European regulators are examining how the Digital Markets Act interacts with the General Data Protection Regulation across major digital platforms. The EU rules apply to designated gatekeepers that operate core platform services used by millions of users.
Policy specialists in the EU say the Digital Markets Act complements GDPR protections by strengthening user control over personal data. The framework also supports rights related to data access, portability and transparency for both consumers and business users.
The regulatory overlap affects areas including consent requirements, third-party software installation and interoperability between services. Authorities are also coordinating enforcement between competition and data protection regulators.
Analysts say the combined application of both laws could reshape the responsibilities of major technology platforms. Policymakers aim to increase user choice while reinforcing safeguards for the integrity and confidentiality of personal data in the GDPR.
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Cybersecurity risks are increasing as digital connectivity expands across governments, businesses and households.
According to Thales Group, a growing number of connected devices and digital services has significantly expanded the potential entry points for cyberattacks.
AI is reshaping the cybersecurity landscape by enabling attackers to identify vulnerabilities at unprecedented speed.
Security specialists increasingly describe the environment as a contest in which defensive systems must deploy AI to counter adversaries using similar technologies to exploit weaknesses in digital infrastructure.
Security concerns also extend beyond large institutions. Connected devices in homes, including smart cameras and speakers, often lack robust security protections, increasing exposure for individuals and networks.
Policymakers in Europe are responding through measures such as the Cyber Resilience Act, which will introduce mandatory security requirements for connected products sold in the EU.
Long-term risks are also emerging from advances in quantum computing.
Experts warn that powerful future machines could eventually break widely used encryption systems that currently protect communications, financial data and government networks, prompting organisations to adopt quantum-resistant security methods.
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Businesses in the Netherlands rank among the leading adopters of sustainable ICT practices in the EU, according to data from Statistics Netherlands and Eurostat. Around one quarter of companies use digital tools to reduce material consumption and improve resource efficiency.
The Netherlands ranked fourth in the EU for the use of technology to reduce waste and improve sustainability. Sectors including energy, water and waste management showed the strongest adoption of these ICT solutions.
Sustainable disposal of electronic equipment is also widespread among businesses in the Netherlands. About 9 in 10 companies recycle or return obsolete ICT equipment through approved e-waste collection systems.
Across the EU, more than three-quarters of businesses now dispose of outdated technology in environmentally responsible ways. Analysts say progress highlights growing corporate efforts to integrate the sustainability of e-waste into digital operations.
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Policymakers are being urged to rethink the regulation of private messaging platforms as disinformation campaigns increasingly spread through closed digital networks. Researchers say messaging apps now play a major role in political communication and crisis information flows.
Evidence from elections and conflicts highlights the challenge. During Brazil’s 2024 municipal elections, manipulated political content spread widely through WhatsApp groups, while authorities in Ukraine reported Telegram being used for both emergency communication and disinformation.
Experts argue that current laws often fail to address messaging platforms, such as Telegram, because regulation typically targets public social media spaces. Analysts say modern messaging services combine private chats with broadcast channels and other features that allow content to reach large audiences.
Policy specialists propose regulating specific platform features rather than entire services. Governments and technology companies are also encouraged to protect encryption while expanding transparency tools, media literacy programmes and user safeguards.
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Authorities in Canada have issued a warning about the growing use of AI in impersonation scams targeting citizens. Fraudsters increasingly deploy advanced tools capable of mimicking politicians, government officials and other public figures with convincing realism.
Deepfake videos, synthetic audio and AI-generated messages allow scammers to create convincing communications that appear to come from trusted authorities.
Such tactics are often used to persuade victims to send money, reveal personal information, install malicious software or engage with fraudulent investment offers.
Officials also warn about fake government websites created with AI-assisted tools that imitate official pages by copying national symbols and similar domain names. Suspicious websites often use unusual web addresses, extra characters, or unfamiliar domain endings to mislead visitors.
Authorities advise Canadians to verify unexpected messages through official channels rather than clicking links or responding immediately.
Suspected impersonation attempts should be reported to the Competition Bureau or the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
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Longevity research is gaining momentum as AI transforms the way scientists search for new medicines. Insilico Medicine, founded by Alex Zhavoronkov in 2014, combines machine learning and automation to study ageing and accelerate drug discovery.
