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Universal theme park sparks ‘fear of losing homes’ in Bedford

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Helen Mulroy

BBC News, Bedfordshire

Reporting fromKempston Hardwick
BBC Generic For Sale and To Let Estate Agent signs lined up outside a new build housing and flats estate developmentBBC

A charity said it was concerned about the impact thousands of new workers would have on a town’s property market

A charity warned plans to build Europe’s first Universal theme park would put people at risk of losing their homes.

Prime Minister Kier Starmer confirmed in April the attraction would be built on the former Kempston Hardwick brickworks near Bedford.

Charity Generation Rent believed private renters were “right to be concerned” about thousands of workers moving to the area for the park’s construction, boosting demand for properties.

Bedford Borough Council said it would continue to monitor the use of temporary accommodation, while the Ministry of Housing said it was working on giving tenants “stronger powers to challenge excessive rent hikes”.

Universal Destinations & Experiences/Comcast An artist's impression of the new Universal theme park site shows a big lake and lots of rides surrounding it.Universal Destinations & Experiences/Comcast

Universal said it hoped to start construction of the park in 2026

Office for National Statistics data showed the average private rent in Bedford was £1,125 per month in June 2025, 8.7% higher than a year earlier, compared to a rise of 7.9% across the East of England as a whole.

Nye Jones from Generation Rent, which advocates for private renters, said: “We know a lot of people are already paying the real limit of what they can afford, and a sudden rent hike often leaves renters with no choice but to find somewhere new.

“This would be our fear, as the park builds and property prices go up, landlords will look to cash in on that and force renters out.”

Universal said it would boost the local economy by creating an estimated 28,000 jobs before opening in 2031, and attracting 8.5 million visitors a year by 2031.

Helen Mulroy/BBC Julie Ford stands in front of the site Kempston Hardwick which has been bought by Universal Destinations and Experiences. She looks directly at the camera. She has red shoulder lenght hair and wears a red and white patterned top.   Helen Mulroy/BBC

Julie Ford from property company Gothard Rowe said the park would mean “pros and cons” for housing in Bedford

Bedfordshire-based property commentator Julie Ford said: “Those in property investment are going to find a lot of pros in this… the contractors coming in needing somewhere to live, so serviced accommodation will be needed.

“Then, once the visitors come in, they’re going to need somewhere to stay. The downside means this demand for serviced accommodation removes it from the private rented sector.”

But David Burns, who moved to Kempston during the pandemic and has embarked on a major renovation of his five-bedroom, Grade II listed home, is more positive about Universal.

“When we moved here, this was never the forever home we were going to stay for five, six, seven years,” he said.

“But now Universal is going ahead, that opens up an opportunity to rent out the property.”

Helen Mulroy/BBC David Burns wears a white shirt and black suit. He looks through the door of his home in Kempston. Helen Mulroy/BBC

David Burns said the prospect of a Universal theme park nearby gave him more options for his Grade II listed home

However, as a trustee at local community group The Addison Centre, Mr Burns added it was important to make sure Kempston retained its spirit.

“What we don’t want is for everybody to move out and rent their properties.

“The average person is probably 70 and most have lived here 50 years, so it is still a community and it would be sad if that was disbanded.”

Generation Rent said the Renters’ Rights Bill, which is expected to become law by early 2026, would go some way to protect renters but that more should be done.

Nye Jones told the BBC the charity wanted the government to limit rent rises and bring in quotas for the number of short-term lets, and homes used for holiday rentals in the area.

Nicola Haseler/BBC A row of old cottagesNicola Haseler/BBC

The original hamlet of Kempston Hardwick is next to the site purchased by Universal

Bedford Borough Council said it continued to work closely with central government on the project.

“The council has powers to control the volume of houses of multiple occupation with its statutory powers if required in the future,” it said.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government added: “Our Renters’ Rights Bill will deliver a long-overdue transformation of private renting, including banning Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions.

“We do not support rent controls. We are taking action to cap advance payments to one month’s rent, end unfair bidding wars, and give tenants stronger powers to challenge excessive rent hikes.”

Universal has formally submitted a planning permission request to the government, with their current aim being to open the park in 2031. The company has been contacted for comment.



