Author: Patrick Killeen

Evri Group has unveiled a £36 million investment plan to strengthen its parcel network in preparation for the upcoming Black Friday surge.

The move comes as the company finalises its merger with DHL eCommerce UK, which is expected to close soon after regulators cleared the deal at the start of the month.

The German multinational company DHL Group will take a minority stake in private equity-backed Evri, with the merged business set to deliver 1 billion parcels and 1bn business letters annually.

To handle the seasonal rush, the Leeds-based firm anticipates employing over 30,000 couriers this Christmas, alongside 70 additional operational roles to help manage demand.

Author: Patrick Killeen

The controversial founder and former ‘chief wizard’ of Builder.ai is reportedly preparing to launch a new AI venture, according to inside sources.

Sachin Dev Duggal left his position as CEO at the once-unicorn in March and, just two months later, the firm went into bankruptcy amid a raft of evidence that found its Natasha ‘neural network’ was actually 700 Indian coders.

Since leaving the former unicorn, Duggal has spoken with investors about a fresh business idea, people familiar with the talks said.

One source noted that the venture will be named SecondBrain.

Author: Patrick Killeen

Oxford University spinout OXCCU has raised £20.75 million in an oversubscribed Series B funding round to accelerate the commercialisation of its one-step process to turn waste carbon into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

New investors include Orlen VC, Safran Corporate Ventures, International Airlines Group (IAG), Hostplus and TCVC, alongside continued support from Clean Energy Ventures, IP Group, Aramco Ventures, Eni Next, Braavos Capital and the University of Oxford.

The fresh capital will also enable the firm to expand operations and scale up its technology following the launch of its OX1 demonstration plant at London Oxford Airport in 2024.

A second facility, OX2, is under construction and is due to be operational in 2026.

Author: Patrick Killeen

The government has agreed to support Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) with a £1.5 billion loan after the company was recently hit by a widely-reported cyber attack.

The guarantee, announced by recently-appointed Business Secretary Peter Kyle, is expected to give certainty to the manufacturing giant’s supply chain.

It comes after the company had to shut down its UK operations due to the incident, which occurred at the end of last month, with production reportedly not set to restart until at least October 1st.

The loan from a commercial bank, backed by the Export Development Guarantee (EDG) provided by export credit agency UK Export Finance, will be paid back over five years and will bolster JLR’s cash reserves.

The personal data of some Harrods customers may have been taken in an IT systems breach.

The luxury department store, based in Knightsbridge, said names and contact details of its online customers were taken after a third-party provider’s system was compromised.

“We have informed affected customers that the impacted personal data is limited to basic personal identifiers including name and contact details but does not include account passwords or payment details,” it stated.

“The third party has confirmed this is an isolated incident which has been contained, and we are working closely with them to ensure that all appropriate actions are being taken. We have notified all relevant authorities.”

Pharmaceuticals giant GSK plc, listed in London and New York, has appointed Luke Miels as CEO designate. He will assume full responsibilities as CEO and join the board on 1^st January 2026.

Miels joined GSK in 2017 and is currently chief commercial officer, with worldwide responsibility for medicines and vaccines. He has previously worked at senior levels in the US, Europe and Asia at AstraZeneca, Roche and Sanofi-Aventis.

He will succeed Dame Emma Walmsley, who is said to have transformed the business during her nine years at the helm.

 

Pets at Home’s current CFO Mike Iddon meanwhile is to retire from the role following nine years of leadership.

He will remain in his role until spring 2026 ‘to ensure an orderly transition’.

Incoming Pollard has been with PZ Cussons Plc since 2021 and prior to that served as finance director at Birds Eye and subsequently deputy CFO at Nomad Foods, listed on the New York Stock Exchange. She has also held finance leadership roles at Unilever Plc, Tesco Plc, Pepsico Inc and Diageo Plc.   

PZ Cussons plc has announced that Sarah Pollard, its chief financial officer, will leave the business and step down from the board.

Pollard will take up the CFO role at Pets at Home Group Plc.

PZ Cussons, the consumer goods giant behind brands including Imperial Leather, said it will announce details of her replacement and her departure date in due course.

Janine Hirt, CEO of Innovate Finance and RegTech UK, says the Government’s Digital Identity announcement “raises concerns about innovation that need to be addressed swiftly”.

