The day after it’s due: a friendly email with the invoice attached again. Attaching the invoice again will make you look like you are assuming the invoice was missed.
  • About a week late: a second reminder email, and this time call the client’s team. Ask firmly for a specific payment date, not “soon.”
  • Two weeks late: a firmer written message that refers to your agreed terms.
  • A month late: speak to whoever actually approves payments, and pause new work until this is sorted.
  • Beyond 45 days: a formal written notice. Talk to a lawyer or your CA before taking it further.

The rules mentioned above are not fixed though. Reminders will vary, client to client basis. A client who has paid on time for two years deserves more patience than someone new who has gone quiet.

Write Payment Reminders Like You’d Say It

Overdue emails go wrong when they sound like a form letter or an accusation. Moreover, they are in writing and the tone can easily be misunderstood. Short and specific works better. Something like the below:

Hi Priya, invoice #204 for ₹45,000 was due on the 10th and I can’t see it on my side yet. I’ve attached it again with the payment link. Could you let me know when it’s likely to go through?

If a week passes after the due date, with no reply:

Hi Priya, following up on #204, which is now a week overdue. As per our agreement, the late fee applies from the 17th. If something is holding it up on your end, tell me and I’ll sort it out. Otherwise, can you confirm a payment date by Thursday?

Notice what’s missing: no “kindly”, no “as previously mentioned,” no sarcasm. If you write the angry version first, that’s fine. Save it as a draft, and send the calm one.

If you have called someone for the reminder, and they give you a payment date, email it back right away: “Thanks for your time today, I’ll expect the payment by the 24th.” This way you will have the proof in writing, something solid to refer to.

Don’t Mistake A Short Payment for A Late One

In India, this one catches people out. Clients often deduct TDS before paying, so the amount that arrives is lower than what you invoiced. If you chase the “missing” balance without checking, you’ll look careless. Before sending any short payment emails or notifications, check if the client deducts TDS. If yes, you can ask them for a TDS certificate to claim the credit. The same goes for bank charges on international payments, which can leave you slightly short.

Late fees: useful, if you use them sparingly

A late fee is applicable only if you have it mentioned on your terms. Adding one after with no agreement from the client’s side, feels like a penalty, and clients resent it.

Apply it consistently, but don’t be rigid. You can also waive the late fee by bringing it to client’s notice, who is usually prompt with payments, costs you little and earns real goodwill.

If you’re a registered micro or small enterprise in India, the MSMED Act also gives you a legal right to interest on delayed payments from buyers. Though the rules and limits of interest for late payments keep changing, and if you charge interest we recommend you to check if with your CA before you quote any figures to a client.

When The Client Is Struggling

Sometimes the honest answer is “we’re short on cash right now.” Pushing harder rarely produces money that isn’t there. In such situations, you can chalk out a payment plan that would ease off the client’s burden too. Smaller amounts on fixed dates, agreed in writing. You get paid, and the client remembers you were reasonable when it was difficult.

When To Stop Client’s Work Due To Non-Payment

If reminders and calls go nowhere, stop taking on new work or discontinue the work for that client until the outstanding invoice is cleared. Communicate it clearly to the client, and the same is justified if the payment dates have been failing continuously. Drop a message like “I’ll resume once the pending invoice is settled.” Continuing to deliver while unpaid means you’re lending them money, and nobody on their end agreed to that.

Fix The Payment Issue Before The Next Invoice

Most of the chasing you do now can be prevented by the things or rules you set up before the work starts:

  • Mention the due date, late fee and payment methods on the invoice itself.
  • Take a deposit (advance payments) on bigger projects, even 30%.
  • Prepare and send the invoice the same day the work is delivered, not two weeks later. Late billing leads to late payment.
  • Let your invoicing software do the nagging. Tools like Cloudtryx Invoice can send reminders on a schedule, so you aren’t relying on your memory or your nerves. Also, based on the delay period, it can draft reminders, whether it will be polite, a bit firm or anything more suited.

Late payments are partly a people problem and partly a process problem. Fixing the process leaves you free to handle the people part kindly.

 

HomeDoot Expands Professional Home Care with Cleaning, Pest Control and AC Services

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Maintaining a clean, comfortable and properly maintained home goes beyond the daily act of dusting and maintaining cleanliness. In today’s world, there are certain specialized services that have to be sought after by families in order to keep their homes clean, pest-free and functioning well. HomeDoot has taken this into consideration and has introduced professional services for household maintenance.

Through its platform

HomeDoot It provides a wide range of services related to all aspects of home cleaning and maintenance. The company’s offerings include home cleaning, deep cleaning, carpet cleaning, sofa cleaning, pest control, and AC service and repair.

Making Home Cleaning More Convenient

Cleanliness is an integral component of making sure that you have a comfortable place to live in. Nonetheless, people often lack enough time to clean all areas because of their hectic schedules. Home cleaning services present a great solution for families who need help in cleaning their houses.

The home cleaning services provided by HomeDoot are aimed at helping customers clean their homes. When opting for professional help in cleaning your house, you will manage to solve your cleaning needs while using the free time to deal with other important issues.

In cases when there is a need for a more thorough cleaning process, the platform provides deep cleaning services. It can be used for periodical maintenance of your house when it becomes necessary to pay special attention to some areas of your house.

