Signal boss: ‘disturbing' laws show the UK doesn't understand tech
When I ask what's on her mind, the boss of Signal, WhatsApp's privacy-obsessed messaging rival, stares deep into my eyes with a look that suggests the answer should be obvious: the rise of the 'robot butler'.
In the tech world Whittaker inhabits, entrepreneurs and investors salivate over a not-too-distant future where average Joes will have their own low-cost, errand-running AI agents.
'It books a concert for you,' Whittaker recites. 'It finds a time; what date would work for you and your friends. It messages your friends to co-ordinate, and then puts that in your calendar.'
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The Sun
22 minutes ago
- The Sun
I'm 27 with £120k in savings – but I don't work 9-5 and I'll even retire at 40… anyone can do it
WE'VE all fantasized about retiring from work early - but for most of us it's more of a dream than a possibility. But you don't need a high-flying job or rich parents to make it happen. Maria Psarkis, 27, explains how she has built up £120,000 in saving and plans to retire at just 40. 6 6 6 Maria is just one of a new breed of SHINERs - Side Hustlers Habitually Investing - nurturing income and retiring early. It might not sound catchy - but this group of savvy savers use side hustles and multiple income streams to build their wealth - and avoid the traditional nine to five. In their case, it's their forties when they plan to stop working, or cut their workload to just a few hours a week. Maria explains: "I've upcycled, grafted, and used SEVEN side hustles to build £150k in savings, businesses and investments. "I don't and won't do nine to five. I'm creating my own 'side hustle retirement fund' and building investments by multitasking. "It's not about quitting forever. It's about freedom and being able to choose how and when I work." Maria is not alone. Around 14% of Gen Z - those born after 1996 - want to soft retire in their 40s and stop full-time work before they hit 50, according to a 2024 YouGov survey. But rather than dreaming of sitting on the beach or enjoying a round of golf, many younger people like Maria see soft retiring as a flexible lifestyle shift – not a full stop. They want to be their own bosses and do fewer hours, work remotely and use side hustles to give them financial freedom. Psychic's path to manifesting money and getting rich | Talking Money For Maria this means being a landlord, running a fashion business and working in hospitality, consultancy and content creation. Side hustle empire Maria started to build up her side hustle empire while she was in school and still lived with her parents. "I don't come from a rich family," she said. "When I was 17, I started working on Saturdays doing admin tasks. I tried to save 60% of my wages." When she turned 18, her gran also gave her £2,000, which, when added to her Saturday job and holiday work, brought her savings up to £7,000. After leaving school, Maria worked for twelve months as a waitress, doing event management, part-time modelling and social media marketing. "I am not the typical blonde-haired model," Maria explains. "Agents liked my dark hair, nose and what they called 'Arabic looks'. "I was living at home, so I could save almost 70% of what I earned. I used that year to develop multiple skills at entry-level positions." In 2017, Maria began her hospitality management and marketing degree at the University of Chester. On top of her classes, she also worked four or five shifts a week as a waitress or at hospitality events. "I budgeted £100 a week for travel and food and saved what I could," she said. "I was modelling for fashion students, did catalogue modelling, swimwear and clubwear for fashion companies, and was helping people market themselves on social media." As part of her degree, Maria won the Entrepreneurship in action competition with her business plan for a sustainable clubwear and Gen Z fashion brand. "The judges told me my idea could be launched on a budget and would work," she said. "It was the first time anyone had really praised my business nous and money-making ideas." During that time, Maria became obsessed with side hustles, spreading investment risk and saving. She explains: "I did go out, but limited my spending. "I had fun, but on a budget. I moved in with relatives in the second year to save even more money and cut my student loan liability." By this point, Maria's savings had reached £40,000, so she decided to start investing. But she ended up learning the hard way that investments can go wrong. She chose to try bitcoin trading and invested £7,000 - but soon lost it all. "I ended up being scammed. I was gutted," she said. "Meanwhile, two friends I'd loaned money to could not pay back the £300 I lent them. "Losing £7,300 was my financial rock bottom. I was furious with myself and that anger fuelled my plan to take control and aim to soft retire at 40. "It made me hungry to make sure I was financially protected, never suffered stupid exposure levels, and was always making, not losing, money." The situation made Maria even more focused on her finances. She decided to pay £4,500 upfront for her Master of Science in Management and Marketing to avoid having to pay interest on a student loan. She made extra cash to cover the costs by working as a waitress, events manager, model, travel agent and in social media marketing and advertising. Saved thousands She says: "I made back what I lost and added to my savings. "I had money in a savings account and was using an investment Isa. "I also regularly switched current accounts when offers came up on interest