Alphabet’s Google and OpenAI said their artificial-intelligence models won gold medals at a global mathematics competition, signaling a breakthrough in maths capabilities in the race to build powerful systems that can rival human intelligence, reported Reuters.
The results marked the first time that AI systems crossed the gold-medal scoring threshold at the International Mathematical Olympiad for high-school students. Both companies’ models solved five out of six problems, achieving the result using general-purpose “reasoning” models that processed mathematical concepts using natural language, in contrast to the previous approaches used by AI firms.
The achievement suggests AI is less than a year away from being used by mathematicians to crack unsolved research problems at the frontier of the field, according to Junehyuk Jung, a math professor at Brown University and visiting researcher in Google’s DeepMind AI unit.
“I think the moment we can solve hard reasoning problems in natural language will enable the potential for collaboration between AI and mathematicians,” Jung told Reuters.
The same idea can apply to research quandaries in other fields such as physics, said Jung, who won an IMO gold medal as a student in 2003.
Of the 630 students participating in the 66th IMO on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia, 67 contestants, or about 11 per cent, achieved gold-medal scores.
Google’s DeepMind AI unit last year achieved a silver medal score using AI systems specialised for maths. This year, Google used a general-purpose model called Gemini Deep Think, a version of which was previously unveiled at its annual developer conference in May.
Unlike previous AI attempts that relied on formal languages and lengthy computation, Google’s approach this year operated entirely in natural language and solved the problems within the official 4.5-hour time limit, the company said in a blog post.
OpenAI, which has its own set of reasoning models, similarly built an experimental version for the competition, according to a post by researcher Alexander Wei on social media platform X. He noted that the company does not plan to release anything with this level of math capability for several months.
This year marked the first time the competition coordinated officially with some AI developers, who have for years used prominent math competitions like IMO to test model capabilities. IMO judges certified the results of those companies, including Google, and asked them to publish results on July 28.
“We respected the IMO Board’s original request that all AI labs share their results only after the official results had been verified by independent experts and the students had rightly received the acclamation they deserved,” Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis said on X.
According to the latest Global Insurance Market Index released today by Marsh, the world’s leading insurance broker and risk advisor and a business of Marsh McLennan (NYSE: MMC), global commercial insurance rates fell 4%, on average, in the second quarter of 2025 following a 3% decline in Q1 2025. Increasing insurer competition, is currently the main catalyst behind rising market capacity, more favorable rates, and broader coverage options.
All global regions experienced year-over-year composite rate decreases in Q2 – of between 4% and 11% – except for the US, where the rate was flat. Q2 is the fourth consecutive global quarterly decrease following seven years of quarterly increases and is a continuation of the moderating rate trend first recorded in Q1 2021.
The Pacific and the UK regions experienced the largest composite rate decreases, at 11% and 6%, respectively. Rates declined in Asia; Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC); and India, Middle East, and Africa (IMEA) by 5%; and in Canada and Europe by 4%.
Other findings included:
Property rates declined by 7% globally following a 6% decline in Q1, with rate movement varying by region. The US and Pacific regions experienced the largest decreases, at 9% and 13% respectively, while all other regions declined between 4% and 7%.
Casualty rates increased 4% globally, which was led by a 9% increase in the US due largely to the frequency and severity of casualty claims, many of which are characterized by large (so-called “nuclear”) jury awards.
Financial and professional lines rates continued to moderate and decreased by 4% globally in the second quarter compared to a 6% decrease in Q1 2025. Rates declined in every region, except the US, where rates remained flat.
Cyber insurance rates decreased by 7%, with declines seen in every region, including 17% in LAC and 15% in Europe.
Commenting on the report, John Donnelly, President, Global Placement, Marsh, said: “Mounting competition among insurers with ambitious growth targets is providing reduced pricing and broader coverage options. Against this backdrop, rising US casualty rates are a concern for clients. As geopolitical issues, including tariffs and cross-border conflicts, create new challenges and uncertainties, organizations now have access to many attractive traditional and alternative financing strategies to manage their risks. Clients should work closely with Marsh to assess exposures and risk appetite and to find areas where it may be possible to broaden coverage compared to what was available in recent years.”
The preliminary reading of Australia’s Judo Bank Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) came in at 51.6 in July versus 50.6 prior, the latest data published by Judo Bank and S&P Global showed on Thursday.
