Alphabet spins off laser-based internet project from ‘moonshot’ hub

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Alphabet is spinning out laser-based internet company Taara from its “moonshot” incubator, hoping to turbocharge the start-up that provides high-bandwidth services to hard-to-reach areas in competition with Elon Musk’s Starlink network of satellites. Taara is … Read more

‘Coachbots’ promise executive self-improvement for the masses

Conversing with one “difficult, abrasive” male colleague constantly interrupting made Vrnda Boykin sweat. “I was angry,” she says. Despite the discomfort, the senior programme manager at software company HubSpot repeatedly returned to the discussion. For her interlocutor was not human but a chatbot — or “coachbot” — she had asked to act like a vexatious … Read more

Overreliance on AI tools at work risks harming mental health

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The use of artificial intelligence has the capacity to boost productivity but the powerful technology also puts workers’ mental health at risk as it erodes traditional ways of collaborating. ChatGPT and other generative AI tools … Read more

Business schools ease their resistance to AI

The debut of OpenAI’s ChatGPT sparked a wave of experimentation with artificial intelligence in business education and, more than two years on, the technology is reshaping how knowledge is delivered and absorbed. Challenges nonetheless persist: adoption is uneven, ethical concerns linger and the role of human instructors continues to evolve, even as AI cements its … Read more

Online disrupters challenge traditional MBA providers

Potential students are seizing the chance to go for online MBA-style programmes that offer flexibility, affordability and are tailored to their needs as they question the value of a traditional business school qualification. Rivals to long established schools are queueing up to offer training: from full MBAs offered by digital, mobile-first platforms such as Quantic … Read more

China’s self-driving lidar leader plans tariff-beating overseas factory

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. China’s biggest maker of the laser sensors used in self-driving cars plans to open its first overseas plant next year as customers urge it to shield itself from geopolitical tensions. Shanghai-based Hesai, already embroiled in … Read more

US companies drop DEI from annual reports as Trump targets corporate values

Hundreds of US companies have removed references to “diversity, equity and inclusion” from their annual reports in a rapid pullback from the corporate values that have become a target of President Donald Trump’s administration. More than 200 of America’s largest corporate groups have culled mentions of DEI and related terms such as “diversity”, according to … Read more