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Europe
BBC Business

China's Moonshot AI stole from Anthropic, Trump tech adviser says

A White House adviser has accused China's Moonshot AI of a "large scale" effort to steal the capabilities of top US artificial intelligence (AI) models. US President Donald Trump's Science and Technology adviser Michael Kratsios said Moonshot AI carried out the campaign through what is known as distillation - when a weaker AI model extracts answers from a stronger one. Moonshot also gained access to restricted cutting-edge Nvidia servers to train its models, Kratsios said in a social post, external on Wednesday. The BBC has contacted Moonshot, the Chinese embassy in Washington, Anthropic, the White House, and Nvidia for comment. Kratsios said on X that the US government has information that Moonshot AI "distilled" capabilities from Anthropic's Fable AI for the development of its K3 model. Kimi K3 gained attention around the world after it was unveiled last week, with many believing it to have narrowed the gap between Western and Chinese AI models. Moonshot said its K3 model is able to rival top US technology. Moonshot is likely to have also used servers powered by Nvidia's GB300 Grace Blackwell computing platform, Kratsios said. Washington restricted the export of Nvidia's most advanced chips in 2022 over concerns that they could be used by the Chinese military. Since then, government's around the world have cracked down on the smuggling of the chips. Kratsios' allegations come just a day after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday the US would examine whether Chinese AI models have stolen the capabilities from American rivals. On Wednesday, Bessent also said that sanctions "will be on the table" when Chinese companies "cross the line" into intellectual property (IP) theft by conducting "industrial-scale distillation attacks". "We support open-source AI and the innovation it unlocks. But open source is not open season on American IP," Bessent said on social media.

China's Moonshot AI stole from Anthropic, Trump tech adviser says
North America
CNBC Finance

Renting a yacht in the Mediterranean this summer just got cheaper

Yacht companies are offering discounts and special offers on charters in the Mediterranean this summer, as geopolitical conflicts cool demand. Summer charters in the Med are down 20% to 30% from last year, yacht brokers say, with a growing number of yachts offering special discounts for the rest of July and August. The softness has also led to more last-minute bookings by charter clients who are looking for deals. Jonathan Beckett, CEO of superyacht brokerage Burgess, said bookings by Americans for charter yachts in the Med this summer started out strong in the beginning of the year but slowed after the outbreak of the Iran war. "In December, January and February, the market was on fire," he said. "Then the war started." Beckett estimates the summer charter season in the Med may be off 30%. Many Americans are booking at the last minute in hopes of deals. While charter clients typically reserve boats months or even a year in advance, this summer they're looking for quick turnarounds. "People are booking a big yacht on a Monday for a vacation that starts Friday," said Anders Kurtén, CEO of Fraser Yachts. Kevin Merrigan, of Northrop & Johnson, said some clients are calling with a last-minute offer only to find the boats already chartered. "There are a lot of last-minute charters this year and deals to be had," he said. "But people who are waiting until the last minute to book are also finding out the yacht has just been chartered or there's a deal already on the table." Still, brokers said there has been a flurry of mid-summer deals and discounts. The 130-foot "Club M," offered a special rate of 210,000 euros ($239,000) for the third week of July, down from its usual rate of 250,000 euros. Other yachts are offering "rare availability" in late July and August. Beckett said demand for largest boats — those over 70 meters — is the strongest. And while interest for the summer might be slow, he said bookings for September are already up from last year. "People are pushing their vacations to the end of summer in hopes there is resolution in the Middle East," he said. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.

