The agreement was finalised on 21 July by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and science secretary Peter Kyle. It includes a commitment to expand OpenAI’s London office. Research and engineering teams will grow to support AI development and provide assistance to UK businesses and start-ups.
Under the collaboration, OpenAI will share technical insights with the UK’s AI Security Institute to help government bodies better understand risks and capabilities. Planned deployments of AI will focus on public sectors such as justice, defence, education, and national security.
According to the UK government, all applications will follow national standards and guidelines to improve taxpayer-funded services. Peter Kyle described AI as a critical tool for national transformation. ‘AI will be fundamental in driving the change we need to see across the country,’ he said.
He emphasised its potential to support the NHS, reduce barriers to opportunity, and power economic growth. The deal signals a deeper integration of OpenAI’s operations in the UK, with promises of high-skilled jobs, investment in infrastructure, and stronger domestic oversight of AI development.
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Security researchers at DomainTools have revealed a novel and stealthy cyberattack method: embedding malware within DNS records. Attackers are storing tiny, encoded pieces of malicious code inside TXT records across multiple subdomains.
The fragments are individually benign, but once fetched and reassembled, typically using PowerShell, they form fully operational malware, including Joke Screenmate prankware and a more serious PowerShell stager that can download further payloads.
DNS traffic is often treated as trustworthy and bypasses many security controls. The growing use of encrypted DNS services like DoH and DoT makes visibility even harder, creating an ideal channel for covert malware delivery.
Reported cases include the fragmentation of Joke Screenmate across hundreds of subdomain TXT records and instances of Covenant C2 stagers hidden in this manner.
Security teams are urged to ramp up DNS analytics, monitor uncommon TXT query patterns, and utilize comprehensive threat intelligence feeds. While still rare in the wild, this technique’s simplicity and stealthiness suggest it could gain traction soon
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Recent debates on AI’s environmental impact have overwhelmingly focused on energy use, particularly in powering massive data centres and training large language models.
However, a Forbes analysis by Saleem H. Ali warns that the material inputs for AI, such as phosphorus, copper, lithium, rare earths, and uranium, are being neglected, despite presenting similarly severe constraints to scaling and sustainability.
While major companies like Google and Blackstone invest heavily in data centre construction and hydroelectric power in places like Pennsylvania, these energy-focused solutions do not address looming material bottlenecks.
Many raw minerals essential for AI hardware are finite, regionally concentrated, and environmentally taxing to extract. However, this raises risks ranging from supply chain fragility to ecological damage and geopolitical tension.
Experts now say that sustainable AI development demands a dual focus, not only on low-carbon energy, but on keeping critical mineral supply chains resilient.
Without a coordinated approach, AI growth may stall or drive unsustainable resource extraction with long-term global consequences.
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They successfully transmitted data at a blistering 1.02 petabits per second, a breakthrough speed equivalent to transferring Netflix-quality content or entire encyclopedias in under a second. The test covered nearly 1,800 km, showcasing raw capacity and long-haul viability.
A pioneering 19-core optical fibre, no thicker than typical single-core cables, enabled this achievement. Multiple wavelength bands were combined and amplified 21 times to ensure signal integrity across the distance.
However, this feat doubles last year’s record and retains compatibility with existing fibre infrastructure.
Beyond breaking records, the project signals that future networks could support the massive bandwidth demands of AI, 8K streaming, cloud computing and even 6G.
The Dutch government has released a policy paper urging the European Union to take coordinated action to reduce its heavy dependence on non-EU cloud providers, especially from the United States.
The document recommends that the European Commission introduce a clearer and harmonized approach at the EU level.
Key proposals include creating a consistent definition of ‘cloud sovereignty,’ adjusting public procurement rules to allow prioritizing sovereignty, promoting open-source technologies and standards, setting up a common European decision-making framework for cloud choices, and ensuring sufficient funding to support the development and deployment of sovereign cloud technologies.
These measures aim to strengthen the EU’s digital independence and protect public administrations from external political or economic pressures.
A recent investigation found that over 20,000 Dutch institutions rely heavily on US cloud services, with Microsoft holding about 60% of the market.
The Dutch government warned this dependence risks national security and fundamental rights. Concerns escalated after Microsoft blocked the ICC prosecutor’s email following US sanctions, sparking political outrage.
In response, the Dutch parliament called for reducing reliance on American providers and urged the government to develop a roadmap to protect digital infrastructure and regain control.
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Congress has under 90 days to renew the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) of 2015 and avoid a regulatory setback. The law protects companies from liability when they share cyber threat indicators with the government or other firms, fostering collaboration.
