CPL’s report found that nowadays, salary may no longer be the most pressing concern for professionals.

Dublin-headquartered HR company CPL has published the results of a recent survey in which it discovered that currently, employees prize high-quality leadership almost as much as they value compensation. 

The organisation spoke with 1,600 age-diverse men and women, collecting data in mid-2025, to build a broader picture of the preferences and attitudes of professionals. 

CPL’s Salary Guide for Ireland 2026 found that while compensation and benefits continue to be the top priority for 35pc of contributing employees, 24pc of professionals said that leadership and culture are the most important factors to consider when choosing an employer.

Breaking down the elements that make up the leadership and culture category, employees were found to specifically value culture, values and ethics (27pc), work environment (25pc) and leadership behaviours (24pc). The report stated: “CPL’s findings reinforce that leadership quality remains a critical driver of employee attrition.”

Burgeoning benefits

Among the benefits of key importance to professionals, CPL’s research found that flexible working has evolved from a perk to a critical component of employee packages. After financial remuneration, flexibility ranked as the second most important benefit at 26pc. 

The research indicated that 70pc of participating employees now utilise some form of flexible working, with CPL noting that previous studies indicate that one in four candidates would not proceed with a job opportunity if it lacked opportunity for flexible work. 

A healthy work-life balance also matters to professionals, as 40pc said it was an experience priority. 21pc noted meaningful and stimulating work contributes to their overall happiness. The report said that while not yet surpassing compensation in importance, “work-life balance, when considered alongside flexible working, represents a core pillar of any successful talent strategy”.

CPL’s research also indicated that there is an incoming ‘workforce evolution’ of sorts, prompted by limited-company growth. The report noted that in Ireland, a country that experienced near-record limited company incorporations in 2025, growth and hiring is stalling. 

It said: “This growth reflects layoffs and slower permanent hiring for experienced professionals, prompting many to establish their own businesses providing specialist services across technology, life sciences and financial services. 

“This trend signals a structural shift toward self-employment, fractional leadership and contingent workforce models, offering organisations access to critical expertise with greater cost and workforce flexibility.”

Looking for organisational stability and additional career pathways are also priorities, the report indicated, noting that employees are in search of well-structured companies. Organisations’ stability and growth ranked as an important factor for 34pc of contributing employees, followed by organisational structure at 22pc, and mission and purpose at 17pc.

Notably, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability ranked low, at 5pc, suggesting organisations must strengthen their positioning as net-benefit entities. 

CPL said: “Investment in upskilling, reskilling and internal mobility is accelerating as skills shortages make external hiring costly and competitive.

“Employees expect visible career progression, and organisations require resilient workforces to navigate economic and technological change. Those building clear career pathways and investing in learning reduce long-term hiring pressure while retaining critical skills.”

Commenting on the report, Lorna Conn, the CEO of CPL, said: “Ireland’s labour market is undergoing a period of dynamic evolution. While economic and technological pressures continue to reshape how organisations operate, one fundamental truth persists: talent is the key differentiator for growth. 

“This salary guide sits at the intersection of pay, skills, flexibility and leadership, drawing on insights from CPL’s Future of Work Institute, Ireland’s 2026 talent trends and our latest analysis of AI’s impact on the workforce.” 

Looking ahead, the report finds that Ireland’s 2026 talent market will continue to reward organisations that adopt a holistic, long-term approach to the employee experience. 

It said that while “not every organisation can compete on salary alone, those balancing compensation and benefits, career development, innovation, flexible working, and upskilling are best positioned to attract and retain top talent”.

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Sennheiser isn’t chasing trends here. With the new CX 80U earphones and HD 400U headphones, the company is doing something far more practical: updating two of its most accessible wired models for a world that no longer has headphone jacks.

Both products replace the long-running CX 80S and HD 400S, swapping the 3.5mm plug for USB-C and adding integrated digital audio support. The result is a direct, low-latency signal path that works with modern phones, tablets, laptops, handheld gaming devices, and PCs—no dongles required. Both models support up to 24-bit / 96 kHz playback and are class-compliant for plug-and-play use across iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, ChromeOS, and SteamOS devices.

Sennheiser’s pitch is straightforward: wired still matters, especially for people who want consistent sound quality, zero pairing drama, and something that doesn’t need charging.

