Big ideas are easy to talk about. Bringing them to life is harder. Karan Gupta has built his career on doing both. He works at the intersection of technology, design, and storytelling. His focus is simple. Build things that people actually use and care about.

“I’ve always been interested in how ideas move from concept to reality,” Karan says. “Execution is where most ideas either succeed or fall apart.”

His journey shows how that mindset developed over time.

Early Life: Growing Up Around Innovation

Karan Gupta grew up in San Francisco. The environment around him played a big role in shaping his thinking. He was exposed to technology, creativity, and constant change at a young age.

“I didn’t see innovation as something abstract,” he explains. “It was part of everyday life.”

This early exposure sparked his interest in how products are built and how people interact with them. It also helped him see that technology is not just about tools. It is about people.

UC Berkeley: Learning by Building

Karan attended the University of California, Berkeley. He studied Media Studies and Entrepreneurship. But his most important lessons came outside the classroom.

During college, he launched a digital magazine and a city-focused podcast. These projects gave him real experience in building and managing ideas.

“I wanted to test what I was learning in real time,” he says. “You learn a lot faster when you actually put something out into the world.”

The digital magazine focused on content and audience engagement. The podcast explored local culture and community stories. Both projects required consistent effort and adaptability.

“These weren’t just school projects,” Karan explains. “They were experiments in understanding what people respond to.”

Through this work, he learned how to create, manage, and grow an audience. He also learned how to handle feedback.

“If people don’t connect with what you’re building, you need to adjust,” he says. “That’s part of the process.”

Career Path: Building in Technology and Creative Industries

After graduating, Karan moved into roles across the technology and creative industries. His work focused on digital strategy, user experience, and brand storytelling.

He became known for combining creativity with structure. This allowed him to turn ideas into clear, usable products and campaigns.

“Creativity is important,” he says. “But without structure, it doesn’t go anywhere.”

Over time, he took on leadership roles. He worked with teams to develop campaigns and build products that reached different audiences.

“People don’t engage with complexity,” Karan explains. “They engage with clarity.”

His approach is based on simplifying ideas. He focuses on making sure that users understand what they are seeing and why it matters.

How Karan Gupta Brings Ideas to Life

A key part of Karan’s work is execution. He believes that ideas only matter if they are carried through to completion.

“Anyone can have a good idea,” he says. “The challenge is following through.”

He focuses on a few core principles:

• Start with a clear goal
• Understand the audience
• Build, test, and adjust

“These steps sound simple,” he says. “But they require discipline.”

His experience with early projects helped shape this mindset. Launching a magazine and podcast taught him that progress comes from action, not planning alone.

“You can’t wait for everything to be perfect,” he adds. “You have to start.”

Leadership Style: Building Strong Teams

As Karan’s career grew, so did his role as a leader. He now focuses on building teams that can execute effectively.

“My role is to help people do their best work,” he says.

He believes in clear communication and shared direction. He also values collaboration.

“Good ideas can come from anywhere,” he explains. “You need to create space for that.”

His leadership style is practical. He focuses on results, but also on process.

“If the process is strong, the outcomes usually follow,” he says.

Mentorship and Giving Back

Outside of his main work, Karan spends time mentoring young creatives and entrepreneurs. He sees this as a natural extension of his career.

“I had guidance early on,” he says. “It made a difference.”

He now shares what he has learned with others. His focus is on helping people build skills and confidence.

“Talent is important,” he says. “But mindset is what drives long-term growth.”

He encourages young professionals to stay curious and take action.

“Don’t overthink the first step,” he adds. “Just start building.”

Life Outside Work: Staying Creative

Karan’s personal interests reflect his professional mindset. He enjoys photography, travel, and exploring new ideas.

“Seeing new places helps you think differently,” he says.

He also spends time exploring San Francisco and experimenting with food. These activities help him stay creative.

“Taking a step back often leads to better ideas,” he explains.

A Career Built on Execution and Clarity

Karan Gupta’s career is not defined by one role or title. It is defined by a consistent approach. Start with an idea. Build it. Improve it. Repeat.

“I try to focus on what actually works,” he says. “Not just what sounds good.”

His work shows that success often comes from simple principles applied well. Clear thinking. Strong execution. And a focus on people.

In a fast-moving industry, those fundamentals continue to matter. And for Karan, they remain at the center of everything he builds.

Sarah Gibson has raised the issue of the Hills Waste “rotten egg smell” in Parliament

A Wiltshire MP is urging the Prime Minister to help provide answers on a “disgusting egg-like smell” that is impacting people living near a landfill site in the county. Thousands of people have complained about the “Calne pong” coming from the Hills Waste site in Lower Compton, with residents reporting headaches and breathing difficulties.

Liberal Democrat minister Sarah Gibson raised the issue with Sir Keir Starmer at PMQs this week, saying she wanted to “reassure” residents of the town “they are not suffering from ill health”.

