Sustainable development

Google Cloud’s new AI tools expand enterprise threat protection

Following last week’s announcements on AI-driven cybersecurity, Google Cloud has unveiled further tools at its Security Summit 2025 aimed at protecting enterprise AI deployments and boosting efficiency for security teams.

The updates build on prior innovations instead of replacing them, reinforcing Google’s strategy of integrating AI directly into security operations.

Vice President and General Manager Jon Ramsey highlighted the growing importance of agentic approaches as AI agents operate across increasingly complex enterprise environments.

Building on the previous rollout, Google now introduces Model Armor protections, designed to shield AI agents from prompt injections, jailbreaking, and data leakage, enhancing safeguards without interrupting existing workflows.

Additional enhancements include the Alert Investigation agent, which automates event enrichment and analysis while offering actionable recommendations.

By combining Mandiant threat intelligence feeds with Google’s Gemini AI, organisations can now detect and respond to incidents across distributed agent networks more rapidly and efficiently than before.

SecOps Labs and updated SOAR dashboards provide early access to AI-powered threat detection experiments and comprehensive visualisations of security operations.

These tools allow teams to continue scaling agentic AI security, turning previous insights into proactive, enterprise-ready protections for real-world deployments.

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Global tech competition intensifies as the UK outlines a £1 trillion digital blueprint

The United Kingdom has unveiled a strategy to grow its digital economy to £1 trillion by harnessing AI, quantum computing, and cybersecurity. The plan emphasises public-private partnerships, training, and international collaboration to tackle skills shortages and infrastructure gaps.

The initiative builds on the UK tech sector’s £1.2 trillion valuation, with regional hubs in cities such as Bristol and Manchester fuelling expansion in emerging technologies. Experts, however, warn that outdated systems and talent deficits could stall progress unless workforce development accelerates.

AI is central to the plan, with applications spanning healthcare and finance. Quantum computing also features, with investments in research and cybersecurity aimed at strengthening resilience against supply disruptions and future threats.

The government highlights sustainability as a priority, promoting renewable energy and circular economies to ensure digital growth aligns with environmental goals. Regional investment in blockchain, agri-tech, and micro-factories is expected to create jobs and diversify innovation-driven growth.

By pursuing these initiatives, the UK aims to establish itself as a leading global tech player alongside the US and China. Ethical frameworks and adaptive strategies will be key to maintaining public trust and competitiveness.

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AI-designed proteins could transform longevity and drug development

OpenAI has launched GPT-4b micro, an AI model developed with longevity startup Retro Biosciences to accelerate protein engineering. Unlike chatbots, it focuses on biological sequences and 3D structures.

The model redesigned two Yamanaka factors- proteins that convert adult cells into stem cells, showing 50-fold higher efficiency in lab tests and improved DNA repair. Older cells acted more youthful, potentially shortening trial-and-error in regenerative medicine.

AI-designed proteins could speed up drug development and allow longevity startups to rejuvenate cells safely and consistently. The work also opens new possibilities in synthetic biology beyond natural evolution.

OpenAI emphasised that the research is still early and lab-based, with clinical applications requiring caution. Transparency is key, as the technology’s power to design potent proteins quickly raises biosecurity considerations.

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Mount Fuji eruption simulated in an AI video for Tokyo

Residents of Tokyo have been shown a stark warning of what could happen if Mount Fuji erupts.

The metropolitan government released a three-minute AI-generated video depicting the capital buried in volcanic ash to raise awareness and urge preparation.

The simulation shows thick clouds of ash descending on Shibuya and other districts about one to two hours after an eruption, with up to 10 centimetres expected to accumulate. Unlike snow, volcanic ash does not melt away but instead hardens, damages powerlines, and disrupts communications once wet.

The video also highlights major risks to transport. Ash on train tracks, runways, and roads would halt trains, ground planes, and make driving perilous.

Two-wheel vehicles could become unusable under even modest ashfall. Power outages and shortages of food and supplies are expected as shops run empty, echoing the disruption seen after the 2011 earthquake.

Officials advise people to prepare masks, goggles, and at least three days of emergency food. The narrator warns that because no one knows when Mount Fuji might erupt, daily preparedness in Japan is vital to protect health, infrastructure, and communities.

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EU and South Korea unite on AI and energy

The European Union and South Korea will bring together top policymakers, industry experts, and academics for a high-level seminar on the role of AI in transforming energy systems. The event, titled ‘AI & Energy: Delivering EU and Korea’s Digital and Green Ambitions’, will take place on 27 August 2025 during the World Climate Industry Expo in Busan.

It comes at a time when AI is revolutionising global industries and driving up energy demand, with data centres alone expected to double their electricity use by 2030. Around 150 participants will explore how AI can optimise grids, boost efficiency, and make energy systems more flexible, while ensuring sustainability.

Senior European officials, including Ditte Juul Jørgensen of the European Commission and climate leaders from Finland and the Netherlands, will join Korean representatives to discuss opportunities for cooperation. The seminar builds on the momentum of international clean energy talks held a day earlier.

The discussions also align with the EU’s Affordable Energy Action Plan, which launched a consultation earlier this month to shape its 2026 Strategic Roadmap on digitalisation and AI in energy. That initiative aims to scale up innovative technologies to accelerate decarbonisation.

Meanwhile, under President Lee Jae-Myung, South Korea is pursuing its own AI-driven growth strategy, investing in ‘AI highways’ and a national coordination body to support the energy transition.

The seminar underscores the EU–Korea Green Partnership’s vision: building a clean, competitive, and digitally empowered energy future by bringing together policymakers, researchers, and industry innovators.

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Google pushes staff to embrace AI to stay ahead

Google is urging its workforce to adopt AI in everyday tasks instead of relying solely on traditional methods.

