Interdisciplinary approaches

UK NCSC releases principles for strengthening organisational cybersecurity culture

The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has published a framework of six principles aimed at supporting organisations in developing a strong internal cybersecurity culture. The principles are based on research conducted with government and industry stakeholders and are intended to guide organisations in embedding cyber-resilient behaviours among their personnel.

The principles are outlined as follows:

  1. Frame cyber security as an enabler that supports the organisation’s core objectives.
  2. Encourage openness by building trust, safety, and processes that support transparency around security issues.
  3. Adapt to change to address new threats and take advantage of opportunities to improve resilience.
  4. Acknowledge the role of social norms in shaping secure behaviours within the organisation.
  5. Recognise leadership responsibility in influencing cyber security culture.
  6. Maintain accessible and clear security rules and guidance to support user understanding and compliance.

Each principle is accompanied by practical examples illustrating effective and ineffective application.

Ice, Nature, Outdoors, Iceberg, Dynamite, Weapon
UK NCSC releases principles for strengthening organisational cybersecurity culture 3

The NCSC notes that building a cybersecurity culture requires ongoing and coordinated efforts across multiple organisational roles, including cybersecurity professionals, cultural specialists, and leadership. The centre highlights that the ability of staff to support security objectives is influenced by the overall organisational environment and approach to cyber risks.

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Bing rolls out Sora powered video maker

Microsoft has launched a new feature in its Bing app called Bing Video Creator, allowing users to generate videos using text prompts. That tool leverages OpenAI’s advanced Sora model, marking the first time Sora is available for free to the public, as it was previously restricted to paying OpenAI customers.

However, the feature is currently limited to the Bing mobile app and is not yet accessible on desktop. To use the service, users must be signed into a Microsoft account.

Initially, they can create up to 10 videos for free; after that, each video costs 100 Microsoft Rewards points, which can be earned by searching with Bing or shopping in the Microsoft Store. For instance, users get five points for each Bing search on a PC, up to 150 points daily.

Each video is limited to five seconds and must be generated in vertical 9:16 format, a layout ideal for social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. Users can generate up to three clips at a time.

Although labelled ‘fast’ mode, the generation process may still take hours. Microsoft says support for horizontal formats is on the way.

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AI to take over all Meta ads under new plan

Meta is preparing to transform digital advertising on its platforms, with reports indicating that by 2026, all adverts on Facebook and Instagram could be fully created and targeted using AI.

The company’s vision would see AI tools take over the entire process—from ad generation to audience selection—requiring advertisers to provide only a product image and budget.

Since introducing generative AI features for advertisers in May 2023, Meta has continued to expand its automation capabilities. Currently, AI plays a major role in targeting ads across Meta’s platforms.

Under the new system, Meta’s AI will go several steps further by generating text, visuals, and video, as well as optimising ad delivery for the most suitable audience.

The initiative is aligned with CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s broader vision of AI-led automation, especially within advertising—Meta’s financial backbone, which accounted for over 97% of the company’s revenue last year.

Speaking at Meta’s annual shareholder meeting, Zuckerberg outlined a future where businesses simply define their marketing goal and budget, link a payment method, and allow Meta’s AI to handle the rest.

The company is also developing real-time personalisation tools. These will allow the same ad to appear differently depending on a user’s location or context—for example, showing a car in snowy terrain to one user, while another might see it in an urban setting.

Meta is also exploring integration with third-party AI models such as DALL·E and Midjourney to further enhance creative capabilities.

This move follows similar developments by rivals like Google, which recently launched its Veo video generation model. With AI continuing to reshape the advertising landscape, Meta is betting on full automation as the next frontier in digital marketing.

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Diplo joins Brazil’s Internet Forum and celebrates CGI.br’s 30 years

Diplo actively participated in Brazil’s Internet Forum (FIB), held from May 26 to 30 and hosted by the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br). The event brought together key stakeholders from across sectors to discuss pressing issues in digital governance.

Representing Diplo, Marilia Maciel contributed to critical discussions on state roles and multistakeholder collaboration in managing cloud infrastructures and defending digital sovereignty. She also offered insights during the main session on setting principles for regulating digital platforms.

Maciel’s contributions were recognised with the ‘Destaques em Governança da Internet no Brasil’ award, one of the most respected acknowledgments of excellence in internet governance in the country. The award highlights individuals and organisations that have made significant advances in promoting inclusive and effective digital policy in Brazil.

The event also marked a major milestone for CGI.br—its 30th anniversary. Diplo joined in celebrating the committee’s three decades of leadership in internet governance. CGI.br’s pioneering approach to multistakeholder governance has served not only as a national model but as a global inspiration for collaborative digital policy-making.

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Courts consider limits on AI evidence

A newly proposed rule by the Federal Judicial Conference could reshape how AI-generated evidence is treated in court. Dubbed Rule 707, it would allow such machine-generated evidence to be admitted only if it meets the same reliability standards required of expert testimony under Rule 702.

However, it would not apply to outputs from simple scientific instruments or widely used commercial software. The rule aims to address concerns about the reliability and transparency of AI-driven analysis, especially when used without a supporting expert witness.

Critics argue that the limitation to non-expert presentation renders the rule overly narrow, as the underlying risks of bias and interpretability persist regardless of whether an expert is involved. They suggest that all machine-generated evidence in US courts should be subject to robust scrutiny.

The Advisory Committee is also considering the scope of terminology such as ‘machine learning’ to prevent Rule 707 from encompassing more than intended. Meanwhile, a separate proposed rule regarding deepfakes has been shelved because courts already have tools to address the forgery.

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China creates AI to detect real nuclear warheads

Chinese scientists have created the world’s first AI-based system capable of identifying real nuclear warheads from decoys, marking a significant step in arms control verification.

