Cyprus’ banking sector posted another month of steady expansion in August, with both deposits and loans recording net increases, according to figures released Friday by the Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC). Annual credit growth also gathered pace, underscoring resilient activity in the island’s financial system.

Deposits Rise To €59.3 Billion

Total deposits climbed by a net €171.5 million in August, bringing the stock of deposits to €59.3 billion. While the monthly increase was smaller than July’s €562.3 million rise, the annual growth rate edged higher to 6.5 per cent from 6.2 per cent a month earlier.

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Deposits held by Cyprus residents increased by €175.3 million, driven largely by a €60.2 million gain in non-financial corporate deposits. Household deposits slipped marginally by €1.9 million, while deposits held by other domestic sectors rose by a combined €117 million.

Lending Rebounds After July Decline

On the lending side, total loans rose by a net €114.6 million in August, reversing July’s net decline of €68.7 million. The outstanding loan balance reached €28.5 billion, while annual loan growth accelerated to 11.8 per cent from 11.1 per cent the previous month.

Loans to Cyprus residents increased by €36.5 million during the month. Household lending rose by €12.6 million, and loans to non-financial corporations grew by €32.4 million. Lending to other domestic sectors, however, decreased by a combined €8.5 million.

What The Numbers Signal

The latest data point to continued balance sheet expansion in Cyprus’ banking sector, with deposit growth remaining solid and lending activity showing renewed momentum. For banks, that combination typically reflects a system that is still attracting savings while continuing to support business and household borrowing.

The Netherlands remains one of the European Union’s most compelling labour markets for a simple reason: demand for workers is still outpacing supply in many parts of the economy.

In the second quarter of 2026, the country recorded a job vacancy rate of 4.1 per cent, the highest among EU member states with comparable data, according to Eurostat. That compares with an EU average of 2.0 per cent and Cyprus at 2.6 per cent. The numbers do not point to an economy where workers can arrive and choose freely among competing offers, but they do show a labour market that remains tight by European standards.

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Demand Spans The Economy

Crucially, the shortage is not confined to a narrow band of specialist roles. It is broad-based and cuts across major sectors of the Dutch economy.

Statistics Netherlands, or CBS, counted about 387,300 unfilled vacancies at the end of the second quarter of 2026. Wholesale and retail accounted for 73,400 of those openings, while health and social work had 70,500. Business services, manufacturing, construction, hospitality, transport and storage also contributed tens of thousands of vacancies.

The Dutch Employee Insurance Agency, UWV, paints a similar picture. Its list of occupations with strong employment prospects includes construction, energy and installation technology, transport and logistics, healthcare and hospitality. Many of these roles have appeared on shortage lists for years, not months.

That breadth matters for labour mobility within the EU. A market dominated by a handful of highly specialised vacancies tends to attract a limited pool of candidates. The Dutch market, by contrast, has openings at multiple skill levels, widening its appeal to workers from across the bloc.

For those considering a move, the equation is not only about securing a job. It is also about securing a place to live. That is one reason jobs with accommodation in the Netherlands can be particularly attractive to EU citizens, especially when housing arrangements are handled before arrival and one of the biggest relocation risks is removed.

Housing is not a minor detail. Dutch government figures indicate there are already around 400,000 migrant workers from central, eastern and southern Europe in the country, and demand for both temporary and permanent accommodation for this group is expected to remain high.

A Simpler Route For EU Workers

For EU nationals, the legal path into the Dutch labour market is comparatively straightforward.

Citizens of EU countries can work in the Netherlands without a work permit. They need only a valid passport or identity card and are entitled to the same basic employment rights as Dutch workers. Those staying longer than four months must register with their municipality, while shorter-term workers generally register through the non-residents records system.

This freedom of movement gives Dutch employers access to a labour pool stretching from Cyprus and Greece to Poland, Spain and the Baltic states, without the administrative hurdles that usually accompany recruitment from outside the EU.

There is also a statutory wage floor. Since July 1, 2026, the minimum wage for employees aged 21 and over has been €14.99 an hour before tax, with collective labour agreements able to set higher rates in individual sectors.

But pay alone does not determine whether relocation makes financial sense. Rent, transport, health insurance, working hours and the amount of guaranteed work all affect what a worker takes home at the end of the month. In the Netherlands, that calculation is especially important because employment opportunities coexist with a housing market under significant pressure.

The Housing Crunch Shapes The Decision

The Dutch labour market may have openings, but finding somewhere affordable to live can be far more difficult.

CBS estimates the country was short of almost 400,000 homes in 2025, equal to about 4.8 per cent of the housing stock. Although new homes are being built, supply has not kept pace with demand, and both rents and house prices have continued to rise.

For an EU worker, that changes the value of a job offer. A vacancy may look attractive on paper, but the practical challenge of entering a tight private rental market can make relocation far more complicated.

That is why employers and employment agencies sometimes provide accommodation directly. The Dutch government encourages municipalities, landlords and employers to offer suitable and affordable housing for migrant workers from the EU.

