AI-fuelled plumbing boom is luring in private equity Opinion AI has made trades like plumbing alluring not just to jobseekers, but private equity investors, writes Susannah Streeter.
WPP shares plunge after turnaround plan targets £500m of savings Media WPP has promised to make £500m of cost savings by the end of 2028 as part of a root-and-branch turnaround plan after suffering a halving of profit. The FTSE 250 firm’s new boss Cindy Rose told reporters she had already “identified multiple initiatives” to deliver on its ambitious savings commitment to help turn around a [...]
The Debate: Should AI be used to make hiring decisions? Opinion Would you trust AI to pick out your CV, or should hiring be left to humans? We hear the case for and against in this week's Debate.
UK asset managers pile into cut-price software stocks after rout February 25, 2026 Two of Britain’s largest asset managers have bolstered their positions in under-fire software companies in a bet that markets are overestimating the harm that artificial intelligence will have on their business model. Aberdeen and Rathbones have both added to holdings data giants like Relx, Adobe and Experian, arguing that the firms’ cratering valuations are largely [...]
Meta strikes AMD chip deal as AI spend continues to boom February 24, 2026 Meta has agreed a multiyear deal to buy up to six gigawatts of AI computing power from AMD, in an agreement valued at more than $100bn (£74.5bn) that could see the social media group take a stake of up to 10 per cent in the US chip giant. The companies said on Tuesday that Meta [...]
Citrini Research report rattles markets as AI fears deepen tech sell-off February 24, 2026 A speculative research note imagining an AI-driven economic downturn caused a sharp sell-off in US tech stocks on Monday, adding to pressure already building from new AI tools. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 821.9 points on Monday, or 1.7 per cent, while the S&P 500 declined 1 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite slipped [...]
Lack of trust in AI tempers Starmer’s tech push February 24, 2026 Britain’s AI sector has entered the year with continued momentum, with its leading heavyweights raising over £20bn in private capital over the past year. According to Startup Coalition’s latest AI index, British AI firms command a combined valuation north of £45bn. Business services accounted for roughly 400 AI startups, attracting £8.3bn, while financial services and [...]
Money Supermarket doubles down on AI in push to placate investor fears February 24, 2026 Money Supermarket’s owner has doubled down on its commitment to AI after investor anxieties that the technology could erode its business sent the stock tumbling earlier this month. FTSE 250 firm Mony, which owns the price comparison site alongside news website Money Saving Expert and vouchers business Quidco, said it was “shifting to mandation” for [...]
Nearly 100 per cent of sport organisations plan to increase AI use February 19, 2026 Nearly 100 per cent of sports organisations plan to increase their use of AI in the next year, according to the 2026 Global SportsTech Report. The data comes as artificial intelligence’s presence across sport has increased monumentally over recent seasons. The study, undertaken by SportsPro and Sportradar using sports organisations across the industry, states that [...]
Big Tech buries billions in AI debt as bubble fears mount February 19, 2026 Meta is paying roughly $6.5bn (£4.82bn) in extra financing costs to keep $27bn of AI infrastructure borrowing off its balance sheet, a costly accounting choice that captures the mood in Big Tech’s race to build the pipes of AI without spooking investors. The arrangement, known as special purpose vehicle financing (SPV), allows an external entity [...]