Renting a yacht in the Mediterranean this summer just got cheaper
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Govt to introduce Bill to replace 125-year-old law on presenting bank records as evidence in courts

The government is replacing a colonial-era law with one that seeks to preserve access to banking evidence while protecting banks from unnecessary legal proceedings, shifting the emphasis to better-targeted judicial oversight rather than unrestricted access to banking records. To this end, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will introduce the Bankers’ Books Evidence Bill, 2026 in Parliament on Monday, replacing the Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 1891, which has governed the production of banking records in courts for over 125 years. According to the List of Business for August 3, the proposed legislation seeks to provide “for law relating to evidence with respect to bankers’ books and to align it with contemporary digital banking practices.” The Bill comes against the backdrop of the rapid expansion of digital banking and the sharp rise in cyber-enabled financial frauds, including online scams and so-called “digital arrest” cases. It seeks to modernise the legal framework governing banking evidence to reflect the realities of electronic record-keeping and digital financial transactions. A key feature of the proposed law is the introduction of the concept of “special cause”, under which a court may, by a written order, compel a bank officer to produce bankers’ books or appear as a witness in proceedings where the bank itself is not a party. The provision raises the threshold for summoning bank officials, ensuring they are not routinely drawn into litigation merely because they hold customer records. The Bill defines “special cause” to include circumstances where the accuracy or authenticity of an entry in the bankers’ books is in doubt, where an event suggests that the bank’s normal record-keeping process has been disrupted, or where the bank has failed to comply with a legal order. In other words, courts will continue to have access to banking records in genuine cases, but only after recording specific reasons for doing so. The legislation also significantly expands the definition of “bankers’ books” to include records maintained in physical, electronic, digital, virtual, cloud-based or any other form, creating a technology-neutral legal framework that can accommodate future advances in banking. To facilitate the use of electronic evidence, the Bill provides for standardised certification formats, permits authentication through manual, digital or electronic signatures, and expressly recognises the admissibility of electronic banking records. Such records may be produced before courts in either physical or electronic form. Another enabling provision empowers the Central Government to extend the applicability of the legislation to other entities or classes of entities operating in the financial sector, subject to prescribed conditions. This gives the law flexibility to cover new categories of regulated financial institutions as the sector evolves. The existing Act was enacted in 1891 to allow certified copies of bank records to be admitted as evidence without requiring production of original ledgers. While the legislation served the banking system for more than a century, it was drafted at a time when records were maintained almost entirely on paper. “With the advancement of technology and growth of digital banking, bank records are increasingly created, stored and maintained using contemporary technology. It has, therefore, become necessary to modernise and strengthen the existing legal framework to meet the requirements of the present banking system,” the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill says. The proposed legislation thus seeks to balance two objectives: preserving investigators’ and courts’ access to banking evidence in legitimate cases while reducing unnecessary legal burdens on banks and creating a legal framework suited to India’s digital financial ecosystem.

Govt to introduce Bill to replace 125-year-old law on presenting bank records as evidence in courts
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Apartment sales in Bengaluru rise 16% in Jan-Jun to 35K units, highest among top 7 cities: JLL