At the same time, Dutch rules are designed to reduce the risk that housing becomes a tool of dependence. For tenancy agreements dated from July 1, 2023 onward, a migrant worker’s rental contract must be separate from the employment contract. In practice, that means losing a job should not automatically mean losing the home at the same moment.

Where housing costs are deducted from wages, additional safeguards apply. Workers must give written consent, deductions must appear on the payslip and the accommodation must meet recognised quality standards. The government is also gradually phasing out direct wage deductions for housing costs, in part to reduce workers’ dependence on employers.

These protections matter because accommodation can be both a practical solution to labour shortages and a source of vulnerability if the terms are poorly defined.

The Dutch Pull Has Not Disappeared

None of this means the Netherlands is immune to the broader cooling in European labour markets.

CBS reported a modest decline in vacancies in the second quarter of 2026, while unemployment stood at 3.9 per cent. Even so, there were still 95 vacancies for every 100 unemployed people, a sign that the labour market remains tight by historical standards.

The Netherlands’ appeal to workers from elsewhere in Europe therefore rests on several factors working together. Employers still need staff across a wide range of sectors. EU citizens can enter the labour market without a work permit. Statutory wage protections provide a floor. And in some cases, employers are willing to help with one of the hardest parts of relocation: finding somewhere to live.

The constraints are equally clear. Housing is scarce, living costs matter and workers who accept employer-provided accommodation need to understand precisely what they are paying for and what happens if the job ends.

For Cyprus, the Dutch experience is also a reminder that EU labour mobility is not driven solely by unemployment in one country and vacancies in another. Cyprus itself continues to post a vacancy rate above the EU average. Workers move when the overall offer makes sense.

For the Netherlands, the challenge is not just creating jobs. It is making it feasible for the people needed to fill them to build a life there too.

Tesla is finally handing over the first of its all-electric Semi trucks to customers, nearly a decade after the vehicle was first unveiled in 2017 and years after it was initially expected to enter production.

At an event in Reno, Nevada, on Thursday night, Tesla executives — with CEO Elon Musk notably absent because he was attending a state dinner with President Trump and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping — walked customers, employees and influencers through the truck’s latest specifications and production plans. The company also shared an update on the Semi through its official X account: Tesla Semi.

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A Long Wait, And A Delayed Rollout

Customers will be able to take delivery of the truck whenever they are ready, though charging infrastructure remains a meaningful obstacle, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to TechCrunch on the condition of anonymity.

Tesla did not disclose the final sticker price, but executives said the Semi is designed to lower total cost of ownership for fleet operators while cutting emissions and improving reliability. The company has said the most capable version should travel 500 miles or more on a single charge, depending on payload, and is expected to cost just under $300,000 before incentives. Shorter-range versions will also be offered.

The event took place at a new factory dedicated to the Semi, located next to Tesla’s first Gigafactory in Reno. Tesla says the facility could eventually produce as many as 50,000 trucks annually, or roughly 1,000 per week, and create about 3,000 jobs in the local economy.

From EV Truck To Strategic Pivot

The Semi’s long-awaited launch arrives during a broader transition for Tesla. Musk increasingly describes the company as an AI and robotics business, even though the vast majority of its revenue still comes from vehicle sales. He has also updated Tesla’s mission to “build a world of amazing abundance.” When the Semi was first introduced in 2017, Tesla’s mission statement was still “to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.”

Despite that shift in branding and emphasis, Thursday’s presentation still leaned heavily on the environmental case for electrifying freight. Dan Priestley, who heads Tesla’s Semi program, noted that heavy trucks account for 16% of emissions while representing just 1% of vehicles on the road.

“We’re super excited to be deploying these into our own operations because it’s fulfilling the mission that we originally started out [with],” he said.

Inside The Engineering Changes

The Semi was originally scheduled to reach production in 2019, but the program was delayed by the pandemic, global supply-chain disruptions, semiconductor shortages and design revisions driven by feedback from pilot customers.

Priestley and Lars Moravy, who oversees much of Tesla’s engineering work, outlined several of those changes during the roughly 30-minute event. The demonstration was timed to show a Semi’s battery charge rise from 3% to 60% while connected to one of Tesla’s megawatt charging stations. Tesla is also developing a broader charging network to support the truck, Priestley said.

Some changes are significant and easy to see. Tesla has reduced the vehicle’s weight by about 1,000 pounds compared with the original version. Other changes are more technical but no less important. For example, the Semi’s drive axle originally required three different oils; now it uses just one.

Moravy said the previous axle setup had “always frustrated” him and acknowledged that Tesla sometimes favors highly customized engineering solutions. Priestley said changes to the motor design, along with work from Tesla’s lubricants team, allowed the company to eliminate the other two oils.

“Occasionally we get a little too far out there,” he said. Tesla also revised the side-window design after early versions used pop-out windows that did not fully open, a flaw that drew criticism from truck drivers and automotive reviewers alike. Priestley admitted the original approach was “not sufficient” and said the production Semi now uses standard roll-down windows.

