ai

Brain inspired chip could cut AI energy use by up to 70%

Researchers at the University of Cambridge have developed a nanoelectronic device to reduce energy consumption in AI hardware. The team, led by Dr Babak Bakhit, designed the system to mimic how the human brain processes information.

The device uses a new form of hafnium oxide to create a stable, low-energy memristor. It processes and stores data in the same location, similar to how neurons function in the brain.

To achieve this, the researchers added strontium and titanium to form internal electronic junctions. This allows the device to change resistance smoothly without relying on unstable conductive filaments.

Tests showed the device operates with switching currents up to a million times lower than some conventional technologies. It also demonstrated stable multi-level states required for advanced in-memory computing.

The team said the approach could reduce AI hardware energy use by up to 70%. The findings were published in the journal Science Advances.

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Australia eSafety warns on AI companion harms

Australia’s online safety regulator has found major gaps in how popular AI companion chatbots protect children from harmful and sexually explicit material. The transparency report assessed four services and concluded that age verification and content filters were inadequate for users under 18.

Regulator Julie Inman Grant said many AI companions marketed as offering friendship or emotional support can expose young users to explicit chat and encourage harmful thoughts without effective safeguards. Most failed to guide users to support when self-harm or suicide issues appeared.

The report also showed several platforms lacked robust content monitoring or dedicated trust and safety teams, leaving children vulnerable to inappropriate inputs and outputs from AI systems. Firms relied on basic age self-declaration at signup rather than reliable checks.

New enforceable safety codes now require AI chatbots to block age-inappropriate content and offer crisis support tools, with potential civil penalties for breaches. Some providers have already updated age assurance features or restricted access in Australia following the regulator’s notices.

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UK’s CMA sets AI consumer law guidance

The UK Competition and Markets Authority has issued guidance warning firms that AI agents must follow the same consumer protection laws as human staff. Businesses remain legally responsible for AI actions, even when third parties supply tools.

Companies are advised to be transparent when customers interact with AI systems, particularly where people might assume a human response. Clear labelling and honest explanations of capabilities are considered essential for informed consumer decisions.

Proper training and testing of AI tools should ensure respect for refund rights, contract terms and accurate product information. Human oversight is recommended to prevent errors, misleading claims and so-called hallucinated outputs.

Rapid fixes are expected when problems emerge, especially for services affecting large audiences or vulnerable users. In the UK, breaches of consumer law can trigger enforcement action, heavy fines and mandatory compensation.

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ITU to host AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will organise the AI for Good Global Summit from 7 to 10 July 2026 at Palexpo in Geneva, Switzerland, according to an official announcement by the Swiss authorities.

On 6 and 7 July, the United Nations Global Dialogue on AI Governance will take place ahead of the summit. The dialogue is convened within the framework of a UN General Assembly resolution and will bring together policymakers, experts, and representatives of civil society to discuss approaches to AI governance.

The events will be held in parallel with the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum (from 6 to 10 July), which focuses on issues related to digital cooperation and the development of the information society.

According to the official announcement, the co-location of these events is intended to facilitate exchanges between technical and policy communities working on AI and digital governance.

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Sora strengthens AI video safety through consent and traceability controls

OpenAI has outlined a safety framework for Sora that embeds protections into how AI-generated video content is created, shared, and managed.

The system introduces visible and invisible provenance signals, including C2PA metadata and watermarks, designed to ensure that generated media can be identified and traced.

The framework emphasises consent and control. Users can generate video content from images of real individuals only after confirming they have permission, while the ‘characters’ feature enables controlled use of personal likeness, with the ability to revoke access at any time.

Additional safeguards apply to content involving minors or young-looking individuals, with stricter moderation rules and enforced watermarking.

Safety mechanisms operate across the entire lifecycle of content. Generation is subject to layered filtering that assesses prompts and outputs for harmful material, including sexual content, self-harm promotion, and illegal activity.

These automated systems are complemented by human review and continuous testing to address emerging risks linked to increasingly realistic video and audio outputs.

The system also introduces protections specific to audio and user interaction. Generated speech is analysed for policy violations, and attempts to replicate the style of living artists or existing works are restricted.

Users of Sora retain control over their content through reporting tools, sharing settings, and the ability to remove material, reflecting a broader approach that aligns AI-generated media with safety, transparency, and accountability standards.

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Australian regulator warns AI companions expose children to serious online risks

The eSafety Commissioner has reported that AI companion chatbots are failing to adequately protect children from harmful content, following a transparency review of services including Character.AI, Nomi, Chai, and Chub AI.

According to the report, these services did not implement robust safeguards against exposure to sexually explicit material or the generation of child sexual exploitation and abuse content.

The findings also indicate that most platforms relied on self-declared age verification and did not consistently monitor inputs or outputs across all AI models used.

eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant stated that AI companions, often presented as sources of emotional or social support, are increasingly used by children but may expose them to harmful interactions.

She noted that none of the reviewed services had ‘meaningful age checks’ in place and highlighted concerns about the absence of safeguards related to self-harm and suicide content.