The Judo Bank Australian Services PMI climbed to 53.8 in July from the previous reading of 51.8, while the Composite PMI rose to 53.6 in July versus 51.6 prior.
Market reaction
At the press time, the AUD/USD pair was up 0.01% on the day to trade at 0.6602.
Australian Dollar FAQs
One of the most significant factors for the Australian Dollar (AUD) is the level of interest rates set by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). Because Australia is a resource-rich country another key driver is the price of its biggest export, Iron Ore. The health of the Chinese economy, its largest trading partner, is a factor, as well as inflation in Australia, its growth rate and Trade Balance. Market sentiment – whether investors are taking on more risky assets (risk-on) or seeking safe-havens (risk-off) – is also a factor, with risk-on positive for AUD.
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) influences the Australian Dollar (AUD) by setting the level of interest rates that Australian banks can lend to each other. This influences the level of interest rates in the economy as a whole. The main goal of the RBA is to maintain a stable inflation rate of 2-3% by adjusting interest rates up or down. Relatively high interest rates compared to other major central banks support the AUD, and the opposite for relatively low. The RBA can also use quantitative easing and tightening to influence credit conditions, with the former AUD-negative and the latter AUD-positive.
China is Australia’s largest trading partner so the health of the Chinese economy is a major influence on the value of the Australian Dollar (AUD). When the Chinese economy is doing well it purchases more raw materials, goods and services from Australia, lifting demand for the AUD, and pushing up its value. The opposite is the case when the Chinese economy is not growing as fast as expected. Positive or negative surprises in Chinese growth data, therefore, often have a direct impact on the Australian Dollar and its pairs.
Iron Ore is Australia’s largest export, accounting for $118 billion a year according to data from 2021, with China as its primary destination. The price of Iron Ore, therefore, can be a driver of the Australian Dollar. Generally, if the price of Iron Ore rises, AUD also goes up, as aggregate demand for the currency increases. The opposite is the case if the price of Iron Ore falls. Higher Iron Ore prices also tend to result in a greater likelihood of a positive Trade Balance for Australia, which is also positive of the AUD.
The Trade Balance, which is the difference between what a country earns from its exports versus what it pays for its imports, is another factor that can influence the value of the Australian Dollar. If Australia produces highly sought after exports, then its currency will gain in value purely from the surplus demand created from foreign buyers seeking to purchase its exports versus what it spends to purchase imports. Therefore, a positive net Trade Balance strengthens the AUD, with the opposite effect if the Trade Balance is negative.
British car and van production in the first half of this year has hit its lowest level since 1953, excluding the industry shutdown during Covid.
Car output fell 7.3% in the six months to June while the closure of Vauhall’s Luton van plant helped drive van production down 45%, data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) shows.
Uncertainty over tariffs in the US – the UK industry’s second biggest market – meant some firms slowed or stopped production in the first half of this year.
SMMT said the US-UK tariff deal which has since come into effect could help confidence, while the government said its electric vehicle (EV) grants would “boost” the industry.
The SMMT welcomed the EV grants, but it said the new system lacked clarity and had been introduced without consulting the industry.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said the half year production figures were “depressing” but that he hoped that the first half of this year marked “the nadir” for the UK auto industry.
A deal with the US to reduce tariffs from 27.5% to 10% was announced in May came into effect on 30 June, with SMMT recording a small rise in vehicle production in June.
However, the SMMT does not expect to return to 2021 production levels of one million vehicles by the end of the decade.
Mr Hawes said that the government’s target of 1.3 million vehicles per year by 2035 was “quite some ambition from where we are”, adding that “we clearly require at least one, if not two, new entrants to come into UK production” to hit the target.
Production of electrified vehicles rose 1.8% with battery, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid vehicles accounting for a record of more than two in five of vehicles produced.
Last week the government confirmed it will reintroduce grants of up to £3,750 on some EVs are priced at or below £37,000.
While the SMMT welcomed the return of incentives that were abolished in 2022, there is widespread confusion about which vehicles will qualify for the discounts.
The eligibility and level of discount will be determined by the amount of carbon emitted in the production of the vehicle and its battery. They will only be offered to manufacturers that have verified science-based targets with thresholds the government has not yet defined.