“We fully admit we were wrong about the windows,” he said. “Turns out there’s a lot of infrastructure in the world, whether it’s a badge reader, or your toll booth, or you’re talking to somebody on a call box. There’s all kinds of stuff right at that height, and it became evident that we needed a roll-down window in order to make that infrastructure easier to interface with.”

“It’s okay to be wrong, Dan,” Moravy added.

Proving The Critics Wrong

One of Tesla’s boldest claims from the original 2017 reveal was that the Semi could travel 500 miles on a single charge while fully loaded. That claim drew years of skepticism. Among the most prominent critics was Bill Gates, who wrote in a 2020 blog post that electric big rigs would “probably never be a practical solution” because batteries are too big and heavy.

Without naming him directly, Moravy and Priestley appeared to take a swipe at those doubters during Thursday’s presentation. Priestley emphasized Tesla’s focus on efficiency, explaining that every watt-hour saved has a compounding effect: less energy required means a smaller battery, lower cost and less weight.

“We had some naysayers, names shall not be mentioned,” Moravy said.

“But, pretty well-known names,” Priestley replied.

“And at Tesla, we love when people tell us something’s impossible. So we took that challenge,” Moravy said.

Musk Promises More Automation Ahead

Although Musk did not attend in person, he did appear in a prerecorded segment that aired before the event began. In the video, he said the Semi would be the “funnest truck to drive” and said Tesla’s partial automation features, which were notably absent from the vehicle despite years of delays, would be added in the “near future.”

He also argued that the truck makes “a ton of sense economically, because the cost of electricity per mile is much less than the cost of diesel, especially in these crazy times.” The comment glossed over the fact that diesel prices have also been affected by geopolitical tensions and energy-market volatility.

For Tesla, the Semi is more than another product launch. It is a test of whether the company can turn one of its longest-promised vehicles into a credible commercial platform at scale. After years of delay, redesign and skepticism, that test has finally begun.

Alan Turing is widely remembered for the intelligence test that bears his name. But during World War II, his more consequential legacy was helping break the Enigma code used by Nazi Germany — a breakthrough that helped shift the course of history.

Now, cryptanalysts say large language models from OpenAI and Anthropic have solved two long-unbroken Enigma messages that had resisted decoding for decades.

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The Last Remaining Pieces Of A Wartime Puzzle

During the war, Turing and his colleagues built the Bombe, an early machine designed to help the United Kingdom decipher Enigma traffic. Yet a small number of archival messages remain unresolved today, often because of transcription mistakes or errors in the original enciphering process.

In one case, developer Carter Leffen asked OpenAI’s latest model, Astra, to search a database of Enigma messages for an unbroken example and decode it. According to Leffen, the model went beyond a simple query: it conducted archival research, identified contextual clues, built a simulator of the Enigma machine, and ultimately recovered the plaintext of a message that had stumped researchers since 2005. He also used Astra to build an interactive website explaining the process.

Independent Validation Strengthens The Claim

Frode Weierud, a retired electrical engineer and longtime cryptology enthusiast who maintains the Crypto Cellar archive, validated Leffen’s solution last week and said it left him in “awe.”

Notably, Astra’s logs referenced archived messages in a “private collection” not hosted by Weierud. He has not confirmed whether the model accessed them directly, but said they may have come from another researcher’s materials online or from the German government’s public archives.

“GPT–6 Astra is behaving like a very professional cryptanalyst and archive researcher,” Weierud wrote. “What it has achieved in two days would take a human researcher weeks or even months. Personally, I spent several weeks researching the Bundesarchiv files GPT–6 Astra refers to.”

Anthropic’s Claude Solves Another Message

On September 21, another cryptanalyst, Jack Willis, a cybersecurity executive, told Weierud that he had used Anthropic’s Claude Opus 5 to break a different unsolved message. In that case, Willis provided more direction to the model, which used the known signature of a particular officer’s name to complete the decryption.

Willis shared the result through a LinkedIn post, underscoring how quickly AI-assisted analysis is becoming a serious tool in historical research and cryptography: Jack Willis on LinkedIn.

What Remains Unbroken

Weierud says only seven Enigma messages remain unsolved, along with one message whose plaintext is known but whose code has still not been cracked.

That may not be the case for much longer. If recent results are any indication, AI is beginning to function less like a novelty and more like a practical research partner — one capable of accelerating work that once demanded weeks or months of painstaking human analysis.

The European Commission has proposed new rules that would require data centres across Europe to disclose how efficiently they use energy and water, as policymakers move to confront the growing environmental cost of digital infrastructure.

Europe’s Data Centre Expansion Meets Resource Constraints

The initiative comes as the European Union seeks to triple its data centre capacity over the next seven years, a move designed to support rapid artificial intelligence development and reduce dependence on US-based technology giants. But the expansion also raises a familiar infrastructure dilemma: how to scale digital capacity without overloading electricity grids, intensifying water stress, and increasing carbon emissions.

