WTO highlights AI opportunities for small businesses

The WTO’s Informal Working Group on Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) has highlighted AI as a key tool for helping small businesses compete in international trade.

During meetings on 29 and 30 June, WTO members explored how AI could strengthen supply chains, reduce trade barriers and help smaller firms navigate an increasingly uncertain global trading environment. The group also welcomed Ghana as its 106th member.

One of the highlights was the announcement of the 2026 Small Business Champions, recognising organisations using AI to support international trade.

Zambia’s Rinato Space was selected to apply satellite technology and AI to provide climate monitoring, early warning systems and capacity-building services for smallholder farmers, helping improve agricultural productivity and export opportunities.

France-based Koaloo.FI was also recognised for using generative AI to automate environmental, social and governance compliance, assess supply chain risks and improve access to financing for small suppliers.

The competition also recognised Colombia’s Cámara Colombiana de Informática y Telecomunicaciones and the Center for International Private Enterprise for developing an AI governance roadmap for Latin America that includes affordable AI tools for MSMEs.

Türkiye’s Globby was honoured for creating an AI-powered trade intelligence platform that helps small businesses identify international market opportunities and participate more effectively in global commerce.

WTO members acknowledged persistent barriers to AI adoption, including limited digital infrastructure, fragmented international standards, shortages of technical expertise, constrained access to finance and the need for supportive legal and regulatory frameworks.

WTO officials also presented ongoing initiatives, including preparations for the upcoming World Trade and Tech Day, alongside new AI-related learning tools and digital trade resources.

The meeting also focused on broader trade uncertainty affecting small businesses worldwide.

The meeting also addressed broader trade uncertainty affecting MSMEs. Representatives from organisations including World Intellectual Property Organization, the International Finance Corporation, the International Telecommunication Union, the Food and Agriculture Organization and the Pan African Alliance of Small and Medium Industries presented initiatives to improve market access, trade finance, intellectual property protection and digital trade participation.

Why does it matter?

The discussions reflect a growing recognition that AI is becoming an important enabler of international trade, particularly for smaller businesses that often lack the resources to compete with larger firms. By helping automate compliance, improve supply chain management and identify export opportunities, AI could reduce longstanding barriers to global market participation.

At the same time, the meeting highlighted that technology alone is not enough. Expanding the benefits of AI for MSMEs will depend on investment in digital infrastructure, skills, financing and interoperable regulatory frameworks, making international cooperation an increasingly important component of digital trade policy.

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UN scientific panel publishes first global AI assessment ahead of Geneva governance dialogue

The United Nations’ Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence has published its first preliminary report, providing an evidence-based assessment of AI’s opportunities, risks, and societal impacts ahead of next week’s inaugural Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva. Rather than prescribing specific policies, the report aims to inform international discussions by providing an independent scientific foundation for AI governance decision-making.

Established by the UN General Assembly in August 2025 following commitments made in the Global Digital Compact, the panel brings together 40 independent experts from academia, civil society, the private sector, and the technical community. It is the first permanent UN scientific body dedicated exclusively to assessing the development and societal implications of AI. The report will serve as a key input to the Global Dialogue on AI Governance, which takes place on 6–7 July alongside the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum and the AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva.

The preliminary report examines AI through four broad dimensions:

Scientific and technological developments;
Opportunities for sustainable development;
Emerging risks;
Approaches to international governance.

Instead of advocating a particular regulatory model, the panel seeks to establish a shared evidence base that can support future policymaking and international cooperation on AI.

Rather than focusing solely on risks, the report examines AI’s growing role across sectors, including healthcare, education, agriculture, scientific research, and public administration. It describes AI as a general-purpose technology with the potential to accelerate innovation, improve productivity, and expand access to knowledge and public services. At the same time, the panel notes that these benefits remain unevenly distributed across countries and regions, with significant disparities in access to computing infrastructure, technical expertise, and digital resources.

The report estimates that more than one billion people now use AI-powered services each week, while frontier AI capabilities remain concentrated among a relatively small number of companies and countries. According to the panel, this concentration extends beyond AI models themselves to include computing infrastructure, specialised hardware, large-scale datasets, and technical talent, raising broader questions about equitable access to AI and the distribution of its benefits.

