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IBM nears US$11 billion Confluent deal

Belfast artists ban ‘cannibalising’ AI art at festive market BELFAST: Artist organisers of an annual Christmas market in Northern Ireland have banned the sale of artwork and products generated by artificial intelligence, arguing AI cannibalises the work of low-paid creatives. “We have to take a stand,” Jonathan Brennan, co-organiser of the Belfast market told AFP, standing beside a “supporting human creativity”poster featuring an“AI ban” logo. Ahead of the popular long-running yearly fair in the Northern Irish capital, the organisers – the Vault artists collective – told traders that selling AI-generated art this year was not on. “People come here to appreciate unique gifts, handmade things, that you won’t find anywhere else,” Brennan said. Organisers now feel forced to emphasise their artwork is created by humans due to the “threat” posed by AI, according to the bespectacled visual artist. Using AI to produce art equates to “jumping to a solution without any of the hard graft, discipline or potential happy accidents that can happen in the creative process”, he added. “You end up with something which is kind of soulless.” Some 80 artists offered original artworks, prints, and fashion items at stalls at the two-day fair, held each year over a weekend in the run-up to Christmas. They included Lee Boyd, a 49-year-old street artist and screen printer, who said he wants “pushback” against “cannibalising” AI art. “A lot of the work for illustrators and graphic designers is just gone,” the Vault member who came up with the idea for the ban told AFP. In recent years “artists will have noticed that most of their sales are down”, he noted, pinning the blame squarely on AI. Beside a stall displaying his handmade photographic prints from the original darkroom negatives, artist, broadcaster and journalist Stuart Bailie dismissed the notion computers can match people’s artistic imagination. “A lot of chemicals, late nights (and) a lot of trouble and toil went into creating these,“ he said, pointing at his prints. “I’m a great believer in human beings creating stuff through their own energy and initiative.” Among the throngs of shoppers browsing the market’s aisles, Matt McQuillan, 34, told AFP that AI art is “akin to stealing artists’ work”. “If we don’t support artists then we won’t have them anymore,” the software engineer said after purchasing a piece. – AFP fuelled by artificial intelligence. Under chief executive Arvind Krishna, IBM has sharpened its focus on software, aiming to capitalise on increased spending on cloud services. The interest in Confluent highlights a surge in demand for data infrastructure companies, fueled by the corporate race to develop generative artificial intelligence. In May, Salesforce agreed to acquire software maker Informatica for about US$8 billion to bolster its AI capabilities. Shares of Mountain View, California-based Confluent closed lower at US$23.14 on Friday. – Reuters

platform used to process massive streams of real-time data – from bank transactions to website clicks – could be announced as early as this week, the newspaper reported, citing unnamed sources. Reuters could not immediately verify the WSJ report. Both companies did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside normal business hours. In October, Reuters reported that Confluent is weighing a potential sale and has tapped an investment bank to manage the process after drawing interest from prospective buyers. Confluent holds a market capitalisation of

about US$8.09 billion, as per LSEG-compiled data, while New York-based IBM is valued at roughly US$287.84 billion. Investors grew cautious after IBM reported slower growth in its core cloud software business in October, raising concerns about the company’s ability to maintain momentum. Analysts said IBM will need stronger software performance to keep overall growth on track. IBM’s acquisition strategy remains a key focus for meeting investors’ expectations. Last year, the company bought HashiCorp in a US$6.4 billion deal, expanding its cloud-based offerings to capture rising demand

SAN FRANCISCO: IBM is in advanced talks to acquire data-infrastructure company Confluent for about US$11 billion (RM45 billion), the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, in a move aimed at boosting Big Blue’s ability to capture growing demand for cloud services. The deal for Confluent, an open-source o Big Blue pushes to capture growing demand for cloud services

L’Oreal to increase stake in skin care firm Galderma A L’Oreal sign is displayed at the beauty products section of a department store inside a shopping mall in Beijing. – REUTERSPIC

PARIS: L’Oreal said yesterday it will raise its stake in Swiss skin care firm Galderma to 20% with an acquisition from a group of major shareholders, a step which could earn the French company a bigger cut of profits from the injectable cosmetics market. L’Oreal is buying the stake for an undisclosed sum from a consortium led by Swedish private equity firm EQT, which includes Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Auba Investment Pte. Ltd. The deal is due to close in the first quarter of 2026. Galderma, which has a market capitalisation of over US$48 billion according to LSEG data, was originally set up as a joint venture between Swiss

consumer goods giant Nestle and L’Oreal before the latter sold its 50% stake in 2014. L’Oreal’s additional stake comes two months after it agreed to pay €4 billion for Kering’s beauty business. It has also said it will study a potential investment in Armani. “We are pleased with L’Oreal’s increased investment, which affirms our direction and the meaningful value creation we expect in the years ahead,” said Galderma CEO Flemming Ornskov. Speaking to analysts in September, L’Oreal CFO Christophe Babule said the company was “quite happy” with the original Galderma stake it purchased last year.

Galderma listed an initial tranche of its stock in March 2024, and has so far floated more than half of it, according to LSEG data. The company’s share price has tripled since that IPO. L’Oreal said Galderma’s board will consider nominating two non-independent directors from L’Oreal to replace the EQT-led consortium representatives at the 2026 annual general meeting. L’Oreal has also invested in clinics in China and the US to learn more about the aesthetics business. The French cosmetics company said it does not intend to further increase its Galderma stake. – Reuters

Magnum Ice Cream valued at €7.93 billion in Amsterdam listing LONDON: Magnum Ice Cream Company traded at 12.96 euros per share in its Amsterdam debut yesterday, implying a market capitalisation of €7.93 billion (RM38 billion), as it finalised a long-awaited spinoff from Unilever. Magnum’s 2024 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation of €7.9 billion. Magnum – now the world’s largest standalone ice cream business, home to brands including Wall’s and Cornetto – is also listing in London and New York this week. according to Magnum’s prospectus, compared with 21% for Magnum. “I think that with setting the reference price low, they made the stock attractive for new investors,” Fernand de Boer, co-head of equity research at investment bank Degroof Petercam, told Reuters.

Unilever is shedding a business unit whose cold supply chain demands more complex operations than its other food brands, let alone personal care products like Dove soap and Axe deodorant. Magnum, meanwhile, is counting on a pure focus on ice cream to improve productivity. With its shares not immediately eligible for inclusion in major indices such as the FTSE, Magnum had warned its stock may face early downward pressure. The initial market valuation was below

Ahead of the publication of Magnum’s prospectus, analysts at Barclays predicted the company would fetch an equity value of €10.1 billion to €10.8 billion and a share price above €20 per share. The reference price was set at €12.8 per share. Magnum rival Froneri, a joint venture between PAI Partners and Nestle, secured investment in October that valued the company at €15 billion. Froneri’s market share is around 11%,

He added that the price also avoided the risk of a big drop caused by index investor selling. Limited demand may have also been a factor, Degroof Petercam said in a note, while substantial separation costs from Unilever and the fact there will be no dividend in 2026 could be adding short-term pressure. Unilever is retaining a 19.9% stake in the business but plans to exit within five years. – Reuters