đ Share this article Google AI Research Arm to Build Robotic Science Laboratory in the United Kingdom; Mexico Imposes Fifty Percent Tariffs on Several Nations Worldwide business news today included two significant developments: a boost for British artificial intelligence ambitions and a notable increase in global trade disputes. Google DeepMind's Automated Research Laboratory The prominent AI research organization has announced intentions to build its inaugural ârobotic research facilityâ in the UK. This move is seen as a significant lift to the nation's AI aspirations. The lab will be mainly dedicated to advanced materials research. It will employ âcutting-edge roboticsâ to synthesize and analyze many hundreds of materials daily. The key objective is to significantly shorten the timeline for identifying groundbreaking new materials. The company explained that the lab, scheduled to be built in the year 2026, will âaccelerate research breakthroughsâ. They elaborated: Discovering new materials is a vital pursuits in scientific research, offering the potential to lower expenses and pave the way for entirely new technologies. For example, superconductors that operate at ambient conditions could enable affordable medical imaging and minimize energy loss in electrical grids. Additional discoveries could assist in addressing pressing energy challenges by enabling next-generation batteries, more efficient solar cells and higher-performance computer chips. This initiative is part of a deeper collaboration with the British government. As part of the deal, UK scientists will get early access to a suite of advanced AI models for research purposes. Mexico's Trade Decision In a separate development, international trade frictions intensified today after the Mexican legislature passed tariff hikes of as high as fifty percent starting in 2026 on imports from the People's Republic of China and several other Asian-Pacific countries. These tariffs are intended to strengthen local industry. They will raise or impose new tariffs of up to 50 percent from next year on certain goods such as automobiles, vehicle components, textiles, apparel, plastics and steel. The measures will affect imports from countries without free trade agreements with Mexico, such as China, India, South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia. Most of products will see tariffs of around 35%. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce has called out the move, calling on Mexico to correct âunilateral, protectionist measuresâ as soon as possible. Additional Market News Moscow's energy export revenues reached their lowest level since the start of the conflict in Ukraine in 2022. A global energy watchdog reported that sales fell again in November due to reduced shipments and lower market prices. Meanwhile, in Switzerland, the Swiss National Bank kept its key policy rate unchanged at 0%. Officials pointed to price increases that was somewhat softer than anticipated, but added that longer-term inflationary pressure remained virtually unchanged. The AI sector faced pressure following disappointing earnings from Oracle. Its shares fell sharply in extended dealing after it fell short of revenue and profit forecasts and increased its spending outlook for AI data centers. The news fueled worries about the profitability of substantial AI investments.