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☆ N. Ireland Has 'Brighter Future' With Power Sharing Return, Sunak Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Amanda FergusonBELFAST (Reuters) - Northern Ireland faces a "brighter future" with the restoration of devolved government after two years of deadlock, Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on a visit to Belfast on Sunday. Sunak's government brokered a deal with the pro-British Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) to allow the return of power sharing by easing post-Brexit trade frictions. "In the last few days we've made significant progress towards a brighter future for people here," Sunak told broadcasters. O'Neill told Sky News on Sunday that it was a "decade of opportunity" for Northern Ireland. Under the power-sharing agreement, the post of deputy has equal power but less symbolic weight than the First Minister.

Persons: Amanda Ferguson BELFAST, Rishi Sunak, Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill, we've, Sunak, Sinn Fein, O'Neill, Emma Little, Paul Sandle, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Reuters, Britain's, Sunday, Irish, British Democratic Unionist Party, Irish Republican Army, IRA, Sky News, Belfast Good, First Locations: Northern Ireland, Belfast, British, Ireland

☆ Protesters Who Climb Britain's War Memorials Could Face Jail
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON (Reuters) - Protesters who climb Britain's war memorials could face three months in prison and a 1,000 pound ($1,260) fine under government plans to create a new criminal offence after incidents during pro-Palestinian demonstrations. "Peaceful protest is fundamental in our county, but climbing on our war memorials is an insult to these monuments of remembrance and cannot continue," he said on Sunday. The move would be part of a plan to strengthen police public order powers to be set out this week, the government said. War in Israel and Gaza View All 194 ImagesA total of 27,365 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli strikes on Gaza since Oct. 7, the Gaza health ministry said on Sunday. ($1 = 0.7918 pounds)(Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by David Goodman)

Persons: James, Paul Sandle, David Goodman Locations: London, Gaza, Israel

☆ AI could judge if user is of porn-watching age under new UK guidance
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AI (Artificial Intelligence) letters are placed on computer motherboard in this illustration taken, June 23, 2023. The legal age to watch porn in Britain is 18 or over. The regulator described its suggestion on facial age estimation as using AI to analyse a viewer's features. The watchdog said its proposed guidance also included photo identification matching, requiring a user to upload a photo ID such as passport or driving licence to prove their age, and credit chard checks. The regulator said weaker methods such as self-declaration of age, online payment methods that do not require a person to be 18, and disclaimers or warnings, would no longer meet the standards in its new guidance.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Melanie Dawes, chard, Muvija, Paul Sandle, Richard Chang Organizations: REUTERS, England, of Economic Affairs, Ofcom, Thomson Locations: Britain

☆ AI Could Judge if User Is of Porn-Watching Age Under New UK Guidance
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Dec. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain proposed new age-check guidance on Tuesday to protect children from accessing pornography online, including a suggestion to use AI-based technology to see if a viewer looks to be of legal age. The legal age to watch porn in Britain is 18 or over. The regulator described its suggestion on facial age estimation as using AI to analyse a viewer's features. The watchdog said its proposed guidance also included photo identification matching, requiring a user to upload a photo ID such as passport or driving licence to prove their age, and credit chard checks. The regulator said weaker methods such as self-declaration of age, online payment methods that do not require a person to be 18, and disclaimers or warnings, would no longer meet the standards in its new guidance.

Persons: Melanie Dawes, chard, Muvija, Paul Sandle, Richard Chang Organizations: England, of Economic Affairs, Ofcom Locations: Britain

☆ Brexit backer James Dyson loses libel lawsuit against UK newspaper
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Dec 1 (Reuters) - James Dyson, the billionaire inventor of the bagless vacuum cleaner, on Friday lost a libel lawsuit against a British newspaper publisher over a column that branded him a hypocrite who had "screwed" Britain. Dyson sued Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), publisher of the Daily Mirror, at London's High Court over articles that lambasted him for moving the global head office of his company from Britain to Singapore after championing the economic benefits of Brexit. Judge Robert Jay dismissed Dyson's lawsuit in a written ruling on Friday. But the High Court ruled that MGN had successfully argued its defence of honest opinion and that Dyson had not proved he had suffered "serious harm" as a result of the column. "The claimant having failed on the issue of 'serious harm' and the defendant having succeeded on its honest opinion defence, this claim must be dismissed," the judge said.

