Racing ahead in AI: The trends defining the next quarter

In the world of AI, standing still means falling behind. The pace of change is only accelerating. New breakthroughs are landing so quickly that a strategy from last quarter can already feel out of date. For business leaders, the challenge isn’t keeping up with every headline but rather figuring out which developments actually matter and acting on them before the next wave hits. 

New models 

Recently, we have seen a wave of significant launches: Grok-4, GPT-5, Claude 4.1, Gemini 2.5 Deep Think, and even new open-source offerings from OpenAI. On top of that, new training methods like hierarchical reasoning models are promising specialised capabilities with less data, making the landscape more complex and more exciting than ever. 

But the truth is, there’s no single ‘best’ model anymore. The smartest approach isn’t to pick a winner, but to set up an evaluation process to test models, choose the right one for your task and pivot quickly when something better appears. In today’s market, adaptability is a company’s biggest competitive edge. 

Agents 

AI agents, autonomous systems that can handle complex, multi-step tasks, are moving into the core of how companies operate. Big players are launching agent marketplaces, Walmart is deploying ‘super agents’ organisation-wide, and startups like Lindy and Relay are allowing businesses to create custom, self-evolving agents in record time. Tools like ChatGPT’s new AgentMode and Claude Code are now making it possible to run whole teams of agents to manage entire software projects from start to finish.  

The days of just experimenting are over. These tools are becoming genuine operational assets, and the companies that start building or integrating domain-specific agents will be the ones leading the pack. 

And beyond… 

From shifting regulatory playbooks to re-imagined workflows, AI’s influence is expanding in every direction. The bigger picture includes transformative shifts in global AI policy, emerging risks, and new innovations that could quickly become everyday business essentials. 

Our latest piece dives deep into every trend shaping the AI landscape: what’s happening, what it means for your business, and the strategic moves you should make next. Subscribe to our newsletter today to get full access to the in-depth insights and trends you can’t afford to miss.