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  • A new study links the psychological benefits of swearing : NPR

    A new study links the psychological benefits of swearing : NPR

    A new study in the journal ‘American Psychologist’ links swearing to “state disinhibition,” a psychological state where you’re less likely to hold back.



    SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

    Scientists have determined that uttering curse words can offer pain relief, make you a little stronger. A study published in American Psychologist last week links that boost in brawn to state disinhibition, a psychological state where you’re less likely to hold back. Nicholas Washmuth co-authored the study. He’s a Ph.D. student at the University of Alabama. He joins us now. Thanks so much for being with us.

    NICHOLAS WASHMUTH: Absolutely.

    SIMON: Tell me about your research. Did you just tell a number of people, start swearing and try to pick up that chair?

    WASHMUTH: No. It’s – what we did in this most recent study was we had 300 participants complete a chair push-up task. Basically, we asked these participants to sit in a chair, using their hands and hands alone to lift their bottom off the chair for as long as possible. They did this while swearing and while also repeating a neutral word. And when they were swearing, they could hold that position longer. The reason why you can hold that position longer was because you are in a more disinhibited state. You’re more willing to give yourself physically and mentally to that task after swearing.

    SIMON: Any curse words work better than others?

    WASHMUTH: The prompt we used was, share a swear word that you would use if you hit your head or stubbed your toe. And they also selected their neutral word using the prompt, share a word that you would use to describe this table. So when you ask a participant to choose a swear word they would use, that’s a word that is likely powerful to them or they would use in certain situations where they need that boost. The most common words that were selected were the F-word and the S-word.

    SIMON: Now – all right. My late aunt Izetta would not swear in front of us, but when something happened, she would say sugar – I think to replace the S-word. Would that have had the same effect?

    WASHMUTH: Evidence would suggest made-up swear words or euphemisms for swear words do not have the same impact. So you can’t say sugar or fudge or even say, the F-word. There’s a line that needs to be crossed to enter that taboo realm. We don’t know exactly where that line is yet. But right now evidence would suggest that you actually need to say the word to get that boost in performance.

    SIMON: So what do we do with this information?

    WASHMUTH: That is an excellent question. Our hope is that people would be engaged with this line of research and, if it is something that they are interested in, play around with this tool themselves in a safe, comfortable area where they’re not going to offend somebody. But our research is transitioning more into this broader idea that if swearing helps you go for it or not hold back, can swearing as a tool be generalized to other situations where success depends on overcoming hesitancy? People tend to second-guess themselves during public speaking and when approaching a potential romantic partner. So can swearing privately just before public speaking or privately just before you ask someone out on a date – can that be a tool you can use to help you essentially be more successful in these situations where we tend to hold ourselves back?

    SIMON: Nicholas Washmuth, co-author of the study “Don’t Hold Back: Swearing Improves Strength Through State Disinhibition.” You know, I get extra strength just from saying that BJ Leiderman does our theme music. Thanks so much for being with us.

    WASHMUTH: Thank you for having me.

    (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “MARACUYA”)

    HERMANITOS: (Non-English language spoken).

    Copyright © 2025 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.

    Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

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  • West Wickham KFC franchisee to pay £70k fine over ‘slave’ comment

    West Wickham KFC franchisee to pay £70k fine over ‘slave’ comment

    A south-east London KFC franchisee has been made to pay nearly £70,000 after a manager called an Indian worker a “slave” and forced him to work extra hours, a tribunal heard.

    Madhesh Ravichandran, from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, began working at the West Wickham KFC branch in January 2023.

    Two months later, Mr Ravichandran was refused annual leave and heard his boss Kajan Theiventhiram telling a colleague he would prioritise Sri Lankan Tamil staff and referred to the claimant as “this slave”, the tribunal was told.

    Tribunal judge Paul Abbott found that Mr Ravichandran was wrongfully dismissed and subjected to direct race discrimination, harassment related to race and victimisation.

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  • West Wickham KFC franchisee to pay £70k fine over ‘slave’ comment

    West Wickham KFC franchisee to pay £70k fine over ‘slave’ comment

    A south-east London KFC franchisee has been made to pay nearly £70,000 after a manager called an Indian worker a “slave” and forced him to work extra hours, a tribunal heard.

    Madhesh Ravichandran, from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, began working at the West Wickham KFC branch in January 2023.

    Two months later, Mr Ravichandran was refused annual leave and heard his boss Kajan Theiventhiram telling a colleague he would prioritise Sri Lankan Tamil staff and referred to the claimant as “this slave”, the tribunal was told.

