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€5.5bn Google plan expands German data centres, carbon-free power and skills programmes

Google will invest €5.5bn in Germany from 2026 to 2029, adding a Dietzenbach data centre and expanding its Hanau facility. It will expand offices in Berlin, Frankfurt, and Munich, and launch skilling and a first German heat-recovery project. Estimated impact: ~€1.016bn GDP and ~9,000 jobs annually.

Dietzenbach will strengthen German cloud regions within Google’s 42-region network, used by firms such as Mercedes-Benz. Google Cloud highlights Vertex AI, Gemini, and sovereign options for local compliance. Continued Hanau investment supports low-latency AI workloads.

Google and Engie will extend 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy in Germany through 2030, adding new wind and solar. The portfolio will be optimised with storage and Ørsted’s Borkum Riffgrund 3. Operations are projected to be 85% carbon-free in 2026.

A partnership with Energieversorgung Offenbach will utilise excess data centre heat to feed into Dietzenbach’s district network, serving over 2,000 households. Water work includes wetland protection with NABU in Hesse’s Büttelborn Bruchwiesen. Google reiterates its 24/7 carbon-free goal.

Office expansion includes Munich’s Arnulfpost for up to 2,000 staff, Frankfurt’s Global Tower space, and additional floors in Berlin. Local partnerships will fund digital skills and STEM programmes. Officials and customers welcomed the move for its benefits to infrastructure, sovereignty, and innovation.

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Banks and insurers pivot to AI agents at scale, Capgemini finds

Agentic AI is expected to deliver up to $450 billion in value by 2028, as financial institutions shift frontline processes to AI agents, according to Capgemini’s estimates. Banks start with customer service before expanding into fraud detection, lending, and onboarding, while insurers report similar priorities.

To seize the opportunity, 33% of banks are building agents in-house, while 48% of institutions are creating human supervisor roles. Cloud’s role is expanding beyond infrastructure, with 61% of executives calling cloud-based orchestration critical to scaling.

Adoption is accelerating but uneven. Four in five firms are in ideation or pilots, yet only 10% run agents at scale. Executives expect gains in real-time decision-making, accuracy, and turnaround, especially across onboarding, KYC, loan processing, underwriting, and claims.

Leaders also see growth levers. Most expect agents to support entry into new geographies, enable dynamic pricing, and deliver multilingual services that respect local norms and rules. Budgets reflect this shift, with up to 40% of generative AI spend already earmarked for agents.

Barriers persist. Skills shortages and regulatory complexity top the list of concerns, alongside high implementation costs. A quarter of firms are exploring ‘service-as-a-software’ models, paying for outcomes such as the resolution of fraud cases or the handling of customer queries.

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ChatGPT-5 outperformed by a Chinese startup model

A Chinese company has stunned the AI world after its new open-source model outperformed OpenAI’s ChatGPT-5 and Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet 4.5 in key benchmarks.

Moonshot AI’s Kimi K2 Thinking model achieved the best reasoning and coding scores yet, shaking confidence in American dominance over advanced AI systems.

The Beijing-based startup, backed by Alibaba and Tencent, released Kimi K2 Thinking on 6 November. It scored 44.9 percent in Humanity’s Last Exam and 60.2 percent in BrowseComp, both surpassing leading US models.

Analysts dubbed it another ‘DeepSeek moment ‘, echoing the earlier success of China in breaking AI cost barriers.

Moonshot AI trained the trillion-parameter system for just US$4.6 million (nearly ten times cheaper than GPT-5’s reported costs) using a Mixture-of-Experts structure and advanced quantisation for faster generation.

The fully open-weight model, released under a Modified MIT License, adds commercial flexibility and intensifies competition with US labs.

Industry observers called it a turning point. Hugging Face’s Thomas Wolf said the achievement shows how open-source models can now rival closed systems.

Researchers from the Allen Institute for AI noted that Chinese innovation is narrowing the gap faster than expected, driven by efficiency and high-quality training data rather than raw computing power.

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Judges in Asia join UNESCO-led training on ethical AI in justice

Judges and justice officials from 11 countries across Asia are gathering in Bangkok for a regional training focused on AI and the rule of law. The event, held from 12 November to 14, 2025, is jointly organised by UNESCO, UNDP, and the Thailand Institute of Justice.

Participants will examine how AI can enhance judicial efficiency while upholding human rights and ethical standards.

The training, based on UNESCO’s Global Toolkit on AI and the Rule of Law for the Justice Sector, will help participants assess both the benefits and challenges of AI in judicial processes. Officials will address algorithmic bias, transparency, and accountability to ensure AI tools uphold justice.

AI technologies are already transforming case management, legal research, and court administration. However, experts warn that unchecked use may amplify bias or weaken judicial independence.

The workshop aims to strengthen regional cooperation and train officials to assess AI systems using legal and ethical principles. The initiative supports UN SDG 16 and advances UNESCO’s mission to promote moral, inclusive, and trustworthy governance of AI.

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Artist secretly hangs AI print Cardiff museum

An AI-generated print by artist Elias Marrow was secretly placed on a gallery wall at the National Museum Cardiff before staff were alerted, and it was removed. The work, titled Empty Plate, shows a young boy in a school uniform holding a plate and was reportedly seen by hundreds of visitors.