Bengaluru witnessed sales of 35,017 apartments during the January-June period this year, highest among seven major cities in the country, on better demand as well as higher fresh supply, according to JLL. Real estate consultant JLL India data showed that the country’s residential market demonstrated resilience in the first half of this year, with sales volume increasing 3 per cent to 1,38,382 units across seven major cities compared to the same period last year. Mumbai includes Mumbai city, Mumbai suburbs, Thane city, and Navi Mumbai, while Delhi-NCR includes Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad and Sohna. The data includes only apartments. Rowhouses, villas and plotted developments are excluded from the analysis. JLL noted that Bengaluru led in sales of apartments during the January-June period, with a 16 per cent year-on-year increase in sales to 35,017 units, demonstrating the strength of these markets despite broader headwinds. The fresh supply of flats also rose 41 per cent to 48,748 units. Siva Krishnan, Senior Managing Director (Chennai and Coimbatore), Head- Residential Services, India at JLL noted that the fundamentals of the housing market remain compelling as sustained urbanisation, infrastructure development and rising aspirations continue to drive homebuying decisions. "What is particularly encouraging is the shift towards quality and quantum, with the Rs 1-3 crore segment surging 58 per cent year-on-year (YoY), demonstrating that buyers are increasingly willing to invest in well-located, premium developments that offer long-term value," he added. Commenting on the Bengaluru market data, Shivam Agarwal, VP - Strategy of realty firm Sattva Group, noted that Bengaluru's sustained residential growth reflects the strength of its economic fundamentals and enduring end-user demand. "Today’s homebuyers are looking beyond ownership to developments that offer quality, connectivity and a superior living experience, reinforcing the growing demand for thoughtfully planned, future-ready communities," he added. Madhusudhan G, CMD of Sumadhura Group, said this sustained demand highlights the confidence homebuyers continue to place in the city, driven by its strong employment ecosystem, expanding Global Capability Centres (GCCs), infrastructure improvements and long-term growth prospects. "The market is witnessing a clear shift towards premium, experience-led housing, where lifestyle has become as important as location," he added. Sunil Pareek, Executive Director of Assetz Property Group said the Bengaluru city is moving beyond its traditional identity as an IT-services hub, emerging as a mature, diversified tech economy supported by GCCs, AI, deep-tech and other high-value sectors. "Demand is also becoming more segmented. While affordability and connectivity remain key for a section of buyers, senior GCC professionals, product leaders and tech entrepreneurs are increasingly seeking larger, more experiential homes with a stronger emphasis on sustainability, smart-home features and community infrastructure," he said.

Apartment sales in Bengaluru rise 16% in Jan-Jun to 35K units, highest among top 7 cities: JLL
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Lodha Developers to monetise 150 acres at data centre park in MMR for ₹10,000 cr: MD

Realty firm Lodha Developers Ltd is planning to sell 150 acre land in the next 3-4 years at its data centre park in Mumbai region for nearly ₹10,000 crore as part of its asset monetisation strategy, a top company official said. In a conference call with market analysts, Lodha Developers Managing Director Abhishek Lodha highlighted that land monetisation is not an exceptional item for this company, rather it is a planned recurring pillar of business. He said the company now holds about 660 acres at its data centre park in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). "Of this, the first phase of 370 acres, we have already monetised about 130 acres, and we intend to further monetise about 150 acres over the next 3-4 years, which itself will generate close to ₹10,000 crore of sales," Abhishek said, as per the transcript of the interaction with the analysts. The company is expecting an average of ₹60 crore per acre from the land sale at data centre park at Pallava in MMR. The green data centre park has about 3 gigs of power availability at about US0.08 per unit, 5 fiber optic routes, 5 transmission lines and approval under the Maharashtra Green Integrated Data centre policy, the MD stated. "The data centre is largely self-funded from land sales inside the same park. It does not add to group leverage, and it does not compete with our DevCo (housing business) for capital in any significant manner," Abhishek asserted. Lodha Developers, one of the leading real estate firms in the country, has a presence in the MMR, Pune and Bengaluru markets. It is planning to launch its first housing project in Delhi-NCR this fiscal year. Lodha Developers builds housing, commercial projects (offices, malls, warehousing & industrial parks and data centres). Talking about the financial and operational metrics, Abhishek told analysts to assess the company on the basis of "accounting profit after tax, the numbers that are audited that flow into book value and against which return on equity is actually computed." Alongside this, he noted that operating cash flow is also important because profit and cash together are the true reflection of any business. Lodha Developers is targeting 20 per cent annual growth in net profit this fiscal year to ₹4,100 crore on better demand for its housing properties, strong execution of projects and land monetisation in data centre parks. The company has achieved best-ever quarterly profit during the April-June period of the 2026-27 fiscal year.

