Ciara O'Brien

Dublin

Journalist at Irish Times

Journalist & tech geek for @IrishTimesBiz. mostly on https://t.co/LD3gnztxH1 rather than here these days.

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Articles

Lack of skills, badly formatted applications: survey reveals why job candidates are rejected

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

More than two-thirds of job applications are rejected by employers because they lack the relevant skills for the role, new research has found, with others binned because applications are badly formatted or due to unexplained gaps in employment. The survey, which was carried out for hiring platform IrishJobs, found that 78 per cent of employers are dissatisfied with the quality of job applications received, making it slower and more resource-intensive for employers.
Banks warn customers to be vigilant over holiday scams

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

Banks are urging customers to be on their guard in the coming weeks as the holiday season brings increased risk of falling victim to rental scams. Bank of Ireland warned customers to be wary when making holiday bookings to avoid falling victim to accommodation scams, where fraudsters trick people into paying for property that doesn’t exist or is not available to rent.
Irish businesses still see benefit in sustainability initiatives, survey says

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

More Irish businesses are recognising the opportunity presented by sustainability initiatives, with the potential to increase revenues and win customers, a PTSB survey has found. The research highlighted energy efficiency, climate technology, circular economy, renewable energy and organic food production as areas of particular interest to Irish companiesSome 78 per cent of businesses said the sustainability market was a major growth opportunity to win more customers and increase revenues.
Can Jony Ive replicate the Apple magic at OpenAI?

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

If I had asked AI to write me the most implausible scenario it could think of, it might have struggled to come up with an expensive deal between one of the tech industry’s most famous designers and an upstart company that tried to turn the AI industry on its head. But here we are. The AI world has been abuzz in recent days with the news that former Apple designer Jony Ive is teaming up with OpenAI to create a device that will take artificial intelligence firmly into the real world.
Shokz OpenFit 2 review: Comfort and good sound quality without ambient noise intrusion

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

When it comes to earbuds, I usually prefer to block out the world rather than let the ambient noise filter in. That means active noise cancelling is a must and the buds need to have swappable silicone tips. But the Shokz OpenFit 2 don’t fit any of those requirements. As the name suggests, the buds are open fit, sitting outside your ear rather than plugging your ear canal. There are times though when you need to hear what is going around you.
European Union risks becoming the ‘museum of the world’, says Meta privacy chief

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

As chief privacy officer of Meta, Erin Egan has a challenging role. Leading the privacy and global policy operations for the biggest social networking platform in the world has always been a complex job, with the company’s platforms frequently coming under the scrutiny of regulators globally over their handling and use of personal data. But with generative artificial intelligence becoming mainstream in the past few years, it feels like the stakes have ratcheted up a notch.
OpenAI poised for Irish growth

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

OpenAI plans to grow its Irish office, the company’s chief financial officer said, as it seeks to expand its presence in the European Union. Sarah Friar, who joined the company in 2024 after working with fintech Square and neighbourhood platform Nextdoor, said OpenAI was investing in Dublin. “We do have a very vibrant Dublin office that is starting to grow and it will get big over time because it can be an office ... where we can put research and apply it potentially over time,” she said.
Dublin-based accounting platform Outmin raises €4m

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

Dublin-headquartered accounting software company Outmin has raised €4 million in a funding round that will help it to strengthen its engineering team and deepen its AI capabilities. The company has also appointed former PwC Ireland managing partner Feargal O’Rourke as chairman of its board. Founded by David Kelleher and Ross Hunt, Outmin provides outsourced accounting and bookkeeping services, using artificial intelligence to provide clients with real-time financial data.
Solid year for C&C as drinks group remains resiliant

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

Drinks group C&C said earnings remained solid and profit grew as the company’s business remained resilient despite the economic headwinds. In its final results for the 12 months ended February 28th 2025, the company said revenue of €1.67 billion was in line with the previous year, with growth in Matthew Clark Bibendum offset by the sale of its Irish soft drinks business and lower contract volumes and poor weather hitting the UK and Ireland cider market.
Dublin needs €70bn investment in infrastructure by 2040, report says

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

Dublin will need investment of €70 billion in its infrastructure over the next 15 years to help secure its future, a new report has found, with housing, public transport, water, energy and managing climate risk among the areas in need of funding. KPMG’s Dublin 2040 report highlighted housing as a key concern, with 60 per cent of businesses saying affordable accommodation in the city was a critical infrastructure issue.

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Ciara O'Brien @ciaraobrien

26 Sep 24

My seven year old’s homework included writing a sentence. His choice? “The McDonalds man ran out of toys”.

Ciara O'Brien @ciaraobrien

21 Jul 24

RT @JoeBiden: https://t.co/RMIRvlSOYw

Ciara O'Brien @ciaraobrien

21 Jul 24

Holy hell.

Joe Biden @JoeBiden

My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term. My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best https://t.co/x8DnvuImJV