rates or cash bonuses." Maria also took out a credit card with a £2,000 limit to build up her credit score, but made sure to always pay off the balance in full. By 2022, she had amassed £70,000 in savings, including earnings from part-time work, interest from her Isa and side hustles. "I worked and saved hard for the money," she admits. "My financial rock bottom inspired me. I had the savings, but I still was not investment smart." Maria decided to move in with her grandmother in Manchester to save thousands of pounds in rent payments. She used £5,000 of her savings to launch her fashion brand, XX-Attire. The company initially offered clubwear and swimwear, but now sells work-friendly fashion to customers who want sustainable but edgy fashion. Maria said: "I did pop-up shops and catwalk shows in Manchester, London, Greece and Thailand. "I worked on the clothes myself, and the business is now making a profit. "I keep an eye on costs daily, develop only ranges I know will sell out using social media algorithms and client feedback. "I also make customised outfits which can earn me more than £500 per outfit." Property portfolio Maria also realised that the way to really put her money to work was to develop a property portfolio. Two years ago, she bought a two-bedroom house in Manchester for £89,000 and rented it out. She put down a deposit of £29,000 and took out a £60,000 mortgage over 20 years at a five-year fixed rate of 2.2%. Her monthly repayments were £309.25 and she earns £850 a month in rent. "I put that rent money into the mortgage each month and was always paying extra," she said. "I added a spare tenner or fiver weekly and it's cutting years and interest repayments off my mortgage." In total, Maria is able to overpay her mortgage by £61 a month. "This means I can pay off the mortgage four years early, save £3,789 in interest, and gain 48 months of financial freedom," she explains. "Each month, I try to add even more money. The snowball effect of doing this will have a real impact on soft retirement." Maria is also looking to buy a two-bedroom flat in Manchester this year, and plans to live in one of the bedrooms and rent out the other. She plans to put down a £30,000 deposit and take out a £40,000 mortgage. She explains: "Property is a solid investment, and not buying in London means I can get into the property market early, especially as my credit rating is excellent." Clutter into cash She also sells at least £3,000 of old clothes on Vinted or eBay each year, maximises club card points and swaps credit cards or utility suppliers when there's cash to be made or a cashback incentive. "I've made £2,000 doing that. I love charity shop buying and decorating. "I have a budget and stick to it, but if I can make money, even selling old books to a book-buying site, I'll do it. "People don't understand, Gen Z are not about one job, we're about multiple jobs or side hustles. "I earn money from my social media platforms, monetising them so instead of freebies, I get paid from the creators' fund or sponsored posts. "This can pull in £2,000 to £3,000 a month. I also earn a percentage from clients I've built social media content for, through their creators' fund payments." Maria has continued to run specialist hospitality events and says the skills she's learnt since she was 17 now help her to turn a profit. "I've also developed a new side hustle with my partner, who is a chef. "I help people to plan unusual date nights, hire someone to cook for them at home or use simple recipes to recreate restaurant-style food themselves. "It's a unique idea that adds another side hustle to my businesses." She also earns £200 a month by working as a travel agent. Meanwhile, she makes £400 a month from a photo studio that she leases and uses for photo shoots, makeovers and social media marketing. Maria saves a minimum of £1,000 or more a month. "I learnt to do my own accounting at university and have an accountant sign off on it," she said. "I also pay £200 a month into a self invested personal pension and top it up when I can." Maria's now on track to build an investment portfolio, including multiple side hustle businesses, Isas and her fashion brand, and expects to be worth more than half a million within five years. "I have fun. I go out. But I never miss an opportunity or let an idea slip away," she said. "Many people want to be different. They want a side hustle but are scared because the last generation told them nine to five jobs. 'I don't want a rocking chair in my forties. I plan to be soft retired, bossing it on a beach with a laptop." 6 6 Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@
Telegraph
22 minutes ago
- Telegraph
‘Dad invented Freddo. He'd roll over in his grave if he knew what it costs'
The daughter of the inventor of the Freddo chocolate bar said she is 'disgusted' at how much it now costs. Leonie Wadin, 74, claimed that since the death of her father, Harry Melbourne, she had not bought one of the frog-shaped confectionaries. She told Sky News: 'Dad was disgusted with how small it is now and how much they charge for it. 