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Latest News:

  •  Anthropic did not submit Mythos 5.1 to UK AI Security Institute
  • Burnham tells MPs VAT comes off electricity bills next month
  • British Business Bank launches £210m South East Investment Fund
  • Arm chief says AI will help cure cancer ‘in our lifetime’
  • UK’s third-biggest taxpayer Chris Rokos to leave for Greece
  • Policy unpredictability cost UK nearly £2tn in investment, study finds
  • Kendall Jenner buys stake in London drinks brand Trip
  • AI use by UK small businesses more than doubles to 47 per cent
  • UKEF backs £655m of Angola projects, unlocking £167m for UK firms
  • Hinton calls for UK ban on superintelligent AI as MPs table bill
Claude Mythos 5.1 went only to US vetting organisations, the first time Anthropic has bypassed the UK AI Security Institute before releasing a model.

 Anthropic did not submit Mythos 5.1 to UK AI Security Institute

Claude Mythos 5.1 went only to US vetting organisations, the first time Anthropic has bypassed the UK AI Security Institute before releasing a model.

The electricity VAT cut takes effect from 1 October, the prime minister told MPs, as the SNP warned of a looming winter cost-of-living emergency.

Burnham tells MPs VAT comes off electricity bills next month

The electricity VAT cut takes effect from 1 October, the prime minister told MPs, as the SNP warned of a looming winter cost-of-living emergency.

Fast Company has named Anthropic No 1 on its Best Workplaces for Innovators 2026 list, citing Claude Code, Claude Cowork and a valuation approaching $1trn.

Anthropic tops Fast Company’s Best Workplaces for Innovators 2026

Fast Company has named Anthropic No 1 on its Best Workplaces for Innovators 2026 list, citing Claude Code, Claude Cowork and a valuation approaching $1trn.

Six weeks of paternity leave paid at 90 per cent of earnings would add a net £2.68bn a year to the UK economy and could reduce relationship breakdown after a birth, according to a review of 33 international studies published on 9 September by King's Global Institute for Women's Leadership and Equimundo: Center for Masculinities and Social Justice.

Six weeks’ paid paternity leave would add £2.68bn a year, report finds

A King’s and Equimundo review of 33 studies says six weeks’ well-paid paternity leave would lift maternal employment, add £2.68bn a year and cut break-ups.

The British Business Bank has launched a £210m South East Investment Fund offering loans of between £25,000 and £2m and equity investments of up to £5m to small and medium-sized businesses in the region. The fund, which opened on 9 September, has already made its first investment, a £250,000 loan to a Basingstoke technology company.

British Business Bank launches £210m South East Investment Fund

The British Business Bank’s £210m South East Investment Fund, launched on 9 September, offers loans and equity to smaller firms from Kent to Oxfordshire.

Lenovo Call Eva lets founders in the UK and six other countries leave Eva Longoria a voice message, with selected questions answered live on 16 September

Lenovo opens Call Eva line for UK entrepreneurs to ask Eva Longoria

Lenovo Call Eva lets founders in the UK and six other countries leave Eva Longoria a voice message, with selected questions answered live on 16 September

Rene Haas, chief executive of the chip designer Arm Holdings, has said artificial intelligence will help cure cancer "in our lifetime", and predicted that humanoid robots will be in widespread use within the next five years.

Arm chief says AI will help cure cancer ‘in our lifetime’

Arm Holdings chief executive Rene Haas says an AI cancer cure will come in our lifetime, and predicts humanoid robots in wide use within five years.

Mistral AI, the Paris-based artificial intelligence start-up, has raised €3bn in the largest venture funding round completed in Europe, valuing the company at more than €21bn.

Mistral AI raises €3bn in Europe’s largest venture funding round

The Mistral AI funding round of €3bn, the largest venture raise in Europe, values the Paris-based open-weight AI model developer at more than €21bn.

Business activity increased in seven of the 12 UK nations and regions in August, led by Northern Ireland and London, according to the latest NatWest Growth Tracker. The survey also found that growth expectations for the year ahead improved in the majority of areas, even as cost pressures picked up from July.

