What they are and how to use them to create web applications within artificial intelligence

Let’s explain to you What are Claude’s Artifacts and how do they work?, one of the functions unique and most differentiating of this chat artificial intelligence. With it, you will be able to create web applications in Claudewhich you will be able to execute and use directly on your website or application. Anthropic’s AI is one of the leaders in the industry, and also the most important for programmers, with other functions such as Claude Code. We are going to start the article by explaining in a simple way what exactly artifacts are, and then we will tell you step by step how they can be created. What are Claude’s artifacts? Claude’s Artifacts are a functionality that allows this artificial intelligence model generate structured contentsuch as code, long documents and complete interfaces. The result will then be shown to you in a separate panel, but within the same conversation. If you have ever used Claude, you will have already noticed that there are times when instead of responding to you with plain text it makes a small functional application. This happens because this AI has a kind of internal mechanism to be able to generate this type of content. There are many types of artifact. They can be web pages written in HTML, CSS and JavaScript, or simple games made with these languages. There may also be interactive React components, charts and data visualizations, Markdown documents, diagrams, or vector images. In this way, on the one hand you will have the code in the text window, but also you will have the possibility to execute it. Think for example that you want to build an application. The rest of the AIs may only generate the code for you, but with Claude an artifact is generated that you can launch and test. And then, if there are things that you want to change that don’t work, you just have to tell the AI ​​so that it can make the modifications and regenerate the artifact. And the same thing happens with the other formats supported by the artifacts. When you ask them to write an article, telling you a structure that contains titles, subtitles, different font sizes, etc., in addition to showing you the code you will also have to access the artifact, in this case a docx documentand download it to your computer. This means that instead of generating purely textual responses that you then have to transform into something useful, you are directly receiving the final product you want, or at least a functional version of it, and you can even download the file. How to use Claude’s artifacts To use Claude’s artifacts, you have to enter the AI ​​website or application and click on the section Artifacts from the left sidebar. This will take you to the section where you have various examples and templates. When you click on one of them, you will go to a screen where you will see a screenshot or the prompt to write to create it. You will also have an option to customize. This will help you test your first artifacts and explore methods to modify them. In the artifact index you will also have a tab to see the ones you have created, and a button New artifact to proceed to create a new one step by step. This will take you to a screen where you will be able to choose an artifact categoryand by clicking on it you will go to a step by step that will help you create your artifact. For example, if you click on the category of GamesClaude will then ask you what you want to do with this category, being able to create a game as an artifact. So, then you will go step by step where you are guided through everything, choosing the type of game, and other characteristics that you want it to have to give the AI ​​enough context to create it. ANDThis will help you when you are not sure the type of code you want to use or how to describe to Claude the artifact you want to generate. It is very useful for beginners, and the best way to start. You can also create artifacts with a prompt in which you describe exactly what you want. You can mention in it that you want to create precisely an artifact, and then describe the language of the application and what exactly you want to use. In Xataka Basics | Claude: 23 functions and some tricks to get the most out of this artificial intelligence

The US chip industry is being forged in Silicon Valley. Curiously, the hammer is held by South Korea

