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Quantum computing partnership launches in Doha

Quantinuum and Al Rabban Capital have announced a new venture aimed at advancing quantum computing in Qatar and the region.

The partnership seeks to provide access to Quantinuum’s technologies, co-develop relevant quantum applications and train a new generation of developers.

This move aligns with Qatar’s ambition to become a hub for advanced technologies. Applications will focus on energy, medicine, genomics, and finance, with additional potential in emerging fields like Generative Quantum AI.

The venture builds on existing collaborations with Hamad Bin Khalifa University and the Qatar Center for Quantum Computing. Quantinuum’s expansion into Qatar follows growth across the US, UK, Europe, and Indo-Pacific.

Leaders from both organisations see this as a strategic milestone, strengthening technological ties between Qatar and the West. The joint venture not only supports national goals but also reflects rising global demand for quantum technologies.

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Epic Games wins long battle with Apple

Fortnite has returned to the Apple app store in the US, nearly five years after it was removed in 2020. The ban followed Epic Games’ attempt to bypass Apple’s 30% commission by introducing its own payment system, sparking a major legal fight.

The game is now also available on the Epic Games Store and AltStore in the EU. This development is being widely viewed as a win for Epic Games in its lengthy dispute over app store practices.

Analysts say it may shift power dynamics in distribution, giving creators more influence against platform holders.

The US return comes just days after Fortnite was briefly unavailable globally due to a blocked update. It had already reappeared in the EU earlier this year due to new competition laws. With over 400 million players worldwide, Fortnite remains one of the most popular games in the world.

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US bans nonconsensual explicit deepfakes nationwide

The US is introducing a landmark federal law aimed at curbing the spread of non-consensual explicit deepfake images, following mounting public outrage.

President Donald Trump is expected to sign the Take It Down Act, which will criminalise the sharing of explicit images, whether real or AI-generated, without consent. The law will also require tech platforms to remove such content within 48 hours of notification, instead of leaving the matter to patchy state laws.

The legislation is one of the first at the federal level to directly tackle the misuse of AI-generated content. It builds on earlier laws that protected children but had left adults vulnerable due to inconsistent state regulations.

The bill received rare bipartisan support in Congress and was backed by over 100 organisations, including tech giants like Meta, TikTok and Google. First Lady Melania Trump also supported the act, hosting a teenage victim of deepfake harassment during the president’s address to Congress.

The act was prompted in part by incidents like that of Elliston Berry, a Texas high school student targeted by a classmate who used AI to alter her social media image into a nude photo. Similar cases involving teen girls across the country highlighted the urgency for action.

Tech companies had already started offering tools to remove explicit images, but the lack of consistent enforcement allowed harmful content to persist on less cooperative platforms.

Supporters of the law argue it sends a strong societal message instead of allowing the exploitation to continue unchallenged.

Advocates like Imran Ahmed and Ilana Beller emphasised that while no law is a perfect solution, this one forces platforms to take real responsibility and offers victims some much-needed protection and peace of mind.

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UAE to host world’s biggest AI site outside the US

The United Arab Emirates will build the largest artificial intelligence infrastructure outside the United States, following a high-level meeting between UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and President Trump in Abu Dhabi.

It will be constructed by G42 and involve US firms under the newly established US-UAE AI Acceleration Partnership. Spanning 10 square miles in Abu Dhabi, the AI campus will run on a mix of nuclear, solar and gas energy to limit emissions and will feature a dedicated science park to drive innovation.

A 5GW capacity will enable it to serve half the global population, offering US cloud providers a vital regional hub. As part of the agreement, the UAE has pledged to align its national security rules with US standards, including strict technology safeguards and tighter access controls for computing power.

The UAE may also be permitted to purchase up to 500,000 Nvidia AI chips annually starting this year.

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Lawyers sanctioned after AI-generated cases found false

A federal judge in California has sanctioned two law firms for submitting a legal brief containing fake citations generated by AI tools. Judge Michael Wilner described the AI-generated references as ‘bogus’ and fined the firms $31,000, criticising them for failing to properly check the sources.

The legal document in question was based on an outline created with Google Gemini and AI tools within Westlaw.

However, this draft was handed off to another firm, K&L Gates, which included the fabricated citations without verifying their authenticity.Judge Wilner noted that at least two cases referenced in the filing did not exist at all.

He warned that undisclosed reliance on AI could mislead US courts and compromise legal integrity. This case adds to a growing list of incidents where lawyers misused AI, mistakenly treating chatbots as legitimate research tools.

The judge called the actions professionally reckless and said no competent attorney should outsource research to AI without careful oversight.

