Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman has warned that banks must embrace blockchain technology or risk fading into irrelevance. At the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium on 19 August, she urged banks and regulators to drop caution and embrace innovation.
Bowman highlighted tokenisation as one of the most immediate applications, enabling assets to be transferred digitally without intermediaries or physical movement.
She explained that tokenised systems could cut operational delays, reduce risks, and expand access across large and smaller banks. Regulatory alignment, she added, could accelerate tokenisation from pilots to mainstream adoption.
Fraud prevention was also a key point of her remarks. Bowman said financial institutions face growing threats from scams and identity theft, but argued blockchain could help reduce fraud.
She called for regulators to ensure frameworks support adoption rather than hinder it, framing the technology as a chance for collaboration between the industry and the Fed.
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A new MIT study has found that 95% of corporate AI projects fail to deliver returns, mainly due to difficulties integrating them with existing workflows.
The report, ‘The GenAI Divide: State of AI in Business 2025’, examined 300 deployments and interviewed 350 employees. Only 5% of projects generated value, typically when focused on solving a single, clearly defined problem.
Executives often blamed model performance, but researchers pointed to a workforce ‘learning gap’ as the bigger barrier. Many projects faltered because staff were unprepared to adapt processes effectively.
More than half of GenAI budgets were allocated to sales and marketing, yet the most substantial returns came from automating back-office tasks, such as reducing agency costs and streamlining roles.
The study also found that tools purchased from specialised vendors were nearly twice as successful as in-house systems, with success rates of 67% compared to 33%.
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Thirty crypto executives have urged Finance Minister Rachel Reeves to adopt a national stablecoin strategy, warning the UK could fall behind faster-moving markets. Their letter warned that the UK could remain a ‘rule-taker’ in digital assets without regulation.
The executives criticised the UK’s current legal definition of stablecoins as outdated and misleading, likening it to defining a cheque merely as’ paper concerning currency.’
They argue that stablecoins should be recognised as digital payment rails already used globally. Signatories include Coinbase, Kraken, Copper, Fireblocks, BitGo, and VanEck leaders, calling for regulation that treats stablecoins as financial infrastructure rather than risks.
Analysts stress stablecoins remain essential, acting as the ‘cash equivalent’ for digital assets and enabling faster blockchain transfers than traditional banking.
Industry experts, including HSBC’s Daragh Maher, emphasised that growth depends on a suitable regulatory environment. Clear rules could strengthen the UK’s global financial role and let stablecoins play a key part in its digital finance system.
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The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has reversed plans to cut 45 customer service roles following union pressure over the use of AI in its call centres.
The Finance Sector Union argued that CBA was not transparent about call volumes, taking the case to the Workplace Relations Tribunal. Staff reported rising workloads despite claims that the bank’s voice bot reduced calls by 2,000 weekly.
CBA admitted its redundancy assessment was flawed, stating that it had not fully considered the business needs. Impacted employees are being offered the option to remain in their current roles, relocate within the firm, or depart.
The Bank of Australia apologised and pledged to review internal processes. Chief executive Matt Comyn has promoted AI adoption, including a new partnership with OpenAI, but the union called the reversal a ‘massive win’ for workers.
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DeepSeek has released a minor upgrade, V3.1, yet conspicuously omitted any R1 label from its chatbot, leading to speculation over the status of the promised R2 model.
The V3.1 version includes improvements such as an expanded 128K token context window for holding more information per interaction, but lacks major innovation beyond that. Observers note that the absence of R1 suggests that DeepSeek may be reworking its roadmap or shifting focus.
Industry watchers point to the gap this update left, especially in light of delays reported for the R2 model, which has faced technical setbacks due to hardware issues and training challenges with domestic chips. Competitors are now gaining ground as a result.
With no official statement from DeepSeek and a quieter-than-usual announcement, delivered only to a WeChat user group, analysts are questioning whether the company is rethinking its product sequencing or concealing delays in rolling out the next-generation R2 reasoning model.
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Meta has frozen hiring in its AI division, halting a spree that had drawn top researchers with lucrative offers. The company described the pause as basic organisational planning, aimed at building a more stable structure for its superintelligence ambitions.
