300 AI jobs, €1bn for SMEs and a public-sector strike looming.

13 October 2026

Good morning. Irish AI companies are hiring, Government is putting more support behind SMEs and startups, and house price growth is finally slowing. Less encouragingly, tomorrow's public-sector strike looks set to go ahead, while legal disputes and regulatory scrutiny are keeping the courts busy. Plenty happening. Let's get into it.

1. OpenAI And Tines Announce 300 New Irish Jobs. OpenAI is adding 200 Dublin roles, on top of 250 announced in July, alongside a new Applied AI Lab focused on helping customers deploy AI. Irish-founded Tines is creating another 100 jobs over two years, with more than half at entry level. Coming after warnings about AI threatening graduate career paths, it's an encouraging counterpoint as two companies building their AI operations in Ireland are actively recruiting, including people starting their careers.

2. Government Puts More Money Behind Irish Business. The Growth and Sustainability Loan Scheme has doubled to €1bn, with another €500m in lending capacity for SMEs investing in expansion, technology and sustainability. The deadline has also been extended to June 2029, with PTSB committing an additional €70m in lending. Meanwhile, Peter Burke is bringing Start Up Ireland to Cabinet today, proposing grants of up to €100,000 for high-potential startups and an ambition to support 1,000 new firms over five years. A separate 12-week AI Accelerator would connect promising Irish companies with the likes of Google, AWS and OpenAI, offering technical expertise and access to €1m in technology and cloud credits. Between cheaper long-term finance, startup support and access to global technology expertise, there's a fairly substantial effort underway to help Irish businesses get started and grow.

3. Public-Sector Strike Moves Closer As Unions Reject Talks. ICTU has rejected Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers' invitation to talks today, refusing to postpone Wednesday's planned 24-hour strike involving approximately 300,000 workers. Union leaders say outstanding commitments from the previous agreement must be addressed before negotiations can proceed. Government has allocated €1.2bn for a new pay deal, but the disagreement over how talks should begin now threatens widespread disruption to public services tomorrow.

4. Irish House Price Growth Slows To Three-Year Low. MyHome's latest report shows annual asking-price inflation slowing to 3.9% in Q3, its lowest since 2023, while properties listed for sale increased 12.5% to 14,630. The national median asking price remains €390,000, and affordability is still stretched, with sale prices at 7.7 times average earnings. More choice and slower price growth are welcome, but buying a home remains expensive.

5. Any Other Business. Dublin engineering consultancy Ethos reported a 59% rise in revenue to €62.5m, with pretax profit doubling to €12.1m as demand for data-centre expertise grows. Its workforce has expanded from 225 to 420 since securing private equity investment in 2024. Meanwhile, the Irish Takeover Panel rejected Axis Capital's challenge to PTSB's sale process, finding no breach of takeover rules. Axis has yet to demonstrate financing for its proposed €3.20-per-share bid, leaving Bawag's agreed €2.97 offer the more advanced transaction.

The IMF says investment in AI infrastructure is helping sustain global growth around 3%, although managing director Kristalina Georgieva warned of major disruption to labour markets and education. Chipmaker TSMC is expected to report its sixth consecutive quarter of record earnings, while Amazon is reportedly in talks to acquire AI startup Decart at a valuation of around $7bn. In Europe, the EU and China have reached an understanding on hybrid-car import quotas, subject to member-state approval, potentially avoiding a wider trade dispute. Meanwhile, Andy Burnham is pushing for closer UK-EU ties ahead of a November summit, whilst calling out members of Government who don’t aim for the same.

Legal & Regulatory

Legal and regulatory news over the past week is about who pays when conduct, disclosure or process comes under scrutiny.

The European Commission fined Kingspan €40m on Thursday, €10m for each of four merger-rule infringements, over incorrect or misleading information during its review of the abandoned Trimo deal, and Kingspan says it will appeal. Separately, Phi Finney McDonald filed a claim for more than 60 institutional investors seeking over €100m over alleged misleading disclosures linked to the Grenfell Inquiry’s findings on its K15 insulation. Kingspan denies it, and the claim is unproven.

Budget 2027 supplied the State’s side. Justice receives €5.9bn, up more than €400m, including €2.758bn for Gardaí to support up to 1,000 recruits and prison capital rising from €68m to €95m toward 1,500 extra spaces by 2031. Those are allocations, not spaces built. Civil legal aid reform gets €14.5m, mainly to lift income thresholds the Bar says have been static for almost two decades. The Bar warned that wider eligibility without fixes to participation and fees would worsen delays, and the Business Post reported that no Budget measure addresses either. The Data Protection Commission gets €36m, up €3.6m, for new EU digital duties.

The criminal side shows the risk. Since the €520 flat District Court fee began on 1 July, many solicitors have withdrawn services, and earlier figures showed July certificates down 93% year on year.

As September background, Google is contesting two EU Digital Markets Act orders requiring access for AI and search rivals.

Watch today’s High Court judgment in Quinn v Minister for Justice, a solicitor’s challenge to the flat-fee regulations, which the Law Society backs.

In Wednesday’s Tá, the Sector Spotlight will be Finance & Markets.

Tuesday – On the Move…

Louise Ryan, Dunnes Stores: The former Diageo Ireland managing director has joined the retailer as head of ambient and non-food, overseeing categories including packaged groceries, household products and toiletries. She previously held senior roles at Pernod Ricard and Mars.

Tim Grant, TensorX: Appointed CEO of the Dublin AI company after joining as executive chairman in May. He takes over as revenue reaches €5m and its paying customer base exceeds 4,000.

John Butler, Linesight: Will become CEO of the Dublin-headquartered construction consultancy on 1 January 2027, succeeding Paul Boylan. A 25-year company veteran, Butler has spent almost 14 years leading its Asia-Pacific operations, growing the team to more than 600 across 10 offices.

Andrew Fannin, Kennedy Wilson: Promoted to chief financial officer of the property investment firm, having previously served as CFO for Europe. He joined in 2013 and takes the role following Kennedy Wilson's $1.65bn take-private deal with Fairfax Financial earlier this year.

Irish Revolut investors are getting braver, with US stocks now accounting for 38% of their portfolios, up from 32% in January, and Nvidia and Micron among September's favourites. Meanwhile, Trinity and UCD have placed 66th and 76th in the world's top 100 Executive MBA rankings, so there's no shortage of people studying how to make the big investment decisions. Over in America, Starbucks has had to publicly deny it's buying Chipotle, despite reports of a potential record-breaking restaurant takeover. Apparently, even with an MBA, sometimes the best corporate strategy is simply saying no to a burrito.

The Read - Business Post – Eileen O’Mara: EU is holding back companies trying to match Stripe’s success (Requires Paid Subscription)

Stripe vice chair Eileen O’Mara says it is hard to honestly say the company would have succeeded if founded in Europe today, blaming an invisible tax across 27 countries. Ireland holds the EU Council presidency and is tasked with advancing EU Inc, a proposed single corporate framework to make incorporating and raising capital easier. It remains a proposal, with an April 2028 implementation deadline, and campaigners say the text is already a heavy compromise. O’Mara argues the AI boom is not happening in Europe and wants urgency. Link: Eileen O’Mara: EU is holding back companies trying to match Stripe’s success

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