Company research focuses on identifying biological targets linked to ageing and developing molecules to treat related diseases. Several experimental treatments have already received Investigational New Drug clearance, allowing them to move towards human clinical trials.
Insilico also became the first AI-driven biotech company to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, raising HK$2.28 billion in its public offering. Zhavoronkov said careful financial planning was essential because enthusiasm around AI could still form a market bubble.
Expansion plans now include deeper partnerships across China and the Middle East. A new collaboration in the UAE aims to build regional AI drug discovery programmes and diversify economies beyond oil.
Beyond medicines, Zhavoronkov envisions integrated biotech ecosystems where living spaces, healthcare and research operate together. Such hubs allow scientists and citizens to contribute health data that helps develop future treatments.
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AI is beginning to reshape corporate strategy as organisations shift from isolated technology experiments to broader operational transformation.
According to OpenAI, businesses that treat AI as a collection of disconnected pilots risk missing the bigger structural change that the technology enables.
A new framework describes five value models through which AI can gradually reshape companies. The first stage focuses on workforce empowerment, where tools such as ChatGPT spread AI capabilities across teams and improve everyday productivity.
Once employees develop fluency, organisations can introduce AI-native distribution models that transform how customers discover products and interact with digital services.
More advanced stages involve specialised systems. Expert capability integrates AI into research, creative production, and domain-specific analysis, allowing professionals to explore a wider range of ideas and experiments.
Meanwhile, systems and dependency management introduce AI tools capable of safely updating interconnected digital environments, including codebases, documentation, and operational processes.
The final stage involves full process re-engineering through autonomous agents. In such environments, AI systems coordinate complex workflows across departments while maintaining governance, accountability, and auditability.
Organisations that successfully progress through these stages may eventually redesign their business models rather than merely improving efficiency within existing structures.
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Governments across the world are increasingly treating AI as a strategic capability that shapes economic development, public services and national security. Momentum behind the idea of ‘sovereign AI’ is growing as countries reassess who controls the chips, cloud infrastructure, data and models powering modern technology.
Complete control over the entire AI stack remains unrealistic for most economies because of the enormous financial and technological costs involved. Global infrastructure continues to rely heavily on US technology firms, which still operate a large share of data centres and AI systems worldwide.
Policy makers are therefore exploring different approaches to sovereignty across the AI ecosystem rather than pursuing total independence. Strategies range from building domestic computing capacity to adapting global AI models for national languages, regulations and public services.
Several countries already illustrate different approaches. The EU is investing billions in AI infrastructure, Canada protects sensitive computing resources while using global models, and India prioritises applications that serve its multilingual population through public digital systems.
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Google has expanded access to the Canvas feature in Google Search’s AI Mode, making it available to all US users.
Canvas allows users to organise research, draft documents and develop small applications directly inside search.
Prompts can generate code, transform reports into webpages or quizzes, and produce audio summaries from uploaded material. The tool was previously introduced as part of experimental projects in Google Labs.
The feature builds on capabilities already available in Google Gemini and partly overlaps with NotebookLM, which supports research analysis and document processing.
Within Canvas, users can gather information from the web and the Google Knowledge Graph while refining projects through interaction with the Gemini model.
Competition is intensifying across AI development platforms. OpenAI and Anthropic offer similar tools, though their design approaches differ in how collaborative workspaces are triggered and used.
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Europe is being urged to take a leading role in developing sixth-generation wireless technology as global competition intensifies over the future of connectivity and AI.
Speaking at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Wassim Chourbaji of Qualcomm argued that 6G will represent a technological revolution rather than a gradual improvement over existing networks.
The company expects early pre-commercial deployments to begin around 2028, with broader commercialisation targeted for 2029.
Next-generation wireless networks are expected to support physical AI systems capable of interacting with the real world, including robotics, smart glasses, connected vehicles, and advanced sensing technologies.
High-capacity uploads and faster processing between devices and data centres will allow AI systems to analyse video streams and real-time data more efficiently.
Qualcomm has also launched a coalition aimed at accelerating 6G development with partners including Nokia, Ericsson, Amazon, Google and Microsoft.
Advocates argue that combining European industrial strengths with advanced wireless and AI technologies could allow the continent to secure a leading position in the next phase of global digital infrastructure.
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