that everyone else is reporting a meltdown and yet these people are doing quite well. I worked for these cowboys before ( see http://www.paullee.com/computers/autonomy.php ) and they had an overinflated opinion of themselves even then.

If memory serves, Autonomy won one of Privacy International's Big Brother Awards about a decade ago. Their winning product was AI software that deduced social networks from the pattern of calls logged by telephone companies.

Could it be that Ms Smith has been talking with them, and that a slice of the mooted £12 billion is scheduled to head their way? Surveillance certainly seems to be one of the few remaining growth areas.