Abzu, a startup founded simultaneously in Barcelona and Copenhagen in 2018, has closed a €6-million round of investment. Participants included international venture capital funds from the Nordic countries like Seed Capital, Inventure and PreSeed Ventures, as well as several business angels. Abzu offers an artificial intelligence platform that allows users to make precise predictions and find mathematical solutions to complex problems, which facilitates decision-making for researchers and speeds up clinical studies and drug development. Elizabeth Gil-Roldán, head of Business Development at Abzu in Barcelona, explains that this funding will go towards "strengthening the development team for the technology product, located mainly in Barcelona, and reinforcing its commercial strategy and academic collaborations." The company currently has 18 employees and expects to have a staff of 30 by the end of 2021.

The artificial intelligence applied research startup Abzu identifies false news with its proprietary QLattice. In the latest Reuters Institute Digital News Report, less than four in ten people said that they trust most news most of the time (that's 38% surveyed in January 2020, a fall of four percentage points from 2019)¹. Today's global crises make it all too obvious the necessity for dependable and factual journalism, yet we are exposed to a continuum of information authored by innumerable sources with debatable credentials. Slaves to our most basic emotions -- fear, disgust, and surprise² -- we are inflamed by an addictive negative feedback loop of our own creation. We crave the truth, but data shows we force-feed ourselves lies.

Looking for video games that don't involve shooting enemies or require too much brain power? If so, you're in luck because there are many relaxing options to choose from, most of which can be played at your own pace and with family members. From creating your dream house in The Sims 4 to exploring the breathtaking depths of the ocean in ABZU, here are ten ultra-chill video games to play. For those who grew up playing The Sims in the noughties, now might be the perfect time to once again wile away the hours creating and controlling characters, building and decorating houses and exploring vibrant worlds. And, if in need of some extra simoleons, don't forget to use the money cheat'motherlode'.

With this month finally seeing the release of No Man's Sky, in which players can investigate and explore a huge universe full of diverse planets, I couldn't help but be reminded that although outer space has always held a fascination for many, there's another largely unexplored area much closer to home – the ocean. Although water makes up about 70% of Earth's surface, it is estimated that humans have only explored around 5% of the seabed. Aquatic legends such as Atlantis, the Bermuda triangle, and the disappearance of the USS Scorpion in 1968 have captured the imaginations of many a budding oceanographer, and as such the depths of the sea are an unknown region still ripe for mythologizing – which is exactly what Abzu does, in the first release from Giant Squid software. Directed by Matt Nava, who worked as art director on Journey and Flower for thatgamecompany, the style is instantly reminiscent of his previous work, with players taking control of a stylised'Diver' character. Dropped into the ocean with little explanation, the first thing you notice is how - no matter how long you spend underwater - there's no air gauge to run out.