The rapid rise of AI agents is sparking both excitement and alarm. Their power lies in their ability to complete tasks with increasing autonomy. Many can already pursue multi-step goals, make decisions, and interact with external systems — all with minimal human input. Teams of AI agents are beginning to collaborate, each handling a specialised role. As their autonomy increases, they’re poised to reshape countless business processes. Tech giants are heralding them as the future of the web. At Microsoft’s Build conference this week, the company declared that we have entered “the era of AI agents.” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman…

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Europe’s not lacking talent — it’s lacking confidence. That’s the verdict from Meta’s chief AI scientist Yann LeCun, who says an “inferiority complex” among European media and investors is holding back the continent’s tech industry. “The main reason why the European tech industry is small is a mistaken assumption of technological inferiority on the part of the European media,” wrote LeCun in an X post.  “Perhaps more importantly, there was a similar inferiority complex on the part of investors, which made them less willing to take risks when the mere possibility of an American competitor would rear its head. That…

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Paris-based AI startup Veesion has secured €38mn to fuel expansion to the US — where it looks to help cure the country’s shoplifting “epidemic.” Veesion’s AI-based computer vision software is trained to spot gestures in security camera feeds, such as a shopper putting an item in their pocket. If it sees something suspicious, the AI pings the store owner or security guard via an app, where it displays a recording of the activity. The user then makes the final judgment on whether the situation qualifies as theft.  The software comes in a small box that plugs into a shop’s existing…

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TNW Backstage returns this week to explore one of tech’s most fascinating frontiers: brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). The capabilities of these neural devices are rapidly expanding. They’ve been implanted in skulls and worn as headbands. They’ve measured focus, treated Parkinson’s disease, and enabled paralysed people to control computers with their minds. A range of research labs and tech firms are developing BCIs. Yet the spotlight has been dominated by one company: Elon Musk’s Neuralink. The startup has put brain implants in monkeys so they can play Pong with their minds. Musk also has big plans for humans, from giving us “superpowers” to downloading…

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Belgium-based Ravical has secured €7.3mn in pre-seed funding to bring AI agents to professional services firms in tax, legal, accounting, and insurance.  Joris Van Der Gucht, Ravical’s CEO and co-founder, said the “virtual employees” could do 80% of the work in these firms.   “Ravical’s agents take on the repetitive, time-consuming tasks that slow experts down,” he told TNW, citing examples such as retrieving data from internal systems, checking the latest regulations, or reading long policies.  Despite doing up to 80% of the work in these firms, Van Der Gucht downplayed concerns about the agents supplanting humans. “We don’t expect job…

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