Today's AI Pulse
Odyssey lands $310M Series B, valued at $1.45B
Odyssey announced a $310 million Series B round that values the AI lab at $1.45 billion. The round was led by Natural Capital and included backers such as Amazon, AMD Ventures, GV, EQT and IQT. In parallel, Odyssey struck a preferred‑cloud deal with AWS to use Trainium silicon for large‑scale model training.
Also developing:
Gemini 3 Powering Google AI Overviews Globally
Google has made Gemini 3 the default model for AI Overviews on its search engine worldwide. The new model delivers concise, context‑aware answers directly on the results page, replacing earlier pilots of Gemini 3 Pro for complex queries. The rollout starts in English for all users and will expand to additional languages. This change aims to provide a best‑in‑class AI response for most search queries, reinforcing Google’s position in generative search.
From Interviews to Outfit Tips: 5 Ways Gemini Live Can Help with Everyday Tasks
Google’s Gemini Live AI chatbot is evolving from a search companion into a multitasking assistant. It now handles voice‑driven notes, to‑do lists, and calendar scheduling, while also offering real‑time language tutoring and skill coaching. Integrated camera support lets users get outfit...
Mastercard Showcases Agentic Payments in Australia with CBA and Westpac Onboard
Mastercard has rolled out its Agent Pay technology in Australia, following a US launch last year. The first Australian transactions used a Commonwealth Bank debit card to buy cinema tickets and a Westpac credit card to book Thredbo accommodation, both completed...
Emojis in PureRAT’s Code Point to AI-Generated Malware Campaign
Researchers at Symantec and Carbon Black have uncovered a PureRAT trojan campaign that is being authored with artificial‑intelligence tools. The malware is distributed through phishing emails masquerading as job offers and contains code comments and emojis typical of AI‑generated scripts....
Visible2 Launches as Independent AI Visibility Consultancy Focused on AI-Driven Search and Discovery
Visible2 has launched as an independent AI visibility consultancy helping businesses understand how artificial‑intelligence systems interpret, trust, and recommend websites in AI‑driven search. The firm moves beyond traditional SEO, focusing on structural and semantic signals that influence AI recommendation engines....
Waabi Raises $1B From Uber and VCs
The episode examines Waabi, an autonomous trucking startup that just raised a $1 billion funding round, including a $250 million investment from Uber. It highlights Waabi's AI‑first strategy, which relies on advanced simulation to enable rapid learning and generalization across vehicle platforms...
From Triage to Threat Hunts: How AI Accelerates SecOps
AI‑driven SOC agents are moving from hype to practical augmentation, handling every alert with human‑level accuracy. By automatically correlating telemetry from EDR, identity, cloud and network sources, they eliminate the triage bottleneck and achieve near‑zero dwell time. The continuous investigation...
Pace Raises $10m to Automate Insurance Operations
Agentic AI startup Pace announced a $10 million Series A round led by Sequoia Capital to accelerate automation of insurance operations. The funding will be used to replace traditional business process outsourcing with AI systems that handle submissions, claims processing and other...
Government Offers UK Adults Free AI Training for Work
The UK government has launched a suite of free and subsidised AI training courses aimed at upskilling the adult workforce. Designed with input from Amazon, Google and Microsoft, the programme offers 14 modules that culminate in a virtual badge. The...
AI Security Threats Loom as Enterprise Usage Jumps 91%
Zscaler’s ThreatLabz 2026 AI Security Report reveals a 91% surge in enterprise AI usage, encompassing 989.3 billion transactions across more than 3,400 applications in 2025. Despite this rapid adoption, every AI system examined harbored critical vulnerabilities, with 90% compromised within 90...
Robbyant Open-Sources LingBot-VLA as a “Universal Brain” For Robots
Ant Group’s embodied‑AI unit Robbyant has open‑sourced LingBot‑VLA, a vision‑language‑action model designed as a universal brain for robots. The model, trained on over 20,000 hours of real‑world interaction data, can be adapted to diverse platforms—including Galaxea Dynamics and AgileX robots—with...
Mplify Advances Carrier Ethernet Certifications to Meet Accelerating Demands of Business and AI-Era Networking
Mplify has launched an enhanced Carrier Ethernet certification suite, rebranding the existing MEF 3.0 program as Carrier Ethernet for Business and introducing a new Carrier Ethernet for AI certification slated for Q2 2026. The AI‑focused certification aims to validate transport performance for...