Persons: James Dyson, Dyson, Robert Jay, Dyson's, Brian Reade, MGN, Sam Tobin, Paul Sandle Organizations: Group, Daily, Court, Thomson Locations: Britain, Singapore

SummaryCompanies Aims for aerospace margin of 15-17%Expects medium-term annual operating profit of 2.8 bln stgShares rise 6.5%LONDON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Rolls-Royce (RR.L) aims to quadruple profit in the next five years by boosting the performance of its jet engines and bearing down on costs in boss Tufan Erginbilgic's masterplan for Britain's most prestigious engineering company. That would be driven by surge in profit margins at its civil aerospace business to 15-17% from 2.5% last year. Agency Partners analyst Nick Cunningham said the targets implied Rolls-Royce was willing to shed revenues in exchange for better profitability. "If so, that is a deeper culture change from Rolls-Royce’s traditional market share optimisation approach of past decades," he said. "We will capture market share every year, but in a profitable way," he said.

Persons: Tufan, Erginbilgic, Nadja Wohlleben, Royce, Nick Cunningham, Rolls, Paul Sandle, Barbara Lewis, Mark Potter Organizations: Royce, Airbus, Boeing, REUTERS, Agency Partners, Trent, Thomson Locations: widebodies, Royce Germany, Dahlewitz, Berlin, Germany

☆ Nissan invests $1.4 bln to build two new EV models in Britain
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Nick Carey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nissan has made its electric Leaf model in Sunderland for years and will continue to do so, with batteries supplied by a small plant at the site. It announced a $1.4 billion investment in 2021 to build a second, 9 gigawatt-hour (GWh) battery plant in Sunderland with Chinese partner Envision AESC. Nissan did not comment on the value of any subsidies or guarantees being provided by Britain. [1/4]Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt attach a Nissan badge to a car as they visit the car manufacturer, Nissan, in Sunderland, Britain, November 24, 2023. But Sunak, who became prime minister a year ago, is having some success turning that around.

Persons: Rishi, Sunak, Nissan's, Alan Johnson, Rishi Sunak, Jeremy Hunt, Chancellor, Makoto Uchida, Brexit, Nick Carey, Sarah Young, Paul Sandle, Sonali Paul, Mark Potter Organizations: Nissan, Investment Summit, Britain, BBC, Britain's, India's Tata Motors, Rover, Thomson Locations: Sunderland, England, Britain, Europe, EVs

☆ UK's Sage reports 18% rise in annual operating profit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Software company Sage (SGE.L) reported a 18% rise in full-year underlying operating profit to 456 million pounds ($568 million) on Wednesday after its margin rose to 20.9%, and it said the margin would continue to increase this year. "Looking ahead, we expect organic total revenue growth in FY24 to be broadly in line with FY23," it said. "Operating margins are expected to trend upwards in FY24 and beyond, as we focus on efficiently scaling the group." The company also said it would start a 350 million pound share buyback programme which would run until next April. ($1 = 0.8025 pounds)Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Sarah YoungOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Paul Sandle, Sarah Young Organizations: Software, Thomson Locations: British

[1/5] Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt leaves 11 Downing Street for the House of Commons to deliver his autumn statement, in London, Britain, November 22, 2023. "After a global pandemic and energy crisis, we have taken difficult decisions to put our economy back on track," Hunt told parliament on Wednesday in his Autumn Statement fiscal update. Hunt pointed to OBR forecasts showing the government would meet its targets for the public finances, leaving open the possibility of further pre-election giveaways to voters in his full budget statement expected in early 2024. Sunak this week promised "responsible" tax cuts, mindful of last year's "mini-budget" turmoil in financial markets triggered by his predecessor Liz Truss's plans for much bigger tax cuts. This time last year, the newly installed Sunak and Hunt raised taxes sharply to quell the bond market mayhem.