Specialized Carpet and Sofa Cleaning

Carpets and sofas are some of the surfaces which are most commonly used in many houses. After some time, they may gather dirt and dust. Different types of fabrics and surfaces need specific treatment and cleaning. Hence, special cleaning services may serve as an option for traditional cleaning.

The HomeDoot website has a special offer of carpet cleaning for those people who want to clean carpets with professional help. The cleaning may come in handy both for maintenance purposes and as additional cleaning.

Sofa cleaning is another specialized cleaning offered by the HomeDoot company. It may be needed for regular cleaning of this type of furniture because of its high use rate by family members and guests.

Addressing Household Pest Concerns

Another aspect of maintenance of homes is pest control, which may impact the comfort of a household and may need professional assistance based on the kind of pest infestation.

In addition to providing pest control services, HomeDoot offers other home care services, thus giving the customers the opportunity to check for pest control services while simultaneously getting cleaning and other household services from the same company.

The provision of a range of services in one company makes it easier for the customers to take care of their various home-maintenance needs in one go.

AC Maintenance and Repair

Air conditioners have now become an essential part of the daily lives of numerous homes, especially in the summer season. Just like any other household equipment, an air conditioner can be serviced and repaired at times.

AC service and repair are offered by HomeDoot among its services. This will enable it to cater to the needs of those who might be in need of help with their air conditioners.

Incorporating cleaning, pest control, and other household services under one roof makes the process easier for consumers.

A Broader Approach to Home Maintenance

The idea of professional home services is constantly changing as the clients seek comfort and reliable help in dealing with the day-to-day duties around the house. It no longer refers only to the service of cleaning as such but includes various other aspects depending on the needs of the individual client.

HomeDoot offers a wide range of such services. The clients can find the category that suits their needs: cleaning, deep cleaning, specific cleaning of carpets/sofa, pest control or AC service & repair.

Supporting Busy Modern Lifestyles

In the case of busy working individuals and families, it may not be easy to manage all the home services themselves. Service providers can assist customers in addressing their specific needs without making every need an item on their personal schedule.

The platform HomeDoot seeks to help people cope with this new lifestyle by incorporating a range of home services. The emphasis that HomeDoot places on such services as cleaning, specialized home surface cleaning, pest removal, and AC maintenance makes it easier for the customers to look for professional assistance in their various home-related issues.

As there is a continuous increase in the number of people looking for organized home services, the platforms offering multi-solution options can come in handy. With cleaning services and specialized home services incorporated into one platform, HomeDoot caters specifically to the needs of its customers.

Visit:

Website: https://www.homedoot.com

 

Why Indian Men Are Paying More for the Most Basic Thing They Wear

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Waistband rash, ride-up and cotton that gives up after ten washes: the everyday complaints quietly turning innerwear into a considered purchase.

For decades, men’s innerwear in India was the least considered thing in the wardrobe. It was bought in multipacks from the same counter, in the same size, and replaced only when the elastic finally gave out. Nobody asked what it was made of. Nobody expected it to feel like anything at all.

That is changing. Over the past few years, a wave of homegrown direct-to-consumer labels has turned the humble trunk into a category people research, compare and talk about. Men who never thought twice about a vest or a pair of briefs now read fabric labels, watch try-on reels and leave detailed reviews about waistbands.

On the surface it looks like the familiar story of premiumisation: a basic product, rebranded and priced up. Look closer and the shift has less to do with logos and more to do with three problems men have always lived with, but rarely said out loud.

Problem one: fit that stays put

The first complaint is fit. A trunk that rides up the thigh by mid-morning, a leg band that digs in when you sit, a waistband that rolls over itself under a shirt. These are small irritations, but they repeat dozens of times a day, and men have started noticing that they don’t have to.

Fit problems are mostly a question of cut. The length of the leg decides whether a trunk stays in place or creeps upward with every step. Too short and it rides; too long and it bunches. The rise, meaning how high the garment sits on the waist, decides whether the band stays flat or folds. And the tension of the leg opening decides whether it grips gently or leaves a mark of its own.

Mass-market innerwear has historically been cut for the widest possible range of bodies at the lowest possible cost, which usually means generous fabric, loose tolerances and a lot of elastic doing the work. The newer approach treats the pattern itself as the product: a defined leg length, a mid-rise cut, and stretch built into the fabric instead of borrowed from tighter elastic.

Problem two: what “100% cotton” actually means

The second shift is the quietest, and possibly the most important. Men are learning that “cotton” on a label tells you very little.

Two pairs of trunks can both be pure cotton and feel completely different after a month. The difference starts at the fibre. Ordinary carded cotton keeps a mix of long and short fibres. The short ones work loose with washing, which is what causes pilling, thinning and that rough, tired feel. Combed cotton goes through an extra step that strips out the short fibres and leaves the long ones aligned. The yarn comes out smoother, stronger and softer against the skin, and it holds its shape for longer.

Fabric weight, knit and the small amount of stretch fibre added to the yarn matter as well. A little elastane knitted in at thread level lets a trunk move with the body and recover its shape, without relying on a tight band to hold everything in place. None of this is visible on a shop shelf, which is exactly why it was easy to cut corners for so long.

Problem three: the waistband

Then there is the complaint men have tolerated longest: the waistband. Red marks at the end of the day. Itching. A band of irritated skin that sometimes turns into a rash in summer.

