Cloud monitoring firm Datadog raised its annual revenue and profit forecasts on Thursday, driven by increasing demand for its AI-backed cybersecurity products. The New York-based company now expects full-year revenue of about $2.66 billion, up from its previous projection of $2.62 to $2.63 billion, with analysts having anticipated $2.63 billion. Datadog also raised its adjusted profit forecast to between $1.75 and $1.77 per share, surpassing earlier estimates of $1.62 to $1.66.
The company’s performance has been bolstered by the growing adoption of AI applications by its customers, who are increasingly deploying these tools in live production environments. As AI apps run in the cloud, Datadog stands to benefit from the ongoing migration to cloud services, which drives demand for its monitoring software. For the quarter ending September 30, Datadog reported revenue of $690 million, beating the expected $664.3 million, and posted an adjusted profit of 46 cents per share, exceeding analysts’ predictions of 40 cents.
Despite the strong results and optimistic growth outlook, Datadog’s stock saw some volatility, rising 4.1% before later paring its gains as investors reacted to high expectations for the company’s performance.
French AI startup LightOn launched an initial public offering (IPO) on the Euronext Growth market in Paris, with its debut trading expected later this month. The company, known for its large language model (LLM) software used by businesses and the French government, will be Europe’s first publicly listed generative AI startup, a significant milestone as France aims to position itself as a leader in AI within Europe.
LightOn’s co-CEOs Igor Carron and Laurent Daudet emphasised that the IPO provides a ‘unique opportunity’ for investors to support a growing French tech company with a track record of success both in France and internationally. Shares are priced at 10.35 euros, valuing the company at around 50 million euros, and LightOn aims to raise roughly 10.4 million euros through the capital increase. The subscription period will run until November 20, with shares expected to trade beginning 26 November.
This move aligns with France’s broader push to close the innovation gap with the US and the UK, with ambitions for 100 tech ‘unicorns’ by 2030. LightOn’s listing could signal an opening for more European AI firms to seek public funding, offering investors access to an evolving tech market in the region.
BNB Chain has introduced a tokenisation solution to ease entry into web3 for individuals and small businesses. The platform’s one-stop solution supports tokenising real-world assets and company shares, making it easier for users to navigate the web3 ecosystem. The initiative aims to bring tangible assets, such as property and commodities, into the digital sphere by converting them into tradable tokens.
Through partnerships with firms like BitBond and Matrixdock, BNB Chain’s business tokenisation service allows companies to issue their tokens on the blockchain. It is part of a broader effort to remove technical barriers and open up Web3 access to more people. According to BNB Chain, tokenising real-world assets is expected to be a key step in expanding Web3 use cases, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises.
BNB Chain’s ecosystem has grown to over 4 million users, with more than 4,000 decentralised applications now running on its network. Supporting services such as carbon credits and natural hydrogen tokenisation, the chain aims to diversify its offerings and drive even greater adoption of web3 technology.
A woman from Littlehampton, West Sussex, is ‘deeply grateful’ to AI for detecting her breast cancer, which had previously gone unnoticed despite a routine mammogram showing no signs of the disease. Sheila Tooth, 68, had her mammogram at University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, where AI is being used to enhance breast cancer screenings and identify cancers that human reviewers might miss.
Sheila’s cancerous cells were nearly undetectable by traditional methods, and she believes AI’s detection helped catch it at an early, treatable stage. ‘I just feel so lucky,’ she said, reflecting on how AI detected the cancer that could have become invasive if left unnoticed. The technology is part of a larger project involving 15 trusts across the UK, which reviewed over 12,000 mammograms to identify missed cases. AI flagged nearly 10% of these as potentially needing a second look, leading to further investigations for some women and five confirmed breast cancer diagnoses.
Dr Olga Strukowska, a consultant radiologist, called AI screening ‘exciting’ because it enhances the accuracy of breast cancer detection, reduces missed diagnoses, and lowers false positives. AI’s role in early and precise cancer detection could greatly improve outcomes for patients, according to Dr Strukowska. With about 650 women diagnosed with breast cancer annually in Sussex, the trust now plans to participate in a national trial to further integrate AI into routine breast screenings.
NTT DATA and Google Cloud have partnered to launch a new subsea cable linking Saudi Arabia and Egypt through the Red Sea to expand regional connectivity. The cable, owned by Mobily, connects the Arabian Gulf to Egypt’s Red Sea landing station and integrates with multiple subsea cable systems in Egypt.
This launch follows a memorandum of understanding signed two years ago between the two companies, marking a significant milestone in regional telecommunications development. The new cable is designed to extend an existing subsea network, enabling the operator to handle increased telecom traffic and improve communication flexibility between the Middle East and Europe.
The cable is also seen as a crucial step in strengthening Saudi Arabia’s position as a leading international hub for telecommunications services and data traffic, aligning with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030. The project underscores a commitment to expanding infrastructure and enhancing regional and international capabilities. Additionally, the partnership complements the newly established landing station in Sharm El Sheikh, with plans to develop new crossing routes to the Mediterranean Sea.