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A New Transparency Regime For Operators

To encourage more efficient design and operation, the Commission has proposed a rating system intended to make energy and water performance more transparent. The scheme would not cap consumption or require operators to disclose total power use. Instead, facilities with a capacity of 500 kW or more would need to report energy and water efficiency through an EU-designed labelling framework.

Operators would also be required to reveal how their water consumption relates to local water stress conditions, as well as whether their sites can support the broader energy system, for example by reusing waste heat.

A Possible Precursor To Stricter Standards

The label may prove more than a disclosure exercise. It could pave the way for mandatory minimum standards on energy and water efficiency, rules the EU is already developing as it tries to align digital growth with sustainability goals.

According to an EU report published in June, data centres account for about 2.5 per cent of electricity consumption across the bloc. That share is expected to rise sharply as capacity more than doubles by 2030, reaching 28 gigawatts from 12 gigawatts last year.

What Comes Next

EU member states and lawmakers now have two months to object to the proposal. If no objections are raised, the rules will automatically enter into force.

Few projects have tested the boundaries of patience, ambition and engineering quite like Barcelona’s Sagrada Família. After more than 140 years under construction, Antoni Gaudí’s unfinished basilica is finally approaching a historic turning point. What once seemed like an eternal work in progress may soon emerge from the scaffolding that has long defined its silhouette.

The timing is significant. The completion of the Tower of Jesus Christ — now rising to 172.5 metres and officially overtaking Germany’s Ulm Minster as the world’s tallest church — arrives in the centenary year of Gaudí’s death, a powerful reminder that the architect’s influence has outlived him by generations.

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What makes this moment so remarkable is not only the scale of the achievement, but the way it has been made possible: by fusing Gaudí’s 19th-century geometric imagination with 21st-century engineering, materials science and construction methods. It is the kind of evolution the architect likely anticipated when he remarked, with characteristic confidence, “My client is not in a hurry.”

Mysticism Carved In Stone

The Sagrada Família is not merely a building to observe. It is a structure to decode. Gaudí, a devout Catholic who is currently undergoing beatification, conceived the basilica as a form of scripture made visible — a kind of Bible in stone, written through symbolism, proportion and natural form.

The church’s 12 towers represent the apostles. Its floor plan evokes the body of Christ. Its façades narrate episodes from the life of Jesus, from the Nativity to the Passion. Every element carries meaning, transforming the basilica into a theological and architectural statement at once.

On the Passion Façade, one figure is widely believed to carry Gaudí’s own likeness, a subtle self-portrait embedded within the monument he dedicated much of his life to creating. Above it, the crucified Christ is rendered in an unconventional way: naked, with the head replaced by the geometric shape of an open book. It is a visual expression of Gaudí’s idea of the church as a “stone catechism,” designed to teach through form as much as through doctrine.

Gaudí spent 43 years on the project and devoted the final 12 years of his life exclusively to it. He refused other commissions, relied on private donations and pursued the basilica with a singular intensity. The Sagrada Família was funded not by the state, but by the faithful — a distinction that reflects both its spiritual purpose and its civic resonance.

From Sacred Architecture To Pop Culture

The basilica’s power lies partly in its ability to bridge disciplines and eras. Its Gothic and naturalistic language gives the interior the feel of a forest, with stained glass casting shifting bands of colour across columns that resemble tree trunks. The effect is immersive, almost cinematic.

That visual force has helped the Sagrada Família seep into popular culture. Visitors are often told of the alleged connection between Gaudí and Star Wars: the claim that George Lucas drew inspiration from a Roman soldier on the façade when designing the Stormtroopers’ helmets. Whether legend or influence, the story speaks to the basilica’s unusual ability to shape the modern imagination.

Elsewhere inside the church, the legend of Saint George and the dragon is interpreted through stone and curve. A figure of the saint stands beneath a white, twisting structure that suggests the form of the dragon, another example of Gaudí’s talent for turning myth into architecture.

The basilica’s latest milestone, however, is more than symbolic. It has changed Barcelona’s skyline. The Tower of Jesus Christ, the central tower and the tallest of the basilica’s six major spires, was recently blessed by Pope Leo XIV during his visit to the city. The tower is expected to open to the public in 2027, offering visitors a walkable viewing platform at one of the highest points in the Catalan capital.

A Monument Built For The Future

Gaudí understood that he would not live to see the Sagrada Família completed. He left behind models, plans and instructions, trusting that future generations would carry the work forward. That decision, once seen as a practical necessity, now looks remarkably prescient.

In 1926, Gaudí died after being struck by a tram in Barcelona at the age of 73. By then, he had already transformed the Sagrada Família into the central work of his life. After his death, successive architects inherited both the brilliance and complexity of his vision, each contributing to the basilica while preserving its essential identity.