    Tribunal judge Paul Abbott found that Mr Ravichandran was wrongfully dismissed and subjected to direct race discrimination, harassment related to race and victimisation.

    Months after Mr Ravichandran overheard the comments, he resigned but no real investigation took place into his allegations, the tribunal found.

    He was “upset and humiliated” and the refusal of his leave request was “significantly influenced” by his race, the judge said.

    Judge Abbott accepted the claimant’s evidence that he was being forced to work excessive hours because of Mr Theiventhiram’s “racially prejudiced attitude” towards him.

    The claimant was awarded £66,800 in compensation and the tribunal recommended that Nexus Foods Limited, which operates the West Wickham KFC branch, implements a training programme for all employees concerning discrimination in the workplace.

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  • Emissions, Governance, and the Energy Transition

    Emissions, Governance, and the Energy Transition

    Sustainability-related disclosure. Over the past two years, sustainability-related disclosure has expanded, rising from companies representing 86% of global market capitalisation in 2022 to 91% in 2024. This reflects continued demand for such information from investors. However, the absolute number of companies disclosing sustainability information – 12 900 – remains only a moderate share of the 44 152 listed companies worldwide. Energy companies have the highest rate of disclosure, covering 94% of the industry’s market capitalisation; the real estate sector has the lowest share at 78%.

    Disclosure of sustainability-related information by listed companies in 2024

    OECD (2025), Global Corporate Sustainability Report 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bc25ce1e-en.

    Third-party assurance. Of the 12 900 companies that disclosed sustainability-related information in 2024, 42% obtained assurance of the information by an external service provider. Most companies rely on limited assurance (56%), while far fewer rely on reasonable assurance (17%). The adoption of the International Standard on Sustainability Assurance (ISSA) 5000, finalised in November 2024, is timely. Its adoption by many jurisdictions could strengthen confidence in sustainability reporting and ensure a common understanding of what “limited” and “reasonable” assurance mean across jurisdictions.

    Share of companies with assurance of the sustainability-related information in 2024

    OECD (2025), Global Corporate Sustainability Report 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bc25ce1e-en.

    Sustainability-related disclosure standards. Globally, 582 companies use the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards, either stating a partial alignment, or asserting compliance, still well below the number of companies using the TCFD recommendations (4 857) or SASB Standards (3 497), which provided the foundations for the ISSB’s standard-setting work. The use of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) remains limited, reflecting their recent adoption in July 2023. Strengthening interoperability among frameworks is critical to reducing compliance costs for companies operating across jurisdictions and to enhancing the comparability, reliability, and decision usefulness of sustainability-related information.

    Use of sustainability standards by listed companies in 2024

    OECD (2025), Global Corporate Sustainability Report 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bc25ce1e-en.

    Shareholders and institutional investors. Among the 100 listed companies that disclose the highest GHG emissions, 35 are from the energy industry. Institutional investors hold the largest share of equity in these 100 companies (36%), followed by the public sector with 18%. While the adoption of existing green technologies by high-emitting companies is essential for the transition to a low-carbon economy, the development of new technologies will also be necessary for a successful transition. Institutional investors own 37% of the equity in the 100 companies with the highest number of green patents, and the public sector a much smaller portion (4%).

    Ownership of top 100 GHG-emitting and green-innovation companies, 2024

    OECD (2025), Global Corporate Sustainability Report 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bc25ce1e-en.

    The board of directors. In 2024, companies representing 70% of global market capitalisation reported that their board of directors oversees climate-related issues. This is an increase from 53% in 2022 and surpasses the share of companies – representing 65% of market capitalisation – for which climate change is considered a financially material risk. This is a notable development, underscoring the growing recognition by boards of directors of climate change as a core financial and strategic matter.

    Board-level oversight of climate-related issues in 2024

    OECD (2025), Global Corporate Sustainability Report 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bc25ce1e-en.

    The interests of stakeholders and shareholder engagement. Globally, more than 9 600 companies – representing 86% of market capitalisation – disclosed policies on shareholder engagement in 2024. While the disclosure of such policies does not by itself guarantee effective engagement, it signals a willingness by companies to facilitate dialogue with shareholders – particularly where disclosure is not mandated by regulation. To promote value-creating co-operation with employees in particular, companies may establish mechanisms for participation, such as workers’ councils or employee representation on boards. Employee board representation accounts for almost 5% of companies globally, highest in China and Europe.

