Tech
AI-ready companies turning network pilots into profit | Computer Weekly
While the AI genie is out of the bottle for organisations for all sizes, only 13% of businesses are fully prepared for it, with those ready as much as four times more likely to move pilots into production and 50% more likely to see measurable value, according to a study by Cisco.
The data comes from the Cisco AI readiness index 2025, a global study, now in its third year, based on a double-blind survey of 8,000 senior IT and business leaders responsible for AI strategy at organisations with more than 500 employees across 26 industries across 30 markets.
Cisco added that the combination of foresight and foundation is delivering real, tangible results at a time when two major forces are starting to reshape the landscape: AI agents, which raise the bar for scale, security and governance; and AI infrastructure debt, the early warning signs of hidden bottlenecks that threaten to erode long-term value.
Regarding AI agents, the survey found ambition was outpacing readiness. Overall, 83% of organisations planned to deploy AI agents, and nearly 40% expected them to work alongside employees within a year. But the study discovered that, for majority of these companies, AI agents were exposing weak foundations – that is, systems that can barely handle reactive, task-based AI, let alone AI systems that act autonomously and learn continuously. More than half (54%) of respondents said their networks can’t scale for complexity or data volume and just 15% describe their networks as flexible or adaptable.
AI infrastructure debt was called the modern evolution of technical and digital debt that once held back digital transformation. Moreover, the survey regarded it as “the silent accumulation of compromises, deferred upgrades, and underfunded architecture that erodes the value of AI over time”. Some 62% of firms expect workloads to rise by over 30% within three years, 64% struggle to centralise data, only 26% said that they have robust GPU capacity and fewer than one in three could detect or prevent AI-specific threats.
Among the topline results from the report were that “small but consistent” group of companies surveyed – falling into the category of pacesetters, and making up about 13% of organisations for the past three years – were outperforming their peers across every measure of AI value.
Cisco noted that the pacesetters’ sustained advantage indicated a new form of resilience: a disciplined, system-level approach that balances strategic drivers with the data and network infrastructure needed to keep pace with AI’s accelerating evolution. It added that such firms were already architecting for the future, with 98% designing their networks for the growth, scale and complexity of AI, compared with 46% overall.
The research outlined a pattern among companies delivering real returns: they make AI part of the business, not a side project; they build infrastructure that’s ready to grow; they move pilots into production; they measure what matters; and they turn security into strength.
Virtually all pacesetters (99%) were found to have a defined AI roadmap (vs 58% overall), and 91% (vs 35%) had a change-management plan. Budgets match intent, with 79% making AI the top investment priority (vs 24%), and 96% with short- and long-term funding strategies (vs 43%). The study noted that such firms architect for the always-on AI era. Some 71% of pacesetters said that their networks were fully flexible and can scale instantly for any AI project (vs 15% overall), and 77% are investing in new datacentre capacity within the next 12 months (vs 43%).
Just over three-fifths had what was defined as a “mature, repeatable” innovation process for generating and scaling AI use cases (versus 13% overall), and three-quarters (77%) had already finalised those use cases (versus 18%). Some 95% track the impact of their AI investments – three times higher than others – and 71% were confident their use cases will generate new revenue streams, more than double the overall average. Meanwhile, 87% were highly aware of AI-specific threats (versus 42% overall), 62% integrated AI into their security and identity systems (versus 29%), and 75% were fully equipped to control and secure AI agents (versus 31%).
The result of this approach, said Cisco, was that pacesetters achieve more widespread results than their peers because of this approach, with 90% reporting gains in profitability, productivity and innovation, compared with around 60% overall.
Commenting on the results from the survey, Cisco president and chief product officer Jeetu Patel stated that the AI readiness index makes one thing clear: AI doesn’t fail – readiness fails, adding: “The most AI-ready organisations – the pacesetters from our research – prove it. They’re four times more likely to move pilots into production and 50% more likely to realise measurable value. So, with more than 80% of organisations we surveyed about to deploy AI agents, these new findings confirm readiness, discipline and action are key to unlocking value.”
Tech
The Best Cyber Monday Streaming Deals With a Convenient Roommate’s Email Address
HBO knows you’re bored and cold. It wants you to Max and chill with Noah Wyle in scrubs. The company offers some of the best Cyber Monday streaming deals with a ridiculously low-priced $3/month offer for basic HBO Max (it’s the version with ads and 2K streaming, but still, super-cheap). Disney Plus and Hulu deals are bundled up for $5/month. Apple TV wants back in your life for $6.
Of course, this deal is only meant for new customers. Not boring ol’ existing customers. If you already have basic HBO Max, you’re already paying $11 for the same service, and HBO would like you to keep doing that. Streaming apps are banking on you being complacent and happy in your streaming life. Maybe they’re even taking you for granted.
Sometimes you can get the current deal just by threatening to cancel, or actually canceling, your account. Suddenly, you’re an exciting new customer again! Another method is by using an alternate email account (perhaps your spouse’s or roommate’s?) and alternate payment information as a new customer. If you do use a burner email (you did not hear this from me), check in on your favorite app’s terms of service to make sure you’re not in violation by re-enrolling with different emails. I’ll also issue the caveat that you lose all your viewing data and tailored suggestions if you sign up anew.