“Reusable digital identity and verification is a critical component of the tech stack that forms the building blocks for FinTech innovation in the UK – helping to reduce fraud and enable financial inclusion,” she said. “The decision to mandate Government ID however risks the discussion being focused on civil liberty and sovereignty – rather than the utility and innovation this technology can bring to people across the UK. It is also vital that the roll-out of Digital ID supports a competitive market, underpinned by a trust framework, not via a monopoly or costly State solution.

“Equally, mandating a Government-issued ID could crowd out companies who have been developing innovative solutions which are accredited against the Government’s own legal framework.

“Design and delivery must enable multiple service providers, unlocking innovation and supporting the growth of our nascent UK digital verification innovators.

“It could provide a useful identity attribute which can then be used by verification providers to provide a range of services. If, however, it becomes the de facto identity scheme or is delivered in a way that hands market power to a few large corporates, it will kill the UK’s innovation opportunity and undermine trust. Swift clarification is needed from the Government on design and delivery principles to prevent his announcement from freezing investment in our vibrant scale up tech firms in this sector.”

Author: Jonathan Symcox

We reported this morning that Sara Murray OBE was part of a group of shareholders seeking to oust the chairman of Big Technologies plc, the firm she founded and with whom she is embroiled in a £320m High Court battle.

Murray has now provided a statement to BusinessCloud which claims the board held back this morning’s announcement by a week.

“I think the shareholders are absolutely right to believe that the sooner Alexander Brennan steps down and James Matheson takes over, the better it will be for everyone,” she said, adding: “Given the damage he has done to the business, this is not a moment too soon. I have every confidence that James Matheson will be an excellent independent new chairman and will quickly start to turn the company around.”

Investor Andrew Richer, a former Assistant Chief Constable of Bedfordshire Police, said: “I, and a number of other small shareholders, have been asking a series of pertinent questions of the current board as to why they have taken certain actions which we regard as contrary to shareholders’ interests. Answers have either been unsatisfactory or not forthcoming. As a result, we came to the conclusion that a board change was necessary, and on enquiry, it became clear that the majority of shareholders concurred with that view.

“Accordingly, we approached the board of BIG with a request that the views of shareholders be acted upon and provided evidence that the majority of shareholders wished this action to be taken. For reasons which are unfathomable to me, the board appear to be resisting the reasonable request of a majority of the owners of the company.

“It appears that the board have forgotten for whom they work.”

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Facebook and Instagram are to offer UK users the option of subscribing to avoid seeing adverts in a move welcomed by data watchdog the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Parent company Meta said that over the coming weeks, it will give people in the UK the choice of subscribing for £2.99/month on the web or £3.99/month on iOS and Android for the first account.

“The experience for those who choose to use our services for free will not change. They will continue to see ads on our platforms and will still be able to control their ads experience,” it added.

The move is a response to recent UK regulatory guidance and following extensive engagement with the ICO.

A spokesperson for the ICO said: “This moves Meta away from targeting users with ads as part of the standard terms and conditions for using its Facebook and Instagram services, which we’ve been clear is not in line with UK law. 

“People must be given meaningful transparency and choice about how their information is used. At the same time, the ICO recognises that online platforms, like every business, need to operate commercially. 

“During the course of our engagement with Meta, it significantly lowered the starting price point at which users would be offered a subscription. As a result, users in the UK will be able to subscribe at a price point close to half that of EU users. 

“In updating its services in this way, Meta has taken steps to address its non-compliance.”

4,000 new jobs are set to be created in London as Japanese property development company Mitsubishi Estate broke ground at its site on Southbank in a major boost for the UK’s creative industries sector.

The £800 million investment will provide 600,000 square feet of new commercial and cultural spaces, including 40,000 square feet of affordable workspace that is tailored to Lambeth’s emerging creative sector with new high-end offices, cultural venues, studios, gallery and presentation spaces.

The former ITV Studio site will also feature a cultural hub that will provide discounted rents for qualifying tenants, encouraging local businesses to start and grow.

School of Coding & AI – the UK’s largest educator in artificial intelligence and coding – has unveiled new £2.5 million state-of-the-art facilities in Birmingham aimed at increasing accessibility and inclusiveness in higher education.

For the start of the new academic year, is has transformed the disused upper floor of its Birmingham campus into a showcase of AI and technology innovation.

SoC opened the campus earlier this year in partnership with the University of Wolverhampton. At the start of the year, 800 students were enrolled, with 500 more beginning this month. The team now includes 13 highly skilled lecturers across computer science, business management, and health and social care.