The United States has embarked on a journey of technological sovereignty. It has some of the largest and most cutting-edge technology companiesbut they depend on foreign companies. That’s why, Appield Materials has put 5 billion dollars on the table seeking US technological hegemony. And, in this ambitious project, it is not an American who has slipped in as founding partner of the EPIC Center. It’s Samsung. EPIC. It’s a “modest” name for a $5 billion facility that will be in the heart of Silicon Valley. The name comes from Equipment and Process Innovation and Commercialization and is the spearhead of American investment in research and development of advanced semiconductor equipment. Its objective is to accelerate the development of equipment and processes to create advanced memory chips, shortening traditional cycles when developing cutting-edge chips. The installation is imposingwith more than 16,700 m² of clean room and is expected to come into operation this spring. Samsung. And, in that ambitious objective, is the South Korean company. The alliance is to address one of the semiconductor industry’s most important challenges: the long time required to bring new chip technologies to market. from research to production. The EPIC Center is not a competition for the European ASMLbut something complementary to shorten those processes that can take between 10 and 15 years. And Samsung will be there as one of the founding partners. Samsung Electronics CEO Young Hyun Jun commented that the collaboration will allow “advance in cutting-edge semiconductor equipment technologies.” The EPIC Center Expansion. Samsung is one of the most important foundries in the world and, in the era of artificial intelligence, it is consolidating itself as a pillar by being the first that will supply NVIDIA of the new HBM4 memories. Its presence at the EPIC Center seems like a key strategic move, but it is not the only advance that the company has recently made on American soil. In that pursuit of creating high-bandwidth memory and advanced systems, Samsung has a facility in TaylorTexas, to advance the production of 2 nanometer chips. Foreign industrial fabric. One of Donald Trump’s goals was to recover the American industrial fabric with American companies and American labor. That’s why he ‘rescued’ Intel a few months ago with the aim that the company was his great foundry. And it is having its fruits: Intel has risen from the ashes with new advanced processors and is positioning itself to supply both NVIDIA and Apple. However, what is also arriving is foreign muscle like Samsung and something more serious: TSMC. The Taiwanese giant is the company on which the entire semiconductor and device industry pivots, and it is increasingly becoming making more land in the United States to manufacture in the country and continue with a diversification project which includes Europe. That is to say, the United States is reindustrializing and is taking steps to have an authoritative voice in the semiconductor manufacturing industry, but much of that muscle belongs to the same old foreign companies… that will simply now also produce in the United States. HBM4. Meanwhile, Samsung continues to do its thing. Not only are they at full production HBM4 memoriesbut also investigating the possible replacement for that technology: DRAM memories in which Intel and SoftBank are also taking steps. And in addition to their own Exynos for their mobiles, there are sources who claim that ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, is developing its own chip for artificial intelligence and is in talks with Samsung for it to be manufactured. Images | Applied Materials (edited) In Xataka | China’s future in the chip industry is in the hands of a single, almost unknown company: SiCarrier

If they interrupt you during your mealtime, they have to pay for it.

Many employees of public serviceemergencies or maintenance do not really have a lunch break, but rather they must interrupt that break in their day to return to work and attend to a customer, answer a call or go out to an emergency. The Supreme Court has established a criterion that can change the way in which many companies count that meal break, which, in many cases, does not count as effective work time, but rather as rest time. a sentence has left no room for doubt: if the employee must be available during meal time, it’s work time and, as such, it must be compensated. What happened? The labor dispute that reached the Social Chamber of the Supreme Court had its origin in an ambulance services company in Barcelona. Employees were assigned a break one hour a day to eat but, due to the nature of the service, they had to remain contactable and available during that meal time to deal with possible incidents. The unions considered that this situation converted that time into effective work, given that workers could not disconnect from their obligations and go, for example, to eat at home or to a restaurant. In principle, the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) agreed with the union representatives and annulled the modification of conditions proposed by the company, forcing it to continue considering this break as effective working time and, therefore, to remunerate it. What the Supreme Court ruling says. The High Court ruled that, in that case, the meal break should be counted as effective work time. The Supreme Court considers that there is no real disconnection of the worker from the company, since he must remain available in case any unforeseen event arises. To argue its brief, the court distinguishes two scenarios. On the one hand, if the company guarantees a total disconnection of the employee during their meal break, that period can be considered rest and, in principle, not be compensated as effective work time. On the other hand, if the company cannot guarantee that this total disconnection occurs (for example, because the worker must answer calls, reply to emails or remain available for incidents), that time must be counted as effective working time and included in the salary. The key: how the day should be counted. In practice, this ruling calls into question a widespread routine in which meal time is systematically discounted as if it were a real break, even when the worker is still available for the company. The Supreme Court uses article 34 of the Workers’ Statute which defines the working day and specifies that in working days of more than six hours, a rest time of no less than 15 minutes must be established, which counts as effective working time, as well as the fact that the worker is available for the company during that time. This criterion has direct effects about time registration and on the calculation of the day since, if this disconnection occurs, the working day must stop, but it continues if the employee is available for the company, even if he is not doing the work. in the usual way. What companies should do. The Supreme Court’s message to companies is that, if they want the meal break not compute as workthey must be able to prove that there is real disconnection, that the worker can freely use that rest time and is not obliged to be reachable or conditioned to interrupt that break early. In sectors with continuous activity, such as ambulance services, commerce or public services, it may involve reorganizing shifts or assigning relief that allows the employee to disconnect without the service being left unattended. Otherwise, the meal break is considered part of the work day. Importance of work disconnection. The Supreme Court’s criteria fit with the labor debate about digital disconnection and the importance of rest for workers. The ruling is not limited to saying that the meal “is paid” or “is not paid”, but links that response to a much more verifiable element: whether the worker really has the ability to disconnect or not during that period. Ultimately, what this doctrine introduces is an incentive for companies to better define what is rest and what is not It is during your work day. In Xataka | If the question is whether they can force you to work on weekends if you work from Monday to Friday, the Supreme Court gives the answer: no. Image | Unsplash (logan jeffrey)

