The closely followed survey showed slowing demand, more staff cuts, reduced investment and profit expectations. Read...

Follow all the action from day two of this year’s AFL trade period, with all the news as it breaks and the best analysis in the business. Read...

The survey shows business sentiment at its lowest level this year as sales weaken and firms shed staff and cut investment. Read...

Leaders vehemently opposed to changes say they are now feeling happier. Read...

In the ongoing war of AI investment, OpenAI has secured itself a new ally: AMD. The chip maker will trade millions of its upcoming Instinct MI450 GPUs for an investment by the AI company, worth up to 10 percent of its stock. The numbers, though, remain vague. The deal hinges on AMD’s ability to deliver “6 gigawatts” worth of Instinct MI450 GPUs, a rack-scale enterprise GPU chip that the chip manufacturer hasn’t begun shipping yet. If it begins shipping the MI450 by an undisclosed milestone and in undisclosed amounts, then OpenAI has warrants to buy the company’s stock, worth up to 160 million shares. That would be about 10 percent of its current outstanding shares, according to CNBC. AMD must deliver its first tranche, or shipment, of MI450 GPUs by the second half of 2026, worth one gigawatt. The total deal encompasses six gigawatts, though the company’s announcement of the deal didn’t put a timetable to the final shipments. It also includes “multiple generations” of Instinct chips. Since AMD hasn’t formally announced the MI450 yet, it’s unclear how six gigawatts’ worth translates to in actual chips. Assuming that the MI350X draws a kilowatt of power apiece, and that the older MI300X drew a board power of 750 watts, I asked OpenAI’s ChatGPT for a projection. It returned a range of between three to six million GPUs, with a likelier target of between four and five million. That also assumes that the upcoming MI355X draws 1,400W, which hasn’t been confirmed. In the technology space, there’s one surefire domestic source of nearly unlimited cash — and no, it’s not the Trump administration. That administration has already agreed to convert its CHIPS Act investment into Intel and transfer it into a nearly 10 percent stake. OpenAI’s cash reserves aren’t publicly known, but it’s in the process of raising a $40 billion funding round this year, and CNBC reports that the AI company is already pulling in between $10 billion and $13 billion per year. Is AMD headed for the cloud, and not the PC? But there’s a very uneasy subtext in all this, too. AMD chief executive Lisa Su now has a very loud, dynamic, and persuasive voice telling her to invest in high-end GPUs for the cloud, and not the PC. Every business, from Intel to Nvidia to AMD, has to decide how to spend their capital allotment and negotiate for production output inside TSMC and other fabs. “We are thrilled to partner with OpenAI to deliver AI compute at massive scale,” Su said in a statement. “This partnership brings the best of AMD and OpenAI together to create a true win-win enabling the world’s most ambitious AI buildout and advancing the entire AI ecosystem.” When a report was published last week that AMD might use Intel as a production partner, no one from Intel would comment. Charlie Demerjian at SemiAccurate reported that the rumor was simply not true. It most likely isn’t, but the problem in the breakneck world of AI, where truckloads of money are backed up to anyone who can use “AI” in a press release, is that most anything is somewhat plausible these days. Intel has already built tiles inside its Core Ultra PC processors at both its own fabs as well as at TSMC, of course. The second half of 2026 is far away, but enthusiasts do have to grumble and worry. With more and more emphasis being placed on GPU training and inferencing in the cloud, how much will be left for PCs? Nvidia already controls more than 90 percent of all PC GPU shipments, even after AMD had made waves about trying to aim at the mainstream PC market instead of the high end. If it can’t succeed in PCs, why wouldn’t it simply turn to the more lucrative enterprise market instead? Sure, Nvidia GeForce 5000-series GPUs may be near MSRP once again. But remove a source of competition, and who knows how long that will last? Read...