Author: Matthew Holman, AI and data lawyer at top 100 law firm Cripps

The government has not yet made the case for why this method will be more effective than other current methods, especially regarding the right to work which already requires provision of ID in the form of passports, utility bills etc. Is the argument simply that a digital ID will be harder to forge?

Similar things do exist in the EU already, with 15 countries having some form of rule regarding ID cards. The existence of these cards has not eliminated fraudulent access to public services or illegal immigration. Examples include Greece (where a national ID card is compulsory from 12 years old) and Bulgaria (where you can be fined for not carrying an ID card).

The PM’s announcement today was in front of his equivalents from Australia and Canada – neither of which have digital IDs of the kind Starmer is suggesting.

A significant part of whether UK citizens feel able to trust the government will in fact hinge on how effectively the government can be held to account if things go wrong with the use of digital data, such as for example being fined for breaches of data protection law arising from unlawful use of digital ID cards.

However, a significant fly in the ointment is that the UK’s state appointed data protection authority (the Information Commissioner’s Office) has become increasingly weak, lenient and disinclined to punish wrongdoing, especially by public bodies. This could result in a situation where the government is not effectively held to account for use – or misuse – of personal data arising from digital ID cards.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has confirmed plans for a new digital ID scheme aimed at tackling illegal working. He says people will not be able to work in the UK without one.

“Frankly, we’ve been squeamish about saying things that are clearly true… every nation needs to have control over its borders,” he said when announcing the move, interpreted as a move to fend off Reform and its populist leader Nigel Farage.

He added the immigration system needs to be “fair” to win the trust of the population.

Cogna has made two senior appointments as the AI-powered bespoke software company scales internationally to meet demand from utilities, logistics and manufacturing clients.

Luke Rogers, currently VP sales EMEA at AI unicorn ComplyAdvantage, joins as go-to-market advisor. He helped AppDynamics grow from $80m to a $3.7bn Cisco acquisition, then grew Instabase revenue more than 7x.

James Dickinson becomes UK solution strategy director. He is a former early Palantir London employee who most recently ran AI strategy at the NHS, working with DeepMind, AWS and NVIDIA on genomics applications.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

A founder accused of forgery by the listed firm she founded is part of a bid to oust its chair.

Sara Murray OBE is embroiled in a £320m High Court battle with Big Technologies plc after it dismissed her from the position of CEO in March. Murray’s assets have been effectively frozen during the case; and two weeks ago Big Technologies accused her of forgery and deliberate falsification of documents to push through the company’s £577m IPO in 2021. 

Now Murray is part of a group of shareholders seeking to remove Alexander Brennan, the company’s chairman, from the board and replace him with James Graham Matheson.

Murray – who founded and sold comparison website Confused.com earlier in her entrepreneurial career – was once appointed to the technology strategy board of Gordon Brown’s Labour government.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has secured formal commitments from Ticketmaster – known as undertakings – to improve the information made available to fans when buying tickets for gigs.

It follows widespread criticism of the way it sold tickets for Oasis’ comeback tour. Ticketmaster did not tell fans waiting in lengthy queues that standing tickets were being sold at two different prices, and that prices would jump as soon as the cheap tickets sold out; and it also sold some ‘platinum’ tickets at almost 2.5 times the price of ‘standard’ tickets – without sufficient explanation that these offered no additional benefits over some ‘standard’ tickets in the same areas of the venue.

Ticketmaster will be required to tell fans 24 hours in advance if a tiered pricing system is being used, as well as provide more information about ticket prices during online queues, helping fans anticipate how much they might have to pay. It must also not use any misleading ticket labels.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

A listed investment trust has revealed significant progress in its winding down of operations.

Digital 9 Infrastructure plc has invested in data centres, subsea fibre and wireless network assets since IPO in March 2021. It said in January 2024 that it was to wind down operations following the conclusion of a strategic review.

It has now disposed of all but two of its businesses and paid off its revolving credit facility.

A new National Commission will help accelerate safe access to AI in healthcare and across the NHS by advising on a new regulatory rulebook, set to be published next year.

With expertise from global AI leaders, clinicians and regulators, the Government says the Commission will immediately review tech that’s being held back by regulatory uncertainty, such as AI assistants for doctors.

It follows new tech being trialled to speed up discharges and let GPs focus on patients instead of taking notes, as tech plays central part in transforming the NHS under Labour’s Plan for Change.