The panel also highlights the challenges facing developing countries, warning that many risk becoming primarily consumers rather than producers of AI technologies if investment in local infrastructure, research ecosystems, digital skills, and governance capacity does not keep pace with global developments. It identifies multilingual AI, locally relevant datasets, and stronger scientific capabilities as important factors in ensuring that AI systems better reflect diverse societies and languages rather than reinforcing existing global disparities.

Alongside these opportunities, the report identifies a range of emerging risks associated with increasingly capable AI systems. These include the use of AI for cyberattacks, fraud, disinformation, election interference, and other malicious activities, as well as broader concerns related to market concentration, transparency, and the growing dependence of many countries on a limited number of AI providers. The panel also notes that many governments currently lack the technical capacity to evaluate the most advanced frontier AI models independently.

Beyond security-related concerns, the report identifies environmental sustainability as an increasingly important governance issue. It notes that the rapid expansion of AI requires increasing amounts of computing power, electricity, water, and specialised hardware, and argues that future AI development should balance technological progress with efficient resource use and broader sustainable development objectives.

Speaking at the report’s launch, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that the pace of AI development requires stronger international cooperation grounded in scientific evidence and inclusive dialogue.

Panel co-chair Maria Ressa described the publication as an independent scientific assessment designed to inform, rather than replace, intergovernmental decision-making. The report itself states that ‘effective AI governance requires international cooperation,’ while recognising that governance approaches will continue to reflect different national circumstances and policy priorities.

The publication marks the first major output of the Independent International Scientific Panel on AI since its establishment under the Global Digital Compact. Future reports are expected to provide regular scientific assessments of AI capabilities, impacts, and governance challenges as the technology continues to evolve.

Why does it matter?

As governments, international organisations, researchers, and industry representatives gather in Geneva next week for the inaugural Global Dialogue on AI Governance, the preliminary report is expected to provide an important reference point for discussions on the future of AI. By combining scientific evidence with a broad assessment of opportunities, risks, and governance considerations, it seeks to support a more informed international conversation on how AI can contribute to sustainable development, human rights, and shared global prosperity.

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France and WHO call for stronger safeguards for children online

French President Emmanuel Macron and World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus have called for stronger governance of digital environments to protect children’s health and well-being.

In a joint statement, they argued that social media, gaming platforms, AI and other digital services are increasingly shaping children’s physical, mental and social development.

The authors said digital technologies can support education, healthcare access, creativity and social inclusion, especially for children in remote or disadvantaged communities. However, they argued that these benefits depend on how digital services are designed, regulated and governed.

The statement warns that excessive or poorly governed digital exposure can be linked to anxiety, depression, sleep disruption, sedentary behaviour, online exploitation, harmful content and misinformation amplified by recommendation systems.

Macron and Tedros also describe generative AI as a force multiplier for both opportunity and risk. They said AI could support education, accessibility and healthcare, but warned that its long-term effects on children’s emotional development, relationships and well-being remain uncertain.

The authors pointed to growing international momentum behind child online safety measures, including age restrictions, stronger age assurance and safety-by-design standards.

They called on governments, technology companies, researchers, educators and civil society to build healthier digital ecosystems through regulation, transparency, independent research and stronger safeguards for children.

Why does it matter?

The intervention places child online safety within the language of public health. That broadens the debate beyond content moderation and screen-time advice to include platform design, recommendation systems, business models, AI deployment and digital governance. It also reflects growing international pressure for age-appropriate design, stronger age assurance and safety-by-design rules, while leaving open difficult questions about privacy, enforcement and children’s access to beneficial digital services.

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Bank of England warns agentic AI threatens financial stability

Bank of England Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden has warned that rapidly advancing AI capabilities, particularly agentic AI systems capable of autonomously carrying out complex sequences of actions, pose growing risks to financial stability.

Breeden noted that open-source AI models may trail the most advanced proprietary models by only four to eight months. She warned that delays in applying security patches can allow attackers to reverse engineer newly disclosed vulnerabilities, echoing the Five Eyes cybersecurity agencies’ assessment that the relevant timeline for AI-enabled cyber threats is measured in months rather than years.