In the ongoing war of AI investment, OpenAI has secured itself a new ally: AMD. The chip maker will trade millions of its upcoming Instinct MI450 GPUs for an investment by the AI company, worth up to 10 percent of its stock. The numbers, though, remain vague. The deal hinges on AMD’s ability to deliver “6 gigawatts” worth of Instinct MI450 GPUs, a rack-scale enterprise GPU chip that the chip manufacturer hasn’t begun shipping yet. If it begins shipping the MI450 by an undisclosed milestone and in undisclosed amounts, then OpenAI has warrants to buy the company’s stock, worth up to 160 million shares. That would be about 10 percent of its current outstanding shares, according to CNBC. AMD must deliver its first tranche, or shipment, of MI450 GPUs by the second half of 2026, worth one gigawatt. The total deal encompasses six gigawatts, though the company’s announcement of the deal didn’t put a timetable to the final shipments. It also includes “multiple generations” of Instinct chips. Since AMD hasn’t formally announced the MI450 yet, it’s unclear how six gigawatts’ worth translates to in actual chips. Assuming that the MI350X draws a kilowatt of power apiece, and that the older MI300X drew a board power of 750 watts, I asked OpenAI’s ChatGPT for a projection. It returned a range of between three to six million GPUs, with a likelier target of between four and five million. That also assumes that the upcoming MI355X draws 1,400W, which hasn’t been confirmed. In the technology space, there’s one surefire domestic source of nearly unlimited cash — and no, it’s not the Trump administration. That administration has already agreed to convert its CHIPS Act investment into Intel and transfer it into a nearly 10 percent stake. OpenAI’s cash reserves aren’t publicly known, but it’s in the process of raising a $40 billion funding round this year, and CNBC reports that the AI company is already pulling in between $10 billion and $13 billion per year. Is AMD headed for the cloud, and not the PC? But there’s a very uneasy subtext in all this, too. AMD chief executive Lisa Su now has a very loud, dynamic, and persuasive voice telling her to invest in high-end GPUs for the cloud, and not the PC. Every business, from Intel to Nvidia to AMD, has to decide how to spend their capital allotment and negotiate for production output inside TSMC and other fabs. “We are thrilled to partner with OpenAI to deliver AI compute at massive scale,” Su said in a statement. “This partnership brings the best of AMD and OpenAI together to create a true win-win enabling the world’s most ambitious AI buildout and advancing the entire AI ecosystem.” When a report was published last week that AMD might use Intel as a production partner, no one from Intel would comment. Charlie Demerjian at SemiAccurate reported that the rumor was simply not true. It most likely isn’t, but the problem in the breakneck world of AI, where truckloads of money are backed up to anyone who can use “AI” in a press release, is that most anything is somewhat plausible these days. Intel has already built tiles inside its Core Ultra PC processors at both its own fabs as well as at TSMC, of course. The second half of 2026 is far away, but enthusiasts do have to grumble and worry. With more and more emphasis being placed on GPU training and inferencing in the cloud, how much will be left for PCs? Nvidia already controls more than 90 percent of all PC GPU shipments, even after AMD had made waves about trying to aim at the mainstream PC market instead of the high end. If it can’t succeed in PCs, why wouldn’t it simply turn to the more lucrative enterprise market instead? Sure, Nvidia GeForce 5000-series GPUs may be near MSRP once again. But remove a source of competition, and who knows how long that will last? Read...

Peter V`landys dismisses R360 as an unprofessional, risk-laden venture lacking a business plan. Read...

Are this year`s major attacks the `cumulative effect of a kind of inaction on cyber security` from the government and big business? Read...

