Category: Tech

US restaurant chain Red Lobster opted to standardise on Pure Storage flash storage arrays as it tried to fill a gap in disaster recovery (DR) provision that would have left it severely exposed in case of an unplanned outage at its primary datacentre.

The move to fully on-premise mirrored datacentres also meant it dodged cloud operational expenditure (opex) costs that would have been six times the cost it has incurred on-site.

Red Lobster specialises in seafood, in more than 500 restaurants across the US and Canada, as well as take-out and delivery services.

It runs its IT from two Equinix datacentres, one in Ashburn, Virginia, the other in Dallas, Texas. Core IT revolves around point of sale, internal applications such as HR and finance, and procurement, all of which underpin the company’s primary operations – buying ingredients, hiring staff to cook and serve food and drinks, and taking payment.

When CIO Shawn Harrs came to Red Lobster, the most urgent task was to build out a gap in DR provision that meant the company’s primary datacentre did not replicate to the other.

In the process, the company also end-of-lifed storage infrastructure from four incumbent suppliers and standardised on Pure.

“When I joined the company two years ago, the primary datacentre in Ashburn did not have failover capability to Dallas. It had never been built out,” said Harrs.

“When I came into the company, I did an assessment across all the capabilities of the company,” said Harrs. “And as I dug into it, I realised the company had built a pretty strong infrastructure capability in Equinix datacentres, but it never completed the project. It stopped well short of providing a true business continuity capability.”

Harrs built his business case and presented it to the Red Lobster board.

“I needed to implement a capability where if everything running and live and being used fails, there has to be an equivalent exact copy of it readily available to run. There were different ways to accomplish that.”

When finance looks at the lost revenue of one day compared to the one-time cost … and a one-hour return to service, it is a very easy sell Shawn Harrs, Red Lobster

The options evaluated initially were all cloud and on-premise, which included the use of spinning disk. But the initial iteration of the latter option did not give a quick enough restore time, said Harrs.

“We looked at a cloud option, and we looked at an on-prem option that didn’t return the business to operational functionality within a time frame that was acceptable,” said Harrs. “Another option we looked at – which I called the Goldilocks option – was to supplement that second option with Pure Storage because of the speed at which we can replicate what’s happening in one datacentre to the next.

“From a cost perspective, the options were highest cost, lowest cost, and then [Pure] in the middle,” said Harrs. “It’s sort of the middle cost, but it gets us back up and running in an hour versus in a day. And so, when finance looks at the lost revenue of one day compared to the one-time cost, or one-time and the ongoing cost of a one-hour return to service, it is a very easy sell.”

So, Harrs’s team deployed Pure Storage FlashArray storage at both sites, with replication between them to allow for failover. Capacities run to petabyte scale.

Red Lobster opted for Pure’s Evergreen One storage as a service, which allowed the company to spread costs.

“I wanted to get a favourable mix of one-time capex [capital expenditure] and recurring opex investment,” said Harrs. “To invest a significant amount of capex in a one-time initiative and depreciate it over a five-year period would have made the project very heavy in that one fiscal year. With this option, I was able to take the total cost of the project and spread it out over a three-year period.”

Has Harrs been able to quantify the benefits of moving to Pure Storage infrastructure?

“Yes, in sleep. Because I can sleep at night. It’s the kind of investment that you never want to know about. If you’re a CEO or a CFO or an operator, you want to know that you’re going to be able to open your restaurant tomorrow and it’s going to be able to run. This can give them that certainty.”

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This has been a busy week for OpenAI, Sam Altman, and Jony Ive. After all, the AI firm had to take down its page about io, Altman and Ive’s company that is currently developing a device that could mark the biggest product release in the industry since the iPhone in 2007.

While some people assumed that the partnership was already over, it was actually a trademark issue that forced OpenAI take down the page on its site:

This page is temporarily down due to a court order following a trademark complaint from iyO about our use of the name ‘io.’ We don’t agree with the complaint and are reviewing our options.

Then, a court filing from OpenAI revealed more details about this mysterious new product, which has previously been called a non-smartphone, and now a “non-wearable.” As detailed by my colleague Chris Smith, this device is “at least a year away” from being released, and it won’t be an in-ear device like the one iyO is taking preorders for.

OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Jony Ive announces io company Image source: OpenAI

It seems likely that analyst Ming-Chi Kuo was right. In May, he reported that the “current prototype is slightly larger than the AI Pin, with a form factor as compact and elegant as an iPod Shuffle. The design and specifications may change before mass production.”

