Category Archives: Technology sector

Amazon accused of targeting Coventry union members after failed recognition vote

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GMB says 60 workers have been targeted, with disciplinary action increasing significantly, but company denies claims

Amazon has been accused of targeting 60 trade union members with disciplinary action after narrowly defeating a recognition vote at its Coventry warehouse last summer.

The GMB trade union said all 60 workers were involved in action at the warehouse – where it has about 700 members out of a workforce of at least 1,500 – that culminated in a ballot on formal recognition in July last year that failed by only a handful of votes.

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SoftBank ‘in talks’ to invest up to $25bn in OpenAI

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Reported move would make Japanese group largest financial backer of US startup behind ChatGPT

The Japanese investment group SoftBank is reportedly in talks to invest up to $25bn (£20bn) in OpenAI in a deal that would make it the biggest financial backer of the startup behind ChatGPT.

The lender is considering putting a sum of between $15bn and $25bn into the San Francisco-based company, according to the Financial Times.

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US tech stocks partly recover after Trump says DeepSeek AI chatbot is ‘wake-up call’

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Tentative rise comes after emergence of cheaper Chinese rival wiped $1tn off the value of leading US tech companies

US tech stocks tentatively recovered on Tuesday after Donald Trump described the launch of a chatbot by China’s DeepSeek as a “wake-up call” for Silicon Valley in the global race to dominate artificial intelligence.

The emergence of DeepSeek, which has built its R1 model chatbot at a fraction of the cost of competitors such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini, wiped $1tn (£800bn) in value from the leading US tech index on Monday.

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New CMA chair will have to assess curbs on his former employer Amazon

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Doug Gurr will lead board as watchdog rules on Microsoft and Amazon’s dominance of cloud computing market

The new chair of the UK competition watchdog will have to assess whether to curb the position of his former employer, Amazon, after an independent inquiry found that a lack of competition in the £9bn cloud computing market could mean British businesses are overpaying for services.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which last week announced the surprise appointment of former Amazon UK boss Doug Gurr as its interim chair, said that Microsoft and Amazon’s dominance of the cloud computing market could mean that British businesses are paying as much as £430m more annually for services than in a “well-functioning market”.

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Apple suspends AI-generated news alert service after BBC complaint

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Inaccurate notices branded with broadcaster’s logo sent to iPhone users but tech firm works on improvements

Apple is suspending an artificial intelligence feature that made inaccurate summaries of news headlines.

The tech company received a complaint from the BBC after the AI-generated service issued a news alert branded with the corporation’s logo falsely telling some iPhone users that Luigi Mangione, who is accused of killing the UnitedHealthcare chief executive, Brian Thompson, had shot himself.

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Donald Trump reportedly weighing up TikTok ban delay

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President-elect ‘has warm spot’ for platform and wants political solution to ‘preserve app but protect data’

Donald Trump is considering suspending a TikTok ban in the US with an executive order when he enters the White House on 20 January, according to a report.

The president-elect is exploring an executive order that would postpone enforcement of a sale-or-ban law due to come into force on 19 January, said the Washington Post. The report added, however, that Trump’s legal grounds for suspending a law passed by Congress are questionable.

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Escalating armed conflict is most urgent threat for world in 2025, say global leaders

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World Economic Forum says responses from experts in business, politics and academia also highlight climate crisis

Global leaders have said that escalating armed conflict is the most urgent threat in 2025 but the climate emergency is expected to cause the greatest concern over the next decade, according to the World Economic Forum.

Ahead of its yearly gathering in the Swiss ski resort of Davos next week, the WEF asked more than 900 leaders from business, politics and academia about the risks that most concern them.

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Halt illegal imports of conflict minerals from DRC, campaigners urge EU

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Law to stop armed groups profiting from trade in gold, tin, tungsten and tantalum is being breached, rights groups say

The European Union has been urged to clamp down on illegal imports of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) after evidence was found that current regulations had been breached.

The advocacy group Global Witness (GW) said there remained a “high risk” of the EU’s mineral imports being used to fund militias and state repression in several countries.

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Apple asks investors to block proposal to scrap diversity programmes

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Conservative thinktank wants firm to end its DEI efforts because they create ‘litigation, reputational and financial risks’

Apple has asked shareholders to vote against a proposal to scrap its diversity, equity and inclusion programmes, as tech rivals scale back similar schemes before Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

The National Center for Public Policy Research, a conservative thinktank, wants the iPhone maker to end its DEI efforts because they expose companies to “litigation, reputational and financial risks”. The proposal will be voted on at Apple’s annual general meeting on 25 February.

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Ireland prices corporation tax loss from Trump policies at €10bn

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Figure costed for three multinationals repatriating to US after nomination for commerce secretary hits out at Ireland’s tax regime

Ireland’s prime minister has said the country could lose €10bn (£8.35bn) in corporate tax if just three US multinationals were repatriated to America under a hostile Donald Trump administration.

His remarks come just days after Trump nominated the Wall Street investor Howard Lutnick to lead the Department of Commerce with direct responsibility for trade.

