Digital business models

Analyst warns AI will make stocks obsolete in favour of Bitcoin

Analyst Jordi Visser warns AI could make traditional stocks obsolete by speeding up innovation, making public companies inefficient investments. He said Bitcoin is a longer-lasting investment, based on belief rather than fleeting corporate ideas.

Visser suggested that AI could compress a century of innovation into just five years, reshaping finance and capital markets. He believes investors will prefer belief assets like Bitcoin, noting its long-term resilience mirrors gold’s role as a store of value.

Momentum behind Bitcoin adoption is also gathering elsewhere. Eric Trump told the Bitcoin Asia 2025 conference that the cryptocurrency could reach $1 million as nation states, companies, and wealthy families add it to their reserves.

Public firms are shifting business models to hold Bitcoin directly, diverting capital from traditional equity markets.

Bitcoin’s market capitalisation currently exceeds $2.1 trillion, and some analysts predict it could surpass gold in the decades ahead. Its global, yield-generating design in DeFi could help Bitcoin surpass gold as a store of value.

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Tether pauses freezing of USDT on five blockchains

Tether has suspended its plan to freeze USDT smart contracts on five blockchains after feedback from community members. The stablecoin will remain transferable on these networks, but can no longer be issued or redeemed.

The decision affects Omni Layer, Algorand, EOS, Bitcoin Cash SLP, and Kusama. Omni Layer is most impacted, holding nearly $83 million in USDT. EOS carries around $4.2 million, while the other chains have less than $1 million combined.

Tether said it will focus on blockchains with strong adoption and developer activity, such as Ethereum and Tron, which hold over $150 billion in USDT. BNB Chain, Solana, and Ethereum layer-2 networks also play key roles in the stablecoin market.

The move comes as stablecoins gain fresh momentum following US President Donald Trump’s signing of the GENIUS Act. Analysts expect the law to strengthen dollar-pegged stablecoins globally, with forecasts suggesting the market could reach $2 trillion by 2028.

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Salesforce customers hit by OAuth token breach

Security researchers have warned Salesforce customers after hackers stole data by exploiting OAuth access tokens linked to the Salesloft Drift integration, highlighting critical cybersecurity flaws.

Google’s Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) reported that the threat actor UNC6395 used the tokens to infiltrate hundreds of Salesforce environments, exporting large volumes of sensitive information. Stolen data included AWS keys, passwords, and Snowflake tokens.

Experts warn that compromised SaaS integrations pose a central blind spot, since attackers inherit the same permissions as trusted apps and can often bypass multifactor authentication. Investigations are ongoing to determine whether connected systems, such as AWS or VPNs, were also breached.

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Econet brings smart tech to Zimbabwe Agricultural Show to support farmers

Econet Wireless Zimbabwe is showcasing its latest technologies at the 2025 Zimbabwe Agricultural Show under the theme ‘Building Bridges: Connecting Agriculture, Industry & Community’.

The company is engaging thousands of visitors, including farmers and policymakers, by spotlighting digital inclusive finance, insurance and smart infrastructure innovations.

The display features EcoCash mobile payments, Moovah Insurance for agricultural and business risks, and digital entertainment platforms. A standout addition is Econet’s smart water metres, which provide real-time monitoring to help farmers and utilities manage water use, minimise waste and support sustainable development in agriculture.

Econet emphasises that these solutions reinforce its vision of empowering communities through accessible technology. Smart infrastructure and financial tools are presented as vital enablers for productivity, resilience and economic inclusion in Zimbabwe’s agricultural sector.

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Estonia’s Vocal Image uses AI to boost communication skills

Estonia-based startup Vocal Image is deploying AI to help people improve their vocal and communication skills. Its app features an interactive library of tongue twisters, breathing exercises and suggestions for gestures, all enhanced with automated feedback and personalised coaching tips.

Led by CEO Nick Lahoika, the company has scaled rapidly, achieving upwards of 4 million downloads and serving approximately 160,000 active users.

Vocal Image positions itself as an affordable, mobile-first alternative to traditional one-on-one voice training, rooted in Lahoika’s own journey overcoming speaking anxiety.

The app’s design enables users to practice at home with privacy and convenience, offering daily, bite-sized lessons informed by AI that assess strengths, suggest improvements and nurture confidence with no need for human instructors.