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Some suggest it could also be worn around the neck or placed on the desk in the office. Still, I don’t think the success of this product will rely on its form factor, and this is why I don’t think Jony Ive’s name alone will be enough to make OpenAI’s first hardware succeed. As a matter of fact, it’s the software that will make it thrive.

OpenAI can succeed where Humane failed

Every time a new report mentions the kind of product OpenAI is developing, I can’t help but think about Humane’s AI Pin. At the time, I was among those who didn’t believe in the technology and didn’t see a reason for the product to exist. A year later, I would say the main issue with it was that the technology wasn’t there yet.

This is why I think OpenAI has a great chance of succeeding. For the tasks this AI companion is expected to perform, it needs better LLMs, reasoning capability, and usability.

Humane AI Pin. Image source: Humane

Bear with me: We’ve seen AI usage grow exponentially. While Apple recently published a very interesting paper about AI models not being able to reason, it doesn’t mean they can’t be useful. From training for a marathon, understanding how to use a washing machine in a different language, or quickly recording, transcribing, and summarizing a meeting, AI can do a lot to make our lives easier.

I also really like how Google, OpenAI, and Opera have been approaching AI. The AI companion should do things alongside you, such as Google’s AI shopping mode, OpenAI’s onscreen awareness in iOS 26, and Opera’s Operator browser to help you complete tasks.

That said, even if OpenAI’s new AI product looks like a futuristic iPod shuffle or an AI Pin, it will still have more than a few key differentiators, including improved intelligence, more capable AI models, and the example of others who failed first.

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Emerging technology such as smart artificial intelligence (AI)-based assistants could save people two hours a day, a OnePoll survey for Lloyds Banking Group has reported.

The survey of 1,000 UK adults in conjunction with Lloyds found that high earners are most interested in tech to help them manage their busy lives and do household chores. The tech respondents are most excited for are AI personal assistants to carry out life admin tasks; autonomous drones for faster deliveries; driverless cars to reclaim commute time; and smart vacuum cleaners.

The majority (86%) of UK adults polled say having more free time is important to them.

Almost one in four (23%) feel that less than 10% of their time outside of work is genuinely free, with the majority (86%) stating that getting more free time is important to them.

The survey results, published in Lloyds’ The future of free time report, reveals that emerging tech could enable people to save 110 minutes of free time per day in the near future.

For those earning over £100,000, the need for more free time drastically increases, with 99% saying it’s important, a third (34%) willing to give up their phone and 29% happy to give up coffee for a full extra hour of free time a day.

In the report, Lloyds Banking Group notes that given the changes in how people are spending and saving free time, there appears to be a shift in how many extra hours they have in the day. “Investing in the right technology could give us an extra 110 minutes every day,” it says.

According to Lloyds, technology to enable people to book health appointments, driverless cars, AI assistants, handy drones and robot cleaners all play a part. “Although some tasks will only save us a few minutes a day, these minutes easily add up to hours,” the bank notes in the report.

While three in five adults are ready to welcome these innovations to reclaim lost hours, an overwhelming majority (97%) of higher earners say they’re likely to adopt new tech if it helps them save time.

The study reported that time-saving opportunities can be unlocked in five key areas. First, up to 37 minutes a day could be claimed back with automation, using smart home tech like AI-powered vacuums to make cleaning quicker and easier. Next-generation AI assistants and tools can handle research and admin tasks, which, according to the report, could save 31 minutes daily.

It also pointed out that autonomous AI applications can be used to streamline online shopping and banking, handing back up to 18 minutes a day. In addition, innovations in drone delivery can speed up parcel deliveries and collections.

With driverless cars, the report suggests that not having to be at the wheel could save up to 21 minutes a day, which can be repurposed for other activities to unlock even more free time.

Looking at health and care appointments, automated, at-home testing and more convenient health appointments could shave off three minutes a day, as well as help with cutting down on unnecessary travel.

“Our research shows people are becoming more comfortable with using technology to handle daily tasks, with 60% of people open to adopting new tools to save time and 53% feeling confident about letting tech take over routine chores,” said Adam Rainey, director of mass affluent at Lloyds.

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As activity ramps up for the £1.3bn project funded by the UK government, Welsh government, public sector and the private sector, the Swansea Bay City Deal has awarded full-fibre services operator and provider ITS a £3.5m contract to supply dark fibre to enhance public sector connectivity across Carmarthenshire.