“We didn’t expect this.” A Ukrainian drone has revealed a Russian arsenal in a warehouse, and the surprise has been huge: the missiles are animals

From the early stages of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, when tanks were advancing while logistics columns were bogged down and fuel was scarce, the war began to reveal an uncomfortable paradox: the more modern it became in the skies, more “medieval” It was done on the ground. In fact, in that space where drones, satellites and trenches coexist, the return of solutions from the past apparently overcome was an early sign that the conflict was going to be, above all, a test of resistance. The latest Ukrainian discovery has confirmed that the wear and tear is tremendous. The return of the war of attrition. The irony is that the war in Ukraine has been shedding any illusion of modernity to return, as the days go by, to brutal logic of wear, one in which the quantity and capacity to take losses They weigh more than any technological “game changer”, and where the Russian army, pressured by the massive consumption of material and men, is beginning to show obvious signs of logistical exhaustion. On the southern and eastern front, the shortage of armored vehicles and modern systems is no longer hidden with silence, but is manifest in improvised solutions reminiscent of conflicts from another era and centuries, while Moscow insists on maintaining constant pressure on Ukrainian defenses at any cost. Cavalry in the 21st century. This wear and tear became visible at the beginning of 2026 when Ukrainian units detected and neutralized Russian assaults carried out on horseback, a tactic that seemed banished from modern warfare but that reappeared in sectors such as Oleskiivka in response to lack of means conventional. We are talking about small assault groups that advanced mounted, supported by prior reconnaissance, in infiltration attempts that ended up being aborted by drones and fire defensive, leaving such an absurd image (and repeated) as revealing: many horses survived, but the soldiers did not, and the Russian army confirmed that it was willing to resort to any available resources to sustain its offensive. The drone and the impossible arsenal. Now, the scene What finally condensed this drift came several weeks later, when a Ukrainian drone sneaked through the destroyed roof of a hidden warehouse, several kilometers from the line of contact, with the usual expectation of finding ammunition, fuel or military vehicles. What happened gives an idea of ​​these four years of slow war that has worn down both sides. Instead of artillery and technology to advance, the camera showed something that looked like something out of a rural garage: aging civilian cars, motorcycles from another era, and saddled horses, an “arsenal” as unexpected as it is eloquent of the state of the war in many areas. The message. “We didn’t expect to see this. It was really unusual,” said the drone pilot. to the Insider mediumspeaking on condition that he only be identified by his callsign “Cosmos.” “We were hoping to find some armored vehicles,” he added. He video It went viral because it summarized in seconds the real state of Russian logistics, but also because it demonstrated that those animals were not an isolated anecdote, but part of a system that already uses cheap and expendable media to move and attack under the constant threat of drones. Russia and the logic of sacrifice. For the Ukrainian commanders, this discovery is neither trivial nor a simple curiosity, but rather proof of a way of waging war based on accepting massive losses of material and personnel, replacing armored by civilian cars and horses because they are easier to replace. This logic, which prioritizes the attrition of the enemy, even if the cost is enormous, explains why Moscow continues to advance slowly, launching assaults with many times obsolete or improvised in regions such as Donbas, even when the monthly casualty figures, according to NATOreach levels that are difficult to sustain. If you will, the drone that expected to find missiles and found animals ended up portraying, better than any report, a war that moves backwards while consuming everything at hand. Image | 82nd Air Assault Brigade, State Border Guard Service of Ukraine In Xataka | It is evident that Russia can absorb thousands and thousands of casualties. So Ukraine is already designing a much riskier plan In Xataka | An unprecedented experiment is happening in Ukraine: bombs have turned dogs into other animals