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Claude chatbot misused in unprecedented cyber extortion case

A hacker exploited Anthropic’s Claude chatbot to automate one of the most extensive AI-driven cybercrime operations yet recorded, targeting at least 17 companies across multiple sectors, the firm revealed.

According to Anthropic’s report, the attacker used Claude Code to identify vulnerable organisations, generate malicious software, and extract sensitive files, including defence data, financial records, and patients’ medical information.

The chatbot then sorted the stolen material, identified leverage for extortion, calculated realistic bitcoin demands, and even drafted ransom notes and extortion emails on behalf of the hacker.

Victims included a defence contractor, a financial institution, and healthcare providers. Extortion demands reportedly ranged from $75,000 to over $500,000, although it remains unclear how much was actually paid.

Anthropic declined to disclose the companies affected but confirmed new safeguards are in place. The firm warned that AI lowers the barrier to entry for sophisticated cybercrime, making such misuse increasingly likely.

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Bitcoin could reach $150,000 by late 2025

Analysts suggest Bitcoin’s current bull cycle may reach new highs of $150,000 by December 2025, driven by supply scarcity and sustained institutional holdings. The growth is expected to be slower than previous cycles but could extend into early 2026.

Technical analysis shows that each successive cycle delivers smaller gains. While early cycles saw increases of 61%, 42%, and 35%, the current cycle may peak at 27%.

Experts argue that a deceleration in growth often results in longer-lasting uptrends rather than signalling an end to momentum.

Liquidity data points to further upside potential. Bitcoin held in long-term storage has returned to historically high levels, reducing the amount available for trading. Analysts warn that scarcity may boost prices, but sudden large sell-offs could push Bitcoin down to $90,000–$100,000.

The debate continues over the timing and duration of the cycle. Some experts say the bull run is nearly over, while others believe institutional activity is changing the traditional four-year halving cycle.

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China sets 10-year targets for mass AI adoption

China has set its most ambitious AI adoption targets yet, aiming to embed the technology across industries, governance, and daily life within the next decade.

According to a new State Council directive, AI use should reach 70% of the population by 2027 and 90% by 2030, with a complete shift to what it calls an ‘intelligent society’ by 2035.

The plan would mean nearly one billion Chinese citizens regularly using AI-powered services or devices within two years, a timeline compared to the rapid rise of smartphones.

Although officials acknowledge risks such as opaque models, hallucinations and algorithmic discrimination, the policy calls for frameworks to govern ‘natural persons, digital persons, and intelligent robots’.

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US begins publishing economic data on public blockchains

The US Department of Commerce has begun a pilot to publish official economic data on public blockchains to boost transparency and integrity. The first release included GDP figures on nine networks, among them Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon.

For the July 2025 update, the department issued a cryptographic proof confirming 3.3% annualised GDP growth. In some cases, the topline figure itself was also shared.

Major exchanges such as Coinbase, Gemini, and Kraken supported the rollout, while oracle providers Chainlink and Pyth made the data instantly available across hundreds of applications.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick called the move practical and symbolic, highlighting the Trump administration’s aim to position America as a blockchain leader. He emphasised that putting government data on-chain ensures universal access and creates new opportunities for financial markets.

The pilot may expand to more chains, oracles, and market participants. Officials say future datasets may include inflation and other key metrics, potentially changing how public statistics are shared and used in decentralised finance.

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Anthropic updates Claude’s policy with new data training choices

The US AI startup has announced an update to its data policy for Claude users, introducing an option to allow conversations and coding sessions to be used for training future AI models.

Anthropic stated that all Claude Free, Pro, and Max users, including those using Claude Code, will be asked to make a decision by September 28, 2025.

According to Anthropic, users who opt in will permit retention of their conversations for up to five years, with the data contributing to improvements in areas such as reasoning, coding, and analysis.

Those who choose not to participate will continue under the current policy, where conversations are deleted within thirty days unless flagged for legal or policy reasons.

The new policy does not extend to enterprise products, including Claude for Work, Claude Gov, Claude for Education, or API access through partners like Amazon Bedrock and Google Cloud Vertex AI. These remain governed by separate contractual agreements.

Anthropic noted that the choice will also apply to new users during sign-up, while existing users will be prompted through notifications to review their privacy settings.

The company emphasised that users remain in control of their data and that manually deleted conversations will not be used for training.

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