The report further identifies that several platforms in Australia did not refer users to crisis or mental health support services when harmful interactions were detected.

It also notes gaps in monitoring for unlawful content and limited investment in trust and safety staffing, with some providers reporting no dedicated moderation personnel.

The findings follow the implementation of Australia’s Age-Restricted Material Codes, which require online services, including AI chatbots, to prevent access to age-inappropriate content and provide appropriate safety measures.

These obligations complement existing Unlawful Material Codes and Standards, with non-compliance potentially leading to civil penalties.

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AI investment reshapes euro area markets and financial systems

Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, highlighted in his speech at the ECB-SAFE-RCEA International Conference on the Climate-Macro-Finance Interface (3CMFI) that € area firms with high AI intensity have experienced stronger revenue growth, operating margins, and earnings per share.

The advantage narrows when financial institutions are excluded, and internal funding remains essential, as well-capitalised firms are more likely to adopt AI while smaller firms face investment barriers.

European venture capital and private credit are growing but remain far below US levels, limiting start-up scaling and prompting some to relocate abroad.

Banks are embracing AI extensively, particularly for fraud detection, marketing, chatbots, and credit scoring. Proprietary tools are mostly developed in-house, while specialised external providers support cybersecurity and regulatory reporting.

AI boosts operational efficiency, risk assessment, and credit pricing, yet concentration in a few frontier firms and rising reliance on market-based finance introduce potential financial risks.

Lane noted that monetary policy implications are uncertain, as AI may enhance productivity and incomes differently depending on whether it is labour- or capital-augmenting.

High capital expenditure and increased energy demand during AI adoption could add inflationary pressure, while global concentration of AI activity in the US and China may limit domestic investment, influencing the € area’s natural rate of interest.

The European Central Bank is systematically integrating AI into its analytical and operational environment. Machine-learning tools support forecasting, scenario analysis, and extraction of signals from alternative data, while workflow automation and agentic AI enhance efficiency and reduce manual workload.

The ECB’s digitalisation programme aims to scale AI across business processes, ensuring technology complements expert judgement while maintaining reliability, traceability, and accountability.

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NVIDIA introduces infrastructure-level security model for autonomous AI agents

OpenShell, an open-source runtime introduced by NVIDIA, is designed to support the secure deployment of autonomous AI agents within enterprise environments.

According to NVIDIA, OpenShell applies security controls at the infrastructure level rather than within the model or application layer. The runtime ensures that each agent operates inside an isolated sandbox, where system-level policies define and enforce permissions, resource access, and operational constraints.

The company states that such an approach separates agent behaviour from policy enforcement, preventing agents from overriding security controls or accessing restricted data.

OpenShell enables organisations to define and monitor a unified policy layer governing how autonomous systems interact with files, tools, and enterprise workflows.

Additionally, OpenShell forms part of the NVIDIA Agent Toolkit and is complemented by NemoClaw, a reference stack designed to support the deployment of continuously operating AI assistants.

NVIDIA indicates that the system can run across cloud, on-premises, and local computing environments, while maintaining consistent policy enforcement.

The company also reports collaboration with industry partners, including Cisco, CrowdStrike, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Security, to align security practices for AI agent deployment. Both OpenShell and NemoClaw are currently in early preview.

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AI added to St Helens council strategic risk register

In the UK, the St Helens Council has added AI and digital disruption to its strategic risk register as it seeks to strengthen governance and oversight. The change reflects growing concern about how emerging technologies could affect operations and services.

The updated register, now featuring 12 strategic risks, was presented ahead of the audit and governance committee meeting. UK officials said effective risk management is vital to meeting the council’s objectives and mitigating potential challenges.

AI and digital disruption were cited for the first time alongside risks linked to extreme weather and community cohesion. The council noted that ethical, data privacy and workforce confidence issues are among the challenges associated with integrating AI into public services.

Leaders said other risks, including cybersecurity threats and budget pressures, remain under review. The move comes as local authorities across the UK weigh the impacts of new technologies on service delivery and strategic planning.

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Corning licenses new ferrule technology to boost AI data centre fibre density

Corning has expanded its data centre connectivity portfolio through a licensing agreement with US Conec, gaining access to PRIZM TMT optical ferrule technology designed to increase fibre density within data centre environments, particularly for AI infrastructure.

The move reflects the growing pressure on data centre operators to handle higher connection densities as AI workloads scale and cluster architectures become more demanding.

The PRIZM TMT ferrule uses expanded-beam technology with precision-aligned microlenses rather than direct fibre contact, an approach intended to improve installation reliability, reduce sensitivity to contamination, and speed deployment.

As AI deployments expand, data centres are rapidly increasing the number of connected accelerators and shifting from traditional copper links to optical connections, driving a need for compact, high-performance connectors within tightly packed server and switch racks.

Mike O’Day, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Corning Optical Communications, said the company is strengthening its ability to deliver ‘scalable, fibre-rich solutions’ that help customers build ‘larger, faster, and more efficient AI clusters.’

The agreement positions Corning to address the connectivity demands that accompany large-scale AI infrastructure build-outs, where high connection density and consistent performance are essential.

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