“We have a landfill site in Calne that is producing sulphurous smells that are causing residents to need to close their windows, causing children to have sore throats and yet I am not getting any answer except that the Environment Agency (EA) itself admits that controls may not be working effectively,” Ms Gibson said.

“Like my constituents I find it really disappointing that we are not getting any serious response. This is not the kind of thing you expect in the UK. You do not expect the air you breathe not to be safe and I would like to urge the PM to help me in getting a response from Defra and from the EA on what measures can be put in place to reassure my constituents.”

The Prime Minister thanked Ms Gibson for raising the issue in Parliament.

“I will make sure I will go away and chase up that she gets the reply, and importantly, that they are entitled to,” Sir Keir said in response.

‘It’s very worrying’

Emily, a mum-of-two who lives in Calne, said she had “woken up gagging from the smell”.

“We smell it every day and it’s disgusting,” she said. “My mum stayed at our house and said it smelt like a drain had burst. My daughter has noticed it too; it’s just vile. I want to be able to enjoy these lovely spring mornings, but you can’t breathe in or outside your house.”

Another Calne resident who lives near the waste site said the “rotten-egg stink” was “revolting” and she was concerned it would get worse in the hot weather.

“It’s very worrying,” she told Business Live. “It’s good to hear the issue has been raised in Parliament, but something needs to be done soon. The smell is horrible.”

Last year, the EA confirmed the landfill site was likely to be responsible for the odour after an investigation lasting months – and it served Hills with an enforcement notice ordering a programme of landfill capping to reduce smells escaping from the site.

But since the beginning of 2026 the EA has received nearly 3,000 more complaints about the odour. In March and April, the government agency carried out more than 60 inspections of the Lower Compton area and it is understood the main source of the smell is a current open landfill cell on the site. The EA has acknowledged the increase in complaints this year suggests the current site controls are not working effectively.

It has said there is “no indication of an immediate risk to people’s health”, however.

“The community should not have to tolerate odours that significantly affect their environment, and we are continuing to investigate complaints made in Calne and the surrounding area, alongside our partners Wiltshire Council and the UK Health Security Agency,” an EA spokesperson said.

“While landfills and other waste activities will generate smells, the impact should be minimal, and the recent increase in odour reports indicates controls may not be working effectively.

“We have traced landfill gas odour to a specific part of Lower Compton Landfill and have required the operators to provide an action plan identifying how they will minimise odour. Several mitigation measures are already in place, including changes to daily cover materials, installation of temporary gas wells, connection of additional gas collection points, and extensive soil covering.”

As Business Live understands, Hills is co-operating fully with the EA and has developed proposals to tackle the problem, including changing how waste at the site is covered up.

“Hills is aware of a recent increase in complaints relating to odour in the Calne area,” a spokesperson for the company told Business Live.

“We take this matter very seriously, and where this is attributed to our landfill activities at Lower Compton, we would like to apologise.

“As a responsible business, we continually monitor and seek to improve operations at our Lower Compton landfill site. Working with the Environment Agency, we have agreed an action plan of immediate and longer term works to help reduce fugitive emissions of landfill gas.”

The EA is continuing to carry out assessments around the site, including early in the morning and in the evening when “the pong” is most commonly reported.

It has also installed an air-quality monitoring station within the community and is planning to provide the data to the UK Health and Security Agency for analysis.

Meanwhile, it is understood Hills is using a water-based system to reduce odour molecules being emitted from the site and is preparing to carry out more regular capping – a process that involves sealing a closed landfill with material such as clay to create a barrier and isolate waste from the environment.

The company is planning to start a 13-week programme of works on May 11 to cap over certain sections of the site. Other actions include the installation of extra gas collection points and covering large areas of the site in soil.

“We recently welcomed Sarah Gibson MP on a tour of the Lower Compton site to explain our action plan, and we will be keeping Sarah and other local elected representatives regularly updated on the progress of these works,” the Hills spokesperson added. “Updates will also be shared on our website.”

U.S. stocks advanced on Thursday and the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq logged their biggest monthly gains in years as solid corporate earnings offset the war-related oil supply shock that has rattled markets and sent crude prices to four-year highs.

But oil prices eased and economic data showed the U.S. economy continues to grow at a healthy pace, helping as investors geopolitical tensions and close the book on a month of solid gains.

The rally ‌gained momentum throughout the ⁠session, pushing all ⁠three major U.S. stock indexes sharply higher.

“A lot of the economic data calmed investors’ fears,” said Paul Nolte, senior wealth adviser & market strategist at Murphy & Sylvest in Elmhurst, Illinois. “Beyond that, you’ve got some pretty good earnings from a lot of different companies, and we’re seeing that broaden out today.”

“Until we see some changes to the market dynamic, as well as the economy, the momentum is on the bullish side,” Nolte added.