The Swansea Bay City Deal project is intended to boost the regional economy of its catchment area by at least £1.8bn, while generating more than 9,000 jobs over its 15-year lifespan. Its Digital Infrastructure Programme will deliver a total of 36 individual projects throughout South West Wales. Programmes and projects are based on key themes such as economic acceleration, life science and well-being, energy, smart manufacturing and digital.

In August 2024, the Swansea Bay City Region appointed Virgin Media O2 Business to build a dedicated dark fibre network to 36 public sector sites in Swansea’s city area and Neath Port Talbot, looking to provide a broadband boost to projects across Carmarthenshire, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire and Swansea. Due for completion in December 2025, the dark fibre network is designed to improve connectivity for local authorities, healthcare and education partners in the region, enhancing health and education-based research and development.

The infrastructure is attributed with being able to future-proof the digital capabilities of the Welsh Ambulance Service University Trust, Swansea Bay University Health Board, Hywel Dda Health Board, Swansea University, the University of Wales, Trinity St David, and the three local authorities – Neath Port Talbot, Swansea and Carmarthenshire.

The contract will see ITS move into South Wales for the first time, aligning with the programme’s goal to create a smart region ready to innovate and adopt emerging technologies, ensuring “an inclusive digital landscape that meets everyone’s needs”.

ITS’s entire full-fibre network is built on XGS-PON technology, and in what is said to be a UK-first, it has trialled dedicated internet access over 50G-PON in both lab and live business environments. This is claimed to have marked a significant milestone for the UK fibre market, offering a more sustainable and efficient way to deliver ultra-fast services using existing fibre infrastructure and reducing the need for additional equipment.

The investment will serve 41 dark fibre connections across 34 strategic public sector sites in Carmarthenshire, connecting education, health and local authorities. The project includes key partners Carmarthenshire County Council, University of Wales Trinity Saint David, Hywel Dda University Health Board and Coleg Sir Gar.

In addition to securing the contract award, ITS will invest in a wholesale full-fibre network that mirrors the dark fibre route and extends beyond it to pass more than 2,800 businesses. This private investment will enable access to gigabit-capable services, significantly enhancing the area’s digital infrastructure.

The network will connect sites and datacentres to store, move and share large quantities of data to improve the collaboration between these organisations, enabling them to use technology and applications such as artificial intelligence, and share and analyse data in real time. It will also aim to underpin new ways of working and offer the capability more data-driven decision making, having the capacity to flexibly meet the evolving needs of the sectors and the delivery of modern public services.

“We are thrilled to have been successful in this tender process, which will see us play a pivotal role in transforming the area’s digital landscape,” said ITS chief executive Daren Baythorpe. “As our first public sector contract in South Wales, this is a fantastic milestone for us, and one that will provide the foundation for a connected future for the region, driving innovation and prosperity for the entire community … This type of innovation aligns perfectly with the Digital Infrastructure Programme’s objectives, providing a platform for economic growth and bridging the digital divide.”

Digital Champions in each local authority will work with industry, government and poorly connected communities to support the delivery of the programme at a local level, prioritising digital inclusion, tackling inequalities and limiting environmental impact.

“This announcement marks a significant advancement in equipping our public sector services to meet future demands,” added Philip Hughes, cabinet member for organisation and workforce at Carmarthenshire County Council. “By aligning with the Digital Infrastructure Programme’s objectives, this project will underpin the expanding needs of digital services in our communities, which rely on having effective, secure and high-capacity infrastructure.” 

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According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple now plans to debut its AI-powered upgrade for Siri as part of iOS 26.4. Looking back at the previous two iOS generations, iOS 18.4 arrived on March 31, 2025, while iOS 17.4 rolled out on March 5, 2024. Therefore, we can safely assume iOS 26.4 will launch around March 2026.

Apple’s Siri upgrade is still MIA

Siri in iOS 17. Image source: José Adorno for BGR

The new Siri experience was initially set to launch as part of iOS 18, but a well documented set of problems behind the scenes prevented that from ever happening. As a result, iPhone owners are still waiting for Siri to catch up with far more capable AI chatbots.

Apple revealed the “more personalized” Siri at WWDC 2024, but the launch of iOS 18 came and went last fall without any updates. Apple finally told John Gruber’s Daring Fireball in March 2025 that it was going to take the company “longer than we thought to deliver on these features,” but that it still expected to roll them out at some point in 2025.

