Smaller

• European startup funding in June 2026 saw a shift toward a higher volume of smaller deals, with total investment falling to €8.3 billion. • Despite the drop in total capital, deal activity increased to 293 transactions, indicating a preference for smaller financing rounds over "blockbuster" investments. • This trend suggests a cautious investment climate where venture capitalists are diversifying risk across more startups rather than concentrating funds in a few mega-rounds.

• Accenture's inaugural AI Progress Barometer reveals that while European companies are improving their AI readiness, a stark divide has emerged between large corporations and smaller firms. • Large European businesses are successfully closing the AI adoption gap with their North American counterparts, demonstrating increased competitiveness on a global scale. • This disparity is concerning because the lag in AI integration among smaller European enterprises could hinder the region's overall economic competitiveness and innovation.

Past and present leaders of wealthy nations such as UK and Germany have argued their actions are insignificantOn first hearing, it is a position that sounds reasonable. “When our share of global emissions is less than 1%,” Rishi Sunak argued when he was the UK prime minister in 2023, “how can it be right that British citizens are now being told to sacrifice even more than others?”Sunak is not the only world leader to have cited such figures while delaying cuts to pollution. In 2019, Scott Morrison, Australia’s then prime minister, used his country’s 1.3% of global emissions to reject any suggestion Australia was not “doing our bit” on climate breakdown. In July, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, pointed to his country’s 2% share of global emissions while supporting loopholes in European climate targets. A few months later the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, followed suit, flagging the EU’s 6% share. Continue reading...