The greatest engineering challenge has been the six central towers, which combine complex hyperbolic forms with extraordinary structural demands. They must withstand wind, seismic forces and the immense weight of the monument’s upper elements. The most ambitious of them, the Tower of Jesus Christ, is crowned by a 17-metre cross that now dominates the Barcelona skyline.

How Modern Engineering Accelerated The Impossible

One reason the basilica is advancing faster than ever is the use of modern adhesive technology developed by Henkel after years of research and testing. The construction strategy is a case study in how contemporary industry can solve problems Gaudí could only have imagined.

Instead of assembling individual stones high above the ground, engineers broke the towers into 826 modular panels containing more than 2,100 stone pieces. These elements were pre-assembled at the quarry, turning an immense structural challenge into a series of precise, manageable operations.

To create a single structural unit, the panels were bonded using Loctite EA 9497, a two-component epoxy adhesive produced at Henkel’s factory in Montornès del Vallès. Roughly 30 kilograms of resin were used per panel, allowing stone and steel to behave as one integrated system.

The panels then underwent a 24-hour curing process under controlled temperature conditions. As the adhesive set, it filled microscopic gaps between materials, creating a durable bond capable of handling the tower’s extreme demands. Once ready, the panels were transported to the basilica and lifted into place with millimetre precision.

The result is a construction process that is up to 10 times faster than traditional methods. According to project manager Begoña Cantera, work that took barely eight years using this system could have required 50 to 60 years by conventional means. That efficiency has been decisive in bringing the central towers to completion in time for the centenary of Gaudí’s death.

Designed To Withstand Time And Its Environment

The engineering challenge did not end with speed. The Sagrada Família must also endure a uniquely demanding environment. Situated just 2.5 kilometres from the Mediterranean Sea, the basilica is exposed to salt-laden air that accelerates corrosion. Humidity levels remain high, while seasonal temperature swings cause materials to expand and contract repeatedly. Beneath it all, two metro lines generate vibrations that must be accounted for in the structural design.

In total, 24 tonnes of adhesive have been used to help stabilize a structure built for longevity as much as beauty. The resin was formulated to accommodate small movements between steel and stone without cracking, while supporting loads equivalent to the weight of around 100,000 people per square metre — roughly comparable to the density of a full capacity crowd at FC Barcelona’s stadium.

Gaudí also designed the basilica with a clear understanding of scale and restraint. He believed the work of man should not surpass the work of nature, and he fixed the building’s height in relation to Montjuïc. Today, at 172.5 metres, the Sagrada Família has become the tallest church in the world — not through the methods of Gaudí’s era alone, but through the convergence of his original vision and technologies developed long after his death.

More than a century later, stone, glass, steel and modern chemistry are bringing one of architecture’s most ambitious projects closer than ever to completion.

More than 5,000 people attended European Researchers’ Night 2026 in Nicosia last week, underscoring the growing public appetite for science, innovation and hands-on learning as Cyprus marked 20 years of the annual event, according to the Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF).

A Decade-Plus Platform For Public Engagement

Held at the Cyprus State Fair, the event also welcomed more than 2,000 school pupils through organised visits and dedicated activities, reinforcing its role as one of the country’s most visible platforms for connecting researchers with the wider public.

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This year’s edition, themed “CELEBRATE 2.0 – Two Decades of STEAM-Powered Inspiration,” brought together researchers, academics, scientists, companies and organisations from across Cyprus’ research and innovation ecosystem.

More Than 75 Exhibits And 80 Interactive Experiences

Visitors explored more than 75 exhibition stands and took part in over 80 interactive activities, including experiments, workshops, simulations, games, quizzes and live demonstrations.

RIF said the programme placed particular emphasis on the STEAM model, which integrates science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics. The aim, it said, was to show how cross-disciplinary thinking can help address practical and societal challenges.

Students Bring Science Communication To The Fore

The event also featured the Science Unfold 2026 student science communication competition, held under the theme “STEAMing Through Time! How research and innovation changed our world.”

Students presented inventions and applications that have shaped everyday life, with a focus on explaining their significance in a clear, engaging, and accessible way. In doing so, the competition highlighted an increasingly important skill in research ecosystems: the ability to translate complex ideas for non-specialist audiences.

Two Decades Of Growth In Cyprus

A special anniversary stand traced the development of European Researchers’ Night in Cyprus since 2006, while a commemorative video highlighted key moments from the event’s two-decade history on the island.

“Science does not concern scientists alone. It concerns society as a whole,” RIF said, adding that the event was designed to underscore the importance of curiosity, creativity, collaboration and the role of younger generations in shaping the future of research.

Linking Research And Society

The programme concluded with a networking reception, bringing members of the public together with researchers and representatives of the innovation community.

European Researchers’ Night is held simultaneously in hundreds of cities across Europe as an initiative of the European Commission, to bring research closer to citizens and demonstrate its relevance in everyday life.