That’s clearly no longer the case, as Apple executives Craig Federighi and Greg “Joz” Joswiak sat down for an interview with Tom’s Guide at WWDC 2025 and confirmed that the company is now anticipating “rolling them out in the coming year.”

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Bloomberg’s report not only corroborates the news, but provides a concrete timeline for when we can expect to see the Siri upgrade actually materialize.

What is the Siri upgrade all about?

In a press release last June, Apple referred to the upcoming Siri powered by Apple Intelligence as “more natural, more contextually relevant, and more personal.” The company told us that Siri would soon be able to follow along even when the user stumbles over their words, keep up with a conversation over multiple requests, and switch between text and voice.

“With Apple Intelligence, Siri will be able to take hundreds of new actions in and across Apple and third-party apps,” the company noted. “For example, a user could say, “Bring up that article about cicadas from my Reading List,” or “Send the photos from the barbecue on Saturday to Malia,” and Siri will take care of it.”

Instead, all we really got was a new design for Siri, which now shows up as a glowing light that wraps around the edge of the iPhone’s display. That will apparently continue to be Siri’s biggest improvement until the calendar flips to 2026.

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AI superintelligence is inevitable. In fact, we’re already well on our way to reaching it. Superintelligence will theoretically lead to a much better world for everyone on the planet. It’ll eventually be available to everyone, and it’ll be cheap. We won’t worry about energy costs either. This is all part of the vision laid out in Sam Altman’s latest essay about the path OpenAI is on, and the role it has in developing advanced ChatGPT products.

If you were wondering, the CEO did acknowledge some of the risks along the way. But he also chose to downplay them.

One quote from the blog is worth remembering, as it applies to the entire AI landscape, not just ChatGPT. “From a relativistic perspective, the singularity happens bit by bit, and the merge happens slowly,” Altman said. That “bit by bit” part couldn’t be more accurate, considering how we’ve experienced AI innovations in the last few years.

We’ve been flooded with new AI products and features, with announcements coming at an unpredictable pace. Each one is slowly getting us closer to AGI and superintelligence, even if the progress feels almost imperceptible.

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OpenAI’s ChatGPT announcements this week reflect that perfectly. The company hasn’t unveiled major new AI products, but it has improved ChatGPT in meaningful ways. A few days ago, it released o3-pro and announced a major price drop for o3 queries. On Thursday, ChatGPT upgraded the Project feature, adding several important tools that should improve your productivity while using the chatbot.

Projects is a smart feature in ChatGPT that lets you group together similar chats that might be part of the same project. It’s like placing similar files in the same folder on a computer. That’s actually the best analogy here. You get to group specific chats in folders.

But with Projects, you can also talk to the AI about the chats in that folder. OpenAI is improving the feature by adding some useful new tools.

Deep Research

ChatGPT Projects supports Deep Research and other tools. Image source: Chris Smith, BGR

I’m a big fan of Deep Research, and I use it all the time when I feel regular ChatGPT chats won’t go deep enough on a topic.

Deep Research is now coming to Projects, which means the AI will consider all the chats in a Project when forming its responses. You can also add files to Projects, and those will be included in Deep Research.

Better memory

An example of a Project inside ChatGPT. Image source: Chris Smith, BGR

ChatGPT already lets you save memories and reference old chats. The improved memory can now focus specifically on past chats within a Project when you’re using the chatbot inside that Project.

Voice Mode

ChatGPT will inform you that Projects got new features. Image source: Chris Smith, BGR

ChatGPT Advanced Voice Mode is now available in Projects. You can discuss your files and past chats with the AI by voice. That’s a big upgrade, as it lets you talk to ChatGPT about any of your Projects while you’re on the go. If you have ideas about specific Projects, you can start voice chats while doing chores or driving.

Improved mobile experience

Working with ChatGPT on Projects while you’re out and about wouldn’t be complete without updates to the mobile app. OpenAI also upgraded the mobile experience so you can upload files and change the ChatGPT model when needed.

Share individual chats

ChatGPT Projects lets you upload custom instructions. Image source: Chris Smith, BGR

You can still share chats from Projects. Create unique URLs for the conversations you want to share with others.

An easier way to manage Projects

Managing Projects should now be easier. You can create a new Project from any chat by tapping the three-dot menu. You can also drag and drop chats into a Project.

