Business & Tech
The latest stories from independent business & tech media.
Fintel launches new exit and acquisition proposition
Fintel Services has announced the launch of a new service to connect advice firms looking to sell with potential acquirers. The Affinity Programme will launch later this year and will be available to firms using compliance, technology and business support services from…
Cisco thinks Mythos means instant death for unsupported networking kit
CEO says buyers are moving fast and shuffling budgets to replace old boxen
Mike Ashley closes in on Harvey Nichols rescue deal
Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group is reportedly putting the finishing touches to a rescue deal for Harvey Nichols, which could see it acquire the store through a pre-pack administration.
Duolingo acquires London-based animation studio Animade
Global learning platform Duolingo has acquired Animade, a London-based animation and motion design studio. The acquisition expands Duolingo’s design studio, strengthening a capability that the firm says has become increasingly important to delivering engaging product experiences…
Regulation is needed to build trust in facial recognition
Facial recognition technology (FRT) has been hitting the headlines recently, particularly amid its use by the police, which has sparked debate about the way the technology is used across the board. Two key questions lie at the heart of this debate. How effective is FRT right now?
‘Resilient’ UK economy grows by 0.4%
Experts have branded the UK economy as "more resilient than many expected" following a 0.4% rise in GDP in the three months to June 2026. This growth was achieved through a 0.4% rise in services and was partially offset by falls of 0.2% in production
Twitch feeds your streams to Amazon's AI unless you tell it to stop
Bot training switch is on by default, because apparently asking first wasn't going to work
Metal Morph raises pre-seed round to turn wastewater into supply chains
Metal Morph has raised £700k in pre-seed funding to advance plans to turn water and wastewater plants into circular supply chains. Metal Morph is an infrastructure-as-a-service solution that recovers valuable industrial resources from municipal and industrial wastewater.
MMI London debate to examine impact of consolidation on client choice
The effect of consolidation on competition, independence and client choice in financial advice will be debated at Money Marketing Interactive London 2026.
Levi’s joins M&S website in boost to third-party brands offer
US denim giant Levi’s has rolled out its latest men’s and women’s collections on M&S.com, targeting shoppers across the UK and Ireland. The curated range includes womenswear styles such as the 501, Ribcage and Barrel leg jeans, alongside dresses and skirts.
Everything is better with pickles... except Windows
Operating system indigestion pops up over chicken sandwich ad
MatAlytics secures Innovate UK grant to bring physics AI to the steel sector
Midlands-based MatAlytics, a provider of structural physics AI for critical industrial assets, has been awarded £619k in grant funding from Innovate UK.
PensionBee reports 37% increase in group AUM with strong net flows
PensionBee has today (13 August) published its results for the six months ended 30 June 2026, revealing a 37% increase in group assets under management (AUM) to £8.6bn. The provider noted that growth over the first half of the year was underpinned by strong group
Dr Matthew Connell: Facing zugzwang in funding social care
The German language is full of words that are brilliantly full of catty psychological insight. My favourite is zugzwang, which means ‘compulsion to move’. It is used in chess, when players must make a move, yet whatever they do will put them in a worse
Adviser platform assets top £1tn, Platforum says
Adviser platform assets have surpassed £1tn for the first time, reaching £1.04tn at the end of the second quarter, according to Platforum. The research found platform assets under administration (AUA) increased 8.9% over the quarter and 18.9% year-on-year, supported by strong…
Advised platforms post strongest quarterly asset growth since 2020
Assets on advised platforms recorded their strongest quarterly growth in six years during the second quarter of 2026, according to the lang cat.
Passwords stored in public Google Doc then showed up in search results
Developer spotted hostname and credential string lurking in autocomplete
Tencent says it could make instant profits on $53B hardware splurge by renting it for AI workloads
Plans to build models instead because it thinks selling tokens will prove more lucrative in the long term
Samsøe Samsøe launches menswear pop-up at Harrods
Copenhagen fashion brand Samsøe Samsøe has opened an exclusive menswear pop-up at Harrods, presenting its autumn winter 2026 collection.
Sephora opens first Glasgow store as UK expansion accelerates
Sephora has opened the doors to its first Glasgow store at Silverburn as it continues to ramp up its UK expansion. The 4,940 sq ft shop, which opened today, marks Sephora’s second store in Scotland, following the opening of its Edinburgh St James Quarter branch last month, and…
MM Meets… Rachel Edwards: ‘I believe in innovation for innovation’s sake’
UK food inflation defies forecasts as supermarket price war keeps lid on rises
UK food inflation has remained significantly lower than expected as fierce supermarket competition and shoppers’ resistance to higher prices force grocers and suppliers to absorb mounting costs.
Chinese Loongson processors have leaky caches, researchers find
Attackers could extract data, even working from inside a guest VM
Amazon strikes global warehouse automation deal with AutoStore
Amazon has struck a strategic global supply agreement with AutoStore to step up investment in robotics and automated fulfilment. The deal establishes a framework for AutoStore to supply its warehouse automation products and solutions to Amazon around the world, the Norwegian…
West Midlands launches £10m fund to revive struggling high streets
West Midlands mayor Richard Parker has launched a £10m fund to breathe new life into struggling high streets and tackle rising shop vacancies.
The Morning Briefing: PensionBee reports 37% increase in group AUM with strong net flows
Good morning and welcome to your Morning Briefing for Thursday 13 August 2026. To get this in your inbox every morning
Gap supports ‘new talent’ in latest campaign
Gap has unveiled a new campaign fronted by musician Malcolm Todd and actress Inde Nabarrette. Titled ‘Denim on your own’, the campaign is soundtracked to Todd’s rendition of Robyn’s ‘Dancing on My Own’.
Klarna boosts membership perks and removes service fees
Klarna has increased cashback rates to deliver up to €6,000 worth of benefits and removed service fees for membership holders.