Digital business models

WhatsApp introduces message translations to break language barriers

WhatsApp is introducing message translations to make communication across languages easier for its global user base of over 3 billion people. The feature lets users translate messages directly in one-to-one chats, groups, or Channel updates.

Users can translate messages by pressing them long and selecting the desired language. Translations can be saved for future use, and Android users can enable automatic translation for entire chat threads so all incoming messages are translated automatically.

The translations are processed entirely on the user’s device, ensuring that WhatsApp cannot access the content of private messages. The on-device approach protects users’ privacy while facilitating seamless communication.

Message translations are rolling out gradually, starting with six languages for Android- English, Spanish, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, and Arabic and 19+ languages for iPhone, with additional languages planned for the future. The update aims to help users break down language barriers and connect more easily worldwide.

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Karnataka High Court rules against X Corp in content case

The Indian Karnataka High Court has rejected a petition by Elon Musk’s X Corp that contested the Indian government’s authority to block content and the legality of its Sahyog portal.

Justice M Nagaprasanna ruled that social media regulation is necessary to curb unlawful material, particularly content harmful to women, and that communications have historically been subject to oversight regardless of technology.

X Corp argued that takedown powers exist only under Section 69A of the IT Act and described the Sahyog portal as a tool for censorship. The government countered that Section 79(3)(b) allows safe harbour protections to be withdrawn if platforms fail to comply.

The Indian court sided with the government, affirming the portal’s validity and the broader regulatory framework. The ruling marks a setback for X Corp, which had also sought protection from possible punitive action for not joining the portal.

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Anthropic models join Microsoft Copilot Studio for enhanced AI flexibility

Microsoft has added Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet 4 and Claude Opus 4.1 to Copilot Studio, giving users more control over model selection for orchestration, workflow automation, and reasoning tasks.

The integration allows customers to design and optimise AI agents with either Anthropic or OpenAI models, or even coordinate across both. Administrators can manage access through the Microsoft 365 Admin Center, with automatic fallback to OpenAI GPT-4o if Anthropic models are disabled.

Anthropic’s models are available in early release environments now, with preview access across all environments expected within two weeks and full production readiness by the end of the year.

Microsoft said the move empowers businesses to tailor AI agents more precisely to industry-specific needs, from HR onboarding to compliance management.

By enabling multi-model orchestration, Copilot Studio extends its versatility for enterprises seeking to match the right AI model to each task, underlining Microsoft’s push to position Copilot as a flexible platform for agentic AI.

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Apple escalates fight against EU digital law

US tech giant Apple has called for the repeal of the EU’s Digital Markets Act, claiming the rules undermine user privacy, disrupt services, and erode product quality.

The company urged the Commission to replace the legislation with a ‘fit for purpose’ framework, or hand enforcement to an independent agency insulated from political influence.

Apple argued that the Act’s interoperability requirements had delayed the rollout of features in the EU, including Live Translation on AirPods and iPhone mirroring. Additionally, the firm accused the Commission of adopting extreme interpretations that created user vulnerabilities instead of protecting them.

Brussels has dismissed those claims. A Commission spokesperson stressed that DMA compliance is an obligation, not an option, and said the rules guarantee fair competition by forcing dominant platforms to open access to rivals.

A dispute that intensifies long-running friction between US tech firms and the EU regulators.

Apple has already appealed to the courts, with a public hearing scheduled in October, while Washington has criticised the bloc’s wider digital policy.

A clash has deepened transatlantic trade tensions, with the White House recently threatening tariffs after fresh fines against another American tech company.

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Gatik and Loblaw to deploy 50 self-driving trucks in Canada

Autonomous logistics firm Gatik is set to expand its partnership with Loblaw, deploying 50 new self-driving trucks across North America over the next year. The move marks the largest autonomous truck deployment in the region to date.

The slow rollout of self-driving technology has frustrated supply chain watchers, with most firms still testing limited fleets. Gatik’s large-scale deployment signals a shift toward commercial adoption, with 20 trucks to be added by the end of 2025 and an additional 30 by 2026.

The partnership was enabled by Ontario’s Autonomous Commercial Motor Vehicle Pilot Program, a ten-year initiative allowing approved operators to test automated commercial trucks on public roads. Officials hope it will boost road safety and support the trucking sector.

Industry analysts note that North America’s truck driver shortage is one of the most pressing logistics challenges facing the region. Nearly 70% of logistics firms report that driver shortages hinder their ability to meet freight demand, making automation a viable solution to address this issue.

Gatik, operating in the US and Canada, says the deployment could ease labour pressure and improve efficiency, but safety remains a key concern. Experts caution that striking a balance between rapid rollout and robust oversight will be crucial for establishing trust in autonomous freight operations.

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New Stargate sites create jobs and boost AI capacity across the US

OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank are expanding their Stargate AI infrastructure with five new US data centre sites. The addition brings nearly 7 gigawatts of capacity and $400 billion in investment, putting the partners on track to meet the $500 billion, 10-gigawatt commitment by 2025.

