The London mayor’s ploughed £2.5m into startups since Brexit November 28, 2016 The Mayor of London has ploughed more than £2.5m into the capital's soon-to-be star startups since the vote for Brexit in a bid to show the world the city's "open for business", as he unveiled a new line up of advisors drawn from the UK's ranks of top entrepreneurs and business leaders. Sadiq Khan hailed the London Co-investment [...]
Google’s DeepMind wants to make doctor’s paperwork obsolete in new NHS deal November 22, 2016 DeepMind, the UK company leading the way in artificial intelligence research, is doubling down on applying its technology to healthcare which could save the NHS millions of pounds as well as time spent on paperwork. It has signed a five-year deal with a London NHS Trust to put into practice a prototype app designed to [...]
Two thirds of business leaders think technology will create more value in the future than people November 17, 2016 Feeling a little undervalued and overlooked at work? Well, look away now. Some new research from Korn Ferry is unlikely to make you feel much better. A study of 800 global business leaders found that over two thirds think technology will create greater value in the future than people will. Ouch. And 44 per cent [...]
Samsung splashes $8bn on connected cars company November 14, 2016 Samsung is stepping up its drive into the world of connected cars, splashing billions of dollars on a company specialising in the technology. The $8bn deal for US firm Harman International Industries, an offer of $112 per share, is a 28 per cent premium on the firm's Friday closing price on the New York Stock Exchange. Harman, which [...]
Shelve the EU’s anti-innovation precautionary principle to turbocharge the UK’s Fourth Industrial Revolution post-Brexit November 14, 2016 Thirty years ago, Big Bang launched a wave of technological change, transforming the City’s fortunes and securing its future. Facing down vested interests and naysayers, the Thatcher government understood that championing innovation would turbo-charge Britain’s economy – and seized the day. June’s EU referendum result was also a decisive turning point. Both Remainers and Leavers [...]
AI firm ASI Data Science raises £1.5m investment with backing from Skype founding engineer November 6, 2016 Jaan Tallinn, one of the men behind Skype, has backed a London firm that trains computer scientists in using artificial intelligence (AI). According to the Sunday Times, ASI Data Science, which works with the likes of easyJet and the BBC, has landed £1.5m of new investment, with LocalGlobe another backer. LocalGlobe was set up by [...]
Watch out Siri? Samsung’s next phone will have an AI assistant November 6, 2016 Samsung is following the lead of Apple and Google, revealing it will add a Siri-like personal assistant to its newest smartphone, the Galaxy S8. It's the first time a Samsung phone will have the feature and follows the tech company's acquisition of San-Francisco artificial intelligence startup Viv Labs last month. The open platform will let others [...]
How much did Twitter acquire Magic Pony for? November 2, 2016 Twitter caused a stir last year, buying up a nearly unknown startup from London working on artificial intelligence technology, in a surprise deal that signalled the status of the UK as a leader in AI. Magic Pony was snapped up for a reported $150m, back in June. Twitter reported spending $85.2m on two acquisitions since the start of the year, [...]
Stephen Hawking thinks Brexit is too complex even for him November 1, 2016 Stephen Hawking, perhaps the world's greatest living scientist, has said he wouldn't fancy trying to tackle the UK's exit from the European Union. Speaking last night at the Pride of Britain Awards the 74-year-old professor told Prime Minister Theresa May that Brexit may be too "complex" a situation even for him. The Brief History of Time [...]
Keeping in the loop: City A.M. talks with LoopMe founder Stephen Upstone October 31, 2016 Stephen Upstone, chief executive and founder of LoopMe, is pondering his company's reach. "I think that out of the top 10 global brands, as rated by Interbrand, we work with eight of them,” he says. His business has touched 1.5bn people, handles 500bn bits of data a day, and has opened offices from Los Angeles to [...]