Cloudflare has drawn a sharper line between traditional search and artificial intelligence.

Beginning September 15, 2026, the company will change its default settings to block so-called mixed-use crawlers from pages that run ads, unless a site owner chooses otherwise. The policy applies to new Cloudflare customers, new sites created by existing customers, and all current free customers.

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A Clearer Divide In Web Access

The shift could materially reshape how AI companies collect web data for model training and agentic products. Cloudflare’s central argument is straightforward: most publishers want their content to remain visible in search and accessible through certain AI services, but they do not want that same material repurposed without compensation.

In Cloudflare’s view, the problem is not crawling itself. It is the blending of three different functions: search, agentic use, and training into a single bot that makes it difficult for website owners to set meaningful boundaries.

The Google Question

Cloudflare pointedly referenced the “world’s largest search engine,” an unmistakable nod to Google, arguing that it has access to roughly twice as much information as rival AI companies because it makes it harder for customers to stay discoverable without also being used for AI.

Google has disputed that framing. The company offers Google Extended, a crawler setting that lets publishers opt out of having content used for training and AI products such as Gemini apps and Vertex AI, without affecting visibility in Google Search. At the same time, Googlebot still crawls for Search and for AI-powered features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode.

Publishers Want Reach, Not Exploitation

Matthew Prince, Cloudflare’s co-founder and chief executive, said the company is moving quickly because the internet is now dominated by machine traffic.

“Now that the majority of traffic on the Internet is non-human, we must go further and act faster so that a sustainable ecosystem can emerge,” Prince said, referring to the recent milestone in which bots surpassed human traffic online sooner than expected.

Prince added that Cloudflare’s tools and partnerships are designed to give publishers more visibility and commercial leverage, while also rewarding AI companies that are transparent about how they use content.

From Pay Per Crawl To Pay Per Use

Cloudflare has increasingly positioned itself as a gatekeeper for publishers looking to assert control in the AI era. The company already offers tools to block AI bots, along with a marketplace called Pay Per Crawl, which lets websites charge AI systems for scraping.

That framework is now expanding into Pay Per Use, which Cloudflare says will allow publishers to charge AI companies when content creates value, not merely when it is fetched. In practical terms, that shifts the economics from extraction to monetization.

Cloudflare says the move may also reduce waste. Its data suggests more than half of crawl traffic from AI bots is spent revisiting pages that have not changed, consuming bandwidth and compute without adding fresh value for either side.

Early Partners Signal The Commercial Model

To launch the new system, Cloudflare is working with Ceramic.ai and You.com. Under the opt-in model, publishers can be paid when their content appears in Ceramic’s AI search results or when You.com accesses premium material.

Cloudflare says other AI companies can adapt the model to fit their own products. The broader message is clear: the era of unrestricted crawling is giving way to one in which access, attribution, and compensation are increasingly negotiated rather than assumed.

AOL is back on the public market — in a way. Its owner, Bending Spoons, the Italian software company known for acquiring and rebuilding struggling internet brands, debuted on Nasdaq on Thursday at a valuation above $18 billion before its shares surged 40% by the close.

A Long-Term Approach To Acquisitions

Founded 13 years ago in Milan, Bending Spoons has built a business around acquiring well-known digital brands, including Meetup, Eventbrite, Vimeo, WeTransfer and AOL. Unlike many private equity firms, however, the company says its goal is not to buy, cut costs and sell.

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“We want to place ourselves as an operator that takes beloved brands and makes them much better,” co-founder and Chief Product Officer Matteo Danieli told TechCrunch.

AI Is Accelerating Growth

The company’s acquisition strategy has attracted criticism, particularly over workforce reductions following takeovers. Even so, Bending Spoons says revenue has continued to grow, with artificial intelligence playing an increasingly important role.

“In the past year and a half, we’ve witnessed an incredible acceleration in the pace at which we were able to ship new features and create value for users,” Danieli said.

