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<keyword id="22976106" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="indoor" source="keywords">Indoor</keyword> <keyword id="19900550" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="air-pollution" source="keywords">air pollution</keyword> is a bigger <keyword id="21117961" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="health-risk" source="keywords">health risk</keyword> than <keyword id="20543591" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="outdoor" source="keywords">outdoor</keyword> air pollution in India, and sometimes cities are cleaner than nearby villages where <keyword id="22976772" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="household-pollution" source="keywords">household pollution</keyword> is higher, according to the country's two top policy experts. Addressing the India <keyword id="20445293" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="clean-air" source="keywords">Clean Air</keyword> Summit (ICAS) 2024, Principal Advisor, <keyword id="19904190" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ministry-of-Health-and-Family-Welfare" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Ministry of Health and Family Welfare" meta.hostid="83" meta.entityid="Ministry of Health and Family Welfare">Ministry of Health and Family Welfare</keyword>, Soumya Swaminathan said, "Studies done in Delhi have shown that women's average exposure to high levels of <keyword id="20827287" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="black-carbon" source="keywords">black carbon</keyword> (women <keyword id="19895006" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="WHO" source="keywords">who</keyword> are mostly at home) is as much as auto-rickshaw passengers going around outdoor exposed to the ambient air pollution in Delhi, resulting in high systolic blood pressure." "Cities contribute less than 20 per cent to the overall state emissions, wherever they have been assessed, but household emissions predominate, ranging between 20 per cent and 40 per cent. Across the country, we are seeing is that sometimes cities are cleaner than the surrounding villages where household air pollution predominates," she said at the summit organised by think-tank Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy. This builds a strong case for expanding the scope of India's National Clean Air Programme (<keyword id="20133150" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="NCAP" source="keywords">NCAP</keyword>), which currently focuses on non-attainment cities. Air pollution is a major threat to public health and contributes to a significant amount of morbidity as well as mortality. Apart from PM2.5 and PM10, short-lived climate pollutants such as black carbon, methane, ozone, and hydrocarbons have the potential to harm the environment and warm the atmosphere even more than CO2. Black carbon can cause chronic respiratory illnesses, lung cancer, emphysema, pneumonia, asthma, heart disease, and low birthweight. "In terms of reducing our life expectancy, globally, PM2.5 is contributing to about 2.3 years of life lost. Just below that is tobacco. In fact, there's so much attention on tobacco and global frameworks for control, but not the same level of attention has been paid to PM2.5 and certainly not the same level of commitments," Swaminathan said. The impact of air pollution is not limited to public health but has a significant economic cost as well. Recently, the World Bank published a study highlighting that air pollution has resulted in a loss of around USD 8.1 trillion in 2019, which is 6.1 per cent of the global gross domestic product (GDP). "We are always talking about air pollution as a problem but studies also show a strong economic case for action on clean air. There are significant positive consequences to investing in cleaning up the air in terms of the return on investments. We know air pollution is not just bad for our health, but it's also bad for agriculture, because it reduces the sunlight that's reaching the crops and it's bad for our economy or any country's economy as it deters people from coming and living or visiting those places," Swaminathan added. Kalpana Balakrishnan, Director, WHO Collaborating Center for Occupational and Environmental Health, said that the main barrier to shifting to clean cooking fuels that can help reduce household air pollution levels is finance. "If we give free LPG to women for two years, they are unlikely to shift back to biomass cooking even if you remove the subsidies," she said. Through Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) launched in May 2016, more than 100 million households in India received LPG cylinders by the end of March 2023. Studies shows over 50 per cent of the households that received new LPG cylinders under PMUY did not choose to refill it even once. Around a third of the world's population - 2.4 billion people globally (including 500 million people in India) - still lack access to clean cooking solutions. Although the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MOPNG) claims that the country's household LPG "coverage" stands at 99.8 per cent, the National Family Health Survey conducted in 2019-21 (NFHS-5) shows that 41 per cent of the population still cooks on biomass.