Persons: Jeremy Hunt, Stefan Rousseau, Hunt, Rishi Sunak's, Paul Johnson, we've, giveaways, Johnson, BoE, Philip Shaw, Liz Truss's, Muvija M, Paul Sandle, Sarah Young, William James, Elizabeth Piper, Alistair Smout, Andrew MacAskill, James Davey, Suban Abdulla, Farouq Suleiman, Kate Holton, Sumanta Sen, William Schomberg, Catherine Evans Organizations: REUTERS Acquire, Labour, Labour Party, Institute for Fiscal Studies, Gross, Reuters Graphics, Bank of England, Graphics, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, British

☆ UK proposes changes to antitrust assessment after Microsoft-Activision case
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Paul Sandle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

CMA panel chair Martin Coleman said under the proposals, the merging parties would have an opportunity to make representations after seeing the full version of the case against in an interim report. "Throughout the process it will be open to merger parties to discuss remedies with the group at an early stage if they so wish." By introducing a number of prompts for merging parties to consider without prejudice," she said. She said that the agency's strong preference for structural remedies remained and added that changes would only succeed if merging parties engaged in good faith. Reporting by Paul Sandle and Muvija M, writing by Sarah Young, editing by William JamesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Martin Coleman, Sarah Cardell, We've, Paul Sandle, Sarah Young, William James Our Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, Markets Authority, European Union, CMA, Thomson Locations: Britain

☆ Fewer shoppers in Burberry stores complicates design overhaul
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Mimosa Spencer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

With fewer shoppers heading to Burberry stores, clinching a sale will be key. The label has filled its stores with new styles across a wider price range, including a renewed emphasis on its staple outerwear. At Burberry he has applied colourful dandelion prints to garments and rolled out advertising campaigns with fuzzy ducklings. "We like what Burberry is doing with product and range architecture, however, the timing is not ideal," said analysts at RBC. Burberry Chief Financial Officer Kate Ferry said the company was "absolutely committed to protecting all of the consumer-facing areas".

Persons: Daniel Lee's, Jonathan Akeroyd, Akeroyd, Riccardo Tisci, Lee, Tisci, Marco Gobbetti, Kering, LVMH, Louis Vuitton's womenswear, Nicolas Ghesquiere, Kate Ferry, Mimosa Spencer, Paul Sandle, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Burberry, Shoppers, JPMorgan, Bond, Bottega, RBC, Gucci, Citi, Thomson Locations: United States, Europe, China, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Omotesando, Tokyo, London

☆ Britain's Burberry hit by slowdown in luxury spending
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Paul Sandle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Britain's Burberry (BRBY.L) said it was being hit by a global slowdown in luxury spending and it would struggle to meet its annual revenue forecast of low double-digit growth, with a knock-on impact on profit, if it continued. Demand in China, however, fell away in the second quarter from a strong bounce back from the impact of COVID lockdowns. Burberry said spending by Chinese luxury consumers had shifted overseas from mainland China. Tourist growth benefited European destinations, it said, with just over half of spending in the region coming from international visitors. But a weak performance in the Americas worsened in the quarter, with comparable store sales down 10%.

Persons: Burberry, Daniel Lee, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany, Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Richemont, Jonathan Akeroyd, Paul Sandle, James Davey, Kate Holton Organizations: Dior, Bottega, Cartier, Thomson Locations: China, Americas

☆ UK tells Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat to tighten rider account controls
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A man pushes a trolly of Coke cans as an Uber Eats rider passes by in Brick Lane in London, Britain, April 1, 2023. Food delivery companies make initial checks on those who want to work for them, ensuring their age and their legal right to work in Britain. Riders work for the meal delivery companies on a self employed basis that gives them a legal right to subcontract deliveries to a substitute. "This includes ensuring couriers are over the age of 18, carrying out basic criminal checks (DBS), and making sure they have the right to work in the UK." Deliveroo said it had "a zero tolerance approach" towards any rider who failed to meet their legal obligations.