That focus is reflected throughout the company’s IPO filing, which describes AI as a capability it had been developing long before the technology became mainstream.

Turning Failure Into A Strategy

Before founding Bending Spoons, Danieli and his co-founders built Evertale, a startup that used machine learning to automatically create a digital diary of users’ lives. Although the business failed, it shaped the philosophy behind Bending Spoons.

“It sparked a reflection around the fact that you don’t always find perfect correlation between how talented entrepreneurs are and the success they have,” Danieli said. “Luck is a very big component of that equation.”

Rather than relying on finding the next breakthrough product, the founders focused on building a business centred on operational excellence. As the company states in its SEC filing, “luck plays a big role in finding product-market fit,” but “luck is irrelevant when pursuing operational excellence.”

Data, Pricing And Product Improvement

That philosophy drives how Bending Spoons manages the businesses it acquires. The company relies heavily on analytics, experimentation and pricing tests to improve products and monetisation. While some pricing changes have drawn criticism from long-time users, Danieli said customer retention has remained “remarkably stable.”

Evernote has become the company’s most closely watched turnaround. Danieli described it as Bending Spoons’ most satisfying acquisition, pointing to the AI-focused v11 update and saying the company ultimately won back many users, including Evernote co-founder Phil Libin.

A Different Kind Of Public Company

The company’s model was initially met with scepticism from investors, who struggled to classify a business combining software operations with an acquisition-driven growth strategy. Over time, however, confidence grew. Before its IPO, Bending Spoons had already reached an $11 billion private valuation and attracted backing from prominent investors across technology and entertainment.

Its emphasis on talent has also become a competitive advantage. According to the company’s SEC filing, revenue per full-time employee increased from $1.12 million in 2023 to $2.57 million in 2025, before reaching $0.97 million in the first quarter of 2026, partly reflecting productivity gains from AI.

To mark its stock market debut, Bending Spoons brought its entire workforce to New York for the listing ceremony. Danieli said the IPO provides another source of capital to support the company’s acquisition strategy, but added that the focus remains unchanged.

“From a buyer’s perspective and as a company that grows through acquisitions, that’s actually a great opportunity and moment to deploy capital,” he said.

Apple is reportedly preparing a fresh wave of iPad and Mac hardware for the first half of 2027, pointing to another coordinated product refresh as the company continues to expand its lineup across both premium and entry-level devices.

New iPad Pro And MacBook Pro Models In The Pipeline

According to Bloomberg, Apple is developing four new iPad Pro models, all expected to feature upgraded processors. The launch would follow last October’s introduction of the M5-powered iPad Pro and continue Apple’s strategy of regularly refreshing its flagship tablet with more powerful in-house silicon.

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Bloomberg also reports that Apple is working on a new lower-priced MacBook Pro, internally codenamed K104. Positioned as an entry-level Pro model, the device could help bridge the gap between the company’s premium notebooks and its more affordable Mac lineup.

M7 Chips Could Anchor The Refresh

Apple is reportedly targeting the same launch window for its first M7 processor, suggesting the company is planning a coordinated update across both tablets and laptops. A simultaneous rollout would allow Apple to introduce faster chips while further differentiating its hardware portfolio.

The reported roadmap comes as Apple navigates several strategic challenges, including supply chain constraints, rising component costs and a gradual leadership transition beyond CEO Tim Cook.

Affordability Becomes A Bigger Focus

Higher manufacturing costs are already filtering through to consumers. According to Reuters, the MacBook Pro with 1TB of storage recently increased in price from $1,699 to $1,999. Against that backdrop, a more affordable MacBook Pro could help Apple broaden its customer base while preserving the premium positioning of its flagship devices.

The European Union’s latest Eurostat release on key figures for European business offers a clear snapshot of the region’s industrial base, investment dynamics, productivity, globalisation, technology and tourism. Among the most notable findings is the scale of high-tech manufacturing across the bloc, which reached €414 billion in sold production in 2024.

