Future of work

Lufthansa to cut thousands of jobs as AI reshapes operations

Lufthansa Group announced it will cut 4,000 jobs by 2030 as part of a restructuring drive powered by AI and digitalisation. Most of the affected positions will be administrative roles in Germany, with operational staff largely unaffected.

The company said it aims to improve efficiency by reducing duplication across its airlines Lufthansa through the use of AI, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and ITA Airways. It noted that advances in AI would streamline work and allow greater integration within the group.

Despite the job cuts, demand for flights remains high. Capacity is constrained by limited aircraft and engine supply, which has kept planes full and revenue strong. Lufthansa said it expects significantly higher profitability by the end of the decade.

The airline also confirmed plans for the largest fleet modernisation in its history, with over 230 new aircraft to be delivered by 2030, including 100 long-haul jets. Lufthansa employed more than 101,000 people in 2024 and posted revenue of €37.6 billion.

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Hackers exploit flaw in two million Cisco devices

Hackers have targeted up to two million Cisco devices using a newly disclosed vulnerability in the company’s networking software. The flaw, tracked as CVE-2025-20352, affects all supported versions of Cisco IOS and IOS XE, which power many routers and switches.

Cisco confirmed that attackers have exploited the weakness in the wild, crashing systems, implanting malware, and potentially extracting sensitive data. The campaign builds on previous activity by the same threat group, which has also exploited Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance devices.

Attackers gained access after local administrator credentials were compromised, allowing them to implant malware and execute commands. The company’s Product Security Incident Response Team urged customers to upgrade immediately to fixed software releases to secure their systems.

The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security has warned organisations about sophisticated malware exploiting flaws in outdated Cisco ASA devices, urging immediate patching and stronger defences to protect critical systems.

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Internal chatbot Veritas helps Apple refine Siri features ahead of launch

Apple is internally testing its upcoming Siri upgrade with a chatbot-style tool called Veritas, according to a report by Bloomberg. The app enables employees to experiment with new capabilities and provide structured feedback before a public launch.

Veritas enables testers to type questions, engage in conversations, and revisit past chats, making it similar to ChatGPT and Gemini. Apple is reportedly using the feedback to refine Siri’s features, including data search and in-app actions.

The tool remains internal and is not planned for public release. Its purpose is to make Siri’s upgrade process more efficient and guide Apple’s decision on future chatbot-like experiences.

Apple executives have said they prefer integrating AI into daily tasks instead of offering a separate chatbot. Craig Federighi confirmed at WWDC that Apple is focused on natural task assistance rather than a standalone product.

Bloomberg reports that the new Siri will use Apple’s own AI models alongside external systems like Google’s Gemini, with a launch expected next spring.

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Sam Altman predicts AGI could arrive before 2030

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has warned that AI could soon automate up to 40 percent of the tasks humans currently perform. He made the remarks in an interview with German newspaper Die Welt, highlighting the potential economic shift AI will trigger.

Altman described OpenAI’s latest model, GPT-5, as the most advanced yet and claimed it is ‘smarter than me and most people’. He said artificial general intelligence (AGI), capable of outperforming humans in all areas, could arrive before 2030.

Instead of focusing on job losses, Altman suggested examining the percentage of tasks that AI will automate. He predicted that 30 to 40 per cent of tasks currently carried out by humans may soon be completed by AI systems.

These comments contribute to the growing debate about the societal impact of AI, with mass layoffs already being linked to automation. Altman emphasised that this wave of change will reshape economies and workplaces, requiring businesses and governments to prepare for disruption.

As AGI approaches, Altman urged individuals to focus on acquiring in-demand skills to stay relevant in an AI-enabled economy. The relationship between humans and machines, he said, will be permanently reshaped by these developments.

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Quantum leap as Caltech builds 6,100-qubit processor

A team of physicists at the California Institute of Technology has unveiled a quantum computing breakthrough, creating an array of 6,100 qubits, the largest of its kind to date.

The leap surpasses previous systems, which typically contained around a thousand qubits, and marks a step closer to practical quantum algorithms.

Researchers used caesium atoms as qubits, trapping them with laser tweezers inside an ultra-high-vacuum chamber.

These qubits maintained superposition for almost 13 seconds, nearly ten times longer than previous benchmarks. They could also be manipulated with 99.98 percent accuracy, proving that scaling up need not compromise precision.

Unlike classical bits, qubits exploit superposition, allowing a spread of probabilities instead of fixed binary states. It enables powerful computations but also demands error correction to overcome qubit fragility. The surplus qubits in this new array provide a path to large, error-corrected machines.

Physicists believe the next milestone will involve harnessing entanglement, enabling the shift from storing quantum information to processing it. If progress continues, quantum computers could soon revolutionise science by uncovering new materials, forms of matter, and fundamental laws of physics.

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Balancing chaos and precision: The paradox of AI work

In a recent blog post, Jovan Kurbalija explores why working in AI often feels like living with two competing personalities. On one side is the explorer, curious, bold, and eager to experiment with new models and frameworks. That mindset thrives on quick bursts of creativity and the thrill of discovering novel possibilities.

Yet, the same field demands the opposite. The engineer’s discipline, a relentless focus on precision, validation, and endless refinement, until AI systems are impressive and reliable.

The paradox makes the search for AI talent unusually difficult. Few individuals naturally embody both restless curiosity and meticulous perfectionism.

The challenge is amplified by AI itself, which often produces plausible but uncertain outputs, requiring both tolerance for ambiguity and an insistence on accuracy. It is a balancing act between ADHD-like energy and OCD-like rigour—traits rarely found together in one professional.