It’s expected that Chinese and Korean vehicles will not meet the criteria but little else is clear.
“The difficulty is, we don’t know. Nobody knows, but nobody, not even government, really knows yet, which models and which brands will qualify,” said Mr Hawes.
“I think the industry is still trying to get clarity behind its application. Right now your dealer cannot tell you whether the model you are considering is eligible.”
He said clarity was needed soon as September is the second biggest month for new car registrations.
A transport department spokesperson said it expects “dozens of models to be eligible for the electric car grant, which will provide a substantial boost for the industry and save drivers thousands of pounds”.
“We want the discounts to become available to drivers as soon as possible, and we are engaging extensively with vehicle manufacturers and have published guidance to help them apply as easily as possible,” they added.
The £650m of grant money will be awarded on a first come first served basis.
Oil steadied after a string of losses, with investors looking to US trade talk progress and low inventory levels.
Brent crude traded below $69 a barrel after four sessions of declines, with West Texas Intermediate above $65. US President Donald Trump said he would set tariffs of 15% to 50% ahead of an Aug. 1 deadline for trade talks. The 15% levy rate was set for Japan on Wednesday, while the European Union is progressing toward a similar agreement.
As part of recent efforts to assess the economic consequences of a second Trump administration (Gensler et al. 2025), Olarreaga and Santander (2025) ask: who pays for the US tariffs? A key question in the context of a trade war is whether the burden of tariffs falls on foreign exporters or domestic importers.
This question brings us back to the broader concept of the incidence of cost shocks in international trade. Such shocks can affect exporters’ production costs, trade costs, or exchange rates. A natural concern for policymakers is how much of these foreign shocks are passed through to import prices – in other words, what their incidence is on domestic importers.
In a recent paper (Fontaine et al. 2023), we examine the incidence of cost shocks in international trade using a firm-to-firm trade model with search frictions.
International trade is supported by a network of firm-to-firm relationships. Leveraging new data on these networks, trade economists have developed models that incorporate such relationships and have proven useful in understanding the vulnerability and resilience of trade flows. However, in many of these models, firms’ pricing strategies are so stylised that they cannot be used to study the incidence of cost shocks. A recent exception is the work by Alviarez et al. (2023), which examines price negotiations between a seller and a buyer with differing market power. In their framework, trade relationships are taken as given, and the pass-through of shocks depends on the relative bargaining power of the two parties. We take a different approach, assuming search frictions. Buyers meet new suppliers infrequently which provides a reduced-form way to capture the various obstacles that complicate the formation of trade relationships and has implications for prices and trade flows.
In our model, each buyer knows only a limited number of trading partners. The limited strength of competition within these restricted pools has consequences for the price they are offered. Over time, however, buyers encounter new potential suppliers. Meeting a new supplier creates an opportunity to switch if the newcomer is more competitive than the current supplier, or to push prices downward if the new supplier forces the buyer’s existing supplier to reduce its markup.
The model allows us to replicate several trade patterns observed in international trade networks. First, this approach implies significant heterogeneity in prices and markups across trade relationships. The price charged by a supplier depends on the buyer’s outside options, which varies with the buyer’s experience in its search process. A natural corollary is that markups vary within a supplier, across its downstream partners. Such variation in prices across firm-to-firm relationships is consistent with evidence presented in our earlier work (Fontaine et al. 2020).
Second, prices tend to decline within trade relationships, over time. The reason is straightforward: as the buyer continues to meet new potential suppliers, its outside options expand, putting downward pressure on the current supplier’s price. This pattern is consistent with evidence recovered from our data, as well as evidence in other studies (Heise 2024, Monarch and Schmidt-Eisenlohr 2023).
Armed with this rich framework, we can explore how search frictions shape the incidence of cost shocks. As a thought experiment, we consider a scenario in which costs rise in a particular country. All foreign suppliers from that country are affected by the shock, and we examine how this impacts buyers who were initially matched with these suppliers.
The model shows that the shock can impose very different burdens on different buyers. Some buyers are not affected – their supplier absorbs the shock as they can’t raise price due to competition pressures exerted by the buyer’s alternative potential suppliers. In other cases, the supplier can’t absorb the shock, and the buyer needs to switch to its second-best supplier and pay a higher price. Last, the supplier’s direct competitor within the buyer’s network is also affected by the shock, enabling the supplier to raise its price. Moreover, because buyers continue to meet potential suppliers after the shock, the prevalence of these situations evolves over time.
