Paris: From the huge leaps in artificial intelligence to the incredible achievements on display at the European Football Championship, here are five figures who will leave an indelible mark in 2024:
Jensen Huang: Chip tycoon
Amid all the frenetic excitement — and anxiety — that AI has generated in 2024, one AI chip giant has broken away from the pack: Nvidia, led by CEO Jensen Huang.
During the year, Nvidia overtook Apple to become the world’s most valuable public company as the artificial intelligence boom continues to excite Wall Street.
Taiwan-born Huang, who made a statement in his signature black leather jacket, founded Nvidia three decades ago.
The roots of its new success lie in graphics processors, or cards, chips with much more computing power than traditional microprocessors.
Initially developed to improve the graphics quality of video games, Huang has discovered that the technology is well-suited for developing large language models that support generative AI.
Yulia Navalnaya: A stubborn critic of the Kremlin
“My political opponent is Vladimir Putin, and I am trying to do that and will do my best to overthrow his regime as soon as possible,” Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, said in October.
Navalnaya, 48, a trained economist, has remained in the spotlight as part of her pledge to continue her husband’s work after his death last February in an Arctic prison.
She has lobbied against Putin’s government from abroad, including calling on Russians on election day in March to form long lines outside polling stations in protest.
In July, Navalnaya, who lives outside Russia, was added to Moscow’s blacklist of “terrorists and extremists.”
Giselle Bellicot: Feminist Icon
Gisèle Bellicot, 72, was at the center of one of France’s most high-profile trials, making headlines around the world.
Her ex-husband, Dominic Bellicot, admitted drugging his then-wife with tranquilizers so strangers could sexually assault her in her bed for nearly a decade. He and 50 other men are on trial.
This case has shed a very disturbing light on male attitudes and violence towards women.
In a move that received global support, Giselle Bellicot insisted that the trial should be open to the public.
“I wanted all women who are victims of rape to say to themselves: ‘Mrs Bellicott did it,’ so we could do it too,” she said.
Lamine Yamal: a prodigy in football
One of Spain’s winger kings, Lamine Yamal, 17, has become a global football star after forming part of the most courageous and explosive attack at this year’s Euro 2024 tournament.
He and fellow young winger Neco Williams were hailed as the attacking magicians who inspired Spain to their fourth men’s European Championship title.
The baby-faced Yamal, who wears braces, came through FC Barcelona’s youth team and is now one of the most exciting talents in the squad.
During Euro 2024, he became the youngest player ever to score a goal in the competition at the age of 16 and celebrated his 17th birthday on the eve of the final.
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said about his player during the tournament: “We saw a genius, the product of a genius.”
Yamal was named the best young player of the tournament.
Charli XCX: The “brat” phenomenon.
British pop star Charli XCX was already one of the top stars of 2024 with her hugely successful album “Brat.”
Then Kamala Harris jumped into the US presidential campaign just 100 days ago.
The “naughty summer” meme sparked by the 32-year-old pop star’s album with its lime green cover and celebration of a relaxed, festive lifestyle became associated with Harris when fans began applying the colorful “naughty” filter to photos of the candidate.
Charli
In November, just days before Harris’ bid for the presidency ended in defeat at the ballot box, Collins Dictionary chose “brat” as its word of the year.