For a long time this was treated as normal, the price of wearing elastic. It isn’t. Most of it comes down to how the waistband is built. A narrow band concentrates all its grip on a thin strip of skin, so it presses harder in one place. Thick, tightly wound elastic traps heat and sweat against the body. It also holds on to detergent residue that washing never fully rinses out. Add friction from a full day of sitting, walking and commuting, and the skin under the band takes a beating. A genuine allergy to elastane is real, but rare. Far more often the cause is pressure, heat and chemistry.

In a humid climate the problem shows up faster. “In Kerala you sweat through the day for most of the year, so a bad waistband tells on itself by the afternoon,” says a spokesperson for Vault & co, a homegrown men’s innerwear brand from Kerala. “That’s where we started. Not with the colour or the logo, with the line the waistband leaves on your skin.” The brand has published a detailed explainer on why underwear leaves marks on your waist and what actually prevents it.

The fixes the newer labels are adopting are mechanical rather than cosmetic: wider, flatter waistbands that spread the pressure over more skin; softer elastic encased in fabric instead of exposed; and bands stitched flat to the garment so there’s no ridge to dig in.

So what does “premium” actually buy?

Strip away the marketing and the gap between a cheap trunk and a considered one comes down to a short checklist:

  • A defined cut with a leg length that stays put and a rise that keeps the band from rolling
  • Flat seams that don’t rub, especially at the inner thigh
  • Combed cotton that stays soft and resists pilling wash after wash
  • Stretch in the fabric itself, so the garment fits through the knit and not through tension
  • A wide, flat waistband that spreads pressure, instead of a narrow, exposed elastic strip

Vault & co has packaged its answer to all five under a single name. “CotCloud is our name for the whole system, not just the fabric,” the spokesperson explains. “Super-combed cotton knit with Lycra at thread level, a wide flat zero-pressure waistband stitched directly to the body, flat seams, and a mid-rise no-ride-up trunk cut, all developed in-house.”

The idea of naming the system, not just the material, says something about where the category is heading. Shoppers are no longer satisfied with “soft” or “comfortable” as claims. They want to know why.

A category growing up

The premiumisation of basics isn’t unique to innerwear. The same thing has happened with plain T-shirts, socks and bedsheets: products that were once interchangeable are now judged on fibre, construction and how they hold up over time. What makes innerwear different is how personal the problems are, and how long men put up with them without complaint.

That silence is what’s breaking. Reviews now talk about waistband marks by name. Buyers ask about leg length before they ask about price. And homegrown brands from places like Kerala are competing not on who has the biggest billboard, but on who has thought hardest about the least glamorous parts of the garment.

“The basics were never basic,” says the Vault & co spokesperson. “They were just made that way.”

About Vault & co

Vault & co is a homegrown men’s innerwear brand from Kerala, operated by Vault & co Looms Private Limited. Its trunks are built on CotCloud, an in-house system of super-combed cotton, thread-level stretch, a zero-pressure waistband and a no-ride-up cut. Learn more at vaultandco.in.

 

J10 Lifestyle Launches Three Ultra-Luxury Perfume Fragrances on 10 October 2026

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Mumbai, October 10, 2026: J10 Lifestyle has announced the launch of three new perfume fragrances, The One, Persian and Redarr, marking a significant step in the brand’s journey in the luxury fragrance segment. The launch took place on October 10, 2026, at 10:10 AM, a carefully selected date and time that reflect the brand’s focus on creating a memorable launch experience.

The launch date carries a special numerical connection. The year 2026 adds up to 10 when its digits are combined (2+0+2+6=10), complementing the date of October 10 and the launch time of 10:10 AM. This distinctive combination gives the launch a unique identity and makes the introduction of the three fragrances a noteworthy occasion for the brand.

With The One, Persian and Redarr, J10 Lifestyle aims to offer consumers a luxury-inspired fragrance experience through distinctive perfume options developed for people who appreciate quality, character and lasting fragrance performance.

Three Fragrances, One Luxury Vision

The new collection features three fragrances, each introduced under its own name and identity. The One, Persian and Redarr represent J10 Lifestyle’s approach to expanding its perfume portfolio and giving consumers more options when choosing a personal fragrance.

Perfume has become an important part of modern personal style. Beyond its basic purpose, fragrance can contribute to an individual’s identity, confidence and overall presentation. Consumers increasingly look for perfumes that complement their personalities and suit different occasions, whether for everyday wear, professional settings, social gatherings or special events.

Through this launch, J10 Lifestyle seeks to meet these evolving preferences with a collection positioned in the ultra-luxury perfume segment.

A Formula Designed for Long-Lasting Performance

One of the key highlights of the new fragrances is their reported 40% perfume oil concentration. According to the brand, the perfumes feature a unique formula designed to deliver a long-lasting fragrance experience of up to 12 hours or more.

Fragrance concentration is an important consideration for consumers when evaluating perfumes. The amount of aromatic oil in a formulation can influence its intensity and performance, although actual longevity may vary depending on skin type, weather, application and individual usage conditions.

J10 Lifestyle has placed an emphasis on combining a high oil concentration with a luxury-focused fragrance experience. The brand aims to appeal to consumers seeking perfumes that offer noticeable character and extended wear throughout the day.

Special Launch Offer at ₹1,599

To mark the launch, J10 Lifestyle is introducing a special offer price of ₹1,599 against the stated original price of ₹1,999. The offer provides consumers with an opportunity to explore the brand’s new fragrance collection at a reduced introductory price.