According to Christian Ern, Senior Product Manager at Sennheiser, the goal was simplicity without compromise. These are products designed to plug in, work immediately, and stay out of the way while you get on with your day—whether that’s calls, gaming, studying, or music listening.

Sennheiser HD 400U Headphones

The Sennheiser HD 400U ($99.95 at Amazon) is a closed-back, over-ear design that sticks closely to the formula that made the HD 400S popular. It’s compact, folds flat, and leans toward a bass-forward tuning that works well for everyday listening. Passive isolation helps block out background noise in shared spaces, making it a sensible option for home offices, school environments, and travel.

Sennheiser includes a detachable USB-C cable and a storage pouch, which keeps things practical rather than precious. This is not a studio headphone and doesn’t pretend to be one—it’s built for portability, durability, and predictable performance across devices.

What the HD 400U Is Doing Under the Hood

At its core, the Sennheiser HD 400U is a closed-back, over-ear dynamic headphone built for everyday listening rather than studio theatrics. The closed design keeps sound in and outside noise out, which immediately makes it more useful for shared spaces, commuting, and work environments where open-back headphones would be a liability.

The 18-ohm impedance tells you this headphone is easy to drive. Phones, laptops, tablets, and handheld gaming devices don’t have to work hard to get it loud, and there’s no requirement for an external amplifier. Pair that with a 217-gram weight, and you get something that’s comfortable enough for long sessions without feeling flimsy or toy-like.

Sennheiser uses a 9.7mm dynamic driver, tuned to cover the full audible range from 18 Hz to 20 kHz. Translation: you’ll get usable low-end extension without exaggerated sub-bass theatrics, and clean enough treble to keep vocals and dialogue intelligible without fatigue. The low total harmonic distortion (<0.5% at 100 dB) means the sound stays composed even when you turn things up; no strident edges or obvious breakup at higher volumes.

Built for Calls, Meetings, and Everyday Use

The integrated microphone is tuned for practicality, not podcast stardom. With a 100 Hz to 10 kHz frequency range and an omnidirectional pickup pattern, it’s designed to capture your voice clearly during calls and meetings without requiring precise positioning. It won’t isolate your voice like a boom mic, but it does the job reliably for work, gaming chat, and video calls.

CX 80U Earphones

For listeners who prefer something lighter and more discreet, the Sennheiser CX 80U ($39.95 at Amazon) takes the familiar CX 80S in-ear design and gives it the same USB-C digital treatment. The tuning is balanced with a touch of low-end weight, and passive isolation does most of the work when it comes to blocking outside noise.

Three sizes of silicone ear tips are included to help with fit and comfort, whether the earphones are being used for music, calls, or gaming sessions. Like the HD 400U, the CX 80U includes an in-line remote with an integrated MEMS microphone for voice calls and meetings.

What the CX 80U Is Doing Under the Hood

The Sennheiser CX 80U is a wired, in-ear dynamic earphone designed for simplicity, isolation, and consistency across modern devices. Like its predecessor, the CX 80S, it focuses on balanced tuning with enough low-end presence to keep things engaging without smothering vocals or dialogue.

Because this is a USB-C digital earphone, traditional specs like impedance and sensitivity don’t apply in the same way they do with analog models. The digital signal is handled internally, which means volume behavior and power delivery are controlled by the source device rather than varying wildly depending on headphone jacks or dongles.

The stated 17 Hz to 20 kHz frequency response covers the full audible range, delivering usable low-end weight and clean treble without pushing into exaggerated extremes. This tuning works well for music, video, podcasts, and gaming—especially in environments where background noise would otherwise get in the way.

There’s no active noise cancelling here, and that’s intentional. The CX 80U relies on its in-ear fit to passively block outside noise. Three sizes of ear tips are included to help achieve a proper seal, which is critical for both comfort and bass response. Get the fit right, and the earphones do a respectable job of keeping distractions out without introducing digital artifacts or battery requirements.

The Bottom Line

The Sennheiser CX 80U and HD 400U aren’t designed to compete with wireless headphones. They’re built for people who want affordable, wired audio that connects directly to modern USB-C devices without adapters, apps, or batteries. For students, commuters, gamers, and anyone tired of managing dongles, Sennheiser’s USB-C update is about reliability and convenience, not trends.

