FTI Consulting News Bytes – 25 April 2025

FTI Consulting News Bytes

This week, we explore how AI will drive an “always-on economy,” with AI agents working around the clock without the need for a work-life balance. We also discuss screentime, as the Children’s Commissioner urges parents to set an example of responsible social media use for their children, coinciding with YouTube’s rise as one of the largest media companies by revenue, as it celebrates its 20th anniversary. We then look at an Oxford-based start-up challenging tech giants in quantum computing, and conclude with the challenges streaming services face in keeping up with sudden surges in interest for specific films – most recently Conclave.

This week’s news

AI ushers in “always-on economy”

AI is transforming traditional time, capacity and productivity constraints, creating a new “always-on economy”, according The Wall Street Journal. A partner at Sequoia Capital, Konstantine Buhler, predicts that AI will enable companies to work around the clock, making decisions and acting on opportunities that may otherwise be delayed by human working constraints. The Wall Street Journal looks at what this means for the pace at which companies will have to operate in order to develop a competitive advantage. Could AI automation mean the end of some our long-standing habits in the workplace when it comes to deliberating over important decisions?

Parents set example on social media

Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner, has urged parents to consider the example they set children through their own social media usage. According to The Guardian, de Souza said that parents needed to take responsibility over what their children are consuming online, and be prepared to have “difficult conversations” around harmful, toxic, or violent content. Her comments come as a recent YouGov poll found that 25% of 8-15 year olds spent two to three hours a day on a smartphone or device, with 20% spending three to four hours a day. Whilst education secretary Bridget Phillipson is considering introducing an enforceable smartphone ban in English schools, the Children’s Commissioner believes managing smartphone usage amongst children must also start at home. 

YouTube turns 20

As YouTube turned twenty this week, analysts at MoffettNathanson estimate the business could be worth as much as $550 billion were it a standalone business. CNBC crunched some numbers to illustrate the sheer size of the video sharing platform, revealing YouTube is the second-most visited website in the world, behind Google with over 20 trillion videos, and accounts for 12% of TV viewership ahead of Disney and Netflix, according to Nielsen. While MoffettNathanson expect YouTube to become the biggest media company by revenue in 2025, CNBC notes challenges on the horizon including antitrust scrutiny that could force a break-up of parent company Alphabet and increasing competition from TikTok. 

Oxford start-up takes on tech giants in quantum computing race

While AI is the current trending topic in tech, quantum computing is set to be the transformative technology of the next decade and companies large and small are already jostling to take the lead. The Times interviewed the founders of Oxford Ionics, a start-up founded in 2019, that is emerging as a significant player in quantum computing, competing alongside the likes of Microsoft, IBM and Google. Oxford Ionics’ technology uses electronic fields to manipulate quantum bits (qubits) instead of lasers, making it more manufacturable. While the company has benefitted from the UK’s National Quantum Technologies Programme, founder Chris Balance said the country is now at a crossroads where it needs “large supplies of capital and conviction” to commercialise tech emerging from universities and scale companies like his.

Streamers struggle with surge in demand for Conclave film

Following the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday, there was a surge in interest in Conclave, the 2024 film starring Ralph Fiennes, which explores the process for selecting a new pope that typically begins following a two-week mourning period. However, WIRED noted a problem: the film isn’t available on any subscription service. Universal and Amazon’s 2021 deal had Conclave streaming first on Peacock for four months, then transitioning to Prime Video for ten months. The surge of interest in the film coinciding with its move between platforms exposed a weakness in streaming infrastructure, according to WIRED. Complex licensing agreements often fail to address the need for flexibility to respond to sudden spikes in demand. 

Top Tweets of the Week

• Sky News: A new blood test that uses AI to detect signs of a dozen cancers long before symptoms develop is to be tested on NHS patients. 
• Natasha Clark, Political Editor, LBC: Ofcom taking action against several companies over possible breaches of online safety act, Peter Kyle tells me @LBC. Tech Sec vows to close loophole which means platforms without chat functions can get out of new rules online
• Matt Field, Senior Tech Reporter, The Telegraph: UK WhatsApp users – how do you feel about the arrival of Meta AI in WhatsApp? Reply or DM me with your unvarnished thoughts…

Number of the week

£1bn Profits reported by Revolut driven by a boom in crypto trading, according to the Financial Times.