Sustainable development

Web services recover after Cloudflare restores its network systems

Cloudflare has resolved a technical issue that briefly disrupted access to major platforms, including X, ChatGPT, and Letterboxd. Users had earlier reported internal server error messages linked to Cloudflare’s network, indicating that pages could not be displayed.

The disruption began around midday UK time, with some sites loading intermittently as the problem spread across the company’s infrastructure. Cloudflare confirmed it was investigating an incident affecting multiple customers and issued rolling updates as engineers worked to identify the fault.

Outage tracker Down Detector also experienced difficulties during the incident, later showing a sharp rise in reports once it came back online. The pattern pointed to a broad network-level failure rather than isolated platform issues.

Users saw repeated internal server error warnings asking them to try again, though services began recovering as Cloudflare isolated the cause. The company has not yet released full technical details, but said the fault has been fixed and that systems are stabilising.

Cloudflare provides routing, security, and reliability tools for a wide range of online services, making a single malfunction capable of cascading globally. The company said it would share further information on the incident and steps taken to prevent similar failures.

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Google enters a new frontier with Gemini 3

A new phase of its AI strategy has begun for Google with the release of Gemini 3, which arrives as the company’s most advanced model to date.

The new system prioritises deeper reasoning and more subtle multimodal understanding, enabling users to approach difficult ideas with greater clarity instead of relying on repetitive prompting. It marks a major step for Google’s long-term project to integrate stronger intelligence into products used by billions.

Gemini 3 Pro is already available in preview across the Gemini app, AI Mode in Search, AI Studio, Vertex AI and Google’s new development platform known as Antigravity.

A model that performs at the top of major benchmarks in reasoning, mathematics, tool use and multimodal comprehension, offering substantial improvements compared with Gemini 2.5 Pro.

Deep Think mode extends the model’s capabilities even further, reaching new records on demanding academic and AGI-oriented tests, although Google is delaying wider release until additional safety checks conclude.

Users can rely on Gemini 3 to learn complex topics, analyse handwritten material, decode long academic texts or translate lengthy videos into interactive guides instead of navigating separate tools.

Developers benefit from richer interactive interfaces, more autonomous coding agents and the ability to plan tasks over longer horizons.

Google Antigravity enhances this shift by giving agents direct control of the development environment, allowing them to plan, write and validate code independently while remaining under human supervision.

Google emphasises that Gemini 3 is its most extensively evaluated model, supported by independent audits and strengthened protections against manipulation. The system forms the foundation for Google’s next era of agentic, personalised AI and will soon expand with additional models in the Gemini 3 series.

The company expects the new generation to reshape how people learn, build and organise daily tasks instead of depending on fragmented digital services.

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TikTok launches new tools to manage AI-generated content

TikTok has announced new tools to help users shape and understand AI-generated content (AIGC) in their feeds. A new ‘Manage Topics’ control will let users adjust how much AI content appears in their For You feeds alongside keyword filters and the ‘not interested’ option.

The aim is to personalise content rather than remove it entirely.

To strengthen transparency, TikTok is testing ‘invisible watermarking’ for AI-generated content created with TikTok tools or uploaded using C2PA Content Credentials. Combined with creator labels and AI detection, these watermarks help track and identify content even if edited or re-uploaded.

The platform has launched a $2 million AI literacy fund to support global experts in creating educational content on responsible AI. TikTok collaborates with industry partners and non-profits like Partnership on AI to promote transparency, research, and best practices.

Investments in AI extend beyond moderation and labeling. TikTok is developing innovative features such as Smart Split and AI Outline to enhance creativity and discovery, while using AI to protect user safety and improve the well-being of its trust and safety teams.

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UAE unveils first regulated AED-backed stablecoin

The UAE has taken a major step in its digital finance strategy as the Central Bank of the UAE approved Zand to launch Zand AED, the nation’s first regulated, multi-chain AED-backed stablecoin. The new asset places the dirham on global blockchain rails under the oversight of a fully licensed bank.

Zand AED is fully backed by reserves in regulated accounts, with real-time transparency through independently audited smart contracts and attestations.

Being available on multiple public blockchains enables fast cross-border settlement and simpler integration for developers, enterprises, and financial institutions.

Zand leadership described the launch as a significant advancement for the UAE’s position in global financial innovation. They highlighted that Zand AED bridges traditional and decentralised finance, enabling payments, tokenisation, and digital asset applications.

Analysts expect the global stablecoin market to expand to trillions, and Zand AED positions the UAE as a leading hub for regulated digital finance. The stablecoin offers a secure, scalable foundation for institutions and FinTechs in a leading global financial ecosystem.

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EU examines Amazon and Microsoft influence in cloud services

European regulators have launched three market investigations into cloud computing amid growing concerns about sector concentration.

The European Commission will assess whether Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure should be designated as gatekeepers for their cloud services under the Digital Markets Act, despite not meeting the formal threshold criteria.

Officials argue that cloud infrastructure now underpins AI development and many digital services, so competition must remain open and fair.

A move that signals a broader shift in EU oversight of strategic technologies. Rather than focusing solely on size, investigators will examine whether the two providers act as unavoidable gateways between businesses and users.

They will analyse network effects, switching costs and the role of corporate structures that might deepen market dominance. If the inquiries confirm gatekeeper status, both companies will face the DMA’s full obligations and a six-month compliance period.

A parallel investigation will explore whether existing DMA rules adequately address cloud-specific risks that might limit competition. Regulators aim to clarify whether obstacles to interoperability, restricted access to data, tying of services and imbalanced contractual terms require updated obligations.