Persons: Uber, Kevin Coombs, Robert Jenrick, Deliveroo, Sarah Young, Paul Sandle, William James, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: REUTERS, Office, Thomson Locations: Brick Lane, London, Britain

☆ Vodafone reports Q2 improvement after Germany returns to growth
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Telecoms company Vodafone (VOD.L) reported an acceleration in service revenue in the second quarter on Tuesday after Germany, its biggest market, returned to growth. It reported a 4.2% rise in group service revenue for the six months to the end of September, with both Europe and Africa up, and 0.3% higher adjusted core earnings, a rise limited by higher energy costs. Chief Executive Margherita Della Valle said Vodafone had delivered improved revenue growth in nearly all of its markets in the first half of its financial year. "Our focus on customers and simplifying our business is beginning to bear fruit, although much more needs to be done," she said. ($1 = 0.9346 euros)Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Margherita Della Valle, Paul Sandle, Kate Holton Organizations: Vodafone, British, Thomson Locations: Germany, Europe, Africa

☆ BAE on track as orders flow amid heightened geopolitical risk
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

People gather at the BAE Systems' booth during the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Global Force Symposium & Exposition in Huntsville, Alabama, U.S. March 28, 2023. REUTERS/Cheney Orr/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 13 (Reuters) - BAE Systems (BAES.L) maintained its guidance for annual earnings to rise as much as 12% as orders for military kit continued to flow at a time of heightened geopolitical risk, benefiting Britain's biggest defence company. BAE upgraded its forecast in August, guiding that earnings per share would grow by 10%-12% in 2023 after orders soared following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year. Since then, Israel has invaded Gaza in the wake of Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, upsetting stability in the Middle East. The group, whose biggest customers are the United States, Britain, Saudi Arabia and Australia, said it had increasing exposure to "structurally growing" defence markets.

Persons: Cheney Orr, Charles Woodburn, Sarah Young, Kate Holton, Paul Sandle Organizations: BAE Systems, Association of, United States Army, Global, REUTERS, BAE, Thomson Locations: Huntsville , Alabama, U.S, Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, Australia, Britain, United States, Saudi Arabia, China

☆ UK focuses on child safety at the start of new online regime
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Facebook's new rebrand logo Meta is seen on smartphone in front of displayed logo of Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, Whatsapp and Oculus in this illustration picture taken October 28, 2021. Ofcom, which gained new powers when the Online Safety Act came into law last month, said children were a key priority. It said its role would be to force firms, such as Facebook and Instagram owner Meta (META.O), to tackle the causes of online harm by making their services safer. Chief Executive Melanie Dawes said Ofcom was wasting no time in setting out how it expected tech firms to protect people from illegal harm online. "Children have told us about the dangers they face, and we're determined to create a safer life online for young people in particular," she said.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Melanie Dawes, we're, Paul Sandle, Mark Potter Organizations: Facebook, REUTERS, Ofcom, Meta, Thomson

☆ UK antitrust regulator to take on Big Tech with new legal power
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A 3D printed Facebook's new rebrand logo Meta is seen in front of displayed Google logo in this illustration taken on November 2, 2021. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) set up a dedicated Digital Markets Unit more than two years ago, armed with the expertise to examine rapidly evolving markets like social media. The proposed "Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers" law, whose powers were originally intended to come into force in 2022, will give the unit the "teeth" to underpin its remit. A small group of big tech companies with designated status will have to comply with the rules, the government said. They could be fined up to 10% of global turnover for breaches under the proposed bill announced on Tuesday.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Paul Sandle, Kylie MacLellan Organizations: REUTERS, Markets Authority, Markets Unit, Markets, Competition, Thomson