The Cyprus edition was held under the auspices of the President of the Republic. Its 2026 activities were organised through the CELEBRATE 2.0 – Two Decades of STEAM-Powered Inspiration project, funded by the European Commission under the Horizon Europe 2021–2027 research and innovation programme.

For years, subscription businesses have benefited from a simple behavioral advantage: consumers are far better at signing up than they are at canceling.

People forget what they joined. They stop using services but keep paying. A $9 or $15 monthly charge can linger on a credit card statement for months, sometimes years, without attracting much attention.

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Meta’s Muse Targets A Deeply Embedded Habit

With the rollout of Meta Muse, an AI personal agent designed to handle tasks across everyday life, that long-standing subscription friction is suddenly under pressure.

Muse can help consumers identify and cancel recurring subscriptions. Subscription-management tools have existed for years, but Meta’s broader AI assistant could make forgotten charges far easier to find and remove.

The timing is significant. Nearly half of U.S. consumers, 44%, increased subscription spending in 2025, according to a report from Mastercard and FT Strategies. Average annual spending rose to $1,887, or about $157 a month. Bank of America data also shows subscription spending climbed 7.7% year over year in July, outpacing overall card spending, with entertainment and retail subscriptions accounting for roughly 43% of the total.

The Economics Of Forgetting Are Under Pressure

Neale Mahoney, an economics professor at Stanford University and director of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, has spent years studying how much subscription businesses benefit when consumers fail to cancel.

“We found that when people are forced to decide, they are about four times more likely to cancel,” Mahoney said, referring to his 2025 American Economic Review paper, Selling Subscriptions, co-authored with Stanford economists Liran Einav and Ben Klopack.

That finding matters in an AI-agent world.

The Stanford researchers estimated that sellers can roughly double revenue through consumer inertia — when people forget to cancel — and through cancellation friction, when ending a subscription takes too much time or effort. AI personal agents could weaken both forces, Mahoney said.

Not every subscription is equally exposed. Physical subscriptions, such as pet food, are harder to forget when deliveries keep arriving at the door. Digital services, by contrast, can quietly continue billing long after a consumer has stopped thinking about them.

The implications could extend well beyond subscriptions and into the core of financial services. Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok recently warned that AI agents could automatically move household cash into higher-yield accounts, reducing the cheap deposits banks rely on to fund loans.

Consumers Are Already Getting More Aggressive

Even before AI entered the picture, consumers were becoming more assertive about cutting recurring charges.

ScribeUp, which builds subscription-management technology into banking apps for banks, credit unions, and fintechs, says its members are now 1.8 times more likely to initiate a cancellation than they were a year ago.

“More of life is becoming a recurring bill. Those bills cost more every year, and it becomes increasingly difficult for consumers to keep track of everything they are paying for,” said Jordan Mackler, co-founder and CEO of ScribeUp.

According to the company, the median ScribeUp user now has more than 12 recurring subscription payments, while one in four has 20 or more. The share of users with at least eight recurring charges rose from 62% to 71% over the past year.

Price increases can accelerate the exit. Mackler said cancellations at an individual merchant can rise as much as 50% when prices go up.

Health and fitness subscriptions have seen the sharpest jump in cancellation activity, up 3.8 times year over year. Video streaming followed at 2.2 times, news and media at 2.1 times, and music streaming at 1.9 times, according to ScribeUp.

AI is also expanding the number of subscriptions the company can help manage. ScribeUp now tracks roughly 200,000 unique recurring billers. Before adding its newer agentic capabilities this year, it could automate cancellations for only a few hundred major subscription companies.

The average canceled subscription costs $17.39 a month, and Mackler said ScribeUp saves users more than $300 a year on average in recurring charges they had forgotten about or no longer needed.

Subscription Businesses May Need A New Retention Playbook

The subscription model is already dealing with meaningful churn. Mastercard found that average monthly churn — the percentage of subscribers who cancel or fail to renew in a given month — is 20%. More than half of U.S. subscription businesses surveyed also said at least 10% of their subscriber base was inactive, meaning customers were still paying but no longer actively using the service.

As consumers gain greater control over recurring charges, companies may need to compete harder to keep them.

Hitee Chandra Jha, principal product manager at Zendesk who specializes in product-led growth and customer retention, said companies may need to make value more visible before customers reach the cancellation screen.

For some businesses, that could mean treating cancellation less as a binary outcome and more as a transition. A streaming service might do better offering a pause option than a last-minute discount after a customer finishes a series. A fitness app could move a user who has reached a goal to a maintenance tier or offer a different way to stay engaged.

That approach appears to be gaining traction. Recurly’s 2026 State of Subscriptions report, based on 76 million unique subscribers across more than 2,200 businesses, found that use of “pause before cancel” options jumped 337%, and three out of four customers who paused eventually returned.

The Best Defense May Be Convenience, Not Friction

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has described Muse as the “centerpiece” of an AI strategy that will be supported by still unproven consumer hardware, including augmented reality glasses and the Muse Charm keychain-style device. Investors have recently rewarded the company for that AI bet.

