Taking Stock: Is this really the Golden Age of AI?

AI: Existential threat or billion-dollar opportunity? The increasingly loud and often stark warnings from inside the tech industry - about the dangers AI might already be posing.Plus we dig into the interest rate rises facing US and European consumers. And ask whether an ABBA singalong of Mamma Mia was enough to swing the Swedish election.Taking Stock looks back at the week in business, economic and geopolitical news with a panel that stretches across timezones. This week Rema Rahman the White House and Politics Editor from Bloomberg Government joins us from Washington DC and Katrine Kielos, author and columnist for Swedish financial broadcaster EFN, is with us in London.Presenter: Will Bain Producer: Josh Martin

Xbox is 25 years old and faces some of its biggest challenges yet. As cloud gaming grows and the AI boom reshapes the technology industry, even Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has acknowledged that the business "hasn't been healthy" in recent years. So does Xbox have a future? Will Bain speaks to former Xbox executive Peter Moore and BBC technology reporter Laura Cress about whether Microsoft's gaming brand can reinvent itself.Producer: Gideon LongYou can email the team: [email protected](Picture: Visitors play Stalker 2 in front of monitors at the Microsoft Xbox boot during the Gamescom gaming convention in Cologne, Germany, 23 August 2023. Credit: FRIEDEMANN VOGEL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Artificial intelligence is developing faster than many experts predicted, bringing extraordinary opportunities as well as growing concerns. Some of the industry's leading figures are even calling for the pace of development to slow while governments and technology companies grapple with how best to manage the risks. So can humanity remain in control of AI, and how should we govern a technology that is advancing so rapidly? Presenter/producer: Ed ButlerYou can email us: [email protected](Picture: A Jio humanoid robot named Elixis at the AI Impact Summit, in New Delhi, India, February 17, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Bhawika Chhabra)

The Ebola outbreak in the DRC has claimed more than 3,400 lives and infected thousands more. Despite the scale of the outbreak, there is still no approved vaccine for the latest strain. Leanna Byrne examines what it takes and who pays to develop a vaccine. We look at what is slowing vaccine development and whether the limited commercial market for Ebola vaccines means governments, charities and international donors must step in to fund research.(Photo: Sanitation measures underway at Bunia market to contain Ebola outbreak, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 23 May, 2026. Credit: EPA)You can email the team: [email protected]: Matt Lines(Correction, 16 September 2026: In this episode, first published on 15 September 2026, we incorrectly stated the size of Gavi's First Response Financing Fund. The correct figure is $500 million. We apologise for the error, which has been corrected.)

Economic unease is growing among Russian workers as fuel shortages and Ukrainian drone strikes disrupt key sectors of the economy. Ed Butler examines the pressures facing businesses, workers and consumers, from damaged refineries to attacks on Wildberries warehouses. As concerns grow over prices, jobs and supply chains, what do these disruptions reveal about the resilience of Russia's wartime economy?Presenter: Ed Butler Producer: Victoriya Holland(Picture: A queue at a petrol station due to fuel shortage following a spate of Ukrainian attacks on oil refineries, amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict, in the Russian Black Sea resort of Anapa, Russia, July 8, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Sergey Pivovarov)

Across Asia, a growing number of young people are becoming hikikomori, a term used to describe individuals experiencing severe social withdrawal. They shut themselves away at home, retreating from work, school and even family life for months, sometimes years.Some countries, including South Korea, are trying an unexpected approach: government-backed AI chatbots designed to help socially isolated young people reconnect with society. But can artificial companions help tackle loneliness, or could they deepen it?This bonus episode comes from Asia Specific, another BBC World Service podcast hosted by Mariko Oi. It discusses issues including social isolation and mental wellbeing. Listeners who identify with these experiences are encouraged to seek local support.

Mark Carney and Donald Trump go tit-for-tat as the list of goods subject to tariffs between the US and Canada continues to grow. But will higher import taxes on products crossing the border make cost-of-living pressures even worse for Canadians and Americans? Takara Small in Toronto and Andy Uhler in Austin join Will Bain to discuss the highlights and lowlights of the week's business news, including the much-hyped launch of Apple's first foldable smartphone and the return, at least in cinemas, of convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes.Presenter: Will Bain Producer: Josh Martin(Photo: US President Donald Trump speaks with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at a working lunch with leaders of G7 and the Middle East, in Evian-les-Bains, France, 16 June, 2026. Credit: Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

This week on Power Players, Will Bain is joined by BBC Business Editor Simon Jack to explore the future of energy giant BP. The past six years have seen significant boardroom churn, while the company has sent mixed messages to investors after scaling back plans to become a greener energy business. We examine whether the company's new leaders can restore confidence and set a clearer strategy.Producer: Rebecca SmyllieYou can email the team: [email protected](Picture: A British Petroleum gas station with the BP oil refinery in background in Whiting, Indiana, U.S., July 23, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Nicole Jao)

Many entrepreneurs would be happy to sell one great idea to a larger business, cash out and put their feet up. Not Marcia Kilgore. The Canadian swapped small-town Saskatchewan for the wealthy clients of Manhattan, New York and sold her first venture, Bliss Spa to luxury giant LVMH. She then went on to found another three multimiilion-dollar enterprises. What did she learn along the way, how does she back herself when imposter syndrome strikes and what is next on her list.(Photo: Marcia Kilgore stands in a London street, wearing blue jeans and a pink shrt, she has cropped short hair and is smiling. Credit: Marcia Kilgore)Presenter: Hannah Mullane Producer: Victoriya Holland

The number of students going to university globally has more than doubled in the last 20 years. 269 million students around the world are enrolled in higher education, if those students were a country, it would be the 5th most populous in the world. At the same time youth unemployment is growing and there’s a slowing of that graduate premium - the extra money you'll earn because of your degree - so is it still worth it? Presenter: Hannah Mullane Producer: Matt Lines(Photo: Graduates from abroad fling their graduation caps into the air during a graduation send-off party following the second commencement ceremony of the 2025 academic year at Seokdang Museum of Dong-a University in the southeastern port city of Busan, South Korea, 20 August 2026.Credit: EPA/Shutterstock)