Insights gathered from industry, public bodies and civil society will feed into a final report within 18 months, potentially leading to changes via a delegated act.

EU officials underline that Europe’s competitiveness, technological resilience and future AI capacity rely on a fair cloud environment. They argue that a transparent and contestable market will strengthen Europe’s strategic autonomy and encourage innovation.

The inquiries will shape how digital platforms are regulated as cloud services become increasingly central to economic and social life.

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Cloudflare outage disrupts leading crypto platforms

Cloudflare experienced a significant network outage on Tuesday, which disrupted access to major cryptocurrency platforms, including Coinbase, Kraken, Etherscan, and several DeFi services, resulting in widespread ‘500 Internal Server Error’ messages.

The company acknowledged the issue as an internal service degradation across parts of its global network and began rolling out a fix. However, users continued to face elevated error rates during the process.

Major Bitcoin and Ethereum platforms, as well as Aave, DeFiLlama, and several blockchain explorers, were impacted. The disruption spread beyond crypto, affecting several major Web2 platforms, while services like BlueSky and Reddit stayed fully operational.

Cloudflare shares dropped 3.5% in pre-market trading as the company investigated whether scheduled maintenance at specific data centres played any role.

The incident marks the third significant Cloudflare disruption affecting crypto platforms since 2019, highlighting the industry’s ongoing reliance on centralised infrastructure providers despite its focus on decentralisation.

Industry experts pointed to recent outages from Cloudflare and Amazon Web Services as evidence that critical digital services cannot rely solely on a single vendor for reliability. Kraken restored access ahead of many peers, while Cloudflare stated that the issue was resolved and would continue to monitor for full stability.

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AI energy demand strains electrical grids

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently delivered a key insight, stating that the biggest hurdle to deploying new AI solutions is now electrical power, not chip supply. The massive energy requirements for running large language models (LLMs) have created a critical bottleneck for major cloud providers.

Nadella specified that Microsoft currently has a ‘bunch of chips sitting in inventory’ that cannot be plugged in and utilised. The problem is a lack of ‘warm shells’, meaning data centre buildings that are fully equipped with the necessary power and cooling capacity.

The escalating power requirements of AI infrastructure are placing extreme pressure on utility grids and capacity. Projections from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory indicate that US data centres could consume up to 12 percent of the nation’s total electricity by 2028.

The disclosure should serve as a warning to investors, urging them to evaluate the infrastructure challenges alongside AI’s technological promise. This energy limitation could create a temporary drag on the sector, potentially slowing the massive projected returns on the $5 trillion investment.

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Microsoft and NVIDIA expand partnership with Anthropic

Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Anthropic have announced new strategic partnerships to expand access to Anthropic’s rapidly growing Claude AI models. Claude will scale on Microsoft Azure with NVIDIA support, offering enterprise customers broader model choices and enhanced capabilities.

Anthropic has committed to purchase $30 billion of Azure compute capacity and additional capacity up to one gigawatt. NVIDIA and Anthropic will optimise Claude models for performance, efficiency, and cost, while aligning future NVIDIA architectures with Anthropic workloads.

The partnerships also extend Claude access across Microsoft Foundry, including frontier models like Claude Sonnet 4.5, Claude Opus 4.1, and Claude Haiku 4.5.

Microsoft Copilot products, including GitHub Copilot, Microsoft 365 Copilot, and Copilot Studio, will continue to feature Claude capabilities, providing enterprise users with integrated AI tools.

Microsoft and NVIDIA have committed $5 billion and $10 billion respectively to support Anthropic’s growth. The partnership makes Claude the only frontier AI model on all three top cloud platforms, boosting enterprise AI adoption and innovation.

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CelcomDigi convergence project earns ZTE top 5G service honour

ZTE has won the Best Mobile/5G Service Innovation award at the 2025 Global Connectivity Awards for its work on Malaysia’s CelcomDigi dual-network convergence. The project integrates network assets across four regions and six operators, marking the largest deployment of its kind in the country.

The company introduced an intelligent, integrated, and connected management model built on big-data platforms for site deployment, optimisation, and value analysis. Eight smart tools support planning, commissioning, and operations, enabling end-to-end oversight of project delivery and performance.

Phase-one results show a 15 percent rise in coverage, 25 percent faster downloads, higher traffic, and a more than 60 percent reduction in complaints. ZTE also deployed AI-based energy-saving systems to reduce emissions and advance sustainability goals across the network.

The project incorporates talent-building measures by prioritising localisation and working with Malaysian universities. ZTE says this approach supports long-term sector resilience alongside near-term performance gains.

CAPACITY’s Global Connectivity Awards, held in Malaysia, evaluate innovation, execution, and industry impact. ZTE states that it will continue to develop new project management models and partner globally to build more efficient, intelligent, and sustainable communications networks.

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Electricity bills surge as data centres drive up costs across the US

Massive new data centres, built to power the AI industry, are being blamed for a dramatic rise in electricity costs across the US. Residential utility bills in states with high concentrations of these facilities, such as Virginia and Illinois, are surging far beyond the national average.

The escalating energy demand has caused a major capacity crisis on large grids like the PJM Interconnection, with data centre load identified as the primary reason for a multi-billion pound spike in future power costs. These extraordinary increases are being passed directly to consumers, making affordability a central issue for politicians ahead of upcoming elections.

Lawmakers are now targeting tech companies and AI labs, promising to challenge what they describe as ‘sweetheart deals’ and to make the firms contribute more to the infrastructure they rely upon.

Although rising costs are also attributed to an ageing grid and inflation, experts warn that utility bills are unlikely to decrease this decade due to the unprecedented demand from rapid data centre expansion.

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