Pharmaceuticals Remain The Cornerstone

Pharmaceuticals emerged as the dominant force in the EU’s high-tech sector, representing 29.1% of total output. That makes the category the single largest contributor to the region’s high-value manufacturing economy, underscoring Europe’s continued strength in life sciences and drug development.

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Electronics And Scientific Instruments Follow

Electronics and telecommunications ranked second, accounting for 23.1% of total production value. Scientific instruments were close behind at 20.8%, reinforcing the importance of precision manufacturing and advanced measurement technologies in Europe’s industrial mix.

Together, these three segments make up the bulk of the EU’s high-tech sold production, highlighting a sector increasingly shaped by knowledge-intensive industries rather than traditional heavy manufacturing.

Smaller Categories Still Matter

Other tracked technology categories each represented less than 10% of total output. At the bottom of the list was armaments, which made up just 1.1% of the EU’s total sold production of high-tech goods.

The figures point to a concentrated but diversified high-tech landscape, with pharmaceuticals setting the pace and advanced electronics and scientific equipment providing additional scale. For policymakers and business leaders alike, the message is clear: Europe’s industrial competitiveness is increasingly tied to sectors built on research, innovation and technical specialization.

Paramount Skydance Corp has put forward remedies aimed at addressing European Union competition concerns over its planned $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, according to a regulatory filing released Wednesday. A source familiar with the matter told Reuters last week that the proposal was likely to secure approval from the European Commission.

Paramount Seeks To Defuse Antitrust Objections

In its filing, Paramount said it was “confident that this remedy directly and comprehensively addresses any concerns expressed in the European Commission’s preliminary assessment and supports the path for timely clearance.”

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The European Commission, which serves as the EU’s antitrust watchdog, has not disclosed the substance of the remedies, consistent with its standard practice.

Film Distribution Venture In Focus

According to a person with direct knowledge of the discussions, Paramount is expected to propose abandoning its film distribution joint venture with Universal Pictures in an effort to ease antitrust concerns raised by European cinema operators.

The Commission has already extended its review deadline to July 22 from July 7, giving regulators additional time to assess the proposed remedy package.

Regulatory Risk Remains On Both Sides Of The Atlantic

In the United States, the Department of Justice has cleared the transaction. Even so, the deal could still face significant opposition from state regulators, with California, New York and other states reportedly preparing a lawsuit to block the acquisition, according to Reuters sources.

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom signaled on Tuesday that it may also intervene, citing potential implications for news, children’s television and streaming services.

For Paramount, the message is clear: the merger may be winning support from federal regulators, but the path to completion remains politically and legally complex on both sides of the Atlantic.

Paphos is increasingly evolving beyond its traditional image as a sun-and-sea destination. According to a new analysis by KPMG Cyprus, the district is developing into one of the island’s fastest-growing business and investment hubs, with tourism now complemented by expanding activity in real estate, education, technology and professional services.

A More Diversified Economy

According to KPMG, Paphos has undergone a significant transformation in recent years, evolving from an economy centred on tourism and retirement into one with a broader international business profile. Investment, upgraded infrastructure, the expansion of higher education, growing interest from international companies and sustained demand in the property market have all contributed to a more diversified growth model.

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Momentum accelerated after Paphos was named the European Capital of Culture in 2017. KPMG says the designation raised the city’s international profile and helped create the conditions for stronger investment in the years that followed.

Tourism And Property Continue To Drive Growth

Tourism remains the district’s largest economic pillar, but it has become less seasonal. Alongside its archaeological sites, coastline, gastronomy and climate, Paphos is attracting more visitors through cultural, sporting, conference and educational tourism.

KPMG also highlights the role of Paphos International Airport, whose connections to dozens of European destinations support both tourism and business activity.

Real estate has become another key growth driver. Paphos is now Cyprus’ leading destination for foreign property investment, attracting buyers from Europe, the Middle East and other international markets. The resulting investment has boosted construction, created jobs and reshaped the district through new residential and commercial developments, while attracting digital nomads, business executives and skilled professionals.

