Business & Industry
In this issue
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A landmark edition shaping the future of finance
Event showcases production-ready AI, agentic payments, stablecoin infrastructure and strong regulator engagement — signalling that finance has moved from experimentation to real-world deployment. Money20/20 Europe 2026 marked a turning point for the global financial ecosystem. In Amsterdam, more than 7,500 attendees, 2,300 companies and 450 speakers moved the industry from exploration to execution. This year wasn’t...
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UK SMEs need upskilling to use available AI at an expert level
AI adoption is rising quickly among UK SMEs. However, its impact will ultimately depend on whether firms can access the skills and advice to use it well. Research from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) in March shows 54% of firms now use AI, up from 35% in 2025 and 25% in 2024. Adoption is...
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Teachers reveal whether AI actually reduces their workload
Three years ago, AI was still an experiment in many UK schools. Today, it has become part of the working week. So why aren’t teachers working fewer hours? For the third consecutive year, Bett has asked UK teachers how they are using AI, how they feel about it and what impact it is having on...
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Small businesses adopt AI to manage growing workloads
Small and micro business owners, founders and directors are enthusiastic about adopting AI, but not all use it yet or to their best advantage. Small, micro and single‑person businesses are adopting AI quickly but unevenly. Their use varies from experimentation to full operational integration. Some latest figures are from 2025 and out of date: It’s...
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AI-native talent requires AI-native adoption
Different industries require different digital and AI skills. Therefore, the AI readiness gap needs nuance across the UK. Government research1 found that 43% of information and communication firms have adopted AI, compared to 12% in construction. Yet, in engineering and manufacturing, under 0.2% of job adverts last year referenced AI meaningfully. Same technology, three different...
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Why the emerging world of agentic payments is a matter of trust
Why the emerging world of agentic payments is a matter of trust Before this year’s World Cup, Dal Sahota, Global Director of Trusted Payments at London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), saw an impressive agentic payments demonstration at a conference. “The scenario was finding tickets to watch England play, but only in certain cities, on certain...
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How can agentic payments and trust move at the same speed?
AI agents are already discovering, choosing and paying on a business’s behalf, but almost nobody can prove which one acted or on whose authority. Narrowing that gap requires more than technology, according to industry leaders. How far would you trust an artificial intelligence agent to spend your money without checking first? Agentic payments enable software...
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s Sponsored
Small businesses can’t afford ‘blind trust’ when using AI
AI promises to create insight and capacity for small business owners. But without the right skills and leaning on experts to help, it can have risks. When a small business uses artificial intelligence in a thoughtful, safe and well-managed way, the results can be game-changing. “There’s no doubt that it offers strong efficiency gains,” says...
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Human oversight of AI is ‘not optional’ for small businesses
A small business owner reveals how she used AI to develop her operations, become more efficient and build financial confidence — but always with oversight from human experts. If you’re a small business owner who has never used AI before, there are some myths and misconceptions to be aware of. For example, while it’s true...
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Successful AI adoption needs more than just technical talent
As organisations move from experimenting with AI to deploying it at scale, success will depend on how well people work with — and oversee — the technology. The AI skills gap (the mismatch between rapid artificial intelligence adoption in the workplace and workforce readiness) is usually talked about in terms of technical talent. At AI-enabled...