Before CISA, companies hesitated due to antitrust and data privacy concerns. CISA removed ambiguity by offering explicit legal protections. Without reauthorisation, fear of lawsuits could silence private sector warnings, slowing responses to significant cyber incidents across critical infrastructure sectors.
Debates over reauthorisation include possible expansions of CISA’s scope. However, many lawmakers and industry groups in the United States now support a simple renewal. Health care, finance, and energy groups say the law is crucial for collective defence and rapid cyber threat mitigation.
Security experts warn that a lapse would reverse years of progress in information sharing, leaving networks more vulnerable to large-scale attacks. With only 35 working days left for Congress before the 30 September deadline, the pressure to act is mounting.
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Since the launch of its Digital Kazakhstan initiative in 2017, the country has shifted from resource-dependent roots to digital leadership.
It ranks 24th globally on the UN’s e‑government index and among the top 10 in online service delivery. Over 90% of public services, such as registrations, healthcare access, and legal documentation, are digitised, aided by mobile apps, biometric ID and QR authentication.
Central to this is a Tier III data-centre-based AI supercluster, launching in July 2025, and the Alem.AI centre, both designed to supply computing power for universities, startups and enterprises.
Kazakhstan is also investing heavily in talent and innovation. It aims to train up to a million AI-skilled professionals and supports over 1,600 startups at Astana Hub. Venture capital surpassed $250 million in 2024, bolstered by a new $1 billion Qazaqstan Venture Group fund.
Infrastructure upgrades, such as a 3,700 km fibre-optic corridor between China and the Caspian Sea, support a growing tech ecosystem.
Regulatory milestones include planned AI law reforms, data‑sovereignty zones like CryptoCity, and digital identity frameworks. These prepare Kazakhstan to become Central Asia’s digital and AI nexus.
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A Turkish court has issued a nationwide ban on Grok, the AI chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s company xAI, following recent developments involving the platform.
The ruling, delivered on Wednesday by a criminal court in Ankara, instructed Turkey’s telecommunications authority to block access to the chatbot across the country. The decision came after public filings under Turkey’s internet law prompted a judicial review.
Grok, which is integrated into the X platform (formerly Twitter), recently rolled out an update to make the system more open and responsive. The update has sparked broader global discussions about the challenges of moderating AI-generated content in diverse regulatory environments.
In a brief statement, X acknowledged the situation and confirmed that appropriate content moderation measures had been implemented in response. The ban places Turkey among many countries examining the role of generative AI tools and the standards that govern their deployment.
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At the WSIS+20 High-Level Event 2025 in Geneva, global leaders and experts gathered to reflect on the two-decade legacy of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) and chart a course for the future of digital cooperation. Moderated by Anriette Esterhuysen of the Association for Progressive Communications, the panel underscored how the WSIS process helped connect over 5.6 billion people to the internet and solidified the importance of multistakeholder governance.
Speakers lauded successes in infrastructure and inclusion but were clear-eyed about persistent gaps, especially the 2.5 billion people who still lack connectivity.
He expressed concern over the drift from WSIS’s original vision of a global information society toward digital sovereignty, urging participants to stay true to a collaborative global model.
Experts emphasised the need for future frameworks to evolve without duplicating efforts. Professor Kathleen Kramer of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers highlighted the urgency of strong STEM education and technical standards to scale emerging technologies like AI and quantum computing responsibly.
The session closed with a renewed commitment to WSIS’s people-centred, inclusive values, even as the digital landscape becomes increasingly complex. With reflections on past achievements and a unified call for non-duplicative, collaborative governance, panellists offered a hopeful yet pragmatic vision for the next chapter of global digital development.
Track all key events from the WSIS+20 High-Level Event 2025 on our dedicated page.
xAI, Elon Musk’s AI company, has secured permits to operate 15 natural gas turbines at its Memphis data centre, despite facing legal threats over alleged Clean Air Act violations.
The Shelby County Health Department approved the generators, which can produce up to 247 megawatts, provided specific emissions controls are in place.
Environmental lawyers say xAI had already been running as many as 35 generators without permits. The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), acting on behalf of the NAACP, has accused the company of serious pollution and is preparing to sue.
Even under the new permit, xAI is allowed to emit substantial pollutants annually, including nearly 10 tons of formaldehyde — a known carcinogen.
Community concerns about the health impact remain strong. A local group pledged $250,000 for an independent air quality study, and although the City of Memphis carried out its own tests, the SELC questioned their validity.
The tests missed ozone levels and were reportedly conducted in favourable wind conditions, with equipment placed too close to buildings.
Officials previously argued that the turbines were exempt from regulation due to their ‘mobile’ status, a claim the SELC refuted as legally flawed. Meanwhile, xAI has recently raised $10 billion, split between debt and equity, highlighting its rapid expansion, even as regulatory scrutiny grows.
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