Spain-based CaixaBank and Google Cloud extended their partnership to 2033 as the bank looks to expand its use of AI and cloud technologies to serve 13 million customers.
Under the agreement, CaixaBank will deploy Google Cloud’s Gemini Enterprise platform to develop and manage AI agents. The bank expects the agents to help employees analyse complex financial information, automate repetitive tasks and streamline everyday workflows.
The companies identified three areas for the expanded partnership. CaixaBank plans to use Gemini Enterprise to analyse large datasets and deploy specialised AI agents for document management, classification and summarising complex content.
CaixaBank will combine its private systems with Google Cloud infrastructure to increase resilience, scalability and service availability. The agreement also covers threat detection and security monitoring.
The agreement includes professional services, joint projects and training to help employees use the new technology. The work will operate under CaixaBank’s security, privacy and responsible AI policies.
CaixaBank first partnered with Google Cloud in 2023. The bank stated it has the largest digital customer base in Spain’s financial sector.
SoftBank Group founder and CEO Masayoshi Son (pictured) is reportedly targeting up to $100 billion in funding to scale up the company’s AI ambitions, with a number of investors in the Gulf in line to strike partnerships.
The Financial Times (FT) reported Son has been in discussions with senior figures across the Middle East including in the UAE over possible fundraising, although the outlet added there is no guarantee talks with the investors will amount to anything.
It also did not name any companies or specific individual investors.
FT sources claim Son is looking to use the cash to set up a fund to buy companies and then use AI and other advanced technology to improve operations.
SoftBank’s AI and robotics business Roze is expected to play a key role in the process should it come to fruition, with the company planning to take the unit public.
Raising $100 billion to fuel its AI ambitions adds to a $65 billion bet SoftBank has made on OpenAI.
There is also notably a drive across the Gulf nations to invest in the AI sector and diversify economies into technology-related fields, with UAE-based G42 and MGX pumping big sums of cash into development.
Son has a history of courting Gulf investors, with UAE sovereign wealth fund Mubadala and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund partnering with the Japanese company on its original Vision Fund in 2017.
OpenAI’s annualised revenue reportedly reached $50 billion in September, falling $20 billion short of estimates due to accounting discrepancies rather than a slowdown in demand.
The Financial Times (FT) reported financial documents viewed by investors put its annual revenue at $50 billion in September instead of the widely reported $70 billion.
The news site noted the shortfall was due to attempts by OpenAI’s own investor to provide a comparison to rival Anthropic’s annualised revenue run rate. CNBC reported Anthropic’s annualised run rate hit $65 billion by late July 2026.
While the $20 billion gap sounds like a sudden drop, OpenAI clarified to investors its direct revenue still grew by over 70% in Q3 2026 alone, according to FT.
Reuters and other news outlets reported OpenAI was approaching $70 billion in late September based on a more than twofold increase in enterprise sales since July.
FT explained the two AI players calculate revenue in different ways, with Anthropic including sales from cloud partners such as Amazon Web Services and Google while OpenAI does not.
Anthropic is reportedly targeting an IPO in November after the US midterm elections while OpenAI is targeting a listing next year.
Mobile World Live (MWL) brings you our top three picks of the week as Indian authorities rejected Elon Musk’s allegations about Starlink’s regulatory roadblocks, BT rescued TalkTalk in a £400 million deal and Deutsche Telekom (DT) looked to capitalise on sovereign AI demand.
India hits back at Musk over Starlink oligarch claims
What happened: India’s Ministry of Communications rebuked Elon Musk’s accusation that Indian oligarchs were blocking Starlink’s launch in the country and seeking to preserve a “monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people”, stressing its satellite communications framework is “fair and non-discriminatory”.
Why it matters: The watchdog explained Starlink, along with Indian telecom incumbents Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, are all at the same stage of the regulatory process. Each operator must complete security assessments before they can seek spectrum, with final clearances pending. Musk has previously clashed with Reliance Jio owner Mukesh Ambani over satellite spectrum access in the country. Starlink’s protracted approval process in India has lasted four years, with security requirements and spectrum access among key issues. Its presence in the country has also been complicated by reports that Starlink equipment was recovered across parts of the country, claims Musk said do not indicate an illegal active service in India.
Manas Mody, founder of business consultancy FX & Float, said the regulatory debate was “broader than a contest between Musk and operators” because “there could be legitimate regulatory and security considerations behind the resistance”, adding India “has done considerable work to secure its critical digital infrastructure”. “While Musk’s concerns may have some merit, I believe there’s likely more to this than just a conspiracy involving oligarchs,” he argued, adding Starlink is “unlikely to make a significant dent in India’s consumer telecom market” at its planned pricing as its “real opportunity lies in improving connectivity in underserved regions and remote hubs”.
What happened: BT Group agreed a £400 million deal to acquire TalkTalk’s consumer and wholesale businesses out of administration, bringing 2.5 million customers and around 900 employees under its ownership.
Why it matters: The acquisition prevents the UK broadband provider from folding and potentially disrupting services for millions of customers. TalkTalk reported £1.2 billion in revenue in the past 12 months but was loss-making following a prolonged, unsuccessful sales process. BT CEO Allison Kirkby called the situation “genuinely unprecedented”, warning millions of citizens, businesses and public services were at risk if TalkTalk collapsed. She said the acquisition was “the only viable option to keep millions of customers connected and supported”, with the BT adding the business can become value accretive if it is stabilised.
Kester Mann, director of consumer and connectivity at FDM CCS Insight, said the deal “will inevitably also evoke scrutiny from regulators keen to ensure a fair and competitive playing field”, given BT’s “strong position in the broadband market”. He added that this was particularly relevant after competition authorities raised concerns over Nexfibre’s planned acquisition of fellow broadband player Netomnia.
For TalkTalk, Mann said the deal “cements a painful decline” as the company “failed to respond sufficiently to a fast-changing and increasingly competitive market”. Its demise, he warned, should be “a stark warning to any value-focused telecom provider”.
What happened: DT set out plans to turn rising demand for sovereign AI into a new revenue stream, targeting around €250 million in non-US AI-related revenue this year and approximately €800 million by 2030.
Why it matters: The German operator noted European businesses and public institutions seeking AI capabilities while retaining control of data and operations presented a key opportunity, describing sovereign AI as a “growth business”.To that end, DT said it is developing an automation platform for SMEs and expanding AI customer service offerings. CEO Timotheus Hoettges stressed it is crucial AI “delivers measurable value” across the business.
Jamie Escott, account director at Vodafone Business Security Enhanced, said DT’s projected €2.5 billion reduction in indirect costs by 2030 highlights “the growing importance of AI moving beyond experimentation and into large-scale operational deployment”. He added organisations are increasingly focusing on “measurable outcomes such as productivity, efficiency and service quality”. Meanwhile, Jean-Philippe Romieu, executive director for cloud and AI professional services at Microsoft Germany, described DT’s strategy as a “telco blueprint”, pointing to use cases included network integrated AI, autonomous infrastructure and AI-assisted operations. However, he flagged issues including volatile compute costs and market adoption, warning DT’s success “relies heavily on European enterprises prioritising data localisation over hyperscaler pricing and performance”.
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