Turning to financial markets, Breeden warned that AI trading agents responding to similar prompts or market signals could reinforce one another during periods of stress, amplifying volatility. She also cautioned that autonomous systems could drift from their original objectives or from broader public policy goals.

She said the Bank of England is working with the Bank for International Settlements Innovation Hub and Germany’s Bundesbank to simulate how different agent designs could contribute to herd behaviour. The work also explores safeguards comparable to market circuit breakers or kill switches that could halt AI-driven trading if faulty models threatened financial stability.

Breeden also highlighted the implications of agentic AI for payments, where autonomous systems could increasingly initiate transactions on behalf of users. She said this raises questions about consent, authorisation, liability for erroneous payments and interoperability as different organisations develop competing technical standards. The Bank is leading a public-private initiative to design the next generation of UK retail payments infrastructure with these emerging use cases in mind.

Breeden concluded by calling for stronger international cooperation, arguing that AI presents cross-border systemic risks comparable to those exposed during the global financial crisis. She suggested that the shared technology dependencies underpinning advanced AI warrant closer international coordination among financial authorities.

Why does it matter?

The speech reflects a growing shift in financial regulation from focusing on AI adoption to preparing for systemic AI risks. By highlighting autonomous decision-making, cyber threats and market dynamics, the Bank of England is signalling that agentic AI presents challenges that extend beyond individual firms to the stability of the financial system as a whole.

It also illustrates how central banks are beginning to rethink financial infrastructure for an AI-enabled economy. Questions around autonomous payments, liability, market safeguards and international coordination suggest that existing regulatory frameworks may need to evolve as AI agents become more capable of acting independently across financial markets and payment systems.

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Ericsson report says global 5G subscriptions pass 3 billion

Global 5G subscriptions passed 3 billion in the first quarter of 2026, according to Ericsson’s latest Mobility Report.

The report says 162 million 5G subscriptions were added during the quarter, bringing the global total to 3.1 billion. Ericsson expects 5G subscriptions to more than double to 6.4 billion by the end of 2031.

5G will also carry around half of global mobile data traffic by the end of 2025. Ericsson projects that 5G networks will account for 85% of mobile data traffic by 2031.

The report highlights the continued deployment of 5G Standalone networks and the growth of commercial network slicing services, which allow operators to offer differentiated connectivity for specific use cases.

Ericsson also points to changing traffic patterns. For many service providers, uplink traffic is already growing faster than downlink traffic, driven by collaboration tools, cloud storage and emerging services that require more data to be sent from devices to networks.

The company says AI-powered devices, augmented reality applications and connected technologies are likely to increase demand for real-time data processing and uplink capacity.

Ericsson said existing 5G networks can support early AI and extended reality services, while 6G is expected to enable larger-scale AI-native applications, with the first commercial services expected around 2030.

Why does it matter?

The report shows that 5G is becoming a core layer of digital infrastructure for AI-enabled services, cloud applications and connected devices. As AI moves from centralised data centres into devices, vehicles, workplaces and industrial systems, mobile networks will need to support higher uplink capacity, lower latency and more differentiated connectivity. Growth in 5G Standalone and network slicing also matters because these technologies give operators more tools to support specialised services, from enterprise automation to future AI and XR applications.

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OpenAI launches GeneBench-Pro for AI biology research

OpenAI has introduced GeneBench-Pro, a research benchmark designed to assess whether AI agents can perform the complex, judgment-intensive analysis required in real-world computational biology.

Unlike conventional benchmarks that focus on factual recall or routine workflows, GeneBench-Pro is designed to measure what OpenAI calls ‘research taste‘, the sequence of judgement calls involved in scientific analysis, from interpreting ambiguous data and revising assumptions to deciding whether findings are robust enough to inform downstream research.

The benchmark comprises 129 problems spanning ten domains within computational biology, including statistical genetics, cancer genomics, clinical diagnostics, and pharmacogenomics. Each problem presents an AI agent with a realistic and deliberately messy dataset, brief experimental context, and a target to estimate.