    Policies on shareholder engagement in 2024

    OECD (2025), Global Corporate Sustainability Report 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bc25ce1e-en.

    The energy sector’s climate-related disclosure. The energy sector – encompassing the oil, gas, coal and electric power industries – is both a pivotal driver of clean energy deployment and the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for almost a third of total emissions disclosed by listed companies. Disclosure of scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions is relatively high in the energy sector, covering 90% of market capitalisation. However, scope 3 disclosure remains limited, particularly in Emerging Asia and the Middle East and Africa, where fewer than half of companies by market capitalisation report such data.

    Listed energy companies – disclosure of scope 1 & 2 and scope 3 emissions in 2024

    OECD (2025), Global Corporate Sustainability Report 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bc25ce1e-en.

    The energy sector’s impact. Tackling GHG emissions will require substantial investment in alternative technologies to replace the combustion of fossil fuels. Between 2015 and 2024, the net cash flow of listed energy companies from operating activities increased by 32%, enabling them to triple dividend payments and share repurchases, while net cash used in investing activities grew by less than 5%. Measures could be implemented to ensure a robust pipeline of bankable energy projects, encouraging firms to allocate a greater share of capital to new investments.

    Listed energy companies – disclosure of scope 1 & 2 and scope 3 emissions in 2024

    OECD (2025), Global Corporate Sustainability Report 2025, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bc25ce1e-en.

    Link to the full blog post can be found here and link to the full report can be found here.

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  • Thousands of UK jobs saved as Petrofac set to be purchased

    Thousands of jobs in the North Sea are safe as part of energy services firm Petrofac Ltd looks set to be bought.

    CB&I announced on Christmas Eve that it had entered into an agreement to acquire Petrofac’s asset solutions business, transferring 3,000 members of staff to its own payroll when the deal goes through, expected in the first quarter of 2026.

    Petrofac, a former London Main Market listing, announced in October that it had appointed administrators after the collapse of a renewables contract in the Netherlands.

    Mark Butts, chief executive of Texas-based CB&I, said: ‘Our organisations share similar management philosophies and industry-leading safety performance.

    ‘With this combination we see strong cultural alignment, diversification benefits, and clear opportunities to enhance performance and deliver stable cash flow generation.

    ‘These factors collectively support CB&I’s long-term growth objectives.’

    James Bennett, joint administrator for Petrofac, said the deal was ‘a very positive outcome’.

    ‘Following a swift and rigorous process to find the best home for Petrofac’s Asset Solutions business, this is a very positive outcome and secures the future of its operations and the roles of many highly skilled people,’ he said.

    ‘Asset Solutions has an exciting future as part of CB&I, with strong operational compatibility and a complementary geographic footprint.’

    Petrofac Chief Executive Tareq Kawash said: ‘This is a great outcome for the Asset Solutions business, supporting job security for 3,000 talented team members.

    ‘CB&I is a strong business with clear growth objectives, now bolstered by the addition of Asset Solutions’ integrated service offering.’

    By Craig Paton, PA Scotland Deputy Political Editor

    source: PA

    Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

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  • ‘Bumper’ Boxing Day for UK retail destinations, analysts say

    Boxing Day was a ‘bumper day’ for all UK retail destinations as data shows shopper footfall was up 4.4% on last year, making it the strongest increase in more than a decade, industry analysts said.

    The retail sector may end the year on a ‘positive note’ as December 26 saw shoppers flock to high streets, retail parks and shopping centres.

    With stores shut on Christmas Day, Boxing Day traditionally sees people stepping back out of their homes to bargain-hunt in the sales.

    While there was a slow start for high streets and shopping centres, there was a ‘peak’ in visits to UK retail destinations from 5pm to 11pm, according to retail analysts MRI Software – which counts footfall in more than 660 retail destinations across the UK 24/7 through cameras.

    High streets enjoyed a 3.6% increase in footfall on last Boxing Day while retail parks saw an 8.8% uplift.

    Shopping centres saw footfall up 2.1% on a year before.

    Jenni Matthews, retail analyst at MRI Software, told the Press Association: ‘We did see a slow start to the day for high streets and shopping centres.

    ‘Retail parks saw an uplift quite early on and that could be reflecting the sort of stores that were open on those sites – so supermarkets, some were open, some weren’t.

    ‘The fact that much of the uplift came from the evening period suggests that people may have been going out for leisure activities or going out for a bite to eat, or making the most of the events and attractions that are still taking place in some towns and cities across the UK.’