Lodha Developers to monetise 150 acres at data centre park in MMR for ₹10,000 cr: MD
Europe
The Guardian

Corporate America may be using AI to cut jobs, but small businesses are using it to keep them | Gene Marks

Rather than replacing workers, AI is being used by small businesses to help their employees work better. Photograph: Aitor Diago/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenRather than replacing workers, AI is being used by small businesses to help their employees work better. Photograph: Aitor Diago/Getty ImagesReworkedUS small businessCorporate America may be using AI to cut jobs, but small businesses are using it to keep themGene MarksReports of wide-scale replacement of workers by AI are overblown. Small businesses use it to help workers About this contentSun 26 Jul 2026 08.00 EDTLast modified on Mon 27 Jul 2026 09.51 EDTShareI recently met the owner of a company that sells windows and doors. He told me he invested about $10,000 in an AI application that is used by his salespeople in his showroom. The application listens to the conversations between the salesperson and the prospective customer and then automatically creates a quote for the salesperson to review and send. “It allows my salespeople to talk to more customers and spend less time doing paperwork,” he said. “And it cuts down on errors.” Another businessperson I know connected Claude to a folder containing the specifications, manuals, instruction guides, technical sheets and other documentation for the equipment her company sells. She says that her customer-support team can now ask Claude questions on any issue and get quick answers. Her next step is to roll out the platform to her customers. There are many more projects like these under way. Last year, most small businesses were using AI to get answers to questions, review contracts, create policies and rewrite emails. Now they’re starting to move into real-life applications that are showing true return on investment. The AI story on Main Street seems so far to not be mass layoffs. It is exhausted owners using technology to help scarce employees do more work, make fewer mistakes and serve more customers. Since mid-2021, the Department of Labor has reported an overall 9% increase – not decrease – of people employed. If you don’t believe the government, then read the numbers from HR and payroll processors such as ADP, Gusto and Paychex, who all report continued job gains among their customers – especially their smaller customers – during the same period of time. Gusto says that small businesses are expected to hire about 974,000 recent grads ages 20 to 24 in the 2026 season, up from 962,000 in 2025. There are almost 7.6m job openings this month, an increase from pre-Covid levels and most predominantly at small businesses. And recent surveys from numerous outlets have found that most small businesses – who employ half of the country’s workers – are not only optimistic about their growth but plan to hire more people in the coming months. AI is not replacing people. And, despite media reports and the warnings from pundits, academics and experts, it’s not going to, at least for small companies. Why? For starters, there just aren’t enough people to do the work that needs to be done. The US workforce is expected to significantly decline over the next decade, thanks to an ageing population and a slowdown in birthrates. Immigrant workers who perform much of our services are in short supply. Robot technology – even if a smaller company could afford them – is years away from installing dishwashers, fixing HVAC systems, laying pipes and putting up drywall. The construction industry is desperate for workers. Business owners now view AI as something that can help their workers do their jobs better while they’re easing into retirement. People also adapt. It’s insulting when those experts say that millions will be unemployed, as if humans will just retreat into their darkened living rooms, collect some form of universal income check and watch Netflix all day. Humans aren’t like that. When the tax code was first released in 1913, there were only a few dozen pages. Today it’s grown to tens of thousands. Twenty years ago, jobs like “social media manager”, “mobile app developer”, “executive coach”, “SEO specialist” and even “cannabis compliance manager” didn’t even exist. With all the automation and technology around us, how many times do you hear that someone is “slammed” or “hasn’t taken a vacation in years”? People want purpose and want to feel needed. They want to be busy. I believe humans will find plenty of other productive things to do with our time. Maybe the recent surge in entrepreneurship is indicative of that. Also, it’s going to take a while to trust AI. My clients don’t. They don’t believe big tech’s promises that their data is protected and private when we regularly read of breaches and models trained on private information. They wonder if, by using AI platforms, their pricing, costs and other proprietary information are being exposed for others to see. They’ve been burned by bugs, errors, shutdowns and disruptions before caused by unreliable technology, and they’re not stupid when today’s big tech companies cover up their tracks by saying these are just “hallucinations”. Please. There’s a long way to go before business owners in particular are going to let some bot process their invoices, collect receivables, interact with irate customers or be responsible for shipping products without human oversight.

