Anthropic’s Claude AI gets smarter — and mischievious
San Francisco, United States -- Anthropic launched its latest Claude generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) models on Thursday, claiming to set...
Business
May 2025 Islamic Treasury Sukuk auction attracts bids worth $1.88bn
Abu Dhabi, UAE -- The Ministry of Finance (MoF), in its capacity as the issuer and in collaboration with the...
Business
Geostrategy
Italy begins probe into OpenAI’s new video tool Sora
ROME, ITALY – The European country's data protection watchdog - Italian Data Protection Authority - said on Friday it has launched...
- The Italian Data Protection Authority said it was concerned over “the possible implications for the processing of personal data of users.”
- The watchdog said OpenAI -- which also makes chatbot ChatGPT and the image-generating DALL-E -- has 20 days to provide information.
Business
Saudi Tourism Authority, Trip.com Group sign global agreement
BERLIN, GERMANY – Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) and Trip.com Group have announced a significant global partnership, which will drive greater...
- The joint effort aims to bring over 350 thousand additional tourists to Saudi over the course of the agreement.
- The partnership is vital as it coincides with exceptional growth and transformation in the global tourism industry.
Business
ADCB approves cash dividends worth US$1.1bn
ABU DHABI, UAE – Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) has approved the Board of Directors proposal to distribute a cash...
- ADCB’s physical-cum-virtual 40th Annual General Assembly meeting approved the decision.
- The Board of Director’s proposal means distributing cash dividend of $0.15 (AED0.56) per share.
Business
Binghatti lists sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai
The debut issue of the company is valued at US$300m.
- The company's listing sets a new standard as the first real estate benchmark USD-denominated sukuk from MENA in 2024
- Nasdaq Dubai has maintained its position as a leading exchange for fixed income listings across the MENA region
Business
Burjeel Holdings net profit up
The company’s 2023 annual revenue rises to US$1.2 billion.
- The group continued to implement its geographic expansion strategy with the launch of the PhysioTherabia rehabilitation network in Saudi Arabia.
- It opened eight new centers in March 2024 in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Khobar, and Yanbu which significantly expanded its geographical reach.
Business
Saudi Arabia transfers 8% Aramco stake to PIF-owned firms
Saudi Arabia said it transferred an additional eight percent stake from oil giant Aramco to firms owned by the kingdom's...
- The transfer was "a continuation of Saudi Arabia's long-term initiatives to boost and diversify the national economy and expand investment opportunities".
- The move brings the state's ownership of Aramco shares to 82.19 percent.
Business
Nationwide offers to buy Virgin Money
Nationwide has offered US$3.7 billion for Virgin Money.
- Nationwide management believe the transaction will broaden and deepen its products and services faster than could be achieved organically.
- The deal remains subject to due diligence and approvals from Virgin Money shareholders as well as Nationwide's borrowers and depositors.
Business
Lufthansa profit spikes in 2023
Its net profit shot up to US$1.82bn as demand booms.
- The group reported a net profit of 1.67 billion euros ($1.82 billion), compared to 791 million euros in 2022
- The profit was slightly below an estimate of about 1.8 billion euros by analysts surveyed by financial data firm FactSet
Business
Saudi tech show LEAP 2024 to close on ‘record-breaking’ note
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia--The biggest tech show in the Middle East, LEAP 2024, hosted by Saudi Arabia in Riyadh, is preparing...
- The tech show featured hundreds of speakers, more than 600 startups, besides 170,000 participants from around 180 countries
- HONOR, Chinese consumer electronics brand, announced regional expansion plans with an investment of US$100 million
Gold, bitcoin pull back from records as US stock markets slip
On Wall Street, the Dow and the S&P 500 both finished 1.0 percent lower, while the tech-rich Nasdaq composite ended...
- Gold hit a new record of $2,140 an ounce in early trading, before giving up some of its gains to trade close to $2,128 at around 2130 GMT
- Among digital assets, bitcoin briefly hit a record high above $69,000 - beating a record of $68,991 struck in November 2021
Anthropic’s Claude AI gets smarter — and mischievious
San Francisco, United States -- Anthropic launched its latest Claude generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) models on Thursday, claiming to set...
Business
Company News
Latest News
DAE net profit up 36.2%
Business
Geopolitical tensions buffet markets, gold and oil prices climb
Gold and oil prices climbed on fears of escalating tensions in the Middle East after Israel launched its most intense...
Business
Google says to buy Wiz for $32 bn
The all-cash deal brings Wiz into the Google Cloud operation.
Business
Nvidia showcases AI chips as it shrugs off DeepSeek
San Francisco, United States - Nvidia chief Jensen Huang is expected to showcase cutting-edge chips for artificial intelligence (AI) and...
Business
Most Read
Business
China’s Baidu releases new, free AI model to compete with DeepSeek
Baidu announced in a WeChat post that its latest X1 reasoning model -- which the company claims performs similarly to...
- Baidu also made the models free to use, more than two weeks ahead of schedule. Previously, users had to pay a monthly subscription to access the company's latest AI models.
- Technology companies in China have been scrambling to release improved AI platforms since start-up DeepSeek shocked its rivals with its open source and highly cost-efficient model
Interview
The future of logistics: Insights from DHL’s Amadou Diallo
The future of logistics is a convergence of technology, sustainability, and human ingenuity, which are transforming supply chains into more...
- in the MEA region, key hubs such as Doha, Dubai, Jeddah, Casablanca, Salalah, Nairobi, Durban, and Tema serve as vital nodes for regional distribution.
- Additionally, hubs like Istanbul, Dubai, and Addis Ababa improve connectivity within this region, said Diallo.
Economy
Gold tops $3,000 for first time on Trump tariff threats
Gold surpassed $3,000 for the first time Friday as US President Donald Trump's trade wars boost the safe-haven asset, while...
- Gold, a safe haven in times of uncertainty, rose as much as $3,004 an ounce before paring back gains later in the day to trade under $3,000
- Trump said he would not row back on the metals duties, nor plans for sweeping tariffs on countries worldwide due to kick on April 2