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Google must sell Chrome to end search monopoly, says US justice department

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Court filing comes after landmark ruling in August and judge will consider arguments from both sides next year

The US Department of Justice has proposed a far-reaching overhaul of Google’s structure and business practices, including the sale of its Chrome browser, in a bid to end its monopoly on internet search.

The DoJ proposals follow a landmark court ruling in August in which a federal judge ruled that Google maintained an illegal monopoly over search services.

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Musk’s influence on Trump could lead to tougher AI standards, says scientist

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Tycoon might help president-elect realise race for artificial general intelligence is a ‘suicide race’, says Max Tegmark

Elon Musk’s influence on a Donald Trump administration could lead to tougher safety standards for artificial intelligence, according to a leading scientist who has worked closely with the world’s richest person on addressing AI’s dangers.

Max Tegmark said Musk’s support for a failed AI bill in California underlined the billionaire’s continued concern over an issue that did not feature prominently in Trump’s campaign.

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Intel wins lengthy EU legal battle over £880m competition fine

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Chipmaker disputed 2009 decision that it abused its market position in case dating back two decades

The US chipmaker Intel has won a long-running battle to quash a fine of more than €1bn imposed by the European Commission for allegedly abusing its market dominance in the sale of computer chips.

In a final ruling on Thursday, theEuropean court of justice upheld an earlier judgment that had quashed the €1.06bn (£880m) fine and partly dismissed the charges of anticompetitive behaviour.

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Tesla’s value drops $60bn after investors fail to hail self-driving ‘Cybercab’

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Analysts criticise lack of detail about the ‘robotaxi’ showcased by CEO Elon Musk

Tesla shares have fallen by 8%, wiping about $60bn (£45bn) from the company’s value, after the long-awaited unveiling of its so-called robotaxi failed to excite investors.

Shares in the electric carmaker fell to $219.40 in early trading on Friday after an event in Hollywood, where the chief executive, Elon Musk, revealed a much-hyped driverless vehicle.

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Google facing US government attempt to break it up, court filing shows

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Department of Justice examining ‘structural remedies’ to challenge tech corporation’s internet search monopoly

The US government may ask a judge to force the breakup of Google’s business as it attempts to challenge the tech corporation’s monopoly over the internet search market.

The Department of Justice has filed court papers that say it is considering enforcing “structural remedies” that would prevent Google from using some of its products such as Chrome, Android and Play, which the DoJ argues give the company an advantage over rivals.

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Rio Tinto to buy US lithium producer Arcadium in $6.7bn deal

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Acquisition by Anglo-Australian miner comes despite global headwinds in electric car market

Rio Tinto is to buy the US company Arcadium Lithium for $6.7bn (£5.1bn), in a huge bet on the energy transition despite global headwinds in the electric car market.

The Anglo-Australian metals and mining company said it would pay $5.85 a share for the US-based lithium miner. That represents an almost 90% premium to Arcadium’s closing price of $3.08 a share on 3 October, the day before news of a potential deal emerged.

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Batterymaker Northvolt to cut 1,600 jobs amid electric car ‘headwinds’

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Move comes after weeks of uncertainty over reports of financial problems as green vehicle sector struggles

The Swedish batterymaker Northvolt is to cut 1,600 jobs, in response to “headwinds” blowing through the electric car industry.

The battery company announced redundancies across three of its sites on Monday, including 1,000 in Skellefteå, in northern Sweden, where it is suspending the expansion of Northvolt Ett, Europe’s first homegrown battery gigafactory.

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Users of ‘throuples’ dating app Feeld may have had intimate photos accessed

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Alternative relationships site says it has resolved concerns about data security that tech firm claims to have uncovered

Users of Feeld, a dating app aimed at alternative relationships, could have had sensitive data including messages, private photos and details of their sexuality accessed or even edited, it has emerged, after cybersecurity experts exposed a string of security “vulnerabilities”.

Feeld, registered in the UK, reported soaring revenues and profits this month, thanks to millions of downloads from non-monogamous, queer and kinky users across the world.

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Meta to push on with plan to use UK Facebook and Instagram posts to train AI

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Move to use shared posts follows information commissioner concerns and sets collision course with EU over privacy

Mark Zuckberg’s Meta is to go ahead with controversial plans to use millions of UK Facebook and Instagram posts to train its artificial intelligence (AI) technology, in a practice that is effectively outlawed under EU privacy laws.

Meta said it had “engaged positively” with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) over the plan, after it paused similar proposals in June in the UK and EU. The pause came after the ICO warned tech firms to respect the privacy of users when building generative AI.

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‘Throuples’ dating app Feeld nearly doubles turnover to £39.5m

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Platform run from industrial estate in Cumbria and catering to alternative relationships has expanded globally

A dating app aimed at alternative relationships nearly doubled its revenues last year as non-monogamous, queer and kinky users helped the UK-based business expand its reach across the world.

Feeld, founded by an entrepreneur couple in an open relationship, has said it is “on a mission to elevate the human experience of sexuality and relationships” from its registered office on an industrial estate in Carlisle, Cumbria.

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