☆ Elon Musk and Rishi Sunak chat China, killer robots and the meaning of life
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Alistair Smout | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Musk backed China's inclusion in the first AI Safety Summit, hosted at Bletchley Park, England, which has drawn leading companies and nations together to agree initial steps on how to manage the risks of cutting-edge AI models. Musk, who was in May given royal-like treatment during a visit to China, welcomed that Beijing had participated in AI safety talks at the event. Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attends an in-conversation event with Tesla and SpaceX's CEO Elon Musk in London, Britain, Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023. Kirsty Wigglesworth/Pool via REUTERS Acquire Licensing Rights"We very much have a tax system that supports that," Sunak said. Reporting by Alistair Smout; Writing by William James; Editing by Paul Sandle and Jamie FreedOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Billionaire Elon Musk, Rishi Sunak, Musk, they're, Sunak, Tesla, Elon Musk, Kirsty Wigglesworth, Alistair Smout, William James, Paul Sandle, Jamie Freed Organizations: Billionaire, British, Safety, Bletchley, Britain, SpaceX, Britain's, REUTERS Acquire, Thomson Locations: Beijing, Britain, United States, London, Bletchley Park, England, China, London's

China's delegate to the meeting, Vice Minister of Science and Technology Wu Zhaohui, was present on Thursday, his ministry said on Friday. The Chinese technology ministry declined to say why China did not agree to the proposal, which was about AI model testing. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak chaired Thursday's meeting that comprised "a small group of like-minded senior representatives from governments around the world", Britain said, including the U.S. vice president and the EC president. Some British lawmakers had criticised China's participation in the inaugural AI summit. Sunak told reporters: "Some said we shouldn't even invite China, others said we would never get an agreement with them.

Persons: Ursula von der Leyen, Kamala Harris, Rishi Sunak, Giorgia Meloni, Antonio Guterres, Yoshua Bengio, Mila, Microsoft Brad, Technology Wu Zhaohui, Wu, Oliver Dowden, Sunak, Paul Sandle, Brenda Goh, Alistair Smout, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: Italy's, UN, Quebec AI Institute, Microsoft, Safety, Science, Technology, Bloomberg, U.S, European Union, Thomson Locations: British, SHANGHAI, LONDON, China, Britain, Beijing, Bletchley Park, England, United States, Bletchley, London, Shanghai

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attends an in-conversation event with Tesla and SpaceX's CEO Elon Musk in London, Britain, Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023. Risks around rapidly-developing AI have been an increasingly high priority for policymakers since Microsoft-backed Open AI (MSFT.O) released ChatGPT to the public last year. "It was fascinating that just as we announced our AI safety institute, the Americans announced theirs," said attendee Nigel Toon, CEO of British AI firm Graphcore. China’s vice minister of science and technology said the country was willing to work with all sides on AI governance. Yoshua Bengio, an AI pioneer appointed to lead a "state of the science" report commissioned as part of the Bletchley Declaration, told Reuters the risks of open-source AI were a high priority.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Tesla, Elon Musk, Kirsty Wigglesworth, Sam Altman, Kamala Harris, Ursula von der Leyen, China –, Sunak, Finance Bruno Le Maire, Vera Jourova, Jourova, Harris, Nigel Toon, Wu Zhaohui, Musk, you’ve, Martin Coulter, Paul Sandle, Matt Scuffham, Louise Heavens Organizations: British, Elon, U.S, European Commission, Microsoft, of, Finance, EU, Reuters, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, China, Bletchley, U.S, South Korea, France, United States

☆ China willing to enhance communication with all sides on AI regulation - vice minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

China's Vice Minister of Science and Technology Wu Zhaohui speaks on Day 1 of the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in Bletchley, Britain on November 1, 2023. The UK Government are hosting the AI Safety Summit bringing together international governments, leading AI companies, civil society groups and experts in research to... Acquire Licensing Rights Read moreLONDON, Nov 1 (Reuters) - China is willing to enhance communication with all sides on AI regulation, its vice minister of science and technology on Wednesday told a global AI summit in Britain. "China is willing to enhance our dialogue and communication in AI safety will all sides, contributing to an international mechanism with global participation in governance framework," Wu Zhaohui said, according to an official translation of his remarks. All nations have the right to develop and use artificial intelligence technology, Wu said. "We call for global cooperation to share AI knowledge and make AI technologies available to the public on open source terms."