Indoor air pollution poses greater health risk than outdoor: Experts

The Centre has blocked over 100 websites involved in facilitating organised illegal investments related to economic crimes and task-based part-time job frauds. According to an official statement, these websites were being operated by overseas actors and targets were mostly retired employees, women and unemployed youth looking for part time jobs. The Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C), a wing of the Union Home Ministry, through its vertical National Cybercrime Threat Analytics Unit (NCTAU) had last week identified and recommended that these websites be blocked. Following this, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), invoking its power under the Information Technology Act, 2000, has blocked these websites, the statement said. These websites, which facilitated task-based organised illegal investment related to economic crimes, were learnt to be operated by overseas actors and were using digital advertisement, chat messengers and mule and rented accounts. The proceeds from the large scale economic frauds were seen to be laundered out of <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> using card network, crypto currency, overseas ATM withdrawals and international Fintech companies, the statement said. The I4C is an initiative of the Home Ministry to deal with cyber crimes in the country in a coordinated and comprehensive manner. <keyword id="6366773" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="citizens" source="Orion">Citizens</keyword> have been advised to promptly report phone numbers and social media handles used by such fraudsters to the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP), the statement said. It said several complaints have been received through 1930 helpline and the NCRP and these offences were posing significant threat to the citizens and also involved data security concerns. These frauds, typically, involve a number of steps that include targeted digital advertisements launched on platforms like Google and Meta using key words like "Ghar baithe job" (Do jobs sitting at home), "Ghar baithe kamai kaise karen" (How to earn by sitting at home) etc. in multiple languages from overseas advertisers. Upon clicking the advertisement, an agent using WhatsApp or Telegram starts conversation with the potential victim, who convinces him or her to perform some tasks like video likes and subscribe, maps rating, etc. Upon completion of task, the victim is given some commission, initially and is asked to invest more to get more returns against given task. After gaining confidence, when victim deposits larger sum, deposits are frozen and thus the victim is duped. As precautionary measure, it is advised to exercise due diligence before investing in any such very high commission paying online schemes sponsored over internet. If an unknown person contacts anyone over WhatsApp or Telegram, refrain from performing financial transactions without verification, the statement said Verify the name of receiver mentioned in UPI App. If receiver is any random person, it may be a mule account and scheme may be fraudulent.Similarly, check the source from where initial commission is received, it said. Citizens should refrain from doing transactions with unknown accounts, as these could be involved in money laundering and even terror financing and lead to blocking of accounts by police and other legal action, the statement said. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/top-selling-cars-in-india-in-november-2023/slidelist/105775116.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/top-selling-cars-in-india-in-november-2023/slidelist/105775116.cms" target="_blank">WagonR to Creta – Top selling cars in India in November</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/oneplus-announced-new-flagship-smartphone-oneplus-12-with-up-to-24gb-ram/articleshow/105756057.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/oneplus-announced-new-flagship-smartphone-oneplus-12-with-up-to-24gb-ram/articleshow/105756057.cms" target="_blank">OnePlus 12 debuts with bigger battery, up to 24GB RAM and more</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/ola-electric-and-tvs-motor-leading-electric-two-wheeler-sales-in-nov-2023-month/articleshow/105719702.cms">Electric two-wheeler sales rise in Nov as Ola Electric scales a new high</a>

Over 100 websites blocked for facilitating organised illegal investments

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Some expat Indians are moving back home to launch companies of their own.</li><li>India's booming market size, internet growth, and post-pandemic spending is driving their decision.</li></ul>Nithin Hassan, 41, has always been fascinated with building something of his own.As a child in India, he would get in trouble for dismantling electronics around the house just so he could peek inside.In college, in true <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/startups-to-bet-your-career-on-in-2024-2024-2">startup</a> fashion, he started working on a small business out of his parent's garage in Bengaluru, assembling computers for friends and family.It was the early 2000s and the internet was not the trove of knowledge it is today — Hassan was relying on books to learn. Finding mentorship and the right guidance was a challenge, too.Everyone around Hassan told him that going to the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/resume-tips-google-software-engineer-skills-experience-careers-software-tech-2024-3">US for a master's degree</a> was the next big opportunity. So he did.Over the next 16 years, he put his startup plans on hold and worked at some of the world's biggest companies, including Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta.<div type="image" title="Nithin Hassan" height="2450" width="3266" msid="113831978" hostid="261" sizebytes="215682"></div>But the pandemic felt like a turning point. And its aftermath made India look like a lab-designed business environment: It had just become the world's most populous country, the pandemic had created <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/private-consumption-continues-to-be-supported-by-pent-up-demand-finance-ministry/articleshow/99069973.cms?from=mdr">pent-up demand</a> for consumer products, and growing internet adoption made commerce more scalable, he said.So Hassan left behind about $500,000 in annual pay at Meta to move back to Bengaluru in December 2023 with his wife and two children. He has since launched two startups.Hassan is part of a group of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/i-moved-back-to-india-after-living-abroad-for-decade-2024-9">expat Indians moving back</a> home to venture out on their own. As such, he's also part of a decades-long trend of reverse migration back to India.The trend began in the 1990s and picked up at the turn of the century, driven by the economic collapse in 2008, said Binod Khadria, the president of Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism. Many of those who returned to India for work were largely working for multinational companies.Today, the impetus for the move often looks a bit different: It's driven by factors like unstable visa policies and economic recessions, which lead to uncertainty when it comes to jobs and duration of stay in these destinations.Many returnees find work in tech, but the finance, retail, and climate sectors also absorb a large number of expat Indians, Khadia said. And some of the returnees are heading back to India to start companies of their own.India is undergoing a startup explosion. The country reported over<a target="_blank" href="https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2043805"> 140,800 recognized startups</a> at the end of June — nearly 50,000 more than last year — and credited them with creating 1.6 million direct jobs.To be sure, not all of these companies will make it big — and some do still stumble, like <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://inc42.com/features/what-are-the-current-problems-being-faced-by-oyo/">Oyo </a>and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blackrock-hsbc-funds-byjus-startup-valuation-zero-edtech-india-raveendran-2024-6">Byju's</a>. But the chaos, where even established startups are trying and failing, makes India a fair playing field for new entrants, Hassan said.Business Insider spoke to six <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-vc-wants-see-5-traits-new-founders-fundraising-antler-2024-8">first-time founders </a>about why they have recently returned to India after spending several years, or even an adult life, abroad.<h2 id="0e4a3c47-ba19-4690-8b52-c6bfece1c81d">Fastest-growing economy</h2>The health of the economy and interest from investors are fueling the entrepreneurship boom.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-billionaire-karan-adani-plans-challenge-china-dominance-seaports-2024-8">India's economic growth</a> in 2023 — 8.2% — was the fastest of all large economies worldwide. That's led to greater purchasing power, which lets companies, including startups, sell more.India's inflation rate of about 3.5% is well below its annual wage growth of 9.6%. This makes inflation less of a challenge than it is for slower-growing peers, where consumer-focused businesses have been <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/economy-jobs-report-sentiment-consumers-elections-recession-inflation-mortgage-rates-2024-9">hurt by high prices</a>.Investors are getting in on the action.From 2015 to 2021, the number of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/sequoia-capital-vc-firm-split-china-india-2023-6">unique investors in India</a> nearly quadrupled, though the number is tracking much lower this year, per PitchBook."Other than a slight downturn in 2022 and 2023 due to global macroeconomic factors, VC funding has been consistently growing in India," said Ben Mathias, a managing partner at Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia &amp; India.Besides funding, domestic developments have encouraged founders and VCs too, Mathias said.The Indian government's Universal Payment Interface system has spurred consumers and businesses to pay online, and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.bcg.com/press/2june2022-digital-payments-in-india-projected-to-reach-10-trillion-by-2026">40% of all digital payments</a> globally happen in India today, the partner said.Programs like Startup India, which provides founders benefits like tax exemption, easier compliance, and funding support, have made creating a company smoother.Devyani Parameshwar worked in the microfinance and fintech space in India in the 2010s before heading to the UK and Africa. She returned to India in 2022 to launch a financial management venture."It's changed dramatically. I remember standing in line at various ministries in Delhi trying to get meetings and then trying to get answers and it wasn't easy in the past," she said of her memories of India.Now, she can use an online platform to ask the country's central bank and banking regulator questions.It's easier than ever for foreign companies to invest in India, which means startups have a clearer exit path through acquisition — something VCs think hard about before entering new markets or writing checks.<h2 id="e5dd7b6f-a09f-4ff2-84c1-5907de96dc5e">Market ripe for the taking</h2>For Rohan Bhide, who spent most of his college and professional life <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/worked-in-big-tech-before-launching-my-own-startup-engineer-2024-9">preparing to launch something of his own</a>, a trip home in 2017 while he was studying in the US was a turning point.Indian telecom giant Reliance had recently launched a cheap unlimited data plan, which spiked Indian internet adoption. India was charting among the countries with the highest online transactions."That really, really drew my attention," said Bhide, who worked at Meta after graduation. "It was my dream come true — a huge market, a huge user base, and at the same time, the ability to adopt technology was incredible."Bhide returned to India in January, leaving behind about $580,000 in total compensation at ticketing platform StubHub. He and a cofounder are working on launching a consumer tech product later this year.<div type="image" title="Rohan Bhide" height="2304" width="3072" msid="113831979" hostid="261" sizebytes="218468"></div>Most Indians grew up wanting to work at a multinational company — but that's changing, Bhide said.Freelancing, running your own business, or working for a startup is much more socially acceptable now, because people see the success of other Indian startups. The country has the third-largest number of "unicorns" — companies worth $1 billion or more — with 64, per PitchBook.<h2 id="7f423804-745b-4e04-a250-839e01663f09">Boom in entrepreneurship culture</h2>A lot has changed since Hassan first wanted to launch his hardware startup in the early 2000s.Tech hot spots like Bengaluru and Gurugram have seen a boom in entrepreneurship culture in the last few years, with meet-ups, networking mixers, and even morning walks with like-minded builders.