Economic

A €358 million EU investment strengthens the clean energy transition

The EU has announced more than €358 million in new funding for 132 environmental and climate projects under the LIFE Programme.

The investment covers over half of the total €536 million required, with the remainder coming from national and local governments, private partners and civil society.

A project that will advance the transition of the EU to a clean, circular and climate-resilient economy while supporting biodiversity, competitiveness and long-term climate neutrality.

Funding includes €147 million for nature and biodiversity, €76 million for circular economy initiatives, €58 million for climate resilience and €77 million for clean energy transition projects.

Examples include habitat restoration in Sweden and Poland, sustainable farming in France, and renewable energy training in France’s new LIFE SUNACADEMY. Other projects will tackle pollution, restore peatlands, and modernise energy systems across Europe, from rural communities to remote islands.

Since its launch in 1992, the LIFE Programme has co-financed over 6,500 projects that support environmental innovation and sustainability.

The current programme runs until 2027 with a total budget of €5.43 billion, managed by the European Climate Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA).

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‘Wooing and suing’ defines News Corp’s AI strategy

News Corp chief executive Robert Thomson warned AI companies against using unlicensed publisher content, calling recipients of ‘stolen goods’ fair game for pursuit. He said ‘wooing and suing’ would proceed in parallel, with more licensing deals expected after the OpenAI pact.

Thomson argued that high-quality data must be paid for and that ingesting material without permission undermines incentives to produce journalism. He insisted that ‘content crime does not and will not pay,’ signalling stricter enforcement ahead.

While criticising bad actors, he praised partners that recognise publisher IP and are negotiating usage rights. The company is positioning itself to monetise archives and live reporting through structured licences.

He also pointed to a major author settlement with another AI firm as a watershed for compensation over past training uses. The message: legal and commercial paths are both accelerating.

Against this backdrop, News Corp said AI-related revenues are gaining traction alongside digital subscriptions and B2B data services. Further licensing announcements are likely in the coming months.

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Cars.com launches Carson AI to transform online car shopping

The US tech company, Cars.com, has unveiled Carson, a multilingual AI search engine designed to revolutionise the online car shopping experience.

Instead of relying on complex filters, Carson interprets natural language queries such as ‘a reliable car for a family of five’ or ‘a used truck under $30,000’, instantly producing targeted results tailored to each shopper’s needs.

A new AI feature that already powers around 15% of all web and mobile searches on Cars.com, with early data showing that users engaging with Carson return to the site twice as often and save three times more vehicles.

They also generate twice as many leads and convert 30% more frequently from search to vehicle detail pages.

Cars.com aims to simplify decision-making for its 25 million monthly shoppers, 70% of whom begin their search without knowing which brand or model to choose.

Carson helps these undecided users explore lifestyle, emotional and practical preferences while guiding them through Cars.com’s award-winning listings.

Further updates will introduce AI-generated summaries, personalised comparisons and search refinement suggestions.

Cars.com’s parent company, Cars Commerce, plans to expand its use of AI-driven tools to strengthen its role at the forefront of automotive retail innovation, offering a more efficient and intelligent marketplace for both consumers and dealerships.

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Appfigures revises iOS estimates as Sora’s launch on Android launch leaps ahead

Sora’s Android launch outpaced its iOS debut, garnering an estimated 470,000 first-day installs across seven markets, according to Appfigures. Broader regional availability, plus the end of invite-only access in top markets, boosted uptake.

OpenAI’s iOS rollout was limited to the US and Canada via invitations, which capped early growth despite strong momentum. The iOS app nevertheless surpassed one million installs in its first week and still ranks highly in the US App Store’s Top Free chart.

Revised Appfigures modelling puts day-one iOS installs at ~110,000 (up from 56,000), with ~69,300 from the US. On Android, availability spans the US, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. First-day US installs were ~296,000, showing sustained demand beyond the iOS launch.

Sora allows users to generate videos from text prompts and animate themselves or friends via ‘Cameos’, sharing the results in a TikTok-style vertical feed. Engagement features for creation and discovery are driving word of mouth and repeat use across both platforms.

Competition in mobile AI video and assistants is intensifying, with Meta AI expanding its app in Europe on the same day. Market share will hinge on geographic reach, feature velocity, creator tools, and distribution via app store charts and social feeds.

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Suleyman sets limits for safer superintelligence at Microsoft

Microsoft AI says its work toward superintelligence will be explicitly ‘humanist’, designed to keep people at the top of the food chain. In a new blog post, Microsoft AI head Mustafa Suleyman announced a team focused on building systems that are subordinate, controllable, and designed to serve human interests.

Suleyman says superintelligence should not be unbounded. Models will be calibrated, contextualised, and limited to align with human goals. He joined Microsoft last year as its AI CEO, which has begun rolling out its first in-house models for text, voice, and images.

The move lands amid intensifying competition in advanced AI. Under a revised agreement with OpenAI, Microsoft can now independently pursue AGI or partner elsewhere. Suleyman says Microsoft AI will reject race narratives while acknowledging the need to advance capability and governance together.

Microsoft’s initial use cases emphasise an AI companion to help people learn, act, and feel supported; healthcare assistance to augment clinicians; and tools for scientific discovery in areas such as clean energy. The intent is to combine productivity gains with stronger safety controls from the outset.