Northern Ireland leads UK business growth in August, NatWest tracker finds

The latest NatWest Growth Tracker reports business activity growth in over half of UK nations and regions in August, despite renewed cost pressures.

  1.  Anthropic did not submit Mythos 5.1 to UK AI Security Institute
  2. Burnham tells MPs VAT comes off electricity bills next month
  3. Anthropic tops Fast Company’s Best Workplaces for Innovators 2026
  4. Six weeks’ paid paternity leave would add £2.68bn a year, report finds
  5. British Business Bank launches £210m South East Investment Fund
  6. Lenovo opens Call Eva line for UK entrepreneurs to ask Eva Longoria
  7. Arm chief says AI will help cure cancer ‘in our lifetime’
  8. Mistral AI raises €3bn in Europe’s largest venture funding round
  9. Northern Ireland leads UK business growth in August, NatWest tracker finds

Latest News…

Claude Mythos 5.1 went only to US vetting organisations, the first time Anthropic has bypassed the UK AI Security Institute before releasing a model.

 Anthropic did not submit Mythos 5.1 to UK AI Security Institute

Claude Mythos 5.1 went only to US vetting organisations, the first time Anthropic has bypassed the UK AI Security Institute before releasing a model.

The electricity VAT cut takes effect from 1 October, the prime minister told MPs, as the SNP warned of a looming winter cost-of-living emergency.

Burnham tells MPs VAT comes off electricity bills next month

The electricity VAT cut takes effect from 1 October, the prime minister told MPs, as the SNP warned of a looming winter cost-of-living emergency.

The British Business Bank has launched a £210m South East Investment Fund offering loans of between £25,000 and £2m and equity investments of up to £5m to small and medium-sized businesses in the region. The fund, which opened on 9 September, has already made its first investment, a £250,000 loan to a Basingstoke technology company.

British Business Bank launches £210m South East Investment Fund

The British Business Bank’s £210m South East Investment Fund, launched on 9 September, offers loans and equity to smaller firms from Kent to Oxfordshire.

Rene Haas, chief executive of the chip designer Arm Holdings, has said artificial intelligence will help cure cancer "in our lifetime", and predicted that humanoid robots will be in widespread use within the next five years.

Arm chief says AI will help cure cancer ‘in our lifetime’

Arm Holdings chief executive Rene Haas says an AI cancer cure will come in our lifetime, and predicts humanoid robots in wide use within five years.

Chris Rokos

UK’s third-biggest taxpayer Chris Rokos to leave for Greece

Chris Rokos, ranked third on The Sunday Times list of Britain’s top taxpayers, is to leave the UK for Greece, weeks before John Healey’s first budget

An Oxford Economics study for Getlink and major airport owners finds weak business investment has cost the UK nearly £2tn since 2000, in a plea to Healey.

Policy unpredictability cost UK nearly £2tn in investment, study finds

An Oxford Economics study for Getlink and major airport owners finds weak business investment has cost the UK nearly £2tn since 2000, in a plea to Healey.

Kendall Jenner, the American model and reality television star, has acquired a minority stake in Trip, the London-based drinks and supplements company best known for its cannabidiol (CBD) soft drinks, and will become the face of the brand's new global campaign.

Kendall Jenner buys stake in London drinks brand Trip

Kendall Jenner Trip deal: the model takes a minority stake in the London CBD drinks brand and will front a global campaign as revenues head for $200m.

Almost half of UK small business owners are now using artificial intelligence tools, according to research released on 8 September by the insurance provider Simply Business, which found adoption has more than doubled from 22 per cent in 2025 to 47 per cent.

AI use by UK small businesses more than doubles to 47 per cent

Simply Business’s 2026 SME Insights Report puts AI adoption among UK small businesses at 47 per cent, up from 22 per cent in 2025, with confidence lagging.

UK Export Finance is providing £655m for four Angola infrastructure projects, including a new international airport, unlocking £167m for UK suppliers.

UKEF backs £655m of Angola projects, unlocking £167m for UK firms

UK Export Finance is providing £655m for four Angola infrastructure projects, including a new international airport, unlocking £167m for UK suppliers.

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Interviewed…

Sara Davies, the entrepreneur who made her debut on Dragons’ Den in 2019, has announced she will be stepping back from the BBC programme to focus on her own company.