Corporate America may be using AI to cut jobs, but small businesses are using it to keep them | Gene Marks
Europe
BBC Business

Water supply issue affects Gatwick Airport

Both terminals at Gatwick Airport are being affected by a water supply issue, with toilets reported to be out of order and restaurants closed. In a statement on X, the airport in West Sussex apologised for the disruption, external and said a problem in the Horley area was affecting supplies and was under investigation. Bottled water is being made available to passengers and staff and contingency measures have also been put in place, it said. SES Water, which covers parts of Kent, Surrey and south London, as well as the airport, said it was working to restore normal service. A spokesperson for the water company said: "Due to a number of complications caused by a power outage at our Bough Beech Water Treatment Works, some customers are experiencing low water pressure or a temporary loss of supply. "We are working to overcome those complications and return the treatment works to supply as quickly as we can." She confirmed Gatwick Airport was affected, adding: "We are working with them while our teams work to restore normal service as quickly as possible." Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, external, X, external, and Instagram, external and listen to BBC Radio Sussex on Sounds. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk, external or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.

Water supply issue affects Gatwick Airport
North America
CNBC Finance

Senate panel advances China auto bill that could bar Mercedes-Benz from U.S.

The Senate Commerce Committee advanced bipartisan legislation Wednesday aimed at toughening a ban on Chinese automakers from the U.S. market, even as Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, warned that it could unintentionally bar Mercedes-Benz from selling vehicles in the country. Cruz said during the committee's markup of the Motor Vehicle Modernization Act of 2026 that the bill's 15% Chinese ownership threshold would cover Mercedes-Benz because two Chinese investors collectively own nearly 20% of its shares. "We would never consider" banning Mercedes-Benz, Cruz said, adding that the bill would need to be changed before becoming law. Mercedes-Benz's two largest individual shareholders are Chinese state-owned automaker BAIC, formerly the Beijing Automotive Industrial Corp., with a 9.98% stake, and Geely founder Li Shufu, with 9.69%. The bill would codify federal restrictions intended to keep Chinese-linked vehicle technology out of the U.S. over national security concerns that connected cars could collect sensitive data. "We're preventing an absolute, total, and complete destruction of our industrial base," said Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, who introduced the bill with Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich. Mercedes-Benz previously declined to comment on the legislation but said it employs more than 10,000 people in the U.S. and operates assembly plants in Alabama and South Carolina. Moreno said during the markup that Mercedes-Benz would have until 2030 to comply with the ownership limit and could seek a waiver. During the markup, Cruz also accused General Motors of supporting the provision in an effort to weaken Mercedes-Benz and make Cadillac more competitive. "GM is pushing for this provision to get Mercedes-Benz out of the market," Cruz said. GM and Mercedes-Benz did not immediately respond to requests for comment. GM is the top-selling automaker in the U.S. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.

Senate panel advances China auto bill that could bar Mercedes-Benz from U.S.
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Micron, SK hynix, Oracle, SpaceX, Google, Microsoft et al: AI’s dotcom deja vu