Customers can purchase the perfumes through the company’s dedicated online sales platform at www.j10lifestyle.store. The brand’s main website, www.j10lifestyle.com, also serves as its online destination for information about J10 Lifestyle and its offerings.

Online availability allows consumers across India to explore and purchase the new fragrances without needing to visit a physical retail location. The company has confirmed that delivery is available across India, expanding access to customers in different cities and regions.

Building an Online Presence Across India

The launch reflects J10 Lifestyle’s focus on using online channels to connect with fragrance consumers. E-commerce has created new opportunities for perfume brands to introduce products, communicate their value and reach customers beyond traditional retail markets.

By making The One, Persian and Redarr available online, J10 Lifestyle is establishing a direct route for customers to discover its latest collection. The online-first approach also allows the company to introduce its products to a broader audience as it develops its presence in the fragrance industry.

The brand is also planning to expand into offline retail. According to the company, the perfumes are expected to become available in physical stores in India and the United Arab Emirates in the coming period. This planned expansion could give customers additional opportunities to discover the fragrances through in-person retail experiences.

Looking Ahead

The launch of The One, Persian and Redarr marks a new chapter for J10 Lifestyle as it builds its presence in the luxury perfume category. With a distinctive launch date, a stated 40% perfume oil concentration, a focus on long-lasting performance and a special introductory price, the collection is designed to attract consumers looking for premium fragrance options.

As the company continues to develop its online distribution and prepare for future offline availability in India and the UAE, the launch represents an important step in its broader market expansion plans.

Customers interested in exploring the collection can visit www.j10lifestyle.store for online purchases and www.j10lifestyle.com for company information.

 

How ZuRobo Is Rapidly Growing in Home Cleaning Industry?

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By solving fine-dust challenges, perfecting simultaneous wet mopping, and slashing the luxury price barrier, Ahmedabad-based ZuRobo is transforming robotic cleaning from an expensive novelty into an everyday household staple.

AHMEDABAD, INDIA — Across urban apartments and modern family homes, a discreet technological transformation is unfolding. The familiar morning cadence of brooms, manual scrubbing, and domestic help scheduling conflicts is increasingly being replaced by the purposeful hum of autonomous discs gliding silently under sofas and around dining chairs. At the helm of this emerging domestic shift is ZuRobo, an Indian consumer robotics brand whose rapid expansion is disrupting the smart cleaning landscape.

For years, robot vacuum cleaners occupied an awkward space in the consumer imagination: admired in tech showcases, but viewed as fragile, overpriced luxuries ill-suited for real-world messes. Legacy international brands commanded price tags upwards of ₹70,000 to ₹1,50,000, yet often treated wet mopping as an afterthought and choked on heavy particulate dust. ZuRobo entered the market with a radically grounded premise: engineer rugged, high-suction automation built specifically for the realities of local domestic life.

Cracking the Real Household Challenge

Modern living spaces present a grueling test for automated cleaners. Between fine tropical dust, daily cooking grease residues, pet hair, and mixed surfaces—from polished vitrified tiles and marble to dense rugs—simple sweepers routinely fail.

ZuRobo addressed this barrier directly with its flagship ZuRobo Vacuum Cleaner X6. Equipped with high-precision LDS (Light Detection and Ranging) laser navigation, the X6 rejects random bumper-car navigation. Instead, it computes millimeter-accurate layout maps on its first pass, executing calculated back-and-forth routes while delivering high-power suction paired with pressurized wet mopping.

The brand’s biggest leap in customer retention, however, arrived with the X6 + AT900 Self-Emptying System. Early adopters of robot vacuums often despised the messy chore of emptying small onboard bins every evening. The AT900 dock eliminates manual intervention altogether. Upon docking, a high-powered cyclonic channel purges debris into a sealed, multi-week containment bag—trapping allergens and letting homeowners forget about dust disposal for nearly a month.

Scaling Beyond the Floor: The High-Rise Window Dilemma

ZuRobo’s market penetration is not limited to floors. As contemporary architecture shifts toward high-rise buildings with expansive balcony glass and floor-to-ceiling windows, exterior pane maintenance has become hazardous and expensive.

Addressing this gap, the company launched the ZuRobo C100, an automated vertical window cleaner priced under ₹10,560. Engineered with continuous vacuum adhesion, intelligent edge-detection algorithms, and high-torque rotary pads that replicate human hand-wiping, the C100 cleans towering glass panes safely without requiring residents to lean over dizzying drops.

The Catalysts Behind ZuRobo’s Rapid Expansion

Industry observers attribute ZuRobo’s explosive word-of-mouth growth to three critical advantages:

Disruptive Value Architecture: By packaging premium laser mapping, app controls, and auto-empty docking between ₹26,650 and ₹36,650, ZuRobo has brought tier-one automation into mainstream reach.

The “Seeing is Believing” Demo Strategy: Overcoming traditional consumer skepticism, the brand paired digital discovery with personalized in-home demonstrations, proving its suction power against stubborn floor dirt before purchase.

Accessible Domestic Support: Backed by its manufacturing and operations base in Ahmedabad’s Naroda GIDC, ZuRobo guarantees readily accessible consumables, replacement pads, and responsive technical service—eliminating the dreaded spare-part delays common with foreign imports.

As autonomous appliances transition from luxury gadgets to fundamental utilities, ZuRobo’s upward trajectory signals a clear market truth: the future of home automation belongs to brands that solve real everyday friction at accessible everyday prices.

