Issue #66

Robots fail to run a company, Chinese manufacturing falls due to tariffs, cash for citizenship now a crime, and more.

News from April 24 - May 1, 2025

Robots Fail to Run a Company

In a recent experiment by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, AI bots failed to run a fake software company. 

The researchers set normal day-to-day tasks in a real software company, which AI bots from Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta had to complete. They worked as financial analysts, software engineers, and project managers, navigating file directories, writing performance reviews, and touring virtual office spaces. However, the bots failed to complete most tasks successfully. 

Anthropic’s Claude 3.5 Sonnet completed the most tasks, 24% of assignments, while Amazon’s Nova Pro v1 finished just 1.7%. The researchers found the bots lacked common sense. The Carnegie Mellon University team: “During the execution of one task, the agent cannot find the right person to ask questions on [company chat]. As a result, it then decides to create a shortcut solution by renaming another user to the name of the intended user."

Source

UK House Prices Fall

According to Nationwide, a decline in UK house buyers this April caused property prices to fall. This was the biggest monthly fall in nearly 2 years, a 0.6% month-on-month decline. 

This comes after the government lowered stamp duty thresholds, which started on April 1. Under the new thresholds, house buyers must now pay tax on properties over £125,000 instead of £250,000, while first-time buyers must pay stamp duty on homes over £300,000, not £425,000. In real terms, home buyers will potentially pay thousands more in taxes. 

This caused mortgage providers to wage a ‘mini price war’, with all major UK lenders offering mortgages of under 4%. Analysts expect this will increase demand, with house prices rising 3.5% this year. Nationwide chief economist Robert Gardner: "The market is likely to remain a little soft in the coming months.”

Source

Google DeepMind Unionises

Staff at Google DeepMind’s London office will unionise to protest the tech giant’s ties to the Israeli military. 

5 employees resigned in the last 2 months after the company, which has a cloud computing deal with the Israeli government, reversed its commitment not to use AI in defence. Sources close to the organisers said roughly 300 employees plan to join the Communication Workers Union (CWU) to protest this. A DeepMind engineer: “We’re putting two and two together and think the technology we’re developing is being used in the conflict in Gaza.” Under UK law, Google must recognise the union. If management refuses to cut the defence deals, the workers can strike. 

This is not the first time Google has faced employee backlash. In 2018, 2,000 employees signed a petition protesting against Google’s decision to improve Pentagon drones using AI, which Google overturned. 

Source

Bulletin Board

• Trump Angry At Bezos. The White House described Amazon’s alleged decision to display the added cost of tariffs on certain items as “hostile”, with one anonymous staffer describing President Trump as “pissed”. This comes after Amazon donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund. Trump phoned CEO Jeff Bezos on Tuesday morning to demand an explanation. Amazon denied they were even considering it. Trump: “Jeff Bezos was very nice. He was terrific. He solved the problem very quickly. Good guy.” Source
• Chinese Manufacturing Falls Due to Tariffs. National Bureau of Statistics data showed falling Chinese industrial output in April. This comes after Trump imposed 145% tariffs on most Chinese products that month. The purchasing managers' index fell to 49.0, the lowest since December 2023. Analysts expect industrial output to decline further when the de minimis loophole is closed this Friday, which allows low-value goods to be shipped duty-free. NBS statistician Zhao Qinghe: "In April, affected by factors such as a high base from earlier rapid manufacturing growth and a sharp shift in the external environment, the manufacturing PMI fell.” Source
• Stocks Soar After Trump Promises No Hardball. Stock markets rose worldwide after Trump said he would lower tariffs on Chinese goods and had “no intention” of firing the chair of the Federal Reserve. Trump told reporters he would be “very nice” to China in trade talks, which face tariffs of up to 145%, and would not play “hardball”. After Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 2.4%, the UK’s FTSE 100 rose 1.6%, while the Nasdaq Composite rose over 3%. Trump: “We’re going to live together very happily and ideally work together.” Source
• US Consumers Demoralised. A University of Michigan poll of consumer morale found it had fallen 32% since January, the biggest three-month drop in 35 years, and the fourth-lowest since the 1970s. The survey found expectations worsened across income groups, education levels, age and political affiliation. Surveys of Consumers director Joanne Hsu: “Consumers perceived risks to multiple aspects of the economy, in large part due to ongoing uncertainty around trade policy and the potential for a resurgence of inflation looming ahead.” Source
• Cash for Citizenship Now a Crime. The European Court of Justice ruled that Malta’s ‘golden passport’ scheme violates EU law. Under the scheme, foreigners can get citizenship by investing €600,000, purchasing or renting property, donating to charity, and living in the country for 3 years. Following the ruling, the 2013 law must be scrapped. This comes after Donald Trump announced in February a similar US scheme. Trump: “Wealthy people will be coming into our country by buying this card. They’ll be wealthy, and they’ll be successful, and they’ll be spending a lot of money and paying a lot of taxes.” Source

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