IBM and Anthropic Team Up to Revolutionize Enterprise Software Development | Small Biz Trends

October 15, 2025October 14, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

IBM’s recent partnership with Anthropic marks a significant milestone for small businesses aiming to streamline their software development processes. By integrating Anthropic’s advanced AI model, Claude, into its suite of tools, IBM aims to deliver enhanced productivity, security, and governance within enterprise environments.

This strategic alliance is particularly beneficial for small business owners looking for ways to leverage technology in their operations. With productivity gains averaging an impressive 45% reported by over 6,000 early adopters using IBM’s new AI-first integrated development environment (IDE), the potential for cost savings while maintaining high standards of code quality is a compelling reason to consider these new tools. Dinesh Nirmal, Senior Vice President of Software at IBM, stated, “This partnership enhances our software portfolio with advanced AI capabilities while maintaining the governance, security, and reliability that our clients have come to expect.”

I’m fed up of AI chatbots replacing customer service | Digital Trends

October 13, 2025October 12, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

AI is slowly taking over the world, infiltrating every element of our day-to-day lives. There are a ton of useful purposes for AI companions, whether it be image or video generation, or helping speed up boring admin tasks like clearing up your email inbox, and I’ve slowly become obsessed.

While artificial intelligence has made a positive impact in certain areas of my life, there are also some parts of my life which I just don’t want to deal with AI.

Let me paint a picture – something I think almost everyone can relate to. I noticed my electricity bill was increasing one month, and I wasn’t entirely sure why, so I decided to call up my supplier. As the automated voice on the other end starts to speak, telling me to press different buttons to speak to different departments, I followed the instructions and was then met with hold music.

Why Agile Businesses Outperform Their Competition in Uncertain Markets | The Startup Magazine

October 10, 2025October 9, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The last few years have shown us how unpredictable markets can be. Sudden shifts in customer behavior, supply chain disruptions, and rapid digital adoption have made it harder for businesses to stay steady. Many organizations struggle to respond, while others adapt quickly and even grow during uncertainty.

The difference often comes down to agility. Businesses that can pivot fast, adjust their operations, and make informed decisions tend to survive and thrive. Agility is no longer just a strategy for technology companies. It has become a way of operating for organizations of all sizes and industries. In this article, we will explore why agile businesses stand out in uncertain times and what sets them apart from those that fail to keep up.

EU steel tariff hike threatens ‘biggest crisis’ for UK industry | BBC News

October 9, 2025October 8, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The EU has announced plans to hike tariffs on imported steel in a move the UK’s steel industry has said could be “perhaps the biggest crisis” it has ever faced.

The commission has set out plans to cut the amount of steel that can be imported into the bloc by half, beyond which the new 50% tariffs will apply.

The EU is the UK’s most important export destination for steel, worth nearly £3bn and representing 78% of steel products made in the UK for overseas markets.

The commission has come under pressure from some member states and their steel industries, which have been struggling to compete with cheap imports from countries like China and Turkey.

Musk settles former Twitter executives’ suit over severance | BBC News

October 9, 2025October 8, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Elon Musk has agreed to settle a $128m (£100m) lawsuit brought by four former top executives at Twitter, now X, over unpaid severance when he took over the company.

The executives, who include former chief Parag Agrawal, argued that Mr Musk fired them “without reason” after he bought Twitter in 2022 and denied them severance payments.

“The parties have reached a settlement and the settlement requires certain conditions to be met in the near term,” attorneys for the plaintiffs wrote in a court filing last week. They did not disclose the terms of the settlement.

The suit, filed last year, is one of several legal challenges over unpaid severance for workers who were laid off after Musk took over.

Amazon Pharmacy is launching vending machines for prescription drugs | TechCrunch

October 8, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Amazon announced on Wednesday that it’s debuting prescription vending machines at its One Medical clinics. The new in-office kiosks, which are operated by Amazon Pharmacy, let patients pick up their prescriptions immediately after their appointment.

Amazon Pharmacy Kiosks will be available at One Medical locations in Los Angeles starting in December, and Amazon plans to expand to more locations soon after.

After a provider writes a prescription, patients can choose to have it sent to Amazon Pharmacy for in-office kiosk pickup. Patients then use their phone to check out in the Amazon app, after which medications are typically “ready in minutes,” Amazon says.

Even after Stargate, Oracle, Nvidia, and AMD, OpenAI has more big deals coming soon, Sam Altman says | TechCrunch

October 8, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

At nearly the same moment as Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was expressing surprise over OpenAI’s multibillion-dollar deal with competitor AMD — shortly after his company agreed to invest up to $100 billion into the AI model maker — Sam Altman was saying that more such deals are in the works.

Huang appeared on CNBC’s Squawk Box on Wednesday. When asked if he knew about the AMD deal before it was announced, he answered, “Not really.”

As TechCrunch previously reported, OpenAI’s deal with AMD is unusual. AMD has agreed to grant OpenAI large tranches of AMD stock — up to 10% of the company over a period of years, contingent on factors like increases in stock price. In exchange, OpenAI will use and help develop the chipmaker’s next-generation AI GPU chips. This makes OpenAI a shareholder in AMD.

Trump’s tariffs are devastating the Halloween industry | CNN Business

October 3, 2025October 2, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Chris Zephro’s warehouse full of latex masks, “Saw” movie props, and zombie apocalypse games is a testament to his love of horror.

“Horror is not necessarily Halloween. It’s really a lifestyle,” Zephro said.

But the fake blood inside his Santa Cruz, California, warehouse pales in comparison to the real-life cash bleed from his business ever since the Trump administration launched a trade war with China last spring.

A new rule means some 401(k) contributions will no longer be tax-deferred. Here’s who will be affected | CNN Business

October 3, 2025October 2, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A new rule is going into effect next year that will affect high earners who make “catch-up contributions” in their 401(k)s or other tax-deferred workplace retirement plans.

The rule, which was created under the Secure 2.0 retirement law, will essentially eliminate the immediate tax break for catch-up contributions that you get for the bulk of your other contributions to a 401(k) — or 403(b), 457(b), Simplified Employee Pension Plan (SEP), or SIMPLE IRA.

Here’s a breakdown of what will change and who, specifically, will be affected.

Jane Goodall, famed primatologist who discovered chimpanzee tool use, dies at 91 | Live Science

October 2, 2025October 1, 2025 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Jane Goodall, the world’s foremost expert on chimpanzees, has died at the age of 91, the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) confirmed in a statement on Wednesday (Oct. 1). Goodall died of natural causes in Los Angeles, California, while on a speaking tour.

Goodall “was a remarkable example of courage and conviction, working tirelessly throughout her life to raise awareness about threats to wildlife, promote conservation, and inspire a more harmonious, sustainable relationship between people, animals, and the natural world,” the JGI statement reads.

Dame Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall was born on April 3, 1934, in London. As a child, Goodall was fond of animals, including the 1920 book “The Story of Dr. Dolittle,” and intrigued by the ecosystems of Africa. On a trip to Kenya in 1957, she met paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey, who convinced Goodall that studying the behavior of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) might provide insights into the behavior of early human ancestors.