<div type="image" title="man standing in front of mountains in USA" height="2268" width="3024" msid="113831980" hostid="261" sizebytes="141132"></div>Dhruv Anand, who left Google in the US to move back to India in 2021 to launch an <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ai-startups-most-promising-2024-9">AI startup</a>, said that there were lots of other founders and mentors to help guide him."If you want to figure out who's the right chartered accountant to talk to, who's the right lawyer to help you draft agreements, all of that stuff is very easy," Anand said."It's been a really, really supportive community," Bhide said. There are people "telling you about their entire lives just because they want to help you and they're hoping that you pass the favor onto the next person who moves to India and wants to start their own company."<h2 id="3c8bff36-e855-4530-9b44-bcc7f36b0825">Not everything is perfect</h2>Although these founders made the decision to return to India, that doesn't mean they no longer see the benefits of operating in the US.Ruchit Garg founded an agriculture startup in Silicon Valley in 2016, with a focus on supporting farmers around the globe. In 2019, he returned to India, where his late grandfather worked as a farmer.Garg has been building in India ever since, but he says its startup ecosystem cannot yet compete with the Valley's decades of experience."The overall ecosystem was more mature back in Silicon Valley. It's still one of the best places for entrepreneurs. India isn't there yet, although it's growing pretty drastically," he said.Despite efforts to digitalize key processes, many bureaucratic challenges persist.For most founders, after living in US cities where populations are a fraction of those in Mumbai and Bangalore, congested roads and poorer air quality are also everyday annoyances.But India provides some big perks, including affordable domestic help and the appeal of building solutions for problems they witness firsthand."It's a different joy to be able to build for problems that you feel for very personally," Parameshwar, the fintech founder, said. When she worked in Africa, she needed translators. Now, she can speak with her users herself.Bhide said the general sentiment among local founders is shifting from "Build from India" to "Build for India."For some founders, being surrounded by family and the culture they grew up in was another selling point.Niranjan Vemulkar moved back to India in 2015 and later founded a digital legacy planning platform.He said that he never fully felt at home in the US, where he lived for over a decade."For us, it was the fact that we wanted to raise a family in an environment where the children would have access to the grandparents and Indian culture," Vemulkar said. "The fact that you could come back to India, start something of your own and figure things out in an ecosystem which was potentially booming for startups, was just a cherry on the cake."Are you in India and have a story to share about the tech and entrepreneurship landscape? Please reach out at shubhangigoel@insider.com

Some techies are leaving cushy Silicon Valley jobs to launch startups at home in India

The government has dropped the permit requirement for untested AI models but emphasised the need to label AI-generated content, according to a latest advisory on <keyword id="19904566" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="artificial-intelligence" source="keywords">Artificial Intelligence</keyword> technology. Instead of permission for AI models under development, the fresh advisory issued by the <keyword id="19966789" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ministry-of-electronics" source="keywords">Ministry of Electronics</keyword> and IT on Friday evening fine-tuned the compliance requirement as per IT Rules of 2021. "The advisory is issued in suppression of advisory...dated 1st March 2024," the advisory said. It has been observed that IT firms and platforms are often negligent in undertaking due diligence obligations underlined under the <keyword id="19930099" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="information-technology" source="keywords">Information Technology</keyword> (Intermediary Guidelines and <keyword id="20033095" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="digital-media-ethics-code" source="keywords">Digital Media Ethics Code</keyword> ) Rules, 2021, according to the new advisory. The government has asked firms to label content generated using their AI software or platform and inform users about the possible inherent fallibility or unreliability of the output generated using their AI tools. "Where any intermediary through its software or any other computer resource permits or facilitates synthetic creation, generation or modification of a text, audio, visual or audio-visual information, in such a manner that such information may be used potentially as misinformation or deepfake, it is advised that such information created generated or modified through its software or any other computer resource is labelled....that such information has been created generated or modified using the computer resource of the intermediary," the advisory said. In case any changes are made by the user, the metadata should be so configured to enable identification of such user or computer resource that has effected such change, it added. After a controversy over a response of Google's AI platform to queries related to Prime Minister <keyword id="19895781" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="narendra-modi" source="keywords">Narendra Modi</keyword>, the government on March 1 issued an advisory for social media and other platforms to label under-trial AI models and prevent hosting unlawful content. The <keyword id="19959928" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ministry-of-electronics-and-information-technology" source="keywords">Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology</keyword>, in the advisory issued to intermediaries and platforms, warned of criminal action in case of non-compliance. The previous advisory has asked the entities to seek approval from the government for deploying under trial or unreliable artificial intelligence (AI) models and deploy them only after labelling them of "possible and inherent fallibility or unreliability of the output generated". SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/new-ev-policy-elon-musks-tesla-may-soon-enter-india-as-import-taxes-slashed-for-electric-vehicles/articleshow/108527306.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/new-ev-policy-elon-musks-tesla-may-soon-enter-india-as-import-taxes-slashed-for-electric-vehicles/articleshow/108527306.cms" target="_blank">New EV Policy: Elon Musk’s Tesla may soon enter India as import taxes slashed for electric vehicles</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/benq-w5800-home-cinema-projector-launched-in-india-with-a-price-tag-of-6-5-lakh/articleshow/108523671.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/benq-w5800-home-cinema-projector-launched-in-india-with-a-price-tag-of-6-5-lakh/articleshow/108523671.cms" target="_blank">BenQ W5800 home cinema projector launched in India with a price tag of ₹6.5 lakh</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/samsung-galaxy-a35-and-galaxy-a55-launched-in-india-starting-at-30999/articleshow/108512386.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/samsung-galaxy-a35-and-galaxy-a55-launched-in-india-starting-at-30999/articleshow/108512386.cms" target="_blank">Samsung Galaxy A35 and Galaxy A55 launched in India starting at ₹30,999</a>

