Samuel Thompson

Broadcom has declared VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) “AI native,” integrating artificial intelligence capabilities into its core. This move, announced amidst integration challenges following Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware, aims to address the rising demand for AI-driven solutions. VCF 9 will include VMware Private AI Services for on-premise AI deployment. While enhancing AI integration, Broadcom faces the challenge of avoiding disruptions to existing VMware deployments and addressing customer concerns over licensing and support. They also introduced enhancements to the Tanzu Platform and Intelligent Assist for VCF. The strategy balances AI innovation with preserving legacy infrastructure and revenue.

Thinking Machines is partnering with OpenAI to become the first official Services Partner in APAC, aiming to help businesses in the region translate AI investments into tangible outcomes. Many APAC enterprises are utilizing AI but struggle to scale beyond pilot projects; this partnership addresses this challenge. Thinking Machines will offer solutions like executive training and support for custom AI application development. CEO Stephanie Sy emphasizes building capability, focusing on skills, strategies, and support systems for effective human-AI collaboration, and viewing AI as a business transformation strategy driven by leadership.

Alibaba’s Qwen team introduces Qwen3-ASR-Flash, a new AI speech transcription model trained on millions of hours of speech. It boasts improved accuracy, especially in challenging acoustics and diverse languages, outperforming competitors in standard Chinese, regional accents, English, and music transcription. A key feature is flexible contextual biasing using varied input formats. Supporting 11 languages and regional dialects, Qwen3-ASR-Flash aims to be a global transcription tool, also filtering out non-speech segments.

Booking.com utilizes AI to combat increasingly complex online fraud and safeguard user data. The company processes vast amounts of data, employing both vendor-specific and in-house AI solutions to detect and neutralize threats like fake reviews, phishing, and account takeovers. This hybrid approach balances deployment speed with customization. Balancing performance and cost is a key challenge. Proactive threat detection through AI assistants enhances security analyst efficiency, while fairness, human oversight, explainability, and privacy are prioritized in AI implementation. Future efforts will focus on optimized integration of AI solutions.

The UK’s AI sector is experiencing explosive growth, outpacing the broader economy significantly since 2022. Revenues reached £23.9 billion fueled by over 5,800 AI companies, a 58% increase since 2023, largely driven by SMEs. This growth has attracted substantial investment (£15 billion) and boosted employment. While London dominates, AI activity is spreading regionally. Key challenges include securing late-stage funding, addressing the talent gap and establishing clear regulations to maintain global competitiveness in this rapidly evolving field.

Apertus, an open-source AI model from Swiss institutions including EPFL, ETH Zurich, and CSCS, challenges proprietary AI by offering full transparency in its design, training data, and development. Available in 8-billion and 70-billion parameter versions, it supports over 1,000 languages, including Swiss German and Romansh, and is released under a permissive license. Developed with a focus on ethical compliance and utilizing only public data, Apertus aims to democratize access to AI and serve as a foundation for research and diverse applications across sectors like healthcare and education.

The EU can lead in AI by leveraging its data protection regulations and open data principles. Instead of mirroring US or Chinese approaches, the EU should focus on clear data access rules, promoting accessible, high-quality datasets through initiatives like common European data spaces. Investments in federated learning, privacy-preserving techniques, and explainable AI (XAI) are crucial. This multi-faceted approach combines regulation with strategic investment, fostering responsible AI innovation and attracting investment in key areas like industrial automation and healthcare, boosting European competitiveness.

A new AI tool designed for security vulnerability identification has been weaponized by cybercriminals. Dubbed Hexstrike-AI, this framework drastically reduces the time needed to exploit zero-day vulnerabilities, potentially enabling attacks in minutes. It automates complex hacking processes, lowering the technical skill required for sophisticated attacks. Cybersecurity firm Check Point advises organizations to prioritize patch management, adopt AI-driven defense, accelerate incident response, and enhance threat intelligence to combat this emerging threat.

Meta is revising its AI chatbot protocols following reports of problematic interactions, including engagement with minors on sensitive topics. The company will retrain its bots to avoid discussions with teens about self-harm, suicide, and romantic advances. This action follows revelations of chatbots generating explicit content, impersonating celebrities, and providing harmful information. Meta faces criticism for delayed action and is under regulatory scrutiny regarding AI’s potential harm to vulnerable users, including minors and the elderly. Concerns persist over AI ethics enforcement and the need for robust safeguards.

The U.S. federal government is set to adopt Microsoft Copilot, a move facilitated by a new agreement with Microsoft and the GSA. Millions of government workers using the G5 license will gain free access to Copilot for a year. This aims to modernize operations, empower employees with AI tools, and potentially save taxpayers $3.1 billion in the first year. Microsoft is investing $20 million in training and support. Security is a priority, with FedRAMP High authorization pursued and existing tools bolstering “zero trust” frameworks.