Ultimately, the incidence on buyers is an empirical question and depends on the size of the shock, the level of search frictions, and the relative competitiveness of suppliers. We use our model, along with detailed data on the exports of French firms to their EU buyers, to estimate search frictions across sectors and markets. We then simulate the incidence on EU buyers of a 10% cost shock affecting French suppliers.
One month after the shock, we find an average 3.6% increase in the import price paid by EU buyers who were matched with a French supplier at the time of the shock, corresponding to an incidence of 36% borne by the buyer. However, this average conceals significant heterogeneity across different dimensions.
In the average market, 25% of buyers experience an incidence of 100%, while 40% are left unaffected by the shock. More than 25% of buyers switch to another supplier, incurring an average 30% price increase. We further show that the incidence varies across markets with different levels of friction: in markets in which French suppliers benefit from relatively higher matching rates, buyers suffer a larger price increase. In our estimates, the average incidence is twice as large in markets with low versus high frictions. Finally, the total incidence on buyers decreases over time, as does the dispersion of incidence across markets. This convergence is driven by the gradual reconfiguration of buyers’ sourcing networks: as search frictions diminish, firms initially reliant on French suppliers broaden their options and increasingly switch to non-French alternatives.
In response to shocks to foreign suppliers, governments are often willing to support domestic firms relying on imported inputs.
The findings of our study suggest that targeting programmes to firms simply based on their interactions with affected suppliers might not be efficient. Some buyers will not suffer any cost increase, while others will bear the full burden. One option would be to target segments (products x destinations) where a higher incidence on buyers is expected – such as those facing greater search frictions. Another option is to provide buyers with assistance in diversifying away from their supplier ex post. Buyers who face a higher burden would be more likely to participate in these programmes, while those who do not would opt out.
References
Alviarez, V I, M Fioretti, A K Kikkawa and M Morlacco (2023), “Two sided market power in firm to firm trade”, NBER Working Paper No. 31253.
Fontaine, F, J Martin and I Mejean (2023), “Frictions and Adjustments in Firm‑to‑Firm Trade”, CEPR Discussion Paper No. 18110.
Gensler, G, S Johnson, U Panizza and B Weder di Mauro (2025), “The economic consequences of the second Trump administration: A preliminary assessment”, VoxEU.org, 18 June.
Heise, S (2024), “Firm to Firm relationships and the pass through of shocks: Theory and evidence”, The Review of Economics and Statistics, Advance online publication.
Olarreaga, M and S Santander (2025), “Who pays for US tariffs?”, in G Gensler, S Johnson, U Panizza and B Weder di Mauro (eds), The economic consequences of the second Trump administration: A preliminary assessment, CEPR press.
Monarch, R and T Schmidt‑Eisenlohr (2023), “Longevity and the value of trade relationships”, Journal of International Economics 145: 103842.
Mexico City is buzzing with energy, fuelled by a population that, over the past five years, has grown by about 700,000 to reach 22.5 million. Tourism is booming too, surpassing pre-pandemic peaks. This surge in residents and visitors has sent demand for housing, office space, restaurants and retail into overdrive, keeping developers and architects on their toes. Here we highlight three entrepreneurs who are doing things a little differently.
1. Best for: The high life Meir Lobatón Corona Glance at Mexico City’s skyline and you’ll see clusters of reflective buildings. “They don’t make sense in this temperature,” says architect and developer Meir Lobatón Corona. Mirrored buildings might work in cities such as New York but not here, where the temperature is relatively mild.
Monocle is visiting Torre Gutenberg, a recently completed 13-floor office tower in Anzures, two blocks away from Chapultepec Park, designed as a flexible structure. When tenants take occupancy of a floor, they move into a cement-and-glass shell that’s designed to be transformed over time and can be repurposed as an apartment or hotel room. “We thought, ‘Since we’re going to build it, let’s make it last’,” says Lobatón Corona. “The only way to do this was by building it as a structure, not as an office tower.”
