Marks & Spencer has resumed online clothing orders following a 46-day pause triggered by a cyberattack. The retailer restarted standard home delivery across England, Scotland and Wales, focusing initially on best-selling and new items instead of the full range.
A spokesperson stated that additional products will be added daily, enabling customers to gradually access a wider selection. Services such as click and collect, next-day delivery, and international orders are expected to be reintroduced in the coming weeks, while deliveries to Northern Ireland will resume soon.
The disruption began on 25 April when M&S halted clothing and home orders after issues with contactless payments and app services during the Easter weekend. The company revealed that the breach was caused by hackers who deceived staff at a third-party contractor, bypassing security defences.
M&S had warned that the incident could reduce its 2025/26 operating profit by around £300 million, though it aims to limit losses through insurance and internal cost measures. Shares rose 3 per cent as the online service came back online.
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Reddit has taken legal action against AI company Anthropic, accusing it of scraping content from the platform’s sports-focused communities.
The lawsuit claims Anthropic violated Reddit’s user agreement by collecting posts without permission, particularly from fan-driven discussions that are central to how sports content is shared online.
Reddit argues the scraping undermines its obligations to over 100 million daily users, especially around privacy and user control. According to the filing, Anthropic’s actions override assurances that users can manage or delete their content as they see fit.
The platform emphasises that users gain no benefit from technology built using their contributions.
These online sports communities are rich sources of original fan commentary and analysis. On a large scale, such content could enable AI models to imitate sports fan behaviour with impressive accuracy.
While teams or platforms might use such models to enhance engagement or communication, Reddit warns that unauthorised use brings serious ethical and legal risks.
The case could influence how AI companies handle user-generated content across the internet, not just in sports. As web scraping grows more common, the outcome of the dispute may shape future standards for AI training practices and online content rights.
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China has proposed creating a ‘green channel’ for rare earth exports to the EU, aiming to ease the impact of its recent restrictions. These materials, vital to electric vehicles and household appliances, have been under stricter export controls since April.
During recent talks, Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič warned Chinese officials that the curbs had caused major disruptions across Europe, describing the situation as alarming. While some progress in licence approvals has been noted, businesses argue it remains inadequate.
The talks come as both sides prepare for a high-stakes EU-China summit and continue negotiations over tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles.
Brussels has imposed duties of up to 35.3%, citing unfair subsidies, while Beijing is pushing for a deal involving minimum pricing to avoid the tariffs.
China’s commerce ministry confirmed the discussions are in their final stage but acknowledged that more work is needed to reach a resolution.
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Plans for a vast AI data hub in the UAE have raised security concerns in Washington due to the country’s close ties with China.
The $100 billion Stargate UAE campus, aims to deploy advanced US chips, but US officials are scrutinising potential technology leakage risks.
Although the Trump administration supports the project, bipartisan fears remain about whether the UAE can safeguard US-developed AI and chips from foreign adversaries.
A final agreement has not been reached as both sides negotiate export conditions, with possible restrictions on Nvidia’s hardware.
The initial phase of the Stargate project will activate 200 megawatts of capacity by 2026, but the deal’s future may depend on the UAE’s willingness to accept strict US oversight.
Talks over potential amendments continue, delaying approval of what could become a $500 billion venture.
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Meta Platforms is reportedly in talks to invest over $10 billion in Scale AI, a data labelling startup already backed by Nvidia, Amazon, and Meta itself.
The deal, if finalised, would mark Meta’s largest external investment in AI to date, representing a notable shift away from its prior reliance on in-house research and open-source projects.
Founded in 2016, Scale AI supports the training of AI models through high-quality labelled datasets. It also provides a platform for AI research collaboration, now with contributors in more than 9,000 locations.
The company was last valued at nearly $14 billion following a 2024 funding round involving Meta and Microsoft.
Meta’s planned investment signals an aggressive expansion of its AI ambitions. Earlier this year, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced up to $65 billion in AI spending for 2025. It includes Meta’s Llama chatbot, now embedded into Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, reaching one billion users monthly.
The move puts Meta in closer competition with Microsoft, which has committed over $13 billion to OpenAI, and Amazon and Alphabet, which are backing rival AI firm Anthropic. Scale AI declined to comment, while Meta has yet to respond publicly.
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Financial firms across the UK will soon be able to experiment with AI in a new regulatory sandbox, launched by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in partnership with Nvidia.
Known as the Supercharged Sandbox, it offers a secure testing ground for firms wanting to explore AI tools without needing their advanced computing resources.
Set to begin in October, the initiative is open to any financial services company testing AI-driven ideas. Firms will have access to Nvidia’s accelerated computing platform and tailored AI software, helping them work with complex data, improve automation, and enhance risk management in a controlled setting.
The FCA said the sandbox is designed to support firms lacking the in-house capacity to test new technology.