Batelco and Qareeb Data Centers have partnered to enhance digital infrastructure in Bahrain by signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) at the Gateway Gulf Investment Forum 2024. The collaboration aims to develop the first White Space Data Centre in Bahrain, a key component of Beyon’s Data Oasis project, which will become the Kingdom’s largest technology hub.
The partnership aligns with Batelco’s strategy to expand its presence in the growing data centre market and digital infrastructure sector. Together, the companies will focus on delivering colocation services, implementing regional Data Centre initiatives, and offering managed digital services to meet the increasing demand for scalable and flexible solutions in the region.
As the data centre market in the region continues to grow, particularly in demand for local edge colocation services, Batelco and Qareeb Data Centers are well-positioned to capitalise on these trends. With Qareeb’s regional expansion objectives and Batelco’s established infrastructure capabilities, the partnership will drive advancements in Bahrain’s technology sector and contribute to the broader digital economy across the Gulf region.
Dubai Customs and DP World have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance digital trade and logistics solutions in Dubai, supporting the city’s ambition to become one of the top three global economic cities. The partnership aligns with Dubai’s economic agenda, D33, and aims to boost the city’s competitiveness as an international trade hub.
The MoU focuses on transforming customs systems by integrating advanced digital technologies, streamlining trade and logistics processes, and improving stakeholder experiences. By leveraging cutting-edge digital solutions, both organisations seek to modernise customs operations, offer faster, more efficient services, and facilitate smoother cross-border trade flows, ultimately meeting the evolving demands of international trade.
Furthermore, this collaboration highlights a commitment to fostering innovation within the trade and logistics sector, creating a more seamless business experience. The partnership is expected to propel the industry toward more efficient trading methods, reinforcing Dubai’s position as a competitive and connected business hub in the global trade ecosystem.
Researchers at the University of Manchester and The Christie Cancer Hospital have received a £5.9 million grant from Cancer Research UK to use AI in cancer treatment. The funding will support a project that simulates clinical trials to test the effectiveness of radiotherapy on ‘virtual’ patients, created using real-life data. This innovative approach aims to make cancer research faster, safer, and more cost-effective than traditional large-scale clinical trials.
The virtual trials will focus on patient-specific genetics and tumours, with a particular emphasis on comparing new proton beam therapy with conventional radiotherapy for lung cancer. AI will allow researchers to test treatments more quickly than through traditional trials involving real patients. This initiative is part of Cancer Research UK’s push to advance radiotherapy research, with Manchester being one of only seven centres of excellence in the UK to receive funding for this work.
Martin Storey, a lung cancer survivor who benefited from radiotherapy in a clinical trial, expressed his support for the project, saying that AI-driven trials could help more people survive cancer. Storey, who was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2009, believes that the use of AI could accelerate treatment advancements and improve outcomes for future patients.
Researchers in the UK are exploring how AI could lead to new treatments for children with brain tumours. With around 420 children diagnosed annually, the team at the Cancer Research UK Children’s Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence in Cambridge is focused on improving survival rates, especially for those with the most aggressive forms of the disease, who currently have a low likelihood of survival beyond a year.
Dr Elizabeth Cooper, one of the researchers, noted that children’s brain tumours differ from adult tumours due to the ongoing development of the brain in children, which may explain why treatments like immunotherapy, effective in other cancers, have limited success with brain tumours. Dr Cooper highlighted that the brain has its own unique immune system, but scientists have yet to fully understand how to harness it for treatment.
Led by co-director Prof. Richard Gilbertson, the team is also working to develop new drugs that are less harmful to young patients. With a substantial grant, the centre plans to use AI to build digital models of complex brain tumours. These models will allow the team to conduct virtual trials, aiming to identify more effective and less toxic treatment options than traditional methods like radiotherapy, which can cause severe side effects in children.
NTT DATA and Google Cloud have partnered to accelerate the adoption of cloud-based data analytics and generative AI solutions across the Asia Pacific region. By combining NTT DATA’s industry expertise and client base with Google Cloud’s cutting-edge technologies, the partnership aims to drive innovation, improve operational efficiency, and enhance agility for enterprises.
Specifically, the collaboration focuses on co-developing industry-specific solutions for sectors such as healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, retail, and the public sector. A new NTT DATA Google Cloud Business Unit will also be created to focus on joint solutions in data analytics, GenAI, applications, infrastructure, cybersecurity, and SAP on the Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
The expansion also involves enhancing internal expertise, as NTT DATA plans to certify at least 1,000 more engineers in the APAC region and provide advanced training to its teams to ensure successful solution delivery. With global public cloud spending projected to grow significantly, the partnership aims to capture the increasing demand for cloud services and AI-driven solutions.
The goal is to grow NTT DATA’s cloud business in APAC by more than 10 times over the next three years. By combining NTT DATA’s digital transformation portfolio with Google Cloud’s advanced technologies, the collaboration is set to drive modernisation in AI, cloud infrastructure, and cybersecurity, offering businesses secure and efficient solutions to accelerate their digital transformation.