Torre Gutenberg
From inside Torre Gutenberg, where the look is softened by travertine floors and oak panels, you can see the entire city unfolding before you. “It’s completely transparent,” says Lobatón Corona. Unlike many contemporary office towers, these spaces aren’t temperature-controlled grey boxes. Every floor has a large balcony with big glass doors and windows that allow air and light to flood in.
Meir Lobatón Corona (middle right)
Model craftsmanship
Torre Gutenberg is a well-ventilated, bright space that will hopefully be as relevant in 50 years’ time as it is today. “We’re starting to understand that we don’t have to innovate just for the sake of doing something new,” says its designer.
Barrio to watch: Escandón Wedged between Condesa and San Pedro de los Pinos, Escandón offers easy access to the city centre.
Prices A two-bed flat costs between MX$6.5m and MX$6.7m (€296,000 to €305,000) on average.
Local finds: Sorbo The area’s smallest wine bar, with the laid-back atmosphere of a Sicilian enoteca. Ingenieros 41, Miguel Hidalgo, 11800
2. Best for: Rethinking the office Andrés Martínez, Iterativa When Andrés Martínez, a co-founder of Iterativa, discovered an office building on Reforma Avenue that had stood empty during the pandemic, he decided to bring it back to life. Iterativa partnered with an investment fund, which took over the lease, and then set about redeveloping it. Today it houses offices and a restaurant and nightclub, as well as co-working space Público.
Iterativa co-founders Andrés Martínez, Alfonso López-Velarde and Emilio Illanes
Iterativa doesn’t completely own the buildings that it works on. “We find the opportunity, execute the project and operate it,” says Martínez. Alongside co-working spaces, the company is rolling out hotels and serviced apartments to meet the demand for housing and accommodation in Mexico City. When Monocle meets him in the Reforma 333 building, he shows us around the businesses that now occupy the former office block.
Público, which has big grey couches and glass windows that look out at the city’s Angel of Independence, was designed to be a hub where creatives could collaborate. “Instead of following the WeWork recipe of creating a huge common area and little spaces, we spread out the communal areas in different parts of the building,” says Martínez. Despite it being a towering office block, he was adamant about giving it personality. “We wanted to design the building [like a] house, to create something much more natural where people can meet.”
3. Best for: Adaptive reuse Rodrigo Rivero Borrell, Reurbano Developer Reurbano has a well-earned reputation for breathing new life into Mexico City’s historic buildings through adaptive reuse and urban regeneration. And in a city that’s peppered with architectural gems awaiting restoration, there has been no shortage of structures for the firm to work with.
Rodrigo Rivero Borrell
When Monocle meets Rodrigo Rivero Borrell, founder and CEO of Reurbano, on the edge of the leafy Condesa neighbourhood, he whizzes us around the ground level of Zamora 15, a mixed-use space that, when completed, will also have 20 apartments. When he purchased the 80-year-old buildings in 2014, they had been abandoned for more than 25 years. Today Zamora 15 houses not only his brick-clad office but also an array of tenants who are all young entrepreneurs.
For Rivero Borrell, the choice of renters is integral. If there isn’t enough variety, “you lose a lot of the value,” he says. At a building that he developed in Roma, Reurbano welcomed tenants such as Eno, a restaurant chain popular with local residents, but also kept a grocer who had been in the building for years.
Reurbano HQ
“The grocer is very important to the community,” says Rivero Borrell. “When you see what these people who belong to a community contribute to their area, you realise just how much good you can do by keeping them there.”
And while fostering a sense of locality and belonging is good for residents, the grocer’s presence also makes sense financially. “You cannot imagine how much a well-selected commercial space on the ground floor increases the value of the properties,” says Rivero Borrell.
At the edge of Zürich’s historic Altstetten neighbourhood, in an area adjacent to one of Europe’s busiest rail hubs, industry is in full bloom. Monocle is inside a cavernous brick building for a “Factory Friday” open-house event on the Schweizer Bundesbahn (SBB) Werkstadt Zürich campus. The reinvention of this former SBB maintenance hall, known as Halle Q, is the first step in a wider transformation of the former railway-operations area into a thriving urban factory that offers space for businesses of various kinds to operate right in the city centre, rather than being banished to the outskirts.
