Octopus Energy founder appointed as UK government adviser

Keir Starmer has appointed the outspoken founder of Octopus Energy as an adviser, with a remit to challenge government thinking.Greg Jackson has joined the Cabinet Office board, an influential core of government advisers, as a non-executive member.The announcement comes weeks after ministers ruled out his plan to split the national energy market into regional zones, which would have meant users in different areas would pay different rates for their electricity.The tech entrepreneur, who has long had links to the Labour party, responded to that decision by saying he would “respectfully disagree”.Jackson failed to win over ministers after a long and controversial campaign, in part because zonal pricing would have meant higher energy prices in the south-east of England and lower prices in Scotland

Confidence drops across UK services in face of higher costs and weak demand

Business confidence plunged this month across the UK’s services sector as mounting cost pressures and weak demand hit profits and undermined the outlook for the rest of the year.The CBI’s latest service sector poll found that a majority of companies were gloomy about their prospects and discounted the acceleration in activity that usually follows the return to work after the summer break.Falling sales and rising costs meant most firms were suffering a profit squeeze, the CBI said, leading to lower hiring and cuts to investment.Consumer services firms reported a negative outlook for the eighth consecutive month while services companies that sell to other businesses reported a decline in activity for the fourth consecutive month.Optimism about the general business situation deteriorated, though the panic induced in the previous quarter by Donald Trump’s initial tariffs was much reduced

Nvidia set to report second quarter earnings in test of AI boom

Nvidia is set to report its second-quarter earnings on Wednesday, in a first test of investor appetite since last week’s mass AI-stock selloff.All eyes will be on the chipmaker’s latest financials as the company sets the tone for the rest of the AI industry after a turbulent week in the sector. Several tech stocks saw shares tumble last week amid growing questions over whether AI-driven companies are being overvalued, including an MIT report that said 95% of AI pilots fail to grow company’s revenues and statements from the OpenAI chief executive, Sam Altman, who said investors were possibly overhyping several companies.Nvidia, which became the first company to reach a $4tn market cap in July, saw a 3.5% drop in shares early last week – its biggest drop in months

Teen killed himself after ‘months of encouragement from ChatGPT’, lawsuit claims

The makers of ChatGPT are changing the way it responds to users who show mental and emotional distress after legal action from the family of 16-year-old Adam Raine, who killed himself after months of conversations with the chatbot.Open AI admitted its systems could “fall short” and said it would install “stronger guardrails around sensitive content and risky behaviors” for users under 18.The $500bn (£372bn) San Francisco AI company said it would also introduce parental controls to allow parents “options to gain more insight into, and shape, how their teens use ChatGPT”, but has yet to provide details about how these would work.Adam, from California, killed himself in April after what his family’s lawyer called “months of encouragement from ChatGPT”. The teenager’s family is suing Open AI and its chief executive and co-founder, Sam Altman, alleging that the version of ChatGPT at that time, known as 4o, was “rushed to market … despite clear safety issues”

US Open tennis 2025: injured Draper withdraws, Raducanu on day four – live

Have a look! Collignon might’ve faded after being broken, but he sticks to his game plan of all-out attack and seizes back what Ruud took from him, now trailing 1-2 in the fifth; we’re back on serve.Tiafoe does indeed serve out against Damm, leading 6-4, while Ruud breaks immediately to lead Collignon 2-0 in the fifth.Comesana can’t sustain his threat, broken by Norrie who now leads 7-6 6-3. For a while, this was close, but not anymore – likewise on Armstrong, where Fritz, up 2-1, has broken Harris to lead 1-0 in the fourth.Next for her: Victoria Azarenka

Emma Raducanu rapidly polishes off Janice Tjen in show of US Open force

On her return to Flushing Meadows this year, Emma Raducanu felt the full force of the tension and nerves that accompanied her determination to finally change the narrative surrounding her career and thrive in New York again.However, Raducanu has also never been more prepared for such challenges. She continues to show off the fruits of her recent labour by putting together another devastating performance, demolishing the qualifier Janice Tjen 6-2, 6-1 to return to the third round of the US Open.The challenge for Raducanu on Wednesday was figuring out a talented but unheralded opponent who few players in the tournament have had the opportunity to watch, let alone compete against.Once again, the British No 1 showed her best form since winning the title here in 2021 here and that confidence is growing with every victory