‘Humans matter more than AI,’ Suleyman writes, casting ‘humanist superintelligence’ as technology that stays on humanity’s team. He frames the programme as a guard against Pandora’s box risks by binding robust systems to explicit constraints, oversight, and application contexts.

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ACCC lawsuit triggers Microsoft’s rethink and apology on Copilot subscription communications

Microsoft apologised after Australia’s regulator said it steered Microsoft 365 users to pricier Copilot plans while downplaying cheaper Classic tiers. The move follows APAC price-rise emails and confusion over Personal and Family increases.

ACCC officials said communications may have denied customers informed choices by omitting equivalent non-AI plans. Microsoft acknowledged it could have been clearer and accepted that Classic alternatives might have saved some subscribers money under the October 2024 changes.

Redmond is offering affected customers refunds for the difference between Copilot and Classic tiers and has begun contacting subscribers in Australia and New Zealand. The company also re-sent its apology email after discovering a broken link to the Classic plans page.

Questions remain over whether similar remediation will extend to Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand, which also saw price hikes earlier this year. Consumer groups are watching for consistent remedies and plain-English disclosures across all impacted markets.

Regulators have sharpened scrutiny of dark patterns, bundling, and AI-linked upsells as digital subscriptions proliferate. Clear side-by-side plan comparisons and functional disclosures about AI features are likely to become baseline expectations for compliance and customer trust.

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Jensen Huang of Nvidia rules out China Blackwell talks for now

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said the company is not in active discussions to sell Blackwell-family AI chips to Chinese firms and has no current plans to ship them. He also clarified remarks about the US-China AI race, saying he intended to acknowledge China’s technical strength rather than predict an outcome.

Huang spoke in Taiwan ahead of meetings with TSMC, as Nvidia expands partnerships and pitches its platforms across regions and industries. The company has added roughly a trillion dollars in value this year and remains the world’s most valuable business despite recent share volatility.

US controls still bar sales of Nvidia’s most advanced data-centre AI chips into China, and a recent bilateral accord did not change that. Officials have indicated approvals for Blackwell remain off the table, keeping a potentially large market out of reach for now.

Analysts say uncertainty around China’s access to the technology feeds broader questions about the durability of hyperscale AI spending. Rivals, including AMD and Broadcom, are racing to win share as customers weigh long-term returns on data-centre buildouts.

Huang is promoting Nvidia’s end-to-end stack to reassure buyers that massive investments will yield productivity gains across sectors. He said he hopes policy environments eventually allow Nvidia to serve China again, but reiterated there are no active talks.

OpenAI unveils Teen Safety Blueprint for responsible AI

OpenAI has launched the Teen Safety Blueprint to guide responsible AI use for young people. The roadmap guides policymakers and developers on age-appropriate design, safeguards, and research to protect teen well-being and promote opportunities.

The company is implementing these principles across its products without waiting for formal regulation. Recent measures include stronger safeguards, parental controls, and an age-prediction system to customise AI experiences for under-18 users.

OpenAI emphasises that protecting teens is an ongoing effort. Collaboration with parents, experts, and young people will help improve AI safety continuously while shaping how technology can support teens responsibly over the long term.

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Circle urges US Treasury to create a clear stablecoin framework under the GENIUS Act

Circle has submitted its comments to the US Department of the Treasury, outlining its support for the GENIUS Act and calling for clear, consistent rules to govern payment stablecoin issuers.

The company emphasised that effective rulemaking could create a unified national framework for both domestic and foreign issuers, providing consumers with safer and more transparent financial products.

The firm urged Treasury to adopt a cooperative supervisory approach that promotes uniform compliance and risk management standards across jurisdictions. Circle warned against excessive restrictions that could harm liquidity, cross-border payments, or interoperability.

It also called for closing potential loopholes that might allow unregulated entities to avoid oversight while benefiting from the US dollar’s trust and stability.

Circle proposed safeguards requiring stablecoins to be fully backed, independently audited, and supported by transparent public reports. The firm stressed recognising foreign regimes, applying equal rules to all issuers, and enforcing consistent penalties.

Circle described the GENIUS Act as a chance to strengthen the stability of digital finance in the US. The company believes transparent, fully backed stablecoins and recognised foreign issuers could strengthen US leadership in secure, innovative finance.

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Doctolib fined €4.67 million for abusing market dominance

France’s competition authority has fined Doctolib €4.67 million for abusing its dominant position in online medical appointment booking and teleconsultation services. The regulator found that Doctolib used exclusivity clauses and tied selling to restrict competition and strengthen its market control.

Doctolib required healthcare professionals to subscribe to its appointment booking service to use its teleconsultation platform, effectively preventing them from using rival providers. Contracts also included clauses discouraging professionals from signing with competing services.

The French authority also sanctioned Doctolib for its 2018 acquisition of MonDocteur, describing it as a strategy to eliminate its main competitor. Internal documents revealed that the merger aimed to remove MonDocteur’s product from the market and reduce pricing pressure.

The decision marks the first application of the EU’s Towercast precedent to penalise a below-threshold merger as an abuse of dominance. Doctolib has been ordered to publish the ruling summary in Le Quotidien du Médecin and online.

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