Media & Product Inquiries:

ZuRobo Private Limited

D-25/2, Shreeji Industrial Estate, Naroda GIDC, Ahmedabad, Gujarat – 382330

Website: http://zurobo.in/

Phone: +91 8141 663366

Email: info@zurobo.in

 

From Horoscope to Personalised Guidance: Building the Next Generation AI Astrology Platform

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As digital platforms continue to change how people access information and professional services, astrology is also becoming more accessible through online platforms and mobile applications. JyotishGram is bringing traditional astrology practices into a digital environment, offering users access to personalized astrology guidance, horoscope insights, and consultations through its website and mobile application.

The platform is designed for users who want to explore astrology beyond general zodiac-based predictions. Through AI based personalized astrology guidance, users can provide details such as their date, time, and place of birth and discuss specific questions related to areas such as career, relationships, marriage, education, business, and personal development.

Personalized Astrology Guidance Through a Digital Platform

Traditional astrology has often involved in person consultations, printed horoscope content, and traditional methods of birth chart analysis. With the growth of digital services, users can now explore many of these experiences online.

JyotishGram provides a digital platform where users can explore astrology related services and connect with astrologers. Through JyotishGram, users can access information about available services and explore personalized guidance based on their individual interests and questions.

Unlike a general daily horoscope, AI personalized astrology can consider an individual’s birth details and other astrological factors. Depending on the type of consultation, an astrologer may examine planetary positions, houses, dashas, nakshatras, and current or upcoming transits to provide an interpretation based on the individual’s circumstances.

Multiple Astrology Services in One Place

JyotishGram brings different astrology and related services together through its digital platform. Users can explore services that include Vedic astrology, Kundli analysis, horoscope guidance, Tarot, numerology, and other astrology and spiritual practices.

The platform is designed to provide users with a convenient way to explore these services without having to rely exclusively on traditional offline consultation methods. Users can choose services according to their individual interests and seek guidance on specific topics they want to discuss.

Connecting Users With Astrologers Online

While technology can make astrology services easier to access, personalized consultations continue to involve human expertise and interpretation. JyotishGram combines its digital platform with access to astrologers, allowing users to explore astrology services online and connect with professionals for more personalized interactions.

This approach allows users to move beyond generic horoscope content and discuss questions that are specific to their own circumstances. Whether a user is exploring career-related questions, relationships, marriage, education, business, or personal growth, the consultation can focus on the area that is relevant to them.

Astrology Services on Mobile Devices

Along with its website, JyotishGram extends its digital experience to smartphones through its mobile application. The app allows users to explore astrology services and connect with astrologers from their mobile devices.

Users interested in accessing JyotishGram through a smartphone can find the JyotishGram Personalized Astrology App, providing another way to explore the platform’s astrology services.

Making Traditional Astrology More Accessible

For people who are new to astrology, terms such as Kundli, nakshatra, dasha, houses, planetary positions, and transits can sometimes be difficult to understand. Digital platforms can help organize this information and make traditional astrology concepts easier for users to explore.

JyotishGram combines traditional astrology practices with a digital-first AI based experience, giving both existing astrology enthusiasts and new users an opportunity to explore different services through an online platform.

As people increasingly use digital platforms to access information and professional services, the move toward personalized experiences is also shaping the astrology industry. JyotishGram’s platform brings together personalized astrology guidance, online consultations, horoscope related services, and multiple astrology practices in one digital environment.

With its website and mobile application, JyotishGram aims to provide users with a convenient way to explore traditional astrology while accessing personalized guidance and astrologer consultations through modern digital channels.

Website:  https://www.jyotishgram.com/
App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jyotishgram

 

 

 

Production AI Inference Infrastructure: A Launch Checklist

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A model that answers correctly on a developer machine is not yet a production service. Real traffic arrives in bursts, prompts vary in length, dependencies fail, credentials expire, and model outputs create risks that infrastructure health checks cannot see.

Production AI inference infrastructure needs explicit readiness gates. The following checklist covers the service as a whole: model behavior, capacity, deployment, security, observability, economics, and recovery.

Define the product contract

Write down what the endpoint promises before choosing an autoscaler or GPU. Specify accepted inputs, maximum sizes, output schema, timeout behavior, streaming support, rate limits, and error codes. For an LLM, define maximum context, generation limits, stop behavior, and whether tool calls or structured outputs are supported.

Set measurable objectives for availability, time to first token, end-to-end latency, successful requests, and model freshness. Interactive chat and offline summarization should not share one undifferentiated queue.

Document quality and safety expectations separately from system uptime. A fast endpoint can still return unacceptable, malformed, or unsafe output. Evaluation sets, human review where appropriate, output validation, and abuse controls belong in the release gate.

Freeze and verify the model artifact

Identify the exact model revision, tokenizer, adapter, quantization method, prompt template, inference engine, and container digest. Store artifacts in a controlled registry or durable object store and verify integrity before loading them. A mutable “latest” tag makes incidents and rollbacks needlessly difficult.

Test the production artifact rather than a nearby notebook. Confirm quality after quantization, engine conversion, kernel changes, or tensor parallelism. Run edge cases at minimum and maximum input sizes, invalid requests, cancellations, and every supported modality.

Prove capacity with representative traffic

Load tests should reproduce input lengths, output lengths, concurrency, and burst patterns. Measure time to first token, inter-token latency, complete response latency, throughput, errors, queue depth, GPU utilization, VRAM, CPU, system memory, and network use.

