The launch of the first autistic Barbie doll has been welcomed by campaigners and charities as a step towards more “authentic, joyful” representation for neurodivergent children.

The doll features specific design choices intended to reflect some experiences to which autistic people might relate.

These include loose clothing to ensure less fabric-to-skin contact and an eye gaze slightly to the side, to represent the way some autistic people might avoid direct eye contact.

Each doll also comes with a pink fidget spinner to reduce stress and improve focus, and noise-cancelling headphones to block out background sounds and therefore limit sensory overload.

Creators Mattel said the doll “invites more children to see themselves represented in Barbie”.

The finished product was created with input from the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) in an effort to hear first-hand from the autistic community on the kinds of features the doll should have.

The network described the doll as a “milestone” in representation and said it was “thrilled” to help with the design, adding: “It is so important for young autistic people to see authentic, joyful representations of themselves, and that’s exactly what this doll is.”

Other features include moveable elbows and wrists to allow gestures which creators said might be used by some autistic people to process sensory information or express excitement, and a pink tablet symbolising the way some people might use digital tools to help with their everyday communication.

Ellie Middleton, an autistic writer who regularly shares her experiences online, described the doll as a “powerful symbol” for young girls in feeling accepted.

She said: “To now have an autistic Barbie doll makes me so emotional.

“Statistics show that young girls are often undiagnosed or misdiagnosed, so to have a powerful symbol like this autistic Barbie doll helps bring the conversation around neurodivergence in women to the forefront, so that autistic girls can feel accepted and seen.”

The National Autistic Society (NAS) cautioned that, given autism is a spectrum, it is “important to remember autistic people can be very different to each other, with different sets of strengths and challenges”.

The society describes autism as a “lifelong neurodivergence and disability” which influences how people experience and interact with the world.

It estimates more than one in 100 people are autistic and that there are at least 700,000 autistic adults and children in the UK.

NAS managing director of national programmes, Peter Watt, said: “Seeing more depictions of autism is key to understanding and autism acceptance.

“It’s really important that these representations are authentic and based on extensive consultation with autistic people, and we’re pleased Mattel involved the autistic community in the development of this doll.

“It is positive to see authentic autistic representation on TV and films, the arts and in play, as better public understanding of autism across society could transform hundreds of thousands of autistic people’s lives.”

Mattel has, in what it described as efforts to create a brand with a more inclusive reflection of the children who play with its products, previously created diabetic and blind Barbies and a doll with Down’s syndrome.

New Delhi: The government has refuted media report that said the center is proposing to force smartphone makers to share source code with the government. 

A Reuters report has said that India has proposed to force smartphone manufacturers to share their source code as part of a security overhaul. 

Fact-checking agency PIB has refuted the media claim. PIB has stated that the claim being made in this post is misleading.

A news report by @Reuters claims that India proposes forcing smartphone manufacturers to share their source code as part of a security overhaul.

_ #PIBFactCheck

_ This claim is #FAKE

__ The Government of India has NOT proposed any measure to force smartphone manufacturers to_ pic.twitter.com/0bnw0KQL9Q
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) January 11, 2026

“This claim is FAKE. The Government of India has NOT proposed any measure to force smartphone manufacturers to share their source code,” PIB has tweeted.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has started the process of stakeholders’ consultations to devise the most appropriate regulatory framework for mobile security. This is a part of regular and routine consultations with the industry for any safety or security standards. Once a stakeholder consultation is done, then various aspects of security standards are discussed with the industry.

No final regulations have been framed, and any future framework will be formulated only after due consultations, it added.

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US President Donald Trump said that he may bar ExxonMobil from operating in Venezuela, criticising the oil giant after its leadership questioned the viability of investing in the country after the capture of former president Nicolas Maduro by US forces. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday as he departed West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump said he was unhappy with the company’s stance. “I didn’t like Exxon’s response,” he said. “They’re playing too cute.” The remarks came days after Trump met oil executives on Friday in an effort to calm industry concerns about Venezuela. During the meeting, he told companies that any engagement would be handled directly with the United States rather than through the Venezuelan government. However, not all executives were reassured. Darren Woods, chief executive of ExxonMobil, described the current situation in stark terms. “If we look at the commercial constructs and frameworks in place today in Venezuela, today it’s uninvestable,” he said. On the same day, Trump also signed an executive order aimed at protecting Venezuelan oil revenues from being used in judicial proceedings. The order, released publicly on Saturday, warned that allowing such funds to be seized could “undermine critical US efforts to ensure economic and political stability in Venezuela.” The country has long faced state asset seizures, US sanctions and prolonged political uncertainty. Securing investment from US oil companies to help rebuild Venezuela’s infrastructure has become a key objective of the Trump administration following Maduro’s capture. The White House has presented the approach as an economic strategy, with Trump already having seized tankers transporting Venezuelan oil, announced that the US is taking control of the sale of 30 million to 50 million barrels of previously sanctioned crude, and stated plans to oversee those sales globally on an indefinite basis.