The tension is visible across disciplines. Diplomats, accustomed to working with probabilities in unpredictable contexts, approach AI differently from software developers trained in deterministic systems.

Large language models blur these worlds, demanding a blend of adaptability and engineering rigour. Recognising that no single person can embody all these traits, the solution lies in carefully designed teams that combine contrasting strengths.

Kurbalija points to Diplo’s AI apprenticeship as an example of this approach. Apprentices are exposed to both the ‘sprint’ of quickly building functional AI agents and the ‘marathon’ of refining them into robust, trustworthy systems. By embracing this duality, teams can bridge the gap between rapid innovation and reliable execution, turning AI’s inherent contradictions into a source of strength.

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Technology and innovation define Researchers’ Night 2025 in Greece

Greece hosted the European Researchers’ Night 2025 on Friday, 26 September at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall, marking a significant celebration of science and technology.

The Centre coordinated it for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH), which also celebrated its 25th anniversary.

Visitors experienced an extensive interactive technology exhibition featuring VR, autonomous robots and AI applications, alongside demonstrations across energy, digital systems and life sciences.

Attendees engaged directly with researchers and explored how cutting-edge research is transformed into practical innovations with societal and economic impact.

Contributions came from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the University of Ioannina, the International Hellenic University, the Anna Papageorgiou STEM Centre, the Hellenic Agricultural Organisation – DIMITRA, and the Astronomy Friends Association.

The event showcased CERTH’s spin-offs and technology transfer initiatives, highlighting how advanced research evolves into market-ready products and services. The ‘European Corner’ also presented EU policies and opportunities for research and innovation.

In parallel, the online ‘Chat Lab’ brought together 51 researchers for public discussions on emerging scientific issues until 3 October.

With simultaneous events in Athens, Heraklion, Patras, Larissa and Rethymno, the European Researchers’ Night once again reinforced the role of Greece in connecting frontier research with society.

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UK supports JLR supply chain with £1.5 billion loan guarantee

The UK Government will guarantee a £1.5 billion loan to Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) in response to the cyber-attack that forced the carmaker to halt production.

An Export Development Guarantee, administered by UK Export Finance, will back a commercial bank loan repaid over five years to stabilise JLR’s finances and protect its supply chain.

Business Secretary Peter Kyle described the attack as a strike on the UK’s automotive sector and said the guarantee would safeguard jobs across the West Midlands, Merseyside and beyond.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves called JLR a ‘jewel in the crown’ of the UK economy, stressing that the package would protect tens of thousands of jobs directly and indirectly linked to the manufacturer.

JLR employs 34,000 people in the UK and supports an automotive supply chain of 120,000 workers, many in SMEs.

The guarantee forms part of the Government’s modern Industrial Strategy, which includes backing for electric vehicle adoption, reduced energy costs for manufacturers, and multi-billion-pound commitments to research and development.

An announcement follows ministerial visits to JLR headquarters and supplier Webasto, with ministers promising to keep working with industry leaders to get production back online and strengthen Britain’s automotive resilience.

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The strategic shift toward open-source AI

The release of DeepSeek’s open-source reasoning model in January 2025, followed by the Trump administration’s July endorsement of open-source AI as a national priority, has marked a turning point in the global AI race, writes Jovan Kurbalija in his blog ‘The strategic imperative of open source AI’.

What once seemed an ideological stance is now being reframed as a matter of geostrategic necessity. Despite their historical reliance on proprietary systems, China and the United States have embraced openness as the key to competitiveness.

Kurbalija adds that history offers clear lessons that open systems tend to prevail. Just as TCP/IP defeated OSI in the 1980s and Linux outpaced costly proprietary operating systems in the 1990s, today’s open-source AI models are challenging closed platforms. Companies like Meta and DeepSeek have positioned their tools as the new foundations of innovation, while proprietary players such as OpenAI are increasingly seen as constrained by their closed architectures.

The advantages of open-source AI are not only philosophical but practical. Open models evolve faster through global collaboration, lower costs by sharing development across vast communities, and attract younger talent motivated by purpose and impact.

They are also more adaptable, making integrating into industries, education, and governance easier. Importantly, breakthroughs in efficiency show that smaller, smarter models can now rival giant proprietary systems, further broadening access.

The momentum is clear. Open-source AI is emerging as the dominant paradigm. Like the internet protocols and operating systems that shaped previous digital eras, openness is proving more ethical and strategically effective. As researchers, governments, and companies increasingly adopt this approach, open-source AI could become the backbone of the next phase of the digital world.

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London faces major job shifts as AI takes hold

Nearly a million jobs in London face change as AI reshapes the workplace.

New research suggests repetitive roles such as telemarketing, bookkeeping, and data entry will be among the most affected, with women at greater risk since they comprise much of the workforce in these sectors.

Analysts from LiveCareer UK and McKinsey reported that job adverts for roles most exposed to automation have dropped sharply in the past three years.

They warn that fewer entry-level opportunities could damage the future workforce unless businesses rethink how to balance automation with human creativity and judgement.

Some organisations are already adapting AI to support staff instead of replacing them. At Queen Elizabeth Hospital, a pharmaceutical robot works alongside clinicians, using AI to predict medicine demand and improve patient safety.

Leaders at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust argue AI should relieve staff of repetitive tasks so they can focus on higher-value care.

Across industries, firms from Ford to Microsoft predict significant disruption. Ford’s chief executive has suggested AI could replace half of white-collar roles in the US, while others argue it will boost productivity instead of eliminating jobs.

Tech companies such as Snap are experimenting with AI-driven creativity tools, insisting the technology should act as an aid for workers rather than a threat to employment.

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