Access to financing is critical for small and medium-sized enterprises’ survival. It’s been a challenge for years, with lenders less likely to risk significant sums on businesses with less of a track record or fewer assets for collateral.

Far from being a distant dream, AI's growing influence is a palpable reality, weaving its way through the fabric of content creation and management. From the nuts and bolts of research and editorial planning to the intricacies of creative composition, AI is increasingly playing the role of both the assistant and the innovator.

UK quantum technology company Aquark Technologies, in partnership with the Office of the Chief of Technology Officer (OCTO) for the Royal Navy, successfully demonstrated the capabilities of its novel cold atom technology on the Royal Navy’s HMS Pursuer vessel.

Augment Aero, a female-led aerospace technology company, has been awarded "Innovative Tech of the Year" at the South Coast Tech and Innovation Awards 2024, held at the Hilton Southampton on October 3 and hosted by The Business Magazine.

The UK National Quantum Technologies Programme (NQTP) is marking its tenth anniversary at the UK National Quantum Technologies Showcase 2024 on 8th November in London.

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions into front-line healthcare services in the UK is set to grow exponentially over the next decade, providing opportunities for faster, more accurate diagnosis and treatment. However, risks exist and there are concerns around patient data management, according to an expert group in Leeds.

DeepL, a global Language AI company, has announced it will be among the first to commercially deploy the NVIDIA DGX SuperPOD with DGX GB200 systems. The NVIDIA DGX SuperPOD, which is expected to be operational at DeepL by mid-2025, will be used to power research computation.

The Startup World Cup regional finals have crowned a new champion. Lithuanian startup Traxlo, with its platform “Tasku.app” – a short-term gig work portal offering flexible tasks in local stores, has won the opportunity to represent Central and Eastern Europe in Silicon Valley’s grand finale and compete for the $1 million prize. The event took place during the Engaged Investments conference, hosted by DEPO Ventures and J&T Ventures in Prague, Czech Republic.

The Access Group, a provider of business management software to mid-market organisations in Europe, USA and Asia Pacific, has announced that it has acquired HireAra, a UK based AI-powered candidate presentation platform that automates the process of formatting and presenting candidate CVs/resumes for recruiters.

UK small business sales growth continued to slow over the last quarter (July to September), not helped by rising late payments times, according to the latest Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) data from Xero, the global small business platform.

Startups often face rapid changes and resource limitations. To grow, and in many cases grow fast, they increasingly rely on external expertise to bridge the gap between in-house capabilities and specific, high-demand skills. Think of trying to build a plane while flying it! This is where freelancers come in.

More than half of C-level leaders (58%) want to ‘completely overhaul’ their approach to data in 2025. That’s according to new research from data streaming platform Confluent.

Xiphera, provider of highly-optimised, hardware-based cryptographic security, has announced its partnership with Crypto Quantique, a provider of quantum-driven IoT device security.

Bendi, the AI-driven platform that helps businesses manage and mitigate business disruption, sustainability challenges and reputational risks in their supply chains, has announced it has raised $1.04 million in pre-seed funding.

Avenue HQ, a flexible workspace provider, has marked its fifth anniversary at St Paul’s Square. A major milestone celebrating half a decade of innovation and growth within the city’s booming business district. The anniversary was commemorated with a whole week of events, bringing together Avenue HQ’s community of current members, alumni and supporters from the local ecosystem.

For yet another edition, Tourism Innovation Summit (TIS) has held the world's largest entrepreneurship competition in the tourism industry. More than 400 startup companies have applied as candidates for the Touristech Startup Fest 2024, of which 40 have been the finalists and have presented their business models in front of investors in Travel Tech in Seville, Spain. This year, the international participation of entrepreneurs has grown with projects from countries such as Spain, Argentina, the United States, Slovakia, Australia, Germany, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, the Czech Republic, Belgium, Mexico, Bhutan and Italy.

HP commissioned a survey via YouGov, polling around 1,200 UK workers to understand what keeps them busy at work, and how often they’re able to take lunch breaks. It found that 2 in 5 (40%) surveyed never take an hour-long lunch break, and almost 1 in 3 (30%) would skip lunch to catch up on admin tasks such as compiling meeting notes and filling in time sheets.

70% of UK professionals are struggling to ‘switch off’ from work, an issue which is leaving many unable to relax and even lose sleep over. 

Entrepreneur, early-stage investor and philanthropist Dr Ewan Kirk has called on the Government to introduce a blanket 10-year visa for all STEM graduates in a move to boost entrepreneurship, drive growth, and encourage more of the world’s brightest and best to choose the UK for their graduate and post-graduate STEM education

Auquan, an AI innovator for financial services, has announced a $4.5 million addition to its seed round, led by Peak XV with continued participation from Neotribe Ventures, bringing total seed funding to $8 million.