It aims to provide not only computing power but also regulatory guidance and access to better datasets, creating an environment where innovation can flourish while remaining compliant with rules.
The move forms part of a wider push by the UK government to foster economic growth through innovation. Finance minister Rachel Reeves has urged regulators to clear away obstacles to growth and praised the FCA and Bank of England for acting on her call to cut red tape.
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Odyssey, a startup founded by self-driving veterans Oliver Cameron and Jeff Hawke, has unveiled an AI model that allows users to interact with streaming video in real time.
The technology generates video frames every 40 milliseconds, enabling users to move through scenes like a 3D video game instead of passively watching. A demo is currently available online, though it is still in its early stages.
The system relies on a new kind of ‘world model’ that predicts future visual states based on previous actions and environments. Odyssey claims its model can maintain spatial consistency, learn motion from video, and sustain coherent video output for five minutes or more.
Unlike models trained solely on internet data, Odyssey captures real-world environments using a custom 360-degree, backpack-mounted camera to build higher-fidelity simulations.
Tech giants and AI startups are exploring world models to power next-generation simulations and interactive media. Yet creative professionals remain wary. A 2024 study commissioned by the Animation Guild predicted significant job disruptions across film and animation.
Game studios like Activision Blizzard have been scrutinised for using AI while cutting staff.
Odyssey, however, insists its goal is collaboration instead of replacement. The company is also developing software to let creators edit scenes using tools like Unreal Engine and Blender.
Backed by $27 million in funding and supported by Pixar co-founder Ed Catmull, Odyssey aims to transform video content across entertainment, education, and advertising through on-demand interactivity.
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The FBI has issued a warning about the resurgence of BADBOX 2.0, a dangerous form of malware infecting millions of consumer electronics globally.
Often preloaded onto low-cost smart TVs, streaming boxes, and IoT devices, primarily from China, the malware grants cyber criminals backdoor access, enabling theft, surveillance, and fraud while remaining essentially undetectable.
BADBOX 2.0 forms part of a massive botnet and can also infect devices through malicious apps and drive-by downloads, especially from unofficial Android stores.
Once activated, the malware enables a range of attacks, including click fraud, fake account creation, DDoS attacks, and the theft of one-time passwords and personal data.
Removing the malware is extremely difficult, as it typically requires flashing new firmware, an option unavailable for most of the affected devices.
Users are urged to check their hardware against a published list of compromised models and to avoid sideloading apps or purchasing unverified connected tech.
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Broadcom reported strong second-quarter earnings and revenue driven by robust AI demand and solid networking performance.
Despite beating expectations and raising its outlook, the stock fell 3.47% in after-hours trading on Thursday — likely due to profit-taking instead of concern about fundamentals. Shares had previously rallied over 75% since April.
Revenue for the quarter ending May 5 reached US$15 billion, up 20% year-on-year. Adjusted earnings per share were US$1.58, exceeding estimates by two cents.
Net income more than doubled to US$4.97 billion. CEO Hock Tan attributed the strength to growing demand for AI infrastructure and contributions from VMware, which Broadcom acquired in late 2023.
Broadcom forecasted Q3 revenue of approximately US$15.8 billion, slightly above analyst expectations. AI-related revenue is set to increase to US$5.1 billion, up from US$4.4 billion in Q2, fuelled by custom AI accelerators and high-speed networking chips used in hyperscale data centres.
Tan said that the trend should continue through fiscal 2026.
Semiconductor solutions brought in US$8.4 billion in Q2, up 17% from last year, while software revenue rose 25% to US$6.6 billion, with VMware as a key contributor.
About 30% of Broadcom’s AI-related revenue now comes from its switching business, reflecting increasing demand for AI chip clusters. Despite the slight dip in share price, analysts continue to view Broadcom as a key player in AI infrastructure.
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The global AI chip design market is set for explosive growth, with its value projected to rise from USD 73.87 billion in 2024 to USD 468.9 billion by 2032.
This rapid expansion, driven by a 25.98% compound annual growth rate, reflects rising demand for AI in everyday devices, cloud computing, and industrial automation.
Surging adoption of AI-powered technologies across sectors—from smartphones and autonomous vehicles to manufacturing and healthcare—is fuelling the need for advanced, energy-efficient chips.
Companies are investing in smaller, faster processors and real-time edge computing solutions, while governments in countries like the US, China, and South Korea are backing local AI chip development through funding and research initiatives.
North America currently leads the market thanks to tech giants like NVIDIA, Google, and Intel, but Asia-Pacific is growing fastest, particularly as China and South Korea accelerate efforts toward self-reliance in AI hardware.
Industry leaders such as Arm, Intel, and Qualcomm are racing to optimise performance while managing power demands, placing AI chip design at the heart of the next digital transformation wave.
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