Economic

Broadcom beats estimates but stock dips after-hours

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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Semiconductor innovation drives AI chip boom

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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Kraken warns crypto users to stay alert

Kraken has raised concerns over the lack of basic security awareness among crypto users attending industry events. Kraken’s security team observed unlocked devices, unattended phones, and careless talk of personal wealth at conferences, exposing attendees to potential exploitation.

Head of Security Nick Percoco warned that these behaviours compromise individual assets and the safety of entire projects.

Percoco highlighted how scammers easily blend in by posing as legitimate attendees. Tactics include juice jacking, compromised Wi-Fi networks, and malicious QR codes.

He advised using burner wallets with minimal funds during conferences, locking all devices, and avoiding unsecured public connections.

There has also been a rise in offline threats targeting crypto holders. Kraken observed attendees casually discussing trades while wearing conference badges with full names and company details.

With reports of kidnappings and in-person crypto thefts increasing globally, experts say discretion and strong operational security are more crucial than ever.

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ChatGPT adds meeting recording and cloud access

OpenAI has launched new features for ChatGPT that allow it to record meetings, transcribe conversations, and pull information directly from cloud platforms like Google Drive and SharePoint.

Instead of relying on typed input alone, users can now speak to ChatGPT, which records audio, creates editable summaries, and helps generate follow-up content such as emails or project outlines.

‘Record’ is currently available to Team users via the macOS app and will soon expand to Enterprise and Edu accounts.

The recording tool automatically deletes the audio after transcription and applies existing workspace data rules, ensuring recordings are not used for training.

Instead of leaving notes scattered across different platforms, users gain a structured and searchable history of conversations, voice notes, or brainstorming sessions, which ChatGPT can recall and apply during future interactions.

At the same time, OpenAI has introduced new connectors for business users that let ChatGPT access files from cloud services like Dropbox, OneDrive, Box, and others.

These connectors allow ChatGPT to search and summarise information from internal documents, rather than depending only on web search or user uploads. The update also includes beta support for Deep Research agents that can work with tools like GitHub and HubSpot.

OpenAI has embraced the Model Context Protocol, an open standard allowing organisations to build their own custom connectors for proprietary tools.

Rather than serving purely as a general-purpose chatbot, ChatGPT is evolving into a workplace assistant capable of tapping into and understanding a company’s complete knowledge base.

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EU launches global digital strategy

The European Union has launched a sweeping international digital strategy to bolster its global tech leadership and secure a human-centric digital transformation. With the digital and AI revolution reshaping economies and societies worldwide, the EU is positioning itself as a reliable partner in building resilient, open, and secure digital ecosystems.

The strategy prioritises collaboration with international partners to scale digital infrastructure, strengthen cybersecurity, and support emerging technologies like AI, quantum computing, and semiconductors while promoting democratic values and human rights in digital governance. The EU will deepen and expand its global network of Digital Partnerships and Dialogues to remain competitive and secure in a fast-changing geopolitical landscape.

These collaborations focus on research, industrial innovation, regulatory cooperation, and secure supply chains, while engaging countries across Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the EU’s own neighbourhood. The strategy also leverages trade instruments and investment frameworks such as the Global Gateway to support secure 5G and 6G networks, submarine cables, and digital public infrastructure, helping partner countries improve connectivity, resilience, and sustainability.

To enhance global digital governance, the EU is pushing for international standards that uphold privacy, security, and openness, and opposing efforts to fragment the internet. It supports inclusive multilateralism, working through institutions like the UN, G7, and OECD to shape rules for the digital age.

With initiatives ranging from AI safety cooperation and e-signature mutual recognition to safeguarding children online and combating disinformation, the EU aims to set the benchmark for ethical and secure digital transformation. At the heart of this vision is the EU Tech Business Offer—a modular, cross-border platform combining technology, capacity-building, and financing.

Through Team Europe and partnerships with industry, the EU seeks to bridge the digital divide, export trusted digital solutions, and foster an interconnected world aligned with European democratic principles. The strategy underscores that in today’s interconnected world, the EU’s prosperity and security hinge on shaping a digital future that is competitive, inclusive, and values-driven.

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US and El Salvador discuss crypto partnerships

Bo Hines, head of Donald Trump’s advisory council on digital assets, recently met with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele to explore joint opportunities in the crypto sector. Their meeting focused on digital asset growth and plans to reshape global finance.

El Salvador’s Bitcoin Office confirmed talks on Bitcoin and wider digital asset collaboration between the two nations. The visit comes shortly after Bukele’s White House meeting with Trump, which focused on regional security rather than crypto.

However, Hines’ presence in El Salvador has reignited attention on Trump’s crypto strategy.

Trump’s administration previously announced plans for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, which would be built using funds from criminal seizures and other cost-neutral sources.

While no official US Bitcoin purchases have occurred, Hines’ visit may signal early steps toward adopting elements of El Salvador’s model.

El Salvador, which made Bitcoin legal tender in 2021, continues to push for digital literacy. Its government has launched education programmes on Bitcoin, artificial intelligence, and ethics, aiming to develop a new generation of tech-savvy leaders.

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M&S CEO targeted by hackers in abusive ransom email

Marks & Spencer has been directly targeted by a ransomware group calling itself DragonForce, which sent a vulgar and abusive ransom email to CEO Stuart Machin using a compromised employee email address.