Marrow said the piece represents Wales in 2025 and examines how public institutions decide what is worth displaying. He defended the stunt as participatory rather than vandalism, emphasising that AI is a natural evolution of artistic tools.

Visitors photographed the artwork, and some initially thought it was performance art, while the museum confirmed it had no prior knowledge of the piece. Marrow has carried out similar unsanctioned displays at Bristol Museum and Tate Modern, highlighting his interest in challenging traditional curation.

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Japan develops system to measure and share physical and mental pain

Japanese mobile carrier NTT Docomo has developed a system that measures physical and mental pain and translates it into a format others can understand.

The technology utilises brainwave analysis to convert subjective sensations, such as injuries, stomachaches, spiciness, or emotional distress, into quantifiable levels.

The system, created in collaboration with startup Pamela Inc., allows recipients to understand what a specific pain score represents and even experience it through a device.

Docomo sees potential applications in medical diagnosis, rehabilitation, immersive gaming, and support for individuals who have been exposed to psychological or social harm.

Officials said the platform could be introduced for practical use alongside sixth-generation cellular networks, which are expected to be available in the 2030s.

The innovation aims to overcome the challenge of pain being experienced differently by each person, creating a shared understanding of physical and emotional discomfort.

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‘Vibe-coding’ named word of the year

In 2025, Collins Dictionary selected ‘vibe coding’ as its Word of the Year, defining it as the use of AI prompted by natural language to assist in writing computer code.

The choice reflects a broader shift in how programming is conceptualised: less about typing syntax, more about describing intent.

The term was coined by Andrej Karpathy, former AI director at Tesla and co-founder of OpenAI, who described vibe coding as ‘give in to the vibes … forget that the code even exists’. Collins notes that the term gained traction beyond tech circles, capturing how non-specialists are now experimenting with AI-driven development.

This linguistic development signals more profound changes in software engineering, automation and workplace skills. As AI tools become more intuitive and accessible, the boundary between experts and novices blurs, and the discourse around coding changes accordingly.

The evolution aligns with our broader focus on how AI is reshaping labour, skillsets and governance in the digital economy.

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Salesforce strengthens Agentforce with planned Spindle AI acquisition

Salesforce has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Spindle AI, a company specialising in agentic analytics and machine learning. The deal aims to strengthen Salesforce’s Agentforce platform by integrating Spindle’s advanced data modelling and forecasting technologies.

Spindle AI has developed neuro-symbolic AI agents capable of autonomously generating and optimising scenario models. Its analytics tools enable businesses to simulate and assess complex decisions, from pricing strategies to go-to-market plans, using AI-driven insights.

Salesforce said the acquisition will enhance its focus on Agent Observability and Self-Improvement within Agentforce 360. Executives described Spindle AI’s expertise as critical to building more transparent and reliable agentic systems capable of explaining and refining their own reasoning.

The acquisition, subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to be completed in Salesforce’s fourth fiscal quarter of 2026. Once finalised, Spindle AI will join Agentforce to expand AI-powered analytics, continuous optimisation, and ROI forecasting for enterprise customers worldwide.

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IMY investigates major ransomware attack on Swedish IT supplier

Sweden’s data protection authority, IMY, has opened an investigation into a massive ransomware-related data breach that exposed personal information belonging to 1.5 million people. The breach originated from a cyberattack on IT provider Miljödata in August, which affected roughly 200 municipalities.

Hackers reportedly stole highly sensitive data, including names, medical certificates, and rehabilitation records, much of which has since been leaked on the dark web. Swedish officials have condemned the incident, calling it one of the country’s most serious cyberattacks in recent years.

The IMY said the investigation will examine Miljödata’s data protection measures and the response of several affected public bodies, such as Gothenburg, Älmhult, and Västmanland. The regulator’s goal is to identify security shortcomings for future cyber threats.

Authorities have yet to confirm how the attackers gained access to Miljödata’s systems, and no completion date for the investigation has been announced. The breach has reignited calls for tighter cybersecurity standards across Sweden’s public sector.

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Courts signal limits on AI in legal proceedings

A High Court judge warned that a solicitor who pushed an expert to accept an AI-generated draft breache d their duty. Mr Justice Waksman called it a gross breach and cited a case from the latest survey.
He noted 14% of experts would accept such terms, which is unacceptable.

Updated guidance clarifies what limited judicial AI use is permissible. Judges may use a private ChatGPT 365 for summaries with confidential prompts. There is no duty to disclose, but the judgment must be the judge’s own.

Waksman cautioned against legal research or analysis done by AI. Hallucinated authorities and fake citations have already appeared. Experts must not let AI answer the questions they are retained to decide.

Survey findings show wider use of AI for drafting and summaries. Waksman drew a bright line between back-office aids and core duties. Convenience cannot trump independence, accuracy and accountability.

For practitioners, two rules follow. Solicitors must not foist AI-drafted expert opinions, and experts should refuse. Within courts, limited, non-determinative AI may assist, but outcomes must be human.

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