Govt removes permit requirement for untested AI models; calls for labelling content

<ul class="summary-list"><li>On a trip to Melbourne, Adrian Chia envisioned a holiday home to unplug from the world.</li><li>He sold his IT business and partnered with two friends to build Big Tiny, a tiny house startup.</li></ul>How nice would it be to leave everything behind, unplug from the world, and relax abroad?This thought lingered in Adrian Chia's mind after a two-week family vacation exploring the Great Ocean Road in Melbourne in 2016.Shortly after returning home to Singapore, he floated the concept of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/millennial-city-life-quits-job-build-tiny-house-wood-denmark-2024-9">living an unplugged life</a> by his friend Dave Ng, whom he'd met in his 20s during mandatory national service."We were just chitchatting, but Dave started thinking about it seriously," Chia, now 43, told Business Insider. Ng came up with the idea of creating a tiny house on wheels — a mobile house that could be easily relocated if a particular location did not attract guests.In 2017, the pair decided to sell their businesses — Chia had been working in IT and Ng in waste management — and start a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-build-own-tiny-home-company-plans-2023-4">tiny house business</a> called Big Tiny. They invested 100,000 Singapore dollars, or around $77k, each, and dove into brainstorming their first prototype."I knew I was venturing into uncharted territory," said Chia, who was married with two young kids and had a newborn at the time.<h2 id="b90f8f35-563a-4d9d-9797-e15f7148fc10">An early obstacle</h2>With no experience in architecture or building, their first roadblock was figuring out how to build a tiny house."I can't even change the door knob at home," said Chia, adding that the thought of having to fit a kitchenette, a bedroom, and a living room into a 20-foot space was daunting.They hired an architect to help with the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/couple-lives-in-tiny-home-on-wheels-with-office-bedroom-2023-6">design of the house</a> and agreed on a few essentials. First, the house had to be on wheels. Next, they had to ensure that the house did not feel claustrophobic.Six months of trial and error later, Chia and Ng assembled the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/built-tiny-house-parents-backyard-rent-free-saved-money-2024-3">first prototype home in Chia's garden in Singapore</a>.<div type="image" title="A tiny home" height="3024" width="4032" msid="113509611" hostid="261" sizebytes="1381548"></div>They began scaling the business by sending tiny houses overseas. The first two were sent to Australia, one to Victoria and the other to New South Wales.In 2018, Chia convinced a friend from elementary school, Jeff Yeo, to join the team of founders and help with branding. Yeo had worked as an account director and manager at several marketing agencies.Together, they raised around SG$4.2 million over two funding rounds, Chia said. That includes SG$3.8 million in the second round, which took place in 2021.<h2 id="2f26daf1-a207-42de-80b6-4a8c216f56ad">Developing their tiny houses into a profit-sharing business</h2>After garnering attention from local media, the team started to receive inquiries on how to purchase tiny houses, Chia said.So, in 2017, the team started a program that allowed people to buy a tiny house for around SG$90,000. In return, they managed the hotel side of the business by renting the unit back from the buyer. They either rented the tiny house for two years and paid 8% a year or five years and paid 10% a year. Big Tiny then earns from the profit of nightly stays, Chia said.Although the headquarters is in Singapore, Big Tiny's first move was to send <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/live-in-a-tiny-mansion-home-so-could-afford-california-2023-10">tiny houses</a> out to the rest of the world. The homes had a modular design — flat packed "like Ikea furniture," as Chia describes.<h2 id="86541299-29a2-4f07-931a-d1593e686640">In 2023, they set up tiny houses in Singapore</h2><a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-home-village-atlanta-south-park-cottages-photos-booker-washington-2024-3">The tiny house movement</a> encourages <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-house-new-yorker-first-time-experience-2022-7">minimalistic and sustainable living</a>. Although the movement has taken off in <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-house-movement-future-2021-1">countries like the US</a> and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-home-tube-shape-surprising-things-europe-slube-photos-2023-2">Germany</a>, it has been less popular in Singapore.In 2021, an opportunity arose for Big Tiny to set up houses in Singapore under a government initiative promoting innovative business ideas.The government awarded Big Tiny state land, for which the company pays rent, to build their <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/stay-tiny-home-remote-lazarus-island-singapore-2024-8">tiny houses on Lazarus Island</a> — one of the eight Southern Islands in Singapore."We jumped on it," Chia said.In an email response to BI, a representative from the Sentosa Development Corporation, an organization under Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry, said the initiative aimed to complement the existing environment of Lazarus Island by introducing "light-touch" recreational uses.Additionally, the response noted that Big Tiny's houses were equipped with sustainable features, which were in line with their goal of reducing vacationers' carbon footprint on the island.The government also awarded another company a chance to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/luxury-tent-glamping-into-the-woods-lazarus-island-singapore-2024-9">build nine tents nearby.