Economic

Qwen3-Max-Thinking hits perfect scores as Alibaba raises the bar on AI reasoning

Alibaba unveiled Qwen3-Max-Thinking, which scored 100 percent on AIME 2025 and HMMT, matching OpenAI’s top model on reasoning tests. It targets high-precision problem-solving across algebra, number theory, and probability. Researchers regard elite maths contests as strong proxies for reasoning.

Built on Qwen3-Max, a trillion-parameter flagship, the thinking variant emphasises step-by-step solutions. Alibaba says it matches or beats Claude Opus 4, DeepSeek V3.1, Grok 4, and GPT-5 Pro. Positioning stresses accuracy, traceability, and controllable latency.

Signal from a live trading trial added momentum. In a two-week crypto experiment, Qwen3-Max returned 22.3 percent on 10,000 US dollars. Competing systems underperformed, with DeepSeek at 4.9 percent and several US models booking losses.

Access is available via the Qwen web chatbot and Alibaba Cloud APIs. Early adopters can test tool use and stepwise reasoning on technical tasks. Enterprises are exploring finance, research, and operations cases requiring reliability and auditability.

Alibaba researchers say further tuning will broaden task coverage without diluting peak maths performance. Plans include multilingual reasoning, safety alignment, and robustness under distribution shift. Community benchmarks and contests will track progress.

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Microsoft deal signals pay-per-use path for AI access to People Inc. content

People Inc. has joined Microsoft’s publisher content marketplace in a pay-per-use deal that compensates media for AI access. Copilot will be the first buyer, while People Inc. continues to block most AI crawlers via Cloudflare to force paid licensing.

People Inc., formerly Dotdash Meredith, said Microsoft’s marketplace lets AI firms pay ‘à la carte’ for specific content. The agreement differs from its earlier OpenAI pact, which the company described as more ‘all-you-can-eat’, but the priority remains ‘respected and paid for’ use.

Executives disclosed a sharp fall in Google search referrals: from 54% of traffic two years ago to 24% last quarter, citing AI Overviews. Leadership argues that crawler identification and paid access should become the norm as AI sits between publishers and audiences.

Blocking non-paying bots has ‘brought almost everyone to the table’, People Inc. said, signalling more licences to come. Such an approach by Microsoft is framed as a model for compensating rights-holders while enabling AI tools to use high-quality, authorised material.

IAC reported People Inc. digital revenue up 9% to $269m, with performance marketing and licensing up 38% and 24% respectively. The publisher also acquired Feedfeed, expanding its food vertical reach while pursuing additional AI content partnerships.

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Streaming giants face new Australian content rules

Australia is moving to ensure that global streaming giants contribute to its creative industry by introducing a law that will require them to invest in local productions. Under the new rules, platforms such as Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime, which have more than one million Australian subscribers, must allocate at least 10% of their local spending, or 7.5% of their revenue, to Australian-made content.

The legislation, to be introduced in Parliament this week, will apply to drama, documentaries, arts, and educational programming.

Arts Minister Tony Burke said the move would guarantee that Australian stories continue to be told in the age of streaming. While traditional broadcasters already face content quotas, no such rules previously applied to streaming platforms.

‘This obligation will ensure that those stories, our stories, continue to be made,’ Burke said, adding that the policy also aims to safeguard local acting and production jobs.

The plan, delayed initially due to trade concerns with the United States, is now back on track, thanks to improved diplomatic relations. Industry bodies such as the Australian Writers Guild and Screen Producers Australia have welcomed the move, describing it as vital for sustaining the country’s cultural identity and creative workforce.

The reform comes at a challenging time for the sector, as investment in locally made films and television dramas dropped by nearly 30% in the 2023–24 financial year, according to Screen Australia. By encouraging streamers to invest in Australian storytelling, the government aims to reverse this decline and strengthen the nation’s screen industry for the future.

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EU invests €2.9 billion to drive net-zero industrial transformation

The European Commission has approved €2.9 billion in funding for 61 large-scale net-zero technology projects, marking one of the EU’s most significant investments in clean innovation to date.

Financed through revenues from the EU Emissions Trading System, the initiative aims to accelerate Europe’s path towards climate neutrality by 2050.

The selected projects cover 19 industrial sectors across 18 Member States and target areas such as renewable energy, energy storage, zero-emission mobility, and industrial carbon management.

Collectively, they are expected to cut more than 220 million tonnes of CO₂ over the next decade, reinforcing Europe’s global leadership in sustainable technologies instead of relying on imports.

Funded under the Innovation Fund, which draws on an estimated €40 billion in ETS revenues, the initiative highlights the EU’s industrial readiness for decarbonisation. The latest call attracted 359 applications requesting €21.7 billion in support, underscoring the rapid growth of the continent’s cleantech sector.

Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra described the announcement as proof that the EU is turning its climate ambitions into industrial reality, creating green jobs and strengthening economic resilience. The next round of Innovation Fund calls will open in December 2025.

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France moves to tax crypto as ‘unproductive wealth’

French lawmakers approved a proposal to expand the wealth tax to cover ‘unproductive assets’ like luxury goods, property, and digital currencies. The amendment by centrist MP Jean-Paul Matteï narrowly passed the National Assembly, 163 to 150, with support from socialist and far-right members.

The proposal will now move to the Senate for further debate as part of the 2026 national budget process.

Under the plan, individuals holding ‘unproductive wealth’ valued above €2 million would face a new 1% flat tax. The measure replaces the existing progressive real estate wealth tax, which currently charges up to 1.5% on assets exceeding €10 million.

Matteï argued that the change would promote ‘productive investment’ and address inconsistencies in the current system, which excludes assets like gold, classic cars, and cryptocurrencies.