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Chennai’s BCS Launches Agentic isAI, a No-Code, Self-Orchestrating AI Built for Business Automation

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  • Agentic isAI is a no-code, autonomous AI platform that learns from behavior and automates enterprise operations without human prompts
  • Business Core Solutions is a Chennai-based tech company delivering enterprise-grade automation platforms trusted by global industry leaders

 

The Chennai-based technology company Business Core Solutions (BCS) has launched Agentic isAI, a path-breaking, autonomous AI platform that reimagines enterprise automation. This first-of-its-kind solution empowers businesses to proactively manage operations, reduce downtime, and automate critical workflows, all without the need for prompts, coding, or training data.

 

Chennai’s BCS Launches Agentic isAI, a No-Code, Self-Orchestrating AI Built for Business Automation

 

True to its name, which is inspired by the Tamil word “Isai” – meaning music, Agentic isAI has the ability to bring harmony and intelligence to complex enterprise systems. Unlike traditional AI systems that require extensive training data or manual prompts, Agentic isAI operates with true autonomy – it can observe system behaviour, detect anomalies, and initiate responses without human intervention. The solution is designed as a no-code platform – it learns from real-time patterns instead of relying on pre-trained models, making it faster to deploy and easier to adapt across industries.

 

Built for enterprise environments, it seamlessly integrates with platforms like SAP, Azure, Salesforce, Oracle, and more. Already in production with leading global clients, it is helping reduce downtime, prevent job failures, optimise cloud usage, and automate critical business operations at scale.

 

BCS is a Chennai-based enterprise technology company specialising in intelligent automation platforms for global businesses. Its flagship solutions, including Symphony for process orchestration, Anugal for identity governance, and DQView for data quality management, are trusted by Fortune 100 companies and industry leaders across the US, Europe, Middle East, and Asia-Pacific. With the launch of Agentic isAI, BCS continues to push the boundaries of scalable, AI-driven enterprise automation.

 

In his comments, Mr. Prakash Palani, Founder, Business Core Solutions, said, “We’re proud and excited to launch Agentic isAI, a product that reflects years of deep enterprise insight and cutting-edge innovation. What makes Agentic isAI truly path-breaking is its ability to act autonomously, without prompts, training data, or code, and still deliver reliable, enterprise-grade automation. We believe this platform has the power to fundamentally transform how businesses operate, making them more responsive, efficient, and resilient in a fast-changing world.”

 

He added: “Innovations like this are often expected to emerge from Silicon Valley or other global tech hubs. But Agentic isAI was imagined, engineered, and brought to life right here in Tamil Nadu. It proves that world-class enterprise technology can be built anywhere, as long as there is intent, talent, and vision. This launch isn’t just a milestone for us. It’s a moment of pride for the entire region.”

 

Beyond Agentic isAI, BCS offers a suite of powerful enterprise platforms designed to address core operational challenges. Symphony is an AI-powered orchestration platform that streamlines IT and business processes, enabling seamless automation across complex systems. Anugal focuses on identity and access governance, helping organizations ensure compliance, manage risk, and enforce security with precision. Meanwhile, DQView is a modern data quality platform that brings visibility, validation, and trust to enterprise data landscapes. These solutions reflect BCS’s commitment to building deeply integrated, scalable technologies that drive measurable impact for global businesses.

 

At the heart of BCS is a belief that technology and social responsibility can grow together. The company has consistently invested in inclusive hiring, with over half its workforce comprising individuals from underrepresented backgrounds, including first-generation graduates, rural youth, women returning to work, and persons with hearing and speech impairments. Through initiatives like the BCS Academy, which trains and places students, and HERizon, which supports women re-entering the workforce, BCS has created not just jobs, but opportunities for transformation. Its social initiatives also extend to improving public education, installing clean water systems, and nurturing local talent, making it a company where business success and human impact go hand in hand.



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EasyJet captain suspended after getting ‘drunk and naked’ in hotel

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EasyJet has suspended one of its captains after he was reportedly seen roaming a luxury hotel drunk and naked.

The unnamed pilot was witnessed walking through common areas of a five-star resort in Cape Verde without any clothes on in the early hours of the morning on 5 August, after an extended drinking session in a bar, according to the Sun.

He was due to operate a return flight to Gatwick more than 36 hours later, but was grounded after the budget airline received complaints about the incident and a replacement pilot found.

An EasyJet spokesman told the BBC the pilot now faces an investigation and that the safety of passengers and crew was its “highest priority”.

The captain arrived at the Melia Dunas Beach Resort and Spa in the West African island nation on 4 August and proceeded to begin drinking, the Sun reports.

