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US interest rates raised for first time in three years
The US Federal Reserve has raised interest rates for the first time in more than three years, lifting its target range to 3.75%-4% to tackle persistently high inflation. The unanimous decision defied President Donald Trump, who had urged rapid rate cuts, highlighting tensions over the central bank’s independence and economic policy. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh…
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Five men who used migrants’ passports as ‘debt bondage’ after smuggling them into UK in £1.6m money laundering scheme are jailed
Five men from an organised crime group have been jailed for smuggling Vietnamese migrants into the UK and confiscating their passports as part of a debt-bondage scheme. Led by twin brothers Vinh and Quang Van Nguyen, the group allegedly used Facebook adverts to offer migrants an “end-to-end” journey to Britain, then collected money from them…
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What you need to know about Anthony Albanese’s migration crackdown: Who will be sent home under proposed changes
Australia’s Labor government is preparing proposed restrictions on temporary migration, including tighter rules for international students bringing family members and measures against “visa-hopping”. The reforms aim to reduce net overseas migration to 245,000 in 2026–27 and 225,000 the following year, while speeding up the departure of people who no longer have a legal right to…
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Snap introduces a standalone AI assistant, Specs Intelligence
Snap has introduced Specs Intelligence, a standalone AI service designed to work with its redesigned augmented-reality glasses as well as mobile and desktop apps. It is intended to provide proactive, productivity-focused support by learning about users’ goals, routines and relationships through connected services, marking a broader AI push for Snap. The service could prepare reminders…
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I wore Snap’s $2,200 smart glasses
Snap’s forthcoming Specs augmented-reality glasses offer shared digital experiences, including multiplayer virtual dominoes over a real table. The glasses represent more than six years of development and Snap’s ambition to create a new computing platform, but hands-on testing suggests the $2,195 product may not yet be ready for everyday consumers. The standalone glasses contain their…
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Paramount threatens to leave California unless merger lawsuit dropped
Paramount chief executive David Ellison has threatened to move the studio out of California unless state officials drop their lawsuit opposing its proposed $110 billion merger with Warner Bros Discovery. The dispute matters because Paramount’s departure could significantly harm Hollywood employment and California’s wider economy, although officials accuse the company of using the threat to…
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Two thirds of students say their university was not ‘straight’ about their course’s job prospects
A survey of undergraduates has found that two thirds felt their university was not upfront about their course’s job prospects, with 34 per cent saying they were never told at all what proportion of graduates in their subject land graduate-level jobs. This matters because it feeds into wider anxiety about the value of a degree,…
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Japanese company develops a humanoid robot ‘ambulance’ for on-the-spot repairs
GMO Internet Group has launched what it calls Japan’s first “humanoid ambulance” onto the streets of Tokyo, a maintenance van that responds when its humanoid robots break down while on duty. Rather than shipping a malfunctioning robot away for repairs and disrupting its work, the vehicle brings engineers, diagnostic equipment, spare parts and even a…
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Reform in freefall, British mother missing in Malawi, Saudi-Houthi clashes escalate
Sixteen Durham councillors have now quit Reform UK amid its Welsh leader’s arrest, while Leicester mother Nusrat Osman remains missing in Malawi and Saudi Arabia says it downed a Houthi drone near Mecca; also: the EPA scraps power-plant pollution limits and Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro draws a muted reception.
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Paramount threatens to abandon Hollywood over anti-trust lawsuit
Paramount Skydance has warned California officials it is “deadly serious” about relocating its studio operations out of Hollywood ahead of an October 1 deadline, after the state’s attorney general and 11 counterparts filed an anti-trust lawsuit to block Paramount’s $110 billion merger with Warner Bros Discovery. CEO David Ellison has reportedly threatened to move production…