The inclusion of digital assets has drawn criticism from the local crypto community. Éric Larchevêque, co-founder of crypto wallet maker Ledger, warned that the move sends a negative message, portraying crypto as economically ‘unproductive.’

He cautioned that investors could be forced to liquidate their holdings to pay the tax, and expressed concern that the threshold might later be reduced.

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EU invests €107 million in RAISE for AI in science

The European Commission has unveiled RAISE, a new virtual institute designed to unite Europe’s AI research and accelerate scientific breakthroughs.

The launch, announced in Copenhagen, marks a flagship moment in the EU’s strategy to strengthen its leadership in science and technology through collective action.

Funded with €107 million under Horizon Europe, RAISE will bring together Europe’s best resources in data, computing power, and research talent.

An initiative that will help scientists apply AI to pressing challenges such as cancer treatment, climate change, and natural disaster prediction, while promoting innovation that serves humanity instead of commercial interests alone.

RAISE will work with the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking to secure access to AI Gigafactories and will dedicate €75 million to train and attract global researchers through Networks of Excellence.

The Commission also plans to double Horizon Europe’s annual AI investments to more than €3 billion, ensuring that the EU remains a global leader in scientific AI.

A project that reflects the EU’s ambition to achieve technological sovereignty and create an inclusive AI ecosystem. As RAISE grows in phases towards 2034, it will strengthen cooperation among Member States, academia, and industry, setting a benchmark for responsible and innovative AI in science.

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Salesforce’s Agentforce helps organisations deliver 24/7 support

Organisations across public and private sectors are using Salesforce’s Agentforce to engage people whenever and wherever they need support.

From local governments to hospitals and education platforms, AI systems are transforming how services are delivered and accessed.

In the city of Kyle, Texas, an Agentforce-driven 311 app enables residents to report issues such as potholes or water leaks. The city plans to make the system voice-enabled, reducing traditional call volumes while maintaining a steady flow of service requests and faster responses.

At Pearson, AI enables students to access their online learning platforms instantly, regardless of their time zone. The company stated that the technology fosters loyalty by providing immediate assistance, rather than requiring users to wait for human support.

Meanwhile, UChicago Medicine utilises AI to streamline patient interactions, from prescription refills to scheduling, while ambient listening tools enable doctors to focus entirely on patients rather than typing notes.

Salesforce said Agentforce empowers organisations to save resources while enhancing trust, accessibility, and service quality. By meeting people on their own terms, AI enables more responsive and human-centred interactions across various industries.

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Facebook update lets admins make private groups public safely

Meta has introduced a new Facebook update allowing group administrators to change their private groups to public while keeping members’ privacy protected. The company said the feature gives admins more flexibility to grow their communities without exposing existing private content.

All posts, comments, and reactions shared before the change will remain visible only to previous members, admins, and moderators. The member list will also stay private. Once converted, any new posts will be visible to everyone, including non-Facebook users, which helps discussions reach a broader audience.

Admins have three days to review and cancel the conversion before it becomes permanent. Members will be notified when a group changes its status, and a globe icon will appear when posting in public groups as a reminder of visibility settings.

Groups can be switched back to private at any time, restoring member-only access.

Meta said the feature supports community growth and deeper engagement while maintaining privacy safeguards. Group admins can also utilise anonymous or nickname-based participation options, providing users with greater control over their engagement in public discussions.

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Enterprise AI gains traction at Mercedes-Benz with Celonis platform

Mercedes-Benz reported faster decisions and better on-time delivery at Celosphere 2025. Using Celonis within MO360, it unifies production and logistics data, extending visibility across every order, part, and process.

Order-to-delivery operations use AI copilots to forecast timelines, optimise sequencing, and cut delays. After-sales teams surface bottlenecks in service parts logistics and speed customer responses. Quality management utilises anomaly detection to identify deviations early, preventing them from impacting production output.

Executives say complete data transparency enables teams to act faster and with greater precision across production and supply chains. The approach helps anticipate change and react to market shifts. Hundreds of active users are expanding adoption as data-driven practices scale across the company.

Celonis positions process intelligence as the backbone that makes enterprise AI valuable. Integrated process data and business context create a live operational twin. The goal is moving from visibility to action, unlocking value through targeted fixes and intelligent automation.

Conference sessions highlighted broader momentum for process intelligence and AI in industry. Leaders discussed governance, standards, and measurable outcomes from digital platforms. Mercedes-Benz framed its results as proof that structured data and AI can lift performance at a global scale.

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Monolith’s AI powers Nissan push to halve testing time

Nissan and Monolith have extended their strategic partnership for three years to apply AI across more vehicle programmes in Europe. The collaboration supports Nissan. RE: Nissan Plans to Compress Development Timelines and Improve Operational Efficiency. Early outcomes are guiding a wider rollout.

Engineers at Nissan Technical Centre Europe will utilise Monolith to predict test results based on decades of data and simulations. Reducing prototypes and conducting targeted, high-value experiments enables teams to focus more effectively on design decisions. Ensuring both accuracy and coverage remains essential.

A prior project on chassis bolt joints saw AI recommend optimal torque ranges and prioritise the following best tests for engineers. Compared with the non-AI process, physical testing fell by 17 percent in controlled comparisons. Similar approaches are being prepared for future models beyond LEAF.

Leaders say that a broader deployment could halve testing time across European programmes if comparable gains are achieved. Governance encompasses rigorous validation before changes are deployed to production. Operational benefits include faster iteration cycles and reduced test waste.

Monolith’s toolkit includes next-test recommendation and anomaly detection to flag outliers before rework. Nissan frames the push as an innovation with sustainability benefits, cutting material use while maintaining quality across a complex supply chain. Partners will share results as adoption scales.

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