More than two years of one of the best VPNs costs you just two euros a month. And you also get an antivirus (and more)

If you have ever looked up what they are the best VPNs on the Internetit is very likely that you know Surfshark. This offers a secure service, very easy to use and that can be used on unlimited devices. Now, with the offer that the company has active right now, you may be more interested in betting on its package Surfshark One: it only costs 2.29 euros per month on your two-year subscription and comes with much more than just a VPN. Surfshark One Subscription – monthly The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Much more than a VPN for very little per month We have talked to you on more than one occasion about how it works a VPN Overall: it is perfect for gain privacy and security while browsing the Internet. In addition, it works for a PC, a tablet or a mobile phone, being one of those things that never hurts to have on hand. And although Surfshark’s is very economical (it currently costs 1.99 euros per month in its two-year plan), you have a more complete plan for a little if you want more. What exactly are we referring to? The plan Surfshark OneIn addition to the VPN, it comes with several tools. One of them, called Alertwill send us a notification in case our information is leaked on the Internet. Not only personal data such as your email enters there, but also others such as your credit card. Along with Alert, this package also includes a antivirus. It is very useful because we can configure it to periodically scan our device (in addition to real-time protection, of course). It’s also great if you’re worried about someone accessing the camera on your phone or laptop, since it blocks access to apps and websites. More things about Surfshark One. It also includes a system that will allow you to verify possible scams through emails thanks to artificial intelligence, something that unfortunately is the order of the day. It also has another tool called Alternative ID which allows you to create a series of fictitious data and associate it with yours, thus avoiding having to give your information to sites you don’t trust too much. As you can see, a very complete pack. If we go to its monthly subscription, Surfshark One has a price of 17.95 euros per month. That gives a lot of value to the current offer, since you can get 24 months of the service for 2.29 euros per month, which gives a total of 61.83 euros. All taking into account that, if we go for this modality, we will receive three extra months. Have all these tools 27 months for just over 60 euros It is a very good option if you are looking for a VPN that, in addition to this, gives you more useful tools. Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | surfshark In Xataka | Why it is dangerous to connect to public Wi-Fi and what you should do to protect yourself In Xataka | Antivirus in Windows 11: what they are, differences between free and paid and the best for your PC

In a New York coffee shop, the concept of a blind date has taken an unexpected turn: the meeting is with an AI

Going to a coffee shop to have a blind date is already a somewhat peculiar situation. If the person waiting for you is also an AI, the matter borders on surrealism. A lukewarm experience. He tells it Ben Sherry at INCwho a few days ago went to the EVA Café in New York. There was a table with a single chair and a stand with a cell phone waiting for him, where he could choose between different AI avatars for his appointment. During his time at the EVA Café, he spoke with two avatars, a woman and then a man. The two agreed to praise her hair and the decoration of the place, but they were reluctant to answer deeper questions such as her political ideology. In Xataka "I can’t stop": the addiction to talking to AI is already here and there are even support groups to stop it EVA AI. It is the name of the app that organized the event and, indeed, it is a “friends” AIin the style of Replika either Character.ai. Its last commercial action has been a ‘pop-up coffee’ to “bring virtual romance to the real world.” The app’s sales manager told INC that her goal is to fight the stigma that exists towards relationships with AIs. The app, which has accumulated more than 5 million downloads in the Play Store, offers the possibility of starting a relationship with one of its different AI avatars, all with a clear inclination towards romance. You can start for free, but if you want to continue talking to your AI, you have to check out; This is the only way to unlock special functions such as sending images or the ability to make video calls. What he anticipated Her. EVA AI is not an isolated case. Thevirtual girlfriends They have been around for a long time, but with generative AI there has been a boom in this type of apps.More and more people are turning to this relational modelto the point that there are those cheats on his real partner with an AI. In case we had any doubt that the trend is real, Grok launched his virtual girlfriend Ani andChatGPT announced that it would launch ‘adult mode’ coming soon, functions that of course can only be used by users with a subscription. {“videoId”:”x9hhg44″,”autoplay”:false,”title”:”The TRUTH of AI – This is how ChatGPT 4, DALL-E or MIDJOURNEY works 🤖 🧠 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE”, “tag”:”webedia-prod”, “duration”:”1173″} The goal is obvious. Regardless of psychosocial reasons that lead us to seek an intimate connection with a machine, the reason why companies like OpenAI or xAI are turning towards adult content is obvious: to generate money. The emotional connection is a way to increase users’ commitment to your service and by using a subscription as a gateway, they not only get them to spend more time in your app, but they also get them to pay for it. AI has a monetization problem and this is one of the ways to generate income. Emotional connection. It may seem like something recent to us, but the reality of humans has been connecting with machines since 1966, when the first chatbot was created. In this sense, AI has not changed anything, although it is normalizing it. Recently we have seen other examples of emotional connection with machines, such as when OpenAI crashed ChatGPT 4o and users were angry because they liked his warm and friendly tone. We have also seen it with the celebration of a symbolic funeral for Claude 3 Sonnetanother model that enjoyed great affection among the community. Image | Alexander Sinn in Unsplash In Xataka | Flirting on Tinder is exhausting. The solution of these apps is to skip the eternal chats and organize the appointment directly (function() { window._JS_MODULES = window._JS_MODULES || {}; var headElement = document.getElementsByTagName(‘head’)(0); if (_JS_MODULES.instagram) { var instagramScript = document.createElement(‘script’); instagramScript.src=”https://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js”; instagramScript.async = true; instagramScript.defer = true; headElement.appendChild(instagramScript); – The news In a New York coffee shop, the concept of a blind date has taken an unexpected turn: the meeting is with an AI was originally published in Xataka by Amparo Babiloni .

