UK consumer confidence rose unexpectedly in August, climbing three points to –14 on the GfK index. That is the strongest reading since August 2024 and runs counter to economists’ expectations of a further decline. The improvement was driven by brighter views of the economy over the next 12 months and greater willingness to make major purchases. Good weather and a continued “Burnham bounce” following the arrival of the new prime minister helped sustain the lift that began in J

Scientists at Stanford have used generative AI to design and build functional viruses that do not exist in nature. Their model, Evo 2, produced 16 synthetic bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria. When tested in a secure lab, several of these AI-designed phages killed E. coli more effectively than the original. The work, published in Science, is being described as biology’s “Wright Brothers moment.” The immediate practical promise lies in phage therapy. Antibiotic resis

In the world of finance, few debates are as polarizing as the one surrounding the current AI boom. Is it a speculative bubble poised to burst, or is it a foundational investment in a technology that will redefine our economy? According to SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, even asking the question reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of the technology at hand. At his company’s annual conference in Tokyo, Son dismissed the notion of an AI bubble as "absurd." However his stance was