Increase load until latency or error objectives fail. Keep production capacity below that point to absorb traffic variation, worker loss, and long requests. Report percentiles rather than averages alone.

GPU autoscaling needs more than a CPU threshold. Queue depth, queued work age, active sequences, token load, and cache pressure may be better signals. Scaling also has delay: provision the machine, pull an image, fetch weights, initialize the engine, and warm kernels. Model this full time when selecting minimum warm capacity.

Choose serverless or dedicated operation deliberately

Variable traffic may fit a managed or serverless inference path, especially when reducing idle management matters. Confirm supported models and modalities, request schema, cold-start behavior, scaling limits, streaming, usage metering, and observability.

Dedicated GPU instances provide more control over the runtime, networking, model server, batching, and custom kernels. They also make the team responsible for patching, scaling, process supervision, and unused capacity.

Hostnot GPU offers these as separate paths: GPU Instances for controllable environments and Serverless AI for supported request-and-response models. Teams can inspect the current serverless catalog and interface at https://hostnotgpu.ae/serverless rather than assuming every model or feature is permanently available. The documented chat interface currently returns completed JSON, so applications that require streaming should verify options before committing to an architecture.

Make deployment reversible

Use immutable artifacts and an automated process. A canary can send a small traffic share to the new version while comparing errors, latency, resource use, and quality. Blue-green deployment keeps the prior environment available during a switch.

Define rollback triggers and test them. Keep request schemas compatible during the transition, and retain warm rollback capacity when model startup is slow.

Keep routing health separate from process health. A worker can have a live process while its model is missing, out of memory, or unable to generate a valid response. Readiness checks should exercise the inference path without creating excessive load.

Build resilience into the request path

Apply timeouts at each boundary and give clients clear retry guidance. Retries need backoff, jitter, and a limit; otherwise an overloaded service receives even more traffic. Requests that trigger paid or non-repeatable work need idempotency or a way to reconcile ambiguous outcomes.

Use bounded queues. An unlimited queue converts overload into very high latency and memory pressure. Admission control can reject or defer low-priority work while protecting interactive traffic. Fair scheduling prevents one customer or large request from consuming every worker.

Store important state outside ephemeral GPU machines. Conversations, job records, artifacts, and outputs should survive worker replacement.

Secure every layer

Use narrowly scoped service identities and keep credentials in a secret manager rather than images, scripts, or logs. Rotate API keys, protect administrative endpoints, restrict inbound ports, and encrypt traffic. Separate production from development accounts and networks.

Classify prompts, retrieved documents, generated content, and logs. Define retention and deletion behavior, redact sensitive values, and prevent raw request bodies from entering broad-access telemetry by default. Review the physical processing region, backups, support access, and subprocessors when residency matters.

Patch base images, scan dependencies, verify artifact provenance, and run containers with minimum privileges. Rate limits, request-size limits, authentication, and abuse detection protect both security and GPU capacity.

Observe model and system behavior

Dashboards should connect customer experience to infrastructure. Track traffic, errors, latency percentiles, queues, cold starts, GPU memory, utilization, restarts, and scaling. Break metrics down by model version, region, and request class.

Inference-specific telemetry may include input and output tokens, finish reason, batch size, cache use, rejected requests, and time spent in queue, prefill, and decode. Monitor quality indicators and policy violations through privacy-aware sampling or aggregate evaluations.

Use correlation identifiers across the request path. Alert on user-impacting symptoms and exhausted error budgets, not merely high utilization.

Control cost before launch

Set daily and monthly budgets, alerts, and clear owners. Measure cost per successful request, generated token, image, or other product unit. Include idle workers, model loading, storage, data transfer, failed requests, and supporting services.

Establish shutdown and scale-down rules for non-production environments. Limit maximum replicas so a bad metric or traffic attack cannot create an uncontrolled bill. At the same time, make caps visible because an overly strict budget guard can become an availability incident.

Prepare people for incidents

Assign ownership for the gateway, model service, infrastructure, security, and model behavior. Create runbooks for exhausted capacity, latency regression, out-of-memory failures, bad releases, exposed credentials, provider outages, and abnormal spend. Test at least one failure scenario before launch.

Conclusion

Reliable AI inference infrastructure is a product system, not only a GPU and model server. A production launch should prove model integrity, workload capacity, safe scaling, reversible releases, bounded failure, strong access controls, useful telemetry, and controlled unit economics.

Turn these checks into repeatable release gates and test them after major model, engine, driver, traffic, or provider changes. That discipline lets the team improve the model without making every deployment an infrastructure gamble.

 

Beyond Male and Female: Shriex and India’s Unisex Fragrance Movement

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For most of its modern history, the Indian perfume aisle has been organised the way department stores have always organised it: a blue side and a pink side, with a narrow, often overlooked middle ground labelled “unisex” almost as an afterthought. That divide is starting to look dated, and Jaipur-based fragrance house Shriex has been one of the more deliberate voices arguing that Indian consumers are ready to leave it behind.

The brand’s own writing on the subject is unusually direct about this. “Why stick to old ‘male/female’ fragrance rules?” reads a recent piece on the Shriex journal, which goes on to frame scent choice as a matter of “vibe, climate, occasion, and personal comfort” rather than the gender printed on a bottle. It’s a small shift in language, but it reflects something real happening in how younger Indian consumers — moving between cities, jobs and social circles more fluidly than previous generations — are shopping for fragrance.