Knowledge And Innovation Gain Importance

KPMG argues that future growth cannot rely solely on tourism and real estate. Universities and expanding educational infrastructure are helping attract researchers, entrepreneurs and young professionals, while stronger links between education and the labour market are improving competitiveness. Combined with modern telecommunications, remote working opportunities and a high quality of life, these advantages are also making Paphos increasingly attractive to international companies seeking regional offices and operational centres.

Sustaining Long-Term Growth

While international investment continues to play an important role, local businesses in construction, hospitality, education, healthcare, technology, trade and professional services remain central to the district’s development.

KPMG also warns that rapid growth brings challenges, including urban expansion, water supply, environmental protection and access to specialised talent. Maintaining the balance between development and quality of life, the firm says, will be essential to preserving the characteristics that make Paphos attractive to residents, visitors and investors.

KPMG Cyprus added that it has maintained a strong presence in both Paphos and Polis Chrysochous in recognition of the area’s long-term potential and the importance of supporting local communities.

For Paphos, the broader picture is clear: the district is no longer relying on tourism alone. Instead, it is building a more resilient economy where investment, education, innovation and professional services increasingly complement one of Cyprus’ most established industries.

The European Central Bank is weighing a significant change to the way it manages liquidity across the euro area, with policymakers discussing a proposal to double the minimum reserves banks must hold from 1% to 2%, according to six sources cited by Reuters. If adopted, the move would reduce the ECB’s interest costs, absorb excess liquidity from the financial system and mark another step in the gradual unwinding of the extraordinary stimulus introduced over the past decade.

A Shift In The ECB’s Liquidity Strategy

Discussions are taking place as part of a broader review of the ECB’s operating framework, although the proposal has not yet been formally presented to the Governing Council. According to Reuters’ sources, deliberations remain at an early stage and a decision is unlikely before the autumn.

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For the ECB and the euro area’s national central banks, raising the reserve requirement would serve two objectives. Increasing the amount of deposits banks must hold without earning interest would reduce the Eurosystem’s interest expenses while absorbing part of the excess liquidity created through years of large-scale bond purchases. Much of that surplus liquidity remains concentrated in countries such as Germany, where central banks have incurred sizeable losses from paying interest on deposits held above the required reserve level.

Billions In Potential Savings

At the current deposit rate of 2.25%, the ECB and the euro area’s 21 national central banks are paying interest on roughly €2.16 trillion of excess liquidity, equivalent to around €48.7 billion a year, according to Reuters calculations.

Doubling mandatory reserves from their current level of €173.56 billion would reduce that annual interest bill by almost €4 billion. Pressure on central bank finances has intensified since this month’s increase in the ECB’s deposit rate from 2% to 2.25%, a move intended to contain inflationary pressures linked to the war in the Middle East that also lifted the annual cost of excess liquidity by an estimated €5.4 billion.

Why Reserve Requirements Matter Again

Minimum reserve requirements were last reduced in 2012, when the ECB cut them from 2% to 1% at the height of the eurozone sovereign debt crisis to support lending and stabilise the banking system.

More than a decade later, policymakers face a very different environment. Banks have reported record profits, liquidity remains abundant, and the financial system no longer depends on the same level of extraordinary central bank support. Against that backdrop, increasing reserve requirements has become part of a broader discussion about how quickly the ECB should normalise its balance sheet.

Implications extend well beyond the central bank itself. Persistent losses reduce the profits national central banks can distribute to governments and, in more extreme cases, may require additional public capital. Institutions such as Germany’s Bundesbank have already spread those losses over several years after the ECB’s deposit rate reached as high as 4% in 2023 while excess liquidity remained at historically elevated levels.

Part Of A Broader Normalisation Process

Beyond the immediate savings, the discussion reflects a wider reassessment of the ECB’s monetary policy framework as crisis-era support measures continue to be unwound.