TL;DR: Get lifetime licenses for Microsoft Visio Pro 2024 and Microsoft Project Pro 2024 for Windows — both $49.97 until October 19 — to simplify workflows and manage projects with confidence. Professionals need tools that make complexity manageable, and Microsoft’s 2024 lineup delivers just that. With lifetime licenses for Visio Professional and Project Professional for $49.97 each until October 19, you’ll have two powerhouse programs that simplify workflows from start to finish. Visualize complex ideas with Visio Visio helps you turn messy ideas into clear visuals, whether it’s IT networks, business processes, or floor plans. Diagrams can also pull real-time data from sources like Excel to stay up to date, while enhanced collaboration and Microsoft 365 integration make sharing effortless. Wide range of professional diagram types Real-time data linking for live updates Cloud and mobile access for edits anywhere Smooth integration with Microsoft 365 250,000+ templates and shapes to choose from Microsoft Visio Professional 2024: Lifetime License for WindowsSee Deal Manage tasks seamlessly with Project Project Pro makes managing deadlines and resources far less stressful. Pre-built templates get you started quickly, while built-in reports and multiple timelines provide clear insights. Templates and reports for faster planning Teams integration and intuitive baselines What-if scenarios for smarter resource use Timeline and task visualization tools Timesheet submissions and collaboration support Microsoft Project Professional 2024: Lifetime License for WindowsSee Deal Microsoft Visio and Project Pro 2024 give professionals the clarity to plan and the structure to execute. Each license is available now for $49.97 each until October 19. StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...

Amazon’s fall hardware events can usually be counted on for a couple of things: an avalanche of new devices, and at least one new product that’s genuinely nuts.  Take the Amazon Astro, a two-wheeled Alexa-powered robot that was rolled out—literally—during Amazon’s fall 2021 hardware event. A year prior, there was the Ring Always Home Cam, an indoor airborne drone that could patrol your home in a preset flight pattern.   Other gems from yesteryear include the Echo Loop, an early stab at a smart ring that put Alexa on your finger, while the Echo Look was a camera that allowed Alexa to give you a morning fashion check.  Even the introduction of the newly AI-enhanced Alexa—the first unveiling was back in 2023, mind you—was delightfully unhinged, with the “supercharged” Alexa channeling HAL-9000 during its spirited back-and-forth conversations. (In contrast, the February 2025 Alexa+ announcement focused on more prosaic applications such as shopping and smart home control.)  So for Amazon’s big hardware reveal in New York City earlier this week—the first one in two years, as well as the first to be hosted by ex-Microsoft executive Panos Panay, now the head of Amazon’s hardware division—I was ready for a firehose of new products, as well as something crazy. Personally, I was betting on a new, Alexa+-tinged take on the third-generation Echo Show 10, an Echo smart display with a motorized screen that could follow you around the room, perfect for allowing the new AI Alexa to scan your kitchen and guide you as you toiled over dinner prep.  Amazon showed off plenty of pratical upgrades at its fall hardware event, but nothing genuinely nuts.Ben Patterson/Foundry Or, how about this: a new generation of Echo Frames that would compete with Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses, complete with tiny integrated cameras that would let you take Alexa+ out into the world. Sounds like a no-brainer, right?  Well, it turns out I was only half-right about Amazon’s fall hardware event this year. There was a truckload of new products, including four new Echo devices, more than a half-dozen Ring cameras, a couple of Kindles and a series of new Fire TV sets, plus a budget Fire TV 4K stick.  Disappointingly, though, there was no crazy—no Echo robots, no Echo Show displays with autonomous rotating screens, no flying Ring drones, nothing to wear with Alexa+ on board. What gives?  Well, one answer could be that Amazon’s become much more practical about its devices in the past couple of years, with a renewed focus on profitability as Panay took the reins from longtime Amazon hardware chief David Limb in fall 2023—which was, incidentally, the year Amazon uncharacteristically skipped its regular hardware event.  Previously, Amazon seemed to take a throw-it-on-the-wall-and-see-if-it-sticks approach with its hardware, which led to a lot of wild pitches—and, consequently, a lot of abandoned products. That Ring Always Home Cam drone? Never left its early “Day One Edition” status. Same for the Echo Loop, while the Amazon Astro bot was briefly repurposed into a business-oriented guard dog before being summarily ditched. The Echo Look camera? Deactivated long ago.  Instead, we got a lineup of sensibly refreshed products, including spiffy new Echo speakers and displays with beefed-up internals, the first 4K-capable Ring cameras, and revamped Fire TVs with AI-enhanced search.  The upgrades all appear quite solid and practical, with reasonable price tags and no need to sign up for an early access ticket. In short, Amazon played it safe with this year’s new hardware—a smart move, from a business perspective.   Me, I miss the crazy. Read...