OpenAI added several new features to ChatGPT Projects, and they’re now available to Plus, Pro, and Team users.

Before you start

I’ve been using Projects to group similar chats, and I’ll definitely take advantage of some of the features OpenAI just announced. I also use temporary ChatGPT Projects to bulk-delete chats, which is my workaround for the lack of an easy way to delete multiple chats at once.

Whether you’ve used Projects before or you’re just considering them, the features above are available to premium users. ChatGPT Plus, Pro, and Teams already have them, while Edu and Enterprise users will retain the current functionality.

ChatGPT Projects supports up to 20 files. Image source: Chris Smith, BGR

OpenAI won’t use information in Projects to improve ChatGPT by default for Team, Enterprise, and Edu users. Free, Plus, and Pro users will need to turn off the “Improve the model for everyone” setting to stop their data from being used to train the AI.

As for files, you can upload up to 20 documents per Project.

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Apple Music is getting several new features in iOS 26. Alongside the revamped design with Apple’s new Liquid Glass UI, it seems the company has finally figured out how to create a native Apple Music Replay experience on its music platform.

This was first noted by X user Dylan. If you open Apple Music Replay in iOS 18, you’ll see a different tab highlighting your musical goals for the month. In contrast, iOS 26 gives it a stunning new look, with everything blending together for a more integrated experience.

When you open the Apple Music Replay card on the new Apple Music Home tab, you’ll get a similar but improved experience. You can select the months and the year you want to see your Replay. What’s interesting is that Apple is including information from the early Apple Music days, which for me means even the tunes I was rocking back in 2016.

Image source: José Adorno for bGR

While the data might be limited in the early years, you can still compare how much you listened to an artist, song, or album from one year to the next. If you’re using more recent data, such as 2023 or 2024, you can also get your Highlight Reel.

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Interestingly, the Highlight Reel experience still feels very similar to what you get on the web, but it’s fair to assume Apple is preparing a more trend-driven annual Apple Music Replay for 2025.

There’s even more coming to Apple Music in iOS 26

Image source: José Adorno for bGR

iOS 26 is also adding the following features to Apple Music:

• AutoMix: Apple Music is getting a DJ-style feature that seamlessly mixes one song into the next. This should improve on iOS 18’s crossfade feature.
• Lyrics Translation: The lyrics translation feature helps you better understand your favorite foreign-language songs.
• Auto-pin Favorite Songs: One of the unannounced features is the ability to pin your favorite songs, artists, albums, or playlists to the top of your library. You can even long-press on an album, playlist, or artist to choose a Tap Action, such as “Go to Album/Artist/Playlist,” “Play,” or “Shuffle.”

Below, you can learn more about the other Apple Music features coming with iOS 26.

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The pace of development in the European space communications industry could almost literally be described as rocketing, and the two latest examples of growth in the sector have seen Veon’s digital operator in Ukraine, Kyivstar, receive regulatory approval to conduct testing of Starlink direct-to-cell (D2C) services and Constellation Technologies and Operations (CTO) announce the imminent launch of its first regenerative 5G mmWave payload.

Kyivstar’s regulatory approval for field testing from the Ukrainian National Commission for the State Regulation of Electronic Communications, Radio Frequency Spectrum and the Provision of Postal Services (NCEC) follows successful integration of Kyivstar’s core mobile network with Starlink’s D2C service.

Testing on the integration of Kyivstar’s SIM card with Starlink’s satellite network was completed at a partner technology evaluation lab in the US. The tests confirmed that Kyivstar SIM cards were compatible with the Starlink D2C system, marking a technical milestone towards launching D2C services in Ukraine.

The planned launch of D2C services with support for SMS and over-the-top (OTT) messaging is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2025, and Kyivstar expects this to enhance its ability to provide essential connectivity for Ukraine – especially in areas impacted by infrastructure damage and rural regions, as well as during emergencies. Field testing is planned to commence in select Ukrainian regions this summer, beginning with text message services.

The initiative is being implemented in coordination with NCEC, which has officially granted permission for field testing of this technology in Ukraine. Kyivstar has already allocated the required spectrum to launch the service, and is adapting its infrastructure for full integration ahead of the scheduled launch.

“Kyivstar remains at the forefront of ensuring Ukraine’s connectivity, especially during challenging times,” said Kyivstar CEO Oleksandr Komarov. “This partnership with Starlink underscores our determination to provide uninterrupted communication to our customers, regardless of circumstances. Deployment of this technology highlights our commitment to innovation and service reliability.”

