Business

Britain’s biggest luxury yacht-builder is being sold to new private equity backers 15 years after it last changed hands. Sky News has learnt that Princess Yachts, which is based in Plymouth, is being sold to KPS Capital Partners, a US-headquartered investor which specialises in owning manufacturing businesses. Sources said a deal could be struck as

The UK communications regulator has launched an investigation into broadband and phone bill price rises as research suggested many customers are unaware providers can increase costs. The review, to be carried out by Ofcom (the Office of Communications), will focus on mid-contract price increases as the watchdog said it was worried about uncertainty faced by

Google published an online advert for its new AI chatbot Bard in which it delivered an inaccurate answer. The company unveiled its much-anticipated rival to ChatGPT this week, and has launched a marketing blitz to prepare the public for its full rollout in the coming weeks. A promotional tweet with a short GIF describes Bard

Google looks set to unveil how it plans to rival the wildly successful ChatGPT AI, possibly within days. The technology giant has scheduled a 40-minute event for Wednesday 8 February, when it will reveal how it is “reimagining how people search for, explore and interact with information”. “Join us to learn how we’re opening up

Elon Musk did not deceive his investors when he tweeted in 2018 that he had the funding to take Tesla private, a jury has found. Investors had sought to sue the SpaceX owner for billions of dollars because his tweet caused Tesla’s shares to soar, only to crash 10 days later when it became clear

Three of Silicon Valley’s largest companies posted disappointing financial results on Thursday, compounding concerns about a slowdown in the tech sector. Recession fears have hit both corporate and consumer spending globally, leading to the likes of Apple, Alphabet and Amazon all signalling a tough recovery from the highs of 2021. Alphabet, the parent company of

India’s richest man has seen his personal wealth shrink by billions in less than a week. Gautam Adani, head of the conglomerate Adani Enterprises, has suffered his seven publicly listed companies losing at least $100bn (£81bn). On 25 January, US-based short seller firm Hindenburg Research published a 100-page report on the Adani Group accusing it

A British vehicle maker is part of a consortium that has been awarded £6.6m in government funding to make the world’s first self-driving, hydrogen-powered heavy goods vehicle for Asda to trial. Glasgow-based Hydrogen Vehicle Systems (HVS) is developing two prototype HGVs as part of a group which includes supermarket giant Asda. The third member of

House prices have declined for the fifth month in a row, falling 0.6% in January, according to one of the UK’s biggest mortgage lenders. The five month fall makes it the longest period of consecutive falls since February 2009, according to economic research company Pantheon Macroeconomics. House price data from Nationwide building society showed the

The number of new mortgages approved has dropped for the fourth month in a row, to a low not seen since the early days of the pandemic. Mortgage approvals fell to 35,600 in December, the lowest number since May 2020 and down from 46,200 in November, according to data from the Bank of England. The

JD Sports is contacting customers who have been affected by a cyber attack that may have exposed their personal details. The incident impacted 10 million people who placed orders between November 2018 and October 2020. Customer names, delivery, billing, email addresses, phone numbers, and the last four digits of bank cards were potentially exposed. It

Ian King speaks to the CEO of the London Technology Club about why it’s a challenging time for global investment in the sector. Plus, hear from the chief executive of Airtel Africa about how population growth is expected to affect business. And more on the bakery chain that’s promising the most lavish doughnuts London’s ever

ASOS, the online fashion retailer, has drafted in a leading company doctor amid pressure from its lenders about the state of its balance sheet. Sky News has learnt that Scott Millar, a senior managing director at the professional services firm Ankura, has been appointed by ASOS to join its finance department. A source close to

UK car production fell to its lowest level since 1956 last year, according to industry figures showing that the global shortage of parts continued to drag on performance. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) had already reported how the sale of new vehicles in 2022 was severely damaged by the lack of key

It’s hard to imagine the internet without Google. The tech giant has become so synonymous with searching the web that it has become a verb – we don’t look it up, we “Google it”. Google ended 2022 as it ends every year, as the most visited website in the world. Its estimated share of the

Government borrowing hit its highest December figure since records began last month, according to official figures. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported a total of £27.4bn – a leap of almost £17bn on the same month a year ago. It blamed £7bn in costs from energy support schemes. Added to that was interest payments

Spotify has become the latest company in the technology sphere to announce big job cuts, with 6% of the workforce to go in the coming months. The Sweden-based US-listed music streaming firm said a broader shake-up of its operations would see its chief content officer Dawn Ostroff leave the business. The number of employees set

Grant Shapps has launched a crackdown on energy suppliers, following reports some are not doing enough to support vulnerable customers amid the cost of living crisis. The Business and Energy Secretary has written a letter to energy suppliers, telling them to stop the practice of forced fitting prepayment meters as the answer to families struggling

Climate change is slipping down the international agenda, raising the risk governments will slow their pace in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the head of a global energy watchdog has told Sky News. Speaking on the fringes of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, said the mood

Google workers in the UK and Ireland face uncertainty after its parent company Alphabet announced 12,000 jobs are to be axed globally. The Silicon Valley giant employs more than 5,000 staff in both countries, but the company would not be drawn on how the mass redundancies would impact them. The “difficult news” about the job