Rising Costs stories

UK SME leaders focus on resilience and workforce growth amid rising costs and low confidence in economic policies ahead of the Autumn Budget.

ReveNet warns APAC’s USD $55bn A2P SMS revenue faces steep decline without urgent operator action to tackle rising costs, fraud, and fragmented regulation.

Sitehop cuts testing costs and time dramatically by establishing a UK-based quantum encryption test lab, supported by a South Yorkshire Mayoral Authority grant.

Australian firms report 84% ROI growth from AI, yet face challenges in data quality, governance, and skills amid slower adoption than global peers.

US tariffs push consumers to choose between patriotism and affordability, forcing tough spending decisions on essentials like food and medication.

Multi-academy trusts warn finances will worsen in 2025-26, with 48% vulnerable and rising costs forcing cuts in staff and services amid insufficient funding.

AI integration and data quality issues are hindering progress in transportation management, with 48% of organisations losing over 10% of budgets to errors and disruptions.

Baemingo launches a lending arm offering up to EUR €50,000 to struggling European restaurants facing inflation and labour shortages pressures.

Most organisations expect to adopt autonomous AI in transport management by 2030, but face barriers including integration, skills shortages, and sustainability pressures.

UK and EMEA firms cut AI, cybersecurity, and IT budgets as soaring cloud costs and poor AI returns strain finances, says Akamai study of 750 IT leaders.

James Zipeure appointed Group CEO of Mortar AI to spearhead global growth and launch new Marketing Mix Modelling tool across US, UK and Asia.

Legacy IT systems hamper security and performance, forcing firms to choose between protection and agility amid rising hybrid work and regulatory demands.

SMBs across Asia Pacific embrace AI and cloud to boost growth, yet face rising cybersecurity challenges needing smarter, integrated security strategies.

Australian retailers are cutting free returns and delivery incentives due to rising costs, shifting to local fulfilment and tech solutions to meet growing consumer demands.

With Microsoft Exchange 2016 and 2019 ending support in 2025, organisations face critical choices over email privacy, cost, and data control in Australia.

CareSuper partners with Macquarie Cloud Services to migrate its AUD $57 billion tech infrastructure from AWS to Microsoft Azure for cost-effective modernisation.

Amid rising costs and economic uncertainty, 91% of Australian SMEs plan to prioritise non-capital spending over major investments in 2025-26.

By 2028, 33% of enterprises will use AI agents to boost productivity and scale efficiently, transforming workflows beyond traditional automation methods.

In Q2 2025, US CEOs focused on tariffs, recession fears and rising interest in agentic AI during earnings calls, while attention to sustainability waned.

On MSME Day 2025, Australia's small businesses face growing compliance challenges from new laws, risking productivity but solutions through automation offer hope.