Dragons’ Den star Sara Davies takes stake in Not On The High Street turnaround

Not On The High Street turnaround: Sara Davies, who appeared on the BBC business series between 2019 and 2025, has taken a stake in the online marketplace and joined its board as its German private equity owners try to return it to growth.

The founders of UK fintech GoCardless are set for a significant financial windfall after the payments company agreed to be acquired by Dutch rival Mollie in a deal valued at €1.05bn (£920m).

Monzo founder Blomfield joins Anthropic as AI talent war escalates

Monzo founder Tom Blomfield has joined Anthropic’s compute team, the latest coup in the AI talent war. What his move signals for UK founders and SMEs.

Marketing & Social Media

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.

John Lewis launches YouTube chatshow to lift its AI search visibility

An Isle of Man trading-education platform has won a two-year trade mark battle against TikTok’s UK arm, in a ruling small business advisers say sets a powerful precedent for founders facing legal pressure from global tech giants.

TikTok UK legal bill tops $1bn as regulators close in

Disney and TikTok have agreed a content-sharing deal that will allow creators to use clips from Disney films and television programmes in their videos, the two companies announced on Wednesday.

Disney signs deal to let TikTok creators use its film and TV clips

Profiled

Big ideas are easy to describe. Making them work across complex products, global teams and large organizations is much harder.

Ned Curic: From Big Ideas to Industrial-Scale Execution

Big ideas are easy to describe. Making them work across complex products, global teams and large organizations is much harder.

Steven Bartlett, the entrepreneur and Diary of a CEO host, has revealed his business empire has been valued at $425 million (£320 million) following a major eight-figure investment — a deal that cements his position as one of the richest entrepreneurs ever to appear on Dragons’ Den.

Steven Bartlett’s fortune soars as new $425m valuation cements his status among richest Dragons

Entrepreneur and podcaster Steven Bartlett’s holding company, Steven.com, has been valued at $425m (£320m) after securing major new backing — making him one of the wealthiest Dragons’ Den investors ever.

Get Funded

The British Business Bank has launched a £210m South East Investment Fund offering loans of between £25,000 and £2m and equity investments of up to £5m to small and medium-sized businesses in the region. The fund, which opened on 9 September, has already made its first investment, a £250,000 loan to a Basingstoke technology company.

British Business Bank launches £210m South East Investment Fund

The British Business Bank’s £210m South East Investment Fund, launched on 9 September, offers loans and equity to smaller firms from Kent to Oxfordshire.

Mistral AI, the Paris-based artificial intelligence start-up, has raised €3bn in the largest venture funding round completed in Europe, valuing the company at more than €21bn.

Mistral AI raises €3bn in Europe’s largest venture funding round

The Mistral AI funding round of €3bn, the largest venture raise in Europe, values the Paris-based open-weight AI model developer at more than €21bn.

Kendall Jenner, the American model and reality television star, has acquired a minority stake in Trip, the London-based drinks and supplements company best known for its cannabidiol (CBD) soft drinks, and will become the face of the brand's new global campaign.

Kendall Jenner buys stake in London drinks brand Trip

Kendall Jenner Trip deal: the model takes a minority stake in the London CBD drinks brand and will front a global campaign as revenues head for $200m.

UK Export Finance is providing £655m for four Angola infrastructure projects, including a new international airport, unlocking £167m for UK suppliers.

UKEF backs £655m of Angola projects, unlocking £167m for UK firms

UK Export Finance is providing £655m for four Angola infrastructure projects, including a new international airport, unlocking £167m for UK suppliers.

Revolut has pledged to invest £3 billion in the UK over the next five years in a move that will create 1,000 new jobs, strengthening the country’s status as a hub for global financial services.

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.

