Software and IT careers

AI & computing3 Nov, 5:40 pm · 5 min read

GitHub says AI agents now start more than 40% of pull requests

GitHub's 2026 Octoverse counts 1.3 billion merged pull requests in a year, more than double 2025, and says agents now open a large share of the work.

For you: Pull requests are where software is reviewed before it ships. If agents now start a large share of them, the scarce skill moves from typing code to specifying, reviewing and testing it. That changes what a computer engineering graduate needs to be good at, and how a portfolio should show it.

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AI & computing28 Oct, 6:55 am · 3 min read

TypeScript 7.1 Beta cuts build time by up to 47 percent on one large project

The Microsoft TypeScript team published measured build-time and memory changes against 7.0, along with new import and library features.

For you: Type checking runs on every save, every pull request and every CI job. When it gets faster, the feedback loop for a developer gets shorter. The post also shows how a compiler team reports a benchmark: named projects, a fixed thread count and both time and memory.

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AI & computing18 Oct, 2:17 pm · 5 min read

Microsoft says Windows 11 feels up to 20% more responsive

The October update targets everyday delays across Start, Search and File Explorer, with Microsoft also changing update and Bluetooth experiences.

For you: Operating-system responsiveness depends on many small delays, not just processor speed. The update gives users and developers a reminder that memory management, startup work, search and device pairing all shape how fast a computer feels.

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AI & computing11 Oct, 3:09 pm · 5 min read

Python 3.15 ships with lazy imports, frozendict and a faster JIT

Python 3.15.0 arrived on 9 October with UTF-8 as the default encoding, explicit lazy imports, a new frozendict type and a quicker experimental JIT.

For you: Python is widely used for AI, data and scripting work, including in student lab projects. The UTF-8 default removes a common source of broken files on Windows laptops, which matters for anyone handling Nepali Devanagari text. Python 3.10 reached end of life on 1 October 2026, so projects and college lab machines still on old versions should plan an upgrade. Reading the release notes is a cheap way to learn how a large open-source project manages change.

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AI & computing11 Oct, 2:44 pm · 5 min read

GitHub Copilot agents can now fix review comments and merge PRs

September updates to Copilot in VS Code added an agent merge mode, scheduled automations and pull requests from Copilot, Claude or Codex sessions.

For you: Pull requests, code review and continuous integration are how professional teams ship software, and these tools now automate parts of that loop. A graduate who already knows Git, writes clear PR descriptions and can judge whether a test failure is real will get more out of these agents than one who does not. Students can practise on their own GitHub projects; GitHub offers free Copilot access to verified students. The sandboxing feature is a reminder to limit what an agent can touch on your machine.

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AI & computing11 Oct, 1:55 pm · 5 min read

Nepali IT firms pitch to European buyers on UK and Swiss roadshow

NAS-IT took Nepali software and AI companies to London and Zurich in September to look for clients, as the sector's exports near $1 billion a year.

For you: IT services are an export sector Nepal is working to grow, and the work it brings in is the software and services work computer engineering graduates are trained for. The services these firms pitched, AI, cloud, cybersecurity and data engineering, are a useful guide to which electives and side projects make a CV stand out. Working for foreign clients from Kathmandu also needs clear English writing, documentation and project-management habits, skills that are easy to practise during a degree.

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AI & computing11 Oct, 1:37 pm · 5 min read

Java 27 turns on post-quantum TLS and makes G1 the default collector

JDK 27 reached general availability on 15 September with nine JEPs, including hybrid post-quantum key exchange for TLS 1.3 and smaller object headers.

For you: Java still runs a large share of bank, telecom and enterprise back-end systems, and it is common in object-oriented programming courses. Post-quantum TLS arriving by default in a mainstream runtime shows that quantum-safe cryptography is moving from research papers into ordinary software, a topic worth following in a network security elective. Students preparing for jobs should know that employers usually standardise on long-term releases such as JDK 21 or 25, so learn the new features but expect to work on an LTS version.

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AI & computing11 Oct, 1:31 pm · 5 min read

Nepal begins rewriting its school curriculum, with AI on the agenda

A national task force is consulting all seven provinces on a new Grade 1 to 12 curriculum, with a committee on artificial intelligence and ICT.

For you: Students now in +2 will not study under the new curriculum, but their younger siblings may, and the change will shape what first-year engineering students already know a few years from now. If AI and computing enter school teaching, schools will need teachers and content creators who understand the subject, which is a possible path for computer engineering graduates. It also signals that the government sees digital skills as basic education, which tends to raise demand for engineering training.

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