But times and wallets are tight! And $3 HBO Max sounds pretty good. After all, every middle-aged American man needs to rewatch The Wire once every five years or so—assuming he’s not the kind of middle-aged man who rewatches The Sopranos instead. Here are the current best streaming deals for Cyber Monday 2025.
Devon Maloney; ARCHIVE ID: 546772
Regular price: $80
Tech
Hong Kong FWA services market set for 9.6% growth | Computer Weekly
Analysis from GlobalData is forecasting that fixed wireless access (FWA) service revenue in Hong Kong is expected to increase at a “healthy” compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.6% between 2025 and 2030.
The latest Hong Kong Total Fixed Communications Forecast set out to quantify current and future demand and spending on mobile services for the special administrative region of China. It noted that growth was being driven by Hong Kong’s extensive 5G network coverage and could also be attributed to local operators’ efforts to expand FWA services and position it as an alternative to traditional fibre broadband services for both residential and commercial sectors, meeting growing demand for high-speed connectivity in areas where extending fibre lines is challenging.
“High-density urban and suburban centres of Hong Kong create a strong business case for FWA services due to their cost-effective and rapid deployments without the complex infrastructure and civil work required for extending fibre-optic lines to such locations,” said Neha Misra, senior analyst at GlobalData.
“Competitive, feature-rich plans from the operators will also help drive its adoption over the forecast period. For instance, HKBN’s 5G Home Broadband Plan provides unlimited 5G broadband data (subject to a 300GB with a fair-usage policy) for HKD118 per month on a 24-month contract, along with a seven-day trial guarantee. The plan also includes a waiver of the HKD28 monthly administration fee and complimentary access to the basic HomeShield security plan.”
In addition to HKBN, the study noted that operators such as 3 Hong Kong and HKT are also using their extensive 5G networks to offer home broadband services, particularly in areas with limited fibre infrastructure. It cited HKT as recently having successfully deployed mmWave-based FWA to deliver ultra-high-speed internet to rural areas and outlying islands.
“Growing demand for FWA provides operators a strong revenue opportunity by expanding home and SME broadband without the high capital intensity of fibre roll-out,” Misra added. “By leveraging nationwide 5G coverage, introducing competitively priced service plans and bundling digital home services, operators can unlock higher ARPU [average revenue per user], accelerate market penetration in underserved areas and diversify beyond traditional revenues.”
GlobalData believes the Hong Kong government’s smart city initiatives will also open new opportunities for FWA, especially 5G FWA, which can deliver high-speed internet to power applications such as the digital economy, digital governance and e-health services, while supporting the city’s dense urban environment and digital transformation goals under the Smart City Blueprint 2.0.
The original blueprint was set out in December 2017, outlining 76 initiatives under six smart areas, namely Smart Mobility, Smart Living, Smart Environment, Smart People, Smart Government and Smart Economy. Blueprint 2.0 puts forth more than 130 initiatives that continue to enhance and expand existing city management measures and services. The new initiatives aim to bring benefits and convenience to the public so that residents can better perceive the benefits of smart city innovation and technology.
Tech
Prague’s City Center Sparkles, Buzzes, and Burns at the Signal Festival
And thanks to a mention in Dan Brown’s new novel, The Secret of Secrets, the festival has gained even more global recognition. Just a few weeks after the release of Brown’s new bestseller set in contemporary Prague, viewers were able to see for themselves what drew the popular writer to the festival, which is the largest Czech and Central European showcase of digital art. In one passage, the Signal Festival has a cameo appearance when the novel’s protagonist recalls attending an event at the 2024 edition.
“We’re happy about it,” festival director Martin Pošta says about the mention. “It’s a kind of recognition.” Not that the event needed promotion, even in one of the most anticipated novels of recent years. The organizers have yet to share the number of visitors to the festival this year, but the four-day event typically attracts half a million visitors.
On the final day, there was a long queue in front of the monumental installation Tristan’s Ascension by American video art pioneer Bill Viola before it opened for the evening, even though it was a ticketed event. In the Church of St. Salvator in the Convent of St. Agnes, visitors could watch a Christ-like figure rise upwards, streams of water defying gravity along with him, all projected on a huge screen.
The festival premiere took place on the Vltava River near the Dvořák Embankment. Taiwan’s Peppercorns Interactive Media Art presented a projection on a cloud of mist called Tzolk’in Light. While creators of other light installations have to deal with the challenges of buildings—their irregular surfaces, decorative details, and awkward cornices—projecting onto water droplets is a challenge of a different kind with artists having to give up control over the resulting image. The shape and depth of the Peppercorns’ work depended on the wind at any given moment, which determined how much of the scene was revealed to viewers and how much simply blown away. The reward, however, was an extraordinary 3D spectacle reminiscent of a hologram—something that can’t be achieved with video projections on static and flat buildings.
Another premiere event was a projection on the tower of the Old Town Hall, created for the festival by the Italian studio mammasONica. It transformed the 230-foot structure into a kaleidoscope of blue, green, red, and white surfaces. A short distance away, on Republic Square, Peppercorns had another installation. On a circular LED installation, they projected a work entitled Between Mountains and Seas, which recounted the history of Taiwan.
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