The message, laced with offensive language and racist terms, demanded that Machin engage via a darknet portal to negotiate payment. It also claimed that the hackers had encrypted the company’s servers and stolen customer data, a claim M&S eventually acknowledged weeks later.

The email, dated 23 April, appears to have been sent from the account of an Indian IT worker employed by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a long-standing M&S tech partner.

TCS has denied involvement and stated that its systems were not the source of the breach. M&S has remained silent publicly, neither confirming the full scope of the attack nor disclosing whether a ransom was paid.

The cyber attack has caused major disruption, costing M&S an estimated £300 million and halting online orders for over six weeks.

DragonForce has also claimed responsibility for a simultaneous attack on the Co-op, which left some shelves empty for days. While nothing has yet appeared on DragonForce’s leak site, the group claims it will publish stolen information soon.

Investigators believe DragonForce operates as a ransomware-as-a-service collective, offering tools and platforms to cybercriminals in exchange for a 20% share of any ransom.

Some experts suspect the real perpetrators may be young hackers from the West, linked to a loosely organised online community called Scattered Spider. The UK’s National Crime Agency has confirmed it is focusing on the group as part of its inquiry into the recent retail hacks.

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Romania embraces Bitcoin ATMs in postal branches

Romania’s national postal service has taken a digital leap by installing its first Bitcoin ATM in Tulcea. The move is part of a wider effort to modernise Poșta Română and bring cryptocurrency services to less connected regions.

The initiative was launched in collaboration with Bitcoin Romania, one of the country’s leading crypto exchanges.

Additional Bitcoin ATMs are scheduled for deployment in Alexandria, Piatra Neamț, Botoșani, and Nădlac. Placing ATMs in post offices signals a shift in public attitudes, as institutions embrace modern financial tools in everyday settings.

The goal is to boost accessibility while embracing a broader digital transformation.

Although the number of Bitcoin users continues to rise, global adoption remains low. A recent River report found that just 4% of the global population owns Bitcoin, with 14% of users based in the United States.

Despite this, Bitcoin’s market cap—currently just over $2 trillion—remains a fraction of its estimated potential.

Researchers believe Bitcoin could one day capture up to 50% of the global store-of-value market, which is valued at around $225 trillion. With adoption still lagging, analysts argue that Bitcoin has significant room for future growth.

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Gemini 2.5 Pro tops AI coding tests, surpasses ChatGPT and Claude

Google has released an updated version of its Gemini 2.5 Pro model, addressing issues found in earlier updates.

Unlike the I/O Edition, which focuses mostly on coding, the new version improves performance more broadly and is expected to become a stable release in both the Gemini app and web interface.

The company claims the updated model performs significantly better in code generation, topping the Aider Polyglot test with a score of 82.2 percent—surpassing offerings from OpenAI, Anthropic and DeepSeek.

Beyond coding, the model aims to close previous performance gaps introduced with the March 25th update, especially in creativity and response formatting.

Developers can now fine-tune the model’s ‘thinking budget’, while users should notice a more transparent output structure. These changes and consistent improvement in leaderboard ratings on LMArena and WebDevArena suggest that Google is extending its lead in the AI race.

Google continues to rely on blind testing to judge how people feel about its models, and the new Gemini Pro seems to resonate well. In fact, it now answers even quirky test questions with more clarity and confidence—something that had been lacking in earlier versions.

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Epic adds AI NPC tools to Fortnite as Vader voice sparks union clash

Epic Games is launching new tools for Fortnite creators that enable them to build AI-powered non-player characters (NPCs), following the debut of an AI-generated Darth Vader that players can talk to in-game.

The feature, which reproduces the iconic voice of James Earl Jones using AI, marks a significant step in interactive gaming—but also comes with its share of challenges and controversy.

According to The Verge, Epic encountered several difficulties in fine-tuning Vader’s voice and responses to feel authentic and fit smoothly into gameplay. ‘The culmination of a very intense effort for a character everybody understands,’ said Saxs Persson, executive vice president of the Fortnite ecosystem.

Persson noted that the team worked carefully to ensure that when Vader joins a player’s team, he behaves as a fearsome and aggressive ally—true to his cinematic persona.

However, the rollout wasn’t entirely smooth. In a live-streamed session, popular Fortnite creator Loserfruit prompted Vader to swear, exposing the system’s content filtering flaws. Epic responded quickly with patches and has since implemented multiple layers of safety checks.

‘We do our best job on day one,’ said Persson, ‘but more importantly, we’re ready to surround the problem and have fixes in place as fast as possible.’

Now, Fortnite creators will have access to the same suite of AI tools and safety systems used to develop Vader. They can control voice tone, dialogue, and NPC behaviour while relying on Epic’s safeguards to avoid inappropriate interactions.

The feature launch comes at a sensitive moment, as actor union SAG-AFTRA has filed a complaint against Epic Games over using AI to recreate Vader’s voice.

The union claims that Llama Productions, an Epic subsidiary, employed the technology without consulting or bargaining with the union, replacing the work of human voice actors.

‘We must protect our right to bargain terms and conditions around uses of voice that replace the work of our members,’ SAG-AFTRA said, emphasising its support for actors and estates in managing the use of digital replicas.

As Epic expands its AI capabilities in gaming, it faces both the technical challenges of responsible deployment and the growing debate around AI’s impact on creative professions.

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