The AI debate has never been hotter and to say that the bears won the argument last month would be an understatement. Any doubts? Look up South Korean stock markets. The benchmark KOSPI Composite Index completed ‘a month to forget’ in July with a loss of 22 per cent. This is the third worst month in the index’s history, after the 27 per cent crash during the Asian financial crisis of October 1997 and 23 per cent plunge during the global financial crisis in October 2008. The country, which raced to a stock market capitalisation of $5.1 trillion as of June peak, has now seen $1.2 trillion of that wealth erode in a matter of weeks — a brief demonstration of the possible fallout if the AI trade were to go South across the globe. The reason? Semiconductor stocks SK hynix and Samsung Electronics, which roughly account for 50 per cent of KOSPI companies’ market cap, slumped 20 per cent and 24 per cent respectively to intra-week lows (versus previous week close) — the very stocks that took the Korean stock market to record highs. . That is not all. The rout was more intense in products such as single-stock leveraged ETFs. These are high risk funds that use derivatives to multiply the daily returns of an underlying stock. For instance, the CSOP SK Hynix Daily (2x) Leveraged Product ETF. This ETF will gain 2 per cent if SK hynix gains a per cent in a day and lose 2 per cent if the stock loses 1 per cent in a day. From its 52-week high on June 25, this ETF has lost over 78 per cent! Products like these and leveraged exposures to chip stocks have wiped out the portfolios of thousands of Korean investors. The situation is so dire that their finance minister apologised and admitted that such leveraged products were introduced without careful consideration. While the impact has been most dramatic in South Korea, that is partly because its stock market had become, in effect, a concentrated bet on the AI trade. However, this unwind is no longer a Korea-only story and AI-theme stocks have been under pressure across markets. We looked at 16 stocks which are front-runners of the AI theme. The list spans across hyperscalers, chip design (Nvidia, Broadcom), semiconductor manufacturing, neoclouds (CoreWeave, Nebius) and an AI investor/ financier in SoftBank. From their 52-week highs, these stocks are down 30 per cent on average (Chart 1). From the said peaks, they have erased investor wealth of about $6 trillion. One of the starkest examples is Oracle. Last year, after it announced Q1 FY26 results in September, the stock zoomed about 43 per cent to a 52-week high, reflecting the recklessness in the AI mania. Today its correction of 62 per cent reflects the concerns building up. Many of them are part of S&P 500, accounting for about 30 per cent of the index’s total market-cap and earnings. Between 2025 and 2026 (consensus estimate), the total net income of the index’s constituents is expected to move from $2.1 trillion to $2.9 trillion. Of this incremental income of about $840 billion in 2026, the said AI constituents account for one in three dollars — showing the weightage of these companies (Chart 2). Further, the index P/E multiple, based on CY25 net income is at 33x, which is a valuation that falls in the bubble territory. However, based on CY26 earnings estimates, the P/E cools to 23x. This expected earnings growth is the thin line dividing the debate between the bulls and the bears. If, unfortunately, these companies fail to meet earnings expectations, the index being in bubble territory, brings back memories of dot-com crash in which the S&P 500 corrected 50 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite 78 per cent from 2000 peak to troughs in late 2002. So, does the market’s disappointment stem from earnings? Apparently not, as these companies have delivered earnings beat almost all the time in the last four quarters. The problem appears to be capex of astronomical proportions. Take Alphabet’s case. The company reported Q2 2026 earnings on July 22. Revenue grew 24 per cent year-on-year and operating income 30 per cent. Its cloud revenue (20 per cent of consolidated revenue) grew a staggering 82 per cent. Profit growth was muted relative to revenue growth at around 16 per cent after adjusting for one-offs. But what spooked the Street was the company raising full-year 2026 capex guidance from $195 billion to $205 billion. It also posted its first quarter of negative free cash flows. What added fuel to the fire was the management admitting that free cash flows will remain under pressure driven by capex and that capex will continue until it sees an ‘attractive return on that investment’. Meta Platforms came up with Q2 results on Wednesday. Revenue beat expectations. But it barely ended up free cash flow positive with $784 million as against $8.5 billion in Q2 2025. Amazon’s Q2 results on Thursday revealed that it continued to turn negative free cash flows for the quarter, similar to Q1. The company upped capex guidance from $200 billion to $220 billion for 2026. The fact that companies are spending big time on capex and that free cash flows would drain is not a recent development, per se. It’s only now that the market is waking up to smell the coffee. As Keynes said, “Markets can remain irrational longer than you can remain solvent.” The top hyperscalers, neoclouds, Meta Platforms alongside newly-listed SpaceX (xAI) are expected to incur capex of over $2.16 trillion in fiscals ending in 2026 and 2027, per Bloomberg consensus (Chart 3). This is around half the size of India’s economy! Also, rising capex has meant a clear downtrend in the fixed assets turnover ratio of hyperscalers (Chart 11).

Micron, SK hynix, Oracle, SpaceX, Google, Microsoft et al: AI’s dotcom deja vu