</a>Since opening the tiny house resort in April 2023, Chia said, it has been running on an average of about 90% occupancy. Guests have to book a few months in advance to secure their stay. He added that they have been cash-flow positive since their inception.In August, BI was able to book a stay for SG$380 a night, less than three weeks in advance, although only a few tiny houses remained available at the time. All of the houses were full during BI's stay.<h2 id="4f271ca1-9272-4f7b-83ed-2c77ec2a4d51">Each tiny house is placed in nature</h2><div type="image" title="An accommodation in Lake Stella, New Zealand" height="3459" width="5189" msid="113509618" hostid="261" sizebytes="2539654"></div>Seven years on, Big Tiny has placed more than 400 tiny houses in more than 10 countries worldwide, from Taiwan to Europe and Australia.On Singapore's Lazarus Island, guests are surrounded by lush greenery and can swim in the sea. At Lake Stella in New Zealand, two hours north of central Christchurch, guests can hike the surrounding mountains or take a dip in the lake. In Yilan, Taiwan, guests can sleep in a tiny forest cottage and gaze at the stars when night falls.<div type="image" title="The cofounders of Big Tiny take a selfie" height="2736" width="3648" msid="113509620" hostid="261" sizebytes="240580"></div><h2 id="a0ebf152-35eb-4037-bc31-9862591a586e">Working with friends can be challenging</h2>Looking back on the journey, Chia said he learned that ideas never come fully formed. "When I was speaking with Dave, it was just an idea of putting tiny houses in rural areas so that people can recharge themselves in nature," he said.He said they never thought they could build tiny houses in his own garden — let alone transport them worldwide.And although <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/business-partnership-ended-friendship-partners-friends-2024-1">working with close friends</a> can be tricky, Chia credits their successful collaboration to clearly defining their roles.While Chia oversees revenue and strategic development, Ng heads operations and production, and Yeo focuses on branding."Whenever we face problems, we will call for a discussion. Everyone will have ideas on how to get things resolved," he said."But at the end of the day, the person leading the aspect of the business will take ownership and decide on what is the best course ahead."

How 3 friends without any hospitality experience started renting out over 400 tiny homes in remote locations around the world

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Jordan, 48, moved from Vancouver, Canada, to Japan to teach English over 20 years ago.</li><li>After a decade of living in an old house built in the '80s, he demolished it and built a new one for his family.</li></ul>Jordan, 48, has been <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-zone-okinawa-japan-expat-lifestyle-advice-tips-travel-diet-2023-9">living in Japan</a> for over twenty years.Growing up in <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/living-in-city-where-tv-shows-are-filmed-vancouver-canadian-2024-2">Vancouver</a>, which has a large Asian population, he had always been curious about Asia."I started meeting a lot of really cool people from Japan, including my future wife at the time, who was studying in Vancouver. And I thought, 'OK, well, I'm going to check it out firsthand,'" Jordan told Business Insider.His original plan was to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-to-know-before-moving-to-japan-westerner-2024-2">teach English in Japan</a> for a few years. But as he fell in love and eventually got married, he ended up staying in the country for good.<div type="image" title="A man smiling at the camera while standing on a street in Japan" height="2448" width="3264" msid="113046629" hostid="261" sizebytes="478630"></div>Jordan, who has two kids, asked to be identified by only his first name to protect his privacy. He now lives with his family in his wife's hometown in Mie Prefecture, which is just under four hours by car from <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/best-japanese-cities-to-visit-according-to-frequent-traveler-2024-7">Osaka</a>.<h2 id="534eeca9-e70e-4159-92b7-d60f67b3f99a">Settling down in the countryside</h2>They wanted to be in the same neighborhood as his wife's family, so when a house — built in the '80s and across the rice field from her parents' home — went on the market one day, they bought it and moved in.<div type="image" title="The old house." height="1608" width="2144" msid="113046631" hostid="261" sizebytes="66276"></div>"We kind of struggled through those 10 years living there. It was terribly designed, with bad, cheap materials like fake wood everywhere," Jordan said. "It really wasn't built to last."After a decade, the couple decided it was time to do something to improve their home. They planned on <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/diy-old-home-renovation-abandoned-japanese-guesthouse-before-after-photos-2023-3">renovating</a> but eventually decided against it."We looked into it, and basically, the advice we got back was it would be a waste of our time and money because the house probably isn't earthquake-safe," Jordan said.With the amount they'd have to spend to bring it up to the most recent building codes, they'd be better off buying or even building a new place, he said.And that's exactly what they did — they demolished their old house and built a new one in its place.<h2 id="34c85a24-264f-43cd-be76-2fa21f876e31">A fresh start</h2>The couple got help from a local company, the same people who had built his in-laws' home as well as a few houses in the area, Jordan said."We really loved the feeling of all the houses they'd built," Jordan said. "It was very woody, great use of space, really good solid materials, no frills, but modern, and clean kind of design."They already had an idea of the layout they wanted, and they worked with the company to refine the design. Once things were finalized, it was time for them to start packing up and getting ready for the demolition.<div type="image" title="An excavator tearing down a wooden home." height="1518" width="2024" msid="113046633" hostid="261" sizebytes="105116"></div>As excited as he was about the new house, watching his old home get torn down was an emotional process, Jordan said."It was really weird because my two kids basically were born more or less in that house and grew up there. We have so many memories there, good and bad," he said. "It actually hurt seeing my house come down."During the construction of their new home, Jordan and his family stayed at his in-laws' place."That was the good part about being across the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/millennial-couple-moved-bali-slow-life-build-house-start-family-2024-6">rice fields</a> from them; we just moved there for seven months," he said.