    While supermarkets like Sainsbury’s and Tesco were open on Boxing Day, Marks and Spencer, Aldi and Lidl were among others closed.

    Matthews said the footfall increase of 4.4% on last year is ‘the strongest increase seen in over 10 years’.

    She said the UK saw a ‘slow lead-up’ to Christmas Eve but saw a ‘big boost’ in footfall on December 24, suggesting some shoppers may had ‘left it to the last minute’.

    The analyst said many people did their Christmas shopping early on in November.

    The boost in activity on Boxing Day was said to have been driven by a ‘peak in visits’ to all UK retail destinations from 5pm to 11pm, averaging an increase of 9.6% on last year.

    This compares with an average increase of 3.1% on Boxing Day 2024 from 6am to 5pm.

    Coastal towns saw a 16.1% increase in footfall, which may be due to events such as markets held on high streets, according to Matthews.

    ‘It’s likely to be event-driven because we know that a lot of stores were still shut yesterday,’ Matthews added.

    Matthews said that, overall, December 26 ‘proved to be a bumper day for all UK retail destinations’.

    ‘With a number of stores still shut and not reopening until today, it’s likely that leisure and hospitality establishments may well have benefited from the annual uplift,’ she added.

    ‘This is an early indicator that the retail sector may well end the year on a positive note given the challenging times faced at the beginning of the year.’

    By Georgia Bates, Press Association

    source: PA

    Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

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  • “Bumper” Boxing Day for UK retail destinations, analysts say

    (Alliance News) – Boxing Day was a “bumper day” for all UK retail destinations as data shows shopper footfall was up 4.4% on last year, making it the strongest increase in more than a decade, industry analysts said.

    The retail sector may end the year on a “positive note” as December 26 saw shoppers flock to high streets, retail parks and shopping centres.

    With stores shut on Christmas Day, Boxing Day traditionally sees people stepping back out of their homes to bargain-hunt in the sales.

    While there was a slow start for high streets and shopping centres, there was a “peak” in visits to UK retail destinations from 5pm to 11pm, according to retail analysts MRI Software – which counts footfall in more than 660 retail destinations across the UK 24/7 through cameras.

    High streets enjoyed a 3.6% increase in footfall on last Boxing Day while retail parks saw an 8.8% uplift.

    Shopping centres saw footfall up 2.1% on a year before.

    Jenni Matthews, retail analyst at MRI Software, told the Press Association: “We did see a slow start to the day for high streets and shopping centres.

    “Retail parks saw an uplift quite early on and that could be reflecting the sort of stores that were open on those sites – so supermarkets, some were open, some weren’t.

    “The fact that much of the uplift came from the evening period suggests that people may have been going out for leisure activities or going out for a bite to eat, or making the most of the events and attractions that are still taking place in some towns and cities across the UK.”

    While supermarkets like Sainsbury’s and Tesco were open on Boxing Day, Marks and Spencer, Aldi and Lidl were among others closed.

    Matthews said the footfall increase of 4.4% on last year is “the strongest increase seen in over 10 years”.

    She said the UK saw a “slow lead-up” to Christmas Eve but saw a “big boost” in footfall on December 24, suggesting some shoppers may had “left it to the last minute”.

    The analyst said many people did their Christmas shopping early on in November.

    The boost in activity on Boxing Day was said to have been driven by a “peak in visits” to all UK retail destinations from 5pm to 11pm, averaging an increase of 9.6% on last year.

    This compares with an average increase of 3.1% on Boxing Day 2024 from 6am to 5pm.

    Coastal towns saw a 16.1% increase in footfall, which may be due to events such as markets held on high streets, according to Matthews.

    “It’s likely to be event-driven because we know that a lot of stores were still shut yesterday,” Matthews added.

    Matthews said that, overall, December 26 “proved to be a bumper day for all UK retail destinations”.

    “With a number of stores still shut and not reopening until today, it’s likely that leisure and hospitality establishments may well have benefited from the annual uplift,” she added.

    “This is an early indicator that the retail sector may well end the year on a positive note given the challenging times faced at the beginning of the year.”

    By Georgia Bates, Press Association

    source: PA

    Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

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  • It’s a cracker! Watch new railway bridge roll into place in West Dunbartonshire

    Saturday 27 Dec 2025

    It’s a cracker! Watch new railway bridge roll into place in West Dunbartonshire

    Region & Route:
    Scotland’s Railway: Scotland

    A new railway bridge being built at a strategic development site in Bowling, West Dunbartonshire, successfully glided into position yesterday, marking a major moment in the site’s transformation.

