Artificial intelligence, the tech world’s most popular new concept, was embraced by companies hoping to reduce staff and cut costs. However, many firms that rushed to adopt this technology are now re-hiring people to correct the errors made by AI, spending a fortune in the process.

According to a report by the BBC, a new industry has emerged for software engineers and writers hired specifically to fix the mistakes made by artificial intelligence.

The experience of Sarah Skidd, a product marketing manager in Arizona, is a striking example of this trend. In May, a content agency contacted Skidd after the website copy generated by AI for a client in the hospitality sector failed to meet expectations. Skidd described the text as “very obviously written by AI, basic and uninteresting.” The company noted, “It was very bland when it needed to drive sales and spark curiosity.”

Skidd spent 20 hours rewriting the text from scratch, billing the agency $2,000 for her work at a rate of $100 per hour.

Skidd is not worried about AI taking her job; on the contrary, she says this trend has brought her more work. Speaking to the BBC, Skidd said, “Maybe I’m being naive, but if you’re very good at your job, you won’t have a problem.”

Like Skidd, many writers are now being hired not to create content from scratch, but to correct the errors in AI-generated text. This trend comes as AI tools like ChatGPT and Google Gemini gain popularity with the promise of optimizing workflows and cutting costs. According to a recent survey by the UK’s Federation of Small Businesses, 35% of small firms plan to increase their use of AI within the next two years.

However, these experiences demonstrate that AI still has a long way to go before it can match human standards.

Sophie Warner, co-founder of the Hampshire-based digital marketing agency Create Designs, says that over the last six to eight months, she has seen a surge in clients needing to fix problems created by AI. Warner explained, “Previously, clients would contact us when they had problems with their sites or wanted to add new functionality. Now, they go to ChatGPT first.”

However, adding code generated by ChatGPT can make websites prone to crashing and vulnerable to cyberattacks. In one case Warner described, a client asked ChatGPT how to update an event page. Warner noted that while the task would have taken only 15 minutes to complete manually, the AI-generated code crashed the website. This resulted in a three-day outage and a recovery cost of approximately £360 for the business.

Warner added, “We often have to charge a review fee to diagnose what went wrong because clients are reluctant to admit their mistake. The process of fixing these errors takes much longer than it would have if they had consulted professionals from the beginning.”

US President Donald Trump has published letters detailing tariff rates for Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Tunisia, South Africa, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Serbia, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar.

On his Truth Social media account, Trump shared the tariff letters for these 12 countries, following similar announcements for South Korea and Japan.

In the letters, Trump announced the tariff rates that will be applied to these countries starting August 1, noting that the rates would increase in the event of any retaliation.

Trump indicated that adjustments are possible, stating, “These tariffs may be modified up or down depending on our relationship with your country.”

The letters specified that the proposed tariff rates are 25% for Malaysia, Kazakhstan, and Tunisia; 30% for South Africa and Bosnia and Herzegovina; 32% for Indonesia; 35% for Bangladesh and Serbia; 36% for Cambodia and Thailand; and 40% for Laos and Myanmar.

Three agreements: Britain, China, and Vietnam

Previously, Trump announced that a 25% tariff would be applied to all products sent from Japan and South Korea to the US starting August 1, separate from existing sectoral tariffs.

These tariffs were nearly identical to those announced in Trump’s April 2 “liberation day” speech, which caused significant turmoil in global financial markets.

The reciprocal tariffs were postponed a week later to July 9, allowing markets to stabilize. However, since then, the White House has only signed three trade agreements: with Britain, China, and Vietnam.

Carrot and stick for Japan and South Korea

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated on Monday that the new tariffs will be imposed on August 1 for countries that have not yet signed an agreement, giving them more time for trade negotiations.

The scale of Trump’s tariff threat on Monday put pressure on the markets, despite the postponement. The S&P 500 closed down 0.8% on Monday, while the currencies of Japan, South Korea, and South Africa depreciated by about 1% against the US dollar.

In letters published on the Truth Social platform, Trump said the US trade deficit in goods with Japan and South Korea is “a major threat to our economy and even our national security.”

In letters addressed to Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, Trump stated that if either country raises tariffs in retaliation, “whatever figure you choose to increase it by, we will add that to the 25% we are imposing.”

However, he signaled that the proposed tariffs could be negotiated, adding that if the countries open their markets, “we might consider making an adjustment… These tariffs may be modified up or down depending on our relationship with your country.”

On Monday, Trump also announced he would impose high tariffs on Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Laos, Myanmar, and several other countries.

