Technologies

He Got Us Talking to Alexa. Now He Wants to Kill Off AI Hallucinations

British tech pioneer William Tunstall-Pedoe wants to solve the biggest problem in artificial intelligence.

If it weren’t for Amazon, it’s entirely possible that instead of calling out to Alexa to change the music on our speakers, we might have been calling out to Evi instead. That’s because the tech we know today as Amazon’s smart assistant started out life with the name of Evi (pronounced ee-vee), as named by its original developer, William Tunstall-Pedoe.

The British entrepreneur and computer scientist was experimenting with artificial intelligence before most of us had even heard of it. Inspired by sci-fi, he «arrogantly» set out to create a way for humans to talk to computers way back in 2008, he said at SXSW London this week.

Arrogant or not, Tunstall-Pedoe’s efforts were so successful that Evi, which launched in 2012 around the same time as Apple’s Siri, was acquired by Amazon and he joined a team working on a top-secret voice assistant project. What resulted from that project was the tech we all know today as Alexa.

That original mission accomplished, Tunstall-Pedoe now has a new challenge in his sights: to kill off AI hallucinations, which he says makes the technology highly risky for all of us to use. Hallucinations are the inaccurate pieces of information and content that AI generates out of thin air. They are, said Tunstall-Pedoe, «an intrinsic problem» of the technology.

Through the experience he had with Alexa, he learned that people personify the technology and assume that when it’s speaking back to them it’s thinking the way we think. «What it’s doing is truly remarkable, but it’s doing something different from thinking,» said Tunstall-Pedoe. «That sets expectations… that what it’s telling you is true.»

Innumerable examples of AI generating nonsense show us that truth and accuracy are never guaranteed. Tunstall-Pedoe was concerned that the industry isn’t doing enough to tackle hallucinations, so formed his own company, Unlikely AI, to tackle what he views as a high-stakes problem.

Anytime we speak to an AI, there’s a chance that what it’s telling us is false, he said. «You can take that away into your life, take decisions on it, or you put it on the internet and it gets spread by others, [or] used to train future AIs to make the world a worse place.»

Some AI hallucinations have little impact, but in industries where the cost of getting things wrong — in medicine, law, finance and insurance, for example — inaccurately generated content can have severe consequences. These are the industries that Unlikely AI is targeting for now, said Tunstall-Pedoe

Unlikely AI uses a mix of deep tech and proprietary tech to ground outputs in logic, minimizing the risk of hallucinations, as well as to log the decision-making process of algorithms. This makes it possible for companies to understand where things have gone wrong, when they inevitably do.

Right now, AI can never be 100% accurate due to the underlying tech, said Tunstall-Pedoe. But advances currently happening in his own company and others like it mean that we’re moving towards a point where accuracy can be achieved.

For now, Unlikely AI is mainly being used by business customers, but eventually Tunstall-Pedoe believes it will be built into services and software all of us use. The change being brought about by AI, like any change, presents us with risks, he said. But overall he remains «biased towards optimism» that AI will be a net positive for society.

Technologies

Verum Finance: A Super App for Private Finance Integrated Into a Messenger

Verum Finance has announced the launch of a new financial application that allows users to manage their money directly within the secure Verum Messenger ecosystem.

The project has already attracted attention from major media outlets. A dedicated feature was published by Forbes Türkiye, while one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, MEXC, covered the launch. Yahoo Finance had previously reported on the evolution of Verum Messenger into a comprehensive financial ecosystem.

What Verum Finance Offers

Verum Finance transforms a messenger into a complete financial platform. Users can:

• Manage their balance and top up using bank cards or USDT
• Send money instantly to other Verum users
• Issue and use debit cards, including Apple Pay support
• Exchange assets and withdraw funds
• Access all these services without installing separate banking applications

A strong emphasis is placed on privacy. The platform offers registration without a phone number or email address, end-to-end encryption, and full user control over personal data.

Recognition from Forbes Türkiye

In a dedicated article, Forbes Türkiye highlighted Verum Finance as a notable example of modern privacy-driven fintech. The publication emphasized the growing trend of financial services moving from standalone banking applications into unified messaging ecosystems — a model that has proven successful in Asia through platforms such as WeChat and Alipay and is now expanding globally.