<div type="image" title="A progress photo of the house as it was being built." height="3024" width="4032" msid="113046623" hostid="261" sizebytes="1071958"></div>Construction started in winter, and by fall 2020, Jordan and his family had moved into their new home.<h2 id="17932aed-a407-4935-974d-43d834fb00e5">Building a cozy family home</h2>Jordan estimates that he spent about 30 million Japanese yen, or about $200,000, on the build, and another 2 million yen on a solar-powered heating and cooling system for the home."We could have definitely built a cheaper house. We went with a very hands-on, local company that uses wood from a local mountain," Jordan said. "So you're kind of paying a little bit of a premium for that."<div type="image" title="The exterior of the house." height="2309" width="3079" msid="113046634" hostid="261" sizebytes="374462"></div>This is in addition to the 10 million Japanese yen he spent on buying the 150-square-meter plot of land 20 years ago. In Mie, the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://propertyresearch.jp/en/housing-market-report/Japan">median land price per square meter</a> was 90,066 Japanese yen in 2023.<h2 id="001273d2-fd2e-41bf-a7c2-153fdeee98e9">Facing challenges during the process</h2>All the materials, right down to the type of tiles, that were used in the home were chosen by his wife, he added.The three-bedroom home has two floors. The master bedroom, a family room, and a bathroom are on the first floor. The kitchen, living area, and the kids' bedrooms are upstairs."The main living space that I spend the most time in is kind of the kitchen and living room area, so I wanted that to be gorgeous," he said. "We have rice fields around, and mountains in the back, but when you're at the first floor, you can't really see very far. So we moved everything up to the second floor."<div type="image" title="The open-plan kitchen." height="1616" width="2155" msid="113046626" hostid="261" sizebytes="106016"></div>The main building company they worked with mostly did carpentry work, so certain jobs — like wiring and plumbing — had to be outsourced to different contractors. This sometimes led to miscommunication."People would come in, and we'd have this vision for our house that I'd assume everyone would know," Jordan said. "Our carpenter gets it. But what happens is when you hire an outside company, they come in, they look at it, and they do what they normally do."<div type="image" title="The family room downstairs." height="1620" width="2160" msid="113046630" hostid="261" sizebytes="63346"></div>"Some things were happening in a way that wasn't what we thought we agreed on," he continued.Although everything was sorted out in the end, there were moments when he worried that things wouldn't work out.Additionally, it helped that his wife and her family were involved in communicating ideas to the builders."I can speak Japanese, but there's a lot of nuance. It would've been really difficult if it was down to me explaining stuff in Japanese," he said.<h2 id="fc6b65df-b6a4-47df-b9d8-0cfab76f20c9">Appreciating Japanese culture</h2>Jordan says he succeeded in building a space that's perfect for his family.<div type="image" title="The house as viewed from the side." height="1559" width="2079" msid="113046627" hostid="261" sizebytes="170256"></div>"One of the differences is we don't feel like going out as much now because it's just comfortable to be at home," Jordan said.He's also close to the local community, and it's one of the things he really likes about Japanese culture."This is also kind of an Asian thing. It sounds negative, but the minimization of the self for the good of the community — you learn how to pull yourself in a little bit for the good of everyone else," Jordan said. "You think about how it makes everyone around you feel. That kind of thing is very practical and it makes for a community that feels good to be in."<div type="image" title="A man sitting on his patio." height="1614" width="2152" msid="113046632" hostid="261" sizebytes="86924"></div>He also likes the attitude the Japanese have toward working hard."The other thing is, in Japan, in general, if people are going to do something, they want to do it well," he said. "And I love the feeling that people take pride in what they do and that people respect others for hard work, whatever the work is."<h2 id="4d4cfcf1-0f89-44ec-bddf-7fb98666bd64">A laid-back life</h2>Jordan isn't alone in being drawn to Japan. According to the country's <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.moj.go.jp/isa/content/001415139.pdf">Ministry of Justice</a>, 2,604 Americans moved to the country in 2023, bringing the total number of American expats in Japan to 63,408.Four Americans that BI <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/americans-moving-to-japan-safety-affordability-2023-7">previously spoke with</a> cite the country's safety standards and relative affordability as reasons for making the move.Like Jordan, many of these expats are also opting to live in the countryside where they can <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/moving-to-japanese-countryside-raising-children-safety-2023-11">enjoy a slower-paced life</a> while being surrounded by the stunning natural landscapes that Japan is known for. Some of them even choose to buy and renovate <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/japan-abandoned-houses-renovations-dream-homes-akiya-2024-1">one of the country's 8 million abandoned homes</a>.As for Jordan, he loves life in Japan so much that he's started a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.youtube.com/@Jordan-inJapan">YouTube channel</a> to document it."What really motivated me was that after living in Japan for a long time, I noticed that I stopped appreciating the little things. I lost that fresh eye I used to see things with, things that I used to get so excited about," Jordan said.By picking up a camera and vlogging his experiences, Jordan says he was able to reconnect with his old self and learn to appreciate the normal, but magical things about being in Japan again.Even though he's in the rural countryside, Japan's well-connected public transport system means he's never too far from the city. He can still easily be in places like like Osaka or Nagoya in two hours, he said."You get all the benefits of living in a non-overly competitive society — where things are chill — but you can still hop on a train and be in a bustling city, which is crazy exciting," he said.Have you recently built or renovated your dream home? If you've got a story to share, get in touch with me at <a target="_blank" href="mailto:agoh@businessinsider.com">agoh@businessinsider.com</a>.