An increase in reserve requirements would signal that policymakers are looking beyond inflation alone and placing greater emphasis on the long-term costs of maintaining large volumes of idle liquidity in the financial system. It would also shift a greater share of that burden back to commercial banks while giving the ECB more control over the size and cost of its balance sheet.

OpenAI has reportedly proposed giving the U.S. government a 5% stake in the company, a move that would value the holding at about $42.6 billion and mark an unprecedented shift in the relationship between Washington and one of the world’s most influential AI companies.

According to the Financial Times, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has argued in early discussions with the Trump administration that giving the public a direct financial interest in the company would be the most effective way to ensure Americans benefit from the rapid growth of artificial intelligence. People familiar with the talks said the proposal forms part of a broader effort to ease growing political scrutiny of the AI industry in Washington.

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A Big Bet On Shared Upside

The proposal follows OpenAI’s record funding round in March, which valued the company at $852 billion on a post-money basis. At that valuation, a 5% equity stake would be worth approximately $42.6 billion, potentially giving the U.S. government a substantial financial return if the company continues to grow.

Whether the Trump administration is willing to pursue the proposal remains unclear. Neither the White House nor OpenAI immediately responded to CNBC’s requests for comment.

A New Model For AI Policy?

According to the Financial Times, the idea extends beyond OpenAI. The proposal reportedly envisions other leading U.S. artificial intelligence companies offering similar equity stakes to the government, although it remains uncertain whether competing AI developers would be prepared to follow that approach.

If adopted more broadly, the model would represent a significant departure from traditional U.S. technology policy. Rather than acting solely as a regulator, the government would also become a financial stakeholder in one of the country’s most strategically important industries.

Part Of A Longer Conversation

The latest discussions build on conversations that have been taking place for more than a year. CNBC previously reported that Altman first raised the possibility of a government stake with the Trump administration in early 2025.

OpenAI expanded on that idea in April by proposing the creation of a public wealth fund that would hold investments linked to AI companies and distribute part of the sector’s economic gains more broadly.

Government Ownership Is Not Without Precedent

Although unusual for the AI industry, government equity ownership is not without precedent. The U.S. government currently holds a 10% stake in Intel after investing $8.9 billion in the semiconductor company’s common stock. In May, President Donald Trump said he should have sought an even larger ownership stake, and in June he described U.S. holdings in AI companies as “a beautiful thing” that would make Americans “partners in this revolution.”

Taken together, the proposal suggests OpenAI is trying to reshape its relationship with policymakers as artificial intelligence becomes an increasingly strategic issue. Offering the government a direct share in the company’s future growth could help align public and private interests while easing concerns over the concentration of power within the AI industry.

The Central Bank of Cyprus has lowered its economic growth forecasts for 2026 and 2027, warning that the war in the Middle East is creating a more challenging outlook for the economy through weaker tourism, higher energy prices and continued uncertainty over global trade. While domestic demand is expected to remain resilient, the bank now expects slower growth and higher inflation than it projected just three months ago.

Growth Outlook Softens On Geopolitical Shock

In its June 2026 Economic Bulletin, the Central Bank revised its GDP forecast for this year to 2.5%, down from 2.7% in March. Growth for 2027 was also trimmed slightly, from 3% to 2.9%, while the economy is still expected to expand by 3.1% in 2028.

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According to the bank, the downgrade is relatively modest because the March projections had already incorporated conservative assumptions about geopolitical risks. Even so, the outlook remains highly dependent on developments in the Middle East. If the agreement announced between the United States and Iran fails to materialise or is not implemented, Cyprus could face fuel shortages, higher import costs and further supply-chain disruption.

Those risks are expected to weigh most heavily on tourism, shipping, construction and real estate. As a result, the Central Bank expects net exports to subtract from economic growth this year because of weaker tourism revenues, lower shipping receipts and slower growth in other service exports. Domestic demand, however, should continue to provide support, helped by higher real household incomes, a resilient labour market and continued investment in large private projects, even if some of them are delayed.

