Small Business (SMB) stories
The move strengthens Xero’s North American engineering base as it pushes AI tools into its core accounting software for small businesses.
The Exeter Shopify agency plans recruitment, expansion and acquisitions after YFM Equity Partners committed GBP £7.6 million to support growth.
Small firms using team.blue brands can now automate bookings, compliance, website building and data analysis through AI tools.
Continuity with legal advisers can speed fundraising, reduce friction and help investors trust that a fast-growth company is well run.
Merchants could soon get payments, loyalty, lending and checkout tools from one supplier as firms chase fuller control of commerce.
Cybersecurity and skills gaps are leaving many mid-sized firms unable to turn AI investment into stronger profits or revenue growth.
Wider access to affiliate tools could help smaller creators cash in as US social commerce heads towards USD $100 billion next year.
Unused subscriptions are leaving UK SMEs exposed to rising SaaS bills, with some firms able to trim GBP £10,000 a year.
Customers across Ireland will get a single portal for service requests and incident updates as eir business shifts onto ServiceNow's AI platform later this year.
The Dublin hub's resident firms supported 13,225 jobs and €2.5 billion in revenue over 25 years, a new report found.
Most firms expect AI to streamline admin and planning support, while only 3% plan staff reductions this year, a survey shows.
B2B tech firms are wasting budget on one-off assets as tighter content systems help extend reach, sharpen messaging and improve ROI.
Yet most Australian mid-sized firms still lack the training and governance needed to turn AI use into broader revenue gains.
Employers are tightening recruitment as 88% struggle to find workers with AI skills, while 37% say AI-written CVs cloud judgement.
Employee records featured in almost one in five cases as lost, stolen or mishandled paperwork kept UK breach reports high over five years.
Easier consent and wider bank access could lift Consumer Data Right use to more than 18 million Australians by 2035, the modelling says.
Fewer Australian scam reports still cost victims more in 2025, with total losses climbing to AUD $295.4 million and phishing damage surging.
AI users are already outperforming peers, with New Zealand SMEs earning about NZD $400,000 more and large firms NZD $59.1 million more in FY25.
More organisations could fail Cyber Essentials as missed patches and patchy MFA now trigger automatic rejection under tougher UK rules.
Greater competition in social commerce is prompting Markable to offer AI shopping tools free, as it targets faster growth from more creators.