Business news

Business

Energy system optimization model developed for pathways to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions for Southeast Asia

Could Southeast Asia become carbon neutral by 2050, even as energy demand increases? The region is growing quickly and still relies heavily on fossil fuels.

Business

Decentralized social media platforms unlock authentic consumer feedback

Businesses looking for clearer insight into how consumers truly feel about their products, campaigns or brand decisions may find more authentic reactions on decentralized social media platforms, according to new research ...

Business

China's BYD logs record EV sales in 2025

Chinese auto giant BYD sold 2.26 million electric vehicles last year, a company statement showed Thursday, setting a new record for any firm globally.

Consumer & Gadgets

Tucked away in a downtown Chicago office building, fallen e-commerce star Groupon is ready for a comeback

Inside Groupon's 2-year-old headquarters on the 25th floor of the Leo Burnett Building in downtown Chicago, a giant cat in a spaceship with flashing lights greets visitors in an otherwise staid office tower.

Business

Meta buys China-founded AI agent Manus

Facebook owner Meta has agreed to acquire Manus, an artificial intelligence agent created by a company founded in China but now based in Singapore, the two firms said.

Business

AI overestimates how smart people are, according to economists

Scientists at HSE University have found that current AI models, including ChatGPT and Claude, tend to overestimate the rationality of their human opponents—whether first-year undergraduate students or experienced scientists—in ...

Business

Rome pushes Meta to allow other AIs on WhatsApp

Italian regulators ordered Meta on Wednesday to open its WhatsApp chat platform to rival AI chatbots as it and EU authorities pursue a probe that the US tech giant is abusing its dominant market position.

Business

Federal judge halts Texas app store age verification law

A federal judge on Tuesday blocked a Texas law that would have required age verification and parental consent for minors downloading mobile apps, ruling the measure likely violates free speech protections.

Business

Who should get paid when AI learns from creative work?

As generative AI systems become more deeply woven into the fabric of modern life—drafting text, generating images, summarizing news—debates over who should profit from the technology are intensifying.

Consumer & Gadgets

Wearable tech can create more stress for frontline retail staff

With the Christmas trading period peaking, traditional surveillance technologies like CCTV can help reduce job stress caused by customer aggression, but QUT research has found wearable devices may increase stress levels among ...

Business

Crypto hacks: Price drops often outweigh direct losses

In the crypto world, reports of cyberattacks tend to focus mainly on the funds that vanish immediately. A new study by researchers at the Complexity Science Hub (CSH) now shows that the indirect consequences—such as falling ...

Consumer & Gadgets

How platform design steers demand

Digital platforms have gained strong economic positions in many industries. On the one hand, they enable more providers than ever before to make their products, services, or information available. On the other hand, this ...

Business

AI-assisted shopping is the talk of the holiday shopping season

Major retail chains and tech companies are offering new or updated artificial intelligence tools in time for the holiday shopping season, hoping to give consumers an easier gift-buying experience and themselves an augmented ...

Business

How to predict future energy demand

When Lukas Dahlström returned to Gotland to start his doctoral program at the GRASS graduate school, it was like coming full circle. He grew up on the island and has long been interested in science and sustainable development. ...

Internet

EU could hit X with fine before 2025 ends

The European Union could fine Elon Musk's X platform for breaking its digital rules by the end of 2025—two years into a probe that has tested the bloc's resolve to police the online space.

Business

The AI boom hits a crossroads in 2026

After three years of breakneck growth and soaring valuations, the AI industry enters 2026 with some of the euphoria giving way to tough questions.

Business

How can SMEs drive a greener and more inclusive Europe?

Despite what some believe, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can play a key role in the digital, green and social transition taking place in the 21st century. However, SMEs cannot expect real change to come from adopting ...