Development Archives | Page 290 of 540 | Digital Watch Observatory

Amazon reaches one million warehouse robots

Amazon has reached a major milestone with over one million robots now operating in its warehouses.

The one millionth robot, recently deployed to a facility in Japan, marks 13 years since the tech giant began introducing automation through its acquisition of Kiva Systems in 2012.

The robotic presence is fast approaching parity with Amazon’s human workforce, according to The Wall Street Journal. Robots now assist in around 75% of the company’s global deliveries.

The company continues to upgrade its robotic fleet, recently unveiling Vulcan — a dual-armed model equipped with a suction grip and a sense of touch to handle items more delicately.

Amazon is also introducing DeepFleet, a new generative AI model built using Amazon SageMaker.

Designed to optimise robotic movement within fulfilment centres, DeepFleet is expected to improve fleet speed by 10%. The model is trained on Amazon’s operational data, making it highly tailored to the company’s logistical network.

The expansion comes as Amazon opens next-generation fulfilment centres featuring ten times more robots instead of relying solely on existing warehouse models. The first of these facilities opened in late 2024 in Shreveport, Louisiana, signalling a shift toward even greater automation.

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More European cities move to replace Microsoft software as part of digital sovereignty efforts

Following similar moves by Denmark, the German state of Schleswig-Holstein and the city of Lyon—France’s third-largest city and a major economic centre—has initiated a migration from Microsoft Windows and Office to a suite of open-source alternatives, including Linux, OnlyOffice, NextCloud, and PostgreSQL.

This transition is part of Lyon’s broader strategy to strengthen digital sovereignty and reduce reliance on foreign technology providers. As with other European initiatives, the decision aligns with wider EU discussions about data governance and digital autonomy. Concerns over control of sensitive data and long-term sustainability have contributed to increased interest in open-source solutions.

Although Microsoft has publicly affirmed its commitment to supporting EU customers regardless of political context, some European public authorities continue to explore alternatives that allow for local control over software infrastructure and data hosting.

In line with the European Commission’s 2025 State of the Digital Decade report—which notes that Europe has yet to fully leverage the potential of open-source technologies—Lyon aims to enhance both transparency and control over its digital systems.

Lyon’s migration also supports regional economic development. Its collaboration platform, Territoire Numérique Ouvert (Open Digital Territory), is being co-developed with local digital organisations and will be hosted in regional data centres. The project provides secure, interoperable tools for communication, office productivity, and document collaboration.

The city has begun gradually replacing Windows with Linux and Microsoft Office with OnlyOffice across municipal workstations. OnlyOffice, developed by Latvia-based Ascensio System SIA, is an open-source productivity suite distributed under the GNU Affero General Public License. While it shares a similar open-source ethos with LibreOffice, which was chosen in Demark to replace Microsoft, the two are not directly related.

It is reported that Lyon anticipates cost savings through extended hardware lifespans, a reduction in electronic waste, and improved environmental sustainability. Over half of the public contracts for this project have been awarded to companies based in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, with all awarded to French firms—highlighting a preference for local procurement.

Training for approximately 10,000 civil servants began in June 2025. The initiative is being monitored as a potential model for other municipalities aiming to enhance digital resilience and reduce dependency on proprietary software ecosystems.

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Grammarly invests in email with Superhuman acquisition

Grammarly announced on Tuesday that it has acquired email client Superhuman to expand its AI capabilities within its productivity suite.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed by either company. Superhuman, founded by Rahul Vohra, Vivek Sodera and Conrad Irwin, has raised over $114 million from investors such as a16z and Tiger Global, with a last valuation of $825 million.

Grammarly CEO Shishir Mehrotra said the acquisition will enable the company to bring enhanced AI collaboration to millions more professionals, adding that email is not just another app but a crucial platform where users spend significant time.

Superhuman’s CEO Rahul Vohra and his team are joining Grammarly, promising to invest further in improving the Superhuman experience and building AI agents that collaborate across everyday communication tools.

Recently, Superhuman introduced AI-powered features like scheduling, replies and email categorisation. Grammarly aims to leverage the technology to build smarter AI agents for email, which remains a top use case for its customers.

The move follows Grammarly’s acquisition of productivity software Coda last year and the promotion of Shishir Mehrotra to CEO.

In May, Grammarly secured $1 billion from General Catalyst through a non-dilutive investment, repaid by a capped percentage of revenue generated using the funds instead of equity.

The Superhuman deal further signals Grammarly’s commitment to integrating AI deeply into professional communication.