The rollout has not been without resistance. Amazon has blocked Muse from shopping on its site, saying the agent’s access violates its terms of service. Privacy concerns also remain significant whenever an AI system gains access to financial information.

Still, consumer interest appears real. According to Recurly data, 43% of consumers said they are comfortable with AI managing their subscriptions.

“Treating cancellation as a transition, not just a loss, is what differentiates a mature retention strategy from a defensive one,” Jha said. “The best defense against AI-assisted cancellation is not friction.”

Mastercard’s research points in the same direction. Among consumers surveyed, 74% said they are more likely to subscribe when cancellation is easy, while 70% said they are more likely to resubscribe. Another 34% said they would remain subscribed if they had the option to pause rather than cancel.

Rather than ending subscription growth, AI may force companies to prove value more consistently and design retention strategies that depend less on inertia.

ScribeUp has found that once users trust they can see, manage, and cancel recurring charges easily, they become more comfortable with subscriptions overall and are more willing to try new services.

“If consumers trust that they can easily see, manage, and cancel recurring charges, our data shows they are likely to expand their overall recurring spend and are more willing to try new services in the first place,” Mackler said.

Mahoney argues that a healthier market would reward businesses that do not rely on slowing customers down, but instead give them more reasons to stay.

“When people are trapped in subscriptions they don’t want or can’t get out of, market forces are limited, and companies don’t have the incentives to have a high-quality product at a low price,” he said. “They can just rely on a locked-in install base.”

Whether through AI or consumer initiative, when people stop paying for what they no longer want and redirect that money elsewhere, “that’s good for consumers, it’s good for markets, and it’s good for firms that are making products that people want,” Mahoney said. “That’s economics working the way it’s supposed to work.”

For Meta, Muse may be more than another AI product launch. It could become a test of whether artificial intelligence amplifies consumer discipline — and forces an entire subscription economy to compete on value rather than habit.

Azerbaijan used the second Azerbaijan International Investment Forum in Baku to make a clear statement: the country wants to be seen as more than an energy exporter. It wants to be a capital destination.

Billions In Prospective Deals

Speaking to Euronews, Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov said the forum produced about $10.8 billion in confirmed business across 26 contracts spanning artificial intelligence, energy, manufacturing and production. He said the country is increasingly looking beyond its own borders to unlock growth through partnerships with overseas investors and companies.

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“We tend to look at opportunities not only within our geographical borders but also through partnerships,” Jabbarov said, noting Azerbaijan’s growing commercial links with markets including the United States and Italy. The forum’s investment tally adds to more than $10 billion in agreements announced at the inaugural event, with a large share tied to the non-oil economy.

A Bid To Broaden The Economic Base

The scale of the commitments reflects a broader policy challenge: diversifying an economy long shaped by oil and gas. According to President Ilham Aliyev, the non-oil sector accounted for 72% of GDP in 2025, while real non-oil GDP growth has averaged 5% annually since 2020.

Aliyev told delegates that Azerbaijan’s investment strategy now extends across manufacturing, transport and logistics, renewable energy, digital technologies, agriculture, tourism and infrastructure. Yet he also underlined the importance of the energy sector, arguing that long-standing oil and gas contracts have reinforced the country’s credibility with international investors.

Global Capital Takes Notice

The forum drew companies representing roughly $30 trillion in assets across the Azerbaijan International Investment Forum and the Azerbaijan Infrastructure Investment Dialogue, according to the presidential administration. Among the participants were BlackRock, Global Infrastructure Partners and Brookfield Asset Management, some of the most influential names in global finance.

BlackRock, which manages trillions in assets, has become a particularly visible player in Azerbaijan’s investment push. The infrastructure dialogue was hosted with Azerbaijan’s sovereign wealth fund, SOFAZ, underscoring the government’s intention to position the country as a serious partner for large-scale capital deployment.

Data from Azerbaijan’s Central Bank shows that foreign direct investment exceeded $3 billion in the first six months of 2026, up 13.8% year on year. The main sources of FDI were the United Kingdom, Türkiye, Cyprus, Russia and Iran. At the same time, Azerbaijani capital flowing outward topped $5 billion in the same period, with Italy, Türkiye, the UK, the UAE and Georgia among the main destinations.

Marketing, Scale And Private Sector Momentum

For domestic business leaders, Azerbaijan’s rising profile is being driven not only by policy, but also by brand-building. Orkhan Mustafayev, founder and chairman of Sabah Investment Group, told Euronews that sustained marketing efforts have helped projects such as Sea Breeze gain international traction.

He said overseas sales are rising by about 20% year on year and that the buyer mix has shifted from overwhelmingly local to roughly 70% domestic and 30% international. He argued that public-private cooperation, roadshows and global presentations are helping unlock returns for smaller investors as well.

George Walker, chief executive of Neuberger Berman, said Azerbaijan’s appeal lies in its continued economic progress and growing international relevance. He described the country as increasingly respected as a strategic partner, adding that its reputation is strengthening with global investors.

