Author: Art Ryan

Google’s AI assistant, Gemini, is coming to your TV. On Monday, the company announced it’s introducing Gemini for Google TV, allowing TV owners to engage in free-flowing, natural language conversations with the AI. When fully rolled out, this expansion of Gemini to a new platform will bring Google’s AI to over 300 million active Google TV and other Android TV OS-powered devices. In terms of TV-related questions, Google suggests its Gemini AI could be used to help people with different interests settle on something to watch that they would both like, or to catch you up on what you missed in a past season…

The past week was arguably the most active on the agentic artificial intelligence (AI) front of the year. When you have companies as big as Google, Amazon and Zoom vying for the headlines, it can’t help but be a big week for innovation and adoption. But perhaps the most impactful development came from a newly published case study from Moody’s. Because while agentic AI is long on promise, it’s tight on actual successful use cases. So the Moody’s use case was welcome news for Prompt Economy advocates. VentureBeat reports that Moody’s faced a pressing challenge: Its customers often spent 40 hours or more preparing credit memos, a process bogged down by unstructured data and manual…

Alibaba’s big bet on artificial intelligence (AI) could reportedly make it one of the world’s biggest companies. That’s according to a report Saturday (Sept. 20) by CNBC, charting the Chinese tech giant’s shift from eCommerce to AI. In the last three years, Alibaba has taken part in deals worth more than $3.3 billion, including investments in AI model startups Moonshot and MiniMax to robotics startup Limx Dynamics, the report said, citing data from PitchBook. Meanwhile, the company plans to spend $53.42 billion in AI and cloud infrastructure over the next three years. More than $14 billion has been invested in AI infrastructure and research in the past year, Wei Sun, principal analyst at Counterpoint Research, told CNBC. “Alibaba…

The story of any gold rush is rarely just about the miners who strike shiny veins. It is also about those who build the roads, sell the tools and lay the tracks. After all, for companies to get to the AI-powered future, they will likely need infrastructure that takes away the complexity of model orchestration, allowing them to concentrate on their differentiators. “Every organization in the world is either going to become AI-first or AI-enabled,” Tuhin Srivastava, Co-founder and CEO of Baseten, said during a discussion for the PYMNTS Monday Conversation series hosted by PYMNTS CEO Karen Webster. “As companies move toward this, you really only have…

The future of artificial intelligence is not just about how intelligent AI models can become. It is about how reliably and efficiently they can be served at scale. That is why inference infrastructure will shape what comes next. Here are six things to be aware of: 1. The Shift From Training to Inference AI’s spotlight has long been on training, with companies amassing data and building larger models. The real challenge now is inference: running those models in production, serving billions of queries and delivering instant results. 2. What Inference Really Means Training is when a model learns from massive datasets…

While politicians tout AI’s promise of growth and efficiency, a new report reveals a public trust deficit in the technology. Many are deeply sceptical, creating a major headache for governments’ plans. A deep dive by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI) and Ipsos has put some hard numbers on this feeling of unease. It turns out that a lack of trust is the biggest single reason people are shying away from using generative AI. It’s not just a vague worry; it’s a genuine barrier holding back the AI revolution politicians are so excited about. Public trust in AI increases with usage…

Riyadh, KSA: Riyadh will host the KSA edition of DATE (Digital Acceleration & Transformation Expo) on 8-9 December at JW Marriott, bringing together 2,000+ government officials, investors, industry leaders, and innovators from around the world. “We are honoured to bring this global platform to Riyadh, to support the Kingdom’s vision of building a world-leading digital economy, powered by innovation and inclusive growth,” said Mohammed Saleem, Founder and Chairman, Trescon. Co-located with Trescon’s CARE (Climate Action & Renewable Energy) series, DATE KSA will showcase advancements in AI, blockchain, quantum computing, BioTech, HealthTech, FinTech, metaverse and extended reality, aligned with national priorities…

Egypt’s Health Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, met with representatives from China’s Ningbo Clinical Pathology Diagnostic Center to discuss potential collaboration in the fields of digital diagnostics and artificial intelligence (AI), according to the Health Ministry. The discussions took place on the sidelines of the Huawei Connect 2025 conference in Shanghai, held from September 18 to 20. Health Ministry spokesperson Hossam Abdel Ghaffar highlighted that the talks focused on launching specialized online training programs for pathology technicians and specialists. These programs will cover modern diagnostic techniques, digital pathology, and AI applications aligned with international standards to enhance…

If you have been eyeing PayPal Holdings (PYPL) for your portfolio, the latest news might have made you sit up and take notice. PayPal just announced a multiyear strategic partnership with Google, aiming to weave AI shopping experiences throughout their platforms and expand payment processing integrations. Both companies are positioning this collaboration as a leap forward in digital commerce, with PayPal’s trusted payment infrastructure powering more seamless transactions and Google’s AI capabilities enhancing personalization for consumers and businesses alike. This announcement comes as PayPal has kept the momentum going with new peer-to-peer payment tools and initiatives to boost user engagement,…