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DDN gears up for AI boom with next-gen storage systems

DataDirect Networks (DDN) is positioning itself at the heart of the coming AI boom, projecting that enterprise adoption of AI will soon surge — and with it, demand for powerful storage systems.

The company, a veteran in high-performance computing (HPC) storage, expects orders from existing HPC clients to triple or quadruple by 2027. DDN co-founder Paul Bloch highlighted Elon Musk’s xAI cluster in Memphis, which currently uses 200,000 GPUs — a number he says could grow to one million.

DDN has upgraded its core storage systems with the AI400X3, delivering up to 140GBps read speeds and major improvements in resilience and fault tolerance. The system supports NVMe-over-TCP and integrates seamlessly with Nvidia’s SpectrumX and Blackwell GPU architectures.

The company also released Infinia 2.1, a revamped object storage platform designed for enterprise AI. It offers a 100x speed boost, supports major AI frameworks like PyTorch and TensorFlow, and is now available via Google Cloud.

DDN is already supporting 700,000 GPUs across 7,000 customers, including 4,000 focused on AI. Backed by Blackstone’s recent $300 million investment, DDN plans to expand into new enterprise markets and increase hiring by over 20% this year.

With AI adoption spreading across industries, DDN says the need for scalable, GPU-optimised storage will become mission-critical.

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Cloudflare’s new tool lets publishers charge AI crawlers

Cloudflare, which powers 20% of the web, has launched a new marketplace called Pay per Crawl, aiming to redefine how website owners interact with AI companies.

The platform allows publishers to set a price for AI crawlers to access their content instead of allowing unrestricted scraping or blocking. Website owners can decide to charge a micropayment for each crawl, permit free access, or block crawlers altogether, gaining more control over their material.

Over the past year, Cloudflare introduced tools for publishers to monitor and block AI crawlers, laying the groundwork for the marketplace. Major publishers like Conde Nast, TIME and The Associated Press have joined Cloudflare in blocking AI crawlers by default, supporting a permission-based approach.

The company also now blocks AI bots by default on all new sites, requiring site owners to grant access.

Cloudflare’s data reveals that AI crawlers scrape websites far more aggressively than traditional search engines, often without sending equivalent referral traffic. For example, OpenAI’s crawler scraped sites 1,700 times for every referral, compared to Google’s 14 times.

As AI agents evolve to gather and deliver information directly, it raises challenges for publishers who rely on site visits for revenue.

Pay per Crawl could offer a new business model for publishers in an AI-driven world. Cloudflare envisions a future where AI agents operate with a budget to access quality content programmatically, helping users synthesise information from trusted sources.

For now, both publishers and AI companies need Cloudflare accounts to set crawl rates, with Cloudflare managing payments. The company is also exploring stablecoins as a possible payment method in the future.

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Why AI won’t replace empathy at work

AI is increasingly being used to improve how organisations measure and support employee performance and well-being.

According to Dr Serena Huang, founder of Data with Serena and author of The Inclusion Equation, AI provides insights that go far beyond traditional annual reviews or turnover statistics.

AI tools can detect early signs of burn o ut, identify high-potential staff, and even flag overly controlling management styles. More importantly, they offer the potential to personalise development pathways based on employee needs and aspirations.

Huang emphasises, however, that ethical use is vital. Transparency and privacy must remain central to ensure AI empowers rather than surveils workers. Far from making human skills obsolete, Huang argues that AI increases their value.

With machines handling routine analysis, people are free to focus on complex challenges and relationship-building—critical skills in sales, leadership, and team dynamics. AI can assist, but it is emotional intelligence and empathy that truly drive results.

To ensure data-driven efforts align with business goals, Huang urges companies to ask better questions. Understanding what challenges matter to stakeholders helps ensure that any AI d e ployment addresses real-world needs. Regular check-ins and progress reviews help maintain alignment.

Rather than fear AI as a job threat, Huang encourages individuals to embrace it as a tool for growth. Staying curious and continually learning can ensure workers remain relevant in an evolving market.

She also highlights the strategic advantage of prioritising employee well-being. Companies that invest in mental health, work-life balance, and inclusion enjoy higher productivity and retention.

With younger workers placing a premium on wellness and values, businesses that foster a caring culture will attract top talent and stay competitive. Ultimately, Huang sees AI not as a replacement for people, but as a catalyst for more human-centric, data-informed workplaces.

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Qantas cyber attack sparks customer alert

Qantas is investigating a major data breach that may have exposed the personal details of up to six million customers.