Tourism And Urban Development Enter The Picture

That narrative is visible in Sea Breeze, a large-scale coastal development on the Caspian Sea that has become one of Azerbaijan’s most prominent private projects. Its founder, singer and entrepreneur Emin Agalarov, said the vision is being carried forward by multiple international partners rather than by a single developer alone.

“When you’re not alone, there’s speed. There’s expertise and there’s results,” he said, pointing to the involvement of companies from Israel, the UAE and other markets. Tourism, hospitality, property and urban development are increasingly being presented as additional gateways for international capital.

Florian Sengstschmid, chief executive of the Azerbaijan Tourism Board, said a new state programme is designed to support both demand and supply in the sector. He said Baku has positioned itself as a regional meeting hub and that this momentum can be translated into future business.

Infrastructure As The Core Investment Story

Azerbaijan is now marketing itself as a strategic platform linking Central Asia, the South Caucasus, Türkiye and European markets. That message is likely to resonate with infrastructure investors focused on transport corridors, ports, rail, renewable energy, data infrastructure and industrial production.

Brookfield’s regional head of the Middle East, Jad Ellawn, said the country’s governance has been a major factor in attracting interest. “Good governance is the best type of marketing,” he said, arguing that trust in institutions has helped Azerbaijan stand out.

The central question after AIIF is whether the pledges made in Baku will translate into deployable capital and completed projects. For now, Azerbaijan has succeeded in reframing itself: not merely as an oil producer, but as a market seeking to anchor broader regional investment flows.

With billions in prospective agreements and some of the world’s largest asset managers in the room, the country is signaling that its ambitions are no longer confined to hydrocarbons.

Cyprus should place artificial intelligence and digital transformation at the core of its tourism strategy if it wants to deepen resilience, sharpen competitiveness and secure long-term growth, the Hotels Association (Pasyxe) said on Sunday.

Marking World Tourism Day, the association argued that AI is no longer a peripheral innovation. It is becoming a practical tool for tourism operators, with applications spanning data analysis, visitor services and energy efficiency. In a sector shaped by shifting traveller expectations and rising cost pressures, those capabilities are increasingly strategic rather than optional.

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A Strategic Shift, Not A Standalone Upgrade

Pasyxe stressed, however, that the transition cannot rest solely on individual hotel investments. A meaningful shift toward digital tourism will require coordinated planning, stronger infrastructure, specialist talent and a modern incentive framework that encourages businesses to adopt new technologies.

The message comes at a sensitive moment for Cyprus, as the tourism sector works to sustain demand amid uncertainty linked to the continuing crisis in the Middle East. For an economy where tourism remains a cornerstone industry, the ability to adapt quickly is becoming a competitive necessity.

Cyprus Sees An Opening To Redesign Its Tourism Model

Pasyxe president Yiannos Pantazis said the island has an opportunity to rethink how its tourism model operates and to use technology to compete more effectively with larger destinations.

“As a country, we have an important opportunity ahead of us to redesign our tourism model and compete on equal terms with the larger tourism markets,” Pantazis said. “The next day of Cyprus tourism will be determined by our ability to adapt, invest and make use of the opportunities available to us.”

That argument reflects a broader reality across the global visitor economy: destinations that use data intelligently can improve planning, personalise services and allocate resources more efficiently. For Cyprus, AI could help operators better understand visitor patterns, streamline service delivery and reduce operating costs, all while improving the guest experience.

Where Artificial Intelligence Can Deliver Value

According to the association, AI has the potential to support tourism businesses across several fronts, including the collection and analysis of data, enhancements to the visitor journey and reductions in energy consumption. In a market where travellers are increasingly digital-first, those advantages can translate into stronger loyalty and better margins.

Pasyxe said these technologies could open new pathways for growth and modernisation, particularly as hospitality businesses face growing pressure to become more efficient without compromising service quality.

Policy And Industry Must Move In Step

Pasyxe director-general Christos Angelides said World Tourism Day should also serve as a reminder that Cyprus tourism policy must evolve in line with international trends and changing consumer behaviour.

He said the country’s approach to tourism development “must respond to global trends and to the needs of the modern traveller”, placing technology alongside broader efforts to strengthen the quality and competitiveness of the tourism product.

The 2026 World Tourism Day events, hosted in El Salvador, are focused on the digital agenda and the role of artificial intelligence in reshaping tourism. The discussions reflect a wider industry consensus: technology is becoming central to competitiveness, not merely supportive of it.

The Next Industry Test For Cyprus

Those same issues will be prominent at the 47th Cyprus Hotel Summit & HORECA Expo, organised by Pasyxe on December 2 at the Hilton in Nicosia, where technology, innovation and competitiveness will be among the main themes.

For Cyprus, the broader question is no longer whether tourism should digitise, but how quickly the sector can do so. In a market defined by intense regional competition and evolving traveller expectations, artificial intelligence may prove less a future trend than a present-day requirement.