AMIQ EDA Gives AI Agents Access to Essential Design and Verification Data
AMIQ EDA launched the Design and Verification Tools (DVT) MCP Server, a new product that exposes a compiled database of semiconductor design and verification data to AI agents. The server connects AI assistants to project‑specific context, supporting Verilog, SystemVerilog, VHDL...
B-Next and Behavox Join Forces to Advance Capital Markets Compliance
b-next, a capital‑markets surveillance specialist, has partnered with AI‑focused Behavox to embed advanced analytics into its compliance suite. The deal grants b-next a license to Behavox’s artificial‑intelligence engine, enhancing trade surveillance, best‑execution monitoring, conflicts‑of‑interest controls, and personal‑account dealing solutions. Behavox...
Endee.io Open Sources Its High-Performance Vector Database for Scalable AI
Endee.io has launched Endee, an open‑source high‑performance vector database aimed at AI‑driven semantic search, retrieval‑augmented generation, and recommendation workloads. The platform promises high recall, sub‑millisecond latency, and markedly lower infrastructure costs by optimizing memory and compute usage. Endee is positioned...
MIND Launches DLP for Agentic AI to Secure Data Used by Autonomous Systems
Data security firm MIND Security launched DLP for Agentic AI, a data‑centric solution that safeguards sensitive information used by autonomous AI agents across enterprise applications. The service provides visibility into active AI agents, real‑time risk detection, and automated remediation, shifting...
Waabi Raises $1B and Expands Into Robotaxis with Uber
Waabi announced a $1 billion financing round, including a $750 million Series C led by Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners and $250 million milestone‑based capital from Uber. The funding fuels a partnership that will place more than 25,000 Waabi‑powered robotaxis on Uber’s ride‑hailing...
MedeAnalytics Appoints David Figueredo as Chief Innovation Officer
MedeAnalytics announced the appointment of David Figueredo as Chief Innovation Officer, bringing over two decades of healthcare technology and AI expertise. Figueredo previously led innovation at Experian and held senior roles at WaveHDC and Change Healthcare, where he drove AI‑powered...
Google Deepmind Gives Gemini 3 Flash the Ability to Actively Explore Images Through Code
Google DeepMind has introduced “Agentic Vision” to its Gemini 3 Flash model, enabling the system to actively explore images by generating and executing Python code. The model follows a think‑act‑observe loop—analyzing a request, planning actions, running code to zoom, crop or annotate,...
Google Exploring Ways To Allow Sites To Opt Out Of AI Overviews & AI Mode
Google announced it is exploring new controls that would let website owners opt out of having their content used in Search’s generative AI features, such as AI Overviews and AI Mode. The move follows the UK Competition and Markets Authority’s...
Copyrighted Art, Mobile Phones, Greenland: Welcome to Our Age of Shameless Theft | Jonathan Liew
Jonathan Liew argues that today’s digital ecosystem normalises petty theft, from copied articles to AI models trained on scraped copyrighted material. He links this cultural shift to broader power imbalances, noting how platforms and political actors profit while creators receive...
N8n Adds Chat Hub to Centralize AI Access Inside Automation Workflows
n8n launched Chat Hub, a built‑in chat interface that lets users query large language models and trigger workflow agents without exposing workflow logic or credentials. The feature introduces a dedicated Chat role, centralizes model and credential management, and supports both...
12 Alternative Search Engines to Try (Instead of Google)
The article lists twelve search‑engine alternatives to Google, emphasizing how each can serve different user needs. It highlights Bing as a standout option, noting its AI‑powered Copilot chat, integrated result sources, and a rewards program that grants points for queries....
ERM Taps Auquan to Adopt Agentic AI to Assess ESG Risks
ERM, the world’s largest sustainability consultancy, announced a partnership with Auquan to integrate its agentic AI platform into ESG risk assessments for financial institutions. The collaboration will deploy autonomous AI agents that scan global news, regulatory filings, and stakeholder reports...