Industrials, powered by Caterpillar shares, put the Dow out front, while technology limited the Nasdaq’s gains in the wake of a spate of high-profile quarterly results released late Wednesday.
Four members of the Magnificent Seven group of artificial intelligence-related megacaps reported late Wednesday: Alphabet , Amazon, Meta Platforms and Microsoft. Alphabet jumped ⁠after reporting ‌a record quarter for its cloud unit. Meta and Microsoft shares slid on concerns over artificial intelligence-related expenditures.

“The spending continues to be at pace,” Nolte said. “They’re seeing still very robust growth and some are starting to report a return on the investment, which ⁠is new.”

Apple, another Magnificent Seven constituent, was slated to report after the bell.

According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 gained 74.29 points, or 1.04%, to end at 7,210.24 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 223.15 points, or 0.90%, to 24,890.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 796.27 points, or 1.63%, to 49,658.08.

CRUDE PRICES, INFLATION AND THE FED

A raft of economic data showed the U.S. economy grew by 2.0% in the first three months of 2026, while initial jobless claims dipped to their lowest since 1969 and soaring energy prices kept year-on-year inflation above 3%, thwarting hopes of near-term rate cuts from the Federal Reserve as Jerome Powell’s eight-year tenure as chair draws to a close.

“For now, we can label (inflation) as transitory,” said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan ‌Capital Securities in New York. “However, if the war continues and energy prices do not come down from the present levels, that transitory inflation will become constant inflation and certainly a major headache for the Federal Reserve.” On Wednesday, in its most divided vote since 1992, the central bank let its key interest ⁠rate stand, while acknowledging uncertainties related to heightened crude prices due to the conflict in the Middle East. That conflict showed no sign of abating, with Iran warning of retribution if the United States abandons its ceasefire and renews its attacks, suggesting that efforts to negotiate a peace deal have hit an impasse. Top U.S. military leaders were expected to brief President Donald Trump on potential military action in Iran, a U.S. official told Reuters.

The possibility of protracted war, long-term disruption of traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, and the prolonged pressure on energy prices have dampened hopes for near-term policy easing from monetary policymakers. Eli Lilly surged after the drugmaker raised its annual profit forecast on sustained weight-loss drug demand. Caterpillar shares jumped to a record high following the company’s reported rise in first-quarter profit due to strong demand for its power generation and construction equipment.

Laurus Labs reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 279 crore in the March-ended quarter versus Rs 234 crore in the year ago period, implying a 19% uptick. The profit after tax (PAT) is attributable to the equity holders of the company. The company’s revenue from operations in Q4FY26 stood at Rs 1,812 crore compared to Rs 1,720 crore in the corresponding quarter of the last financial year, rising by 5%.

The PAT is up 11% quarter-on-quarter from Rs 252 crore in Q3FY26 while the topline was 2% higher sequentially versus Rs 1,778 crore in the October-December quarter of FY26.

The Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) in the quarter under review stood at Rs 523 crore, rising 10% over Rs 477 crore in Q4FY25. It was 8% higher sequentially.

Company’s gross margins stood at 61.4%, up from 54.5% in the year ago period. It rose 690 bps YoY and 50 bps QoQ.

The R & D spends were reported at Rs 76 crore which is 4.2% of revenues.

The company’s board of directors approved the payment of second interim dividend of Rs 1.20 for the financial year 2025-26 and has fixed May 8, 2026 as the record date for determining the eligibility of the shareholders. The Dividend amount will be paid on or after May 20, 2026.
The net profit for FY26 stood at Rs 889 crore, which increased 148% from Rs 358 crore in FY25. The revenues in FY26 stood at Rs 6,813 crore, which increased 23% driven by continued strong growth across both CDMO and Affordable Medicine (Generics) division.The full-year EBITDA stood at Rs 1,826 crore, which increased by 64% YoY.

The company in its filing to the exchanges said strong OCF (operating cash flow) was due to higher EBITDA and improved net working capital. The net debt to EBITDA reduction was largely in line and better operating leverage drove ROCE while CAPEX momentum continued.

(Disclaimer: The recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times.)

Americans are increasingly turning to TikTok Shop to buy shampoo, jewelry and apparel. Retailers have noticed, pushing onto the platform with their own virtual stores.

Ralph Lauren and Olaplex Holdings moved onto the platform late last year, while Ulta Beauty launched its store in March. They follow early adopters like Crocs, Revolve Group and L’Oréal in the race to capture scrolling shoppers. “You want to be where the consumer is, and increasingly, that’s obviously on social media and online,” said Olivia Tong, a managing director at Raymond James.

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Gold is back in the geopolitical crosshairs, caught between safe-haven demand and prospects of higher interest rates for longer.

Persistent geopolitical uncertainty is expected to drive investment demand and central-bank buying this year, according to the World Gold Council. Yet, the same forces are pushing oil prices higher, stoking inflation and reinforcing expectations of elevated interest rates—traditionally a headwind for non-interest-bearing assets like gold.

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