Alan Turing institute launches new mission to protect UK from cyber-attacks
Britain’s leading AI institute has announced a new mission to help protect the nation from cyber-attacks on infrastructure, including energy, transport and utilities, after it was embroiled in allegations of toxic work culture and the chief executive resigned amid ministerial pressure.The Alan Turing Institute will “carry out a programme of science and innovation designed to protect the UK from hostile threats”, it announced on Tuesday as part of changes following the resignation last month of Jean Innes, its chief executive, after a staff revolt and government calls for a strategic overhaul of the state-funded body.The mission comes amid growing concern over Britain’s vulnerability to internet outages and cyber-attacks after this month’s incident affecting Amazon’s cloud computing globally and recent cyber-attacks crippling production at Jaguar Land Rover factories, and supply chains at Marks & Spencer and the Co-op.Blythe Crawford, the former commander of the UK’s air and space warfare centre , will report back next month on how the government-funded institute “can best support the scale of government AI ambitions in defence, national security and intelligence”.The chair, former Amazon UK boss Doug Gurr, said 78 different research projects at the 440-staff institute have been closed, spun out or completed because they do not align with the new direction.
The institute has been beset by internal strife since last year as staff protested against changes, culminating in a group of employees filing a whistleblower complaint to the Charity Commission,Gurr said in an interview with the BBC that the whistleblower claims were “independently investigated” by a third party that found them to have “no substance”,The institute was named after the mathematical genius who helped crack the Enigma code during the second world war and outlined key concepts of AI,He also invented the eponymous test to determine if a computer can show human intelligence,It will also focus on deploying AI for the environment and health.
The institute will develop ways to use the fast-advancing technology to more rapidly and accurately forecast changes in weather, oceans and sea ice, in part to better inform UK government emergency planners.It will also target “tangible emissions reductions in transportation networks, manufacturing processes and critical infrastructure”.On health, it will focus on creating digital twins of human hearts, a frontline of personalised AI-enabled medicine, which could improve medical interventions and patient outcomes for critically ill cardiac patients.
Inflation jumps to 3.2%, dashing hopes of a Melbourne Cup day rate cut for homeowners
Inflation has jumped to 3.2% in the year to September, from 2.1% in June, as waning government subsidies feed through to a spike in household power bills.Any lingering chance of a rate cut next Tuesday – or potentially this year – was squashed after the Australian Bureau of Statistics figures also confirmed the first rise in underlying inflation in nearly three years.Jonathan Kearns, the chief economist at Challenger, said “the path for inflation returning to the RBA’s target of 2
Stock markets rise to record highs and Apple touches $4tn market value for first time – as it happened
The UK’s FTSE 100 has hit a new intra-day record and Wall Street shares are also at all-time highs – with Apple hit a $4 trillion market value for the first time.The FTSE 100 has hit a record peak of 9,715.22, and is currently trading 0.5% higher at 9,698.4
Apple hits $4tn market value as new iPhone models revitalize sales
Apple topped $4tn (£3tn) in market value for the first time on Tuesday, joining Microsoft and Nvidia as the third company in history to hit the milestone, thanks to strong demand for its latest iPhones.Apple’s share price has increased by more than 50% since a low point in April, thanks to the debut of its latest products.“The iPhone accounts for over half of Apple’s profit and revenue, and the more phones they can get into the hands of people, the more they can drive people into their ecosystem,” said Chris Zaccarelli, the chief investment officer for Northlight Asset Management, before the milestone was reached.Apple’s shares had struggled earlier this year on concerns over tough competition in China and how it would cope with high US tariffs on Asian economies such as China and India, its main manufacturing hubs.However, the latest smartphones, the iPhone 17 lineup, have won back customers from Beijing to Moscow, while the company has swallowed tariff costs instead of passing them on to consumers
OpenAI completes conversion to for-profit business after lengthy legal saga
OpenAI said on Tuesday it had converted its main business into a for-profit corporation, the conclusion of a lengthy and fraught legal saga.A crucial regulator, Kathy Jennings, the Delaware attorney general, said she approved the plan for the startup, which began as a non-profit in 2015, to change to a public benefit corporation, a type of for-profit entity that expresses commitment to bettering society.The company also said it had reorganized its ownership structure and signed a new agreement with its longtime backer Microsoft that gives the software giant a roughly 27% stake in OpenAI’s new for-profit corporation, but changes some of the details of their close partnership. OpenAI was valued at $500bn under the terms of the deal, making Microsoft’s stake worth more than $100bn.The restructuring paves the way for the ChatGPT maker to more easily raise capital and profit off its artificial intelligence technology, even as it remains technically under the control of its own original non-profit entity
New Zealand v England: second men’s cricket one-day international – live
Tickner gets his fourth wicket as Rashid is pouched at midwicket. England’s batting card does not make for pretty reading. New Zealand shared the wickets and caught their catches, they are overwhelming favourites to take this game and with the series.35th over: England 175-9 (Archer 2, Rashid 9) Shot! Adil Rashid plops Santner onto the grass bank behind midwicket for SIX!34th over: England 168-9 (Archer 2, Rashid 2) Rashid joins Archer for a last wicket hurrah. Of sorts
Guerrero homers off Ohtani as Blue Jays see off Dodgers to level World Series
Vladimir Guerrero Jr hit a two-run homer and Shane Bieber allowed one run into the sixth inning as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 in Game 4 of the World Series on Tuesday night, leveling the best-of-seven series at two games apiece.Guerrero homered off Shohei Ohtani in the third inning, putting Toronto ahead for good after Los Angeles scored first for the fourth consecutive game. Guerrero’s seventh postseason homer extended his franchise record and helped the Blue Jays quickly shake off their 18-inning loss in Game 3.ScheduleBest-of-seven series. All times Eastern Daylight Time (UTC-4)
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RBA governor dismisses jobs fears but hints at rates hold after inflation uptick