3D product visualisation cuts marketing costs by replacing repeated photo shoots with one reusable digital model. A single accurate model can be rendered from any angle, in any colour, setting or format, so a new variant becomes a re-render rather than a new shoot. By 2014, IKEA had disclosed that around 75% of its catalogue imagery was computer-generated rather than photographed. What was once a big-brand luxury is now a practical option for far smaller businesses. Why is product photography so expensive? For most product businesses, photography is a recurring cost, not a one-off. Every colourway, channel and seasonal refresh tends to mean another shoot. The website wants clean cut-out images, the social team wants lifestyle shots, the marketplace listing has its own spec, and the trade brochure wants something else again. For a narrow, stable range, that is manageable. For one with hundreds of lines, frequent launches or many variants, the cost compounds until imagery becomes one of the larger marketing lines - and one of the slowest to turn around. Waiting on a physical sample can hold a launch up by weeks. What changes with a 3D model? The 3D approach builds one accurate digital model of a product, once, then renders it as many times as needed, in a plain studio scene or a styled room that never existed. Change the fabric and you re-render rather than re-shoot. Consistency is the quieter benefit. When every image comes from the same model and the same standards, a product looks identical on the website, the marketplace and the trade stand. There is no drift between one shoot's lighting and the next. Does 3D visualisation increase online sales? Interactive 3D moves conversion, not only production cost. Shopify reports that shoppers who view a product in augmented reality are 65% more likely to buy, and those who view it as a 3D model are 44% more likely to add it to their basket. One model built for the catalogue can be reused on the product page, in an AR viewer and in an online configurator, with no fresh shoot each time. When is 3D visualisation worth the cost? 3D visualisation earns its upfront modelling cost through reuse, so it pays off fastest where an image is used many times or a product ships in many variants: furniture, configurable goods, wide catalogues, and ranges marketed before they physically exist. For a single image that will never be reused, a photographer is still the simpler answer. The first model costs more than a single shoot; the saving comes with reuse, so the crossover arrives once an image is needed across several variants or channels. A project usually starts from what you already have - product samples, technical drawings or existing photographs - from which the studio builds the model. You approve it, then commission renders as you need them: the launch set now, campaign or seasonal variations later, all from the same asset. Three practical checks before you commit: volume (how many images, variants and channels the model will feed), full commercial rights, and whether the studio's renders hold up as genuinely photoreal. Who provides 3D visualisation services? Studios offering 3D visualisation services build one production-ready model from a brief and reuse it across every channel and format. Evermotion, a Polish studio with 20 years in 3D, says its library of more than 18,000 ready-made assets lets it produce a project in up to half the time, since much of a scene can start from existing assets rather than being built from scratch. The method suits businesses with wide or fast-changing product ranges more than one-off campaigns. The wider shift is simple: product imagery is moving from a service you buy over and over to an asset you build once and reuse.

Rydoo puts expense management inside Claude and ChatGPT with MCP launch

Expense management provider Rydoo has launched the Rydoo MCP, a governed connector that lets its customers check, approve and question employee expenses from inside Claude, ChatGPT and other AI tools they already use, rather than logging into another piece of software.

Flower Labs, a Cambridge University spinout, has launched a British frontier AI model that it says can match the performance of rivals from OpenAI and Anthropic.

Cambridge spinout Flower Labs launches Endeavor AI model to rival OpenAI and Anthropic

Flower Labs Endeavor, a frontier AI model from the Cambridge University spinout, is claimed to complete tasks at a similar level to OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 Sol and Anthropic’s Claude Fable 5, and can be deployed on an organisation’s own IT systems rather than accessed through a US provider’s interface.

Soul Padel, the Manchester-based padel operator, has raised £3.6 million from three family offices at a £30 million valuation, as it moves from proving its model to accelerating its growth across the UK.

Soul Padel raises £3.6m at £30m valuation to grow from four clubs to ten

Soul Padel raises £3.6 million from three family offices at a £30 million valuation, with six new clubs already through planning and the operator saying its schools, women’s and over-50s programmes and a 12,000-member loyalty platform give it the foundations to scale.

The Government has launched the first four competitions under its £100 million Sovereign AI R&D Procurement Scheme, a programme designed to turn the state into an early customer for British artificial intelligence start-ups and to open up public contracts that smaller firms have often been shut out of.

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.

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Legal

The Employment Appeal Tribunal has overturned the 2024 Next equal pay ruling, finding recruitment and retention justified higher warehouse pay rates.