Veon Group CEO Kaan Terzioglu said: “In times of war, when communication and connectivity are essential humanitarian needs, Veon and Kyivstar are committed to investing in technologies that ensure connectivity for Ukraine and keep critical channels open. With the integration of satellite constellations, we are further enhancing Ukraine’s connectivity.”

Meanwhile, CTO says it has reached a historic milestone in the race towards more universal, sustainable and high-performance connectivity. It describes launching the regenerative 5G mmWave payload as a groundbreaking step that marks the convergence of terrestrial and space-based networks. CTO is rewriting the rules of the telecom game, offering shared access to space in service of a more resilient, accessible and responsible global connectivity infrastructure.

The goal of the J-1 mission is to demonstrate in-orbit ultra-high-speed, low-latency 5G transmission using the operators’ own mmWave 5G spectrum. CTO emphasised that the project is more than a technological evolution: it regards it as a strategic transformation of the telecommunications sector.

The company is building a very low Earth orbit constellation that uses the 5G mmWave spectrum to provide high-speed, low-latency connectivity, even in rural, remote or crisis-affected areas. Its shared infrastructure model is designed to enable cost-effective coverage that complements existing fibre and cellular networks without requiring large investments. 

“This inaugural flight brings our vision to life: building a new space-based infrastructure, neutral and operable by telecom carriers themselves, enabling high-speed internet access anywhere on Earth,” said CTO chief executive Charles Delfieux. “It’s a key milestone for European autonomy and the sustainable transformation of the telecom industry. Space is the next frontier for telecom operators.”

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The final stages of the Data (Use and Access) Bill were more eventful than expected. Interventions from figures like Sir Elton John and Dua Lipa brought rare attention to the issue, tapping into growing public unease about artificial intelligence. Many people see the potential of AI but are also concerned about its impact on the things they value—from music to jobs.

With Parliament now turning to a future AI bill to address questions around the creative industries, it’s worth pausing to consider what has already changed. Behind the high-profile debates, the UK has quietly weakened key data protection rights.

A major shift involves how algorithms are used to make decisions about people’s lives. Under the previous law, individuals had the right to not to be subject to decisions made solely by automated systems. That safeguard has now been removed for most cases. People may face serious consequences—such as losing benefits or being denied visas—without a clear right to human review. 

The algo-state

Where earlier debates focused on the “database state,” we now face the rise of the “algo-state.” Government has moved further toward automated, opaque systems that make decisions with little transparency. When these systems get it wrong, the consequences fall on individuals, who now have the responsibility for understanding these issues and challenging bad uses of technology.

At the same time, the government has also reduced individuals’ rights to pursue remedies and redress, turning this into a lose-lose scenario for most of us. The Data (Use and Access) Bill also expands government powers to share and repurpose personal data for law enforcement, national security and administrative purposes. Also, ministers can now define new legal grounds for data processing using statutory instruments, without meaningful Parliamentary scrutiny. This means data provided to one public body could be accessed and reused by others.

Information ranging from smart meter readings to children’s educational needs may be shared across departments for these reasons, or any new reason written in a future statutory instrument that is approved during a 30 minute session behind the doors of a Parliamentary committee.

Policing is the other area that got little attention. A requirement to log and record why police have accessed our records is removed by the Bill. This is despite scandals such as when dozens of police officers accessed the files of murder victim Sarah Everard without a legitimate policing purpose. Reducing police accountability will further harm trust in our institutions. 

Data adequacy threatened

The government may argue these changes support innovation and growth, but the empowerment of bad government and big tech will undoubtedly put pounds in the pockets of the US and China’s large technology companies, rather than those of the British public. The DUA Bill (soon to be Act) also threaten the UK’s data adequacy agreement with the EU, which is essential for cross-border data flows in business and policing. European civil society groups have already raised concerns with the European Commission.This Bill was a missed chance to strengthen independent oversight and give the Information Commissioner’s Office the tools it needs to protect the public. Instead, it marks a shift toward more government control of regulatory functions, more politicisation of market enforcement, and more cronyism.

After years of political promises to “take back control,” the irony is clear: this law does the opposite. It hands greater power to government and big tech, and reduces the rights of individuals. If people begin to connect the dots between data, AI and control, this quiet shift in the law may not stay quiet for long.