Persons: Technology Wu Zhaohui, Wu Zhaohui, Wu, Martin Coulter, Paul Sandle, William James, Sachin Ravikumar Organizations: China's, Science, Technology, AI, Bletchley, Government, Wednesday, Thomson Locations: Bletchley, Britain, China

AI Artificial Intelligence words are seen in this illustration taken, May 4, 2023. Britain's technology minister Michelle Donelan said "the right people with the right expertise" would be around the table to discuss how to mitigate the risks of AI. China will be a key participant, given the country's role in developing AI technology, although questions have been raised by some lawmakers in Britain about its presence. The U.S. ambassador to Britain, Jane Hartley, said the AI conversation should be global, but added that the invitation to China had come from London. Reporting by Paul Sandle and Martin Coulter Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Rishi Sunak, Sam Altman, Sceptics, Kamala Harris, Ursula von der Leyen, Antonio Guterres, Michelle Donelan, Jane Hartley, Francois, Philippe Champagne, Paul Sandle, Martin Coulter, Mark Potter Organizations: REUTERS, Safety, European Union, Elon, Bletchley, European, U.S, United Nations, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Britain, United States, China, European Union, U.S, London

☆ U.S. to launch its own AI Safety Institute - Raimondo
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo speaks on Day 1 of the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in Bletchley, Britain on November 1, 2023. The UK Government are hosting the AI Safety Summit bringing together international governments, leading AI companies, civil society groups and experts in... Acquire Licensing Rights Read moreBLETCHLEY PARK, England, Nov 1 (Reuters) - The United States will launch a U.S. AI Safety Institute to evaluate known and emerging risks of what is called "frontier" artificial intelligence models, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said on Wednesday. "I will almost certainly be calling on many of you in the audience who are in academia and industry to be part of this consortium," she said in a speech to the AI Safety Summit in Britain. Raimondo added that she would also commit for the U.S. institute to establish a formal partnership with the United Kingdom Safety Institute. Reporting by Paul Sandle; writing by Kate Holton; editing by William JamesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Gina Raimondo, Raimondo, Paul Sandle, Kate Holton, William James Our Organizations: . Commerce, AI, Bletchley, Government, AI Safety, Summit, U.S, United Kingdom Safety Institute, Thomson Locations: Bletchley, Britain, BLETCHLEY, England, United States, U.S

☆ Vodafone to sell Spanish arm to Zegona for $5.30 bln
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Vodafone (VOD.L) will sell its struggling Spanish business to Zegona Communications (ZEG.L) for 5 billion euros ($5.30 billion), it said on Tuesday, in the British firm's second major transaction this year. Vodafone said it would receive at least 4.1 billion euros in cash. It will also provide 900 million euros in financing in the form of preference shares redeemable no later than six years after closing. Vodafone ranks third in Spanish telecoms after Telefonica and Orange. Zegona's Chairman and CEO Eamonn O'Hare said he was "very excited" about the opportunity to return to the Spanish telecomsmarket.

Persons: Margherita Della Valle, Britain's, Della Valle, Eamonn O'Hare, Yadarisa, Paul Sandle, Subhranshu Sahu, Kate Holton Organizations: Vodafone, Zegona Communications, Vodafone's, Telefonica, British, Zegona's, Thomson Locations: British, Spain, Orange, Spanish, Telecable, Bengaluru, London

Telefonica and Liberty Global have been working with advisers on the sale of up to half of their combined 50% stake in Cornerstone. Vodafone (VOD.L) owns the rest of the business through its Frankfurt-based subsidiary Vantage Towers (VTWRn.H). Spokespeople for Telefonica, Liberty Global, Virgin Media O2 and GLIL declined to comment. Cornerstone, established in 2012, is Britain's largest tower company, managing more than 20,000 sites, according to the company's website. In recent years infrastructure and private equity investors have competed for slices in some of the largest tower deals, including Deutsche Telekom's sale of a majority stake in GD Towers, because of their stable cash yield and long-term contracts.

Persons: Phil Noble, Amy, Jo Crowley, Andres Gonzalez, Paul Sandle, Helen Popper Our Organizations: REUTERS, Virgin Media O2, Liberty Global, Telefonica, Cornerstone, Vodafone, Deutsche, GD, Thomson Locations: Blackpool, Britain, Frankfurt

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