To answer correctly, the model must explore the data iteratively, select an appropriate analytical approach, and supply a final answer without exploiting shortcuts or matching arbitrary author preferences. To prevent common benchmark shortcuts, every problem uses synthetically generated data whose underlying causal structure is fully known, allowing performance to be measured against a controlled ground truth.

OpenAI said its flagship model, GPT-5.6 Sol, achieved a pass rate of 28.7% at the highest reasoning setting, increasing to 31.5% in Pro mode. By comparison, the strongest model available when the original GeneBench was introduced scored below 5%.

External reviewers estimated that completing a typical GeneBench-Pro task would require 20 to 40 hours of expert work and cost thousands of dollars, whereas AI inference currently costs only a few dollars per run. OpenAI argues this suggests substantial economic potential even before models achieve expert-level performance.

OpenAI acknowledged that frontier models still solve fewer than one-third of the benchmark problems, often making partial progress but failing to complete the full chain of scientific reasoning expected from experienced researchers. To encourage independent evaluation, the company is open-sourcing ten representative tasks on Hugging Face and providing a 50-question subset to Artificial Analysis for third-party benchmarking.

Why does it matter?

GeneBench-Pro reflects a broader shift in AI evaluation from testing factual knowledge and coding ability to assessing whether models can support complex scientific reasoning. As computational biology increasingly becomes limited by data interpretation rather than data generation, reliable AI assistance in analytical workflows could accelerate research in areas such as genomics, drug discovery and precision medicine.

The benchmark also highlights the importance of rigorous evaluation methods for frontier AI. By using controlled synthetic datasets with known ground truth, GeneBench-Pro seeks to measure not only whether models reach the correct answer but also how well they make the sequence of judgements required in real-world scientific research.

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OECD explores AI-powered regulatory inspections

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published a working paper examining how data-driven regulation and digital technologies, including AI and data analytics, can help authorities carry out more targeted, risk-based and effective inspections.

The paper identifies licensing, permitting and inspections as the three pillars of regulatory delivery, arguing that these mechanisms are most effective when supported by risk-based approaches that minimise unnecessary administrative burdens while improving regulatory outcomes. The core argument is that by adopting risk-based approaches supported by technology, regulators can concentrate their efforts where they are most needed rather than applying uniform enforcement across all actors.

The OECD highlights practical uses for AI and data analytics, including identifying high-risk areas, prioritising inspections, streamlining enforcement and allocating resources more efficiently. The aim is to improve compliance while reducing unnecessary interventions for lower-risk businesses and activities.

The paper also argues that technologies can strengthen public trust in regulation by making inspections more transparent, consistent and evidence-based, improving both the effectiveness and legitimacy of regulatory enforcement.

The project forms part of broader EU efforts to modernise regulatory delivery. Drawing on Italy’s pilot experience, the OECD aims to identify lessons that can be applied across member states and other jurisdictions pursuing evidence-based regulatory reform.

Why does it matter?

The paper illustrates how AI and data analytics could help regulators move away from one-size-fits-all enforcement towards more targeted, risk-based oversight. By focusing inspections where they are most needed, authorities could improve compliance while reducing unnecessary administrative burdens, particularly for smaller businesses.

The report also reflects a wider shift towards evidence-based regulation. As governments seek to modernise public administration without weakening regulatory standards, technologies such as AI are increasingly being viewed as tools for improving both regulatory efficiency and public trust through more transparent and proportionate enforcement.

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EPO reports record patent demand as AI and digital services boost innovation

The European Patent Office (EPO) has published its Annual Review 2025, revealing that European patent applications exceeded 200,000 for the first time in the organisation’s history.

The milestone reflects growing confidence in the European patent system, supported by continued investment in digital transformation, AI and more efficient patent examination processes under the Strategic Plan 2028.

The Office processed a record 418,868 patent dossiers during 2025, increasing productivity by 4% while maintaining high quality standards and improving the speed of patent searches, grants and opposition proceedings.

User satisfaction also remained high following the EPO’s largest-ever satisfaction survey, involving more than 8,000 participants. Innovation activity continued to grow across strategic sectors including digital technologies, healthcare, advanced materials and battery technologies.

