Author: Art Ryan

Taktile has raised $54 million to help power its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered risk management tool. The Series B round, announced Thursday (Feb. 27), brings the company’s total funding to $79 million, according to Balderton Capital, which led the round. The company says its funding comes at a moment when mainstream automation for high-stakes decisioning is on the cusp of a breakthrough. “In financial services and other regulated industries, the stakes are high, and every decision matters,” the announcement said. “Established institutions face intense pressure as AI-driven FinTech startups rapidly innovate, challenging their market share and margins. However, many enterprises struggle to adopt AI at…

Chinese tech giant Tencent (0700.HK), opens new tab on Thursday released a new AI model that it says can answer queries faster than global hit DeepSeek’s R1, in the latest sign the startup’s domestic and overseas success is putting pressure on its larger competitors in China. The Hunyuan Turbo S is able to reply to queries within a second, distinguishing itself “from DeepSeek R1, Hunyuan T1, and other slow thinking models that need to ‘think for a while before answering'”, Tencent said in a statement. Tencent added that when tested on fields like knowledge, math, and reasoning, Turbo S’ capabilities matched DeepSeek-V3, which…

Beamr Imaging Ltd. (NASDAQ: BMR), a leader in video optimization technology and solutions, today announced that Sharon Carmel, Chief Executive Officer, will present a talk at NVIDIA GTC, titled, “The Future of Video Compression is AI-Driven.” GTC is a global AI conference for developers and business minds shaping the future of artificial intelligence (AI) and accelerated computing. At GTC, Beamr will showcase how AI algorithms reshape video quality and usability and improve the efficiency of video workflows. Carmel will present AI capabilities, such as image enhancement, searchability and other content analysis options that enrich content and enable improved monetization. Beamr uses…

NAES, America’s largest independent power operator with 65GW under management, and Gecko, the company pioneering the development of AI-driven platforms using robotics, have announced a strategic partnership aimed at transforming the reliability and operational efficiency of American power production following President Trump’s declaration of a national energy emergency on January 20th. The companies announced an initial multi-year agreement valued in excess of $100 million with the option for the deal to grow beyond $250 million as demand warrants with one focus: modernizing power plants to meet the energy crisis in America. The agreement lays the foundation for NAES and Gecko…

As Meta continues to ramp up its AI and VR plans, it’s also going to need a lot more computing power, and data storage capacity to power its next-level initiatives. And it’s willing to invest, big time. According to a new report from The Information, Meta’s currently in the process of assessing locations for a new $200 billion data center, with the construction likely to place the new facility in either Louisiana, Wyoming or Texas, based on early talks. Meta hasn’t confirmed that any such project will be taking place, labeling the latest report as “pure speculation.” But it would align with…

China’s Baidu (9888.HK), opens new tab will launch the next generation of its artificial intelligence model Ernie in mid-March, which will see improved capabilities in areas such as reasoning, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said. The upgraded 4.5 Ernie model will also feature enhanced multimodal capabilities, the source said. Multimodal AI systems are capable of processing and integrating various types of data – like text, video, images, and audio – and can convert content across these formats. Baidu had said earlier this month it would gradually launch the Ernie 4.5 series in the coming months and officially make it open source…

Inventing Alexa+ required a series of technical breakthroughs, from getting LLMs to orchestrate APIs reliably to creating all-new agentic capabilities. Today, we introduced Alexa+, the next generation of Alexa. Rebuilt from the ground up, this new version of Alexa uses a state-of-the-art architecture that automatically connects a variety of large language models (LLMs), agentic capabilities, services, and devices at scale. This makes Alexa+ much more conversational, smarter, personalized, and capable of getting more things done for customers. With an undertaking of this scale, the team had to solve many technical challenges along the way. Here are five of the biggest advances…

This month, the Yale New Haven Health System announced the Health AI Championship, a competition that offers funding for proposals using AI to address healthcare challenges. The competition, open to all employees in Connecticut healthcare systems, will feature a symposium with national speakers addressing AI’s role in healthcare and live presentations of the top 12 proposals to an independent panel of judges. According to a press release from YNHHS, the competition is broken down into three phases: selection by participating institutions, judging of the selected proposals and the symposium, scheduled for May 27. The grand winner, in addition to winning…

Salesforce and Google have expanded their strategic partnership to provide businesses with greater flexibility in building and deploying AI-powered agents. The partnership empowers customers to develop tailored AI solutions that meet specific needs rather than being tied to a single model provider. The collaboration is expected to help particularly in areas such as customer service. Some of its highlights include: AI agents with multimodal capabilities: The integration of Google’s Gemini models into Salesforce’s Agentforce enhances agents’ ability to handle complex tasks across different input formats—whether audio, video, or text. Expanded contextual understanding: Gemini enables agents to process and reference large…

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said next-generation AI will need 100 times more compute than older models as a result of new reasoning approaches that think “about how best to answer” questions step by step. “The amount of computation necessary to do that reasoning process is 100 times more than what we used to do,” Huang told CNBC’s Jon Fortt in an interview on Wednesday following the chipmaker’s fourth-quarter earnings report. He cited models including DeepSeek’s R1, OpenAI’s GPT-4 and xAI’s Grok 3 as models that use a reasoning process. Nvidia reported results that topped analysts’ estimates across the board, with revenue jumping…