'He'd roll over in his grave if he could see it now. It was a penny chocolate.' In recent years, the Freddo has become a common yardstick by which the British public track inflation. It was first sold in the UK in 1973, before being taken off the shelves the following year. In 1994, when the chocolate bar went back on sale, it cost 10p. Cost of living crisis The Freddo remained at that price until 2005, when it began increasing by about 2p every year. Today, the confectionery is sold for 30p or 35p, but has been advertised for as much as £1. Last year, a Labour MP launched a petition calling for the price of the chocolate bar to be brought down after speaking to students at a local school in his constituency. Writing on X, Patrick Hurley said: 'Twenty pence for a Freddo is too much, especially in a cost of living crisis.' If the price of a Freddo had increased in line with inflation, it would now sell for about 21p. Ms Wadin's British father invented the Freddo in 1930 while working for an Australian company while just 14. She said: 'He said children are scared of mice, so why not a frog? Because kids go down to the lake and catch tadpoles.' Almost 100 years later, her family still takes pride in their connection to the Freddo bar. Ms Wadin added: 'They're very proud of their great-grandad, they still buy them, they love them. Carry on through every heritage, that's what I want. Never going to die 'The Freddo has to be passed on, Freddo is never going to die. It will always be there… I just want it all passed down, so that the frog is always in our lives.' Mondelez International, which owns Cadbury, told Sky News that Freddo had endured popularity across generations since launching in Britain in 1973. They said: 'Whilst it's important to stress that as a manufacturer we do not set the retail prices for products sold in shops, our manufacturing and supply chain costs have increased significantly over the past 50 years, and Freddo has become more expensive to make. 'We have absorbed these increased costs wherever possible. However, on occasion we have made changes to our list prices or multipack sizes to ensure that we can continue to provide consumers with the Freddo that they love, without compromising on the great taste and quality they expect.' Earlier this month, the Bank of England warned that rising food prices could push inflation to 4 per cent. The Monetary Policy Committee said that poor global coffee and cocoa harvests were partly to blame. The price of food, clothing, air and rail fares all contributed to the rate of inflation reaching 3.6 percent last month – the highest rate since January 2024.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Alan Turing Institute accused of ‘mismanagement of public funds'
Staff at the Alan Turing Institute (ATI) have filed a whistleblowing complaint with the charity watchdog, alleging the 'mismanagement of public funds' amid a 'crisis' at the publicly funded research institution. The ATI, which last year was handed £100m in taxpayer funding, was accused of a 'failure to deliver on its charitable mission' in the filing with the Charity Commission, The Telegraph understands. The complaint alleges that public cash and donations have been spent on 'wasted resources' with 'no accountability' over how funds have been deployed. Established in 2015 as Britain's leading centre of artificial intelligence (AI) research, the ATI has been in turmoil amid questions over its effectiveness and internal anger from staff. Peter Kyle, the Technology Secretary, stepped in last month, writing a letter to the chairman of the ATI demanding 'reform' and that it change its focus to defence. Mr Kyle told Doug Gurr, the former Amazon UK boss who is chairman of the ATI's board of trustees, it must 'evolve and adapt' and warned long-term funding for Turing would be tied to new objectives prioritising 'defence, national security and sovereign capabilities'. In the whistleblowing complaint, staff warned that the threat to funding 'could lead to the Institute's collapse'. It is understood that the Charity Commission is in the early stages of examining the claims. As part of the complaint, staff claim that the ATI has shifted its priorities away from its stated charitable purpose, which includes research into 'data-centric engineering, high performance computing and cyber security, to smart cities, health, the economy and data ethics'. Questions for the ATI The ATI, which is named after the Second World War code-breaker Alan Turing, has since scrapped or paused a number of initiatives under its public policy programme, including initiatives to study women and diversity in data science and AI bias. It is not the first time the ATI has faced questions over its direction. A report last month from British Progress, a think tank, claimed it had a 'fragmented and thinly spread research portfolio' that had drifted toward 'work rooted in social and political critique'. The uncertainty at the research lab has been accompanied by the exit of senior researchers and executives. Turing's chief technology officer, Jonathan Starck, left the ATI just nine months after being appointed, while two senior scientists – Andrew Duncan and Marc Deisenroth – both also left earlier this year after originally being asked to lead a series of 'grand challenges' for the organisation. The ATI has been in the process of cutting dozens of jobs, while it has been grappling with plunging morale among staff after ending a number of projects. It is understood that a separate whistleblowing complaint, sent to the UK Research and Innovation funding agency, about the ATI was the subject of an independent investigation, which found no concerns. A spokesman for the Alan Turing Institute said: 'We're shaping a new phase for the Turing, and this requires substantial organisational change to ensure we deliver on the promise and unique role of the UK's national institute for data science and AI. 'As we move forward, we're focused on delivering real-world impact across society's biggest challenges, including responding to the national need to double down on our work in defence, national security and sovereign capabilities.'
