Richard Branson’s right hand man: Mastering rail is ‘harder than space’ June 8, 2022 Mastering rail is “harder than space”, according to one space veteran, formerly Richard Branson’s right-hand man in the making of Virgin Galactic and Virgin Orbit. As Britain prepares to launch satellites from its own soil for the first time this summer, unions are set to bring the country’s rail network to a standstill in later this month. Speaking on [...]
TikTok exec who ‘didn’t believe’ in maternity leave takes step back June 8, 2022 TikTok has launched a formal investigation into comments from a senior exec at its parent firm ByteDance, who said at a staff dinner in London that as a “capitalist”, he “didn’t believe” companies should offer maternity leave.
Soonicorn to unicorn: Euan Blair’s apprenticeship outfit Multiverse hits $1bn valuation after new funding round June 8, 2022 Multiverse, the professional apprenticeship start-up founded by Euan Blair, has hit a valuation of $1.7bn (£1.3bn) after completing a $220m (£175m) series D funding round. The round – co-led by StepStone Group and returning investors Lightspeed and General Catalyst – doubles the London-based firm’s valuation from just eight months ago, and will be used in [...]
Untapped tech adoption could boost UK economy by £232bn annually June 8, 2022 Accelerated digitalisation of British small and medium firms would inject £448bn into the UK economy, according to fresh research from Sage. With small and medium businesses’ (SMBs) tech usage currently contributing £216bn to the UK economy, the FTSE 100 firm found that SMBs could add an extra £232bn if technology was fully utilised across the [...]
Online Safety Bill: Government called to water down executive influence on Ofcom June 7, 2022 The government have been urged to water down the powers of the Secretary of State in the Online Safety Bill, suggesting it threatens the legitimacy of the law moving forward.
Yes, people do want Apple’s ‘meat and potato upgrades,’ says analyst June 7, 2022 Apple rolled out a slew of features for payments and business collaboration yesterday. An analyst discusses the changes. Watch the full video report.
Satellite Vu cuts deal to provide climate data to UK real estate market June 7, 2022 Infrared imaging specialist Satellite Vu is set to provide climate data to the real estate market – once its satellites are in obit – in a bid to decarbonise the UK housing market. Buildings contribute some 40 per cent to the world’s total emissions, making real estate a key target in the country’s net zero [...]
EU agrees common charging plug for all phones raising alarm bells for Apple June 7, 2022 The European Commission has agreed that all phones and tablets must use the same charging ports by 2024, signalling bad news for the Silicon Valley giant.
OpenOrphan CEO pins record revenue on London and preparing for the next pandemic June 7, 2022 The CEO of OpenOrphan, which researches infectious diseases for Big Pharma firms, has hailed London as the reason it snagged a record revenue over the past year. Speaking to City A.M. today, CEO Yamin ‘Mo’ Khan said: “The reason we have be so successful is because we’re based in London. We wouldn’t have been able [...]
Open banking fintech Bud inks $80m funding round June 7, 2022 Open banking fintech firm Bud announced its $80m (£64m) Series B funding, led by Bellis Phantom Holdco, an indirect affiliate of investment funds managed by TDR Capital. The investment, which was also backed by existing investors including Outward VC, will be used to develop the firm’s models and allow for further international expansion. The open [...]