Renfe has not yet found a company for its maintenance

The high-speed trains with which Spain debuted the AVE in 1992 They have been left without a maintenance contract. So it affirms the ABC, ensuring that Renfe put out to tender the service for more than 164 million euros and the tender has been void, so the operator has not yet found any company to take charge of it. The problem. As the media reports, Renfe called a public tender in June 2025 to award a private company the maintenance and repair of its oldest AVE trains, those of the 100 and 100F series, the same ones with which the first high-speed commercial line in Spain, the Madrid-Seville, was inaugurated in April 1992. The tender budget amounted to almost 165 million euros, according to inform the ABC, through the documentation published on the State Contracting Platform. The middle point that Renfe only received one offer and discarded it as it was considered invalid. What trains are and why they matter. The 100 series was born from an order that Renfe placed in 1988 to the French manufacturer Alstom: 24 high-speed trains based on the Atlantique TGV, adapted to the Spanish market. They were, at the time, a milestone: the first railway system in the world to commit to refunding the ticket if the train arrived more than five minutes late (has aged quite a bit this commitment today). After more than 30 years behind them, these vehicles continue to circulate on some lines of the network. How maintenance worked until now. The previous contract was in the hands of Irvia Mantenimiento Ferroviario SA, a company established in January 2008 by Renfe Operadora itself and Alstom Transporte. As detailed by the company on its website, for five years it has been in charge of the maintenance of 14 series 100 trains and 10 of the 100F series at the bases of Cerro Negro (Madrid), La Sagra (Toledo) and Can Tunis (Barcelona). Just like share In the middle, its tasks covered both preventive and corrective maintenance as well as online technical assistance and repairs resulting from accidents or vandalism. That contract expired on November 30, 2025, according to ABC. Why doesn’t anyone show up? It is clear that maintaining a fleet of trains of this age is not attractive for the sector. The 100 series models have more than 30 years of service, which implies difficulties in finding spare parts, specific engineering and technical personnel specialized in already obsolete systems. Furthermore, according to account ABC, to this is added that Renfe did not publish the specifications openly, so any interested company had to physically travel to the Renfe Viajeros headquarters in Madrid to collect the documentation. According to share In the media, the operator justified this by the volume of the file. What happens now? Renfe has no current contract for the maintenance of its oldest AVE and no company willing to take on the task. The operator has not publicly explained how it will cover this service or if it plans to relaunch the contest with new conditions, so we will have to see what the future holds for these trains. What we do know is that the 100 and 100F series are still in circulation, which makes this even more of a situation of some urgency if the safety of travelers is to be maintained. We’ll see how everything turns out. Cover image | Wikipedia In Xataka | Renfe has launched a real-time map to know where your surroundings are in 2025. And it works quite well

