 |
|
|
|||||
Alphabet beat Wall Street estimates for its second quarter on Wednesday, and cited massive demand for its cloud computing services as it hiked its capital spending plans for the year to about $85 billion. The search giant beat estimates for quarterly revenue and profit on the back of new AI features and a steady digital advertising market. Google Cloud’s revenue growth surged nearly 32%, well above estimates for a 26.5% increase. “With this strong and growing demand for our Cloud products and services, we are increasing our investment in capital expenditures,” CEO Sundar Pichai said in an earnings release. Shares of the company, which have risen more than 18% since its previous earnings report in April, were down 1% in extended trading. Google had earlier pledged about $75 billion in capital spending this year, part of the more than $320 billion that Big Tech is expected to pour into building AI capabilities. The companies have defended their aggressive AI spending amid rising competition from Chinese rivals and investor frustration with slower-than-expected payoffs, saying those massive investments are necessary to fuel growth and improve their products. Alphabet reported total revenue of $96.43 billion for the second quarter ended June 30, compared with analysts’ average estimate of about $94 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. Google’s advertising revenue, which represents about three-quarters of the tech major’s overall sales, rose 10.4% to $71.34 billion in the second quarter, beating expectations for $69.47 billion, according to data from LSEG. Deborah Sophia and Kenrick Cai, Reuters
Category:
E-Commerce
According to McKinsey, while more than 75% of organizations now use AI in at least one business function, only 1% describe themselves as fully mature in their deploymentand most executives still dont feel confident leading it. Fluency, not just familiarity with AI, is the next big leadership gap. Ive spent three decades guiding leadership teams, government departments, and boards through the endless waves of emerging tech. If theres one thing I know for sure, its this: Capability doesnt come from dashboards or demos. It comes from shared language, strategic alignment, and the confidence to make informed decisions. Many of the executive teams I have AI discussions with remain fluent in all the right buzzwords, but lack the depth of understanding to turn shiny new tech into scalable, sustainable outcomes. With AI moving from nice to necessity, its time to steer the conversation in a new direction. Heres how leaders can do it. 1. More Talking Before Testing AI fluency begins with conversation, not capability statements. Too often, leadership teams rush into pilots or platform demos before having the foundational discussions that guide responsible, effective use. If you want your team to lead with clarity, start by asking these questions: Governance: How are we managing AI risk and accountability? Customer impact: Where could AI enhance or erode trust? Workforce: What skills do we need to build, shift, or unlearn? IP and data: Who owns what we create? How are we protecting it? Ethics: Are our use cases aligned with company values? These arent nice-to-haves. Theyre essential questions, core to any organizations resilience and relevance strategy. Skip them, and you risk building tools your team doesnt understand and your clients dont trust. 2. Run Fire Drills, Not Just Workshops AI is moving faster than most leadership teams can process. That pace creates blind spots, and blind spots turn into problems. To stay relevant in an AI-driven world, you need a way to surface risks early. Easiest way to do that? Start with a fire drill. Pick a scenario. Maybe your customer data is used without permission to train a public large language model. Or your chatbot starts making promises your business cant afford to keep. Then, as you would for any contingency or risk mitigation plan, ask: How would we respond? This kind of simulation forces teams to make decisions under pressure. It reveals knowledge gaps and helps connect abstract AI risks to real world consequences. You dont need to overengineer it. A whiteboard, some honest questions, and the willingness to sit with discomfort is enough. You wont have all the answers, but you need to start probing. 3. Fluency Over FOMO Theres mounting pressure on businesses to do something with AI. But when action is driven by FOMO, it usually results in shallow pilots, disconnected tools, or AI bolted on as an afterthought. Thats not strategy. And its certainly not sustainable. Fluency reframes the conversation. The question isnt What can we automate? Its What problem are we solving, and is AI the best tool for the job? Teams focused on fluency build slower, but smarter. They make better investment decisions, ask sharper vendor questions, and develop solutions that flex, scale, and last. 4. Make It Cultural, Not Just Strategic AI capability isnt something you tack onto operations. It must be baked into the way your organization thinks and acts. That means: Making AI literacy part of team member onboarding Reviewing how AI influences customer experience, products, and services Treating AI risk with the same weight as cyber risk, including shared accountability at the leadership table Creating space in board and executive agendas for regular AI discussions One-off strategy days wont cut it. Organizations that take AI seriously embed fluency in their culture, not just their calendar. 5. Ditch the Jargon, Lead With Questions You dont need a PhD in machine learning to lead confidently in this space. But you do need curiosity, courage, and a commitment to ongoing learning. Start by ditching the jargon. That creates space for honest, useful conversations. Encourage reverse mentoring. Trial tools together. Normalize not having all the answers. AI isnt the next department or the next fad. Its the new business as usual. Leadership teams willing to sit in the unknown, learn the new language of business, and ask better questions will unlock opportunities others never see. The rest risk becoming irrelevant.
Category:
E-Commerce
Ding-dong-ditching has resurfaced as the door kick challenge. But this time it could lead to criminal charges and potentially deadly consequences. In Florida this week, five minors were caught on camera participating in the challenge. Instead of simply knocking or ringing a doorbell and running, footage shows one individual approaching a front door, kicking it repeatedly, then firing an airsoft gun before fleeing the scene, according to Fox News. Earlier this month in DeBary, near Orlando, two teenagers faced felony burglary charges after taking part in the challenge. Doorbell footage captured them sneaking up to a house, forcefully kicking the door until the wood splintered, then running away. When questioned by police, one teen reportedly said they were just being dumb, per the Daily Mail. Similar incidents have been reported in Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Texas. Police departments across these states are warning both teens and their parents about the risks involved in the challenge. Not only is it illegal, but it also raises the risk of violent confrontations between residents and those taking part. Last month, the Fleetwood Police Department in Pennsylvania issued a warning that “While ding dong ditch has been a hallmark for decades of kids who were looking to have a little mischievous fun, todays youth have taken things to a more serious level by kicking at doors and ultimately causing damage.” The Fort Worth Police Department in Texas released a similar statement in May. “It is imperative that individuals partaking in this trend understand that even if no burglary or theft occurs, this behavior is illegal and considered vandalism and can lead to criminal charges. More critically, it can be mistaken as an attempted break-in, potentially prompting dangerous or defensive responses from homeowners,” the department wrote. Hot off the heels of the recent #ChromebookChallenge, police are urging parents “to speak with their children about the risks and consequences of participating in trends like this,” emphasizing that “what may seem like a prank can result in very real trouble and/or danger.”
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||