Appeal tribunal overturns Next equal pay ruling on warehouse wages

The Employment Appeal Tribunal has overturned the 2024 Next equal pay ruling, finding recruitment and retention justified higher warehouse pay rates.

Geoffrey Hinton, the Nobel Prize winner known as the godfather of artificial intelligence, has called on the government to prohibit the development of superintelligent AI systems, warning that losing control of them could be "catastrophic" for humanity.

Hinton calls for UK ban on superintelligent AI as MPs table bill

The Artificial Superintelligence Security Bill goes before parliament on 8 September as Geoffrey Hinton warns superintelligent AI could be catastrophic.

More than 650 businesses, including B&Q, Five Guys and Serco, have been named by the government for failing to pay some of their employees the minimum wage. The 658 employers on the list have repaid a total of about £4m to more than 27,000 workers.

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.

Suppliers to Harvey Nichols are expected to receive less than 15p in the pound after the luxury department store group was acquired by Frasers Group through a pre-pack administration, according to new filings at Companies House.

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.

Gary Lineker has renewed his call for a wealth tax on the super wealthy, asking how much money the very richest "actually need" and predicting heavy lobbying against any such measure from those who would pay it.

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.

Firms told to audit labour supply chains as Right to Work checks extend to subcontractors from 1 October

Businesses that rely on subcontractors, agency staff and layered labour supply chains are being urged to review their compliance procedures now, with sweeping changes to Right to Work checks due to take effect on 1 October 2026 and civil penalties of up to £60,000 per illegal worker for firms that get it wrong.

3762-original

Recruitment tycoon who sold his classic cars to build an empire faces High Court bankruptcy fight

David Spencer-Percival, the recruitment entrepreneur who sold his home and classic car collection to launch Spencer Ogden, is fighting a bankruptcy petition in the High Court after his latest firm, Life Science People, was compulsorily wound up over money owed to HMRC.

Mike Lynch, the British tech entrepreneur recently acquitted in a high-stakes £8bn fraud case, is missing after his yacht sank off the coast of Sicily.

Mike Lynch’s estate wins right to challenge £920m HP fraud ruling

The Mike Lynch appeal will go ahead after the Court of Appeal gave the late tech entrepreneur’s estate permission to challenge the £920m fraud award to Hewlett Packard on four grounds, in a decision that could reduce a payment currently set to wipe out his estate.

Amazon is cutting around 14,000 corporate jobs as part of a sweeping restructuring designed to streamline operations and integrate artificial intelligence more deeply into the company’s global business.

Amazon accused of rigging ad auctions as FTC and 22 states allege $20bn overcharge

An Amazon advertising lawsuit filed by the FTC and 22 US states alleges the company manipulated its ad auctions to overcharge more than a million advertising customers by an estimated $20bn since 2019, claims Amazon dismisses as misguided.

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This months magazine

Business Matters 4th anniversary cover - February 2026

Opinion

Artificial intelligence has crossed an important threshold in British business. It’s no longer something companies are merely discussing, testing in innovation teams or watching from a safe distance. People are using it, and they’re using it a lot.

Britain is using AI. So why isn’t it getting more productive?

Reform UK tax pledges could cost billions with no clear funding plan, warns Blick Rothenberg

Bank windfall tax would drive jobs and investment out of London, deVere warns Healey

Technology

Nvidia Corporation, renowned for its AI chips, has surpassed tech giants Microsoft and Apple to become the world’s most valuable public company.

Nvidia to buy Hugging Face for $12.9bn in bet on open AI models

Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company, is in advanced talks to pump $500 million (£400m) into Wayve, a UK-based self-driving car start-up.

Uber launches London’s first self-driving taxis with 15 Wayve cars

Apple is set to hire more artificial intelligence (AI) staff in the UK Tim Cook has announced. 

Apple faces £2bn UK lawsuit over app tracking rules

Business

London specialist JULL says buyers facing boutique waiting lists can view a Birkin bag or Kelly in stock, as Knight Frank data shows Hermès values holding.

Where to buy a Hermès Birkin or Kelly in London beyond the boutique

London specialist JULL says buyers facing boutique waiting lists can view a Birkin bag or Kelly in stock, as Knight Frank data shows Hermès values holding.

The Capital Business Media Group

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