    Work by Network Rail began in the summer with the excavation of more than 80,000 tonnes of material to create space for the new structure. Once the site was cleared, engineers cast the bridge on location using 1,860 tonnes of concrete – the same weight as around 34 million mince pies!

    With this first phase complete, train services through the area were paused on Christmas Eve for an intense nine-day engineering sprint. The highlight came on Boxing Day, when the structure was carefully driven into its final position. 

    In the coming days, teams will focus on reinstatement – reconnecting track, signalling systems, and completing the work needed to safely reopen the railway on Friday, 2 January. 

    The £5.9m bridge is a key element of the Glasgow City Region Deal, a major investment programme designed to improve transport links, unlock economic growth, and support sustainable development in the area.  

    The new bridge will open up additional direct road access and enable the future development of the Bowling Strategic Development Site, led by West Dunbartonshire Council. 

    Laura Craig, scheme project manager at Network Rail Scotland, said: “Everything we’ve done over the past few months has led up to this moment. Building such a huge bridge on site and then moving it into position is an incredible task, and it’s been amazing to see the planning and teamwork come together so successfully.

    “The festive period has been an intense time, with work continuing day and night to make sure the move happened safely and on schedule. Driving the bridge into place on Boxing Day is a fantastic achievement and it’s thanks to the dedication of everyone involved.” 

    Councillor David McBride, West Dunbartonshire Council’s Convener of Infrastructure, Regeneration and Economic Development, said: “This is a landmark moment in this major project and I am delighted to see such significant progress on the site.  

    “While there has been some disruption on the trains, this has been minimised by the work being carried out over the festive period and I thank local people for their patience.” 

    Train services between Dalmuir and Balloch/Helensburgh Central, and between Glasgow Queen Street and Crianlarich, will resume at the start of service on 2 January 2026.  

    Passengers are encouraged to check with their train operator or nationalrail.co.uk before travelling and follow @NetworkRailSCOT on X for the latest updates.  

    About Network Rail

    We own, operate and develop Britain’s railway infrastructure; that’s 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK’s largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country’s train operating companies.

    Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain’s railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation’s railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced – a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.

    Follow us on Twitter: @networkrail
    Visit our online newsroom: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk


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  • AI’s Growing Share in Public Credit Markets

    AI’s Growing Share in Public Credit Markets

    AI-related companies now represent an increasing share of investment-grade indexes, see chart below.

    Sources: PitchBook, Apollo Chief Economist

    Download high-res chart

    Explore the full 2026 Outlook, featuring our macro view and expert perspectives across regions and asset classes, at apollo.com/outlook.

    This presentation may not be distributed, transmitted or otherwise communicated to others in whole or in part without the express consent of Apollo Global Management, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, “Apollo”).  

    Apollo makes no representation or warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the accuracy, reasonableness, or completeness of any of the statements made during this presentation, including, but not limited to, statements obtained from third parties. Opinions, estimates and projections constitute the current judgment of the speaker as of the date indicated. They do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Apollo and are subject to change at any time without notice. Apollo does not have any responsibility to update this presentation to account for such changes. There can be no assurance that any trends discussed during this presentation will continue.   

    Statements made throughout this presentation are not intended to provide, and should not be relied upon for, accounting, legal or tax advice and do not constitute an investment recommendation or investment advice. Investors should make an independent investigation of the information discussed during this presentation, including consulting their tax, legal, accounting or other advisors about such information. Apollo does not act for you and is not responsible for providing you with the protections afforded to its clients. This presentation does not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, any security, product or service, including interest in any investment product or fund or account managed or advised by Apollo. 

    Certain statements made throughout this presentation may be “forward-looking” in nature. Due to various risks and uncertainties, actual events or results may differ materially from those reflected or contemplated in such forward-looking information. As such, undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of terminology including, but not limited to, “may”, “will”, “should”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “target”, “project”, “estimate”, “intend”, “continue” or “believe” or the negatives thereof or other variations thereon or comparable terminology.


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  • Minister Burke announces €23 million to extend digitalisation services for SMEs



    27th December 2025

    Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke T.D. today announced €23m in additional funding for Ireland’s four European Digital Innovation Hubs to continue working with SMEs, as well as public service bodies, to support their uptake of AI and other cutting edge digital technologies.