A Category Built to Be Shared

Shriex’s unisex range, viewable in full on its unisex perfume collection, is not a token line sitting apart from the “real” men’s and women’s fragrances. It’s one of the brand’s largest and most actively developed categories, spanning fruity-floral compositions like Seduction — built on strawberry, black currant and cassis over peony and pink jasmine, settling into amber wood and vanilla — through to fresher, aquatic-oriental fragrances like Exotica, which opens on yuzu and saffron before moving into jasmine, oud, vanilla and ambergris.

What’s notable is that these aren’t neutral, lowest-common-denominator scents designed to offend no one. They’re built with the same structural ambition as the brand’s gendered lines — layered top, heart and base notes, designed for eight-to-ten-hour wear — just without the assumption that complexity or sensuality needs to be assigned a gender at the formulation stage. RUH, another unisex fragrance in the line-up, leans into resins and woods with what the brand describes as an aim to “define your aura” rather than fit a category.

Why This Resonates in India Specifically

The unisex fragrance conversation isn’t new globally — international niche houses have been blurring gender lines in perfumery for well over a decade. What is comparatively new is seeing an Indian-formulated, India-tested brand build a genuine business around it, rather than treating unisex as an imported aesthetic borrowed wholesale from European niche perfumery.

Part of this is generational. Indian consumers in their twenties and early thirties increasingly shop for fragrance the way they shop for playlists — around mood and moment, not around who a bottle was “supposed” to be for. A scent worn to the office might be reached for again on a flight, at a friend’s wedding, or shared between partners without a second thought. Shriex’s trial and gift formats, available

through its trial packs and gift sets collection, lean into exactly this behaviour — mixed sets that pair men’s, women’s and unisex scents together, implicitly inviting buyers to sample across categories rather than stay within one.

A Quiet Correction, Not a Manifesto

To be clear, Shriex isn’t building its identity solely around gender-fluid marketing — its broader positioning still rests on climate-tested formulation and accessible pricing. But the unisex line is arguably where the brand’s underlying philosophy shows up most clearly: fragrance as something personal and situational, not something assigned. In an Indian retail landscape that has spent decades defaulting to strict gender segmentation almost out of habit rather than genuine consumer demand, that’s a quietly significant correction

— one likely to look less like a trend and more like common sense within a few years.

Beyond the Piggy Bank: How Dr Helen Hoang Is Reimagining Economics Education for the Next Generation