The breakthrough, developed by the China Institute of Atomic Energy (CIAE), could strengthen Beijing’s hand in stalled disarmament talks, although it also raises difficult questions about AI’s growing role in managing weapons of mass destruction.

The technology builds on a long-standing US–China proposal but faced key obstacles: how to train AI using sensitive nuclear data, gain military approval without risking secret leaks, and persuade sceptical nations like the US to move past Cold War-era inspection methods.

So far, only the AI training has been completed, with the rest of the process still pending international acceptance.

The AI system uses deep learning and cryptographic protocols to analyse scrambled radiation signals from warheads behind a polythene wall, ensuring the weapons’ internal designs remain hidden.

The machine can verify a warhead’s chain-reaction potential without accessing classified details. According to CIAE, repeated randomised tests reduce the chance of deception to nearly zero.

While both China and the US have pledged not to let AI control nuclear launch decisions, the new system underlines AI’s expanding role in national defence.

Beijing insists the AI can be jointly trained and sealed before use to ensure transparency, but sceptics remain wary of trust, backdoor access and growing militarisation of AI.

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Uber’s product chief turns to AI for reports and research

Uber’s chief product officer, Sachin Kansal, is embracing AI to streamline his daily workflow—particularly through tools like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and, soon, NotebookLM.

Speaking on ‘Lenny’s Podcast,’ Kansal revealed how AI summarisation helps him digest lengthy 50- to 100-page reports he otherwise wouldn’t have time to read. He uses AI to understand market trends and rider feedback across regions such as Brazil, South Korea, and South Africa.

Kansal also relies on AI as a research assistant. For instance, when exploring new driver features, he used ChatGPT’s deep research capabilities to simulate possible driver reactions and generate brainstorming ideas.

‘It’s an amazing research assistant,’ he said. ‘It’s absolutely a starting point for a brainstorm with my team.’

He’s now eyeing Google’s NotebookLM, a note-taking and research tool, as the next addition to his AI toolkit—especially its ‘Audio Overview’ feature, which turns documents into AI-generated podcast-style discussions.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi previously noted that too few of Uber’s 30,000+ employees are using AI and stressed that mastering AI tools, especially for coding, would soon be essential.

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Students build world’s fastest Rubik’s Cube solver

A group of engineering students from Purdue University have built the world’s fastest Rubik’s Cube-solving robot, achieving a Guinness World Record time of just 0.103 seconds.

The team focused on improving nearly every aspect of the process, not only faster motors, from image capture to cube construction.

Rather than processing full images, the robot uses low-resolution cameras aimed at opposite corners of the cube, capturing only the essential parts of the image to save time.

Instead of converting camera data into full digital pictures, the system directly reads colour data to identify the cube’s layout. Although slightly less accurate, the method allows quicker recognition and faster solving.

The robot, known as Purdubik’s Cube, benefits from software designed specifically for machines, allowing it to perform overlapping turns using a technique called corner cutting. Instead of waiting for one rotation to finish, the next begins, shaving off valuable milliseconds.

To withstand the stress, the team designed a cube with extremely tight tension using reinforced nylon, making it nearly impossible to turn by hand.

High-speed motors controlled the robot’s movements, with a trapezoidal acceleration profile ensuring rapid but precise turns. The students believe the record could fall again—provided someone develops a stronger, lighter cube using materials like carbon fibre.

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Serbian startup revolutionises cancer diagnostics with AI-powered radiotherapy tool

A group of Serbian physicists, programmers, and radiologists, led by Stevan Vrbaški, has developed a groundbreaking software solution through their startup, Vinaver Medical. After gaining experience through studies and research abroad, the team returned to Serbia, where they launched a project to improve cancer diagnostics using advanced radiotherapy technology.

Their work is centred on particle radiotherapy, a precise cancer treatment method that surpasses conventional X-ray-based radiotherapy. The innovation lies in software that combines AI and CT imaging to enhance diagnostic accuracy and improve the planning of radiotherapy in oncology.

Unlike traditional methods, this solution enables far more precise targeting of tumours, which can potentially reduce damage to surrounding healthy tissue. According to Vrbaški, their software helps determine the optimal delivery of radiotherapy based on patient scans.

Vinaver Medical received initial funding through the ‘Smart Start’ program and later support from the ‘Digital Serbia Initiative.’ Their product is currently being tested in the United States, the European Union, and the Balkans.

Vrbaški highlights the challenges of developing and certifying medical technologies, emphasising the need for rigorous testing, user adaptation, and risk reduction before market release. Looking ahead, the team plans to visit hospitals and innovation centres in Italy and the US to fine-tune their solution to meet user needs better.

With a certified, market-ready product in hand, they aim to launch commercially within a year to eighteen months, as testing with Dutch partners continues to validate the software’s ability to assist doctors in diagnosing various illnesses with greater accuracy.

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SCO members invited to join new AI cooperation plan

China has proposed the creation of an AI application centre in cooperation with member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The plan was introduced at the 2025 China-SCO AI Cooperation Forum, held in Tianjin, with the goal of deepening collaboration in AI across the region.

The proposed centre aims to support talent development, foster industrial partnerships, and promote open-source service cooperation.

Presented under the theme ‘Intelligence Converges in China, Wisdom Benefits SCO,‘ the forum brought together officials and experts to discuss practical AI cooperation and governance mechanisms that would serve the shared interests of SCO nations.

According to Huang Ru of China’s National Development and Reform Commission, closer cooperation in AI will drive economic and social growth across the SCO, reduce the digital divide, and contribute to inclusive global progress.

China reaffirmed its commitment to the ‘Shanghai Spirit’ and called for joint efforts to ensure AI development remains secure, equitable and beneficial for all member states.

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