    The 4 Irish European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) – FactoryXChange, Data2Sustain, ENTIRE and CeADAR – are at the forefront of supporting the digital transformation in Ireland, providing a one-stop-shop of services from technical expertise and experimentation to financial advice, training and skills.

    Ireland’s successful progression into Phase 2 of the EDIH Programme, which will run from 2026 to 2029, aims to significantly scale up digitalisation efforts among SMEs and public sector organisations, delivering over 3,000 engagements, 1,100 ‘Test Before Invest’ projects, and more than 200 training courses nationwide.

    This programme leverages co-funding from the EU’s Digital Europe Programme to deliver these essential supports to Irish enterprise.

    Speaking about the announcement, Peter Burke T.D., Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, said: 

    “Extending the European Digital Innovation Hub programme in Ireland into Phase 2 ensures that our SMEs will continue to access world-class digitalisation support. Our four Hubs have already delivered transformative results, helping businesses adopt AI, automation and sustainability practices.

    By maintaining this momentum, we are increasing Ireland’s competitiveness and enabling enterprises across Ireland to future-proof their operations. This continued investment reflects our commitment to making advanced digital technologies accessible for every region and sector.”

    Enterprise Ireland CEO, Jenny Melia added:

    “Enterprise Ireland is proud to support the continuation of Ireland’s European Digital Innovation Hubs into Phase 2 of the programme. These Hubs are delivering real, practical supports that help SMEs and public service bodies understand, test and adopt advanced digital technologies with confidence.

    By scaling up access to ‘Test Before Invest’ facilities, specialist expertise and targeted training nationwide, we are helping businesses accelerate productivity, build resilience and remain competitive in an increasingly digital global economy.”

    Minister Burke also welcomed FactoryXChange and CeADAR being awarded the prestigious STEP Seal by the European Commission. This recognition marks their excellence in driving innovation and supporting businesses to adopt advanced technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and automation. 

    Ireland’s two remaining EDIHs – Data2Sustain, led by Atlantic Technological University in Sligo, and ENTIRE, led by Tyndall National Institute in Cork – are currently undergoing the STEP Seal evaluation process. These 2 Hubs play a critical role in supporting SMEs with sustainability, Internet of Things, and cybersecurity solutions, as well as ensuring regional and sectoral reach across the country.

    Additional Information:

    As part of the Digital Europe Programme, the European Commission together with EU Member States established a network of European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs). These Hubs support digital transformation in SMEs and public sector organisations by encouraging the adoption of the latest advances in the three DIGITAL key technologies of Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence and High-Performance Computing.  

    EDIHs help companies (notably SMEs) and public sector organisations to become more competitive in their business/production processes through digital transformation by acting as “one stop shops” providing the following services:

    • access to technical expertise and experimentation, 
    • financing advice,
    • training and skills development necessary for a successful digital transformation, and
    • Information on the innovation ecosystem and networking opportunities.

    The services provided by EDIHs are free or at a significantly reduced cost for SMEs and Public Sector Organisations. Ireland’s four EDIHs established in 2023 are:

    • CeADAR led by Ireland’s EI/IDA Technology Centre in Applied Data Analytics and Machine Intelligence (based in UCD) and specialises in supporting Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption.
    • FactoryXChange led by the EI/IDA Technology Centre IMR (Irish Manufacturing Research) in Mullingar, focuses on accelerating factories to become ‘Factories of the Future’ embracing the ecological, digital, and societal challenges.
    • ENTIRE led by Tyndall National Institute in Cork to help SMEs and start-ups to become more competitive in their business/production processes using digital technologies such as Internet of Things and sensors as well as cybersecurity (provided through its partnership with Munster Technological University).
    • Data2Sustain led by Atlantic Technological University Sligo, which aims to increase the transformation capacity of SMEs in the Northern and Western Region with a focus on circular economy, operations and sustainability areas.

    FactoryXChange and Data2Sustain were established in January and February 2023 respectively, followed by ENTIRE in May 2023, and CeADAR in September 2023. Under Phase 1 FactoryXChange and CeADAR are co-funded by both the Digital Europe Programme and the National Recovery and Resilience Programme while Data2Sustain and ENTIRE are funded 100% by the NRRF. 

    Under Phase 2 FactoryXChange and CeADAR are co-funded by the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment via Enterprise Ireland and the Digital Europe Programme while Data2Sustain and ENTIRE will be funded 100% by the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment via Enterprise Ireland.

    Further information is available through: European Digital Innovation Hubs | Enterprise Ireland


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