Hype vs Responsibility in Building Fintech Products with AI
I work in fintech product, and I’ve been working on AI implementation for a while. One thing keeps
Google Pitches Gemini to Students Studying for India’s Most Competitive College Entrance Exam
Google has integrated full‑length Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) practice tests into its Gemini AI chatbot, partnering with Indian education firms PhysicsWallah and Careers360 for vetted content. The new feature delivers instant feedback, explains answers, and generates customized study plans after...
Why Yann LeCun Left Meta, and What It Means for AI’s Next Frontier
Yann LeCun, a Turing‑Award‑winning AI pioneer, announced his departure from Meta after more than a decade leading FAIR, the company’s flagship research lab. His exit underscores a deep philosophical split at Meta between scaling massive language models and pursuing AI that...
Inside Standard Chartered’s Approach to Running AI Under Privacy Rules
Standard Chartered has placed data‑privacy teams at the forefront of its AI strategy, making privacy requirements the starting point for model design, approval, and monitoring. The bank must navigate divergent data‑sovereignty laws, often deploying AI locally or using anonymised data...
How K-12 Schools Are Left on Their Own to Develop AI Policies
K‑12 schools are navigating generative AI without clear state mandates, leaving policy development to individual districts. A 2025 survey of the National Association of State Boards of Education shows most states only offer guidance, while ethical worries—student safety, data privacy,...
Cloudbrink Adds AI Innovations to Its Platform to Protect Agents, Apps, and Data
Cloudbrink announced new AI‑focused security features that extend its secure connectivity platform to protect AI agents, browser‑based AI services, and custom large language models. The enhancements include a Safe AI BrinkAgent that detects data leaks, a continuously updated definitions database...
Open‑weight AI + Obsidian + Crypto Enables Personal Private Programmable Stack
PERSONAL PRIVATE PROGRAMMABLE I’ve been thinking more about the intersection of Claude Code and Obsidian. There is an upcoming tech stack here that I’m calling personal private programmable. Here’s a sketch of the idea. First, if you squint ahead a few months, we...
AI Sales Reps Must Match Pluribus' All‑Knowing Expertise
"AI SDRs and AEs should be as good as Pluribus. They should know everything. Every bit of detail about your product, customers, and more." with @kylecnorton CRO @owner https://t.co/bxYBgTmGEJ
Bell Integration Expands AI Center of Excellence to Strengthen Enterprise AI Skills Development Across the UK
Bell Integration has expanded its AI Center of Excellence across the UK, adding a comprehensive Starburst Data & Analytics training suite to its portfolio. The new programs deliver hybrid, role‑specific AI and data engineering courses to enterprises in London, regional...
SaaStr 839: Why Most SaaS Companies Will Fail at AI (And How to Avoid It) with Intercom's CPO
In this episode, Intercom Chief Product Officer Paul Adams details how the company pivoted from a struggling SaaS business to an AI-first powerhouse, launching the Fin product that now resolves over a million customer issues weekly. He explains that successful...
Boards Double Down on Scenario Planning, but 90% Lack AI Tools to Keep Pace
A new Diligent‑Corporate Board Member survey finds that 84% of public‑company directors have overhauled their scenario‑planning processes, yet only 10% employ AI tools to handle the resulting data complexity. While 66% report some AI use in the boardroom, merely 3%...
New Report Finds Communication Teams Unprepared for AI, Despite High Urgency and Organizational Pressure
A Breuklander Communications study reveals communication teams view AI as urgent (7.4/10) and valuable (8.1/10) but lack confidence, scoring only 4.2/10 in self‑assessment. Internal confidence gaps of four to nine points within the same team are identified as the greatest...
Terillium Launches Oracle AI Strategy Workshop to Help Organizations Turn AI Vision Into Business Value
Terillium has introduced an Oracle AI Strategy Workshop designed to help enterprises uncover, prioritize, and operationalize artificial‑intelligence use cases within Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications. The hands‑on engagement delivers a detailed AI Assessment Readout, outlining business value propositions, efficiency gains, cost‑reduction...
AI that Talks to Itself Learns Faster and Smarter
Researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology demonstrated that AI systems equipped with an internal "self‑talk" module and enhanced working memory learn faster and generalize better across tasks. By training models to engage in quiet internal speech while...
