Michael Dell, Lord Johnson and the ‘gun to the head’ meeting that ended a £15bn AI project July 30, 2026 In December, billionaire Michael Dell opened an alarming email. “My trust in Mr Bellamy has been undermined by the way he has operated”, the email read, “and I cannot be certain the information he shared with you is accurate or complete”. The mysterious missive was sent by Patrick Hughes, the co-founder of a major new [...]
Here’s the right way to criticise the media July 30, 2026 Did you catch Elon Musk’s blockbuster 90-minute interview with the Economist editor Zanny Minton Beddoes? It starts off with Musk’s predictions about the future of AI, which are interesting and alarming in equal measure. A lot of them sound far-fetched – will we really never need to work again in 10 years’ time? – but [...]
It’s not up to retail investors to revive the London Stock Market July 30, 2026 The British Isa has once again reared its head. We report this week that Standard Life chair Nicholas Lyons has argued that the tax-free wrapper on a stocks and shares Isa should be restricted to investments in UK assets. “Do we really want to be lowering the cost of capital for American companies by giving [...]
Vehicle production drops in first half of year July 30, 2026 British car manufacturers produced considerably fewer vehicles in the first six months of this year, according to fresh figures from the industry’s largest trade group which warned that tariffs and domestic policy decisions were weighing on an already struggling sector. Vehicle production fell by 7.5 per cent between January and July compared to the same [...]
World Cup sponsors could pay price if Infantino’s Fifa sell-off goes ahead July 29, 2026 It’s not just match-going football fans who fear the financial ramifications of Fifa’s sell-off of commercial rights; World Cup sponsors could also find themselves paying more or getting less for their money, experts have warned. Sponsors currently contribute around a quarter of Fifa’s $15bn income over a four-year cycle and include some of the biggest [...]
AI firms targeting London’s rare book shops in ‘dystopian’ hunt for training data July 29, 2026 London’s rare book shops appear to have been targeted by AI companies searching for books to train their models, after court documents revealed Anthropic bought, scanned and destroyed millions of physical books as part of a controversial project to feed an insatiable demand for training data. One London-based seller of rare books told City AM [...]
Ofgem data centre crackdown risks ‘driving AI investors away’ from UK July 29, 2026 Ofgem’s plans to crack down on speculative data centre projects have prompted warnings that new grid connection fees could make Britain a less attractive destination for AI investment, even as the industry backs efforts to clear stalled schemes from the queue. The regulator has launched a consultation on proposals to free up electricity grid capacity [...]
Fifa World Cup sell-off is a money-grab and faces defeat, says Uefa July 29, 2026 Uefa has warned Fifa it is facing defeat in its plans to sell stakes in a new subsidiary that will run the World Cup and accused it of using football to “enrich themselves and their friends”. Fifa president Gianni Infantino wants to set up a spin-off company to manage the commercial rights to the World [...]
Trump warns Iran: ‘We’re going to beat the f***ing s*** out of them’ July 29, 2026 Donald Trump has vowed to hit back at Iran after it launched “surprise” strikes against US forces in the Middle East last night. “We’re going to beat the f***ing s*** out of them. We’ll be hitting them hard. They’re going to get a beating,” the US President told Fox News on Wednesday. Oil prices have [...]
Industry backs mooted Burnham plans for return of alcohol on football terraces July 29, 2026 Industry has backed mooted government plans to consult on allowing football fans to drink alcohol on the terraces for the first time in more than 40 years. Fans of clubs in the football league were barred from drinking in view of the pitch in the 1980s to stop football hooligans from fighting. But the Prime [...]