NETWORK OUTAGES COST GLOBAL FIRMS MILLIONS ANNUALLY - EXPEREO

KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 (Bernama) -- Global businesses are facing significant financial losses due to network instability, with 28 per cent reporting revenue declines of up to US$5 million and another 23 per cent exceeding that figure, according to the latest findings from an IDC InfoBrief commissioned by Expereo. (US$1=RM4.19)

Titled “Enterprise Horizons 2025: Technology Leaders Priorities: Achieving Digital Agility”, the report highlights the mounting toll of network outages or poor performance on enterprise operations, with nearly half (49 per cent) of global organisations re-evaluating their technology infrastructure in response to recent high-profile information technology (IT) disruptions.

As a result, networking and connectivity has emerged as the top investment priority for global businesses over the next 12 months, cited by 43 per cent of respondents, ahead of cybersecurity (38 per cent) and artificial intelligence (AI) (37 per cent).

Expereo Chief Executive Officer, Ben Elms said to drive a sustainable competitive advantage, connectivity is no longer an IT concern; it is a strategic business imperative.

“As organisations adopt new AI solutions, network performance must be prioritised at the same level as cybersecurity and AI, or businesses risk falling behind,” he said in a statement.

Last year, AI led the rankings at 42 per cent, followed by cybersecurity (37 per cent) and networking and connectivity (35 per cent), reflecting a shift in urgency among technology decision-makers.

The study found that 27 per cent of businesses consider inadequate network and connectivity performance a direct threat to growth plans, while 45 per cent said it is limiting their ability to scale data and AI initiatives. Only six per cent of businesses believe their networks are fully equipped to support AI without obstacles.

The report also highlights a widening skills gap, with 41 per cent of organisations struggling to hire or retain cybersecurity professionals, followed closely by networking talent (39 per cent).

In response, 45 per cent of businesses plan to increase reliance on external partners, including vendors and managed service providers, to bridge critical gaps in network capability.

-- BERNAMA

GLOBAL SWF EVALUATES SOVEREIGN INVESTORS; NINE FUNDS SET BENCHMARK

KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 (Bernama) -- Global SWF has published the sixth edition of its annual Governance, Sustainability, and Resilience (GSR) Scoreboard, assessing 200 of the world’s largest Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) and Public Pension Funds managing a collective US$29.4 trillion across 80 countries. (US$1=RM4.19)

The 2025 report, widely considered the global benchmark for best practices among State-Owned Investors (SOIs), is based on 25 different elements that are answered binarily based only on public information.

Global SWF Founder and Managing Director, Diego López emphasised the scoreboard’s role in promoting global standards.

“Our GSR Scoreboard is the only annual, independent assessment of best practices for SOIs. The nine perfect scorers of 2025 prove that excellence is achievable across diverse regions and mandates,” he said in a statement.

The report revealed a flat average GSR score of 61 per cent, with sustainability performance showing modest improvement while governance scores declined slightly due to growing transparency issues.

Geopolitical tensions and shifting trade dynamics have overtaken sustainability as top concerns for the leadership of sovereign investors, with many institutions becoming increasingly inward-focused and opaque, according to the report.

Despite these trends, several funds maintained high marks. Temasek Holdings, BCI, and the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation were among those recognised for consistent leadership in governance, transparency, and responsible investing.

The report also highlighted growing commitments to net zero goals, though only 35 per cent of the 200 funds analysed have set clear targets.

Regional disparities persisted, with North America, Europe, and Oceania outperforming peers in Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

The full report is available at www.globalswf.com/reports/2025gsr and will be officially presented during a live event in Singapore on July 8.

-- BERNAMA

HCLTECH, OPENAI INK STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP TO ACCELERATE ENTERPRISE AI TRANSFORMATION

KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 (Bernama) -- HCLTech has entered into a multi-year strategic collaboration with OpenAI to accelerate large-scale enterprise adoption of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI).

In a statement, the global technology company said it is among the first strategic services partners to OpenAI, leveraging the latter’s leading AI products alongside HCLTech’s industry expertise and applied AI capabilities.

Through this partnership, HCLTech will embed OpenAI’s models and solutions across its proprietary platforms, including AI Force, AI Foundry, AI Engineering and industry-specific accelerators to support end-to-end enterprise AI transformation.

HCLTech Global Chief Technology Officer and Head of Ecosystems, Vijay Guntur said the collaboration reinforces the company’s engineering heritage and commitment to delivering transformative AI solutions for Global 2000 enterprises.

Meanwhile, OpenAI Chief Commercial Officer, Giancarlo ‘GC’ Lionetti said HCLTech’s AI engineering capabilities set the stage for scalable innovation and enhanced customer experiences.

This deep integration will support clients in modernising business processes, enhancing customer and employee experiences and identifying new growth opportunities, spanning the full AI lifecycle, from readiness assessments to large-scale deployment, governance and change management.

HCLTech will also implement ChatGPT Enterprise and OpenAI’s application programming interfaces (APIs) internally to equip its global workforce with secure, enterprise-grade GenAI tools.

-- BERNAMA