Pricing & Availability

Both models are available now:

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Formula 1 has been receiving star treatment from Apple for awhile, and now the racing series will literally be getting even bigger. Apple is partnering with IMAX to show five races from the 2026 season. The Miami Grand Prix on May 3, the Monaco Grand Prix on June 7, the British Grand Prix on July 5, the Italian Grand Prix on September 6 and the United States Grand Prix on October 25 will be aired live at select IMAX theaters in the US.

Apple landed a five-year deal for the US broadcast rights to Formula 1 last fall and there’s already a dedicated channel for the car races on Apple TV ahead of the season’s start. It also got the rights for a splashy feature film about the racing league, which amassed more than $630 million at the global box office, including with some IMAX screenings. It’s unclear if IMAX will be paying to host more live F1 races at its theaters in future years, but it should be a fun way for fans to get the most immersive experience possible short of actually attending the racetrack.

Dyson has announced the PencilWash, a new ultra-slim wet floor cleaner designed to make everyday mopping easier and more hygienic.

Weighing just 2.2kg and built around a 38mm pencil-thin handle, it’s the company’s most compact wet cleaner to date.

The PencilWash is engineered to lie almost flat — up to 170 degrees, reaching as low as 15cm. This allows it to clean under sofas, cabinets and low furniture without sacrificing suction or hydration performance. Dyson says the reduced diameter handle improves in-hand comfort and natural steering. It makes it feel closer to using a broom, rather than a bulky floor washer.

The Logitech G435, priced at $39.99 (was $79.99), the type of quiet disruption budget gaming headsets need, delivers incredible lightness combined with respectable wireless performance, all without breaking the wallet. Logitech prioritized comfort when creating the G435. The thing disappears on your head during marathon gaming sessions, weighing just 165 grams (or around 5.8 ounces).

The earcups are constructed of soft, breathable fabric that keeps the heat at bay, and the headband has a thin layer of the same material stretched over some really basic padding. Users may wear the item for hours without breaking a sweat, and the only time they’ll feel tired is when it’s time to take it off. A wonderful addition is the braille indicators on the sides, which help you determine left from right as quickly as possible, demonstrating that Logitech thought about regular use.

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• Versatile: Logitech G435 is the first headset with LIGHTSPEED wireless and low latency Bluetooth connectivity, providing more freedom of play on PC…
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Connectivity is a major highlight here, with a USB dongle that supports LIGHTSPEED wifi for low-latency gaming on PC, Mac, PS consoles, and even Switch. Switch to Bluetooth for your phone or tablet, and it will handle music or calls without losing signal. Most configurations have a range of roughly 10 meters. The battery lasts about 18 hours per charge via USB-C, which is enough for a couple of nights of gaming without needing to recharge.

The sound comes from 40mm speakers that have been adjusted for a balanced sound profile. The bass has a soft, relaxing touch that isn’t overpowering; the mids are crystal clear for voices and effects; and the highs gently roll off past 9kHz, so there’s no harshness. Many people find that the audio produces huge, full-bodied sound for both games and music, especially with a little EQ tweaking using Logitech’s PC software. Volume is limited to roughly 85 decibels in some versions for safety reasons, which is unfortunate if you enjoy cranking it up loud, but better safe than sorry.

The mics are hidden into the left earcup as dual beamformers, picking up speech as crisp as a bell while reducing background noise without the use of a cumbersome boom arm. Clarity is quite impressive for the price, yet it lacks the isolation and richness found in higher-end models.

As humanity looks to the moon for science and economic opportunity in the coming years, understanding potential dangers lurking on the lunar surface could become increasingly important.

Ridges on the moon that signify moonquakes are the subject of a recent research paper, which delves into tectonic activity across the lunar maria, a vast network of dark plains that arose from ancient volcanic activity.

A team of researchers analyzed lunar formations called small mare ridges to create a global moon map, which is the first of its kind. The paper was originally published Dec. 24 in the Planetary Science Journal.

Cole Nypaver, a postdoctoral fellow at the National Air and Space Museum’s Center for Earth and Planetary Studies and one of the paper’s authors, told CNET that the ridges that were identified were formed by faults in the lunar subsurface, which are associated with moonquakes. 

“While those moonquakes are potentially hazardous for long-term lunar exploration missions or permanent outposts, they also present fantastic opportunities to learn more about the interior of the moon and how the moon formed,” Nypaver said.