Bierwerk Züri team at Werkstadt Zürich
“Assembly and manufacturing can work in an urban setting,” says Christian Kaegi, whose company, Qwstion, uses banana-plant fibres to create its bags. When Werkstadt Zürich opened in 2024, Qwstion was one of its first tenants. On the last Friday of every month, members of the public are invited for a behind-the-scenes look at the design, manufacturing and repair facilities of 10 businesses. About a third of Werkstadt Zürich’s tenants now participate in Factory Friday, helping to show how things are made.
“Today there is a disconnect between the products that people consume, how they are made and what they are made from,” says Kaegi, who now runs the open-house initiative to make production more transparent to those outside the industries.
As well as Qwstion’s facilities, Werkstadt Zürich is home to natural cosmetics label Soeder, gin distillery Deux Frères and young chocolatier Laflor. Each of these companies was born and bred in Switzerland’s largest city. The development is a result of a federal mandate for SBB to generate returns from its substantial property portfolio and a policy strategy by local politicians to preserve zones for urban production in the centre of Zürich, rather than allowing it to be dominated solely by white-collar offices and housing, says Ben Pohl, an urban designer from Denkstatt Sàrl.
Christian Kaegi of QwstionNeumühle clothing
In 2016, Denkstatt Sàrl – now also a tenant at Werkstadt Zürich – and fellow Zürich-based urban designers kcap were commissioned to define and then design the project,” says Pohl. “One of the main reasons for their failure is a lack of a proper place to scale.” That’s why Werkstadt Zürich’s spaces range from modest 100 sq m rooms to 3,000 sq m units with eight-metre-high ceilings, giving tenants plenty of room to grow.
They held a series of workshops with nascent and would-be urban manufacturers who helped to inform the design. The idea was to build a learning ecosystem that would support planners, the owner and tenants as part of a thriving whole.
“It is a community for creation,” says Andreas Fehr, co-founder of apparel company Neumühle, another business that has joined the hub. Though factories disappeared from most European city centres decades ago, Werkstadt Zürich is encouraging entrepreneurs to base themselves in the heart of Zürich once again.
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1. Roberto Rocha and Germán Losada Co-founders,Vemo, Mexico City
“The first time that we met one of our investors, he said, ‘You either have the best electric-mobility model that I have ever seen or you’re totally crazy,” says Roberto Rocha, Vemo’s co-founder and CEO, sitting in a ninth-floor office in Mexico City’s Polanco neighbourhood. If the past few years are anything to go by – Vemo recently raised $63m (€56m) for further expansion – it’s safe to say that the company falls into the former category. “We have proven that we have the winning formula for a market such as Mexico,” says Rocha.
Vemo founders Roberto Rocha and Germán Losada
Opposite him sits Germán Losada, his Argentine co-founder and chairman. The former investment bankers founded their mobility start-up in 2021. Noticing that the take-up of electric vehicles (EVs) in Mexico was low, they hit upon their clean-mobility idea. A core part of their business is an EV lease-to-buy programme called Vemo Impulso for ride-hailing drivers who can’t afford to buy cars right away. “We provide leasing to people who are typically not taken care of by the traditional banks because they don’t have good credit histories,” says Rocha.
Vemo, which partners with ride-hailing platforms Didi and Uber, has had to create both the supply and the demand, since little infrastructure existed before its arrival. It has been developing an extensive EV-charging network across the country and paying 1,600 ride-hailing drivers fixed salaries to work two shifts per day in its cars through its Vemo Conduce arm. “In the absence of [state] subsidies, for the economics to work, we required significant utilisation,” says Losada. A third string in Vemo’s bow is operating EV fleets for businesses.
Vemo’s lease-to-own venture is now operating in five Mexican cities, while the rest of the business also expands. “Today we have the country’s largest public charging network,” says Losada. “And in terms of charging sessions, we’re the largest in Latin America.” Mexican sales of fully electric vehicles in the first four months of 2025 almost tripled year on year and Vemo sees opportunities in other Latin American nations. “We have a unique business model that’s proven to work,” says Losada. vemovilidad.com
Steps to success
1. Build an ecosystem: Vemo realised that it needed to grow both supply and demand – and set about doing so.
2. Corner the market: It moved in an aggressive way at the beginning, acquiring four companies in the first three months.
3. Be cost efficient: The company has explored working with US EV brands but the economics don’t work for now – hence the use of Chinese models.