Anthropic corners Gemini 3 Pro and GPT-5.2 more than ever

Think for a moment about the artificial intelligence models you have used in recent days. It may have been through ChatGPT, Gemini either Claudeor perhaps through tools like Codex, Claude Code or AI Cursor. In practice, the choice is usually simple: we end up using what best fits what we need at any given moment, almost without stopping to think about the technology behind it. However, that balance changes frequently. Each new model that appears promises improvements, new capabilities or different ways of working, and with it a fairly direct question returns: if it is worth trying, if it can really offer us something better or if what we already use is still enough. Claude Sonnet 4.6 just came to the foreand this is how it is positioned against the competition. Claude Sonnet’s starting point 4.6. Here we find what Anthropic describes as a transversal improvement in capabilities, which includes advances in coding, computer use, long-context reasoning, agent planning, and tasks typical of intellectual and creative work. Added to this set is a context window of up to one million tokens in beta, designed to process entire code bases, extensive contracts or large collections of information without fragmentation. Three levels, the same map. To understand where Sonnet 4.6 fits in, it’s worth looking at how Anthropic tends to organize its family of models into different levels with different objectives. Haiku prioritizes speed and efficiency, Opus is reserved for tasks that require the deepest reasoning, and Sonnet occupies the middle ground, designed as a balance between capacity and operating cost. Within this framework, the company maintains that the new Sonnet comes close in some real jobs to the performance previously associated with the Opus, an ambitious claim. When AI starts using the computer. One of the improvements that Anthropic highlights most strongly in Sonnet 4.6 is its progress in what it calls computer usethat is, the ability of the model to interact with software in a way similar to a person, without depending on APIs designed specifically for automation. This progress is supported by references such as OSWorld-Verified, a testing environment with real applications where the Sonnet family has been improving steadily over several months. The company also recognizes limits and risks that we have talked about before, such as attempts at manipulation through prompt injection. Searching for the ‘best’ model. At this point, the relevant question stops being how much Sonnet 4.6 has improved in absolute terms and begins to focus on how it is compared to the other large models that today compete for the same space of use. The comparison is not simple nor does it allow for a single winner, because each system excels in different areas and responds to different technical priorities. That is why it is advisable to read the benchmarks with a practical perspective, identifying in which specific tasks the real differences appear. Where each model stands out. The direct comparison with GPT-5.2 draws a distribution of strengths rather than a clear victory. According to the table published by Anthropic, Sonnet 4.6 stands out especially widely in the autonomous use of the computer measured in OSWorld-Verified, in addition to showing an advantage in office tasks (GDPval-AA Elo) and in some analysis or problem solving scenarios (Finance Agent v1.1, ARC-AGI-2). GPT-5.2, for its part, maintains better results in graduate-level reasoning (GPQA Diamond), visual comprehension (MMMU-Pro) and terminal programming (Terminal-Bench 2.0), with nuances such as results marked as Pro in some tests (BrowseComp, HLE) or self-reported grades in Terminal-Bench 2.0. The comparison with Gemini 3 Pro introduces a different nuance, because here the advantages are concentrated above all in the field of reasoning and general knowledge. The Google model obtains better results in graduate-level reasoning tests (GPQA Diamond) and in wide-ranging multilingual questionnaires (MMMLU), in addition to being ahead in visual reasoning without tools (MMMU-Pro). Sonnet 4.6, on the other hand, retains a certain advantage when external tools or scenarios closer to the applied work come into play. The absence of some comparable data in the table itself forces, in any case, to interpret this duel with caution. Where Sonnet 4.6 can be used. The new model is available in all Claude plans, including the free level, where it also becomes the default option within claude.ai and Claude Cowork. It can also be used through Claude Code, the API and the main cloud platforms, maintaining the same price as the Sonnet 4.5 version. After going through capabilities, limits and comparisons, the real decision returns to the user’s daily life. Sonnet 4.6 aims to be especially useful in productive tasks, direct interaction with software and long workflows, while GPT-5.2 and Gemini 3 Pro maintain advantages in academic reasoning, visual comprehension or general knowledge depending on the test considered. No one dominates all fronts, and that fragmentation defines the current moment of artificial intelligence. Images | Anthropic In Xataka | In 2025, AI seemed to have hit a wall of progress. A volatilized wall in February 2026 In Xataka | The great revolution of GPT-5.3 Codex and Claude Opus 4.6 is not that they are smarter. It’s that they can improve themselves