Support from the Crypto Community

Alongside the Forbes Türkiye coverage, news about the launch of Verum Finance was also featured by MEXC, one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges. This reflects growing interest in the project from both traditional business media and the cryptocurrency community.

A Strategic Vision

“We are building more than a payments application and more than a messenger. Verum is a unified secure ecosystem where communication, finance, and privacy tools work together,” the company stated.

Verum Finance is now available for iPhone and iPad users. The application complements Verum Messenger, which offers anonymous chats, voice and video calls, VPN services, eSIM connectivity, and other tools designed to enhance digital freedom.

Verum Finance: https://finance.verum.im

Verum Messenger: https://verum.im

Technologies

Forbes Türkiye Highlights Verum Finance and the Rise of Integrated Financial Ecosystems

Forbes Türkiye has published an article examining the launch of Verum Finance and its approach to integrating financial services directly into a messaging ecosystem.

In the article, Forbes Türkiye notes that the fintech industry is undergoing a transformation as financial services increasingly move beyond traditional banking applications and become part of broader digital ecosystems. Verum Finance is presented as an example of this trend, combining payments, digital cards, money transfers, and balance management within a single environment connected to Verum Messenger.

According to the publication, Verum Finance follows a model similar to the “super app” concept that has gained significant traction in Asian markets, where communication and financial services operate together on one platform. Unlike many Western platforms that continue to separate messaging and banking services, Verum Finance is integrated directly into the Verum ecosystem, allowing users to manage financial activities without relying on multiple third-party applications.

The article highlights several core features of the platform, including virtual debit cards, user-to-user transfers, online payments, digital asset operations, Apple Pay integration, and in-app balance management.

Forbes Türkiye also points to the growing importance of embedded finance and changing user expectations. The publication suggests that lengthy account-opening procedures, physical card delivery times, and constant switching between applications are becoming increasingly outdated in a mobile-first world.

Another major focus of the article is privacy and security. Forbes Türkiye describes Verum Finance as part of a broader trend toward “privacy-driven fintech,” where financial services are built on privacy-oriented infrastructure. The publication notes that the platform incorporates features such as phone-number-free registration, end-to-end encryption, user-controlled access management, and privacy-focused tools designed to enhance data protection.

The article concludes that one of the key challenges for companies operating at the intersection of secure communications, digital payments, and embedded finance will be maintaining both usability and security within a single integrated ecosystem.

The coverage by Forbes Türkiye reflects growing media interest in platforms that combine communication and financial services, as the industry continues moving toward more unified digital experiences.

Website: https://finance.verum.im
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/verum-finance/id6774245148
Verum Messenger: https://verum.im

Technologies

Verum Launched “Verum Finance” App for iPhone and iPad, Expanding Its Digital Ecosystem Into Financial Services

Verum has announced the official launch of Verum Finance, a standalone financial application now available on the App Store for iPhone and iPad, marking a further expansion of the company’s growing digital ecosystem.

The new application is designed to centralize core financial functions in a single mobile interface, allowing users to manage balances, send and receive funds, use debit cards, and exchange supported balance types without relying on traditional banking workflows.

According to Verum, the platform enables users to view account activity in real time, top up balances using supported payment methods including Apple Pay, and transfer funds to other users within the Verum ecosystem using a unique Verum ID. The system also supports multi-balance management, including specialized balance categories such as precious metals.

Debit card functionality is integrated directly into the app, allowing users to issue and manage cards linked to their balances, monitor transactions, and top up cards when needed. The company also emphasizes built-in exchange tools that allow users to convert between supported balance types within the application.

Security features include Face ID authentication, passcode protection, Sign in with Apple, and privacy-oriented account controls aimed at maintaining user confidentiality and data protection.

The launch of Verum Finance follows the company’s broader strategy of building an interconnected ecosystem of digital products. Alongside Verum Messenger, which combines secure communication tools, encrypted messaging, voice and video calls, VPN services, eSIM connectivity, AI features, anonymous email, and crypto-related functionality, the new financial app extends Verum’s positioning from communication technology into financial infrastructure.

Industry trends increasingly show demand for “all-in-one” digital environments that reduce dependency on multiple standalone apps. Verum’s approach reflects this shift by integrating communication and financial services within a unified ecosystem.

Verum Finance is now available globally for download on iPhone and iPad via the App Store.

Website: https://finance.verum.im
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/verum-finance/id6774245148
Verum Messenger: https://verum.im