Sir Jony Ive joins Altman’s OpenAI in $6.5bn deal May 22, 2025 OpenAI has announced the launch of its io Products, founded by former Apple chief designer Sir Jony Ive and Sam Altman, in a deal valued at $6.5bn. The agreement brings one of the world’s most influential product designers into OpenAI’s leadership as the artificial intelligence (AI) company expands into consumer hardware. Under the deal, OpenAI [...]
Tate & Lyle lifts profits as CP Kelco deal kicks in May 22, 2025 Tate & Lyle has posted a rise in profits and free cash flow for the year to 31 March 2025, as the FTSE 250 firm integrates its $1.8bn acquisition of ingredients maker CP Kelco and declares its long-running transformation “complete”. The sweetener producer reported a four per cent increase in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation [...]
Bloomsbury: Profit falls at Harry Potter publisher despite sales rise May 22, 2025 Profit at Bloomsbury Publishing, the giant most known for the Harry Potter series, was cut by almost a fifth during its latest financial year despite revenue rising. The London-listed company has reported a pre-tax profit of £32.5m for the year to 28 February 2025, down from the £41.5m it achieved in the prior 12 months. [...]
Palo Alto rallies on M&S hacks, but earnings fail to woo investors May 22, 2025 A spate of high profile cyber incidents on British retailers, including Co-op, Harrods, and most notably, Marks and Spencer, has placed cybersecurity spend back in the limelight – and Palo Alto is reaping the costs. Yet, investors are digesting a mix set of quarterly results revealed on Thursday. Ben Barringer, global tech analyst at Quilter [...]
Cyber and AI fuel surge in UK tech M&A deals May 21, 2025 The UK’s software M&A market has hit a record high, with £13.2bn deployed across 420 deals over the past year, marking a 27 per cent year on year rise and revealing the nation’s pivotal role in Europe’s tech investment scene. A recent survey from BearingPoint Capital found that despite escalating macroeconomic headwinds and growing valuation [...]
London loses Europe tech crown to Paris May 21, 2025 Paris has overtaken London as Europe’s leading tech hub for the first time, reigniting concerns over the competitiveness of the UK’s biggest city for a vital sector. The French capital has been named as the only non-US city in the world’s top five global ecosystems, according to Dealroom’s 2025 global tech ecosystem index, overturning years [...]
Elon Musk retaliates against Tesla backlash May 21, 2025 Elon Musk has issued a stark warning to those behind violent attacks against Tesla, vowing criminal consequences for what he described as “evil” acts of politically motivated vandalism and threats. Speaking in a virtual interview at the Qatar economic forum on Tuesday, the Tesla and SpaceX chief executive said he had taken the recent wave [...]
UK SMEs could ‘unlock £78bn’ by using AI May 21, 2025 The UK’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) could unlock up to £78bn for the economy over the next decade through greater adoption of generative AI. Despite the transformative potential of AI tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, and other large language models (LLMs), uptake among SMEs remains limited. Less than one in five small businesses are currently [...]
Tesco and Sainsbury’s supplier hit in latest cyber attack May 20, 2025 A key logistics supplier to several of the UK’s major supermarkets, including Tesco and Sainsbury’s, has confirmed it is being held to ransom by hackers following a cyber attack that disrupted operations this week, following a string of assaults on UK retail in the last month. Peter Green Chilled, which also supplies Aldi, said it [...]
Are cyber attacks about to become the norm for British retailers? May 20, 2025 In the last month, cyber attacks have gone from a destructive but uncommon issue to the top of most Brit’s news feeds. Marks and Spencer’s, Co-op, Harrods – plus the international Dior and Coinbase – have all been the target of attacks in the last months, with more unsuccessful or smaller attacks likely to have [...]