The moon is shrinking 

Another of the paper’s authors is a scientist named Tom Watters. Back in 2010, Watters discovered that the moon is slowly shrinking because its core is cooling.

The moon’s contraction causes disturbances on its surface. The crust gets compressed and forces material up along faults, which creates ridges, similar to how mountains form on Earth. 

The most common of these ridges are called lobate scarps. They form on the lunar highlands, which are the bright spots we see when we look at the moon. But the small mare ridges only form in the lunar maria, which are the dark areas of the moon that contrast with the highlands.

This research is the first time scientists have documented the ridges throughout the lunar maria. In doing so, we now have a more complete understanding of the moon’s thermal and seismic history, which could give us a better idea of any potential moonquakes in the future. 

“Our results represent the most globally complete understanding of recent lunar tectonism to date,” Nypaver said. “The presence of these additional tectonic features in the lunar maria suggests that the moon may have experienced more global contraction in the recent past than previously thought.”

Moon missions

Humans setting up permanent footholds on the lunar surface have moved from science fiction to real plans for the near future. NASA’s Artemis II mission is set to launch in March at the earliest. And while this mission will only send astronauts to orbit the moon, future Artemis missions plan to land people on the lunar surface and build permanent infrastructure there.

University of Maryland professor Nicholas Schmerr helped NASA develop the Lunar Environment Monitoring Station for Artemis 3, which the crew of the third Artemis mission, currently scheduled for 2028, will deliver to the moon’s surface.

Schmerr said to CNET that this instrument will detect seismic activity in the lunar south polar region. 

“We’ll get a whole new picture of lunar seismic activity both on the South Pole and lunar farside,” Schmerr said. 

LEMS-A3 is a station designed to be self-sustaining, and Schmerr will act as the instrument’s deputy principal investigator for the mission. The LEMS-A3 will assess “tectonics-related seismicity of the region and any hazard the moonquakes (or, for that matter, impacts) could pose to future longer-lived infrastructure,” Schmerr said. 

Setting up shop

NASA isn’t the only one that’s looking to sustain long-term lunar operations. A company called Interlune also wants to set up mining operations on the moon to excavate helium-3, a valuable isotope that could be used for clean energy and quantum computers.

Elon Musk has been talking about building a moon base to launch AI satellites into orbit.

Getting up to speed on the areas of the moon that are more likely to experience moonquakes could influence where space agencies and private companies decide to build outposts in the future.

“There are several upcoming missions to the moon that will carry dedicated seismometers in hopes of detecting a moonquake from a small mare ridge or an asteroid impact on the moon,” Nypaver said. “By identifying a new population of tectonic features in the lunar maria, our work provides additional targets for those missions that seek to use moonquakes to better understand our closest celestial neighbor.”  

For the past three months, Google’s Gemini 3 Pro has held its ground as one of the most capable frontier models available. But in the fast-moving world of AI, three months is a lifetime — and competitors have not been standing still.

Earlier today, Google released Gemini 3.1 Pro, an update that brings a key innovation to the company’s workhorse power model: three levels of adjustable thinking that effectively turn it into a lightweight version of Google’s specialized Deep Think reasoning system.

The release marks the first time Google has issued a “point one” update to a Gemini model, signaling a shift in the company’s release strategy from periodic full-version launches to more frequent incremental upgrades. More importantly for enterprise AI teams evaluating their model stack, 3.1 Pro’s new three-tier thinking system — low, medium, and high — gives developers and IT leaders a single model that can scale its reasoning effort dynamically, from quick responses for routine queries up to multi-minute deep reasoning sessions for complex problems.

The model is rolling out now in preview across the Gemini API via Google AI Studio, Gemini CLI, Google’s agentic development platform Antigravity, Vertex AI, Gemini Enterprise, Android Studio, the consumer Gemini app, and NotebookLM.

The ‘Deep Think Mini’ effect: adjustable reasoning on demand

The most consequential feature in Gemini 3.1 Pro is not a single benchmark number — it is the introduction of a three-tier thinking level system that gives users fine-grained control over how much computational effort the model invests in each response.

Gemini 3 Pro offered only two thinking modes: low and high. The new 3.1 Pro adds a medium setting (similar to the previous high) and, critically, overhauls what “high” means. When set to high, 3.1 Pro behaves as a “mini version of Gemini Deep Think” — the company’s specialized reasoning model that was updated just last week.