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Republicans seek to block state AI laws for a decade

Republican lawmakers in the US have introduced a proposal that would block states from regulating artificial intelligence for the next ten years. Critics argue the move is a handout to Big Tech and could stall protections already passed in states like California, Utah, and Colorado.

The measure, embedded in a budget reconciliation bill, would prevent states from enforcing rules on a wide range of automated systems, from AI chatbots to algorithms used in health and justice sectors.

Over 500 AI-related bills have been proposed this year at the state level, and many of them would be nullified if the federal ban succeeds. Supporters of the bill claim AI oversight should happen at the national level to avoid a confusing patchwork of state laws.

Opponents, including US Democrats and tech accountability groups, warn the ban could allow unchecked algorithmic discrimination, weaken privacy, and leave the public vulnerable to AI-driven harms.

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SoftBank profit jumps on AI-driven rebound

SoftBank Group reported a 124% surge in quarterly profit, driven by booming AI demand that lifted chip sales and startup valuations. Net income reached ¥517.18 billion ($3.5 billion) in the fiscal fourth quarter, with the Vision Fund swinging back to a profit of ¥26.1 billion.

The results provide momentum for SoftBank’s ambitions to invest heavily in OpenAI and US-based AI infrastructure. Plans include a $30 billion stake in OpenAI and leading a $100 billion push into data centres under the Stargate project, which could eventually grow to $500 billion.

However, investor caution amid tariffs and tech protectionism has delayed detailed financing discussions. Despite these hurdles, SoftBank’s chip unit Arm Holdings has benefited from rising global AI investments, even as near-term forecasts remain mixed.

For the full year, SoftBank earned ¥1.15 trillion, reversing a significant loss from the previous year. The company continues to navigate risks tied to the volatile tech start-up market, especially as Vision Fund portfolio firms go public in India.

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Masked cybercrime groups rise as attacks escalate worldwide

Cybercrime is thriving like never before, with hackers launching attacks ranging from absurd ransomware demands of $1 trillion to large-scale theft of personal data. Despite efforts from Microsoft, Google and even the FBI, these threat actors continue to outpace defences.

A new report by Group-IB has analysed over 1,500 cybercrime investigations to uncover the most active and dangerous hacker groups operating today.

Rather than fading away after arrests or infighting, many cybercriminal gangs are re-emerging stronger than before.

Group-IB’s May 2025 report highlights a troubling increase in key attack types across 2024 — phishing rose by 22%, ransomware leak sites by 10%, and APT (advanced persistent threat) attacks by 58%. The United States was the most affected country by ransomware activity.

At the top of the cybercriminal hierarchy now sits RansomHub, a ransomware-as-a-service group that emerged from the collapsed ALPHV group and has already overtaken long-established players in attack numbers.

Behind it is GoldFactory, which developed the first iOS banking trojan and exploited facial recognition data. Lazarus, a well-known North Korean state-linked group, also remains highly active under multiple aliases.

Meanwhile, politically driven hacktivist group NoName057(16) has been targeting European institutions using denial-of-service attacks.

With jurisdictional gaps allowing cybercriminals to flourish, these masked hackers remain a growing concern for global cybersecurity, especially as new threat actors emerge from the shadows instead of disappearing for good.

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New AI tool boosts delivery of children’s support plans

In the US, Stoke-on-Trent City Council has introduced AI to speed up the production of special educational needs reports amid growing demand. The new system is already showing results, with 83% of plans issued within the 20-week target in April, up from just 43% the previous year.

Traditionally compiled by individual case workers, Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) are now being partially automated using AI trained to extract information from psychological and medical documents.

Despite the use of AI, a human case worker still reviews each report to check for accuracy and ensure the needs of the child are properly represented.

The aim is to improve both efficiency and the quality of reports by allowing staff to focus on substance rather than repetitive formatting tasks.

Councillors welcomed the move, highlighting the potential of technology to reduce backlogs and improve outcomes for families.

Alongside the AI rollout, the US council has hired more educational psychologists, reformed the application process, and increased early intervention efforts to manage rising demand.

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US senator calls for AI chip tracking to protect national security

A new bill introduced by Republican Senator Tom Cotton aims to bolster national security by requiring location verification features on American-made AI chips.

The Chip Security Act, announced on 9 May, would ensure such technology does not end up in the hands of foreign adversaries, particularly China.

Cotton urged the US Departments of Commerce and Defence to assess how tracking mechanisms could help detect and prevent illegal chip exports.

He also called for stricter obligations for companies exporting AI chips, including notifying authorities if devices are tampered with or redirected from their original destinations.

The proposed legislation follows a policy shift announced on 7 May by the Trump administration to ease restrictions on AI chip exports previously imposed under President Biden.

Cotton argued that better security practices could allow US firms to expand globally without undermining the country’s technological edge.

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