Japan has been wanting fewer tourists for years. Now he fears China is making his wishes come true

Japan has been choked by foreign tourism. And it is understandable. The weakness of the yen, the reactivation of demand after the pandemic stop and the enormous popularity that the country has achieved on networks has triggered its flow of visitors to record levelsstirring up the debate on he oversight and generating discomfort in some particularly congested destinations, such as Kyoto, nara or Osaka. To stop it, there is already talk of a tax increase. There are even cities looking for ways to reduce the flow of international tourists. Now, for reasons that have little or nothing to do with the tourism market, Japan is encountering the collapse of demand in its big market: China. The question is whether that is a blessing or a threat to your economy. Pack of tourists. The data is incontestable. Japan has become one of the most popular destinations among those planning their vacations. Last year the country received 42.7 million of foreign visitors, an absolute record that shatters the data from 2024, when it fell just short of 37 million. Beyond the year-on-year comparison, the data is interesting for two reasons. First, because never before had the Japan Tourism Organization (ONTJ) counted more than 40 million visitors annual. Second, because the data leaves the 31.9 million of 2019, the last year before the pandemic, far behind. If nothing changes, the Government plans to reach the 60 million this decade, which will translate into a powerful injection of resources into the Japanese economy. In 2025 alone, foreign travelers spent more than $60 billion. More than money. The problem is that this flow of tourists not only translates into full planes, hotels with the sign ‘no places left’ and hoteliers and merchants satisfied with their sales. The international tourism boom has generated tensions in some destinations especially congested, leaving almost almost surreal episodes, such as the one lived in Kyoto. There the authorities have had to prohibit “paparazzi tourists” from accessing one of the most emblematic points of the city. The reason: so that they do not harass the geishas. It is not the only proof of the tensions that are emerging due to tourist saturation. In Fujikawaguchiko the authorities, unable to contain the hordes of travelers eager to “hunt” the best selfiethey chose to install a fence that blocks the views of Fuji. In Fujiyoshida they just canceled your festival Sakura because it saturates the city with visitors who clog traffic, sneak into homes and leave trash in parks. And in Yamanashi they decided years ago start charging to ascend Fuji to preserve the mythical mountain. And the Taiwan crisis arrived. Whims of geopolitics and international diplomacy, Japan has just found that this record flow of visitors could receive a severe setback. And all on account of something that has little or nothing to do with the tourist market: Taiwan. To understand it, we have to go back to November 7, when the Prime Minister of Japan, Sanae Takaichi, warned during a parliamentary debate that Japan would not hesitate to mobilize its self-defense forces in case China entered Taiwan by force. Although the Japanese Government assures that its position remains the same as always, the truth is that Takaichi’s words broke the “strategic ambiguity” that Japan has maintained for decades. And that was not liked one bit in China. The relationship between Beijing and Tokyo became strained to such an extent that the Asian giant responded with more than complaints diplomatic: canceled concerts by Japanese artists, postponed the premiere of movies, he claimed the pandas on loan to Japanese zoos and restricted its valuable rare earth exports. What does it have to do with tourism? That in its response to Japan, Beijing also played one of its great economic assets: tourism. The Chinese authorities they advised its citizens to avoid Japan and even canceled dozens of routes airlines with the country. In November the BBC reported that some Chinese airlines were offering their customers refunds for their flights to Japan. Such a movement would not have much importance if it were not for the fact that China is one of the main sources of the Japanese tourism sector. The Asian giant is one of its big markets issuers, along with Korea. According to the Japan National Tourism Organization, in 2024 China was the second largest source of tourists visiting Japan. concentrated about 19% of all demand, only behind Korea (24%). The data is also completed with the 7.3% of Hong Kong and the high weight that Taiwan also has in Japanese tourism. The flow from the Asian giant is key, however, for another reason: as remember The New York TimesChina not only moves many tourists but its tourists spend a lot in Japan. Goodbye Chinese tourists. Although the open conflict between China and Japan is recent, its effects have not taken long to be noticed in the tourism industry. TNYT assures that in December the flow of Chinese travelers already plummeted by 45% compared to the same month in 2024. And the situation does not seem to be improving in the coming months: Japan has fallen on the list of the most coveted destinations for the Chinese to enjoy their Lunar New Year holidays. There are those who already warn that Japanese hotels will welcome 60% less of Chinese. Why is it important? Beyond the percentages, this ‘puncture’ in the Chinese market represents a setback for a sector (Japanese tourism) that until recently seemed unbeatable. Despite how popular Japan continues to be in the rest of the world and the record data it is collecting, its balance of incoming tourist spending registered a drop of 2.8% during the last three months of 2025. It is not a high percentage, but it represents the first decline in more than four years. In November, Bloomberg already warned that the diplomatic row with China threatened to cost Japan’s tourism sector 1.2 billion in income. If the data were not conclusive in itself, it comes at a … Read more

