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Remember when "disruption" meant your Wi-Fi going down during a Zoom call? Those were simpler times. This week’s edition charts the changes that are coming at us fast, as the distance between ‘impossible’ and ‘inevitable’ keeps shrinking. Let’s find out more.

Enjoy!

GPT-5 is here – and it thinks before it speaks

OpenAI’s latest model is now rolling out to ChatGPT users and should be available to all by August 15. Faster, sharper and more grounded, GPT-5 runs on a new three-part system that pairs speed with deeper reasoning – and knows when to use which. Early access users claim it’s noticeably better at writing, coding and complex problem-solving, but its biggest upgrade might be honesty: fewer made-up facts, clearer refusals and more context-aware replies. There’s even a ‘Cynic’ personality mode, for when you want your chatbot to sound like your hard-to-impress colleague. Check out MIT’s take on it here.

And while OpenAI was rolling out GPT-5 for coding, writing and enterprise tasks, one Redditor used rival model Claude to automate Tinder chats – lining up 10 dates in a week using a mash-up of Android emulators, screenshot recognition and AI-generated replies. It’s equal parts impressive, dystopian and ethically questionable – but it shows just how far generative AI is creeping into emotional and social territory. The age of AI-enhanced charm is here. Consent and context... not always.

Why investors are playing short in a long-term crisis

The world’s biggest asset manager has made a clear break with economic orthodoxy. In its latest midyear outlook, BlackRock says the macro environment has entered a new regime — one marked by structural volatility, fragmented geopolitics and the fading of traditional anchors such as low inflation and stable growth. In this new world, it argues, investors must shed outdated playbooks and focus on shorter time horizons, dynamic positioning and structural themes like AI, ageing and infrastructure. Long-term thinking, in other words, now requires a radically different approach. Read the report here.

Europe doesn’t need louder founders – it needs better storytellers

While Silicon Valley pitches are all world domination and moonshots, European startups often bury brilliant ideas under a fog of buzzwords and cautious caveats. But it’s not a lack of ambition – it’s a narrative gap. A new US accelerator is pairing technical founders with Pulitzer-winning journalists to fix exactly that: helping them explain, clearly and credibly, why their product matters. As AI startups pile up with impressive demos but no compelling story, the race is on to turn facts into vision. Find out more from Sifted here.

Osborne says UK is being left behind in the crypto boom

While Europe’s founders struggle with storytelling, the former Chancellor George Osborn says the UK is also missing a trick – but in this case it’s around the second wave of crypto innovation. Osborne criticised the government’s hesitant stance on digital currencies – especially stablecoins – and warned that Britain’s slow pace is pushing it to the margins of global fintech. While the US, Singapore and Abu Dhabi move fast with clear frameworks, UK regulators remain cautious. “This hesitation risks irrelevance,” he said, arguing that the pound could soon be left out of a dollar-dominated future for digital assets. The Guardian has the story.​

AI prompt of the week: reframe competitive analysis by customer mindset

Tired of comparing rivals by features or market share? Try this instead: use AI to map your competitors by the problems their customers are trying to solve. This prompt helps you reframe the landscape through customer entry points – from “something’s not working but I don’t know what” to “I’m ready to send an RFP.” You’ll get a smarter view of who’s speaking to what mindset – and where the white space is.

“Act as a market positioning strategist. I’ll give you a list of competing companies and sample messaging from their websites or social media. First, help me define 3–5 customer entry points – for example: (1) early-stage frustration, (2) researching solutions, (3) ready to buy. Then, review each company’s messaging and categorise them into the right entry point. Explain your reasoning. Finally, summarise patterns: which customer problems are over-served, under-served, or missing altogether – and what tone or language is dominant.”

Why campaign phases no longer make sense in a fragmented media world

Tease, launch, sustain: it’s the default slide in a hundred marketing decks – and, according to strategist Pollyanna Ward, long overdue for retirement. In an era where media is personalised, culture moves at speed and attention is entirely unscheduled, the idea that audiences move neatly through a three-step funnel is fiction. Campaigns today don’t unfold chronologically – they are experienced in fragments, often out of order, often out of context. That means every asset must work on its own, deliver impact in the moment and still reinforce long-term brand salience. Drawing on behavioural science, real-world brand examples, and frameworks like Google’s ‘messy middle’, Ward makes a compelling case for moving away from phasing entirely. Her Substack piece on this is well worth a look.​

Financial services M&A revives as firms seek scale and focus

After a muted 2023, financial services M&A activity picked up pace in 2024 – with total global deal value rising 15 per cent year-on-year, according to PwC. Volumes dipped slightly, but the return of megadeals such as Global Payments’ $24bn acquisition of Worldpay and UniCredit’s €13.9bn bid for Mediobanca signal renewed boardroom confidence. So far in 2025, activity remains strong, fuelled by consolidation, digital transformation and a push to streamline business models under regulatory and cost pressure. Get the report here.

Knock knock. Who’s there? A brand with no idea how to be funny

Most brands that try to be amusing end up somewhere between awkward and annoying. That’s because they haven’t defined the type of humour they use, says strategist and stand-up comedian Mike Robb. In a useful breakdown of six comedic archetypes — from the self-deprecator to the in-joke insider — he explains how brands can move beyond “we do jokes and memes now” to a consistent comic point of view. A must-read for anyone who’s ever said “can we make it livelier” in a Slack feedback comment and hit send. Find out more here.

How alive do you feel?

​This short, smart quiz by Jodi Wellman cuts deeper than most. In just nine questions, it maps your current vitality across four quadrants – showing what’s energising you, what’s missing and where you might be coasting on autopilot. It’s playful, but gently confronting too. Want to go darker? Her Monday Calculator counts how many you’ve got left. Hat tip to the always excellent Strands of Genius newsletter for alerting me to Wellman’s quiz.

10 signs of burnout

Silent burnout is a creeping, steady drain on energy, focus and joy. Here are the subtle behaviours that signal you (or one of your team) are running on empty. Spot them early, and you can address before the damage runs deep.

Join the conversation

The best insights come from readers who are living this stuff daily. What patterns are you seeing? Get in touch and let me know. More dispatches from the front line of business and culture next Sunday.

Cheers!
Adam

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