“Although their implementation schedule may be affected by the crisis in the Middle East, these projects are not expected to be cancelled,”

the Central Bank said.

Inflation Forecast Raised

The biggest revision in the latest projections concerns inflation. The Central Bank now expects inflation, measured by the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), to average 3.2% in 2026, compared with 0.8% in 2025 and 0.5 percentage points higher than forecast in March.

Higher energy prices remain the main driver, reflecting the impact of the conflict on international oil markets and supply chains. Those pressures are expected to feed through to food prices and other goods before inflation gradually eases to 1.9% in both 2027 and 2028. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy, is projected to rise to 2.3% this year before moderating over the following two years.

Labour Market Remains A Bright Spot

Despite the weaker economic outlook, the labour market is expected to remain resilient. Employment growth is forecast to slow from 1.7% in 2025 to 1.3% this year before recovering in 2027 and 2028, while unemployment is projected to edge up only slightly to 4.6% before stabilising around 4.5%, a level the Central Bank considers consistent with full employment.

At the same time, policymakers warned that risks to inflation remain tilted to the upside. Persistently high oil prices, climate-related disruptions and stronger-than-expected wage growth could all keep price pressures elevated for longer than currently forecast.

Cyprus is facing significant labour shortages across key sectors of its economy, according to the annual EURES report on labour shortages and surpluses for 2025, based on 2024 data. The findings point to persistent strain in the labour market and growing pressure on employers trying to fill critical roles.

Health, Technology And Tourism Lead The Shortage List

The most acute shortages are concentrated in health care, information technology and tourism — three sectors that are central to Cyprus’s economic model and service capacity.

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Within health care, the report highlights shortages among nurses, midwives, medical imaging technicians and doctors, with the lack of personnel described as particularly severe.

In technology, shortages are reported for systems analysts, software and applications developers, web and multimedia developers, and ICT sales professionals.

Tourism and hospitality are also under pressure, with vacancies affecting waiters, chefs, cooks, hotel reception staff and restaurant managers. The report also notes significant demand for bus drivers, underscoring broader transport constraints linked to the sector.

Medium And Lower-Intensity Gaps Across The Economy

The shortage is not limited to highly specialized professions. The report also identifies moderate shortages in occupations such as electricians, mechanical technicians, sales workers, cashiers, builders, welders, heavy vehicle drivers, and workers in agriculture, livestock and construction.

At a lower level of severity, shortages appear among engineers in various specializations, health assistants, carpenters, plumbers, electrical technicians and bakers.

Broader European Imbalances Remain Persistent

Across the European Union, EURES notes that labour shortages remain widespread, but are concentrated in a limited number of member states. That pattern, the report suggests, leaves room for stronger cross-border mobility as a policy tool.

In countries such as Bulgaria, Italy and the Netherlands, employers struggle to fill a broad range of positions. By contrast, Latvia, Austria and Finland more frequently report labour surpluses.

Notably, 98% of occupations experiencing shortages in at least one member state also show surpluses in another EU country, highlighting the scale of labour mismatches across the bloc.

What Is Driving The Imbalance

The report attributes these imbalances to several structural factors, including limited awareness of job opportunities abroad, difficulties in recognising professional qualifications, language barriers and wage differences.

Particular attention is given to health and care professions, where an ageing population is increasing demand for services. The same pressure is evident in green-transition occupations such as electricians and other skilled tradespeople.

Policy Responses And Workforce Priorities

Among the report’s key recommendations are simpler procedures for recognising qualifications, stronger vocational training, improved job quality and better use of untapped labour pools, including women, older workers and migrants.

For Cyprus, the message is clear: addressing labour shortages will require more than short-term hiring fixes. It will demand coordinated policy action, targeted skills development and a labour market capable of adapting to demographic and technological change.