2. Adrián Marfil and Juan Manuel García Co-founders, Los Patrones, Monterrey
Furniture brand Los Patrones has been tapping the domestic market for what it does best: metal. Founded in 2015 by Adrián Marfil and Juan Manuel García, it is continually evolving. In 2021, for example, the company took control of its production process. Los Patrones has become a benchmark for metal-furniture excellence in Mexico and is eyeing expansion both at home and abroad.
Los Patrones founders Adrián Marfil and Juan Manuel García
Monterrey is an industrial city. How did you harness its manufacturing side? Adrián Marfil: Most of the materials that we use are metal, which is produced here. We have taken advantage of our geographical situation.
How did you end up taking over your factory? Juan Manuel García: At the beginning, our provider was my father’s company. In that post-pandemic period of sluggishness, he suggested that we absorb it, along with all of the employees.
How are you evolving? AM: We’re developing stainless steel for gardens and swimming pools, which would allow us to work better with hotels and other big projects. Then we want to look at e-commerce and retail sales.
Do you see yourselves as entrepreneurs? JMG: We saw an opportunity and we took it – the perfect definition of entrepreneurship. The factory is part of the muscle but the heart and soul of the brand is the design. lospatrones.mx
3. Maye Ruiz Founder, Maye, San Miguel de Allende
When interior designer Maye Ruiz moved from Mexico City to the town of San Miguel de Allende in her home state of Guanajuato, she was initially concerned that being away from the epicentre of art and design would hinder her career. But the move – which was prompted by her desire to be with her husband, Daniel Valero, the founder of artisan-focused studio Mestiz – gave her the chance to get out of the CDMX bubble. “It is really refreshing,” she says.
Maye Ruiz in San Miguel de Allende
In 2021, Ruiz established design studio Maye, which unabashedly embraces bold colours. “What matters most is working with people who bring a unique sensitivity and a strong creative drive,” she says. Her workplace, on a cobbled street near the centre of town, exemplifies her distinctive style. Visitors enter through a primary-blue steel door into a tranquil courtyard, where windows are framed in the same vivid hue. The bathroom and kitchen, meanwhile, are lined with ruby-red tiles.
Studio details
“My style works really well in San Miguel de Allende,” says Ruiz. Many of her clients own multiple residences worldwide, which makes them more adventurous in their design choices. “They’re bold about colour here,” says Ruiz. Because the city is famously vibrant, with streets fringed with houses in shades of peach and pink, it’s easy to break away from beige.
Beyond residential projects, Ruiz has ventured into commercial design. Notably, she collaborated with her husband on the restaurant at Casa Arca hotel in San Miguel de Allende. Located in the historic Casa Cohen, it features Ruiz’s playful décor, including large woven lampshades.
Having firmly established herself in the city, Ruiz now aims to grow and diversify her business beyond Mexico and expand into product development. “We are always looking to partner with people and brands that share our vision and push us creatively,” she says. But she has no intention of straying from her new base. “Mexico City is such a vibrant city with so many things to do but it can also be really distracting,” she says. Being in San Miguel de Allende presents a unique opportunity to grow her practice. “It’s a place where you can focus on your business.” maye.mx
4. Luis González and Ana Holschneider Founders, Cervecería Hercules and Caralarga, Querétaro
“I’m restless and have my own ideas,” says Luis González, the co-founder of Hércules brewery, a glass of sour beer in hand. His wife, Ana Holschneider, who is sitting beside him at a beer-garden table in Santiago de Querétaro, agrees. “He’s always talking about the next project,” she says. González and Holschneider, who met in Mexico City and have four children, are entrepreneurs in every sense – even though Holschneider says that they established their careers “without knowing it” and González confesses that he has never put together a business plan. It all started 14 years ago when, after a stint in Hong Kong, the couple moved to Santiago de Querétaro to take over part of a half-abandoned textile factory that belonged to González’s family.
Ana Holschneider and Luis González
Eyeing the beautiful factory buildings dating back to 1846 – as well as the grand hacienda attached to it – González saw potential and undertook an impressive renovation project with his twin brother, Carlos. The first step was to establish Cervecería Hércules, an independent craft brewery in a country dominated by big groups. “We saw the chance to make a quality beer in Mexico with profound brewing values,” he says.