The decision to host the Web Summit in Qatar, the first of its kind outside of Lisbon since its move to Portugal in 2016, has ended up becoming the “absolutely kind of right decision” and potentially the best decision the organisers have ever made, Web Summit Founder and CEO Paddy Cosgrave has said. “A lot of people were saying that it was not the right place when we were approached to have the Web Summit here in Qatar and that we should instead go to a couple of other neighbouring larger countries knocking on our door and that we’d be…

Metalchemy Co-Founder and CEO Federico Trotta received the PITCH trophy on Web Summit’s Qatar Centre Stage after winning the final round of judging by Amin Matni from Jusour, Yalda Aoukar from Bracket Capita, Rashmi Gopinath from BAM Corner Point and Magnus Grimeland from Antler. The UK-based startup won in the PITCH final against Nigerian edtech startup Earlybean and UAE sustainable and cleantech startup Fortyguard. A total of 35 startups competed in group rounds that were held across the three days of the event. Metalchemy is on a mission to fight food waste by extending the shelf life of perishable food.…

Visit Qatar has signed a memorandum of understanding with Microsoft at Web Summit Qatar 2025 on Tuesday aimed at driving digital innovation in tourism. The agreement was signed by Visit Qatar CEO engineer Abdulaziz Ali al-Mawlawi and Microsoft country manager Lana Khalaf, marking the next phase of this collaboration. The MoU will witness the two entities working together to explore the next generation of technologies after the success of Visit Qatar’s GenAI Travel Concierge, fueled by Microsoft Azure and OpenAI 4o and 4o mini. The goal is to further elevate visitor experiences and revolutionise business operations. Visit Qatar’s successful Smart…

i4 Solutions and Cisco’s partnership delivers enhanced efficiency, stronger security, and a competitive edge for enterprises through AI-driven innovation and industry-leading solutions i4 Solutions, a leader in digital transformation and a Cisco Gold Partner, is redefining enterprise technology with AI-driven automation and advanced networking This strategic partnership underscores their unwavering commitment to empowering Qatari organizations with intelligent, secure, and scalable technology that drives operational efficiency and fosters innovation. As businesses across Qatar and the region accelerate their digital transformation journey, the demand for AI-powered solutions that optimize IT operations, enhance security, and enable seamless scalability has never been greater. At…

Artificial Intelligence startup Bridgetown Research said on Wednesday it had raised $19 million in a funding round led by venture capital firms Lightspeed Venture Partners and Accel, with participation from a leading research university. The Series A funding round valued the Seattle-based company at $250 million, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. While most AI solutions focus on searching and summarizing information using large language models (LLMs), Bridgetown Research develops AI agents that gather proprietary data from experts and customer surveys. These agents analyze the data to identify patterns and generate insights, aiding executives and investors in making…

Paris Saint-Germain announced on 25 February 2025 at Web Summit Qatar that the club is taking a bold step into the future of sports innovation with the launch of PSG Labs, a pioneering global initiative designed to accelerate cutting-edge technology in sports, fan experience, and performance. PSG Labs will serve as the club’s dedicated innovation engine, identifying and supporting high-potential startups, entrepreneurs, and tech partners to create transformative solutions that will redefine the industry. As part of its commitment to driving innovation, Paris Saint-Germain also announced the club is expanding its global footprint with the launch of its first international…

Amazon (AMZN.O), opens new tab on Wednesday is set to host an event showcasing new capabilities for Alexa that will bring the service into the age of generative artificial intelligence, more than a decade after it ushered in a wave of investment in voice assistants. The firm has been short on details beyond confirming an event it is hosting with its head of devices in New York is Alexa-focused. However, people familiar with the matter told Reuters the event will see the unveiling of a secret project known internally as “Banyan” aimed at making Alexa more conversational. The effort carries significant weight at Amazon,…

Riyadh Air, Saudi Arabia’s newest airline, has joined forces with IBM to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into its operations, aiming to enhance efficiency, customer experience, and overall business innovation. This strategic partnership aligns with **Saudi Vision 2030**, the kingdom’s ambitious plan to diversify its economy and establish itself as a global leader in aviation and technology. By leveraging AI-driven solutions, Riyadh Air seeks to optimize everything from predictive maintenance and operational efficiency to personalized passenger experiences, setting a new benchmark for smart aviation in the region. In a groundbreaking move, Riyadh Air has announced a strategic partnership with IBM to…

IBM plans to acquire DataStax, a longtime open source database and real-time event streaming vendor that recently rebranded as an AI company. The terms of the deal, expected to close in the second quarter, were not disclosed. DataStax has raised more than $343 million since its founding in 2010. IBM said DataStax’s technology will support the tech giant’s family of Watsonx generative AI models, which aim to help enterprises derive value from unstructured data. Open source strategy While the Watsonx line is not fully open source, it provides users with access to open source models. Some of IBM’s Granite large language models (LLMs)…

DeepSeek is looking to press home its advantage. The Chinese startup triggered a $1 trillion-plus sell-off in global equities markets last month with a cut-price AI reasoning model that outperformed many Western competitors. Now, the Hangzhou-based firm is accelerating the launch of the successor to January’s R1 model, according to three people familiar with the company. Deepseek had planned to release R2 in early May but now wants it out as early as possible, two of them said, without providing specifics. The company says it hopes the new model will produce better coding and be able to reason in languages beyond English.…