JFrog Investment Narrative Recap To be a shareholder in JFrog, you have to buy into the idea that trusted software supply chain automation and security will become indispensable as enterprises rush to manage ever-growing AI and compliance demands. The latest product launches, particularly those centered on AI-driven automation and audit readiness, may reinforce JFrog’s claim as a “system of record” for software releases, a key catalyst as larger deals and regulatory scrutiny intensify, but do not materially reduce the central risks tied to enterprise sales cycles and potential customer concentration. Of the recent announcements, JFrog AppTrust stands out as directly…

Some bank customers have called on banks to adopt safe and home grown Artificial Intelligence (AI) platforms in banking to facilitate complaints resolution. Some of the customers who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday, said that AI adoption in banking would ensure timely and effective service delivery to customers. Mrs Kate Onifade, a bank customer, said that AI adoption in banking and the financial system generally would help to remove bureaucracy experienced in lodging and resolving customers complaints in banks. Onifade said that adopting AI in banking could help bankers trace the location of…

For years, Big Tech CEOs have touted visions of AI agents that can autonomously use software applications to complete tasks for people. But take today’s consumer AI agents out for a spin, whether it’s OpenAI’s ChatGPT Agent or Perplexity’s Comet, and you’ll quickly realize how limited the technology still is. Making AI agents more robust may take a new set of techniques that the industry is still discovering. One of those techniques is carefully simulating workspaces where agents can be trained on multi-step tasks — known as reinforcement learning (RL) environments. Similarly to how labeled datasets powered the last wave of AI, RL environments are…

The University of Wyoming’s strategic efforts to lead in artificial intelligence innovation across the state and beyond will receive a significant boost because of $6.25 million in funding commitments from donors and industry matched by state funds, for a total of $8.75 million. UW secured $6.25 million in commitments from donors and from companies and foundations for sponsored research projects, which unlocked $2.5 million from the state matching fund program. “This investment reflects our commitment to positioning Wyoming as a leader in AI,” UW President Ed Seidel said in a news release. “By combining state-of-the-art research with real-world applications across…

Australian businesses are increasingly using artificial intelligence to reduce call centre waiting times and improve customer service outcomes. Recent data shows a 56% annual increase in online searches for ‘AI call centre’, reflecting heightened interest in the technology’s applications across the industry. According to a customer service technology survey, more than half of Australian businesses are utilising AI solutions to support their customer-facing operations. AI in everyday life The adoption of artificial intelligence is becoming more visible in everyday environments, both at home and at work. Its primary use is to automate time-intensive and repetitive activities, allowing people to divert…

iPhone Air is the big newcomer among Apple’s latest lineup that went on sale Friday, but inside the slim phone’s raised plateau is another new piece of hardware that signals a renewed focus on artificial intelligence. Apple’s custom A19 Pro chip introduces a major architecture change, with neural accelerators added to each GPU core to increase compute power. Apple also debuted its first ever wireless chip for iPhone, the N1, and a second generation of its iPhone modem, the C1X. It’s a move analysts say gives Apple control of all the core chips in its phones. “That’s where the magic is.…

Chinese experts have called on African media organizations to adopt advanced digital technologies — especially artificial intelligence — to stay competitive, improve content delivery, and meet the growing demands of modern audiences. 🔍 Key Recommendations ⚠️ Challenges Highlighted ✅ Why This Matters

The Army is expanding its use of artificial intelligence beyond drones — from wearable smart glasses that train mechanics in the field to automated defenses against swarms of cheap enemy aircraft — as leaders warn the counter-drone fight is now “problem 1A” for the nation. Speaking to reporters this week, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll described a pilot program in which soldiers wear AI-enabled Ray-Ban glasses that record repair jobs and then use generative models to walk less-experienced troops through infantry squad vehicle maintenance. He said it reflects a new push to bring consumer technology into the force “a lot more quickly” than…

Thanks to the generosity and vision of one dedicated community member, patients in the Comox Valley are now experiencing faster, clearer diagnostic imaging and safer, more effective emergency care—all without leaving the region. Through the extraordinary support of local donor Frank Carter, Comox Valley Hospital has acquired two groundbreaking technologies: an AI-assisted MRI imaging system and an Enhanced Glidescope airway visualization machine. These advancements are transforming patient care and enabling healthcare providers to deliver the highest standard of service right here at home. “This is a transformational gift,” said Rhonda Stevens, Co-Executive Director of the Comox Valley Healthcare Foundation. “This…

California’s state senate recently gave final approval to a new AI safety bill, SB 53, sending it to Governor Gavin Newsom to either sign or veto. If this all sounds familiar, that’s because Newsom vetoed another AI safety bill, also written by state senator Scott Wiener, last year. But SB 53 is narrower than Wiener’s previous SB 1047, with a focus on big AI companies making more than $500 million in annual revenue. I got the chance to discuss SB 53 with my colleagues Max Zeff and Kirsten Korosec on the latest episode of TechCrunch’s flagship podcast Equity. Max believes that Wiener’s new bill…

As part of its long-term vision, AI Pathfinder plans to invest £15bn in West Scotland, beginning with an initial investment from 2026 that will see the start of operations at its North Ayrshire site in the i3 area of Irvine. Up to 6,400 GPU’s will be deployed during that initial phase. This 1GW site is expected to scale into one of the largest AI infrastructure hubs in Europe, with the future potential to expand to 1.5GW. Its investment in North Ayrshire is expected to create substantial employment opportunities, both through the delivery of the site’s construction and in the diverse…