Grandiose details
Making of a Caralarga piece
In step with González, Holschneider started a design studio called Caralarga, influenced by pre-Hispanic Mexico. Having previously experimented with silk and pearls, she hit upon the idea of using the threads from the Querétaro textile factory. “I walked around the factory and saw the leftovers, which looked like queso Oaxaca [a stringy cheese],” she says. “I said, ‘If we can make jewellery from this thread, it will be spectacular.’”
The couple have come a long way. Caralarga, which employs 50 people, has moved into making large wall-hangings for collectors and interior designers across the globe. Cervecería Hércules, meanwhile, has invested in expanding its capacity. Alongside the two brewery bars – and organising concerts, film screenings and dance classes at the Hércules site – it has opened a beer hall in Santiago de Querétaro, as well as a restaurant and a shop in Mexico City. “We don’t want to open something just to open it,” say González.
The latest piece of the puzzle has been Hotel Hércules, which launched in July 2023 in the former hacienda. It has 40 rooms with a mid-century aesthetic and wall hangings from Caralarga. Holschneider and González aren’t finished yet. “I never thought that all of this would happen to me,” says Holschneider. almacenhercules.mx; caralarga.com.mx
Steps to success
1. Give back: Former textile workers and residents get discounts on beer.
2. Deliver something fresh: Querétaro previously lacked a gathering space that offered so much. Identify local needs.
3. Have the right people: Holschneider’s business partner, Ariadna García, and artisan María del Socorro Gasca are key, as are Udo Muchow (García’s partner), friend Santiago Migoya and brother Carlos for González.
Five more entrepreneurs to watch
1. Juan José Gutiérrez CEO, Jelp Delivery, Tijuana: Logistics solutions software for last-mile delivery.
2. Montserrat Messeguer CEO, Montserrat Messeguer, Mexico City: Making boots inspired by the north of Mexico since 2017.
3. Mario Ballesteros Founder, Ballista, San Miguel de Allende: Curator and former magazine editor Ballesteros runs a platform for art and homeware.
4. José García Torres Investor, Mérida: The gallerist is an investor in Mérida ventures Salón Gallos and Pizza Neo.
5. Laura Noriega Founder, Tributo, Guadalajara: Design company from Jalisco’s capital that uses artisans from across the country.
How a father-son team turned a backyard idea into a buzzing business with impact
Third-generation beekeeper Cedar Anderson was frustrated by the labour-intensive process of extracting honey from his hives. So, in 2015, he and his father set about developing a device that could make apiculture easier and accessible to more people. Ten years on, the Andersons are reinventing the industry with Flow Hive, a mechanism that allows honey to be withdrawn with ease.
Honey flowing into waiting jarsApiary in Byron Bay
At the heart of the product is a series of rectangular plastic frames, which bees fill with wax and store honey inside, just as they would a honeycomb. To collect its contents, the beekeeper inserts a “flow key” into the top of the hive and turns it, causing the honeycomb cells inside to break. Golden honey then flows through sealed channels inside the frame and out through tubes into collection jars. Unlike conventional apiaries, which require complex equipment to extract honey from hives, the Andersons’ solution requires minimal fuss.
Co-founders Cedar and Stuart Anderson
While the contraption was originally aimed at the commercial honey-making industry (it is capable of holding as much as 20kg), the Andersons soon realised that the streamlined process that Flow Hive offers would appeal to urban beekeepers too.
The entrance keeps wasps and other invaders outBusy at work
From humble beginnings in a tin shed, Flow Hive has built a global business with thoughtful design and environmental awareness. More than 100,000 Flow Hives have been installed in 130 countries, turning rooftops, balconies and suburban gardens into havens for pollinators. What began as a father-son side project now employs more than 50 staff, with its headquarters still nestled among the gum trees of their farm. Its manufacturing process has scaled efficiently, combining traditional joinery with streamlined digital production of honeycomb frames, allowing the business to meet surging demand.
Honey from the hives in Byron BayFlow Hive frame, filled with bees
The firm has also expanded its range to include pollinator-friendly gardening products, embedding itself within the climate-conscious home-and-garden movement. In redefining how we harvest honey, it has also reframed what it means to be a modern manufacturer: local, thoughtful and purpose-driven. Business is busier than ever.
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