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CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA — A child deciding whether to spend or save is already making an economic choice. A child asking why one family can afford something another cannot is asking a harder question, about scarcity, fairness and the way society distributes opportunity. What began with fairy tales and a child’s questions is becoming a Canberra-born learning ecosystem spanning bestselling books, digital games, EconLab, school experiences, inclusive design and a deeper proposition: children should learn not only how economies work, but how to question whom they serve. For economist and author Dr Helen Hoang, that distinction matters. Financial literacy can teach a child how to manage money. Economic literacy can help them understand the systems surrounding those decisions. Ethics asks the question that sits beneath both: what do our choices value, who benefits, and who may carry the cost? That philosophy now anchors Economics for Kids, Hoang’s Canberra-based education initiative. What began as an attempt to explain economics to her young son through fables and fairy tales is developing into a broader learning ecosystem built around a simple progression: read the idea, experience the decision, reflect on the consequence, and apply the learning to real life. “The goal is not simply to raise financially capable consumers. It is to help raise thoughtful, ethical citizens who understand that choices have consequences for themselves and for others.” A Child’s Question, and a Much Bigger Question The origin of the project is personal. Hoang has written about growing up in a remote village in northern Vietnam, where scarcity was not an abstract classroom concept but part of daily life. Years later, her son’s questions about money, toys and why some people have more than others brought those memories into a new context. Her response was not to make economics smaller. It was to make it more human. In her 2025 essay for The Ethics Centre, Hoang argued that children should learn to move beyond “Can I afford this?” toward questions about hidden costs, fairness, responsibility and the people affected by economic choices. The proposition is subtle but important: economics education should build agency without losing empathy. This gives Economics for Kids a purpose beyond conventional money education. Saving and budgeting matter, but so do scarcity and justice, incentives and values, markets and trust, technology and responsibility. Children are not merely future earners or consumers. They are future citizens who will participate in, question and eventually help shape economic systems. Why Fairy Tales Work Hoang’s first educational bridge was storytelling. Economics for Kids: Lessons from Fables & Fairy Tales reimagines familiar stories as encounters with scarcity, opportunity cost, incentives, saving, inequality, trade, public goods, innovation and other economic ideas. The approach works because stories already contain the moral architecture of economics: desire and constraint, exchange and sacrifice, power and fairness, action and consequence. A mermaid who gives up her voice for something she wants is making a trade-off. An ant preparing for winter is making an intertemporal choice. A community sharing limited resources is confronting questions of allocation and cooperation. HerCanberra described the series as weaving 20 timeless fairy tales together with 20 core economic life skills, while grounding the stories in Canberra landmarks. That local setting is more than decoration. Parliament House, Lake Burley Griffin, the National Carillon and other familiar places turn abstract ideas into a city-based learning journey, connecting childhood imagination with civic life.
From Bestseller to Learning Ecosystem The books found a market. Economics for Kids received Amazon #1 Best Seller recognition in Children’s Business & Money Reference, and Hoang’s Christmas title Elfonomics: The Enchanted Christmas Adventures in Economics reached #1 Best Seller in Business & Money. Across 2024–2025, those milestones helped validate an idea that had begun around family conversations: there is demand for economic learning that feels imaginative, relevant and accessible. But the more consequential development is what came next. Rather than treating the bestseller badge as an endpoint, Hoang began extending the same intellectual framework across different ways of learning. The emerging model links books, digital games, EconLab workshops, school programs and author visits, with Economics for Teens extending the pathway toward older learners. The organising idea is consistent across formats: knowledge becomes more durable when a learner has to make a choice. Reading can introduce scarcity. A game can force a player to allocate limited time and resources. A workshop can let a group negotiate competing priorities. Reflection can then connect those consequences back to everyday life. Digital Games: Turning Concepts into Consequences This is where EconTech, the technology and innovation layer behind the ecosystem, becomes important. Its digital learning work moves economics from explanation to simulation. Instead of only being told what a trade-off is, a child can face one, choose, observe the consequence and try again. The development received support through the ACT Innovation Connect program for educational economics games. The grant represents a significant step in moving the concept from publishing into interactive learning technology, with games and learning tools designed for families and schools. For Hoang, technology is useful only when it improves the quality of thinking. The aim is not to add screens for their own sake, but to create safe spaces in which children can experiment with decisions before the stakes become real. EconLab: Where Economics Leaves the Page EconLab carries the same philosophy into live learning. Its expanding pathway explores foundational ideas such as choice, scarcity, trade-offs, value and incentives, then moves toward money, markets, government, risk, strategy, innovation, artificial intelligence, global systems and the future. Through simulations, discussion and practical challenges, children are encouraged to ask not only what decision produces an outcome, but why that outcome occurs and whether it is fair, sustainable or desirable. School tours and workshops create another bridge between theory and lived experience. READ. PLAY. QUESTION. APPLY. Accessibility as Better Economic Design The next frontier is inclusion. Through EconAbility, Hoang is exploring how economic ideas can be redesigned for learners who may process information, communication and decisions differently. The premise is not that the learner should be simplified. It is that the system can be designed better: less unnecessary jargon and cognitive overload, more visual thinking, practical decisions, dignity and agency. That principle connects naturally to the ethical foundation of the broader project. If economic participation affects money, work, services, housing and everyday choices, then access to economic understanding is itself an inclusion question. Economics for Teens extends the same philosophy across age, while Elfonomics shows that context and imagination can change without abandoning intellectual substance. The wider ambition is therefore not a single curriculum or product, but a flexible architecture for translating economic thinking across ages, abilities and learning environments. Scholarship Behind the Storytelling The accessible surface of Hoang’s work sits on a substantial academic foundation. She earned her PhD in Economics from the Australian National University, where her doctoral research examined innovation, firm growth, gender, access to credit and environmental outcomes among small and medium-sized enterprises in Vietnam. She also completed postgraduate study in public policy, business administration and development studies. Her continuing engagement with academic economics is visible in her 2026 review of Tim Jackson’s The Care Economy, published in Economic Record by Wiley. That scholarly thread matters because it connects the children’s education work to a larger economic question: what should an economy ultimately be for? The answer running through Hoang’s public writing is increasingly clear. Economics is not only about efficiency, prices or growth. It is also about people, institutions, care, opportunity, responsibility and the choices societies make together. From Canberra to a Larger Conversation There is something distinctly Canberra about the project. It grew in a city where public policy, national institutions, education and civic life sit unusually close together. The books turn its landmarks into story settings; the school and community work turns the city into a learning environment; the ACT innovation support has helped the idea move into technology. Yet the questions are universal. How should children understand money before financial decisions become consequential? How do we teach them to recognise scarcity without accepting inequality as inevitable? How do we prepare them for markets transformed by artificial intelligence and technology? And how do we give them enough confidence to participate in economic life without teaching them that success is measured only in dollars? Those questions are what make Economics for Kids more than a publishing story. The books may be the most visible beginning, but the deeper project is about economic agency: giving young people the concepts, experiences and ethical vocabulary to make sense of the world they are inheriting. Economics for Kids began with a child asking why. Its larger ambition is to make sure the next generation never stops asking better questions. About Dr Helen Hoang Dr Helen Hoang is a Vietnamese-Australian economist, author and education entrepreneur based in Canberra. Her work focuses on economic education, public policy and the use of storytelling, practical learning and digital technology to make economics more accessible to children and young people. She is the founder of EconTech – Economics for Kids and HP GlobalX, and the creator of initiatives including EconLab, EconAbility, Elfonomics and Economics for Teens. References & Further Reading
  1. The Ethics Centre — Give them a piggy bank: Why every child should learn to navigate money with ethics https://ethics.org.au/give-them-a-piggy-bank-why-every-child-should-learn-to-navigate-money-with-ethics/
  2. HerCanberra — Once Upon an Economy: How this Canberra economist is turning fairy tales into financial lessons https://hercanberra.com.au/life/once-upon-an-economy-how-this-canberra-economist-is-turning-fairy-tales-into-financial-lessons/
  3. Economics for Kids — official website https://economicsforkids.com.au/
EDITORIAL NOTE: Amazon bestseller references are based on the supplied 2024–2025 screenshots. Program and biographical details were cross-checked against the sources listed above. The Wiley source is a 2026 book review in Economic Record and is described as such.
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