AI played an increasingly important role throughout the patent granting process. The EPO expanded AI-powered tools for patent examiners, including a large language model-based enhancement to its PreSearch system, designed to improve prior art discovery while ensuring examiners retain full control over decision-making.

Additional AI-supported capabilities now assist with document analysis, advanced searches, file allocation and oral proceedings. At the same time, MyEPO continued evolving as the organisation’s central digital platform, while Online Filing 2.0 became the standard filing tool ahead of broader DOCX filing deployment.

The report also highlights the growing success of the Unitary Patent system, with SMEs, universities and public research organisations accounting for nearly half of all Unitary Patents granted to European innovators.

Alongside new innovation intelligence tools such as the Patent Standards Explorer, Digital Library and expanded Deep Tech Finder, the EPO says it is strengthening Europe’s innovation ecosystem through greater transparency, digital services and data-driven patent intelligence.

Why does it matter?

The Annual Review demonstrates how AI is becoming embedded within one of Europe’s most important innovation institutions. Rather than replacing patent examiners, AI is being deployed to improve search quality, accelerate administrative processes and strengthen decision-making while maintaining human oversight.

It also illustrates Europe’s broader strategy of combining AI adoption with digital public services, intellectual property protection and innovation policy.

Record patent demand, expanding use of the Unitary Patent and new digital tools suggest the EPO is positioning itself as a key pillar of Europe’s competitiveness in emerging technologies, particularly as global competition intensifies in AI, semiconductors, advanced manufacturing and deep tech.

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EU launches three new digital skills academies

The European Commission has launched three new Digital Skills Academies focused on AI, quantum technologies and virtual worlds.

The academies were announced during Digital Skills EU Days, an annual event bringing together digital skills projects, national coalitions, policymakers, industry representatives and education organisations from across the EU.

Funded under the Digital Europe Programme, the academies are intended to establish specialised training in critical technology areas and help the EU meet its Digital Decade targets.

The Commission said Europe’s competitiveness and leadership depend on digital talent, linking the initiative to the Union of Skills, the AI Continent Action Plan, the Apply AI Strategy and the Digital Decade Policy Programme.

The new academies add to wider Digital Europe Programme investments in skilling, upskilling and reskilling. The programme has invested more than €294 million in the EU digital skills initiatives covering areas such as data, cloud, cybersecurity and AI.

During the event, the Commission also presented the 2026 European Digital Skills Awards, recognising projects focused on AI literacy, cybersecurity education, digital inclusion, research data management and women’s participation in ICT.

Why does it matter?

The new academies show that the EU is treating digital skills as part of its strategic technology agenda, alongside regulation, infrastructure and industrial policy. AI, quantum technologies and virtual worlds all require specialised expertise, and shortages in these areas could slow deployment across businesses, research institutions and public services. The initiative also supports the EU’s broader goal of strengthening technological competitiveness and reducing dependence on external talent and capabilities.

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South Korea and Japan expand AI and defence cooperation

South Korea and Japan have agreed to expand defence cooperation, including collaboration on AI and other advanced technologies, following talks between South Korean Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-Back and Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi in Seoul. The agreement was reached during a bilateral summit held in Seoul that day.

The ministers agreed to establish regular high-level visits and meetings, resume bilateral naval search and rescue exercises for the first time in nine years, and continue trilateral security cooperation with the United States to support regional peace and stability.

They also agreed to expand exchanges between South Korea’s Black Eagles and Japan’s Blue Impulse aerobatic teams to support search and rescue training. The agreement also included a commitment to strengthen ties in state-of-the-art science and technology, including AI, with the summit taking place at the Ministry of National Defence’s parade ground in Seoul.

Why does it matter?

The agreement marks a further improvement in defence relations between South Korea and Japan, whose security cooperation has often been constrained by historical and political tensions. The resumption of joint search and rescue exercises after nine years reflects growing alignment on shared regional security priorities.

The inclusion of AI and advanced technology cooperation also illustrates how emerging technologies are becoming integral to defence partnerships. As countries increasingly integrate AI into military planning, logistics and operational capabilities, technological collaboration is becoming a strategic component of broader security relationships, particularly within the Indo-Pacific.

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