At around 02:30 local time (04:30 BST) the following morning, hotel guests reportedly saw him strip off and wander into the reception, before moving on to the gym and spa, according to the newspaper.

“The pilot did not have a stitch on and reeked of alcohol,” an anonymous source inside the airline was quoted by the paper as saying.

“Anyone who saw the pilot cavorting naked in the early hours on the day before a flight would not dream of getting on a plane with him at the controls.”

He was scheduled to helm the 2,332-nautical-mile (4,318km) trip back to Gatwick on the afternoon of 6 August, but was removed from the flight.

An EasyJet spokesman said: “As soon as we were made aware, the pilot was immediately stood down from duty, in line with our procedures, pending an investigation.

“The safety of our passengers and crew is EasyJet’s highest priority.”

The airline’s code of business ethics states that staff must behave “with integrity when dealing with our people, our customers, our partners and the communities within which we operate”.



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KT reports record operating profit on robust AI business in Q2

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South Korea’s major mobile carrier KT Corp., which has picked artificial intelligence as its next growth engine, posted a record-high quarterly operating profit exceeding 1 trillion won ($719 million) in the second quarter, thanks to a double-digit growth in its AI business.

The company announced in a regulatory filing on Monday that its consolidated operating income came to 1.01 trillion won for the April-June period, more than doubling from the same period last year and breaching the 1 trillion won mark for the first time since its inception.

Revenue climbed 13.5% to 7.43 trillion won, while net profit surged 78.6% to 733.3 billion won.

Profit was partly driven by a one-off gain of 390 billion won from selling the company’s real estate assets.

But KT also attributed brisk sales in the business-to-business unit, especially AI services, to the stellar result.

Sales from its AI and information technology business jumped 13.8% on-year to 317.6 billion won in the quarter, whereas its mainstay wireless service added 1.6% to 1.7 trillion won. Broadband revenue also inched up 2.1%.

(Graphics by Daeun Lee) 

KT expects momentum to continue in the second half with the launch of new business-to-business products, including a large language model (LLM) and advanced cloud-computing services.

It also projects stronger subscriber growth in mobile after some SK Telecom Co. users switched carriers to KT following an April data breach that affected all of SK’s 25 million customers.

ACCELERATED TRANSITION INTO AICT COMPANY

The upbeat result in the AI business is expected to accelerate KT’s push to transform into a so-called AICT company, a plan unveiled by KT Chief Executive Kim Young-shub at this year’s MWC Barcelona in March.

AICT service is aimed at bolstering traditional telecommunications services with IT and AI technologies.

KT is Korea’s only company that has formed AI partnerships with both Microsoft Corp. and Palantir Technologies Inc.

It also signed a strategic partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to bolster customized mobile and generative AI services for corporate customers in February last year.

It plans to introduce its LLM under development with Microsoft soon, as well as encrypted cloud services using confidential-computing technology, which processes encrypted data only after verifying a trusted execution environment. 

KT CEO Kim Young-shub (left) and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella shake hands after signing a strategic partnership at Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington on June 3, 2024 (Courtesy of KT) 

“In the second half, we will release our encrypted cloud developed with Microsoft and unveil a full AI lineup, including K-ChatGPT, a LLM model,” said Jang Min, KT’s chief financial officer. “The move will help KT cement its position as Korea’s leading AI company.”

COLLABORATION WITH US BIG TECH COMPANIES 

KT’s collaboration with Palantir in AI is also expected to gain further traction.

In March, it became the first Korean company to forge an exclusive strategic partnership with the US tech company.  

KT will incorporate Palantir’s AI and big data platforms with its own cloud and network infrastructure to help AI transformation, or AX, in both public and private businesses.

“We are now the most trusted AX partner in the financial industry,” said a KT official.

The utilization rate at a data center operated by KT Cloud, KT’s cloud service offering subsidiary, has already surpassed 90%, underscoring demand. 

After failing to join the state-led sovereign AI initiative, KT will focus more on the private sector through its collaboration with big tech companies, the company said.

Last week, the Korean government selected five local technology firms, including LG, Naver and SK Telecom, to spearhead the country’s flagship sovereign AI initiative, as Seoul moves to build large-scale AI models independent of US tech giants such as OpenAI, the operator of ChatGPT.

KT joined the race but dropped out of the bid in the second round of evaluation.

Write to Ji-Hee Choi at mymasaki@hankyung.com
Sookyung Seo edited this article.



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