James Baker, is platform power programme manager at Open Rights Group

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The UK’s Data Use and Access Bill has become law, with the government claiming it will “save working people money and time” while injecting £10bn into the British economy over the next decade.

The bill attainted royal assent to become an act on 19 July 2025, and will now amend the country’s implementation of both the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the European Union (EU) Law Enforcement Directive (LED), which is transposed into UK law via the Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018 and represented in Part Three of the act, specifically.

The government has justified its changes to data protection law on the basis of the potential efficiency gains that can be made by cutting NHS and police bureaucracy, as well as the convenience benefits easier data sharing will bring to people’s lives.

“For too long, previous governments have been sitting on a goldmine of data, wasting a powerful resource which can be used to help families juggle food costs, slash tedious life admin, and make our NHS and police work smarter,” said technology secretary Peter Kyle.

“These new laws will finally unleash that power for hardworking people – putting cash back in pockets and boosting vital public services, all part of our plan for change.”

In terms of the changes to GDPR processing, the act will remove current Article 22 protections against automated decision-making (ADM) so that they only apply to decisions that either significantly affect individuals or involve special category data; or introduce a list of “recognised legitimate interests” that organisations can use to process data without the need to conduct legitimacy assessments, which includes things like national security, prevention of crime and safeguarding.

It will also create “purpose limitation” rules that make it easier to process data outside of its originally intended use.

Cookie consent

The act also removed the need for organisations to obtain user consent for cookies and other tracking technologies when the data collected is used for service or website improvement, tailor the site to a user’s preferences, or where the risk to the user is otherwise deemed to be low, if users have the option to opt-out.

However, active consent will still be needed for third-party tracking cookies, such as those used by social media platforms, and the penalty for failure to comply with new cookie rules have been significantly increased to GDPR-style levels (up to £17.5m or 4% of global turnover, whichever is higher).

Civil society groups have been highly critical of many of the data processing changes, arguing instead that the measures will diminish the right not to be subject to automated decision-making; delegate “extensive” legislative power to UK ministers that would allow them to circumvent Parliamentary scrutiny when making decisions around the legality of data processing or transfers; and otherwise grant government and law enforcement agencies “expansive access” to personal data.

Data sharing

In the law enforcement space, the act will specifically allow for the routine transfer of data to offshore cloud providers, remove the need for police to log justifications when accessing data, and enable police and intelligence services to share data outside of the LED rules.

While Computer Weekly’s previous reporting on police hyperscale cloud use has identified major problems with the ability of these services to comply with Part Three, the government’s changes to UK data protection law are seeking to solve the issue by simply removing the requirements that are not being complied with.

In early June 2025, seven civil society groups wrote to European commissioner Michael McGrath, calling on him to rescind the UK’s European data adequacy – which is needed to allow for the continued free flow of data between the two – given their serious concerns about the legislation’s role in the ongoing erosion of privacy and digital rights in the country.

In June 2021, the European Commission granted “data adequacy” to the UK following its exit from the EU, but warned the decision may yet be revoked if future data protection laws diverge significantly from those in Europe.

While the European Commission was originally set to make a new set of UK adequacy decisions in July 2025, the deadline has been extended to December 2025 for the UK to finalise its data reforms.

The act itself also only received royal assent following an extended period of legislative ping-pong between the House of Commons and the House of Lords over their disagreements on the use of copyrighted works to train artificial intelligence (AI) models.

While the enacted bill does not resolve the AI copyright issue – with the Commons defeating Lords amendments that would have forced AI firms to declare their use of copyrighted materials in their training data – the government has now agreed to publish reports on its proposals for this area in the next nine months.

Outside of data protection, the act also lays the groundwork for further regulation to be made for Smart Data Schemes, which aims to improve data portability between suppliers, service providers, customers and relevant third parties; and introduces a statutory framework for Digital Verification Services, which will essentially be used to establish a register of certified providers and issue “trust marks”.

It will additionally set up common standards for health records, intended to promote interoperability and further data sharing.

In terms of data protection regulation, the act also abolishes the Information Commissioner’s Office in favour of a new Information Commission, meaning its structure will be changed to be run by a board.

Under the act, the secretary of state will be granted powers to appoint non-executive members of the commission, including the commissioner, as well as issue policy directions to influence the regulator’s strategic priorities.

Before escalating complaints with the Information Commission, individuals will now be required to raise complaints directly with organisations first.

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