Aaron Swartz: Reddit founder and internet’s own boy in new documentary August 27, 2014 "He was the internet’s own boy and the old world killed him”. This eloquent epitaph is provided by journalist Quinn Norton, an ex-girlfriend of Aaron Swartz and one of many who talk tearfully of Swartz in a documentary, The Internet’s Own Boy, released this weekend. Swartz was indeed the internet’s boy but it was his [...]
Why the future is collaborative for banks and fintech August 27, 2014 THE INTRODUCTION of paper money revolutionised the way we exchanged goods and services. Now, the booming UK financial technology (fintech) sector is fast changing the way we bank, invest and raise money. Thanks to a large and sophisticated consumer market, a high concentration of global financial institutions, and the availability of capital, fintech has found [...]
Next generation finance: How London can cement its leadership in fintech August 19, 2014 The launch of Innovate Finance, a new body dedicated to supporting fintech (or financial technology) in the UK, at Canary Wharf this month highlighted London’s ability to become the global centre of the sector. They say there is no “fin” in San Francisco and no “tech” in New York – but there is certainly both [...]
Keep burglars at bay with this home security tech August 13, 2014 Thousands of us are preparing to head for the hills for the last few weeks of summer, squeezing in a few precious days of R&R before the long slog towards Christmas. But leaving a home full of laptops and expensive jewellery can be a persistant niggle – and replacing them in the event of a [...]
George Osborne makes a quick buck on £20 Bitcoin buy at Level 39 August 6, 2014 As the Chancellor of the Exchequer, you might expect George Osborne would like to keep his own pocket money in good old, Bank of England-regulated, sterling. But it’s apparent a trip to trendy FinTech den Level 39 has left Osborne with a sense of adventure – he’s gone where no chancellor has gone before – [...]
The iPhone 6: Apple rumours swirling as September release date approaches August 6, 2014 It seems like an age since Apple boss Tim Cook took to the stage to unveil the iPhone 5S, probably the strongest “mid-release” upgrade since the inception of the iPhone. That saw the introduction of the fingerprint reader and a faster processor that dragged mobile gaming into a new league. But once again, Apple’s rivals [...]
Eight ways technology has reinvented fiction July 16, 2014 At a recent lecture in Oxford, Will Self announced the death of the novel. The internet, he said, has mercilessly invaded the silent, solitary leisure time we once filled with “serious” reading. As a result, serious books will no longer feature as a central part of culture. Like classical music, they will continue to exist, [...]
UK’s £4bn app economy is the biggest in Europe June 26, 2014 The app economy in the UK is the biggest in Europe and set to generate £4bn revenue by the end of the year, cementing the country’s position as the leading tech hub outside of the US. The UK generates more than a third of app revenue produced across Europe and employs just under a fifth [...]
Shares in software group Adobe head for the cloud June 17, 2014 SOFTWARE giant Adobe Systems last night topped growth expectations on the strength of its cloud computing wares. The Nasdaq-listed group said revenues totalled $1.07bn (£631m) in the second quarter, beating its targeted range of between $1bn and $1.05bn. Operating income rose 22 per cent to $135m. More than half of its revenues came from subscription [...]
London now has bigger fintech sector than Silicon Valley or New York June 16, 2014 London is now the biggest global centre for financial technology firms, beating both Silicon Valley and New York based on the number of people the industry employs. There are 44,000 people working in fintech in London, compared to 43,000 in New York and just 11,000 in Silicon Valley, according to research by South Mountain [...]