The breach affected a third-party platform used by the airline’s contact centre to store sensitive data, including names, phone numbers, email addresses, dates of birth and frequent flyer numbers.

The airline discovered unusual activity on 30 June and responded by immediately isolating the affected system. While the full scope of the breach is still being assessed, Qantas expects the volume of stolen data to be significant.

However, it confirmed that no passwords, PINs, credit card details or passport numbers were stored on the compromised platform.

Qantas has informed the Australian Federal Police, the Cyber Security Centre and the Office of the Information Commissioner. CEO Vanessa Hudson apologised to customers and urged anyone concerned to call a dedicated support line. She added that airline operations and safety remain unaffected.

The incident follows recent cyber attacks on Hawaiian Airlines, WestJet and major UK retailers, reportedly linked to a group known as Scattered Spider. The breach adds to a growing list of Australian organisations targeted in 2025, in what privacy authorities describe as a worsening trend.

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Student builds AI app to help farmers tackle crop issues

A student is developing an AI-powered app designed to help farmers detect and address crop problems. Soj Gamayon, a communications technology management student at Ateneo de Manila University, was inspired by his family’s farming struggles and his experiences abroad to build AgriConnect PH.

The app uses smart sensors to monitor conditions such as water levels, moisture, and pests, then sends the data to the cloud where it is analysed by AI. Farmers receive real-time alerts with a colour-coded system indicating the severity of risks, helping them respond before crops are damaged.

Gamayon aims to move farmers from reactive responses to proactive management. With updates available at least twice a day and instant alerts for urgent threats, the system offers timely intervention to reduce losses.

Currently supporting cereal crops like rice and corn, the app is set to expand to vegetables and livestock. While the technology is still in development, Gamayon believes AI can revolutionise agriculture and provide Filipino farmers with better tools for resilience.

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MAI-DxO: Microsoft’s New AI diagnoses complex medical cases with 85% accuracy

Microsoft has introduced a new AI-powered diagnostic tool capable of tackling complex medical cases that often baffle expert clinicians. Called MAI-DxO (Microsoft AI Diagnostic Orchestrator), the system has been developed by Microsoft’s AI health unit, founded by DeepMind co-founder Mustafa Suleyman.

When tested on complex real-world cases published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the AI tool correctly diagnosed 85.5%. For comparison, experienced doctors managed to solve only 20% of the same cases without external help.

The tool uses five virtual AI agents, each simulating a medical expert with unique roles, such as choosing tests or proposing hypotheses. The approach, dubbed the ‘chain of debate’, allows for step-by-step reasoning in arriving at diagnoses.

Microsoft trained MAI-DxO using 304 case studies and large language models from leading AI companies, including OpenAI, Google, Meta, and xAI. The AI panel mimics a real-world diagnostic team with significantly faster and more accurate outcomes.

Despite the promising results, Microsoft acknowledges that more validation and regulatory clarity are needed before such tools can be used in clinical practice. The company is currently working with health organisations to test the system further.

The aim is not to replace doctors but to ease their workload by offering a reliable assistant for the most challenging cases. Microsoft says MAI-DxO could represent a significant step toward what it calls ‘medical superintelligence’.

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Meta launches AI superintelligence lab to compete with rivals

Meta has launched a new division called Meta Superintelligence Labs to accelerate its AI ambitions and close the gap with rivals such as OpenAI and Google.

The lab will be led by Alexandr Wang, former CEO of Scale AI, following Meta’s $14.3 billion investment in the data-labeling company. Former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman and SSI co-founder Daniel Gross will also hold key roles in the initiative.

Mark Zuckerberg announced the new effort in an internal memo, stating that Meta is now focused on developing superintelligent AI systems capable of matching or even outperforming humans. He described this as the beginning of a new era and reaffirmed Meta’s commitment to leading the field.

The lab’s mission is to push AI to a point where it can solve complex tasks more effectively than current models.

To meet these goals, Meta has been aggressively recruiting AI researchers from top competitors. Reports suggest that OpenAI employees have been offered signing bonuses as high as $100 million to join Meta.

New hires include talent from Anthropic and Google, although Meta has reportedly avoided deeper recruitment from Anthropic due to concerns over culture fit.

Meta’s move comes in response to the lukewarm reception of its Llama 4 model and mounting pressure from more advanced AI products released by competitors.

The company hopes that by combining high-level leadership, fresh talent and massive investment, its new lab can deliver breakthrough results and reposition Meta as a serious contender in the race for AGI.

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