The implication for enterprise deployment could be significant. Rather than routing requests to different specialized models based on task complexity — a common but operationally burdensome pattern — organizations can now use a single model endpoint and adjust reasoning depth based on the task at hand. Routine document summarization can run on low thinking with fast response times, while complex analytical tasks can be elevated to high thinking for Deep Think–caliber reasoning.

Benchmark Performance: More Than Doubling Reasoning Over 3 Pro

Google’s published benchmarks tell a story of dramatic improvement, particularly in areas associated with reasoning and agentic capability.

On ARC-AGI-2, a benchmark that evaluates a model’s ability to solve novel abstract reasoning patterns, 3.1 Pro scored 77.1% — more than double the 31.1% achieved by Gemini 3 Pro and substantially ahead of Anthropic’s Sonnet 4.6 (58.3%) and Opus 4.6 (68.8%). This result also eclipses OpenAI’s GPT-5.2 (52.9%).

The gains extend across the board. On Humanity’s Last Exam, a rigorous academic reasoning benchmark, 3.1 Pro achieved 44.4% without tools, up from 37.5% for 3 Pro and ahead of both Claude Sonnet 4.6 (33.2%) and Opus 4.6 (40.0%). On GPQA Diamond, a scientific knowledge evaluation, 3.1 Pro reached 94.3%, outperforming all listed competitors.

Where the results become particularly relevant for enterprise AI teams is in the agentic benchmarks — the evaluations that measure how well models perform when given tools and multi-step tasks, the kind of work that increasingly defines production AI deployments.

On Terminal-Bench 2.0, which evaluates agentic terminal coding, 3.1 Pro scored 68.5% compared to 56.9% for its predecessor. On MCP Atlas, a benchmark measuring multi-step workflows using the Model Context Protocol, 3.1 Pro reached 69.2% — a 15-point improvement over 3 Pro’s 54.1% and nearly 10 points ahead of both Claude and GPT-5.2. And on BrowseComp, which tests agentic web search capability, 3.1 Pro achieved 85.9%, surging past 3 Pro’s 59.2%.

Why Google chose a ‘0.1’ release — and what it signals

The versioning decision is itself noteworthy. Previous Gemini releases followed a pattern of dated previews — multiple 2.5 previews, for instance, before reaching general availability. The choice to designate this update as 3.1 rather than another 3 Pro preview suggests Google views the improvements as substantial enough to warrant a version increment, while the “point one” framing sets expectations that this is an evolution, not a revolution.

Google’s blog post states that 3.1 Pro builds directly on lessons from the Gemini Deep Think series, incorporating techniques from both earlier and more recent versions. The benchmarks strongly suggest that reinforcement learning has played a central role in the gains, particularly on tasks like ARC-AGI-2, coding benchmarks, and agentic evaluations — exactly the domains where RL-based training environments can provide clear reward signals.

The model is being released in preview rather than as a general availability launch, with Google stating it will continue making advancements in areas such as agentic workflows before moving to full GA.

Competitive implications for your enterprise AI stack

For IT decision makers evaluating frontier model providers, Gemini 3.1 Pro’s release has to not only make them rethink which models to choose but also how to adapt to such a fast pace of change for their own products and services.

The question now is whether this release triggers a response from competitors. Gemini 3 Pro’s original launch last November set off a wave of model releases across both proprietary and open-weight ecosystems.

With 3.1 Pro reclaiming benchmark leadership in several critical categories, the pressure is on Anthropic, OpenAI, and the open-weight community to respond — and in the current AI landscape, that response is likely measured in weeks, not months.

Availability

Gemini 3.1 Pro is available now in preview through the Gemini API in Google AI Studio, Gemini CLI, Google Antigravity, and Android Studio for developers. Enterprise customers can access it through Vertex AI and Gemini Enterprise. Consumers on Google AI Pro and Ultra plans can access it through the Gemini app and NotebookLM.

• CarGurus reportedly hit by ShinyHunters vishing attacks
• Hackers claim to have stolen 1.7 million records
• CarGurus is staying queit for now

Online car marketplace CarGurus is allegedly the latest company to fall prey to ShinyHunters’ vishing attacks.

The notorious hacking collective posted a new note on its data leak site warning CarGurus to act quickly or have their sensitive data posted on the dark web.