The freeze, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, began last week and prevents employees in the unit from transferring to other teams. Its duration has not been communicated, and Meta declined to comment on the number of hires already made.
The decision follows growing tensions inside the newly created Superintelligence Labs, where long-serving researchers have voiced concerns over disparities in pay and recognition compared with recruits.
Alexandr Wang, who leads the division, recently told staff that superintelligence is approaching and that significant changes are necessary to prepare. His email outlined Meta’s most significant reorganisation of its AI efforts.
The pause also comes amid investor scrutiny, as analysts warn that heavy reliance on stock-based compensation to attract talent could fuel innovation or dilute shareholder value without precise results.
Despite these concerns, Meta’s stock has risen by about 28% since the start of the year, reflecting continued investor confidence in the company’s long-term prospects.
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Meta is launching a research lab focused on superintelligence, led by Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang, in an attempt to regain ground in the global AI race.
Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly in talks to invest billions into Scale, reflecting strong confidence in Wang’s data-driven approach and industry influence.
While Meta’s past efforts with its Llama models gained traction, its latest release, Llama 4, failed to meet expectations and drew criticism.
Wang’s appointment arrives during an ongoing talent exodus from Meta, with several senior AI researchers departing for rivals or founding startups.
The new lab is separate from Meta’s existing FAIR division, led by Yann LeCun, who has dismissed the idea of chasing superintelligence. Meta’s partnership with Scale mirrors deals by Microsoft, Amazon, and Google, aiming to secure top AI talent without formal acquisitions.
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Databricks has secured a fresh funding round that pushes its valuation beyond $100bn, cementing its place among the world’s most valuable private tech firms. The Series K deal marks a sharp rise from the company’s $62bn figure in late 2024 and underscores investor confidence in its long-term AI strategy.
The new capital will accelerate Databricks’ global expansion, fuel acquisitions in the AI space, and support product innovation. Upcoming launches include Agent Bricks, a platform for enterprise-grade AI agents, and Lakebase, a new operational database that extends the company’s ecosystem.
Chief executive Ali Ghodsi said the round was oversubscribed, reflecting strong investor demand. He emphasised that businesses can leverage enterprise data to create secure AI apps and agents, noting that this momentum supports Databricks’ growth across 15,000 customers.
The company has also expanded its role in the broader AI ecosystem through partnerships with Microsoft, Google Cloud, Anthropic, SAP, and Palantir. Last year, it opened a European headquarters in London to cement the UK as a key market and strengthen ties with global enterprises.
Databricks has avoided confirming an IPO timeline, though Ghodsi told CNBC that investor appetite surged after fintech Figma’s listing. With Klarna now eyeing a return to New York, Databricks’ soaring valuation highlights how leading AI firms continue to attract capital even as market conditions shift.
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OpenAI chief Sam Altman has warned that the US may be underestimating China’s rapid advancement in AI.
Speaking to CNBC, Altman explained that China’s use of open-source models and its manufacturing capacity may allow it to move faster in some areas of development.
He questioned the effectiveness of export controls, noting that chip restrictions may not be enough to curb long-term innovation. Chinese firms like DeepSeek and MoonshotAI are gaining traction with open-weight models that rival US offerings in cost and capability.
Altman’s comments echo concerns voiced earlier by Nvidia’s CEO, who said firms like Huawei continue to grow despite restrictions.
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TeraWulf has secured a $3.2 billion financial backstop from Google to develop a 160-megawatt data centre at its Lake Mariner site in New York. Google will receive warrants for 32.5 million shares, lifting its stake in TeraWulf to about 14%.
Unlike its existing Bitcoin mining activities, the new deal focuses exclusively on AI and high-performance computing (HPC) workloads. TeraWulf confirmed it will maintain its Bitcoin mining operations but has no plans for expansion in that area.
The pivot reflects a broader trend in the mining industry, where companies increasingly shift capacity toward AI following the April 2024 halving that cut block rewards.
Executives highlighted that while Bitcoin mining offers immediate cash flow and grid flexibility, the long-term growth lies in powering AI and HPC demand. Research from VanEck suggests that if miners redirected just 20% of their power toward AI hosting, the industry could see $13.9 billion in additional annual revenue.
TeraWulf’s leadership said the partnership with Google positions the company as a key player in building next-generation digital infrastructure.
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