IXAfrica Data Centres Collaborates with Oracle to Deliver Kenya’s First Public Cloud Region
iXAfrica Data Centre Limited has partnered with Oracle to host the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) public cloud region in Nairobi, marking Kenya’s first locally‑hosted public cloud. The collaboration, announced by President William Ruto, leverages iXAfrica’s hyperscale, carrier‑neutral, AI‑ready facility to...
UserTesting Unveils UserTesting for Figma, Embedding AI-Powered Customer Insights Directly Into Design Workflows
UserTesting announced a new Figma plugin that lets designers generate AI‑driven test plans and launch live user tests directly from their prototypes. The tool creates complete scripts—including tasks, instructions, and follow‑up questions—in under a minute and streams success metrics, behavioral...
PubMatic Expands Commercial Leadership Team to Accelerate Buy-Side and Publisher Growth
PubMatic announced a major expansion of its commercial leadership, appointing Joseph Dressler as SVP of Advertiser Solutions (Brands) and Bill McLaughlin as SVP of Advertiser Solutions (Agencies). The new team will accelerate adoption of PubMatic’s AI‑driven AgenticOS and Agentic Accelerator...
AiThority Interview With Claire Southey, Chief AI Officer at Rokt
Claire Southey, Rokt’s Chief AI Officer, outlines how the company embeds AI across product development, decision‑making, and culture. She describes Rokt’s AI‑driven recommendation engine, the $300 million acquisition of mParticle, and advanced modelling techniques like multi‑task learning. Southey predicts AI will...
Standard Bots Selects Cognibotics’ Calibration for Next-Generation AI Cobots
Standard Bots, an AI‑driven robotics firm, has chosen Cognibotics’ CogniCal calibration for its next‑generation cobot platform. The technology delivers world‑class accuracy, reducing geometric and payload‑induced deviations across robot units. By tightening precision, AI‑based task training becomes more efficient and transferable,...
Qlik Joins Snowflake & Industry Leaders to Support Data and AI Interoperability Across the Ecosystem Through the Open Semantic Interchange
Qlik announced its participation in the Open Semantic Interchange (OSI), an open‑source effort led by Snowflake to create a vendor‑neutral specification for semantic metadata. OSI aims to harmonize data definitions across business intelligence, data engineering, and AI tools, reducing metric...
Calabrio’s “Voice of the Agent” Report Finds the Modern Contact Center Balancing Empathy and AI in a Time of Transition
Calabrio’s 2025 "Voice of the Agent" report, based on over 500 contact‑center professionals in Europe and North America, shows the industry is shifting toward a blend of human empathy and AI‑driven tools. Agents report higher pride and purpose, with 75%...
Pallma AI Closes $1.6M Pre-Seed Round for AI Agent Security
London‑based Pallma AI announced a $1.6 million pre‑seed round led by Marathon Venture Capital, with participation from tech leaders at AWS, Meta, and Google. The startup offers an AI‑native security platform that monitors, detects, and mitigates risks such as prompt injection...
Siemens Introduces Digital Twin Composer for Large-Scale Digital Twin Environments
Siemens announced Digital Twin Composer, a platform that creates large‑scale, photorealistic industrial metaverse environments by merging 2D/3D digital‑twin data with real‑time physical information via Nvidia Omniverse. The solution, part of the Siemens Xcelerator portfolio, lets manufacturers simulate products, processes and...
SelfAudit Launches Partner Program to Speed CMMC Readiness
SelfAudit AI introduced a Partner Program aimed at MSPs, MSSPs, and compliance professionals to accelerate Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) readiness. The initiative offers a standardized, AI‑driven workflow that streamlines gap analysis, remediation, and audit‑ready documentation. By integrating partners into...
Delegation Is a Risk Decision Every Leader Makes, Not an Ops Choice
Leaders increasingly delegate decision‑making authority to software, turning routine operational choices into enterprise‑level risk decisions. When systems automatically issue credits, payments, or pricing adjustments, the underlying authority often lacks explicit ownership, exposing organizations to financial, legal, and reputational fallout. Security...
A Billion Dollar Bet on AI-First Drug Development
In this episode, Marc Tessier‑Lavigne, co‑founder and CEO of Xaira, explains how the company is using an end‑to‑end AI platform to overhaul drug discovery by tackling three core bottlenecks: target selection, molecule design, and patient stratification. Xaira trains high‑dimensional "virtual...