He moved from Vancouver to Japan to teach English. 20 years later, he's built a life there — and a family home in the countryside.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Officials said a 19-year-old male planned to use knives and explosives at a Taylor Swift concert.</li><li>He and another 17-year-old male are believed to have been radicalized by ISIS, authorities said.</li></ul>Austrian officials said they arrested three male teenagers on Wednesday on suspicion of planning an attack on a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna, the threat of which prompted organizers to cancel three of the singer's shows.The main suspect, a 19-year-old Austrian citizen, was arrested in the town of Ternitz, about 30 miles from Vienna, said the head of the Directorate of State Security and Intelligence, Omar Haijawi-Pirchner.Haijawi-Pirchner said at <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlTJAB_7UUw">a news conference on Thursday</a> that the suspect was planning a suicide attack with knives and explosives that would kill "as many people as possible" at the concert.Officials said they found explosives, detonators, and chemicals in the 19-year-old's home, and that he'd been researching bomb-making techniques.The young man was "clearly radicalized" by the Islamic State and had posted an oath of allegiance to the terrorist organization's leader, Haijawai-Pirchner said.He is cooperating with authorities and fully admitted to the plot, Haijawi-Pirchner added.Franz Ruf, the director-general for public safety in the Ministry of the Interior, said the suspect had planned the attack since July and has North Macedonian roots.<div type="image" title="A screen displays a photo of a young man posing with two knives. His face is blurred." height="5109" width="7384" msid="112391536" hostid="261" sizebytes="652144"></div>The other two teenagers arrested were a 15-year-old and a 17-year-old. The 17-year-old has refused to speak with authorities, who found Islamic State and Al-Qaeda propaganda in his home.The Austrian citizen, who has Turkish and Croatian roots, worked for a facilities company that was contracted to provide services at the concert venue. Authorities didn't say what services these were.Officials said he'd just broken up with his girlfriend and was seized outside the concert stadium.Neither the 19-year-old nor the 17-year-old had tickets to the shows, authorities added.Little information was provided on the 15-year-old, whom authorities said was also questioned by police.Ruf said the three suspects were in contact with other people who knew about the planned attack, but that authorities aren't looking for any other suspects.Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said foreign intelligence agencies helped uncover the plot, which led concert organizers to cancel the Eras Tour shows on Wednesday.Some <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/taylor-swift-vienna-eras-tour-cancelled-fan-experience-los-angeles-2024-8">stunned fans</a> had <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/taylor-swift-concert-vienna-canceled-devastated-but-safe-eras-tour-2024-8#:~:text=Taylor%20Swift's%20three%20shows%20in,would%20have%20been%20her%20first">already arrived from other continents</a> for the concerts scheduled for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.In lieu of the concert, scores of fans gathered near the venue on Thursday to sing Swift's songs as police looked on.<div type="image" title="Taylor Swift fans sing at their own informal gathering at Stephansplatz on August 8 in Vienna." height="4679" width="7018" msid="112391537" hostid="261" sizebytes="2450504"></div>Ewald Tatar, the head of concert organizer Barracuda Music, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.krone.at/3486790">said at a press conference</a> that the shows had been canceled for the safety of concert-goers and those outside the stadium.Tatar expected crowds of up to 15,000 people to gather in the hours before the shows began, which would build to nearly 100,000 people inside and outside the stadium before Swift took the stage."I have to say that, despite everything, I am very happy with this decision," Tatar told reporters, saying management had made the "right" choice.Barracuda Music has said all tickets will be refunded within 10 days.Europe has been on high alert for ISIS-related attacks on pop concerts, after several mass attacks were carried out by the group, including a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ariana-grande-pays-tribute-to-manchester-bombing-victims-2018-5">bombing in Manchester</a> that killed 22 people at an Ariana Grande concert in 2017.

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