CEO Sundar Pichai has warned that falling behind in AI could risk the company’s competitive edge, especially as rivals like Microsoft, Amazon and Meta push their staff to embrace similar tools.

Early trials inside Google suggest a significant boost in efficiency, with engineers reporting a 10% increase in weekly productivity after adopting AI.

The company has launched a training initiative called AI Savvy Google to accelerate the shift. The programme provides courses, toolkits and hands-on sessions to help employees integrate AI into their workflows.

One of the standout tools is Cider, an AI-powered coding assistant already used by half of the engineers with access to it.

Executives believe AI will soon become an essential part of software engineering. Brian Saluzzo, a senior leader at Google, told staff that internal AI tools will continue to improve and become deeply embedded in coding work.

The company stresses the importance of using AI to support rather than replace workers, with the training programme designed to upskill employees instead of pushing them aside.

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Nvidia launches Spectrum-XGS to build global AI factories

American technology company Nvidia has unveiled Spectrum-XGS Ethernet, a new networking technology designed to connect multiple data centres into unified giga-scale AI factories.

With AI demand skyrocketing, single facilities are hitting limits in power and capacity, creating the need for infrastructure that can operate across cities, nations and continents.

Spectrum-XGS extends Nvidia’s Spectrum-X Ethernet platform, introducing what the company calls a ‘scale-across’ approach, alongside scale-up and scale-out models.

Integrating advanced congestion control, latency management, and telemetry nearly doubles the performance of the Nvidia Collective Communications Library, allowing geographically distributed data centres to function as one large AI cluster.

Early adopters like CoreWeave are preparing to link their facilities using the new system. According to Nvidia, the technology offers 1.6 times greater bandwidth density than traditional Ethernet and features Spectrum-X switches and ConnectX-8 SuperNICs, optimised for hyperscale AI operations.

The company argues that the approach will define the next phase of AI infrastructure, enabling super-factories to manage millions of GPUs while improving efficiency and lowering operational costs.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang described the development as part of the AI industrial revolution, highlighting that Spectrum-XGS can unify data centres into global networks that act as vast, giga-scale AI super-factories.

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Dell expands AI innovation hub in Singapore to drive regional growth

Dell Technologies has launched a new Asia Pacific and Japan AI Innovation Hub in Singapore, strengthening its role in advancing AI across the region.

The hub extends the company’s Global Innovation Hub, which has already received more than US$50 million in investment since 2019. Its focus is on driving AI transformation, enablement and leadership, in line with Singapore’s National AI Strategy 2.0.

Instead of offering only infrastructure, the hub delivers end-to-end support, from strategy to deployment, helping enterprises bridge the gap between ambition and practical results. Research shows 62% of Singaporean businesses prefer such holistic partnerships.

Since 2024, the hub has developed about 50 AI prototypes and carried out more than 100 proof-of-concepts, workshops and demonstrations across areas such as generative and predictive AI.

The projects have already influenced multiple sectors. In energy, AI solutions are strengthening infrastructure resilience and enhancing customer engagement with digital humans and chatbots.

In telecommunications, AI is supporting agility and operational efficiency, while in education, cloud-based technologies are empowering research and innovation.

Dell’s AI Centre of Excellence Lab further supports these initiatives by testing solutions for AI PCs and edge computing in collaboration with academic and hardware partners.

A strong emphasis is also placed on skills development. By the end of 2025, the hub aims to train around 10,000 students and mid-career professionals in AI engineering, platform engineering and related fields.

Working with 10 local institutes, Dell is addressing the talent shortage reported by nearly half of Singaporean organisations. Events such as the Dell InnovateFest and the Dell Innovation Challenge provide platforms for students and partners to showcase ideas and create solutions for social good.

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Scientists used AI model to anticipate fusion success ahead of experiment

Scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory employed a deep learning model to forecast the outcome of the December 2022 fusion ignition experiment at their National Ignition Facility (NIF).

The model, part of a cognitive simulation framework, predicted with approximately 74 per cent probability that the test would exceed the breakeven point, meaning it would yield more energy from fusion than the laser energy used.

The model combined over 150,000 high-fidelity simulations with real-world experimental data using Bayesian inference to enhance prediction accuracy. It ran on LLNL’s Sierra supercomputer and was embedded in their CogSim toolkit for physics-informed AI-driven simulation.

Researchers emphasise that this was not a lucky guess. The AI provided probabilistic forecasts complete with confidence intervals, guiding expectations and helping shape subsequent experimental designs.

Observers note that such an approach could dramatically reduce time and cost in future fusion experiments.

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Senior OpenAI executive Julia Villagra departs amid talent war

OpenAI’s chief people officer, Julia Villagra, has left the company, marking the latest leadership change at the AI pioneer. Villagra, who joined the San Francisco firm in early 2024 and was promoted in March, previously led its human resources operations.

Her responsibilities will temporarily be overseen by chief strategy officer Jason Kwon, while chief applications officer Fidji Simo will lead the search for her successor.

OpenAI said Villagra is stepping away to pursue her personal interest in art, music and storytelling as tools to help people understand the shift towards artificial general intelligence, a stage when machines surpass human performance in most forms of work.

The departure comes as OpenAI navigates a period of intense competition for AI expertise. Microsoft-backed OpenAI is valued at about $300 billion, with a potential share sale set to raise that figure to $500 billion.

The company faces growing rivalry from Meta, where Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly offered $100 million signing bonuses to attract OpenAI talent.

While OpenAI expands, public concerns over the impact of AI on employment continue. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found 71% of Americans fear AI could permanently displace too many workers, despite the unemployment rate standing at 4.2% in July.

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