Three of the new sites- located in Shackelford County, Texas; Doña Ana County, New Mexico; and a forthcoming Midwest location, are expected to deliver over 5.5 gigawatts of capacity. These developments are expected to create over 25,000 onsite jobs and tens of thousands more nationwide.

A potential 600-megawatt expansion near the flagship site in Abilene, Texas, is also under consideration.

The remaining two sites, in Lordstown, Ohio, and Milam County, Texas, will scale to 1.5 gigawatts over 18 months. SoftBank and SB Energy are providing advanced design and infrastructure to enable faster, more scalable, and cost-efficient AI compute.

The new sites follow a rigorous nationwide selection process involving over 300 proposals from more than 30 states. Early workloads at the Abilene flagship site are already advancing next-generation AI research, supported by Oracle Cloud Infrastructure and NVIDIA GB200 racks.

The expansion underscores the partners’ commitment to building the physical infrastructure necessary for AI breakthroughs and long-term US leadership in AI.

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The UK’s invisible AI workforce is reshaping industries

According to a new analysis from Multiverse, the UK’s AI workforce is expanding far beyond traditional tech roles. Nurses, lecturers, librarians, surveyors, and other non-tech professionals increasingly apply AI, forming what experts call an ‘invisible AI workforce.’

Over two-thirds of AI apprentices are in roles without tech-related job titles, highlighting the widespread adoption of AI across industries.

An analysis of more than 2,500 Multiverse apprentices shows that AI is being applied in healthcare, education, government administration, financial services, and construction sectors. AI hotspots are emerging beyond London, with clusters in Trafford, Cheshire West and Chester, Leeds, and Birmingham.

Croydon leads among London boroughs for AI apprentices, followed by Tower Hamlets, Lewisham, and Wandsworth.

The UK’s AI workforce is also demographically diverse. Apprentices range in age from 19 to 71, with near-equal gender representation- 45% female and 54% male- compared with just 22% of women in AI roles nationwide.

Workers at all career stages are reskilling with AI, using the technology to address real-world problems, such as improving patient care or streamlining charity services.

Multiverse has trained over 20,000 apprentices in AI, data, and digital skills since 2016 and aims to train another 15,000 in the next two years. With 1,500 companies involved, the platform is helping non-tech workers use AI to boost productivity and innovation across the UK.

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AI-driven remote fetal monitoring launched by Lee Health

Lee Health has launched Florida’s first AI-powered birth care centre, introducing a remote fetal monitoring command hub to improve maternal and newborn outcomes across the Gulf Coast.

The system tracks temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, and pulse for mothers and babies, with AI alerting staff when vital signs deviate from normal ranges. Nurses remain in control but gain what Lee Health calls a ‘second set of eyes’.

‘Maybe mum’s blood pressure is high, maybe the baby’s heart rate is not looking great. We will be able to identify those things,’ said Jen Campbell, director of obstetrical services at Lee Health.

Once a mother checks in, the system immediately monitors across Lee Health’s network and sends data to the AI hub. AI cues trigger early alerts under certified clinician oversight and are aligned with Lee Health’s ethical AI policies, allowing staff to intervene before complications worsen.

Dr Cherrie Morris, vice president and chief physician executive for women’s services, said the hub strengthens patient safety by centralising monitoring and providing expert review from certified nurses across the network.

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DeepSeek reveals secrets of low-cost AI model

Chinese start-up DeepSeek has published the first peer-reviewed study of its R1 model, revealing how it built the powerful AI system for under US$300,000.

The model stunned markets on its release in January and has since become Hugging Face’s most downloaded open-weight system. Unlike rivals, R1 was not trained on other models’ output but instead developed reasoning abilities through reinforcement learning.

DeepSeek’s engineers rewarded the model for correct answers, enabling it to form problem-solving strategies. Efficiency gains came from allowing R1 to score its own outputs rather than relying on a separate algorithm.

The Nature paper marks the first time a major large language model has undergone peer review. Reviewers said the process increased transparency and should be adopted by other firms as scrutiny of AI risks intensifies.

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CISA highlights failures after US agency cyber breach

The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has published lessons from its response to a federal agency breach.

Hackers exploited an unpatched vulnerability in GeoServer software, gaining access to multiple systems. CISA noted that the flaw had been disclosed weeks earlier and added to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue, but the agency had not patched it in time.

Investigators also found that incident response plans were outdated and had not been tested. The lack of clear procedures delayed third-party support and restricted access to vital security tools during the investigation.

CISA added that endpoint detection alerts were not continuously reviewed and some US public-facing systems had no protection, leaving attackers free to install web shells and move laterally through the network.

The agency urged all organisations to prioritise patching, maintain and rehearse incident response plans, and ensure comprehensive logging to strengthen resilience against future cybersecurity attacks.

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