The US already applies a range of sectoral tariffs on imports from all countries. These include a 25% tariff on automobiles and auto parts and a 50% tariff on steel and aluminum imports. A US official confirmed that goods already subject to sectoral tariffs, such as automobiles and metals, will not be affected by the new rates announced by Trump.

Washington is also conducting national security investigations that could lead to tariffs on a range of other goods and sectors, including aviation, pharmaceuticals, lumber, copper, chips, and consumer electronics.

In recent weeks, Trump has hardened his rhetoric toward Tokyo, targeting the key trading partner and accusing it of being “spoiled” for refusing to buy more American rice.

Weeks of negotiations between US and Japanese trade officials resulted in a series of proposals aimed at preventing a trade impasse, including Japan purchasing more US energy and agricultural products. However, Tokyo also demanded a full exemption from Trump’s 25% automobile tariffs.

Meanwhile, trade negotiations between South Korea and the US have been postponed due to political turmoil in Seoul following the impeachment of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.

EU negotiations

Additionally, the European Union was expected to sign an interim trade agreement this week to keep tariffs at 10% while negotiations with the US continue.

EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič told member states on Monday that both sides are working on plans to reduce the 25% tariff on vehicles. However, according to two individuals familiar with the talks, there is no guarantee that the 50% steel tariffs will also be lowered.

Two of President Donald Trump’s top intelligence officials claimed that new intelligence indicates Iran’s nuclear facilities were “destroyed” in US airstrikes over the weekend.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard issued their statements hours apart, reinforcing the administration’s day-long effort to counter media reports of an initial government assessment that the strikes did not significantly set back Iran’s nuclear program.

“New intelligence confirms what @POTUS [the US President] has stated repeatedly: Iran’s nuclear facilities have been destroyed,” Gabbard announced on X.

Ratcliffe shared an image of his own statement on social media about two hours later. “Credible intelligence sources indicate that Iran’s nuclear program has been severely damaged in the recent attacks,” Ratcliffe’s statement read.

The CIA chief asserted that this information included “new intelligence from a historically reliable and accurate source/method,” indicating that several key Iranian nuclear facilities were destroyed and would take years to rebuild.

Ratcliffe added that the agency continues to gather “information from reliable sources” on the matter.

Neither Gabbard nor Ratcliffe provided further details about the intelligence or when it was obtained. However, DNI spokesperson Olivia Coleman later confirmed that the intelligence Gabbard mentioned was from US sources.

A former CIA analyst, speaking to POLITICO, described it as “highly unusual” for the agency’s director to release an analytical assessment in a press statement.

However, this individual, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence processes, said it was unlikely the statement disclosed any sources or methods.

The Defense Intelligence Agency’s (DIA) earlier assessment was reported on Tuesday by CNN and other media outlets. It stated that the strikes had not destroyed essential components of the country’s nuclear program and had likely only delayed it by a few months.

On Wednesday, the DIA emphasized that its findings were not conclusive.

“This is a preliminary and low-confidence assessment, not a definitive conclusion,” the DIA said in a statement. “The assessment will become clearer as additional intelligence is obtained. We have not yet been able to inspect the physical facilities, which will provide us with the best indication.”

The leak of the DIA’s assessment infuriated Trump. On Wednesday, he posted an angry message targeting one of the CNN reporters who wrote the initial story, reiterating his claim that Iran’s nuclear facilities were “destroyed.”

Gabbard also criticized the “propaganda media” in her post.

During a nearly hour-long press conference at the NATO summit in the Netherlands on Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, standing alongside Trump, took turns angrily refuting the findings of the DIA report and the media’s coverage of it.

“Those who say the bombs were not destructive are just trying to undermine the president and the successful mission,” Hegseth charged at one point. The Secretary of Defense also told reporters that the Pentagon and the FBI were investigating how the classified report was leaked.

Israeli officials also defended Trump. On Wednesday, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office released a statement from the Israel Atomic Energy Commission, which claimed that the combined effect of US and Israeli strikes had “set back Iran’s ability to develop nuclear weapons by years.”

Daniel Shapiro, who served as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East during the Biden administration, cautioned against placing too much confidence in initial assessments.

“It is highly likely that these facilities have been seriously damaged, but we must wait for the data and actual information,” Shapiro said. He estimated that it would normally take the intelligence community several weeks to reach a definitive conclusion about the impact of such an attack.

In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday evening, Trump hinted that the administration might soon share more information about the damage caused by the strikes.

Trump announced that Pentagon chief Hegseth would hold an “interesting and undeniable” press conference today (June 26).