Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence start-up has unveiled a new chatbot which, it claims, matches the performance of rivals such as ChatGPT. xAI described the chatbot, Grok-2, as a “significant step forward” for the company and said that it was on a par with the AI models of Google, OpenAI and Anthropic. Grok-2 features an image…

The construction of a third new nuclear power station in Britain could be given the go-ahead, even though the government is still working to secure full funding for an existing proposal. The ambition is to build a nuclear plant capable of generating enough energy to power six million homes and similar in size to Hinkley…

The government is pressing banks to improve the facilities available in the shared hubs designed to fill the gap left by bank branch closures, amid criticism that the hubs are not doing the job. Tulip Siddiq, the economic secretary to the Treasury, has said in a letter to the banking industry that “gaps remain”, adding:…

British nuclear power generators earmarked for closure could have their lives extended to help balance more intermittent renewable energy sources. EDF, the French state-controlled energy group, which operates all of Britain’s five remaining nuclear power plants, is considering keeping four generators open for longer. Heysham 1 power station, in Lancashire, and Hartlepool, in Teesside, are…

The instances of the SNP and Green Party’s maladministration in health, education, transport, policing and public procurement are matters of record, and continues to mount. But there is one area, namely their highly centralised stewardship of energy policy, that does not receive the attention it deserves. This is a pity, as it is costing consumers…

The government is holding talks with EDF to take control of land at a site in Lancashire as part of plans to roll out mini-nuclear power stations in Britain. Great British Nuclear is in early discussions with the French state-owned energy group over buying land adjacent to its existing nuclear plants at Heysham, with a…