Pablo Isla has become the “fix-it-all” of European multinationals

Pablo Isla has become one of the most coveted names in the European business world. His career at the head of giants such as Inditex, Nestlé and L’Oréal has given him a profile that the main companies in the market dream of: understanding global logistics, the importance of digital transformation and crisis management capacity. All in one person. The Spanish executive is one of the few in the world who has led giants such as Inditex in full international expansion, articulate your digital transformation and, in addition, manage important crises in companies in sectors as different as food or cosmetics. The architect of the expansion and transformation of Inditex Isla was CEO of Inditex between 2005 and 2011 and executive president until 2022, a period in which the company founded by Amancio Ortega It went from being an important group in Europe to making the leap as one of the largest fashion groups in the world. That growth It was based on three pillars: expansion of the physical store, adoption of e-commerce and modernization of the supply chain. Under his leadership, Inditex multiplied its presence at street level with a network of 7,000 stores located in the best locations from all over the world, in addition to consolidating the international position of the group developing logistics which has served as a role model for other brands. At the same time, the textile empire It was also expanding into digital with a strategy that optimized both the operation of the stores and online sales. Innovations like incorporation of RFID tags It allowed us to increase stock visibility and accelerate logistical replenishment, while merging the online and physical sales experience without friction. Tea you try it in the store and you buy it online. Nestlé and the challenge of taking the helm in times of crisis After his time at Inditex, Isla joined the board of Nestlé as an independent director. In 2024 it was appointed vice president and chaired key committees on corporate governance and company appointments. In October 2025, with a Nestlé in crisis, the advice advanced his arrival to the presidency, initially scheduled for 2026, with the aim of provide stability and reinforce strategic management. According to published Reutersone of Isla’s missions upon taking the helm of Nestlé was to contribute the “magic” of Zara to the financial recovery of Nestlé. That is, leading the company towards the recovery and digital transformation that it had achieved at Inditex years ago. In reality, Nestlé, with thousands of brands distributed in more than 180 countries, was looking that someone would bring the brand into the 21st century articulating the e-commerce business, logistics and digital technologies to help accelerate the company’s response. Your immediate objective: update your online sales and optimize your supply chain through artificial intelligence. L’Oréal: another sector, same problems Recently, L’Oréal announced the proposal to appoint Isla as vice president of the board of directors, which must be voted on at its shareholders meeting in April 2026. The proposal comes from the hand of Nestléwhich has about 20% of the capital of the French cosmetics company. Once again, L’Oréal relies on Isla’s talent and experience in digitalization, understanding of regulatory aspects and crisis management as reasons for its selection. The pattern is confirmed. This signing is not only a corporate move. He points out that companies in very different sectors (retail, food and cosmetics) They are not looking for a specialized profile in their sectorbut they want someone who understands how to operate in global networks, integrate technology into processes to achieve more productivity and have resilience in uncertain times. That L’Oréal trusts Isla to strengthen its board indicates that its profile cuts across industries. He is a captain capable of bringing the ship to a safe port. It doesn’t matter if it’s an ocean liner or a pedal boat. In Xataka | Amancio Ortega has collected dividends at Inditex: he has bought Amazon’s headquarters in Canada and has money left over Image | Chairmentors

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