The Artificial Superintelligence Security Bill goes before parliament on 8 September as Geoffrey Hinton warns superintelligent AI could be catastrophic.
Category: News
The latest news affecting small and medium sized (SME) businesses in the UK
CBI tells Healey £345bn business costs are holding back investment
The CBI has urged John Healey to cut business costs ahead of the 28 October budget, reporting firms paid almost £345bn in tax in 2025-26, up 12.7 per cent.
Molten Ventures raises £175m growth fund for UK tech scale-ups
Molten Ventures growth fund raises £175m, with a £75m British Business Bank cornerstone, to back high-growth UK and European tech firms in AI and space.
One in five family manufacturers weigh overseas sale over IHT changes
Make UK and Bishop Fleming survey finds inheritance tax changes and energy costs are prompting family-owned manufacturers to consider selling up.
Jaguar Land Rover to cut 4,000 jobs as minister rules out bailout
JLR job cuts of up to 4,000 over two years at the UK’s largest carmaker will not be met with a bailout, business secretary Jonathan Reynolds has said.
Virgin Atlantic replaces British Airways as Team GB airline for LA28
Virgin Atlantic Team GB deal makes Branson’s airline the official carrier for LA 2028, ending British Airways’ run as partner since the Beijing 2008 Games.
Jackdaw gas field approval expected in mid-September, sources say
Ministers are expected to approve the Jackdaw gas field off Aberdeen in mid-September, according to government and industry sources.
OpenAI releases Astra model and claims ‘new era’ of AGI has begun
OpenAI Astra launched on 3 September as president Greg Brockman said the world had entered the AGI era, days after Sam Altman called AGI a marketing term.
John Lewis launches YouTube chatshow to lift its AI search visibility
John Lewis is launching an Angela Scanlon-hosted YouTube chatshow and social studio to improve its AI search results as ChatGPT use among shoppers climbs.
B&Q and Five Guys among 658 employers named for minimum wage breaches
B&Q, Five Guys, Serco and Whitbread are among 658 employers named by the government for minimum wage underpayments, repaying £4m to 27,000 workers.
Harvey Nichols suppliers set to recover less than 15p in the pound after Frasers pre-pack
New Companies House filings show Harvey Nichols and Company went into administration owing £270.5 million to unsecured creditors, and administrators FTI Consulting expect no more than 15 per cent of that to come back. Harvey Nichols suppliers from Victoria Beckham to Canada Goose are among those left out of pocket after the luxury retailer was sold to Frasers Group.
Lineker asks how much the super wealthy “actually need” as wealth tax campaign draws hypocrisy charge
The former Match of the Day presenter, one of more than 120 signatories to an open letter asking Andy Burnham for a 2 per cent wealth tax on assets above £10 million, says the billionaires resisting it should ask themselves how much they actually need. Opponents say the call sits awkwardly with his own £4.9 million battle with HMRC.
London housing costs are choking firms’ access to young talent, LCCI warns ahead of Budget
London housing costs are limiting the ability of 74% of the capital’s business leaders to recruit and retain staff, according to polling for the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s new Choose LDN campaign, which urges the Prime Minister to use the Budget, devolution white paper and 10 Year Plan to make the capital more competitive rather than less.
Bank windfall tax would drive jobs and investment out of London, deVere warns Healey
Nigel Green, chief executive of deVere Group, says a bank windfall tax in the Chancellor’s first Budget would hand a competitive gift to rival financial centres, with billions of pounds of planned UK office expansion and hiring tied to the tax outlook.
Government opens £100m Sovereign AI competition to buy from British start-ups
The first competitions under the £100 million Sovereign AI procurement scheme invite British AI companies to build solutions for the NHS, defence, compute and cyber security, with upfront payments on offer and winners keeping their intellectual property.
