News/AI Implementation
Forrester predicts “frumpy but functional AI” era as 95% of projects fail
Forrester Research, a market research firm, predicts that 2026 will mark the beginning of "the age of frumpy but functional AI," signaling a shift from AI hype to practical implementation. The firm expects businesses to focus more on governance and measured adoption rather than rushing to deploy new AI tools, as companies realize many AI initiatives fail to deliver expected returns on investment. The big picture: AI is transitioning from a revolutionary technology grabbing headlines to a mundane but essential part of business operations, similar to how the iPhone evolved from groundbreaking innovation to everyday necessity. Key spending trends: Forrester...
read Oct 9, 2025Salesforce debuts AI agents for 24/7 IT support across platforms
Salesforce has launched Agentforce IT Service, an AI-powered system designed to replace traditional IT helpdesk ticket systems with conversational AI agents that provide 24/7 support across platforms like Slack, Teams, and email. The service aims to reduce manual IT tasks and allow both workers and IT staff to focus on higher-value strategic work, representing another step in AI's expansion into workplace support functions. How it works: Unlike traditional ticket-based IT support, Agentforce operates as a "conversation-first" system that can handle requests through any communication platform. Workers can initiate IT help requests directly through chat systems, email, or messaging apps without...
read Oct 9, 2025AWS debuts Quick Suite connecting 1,000+ apps for AI-powered workspaces
Amazon Web Services has launched Amazon Quick Suite, an AI-powered platform designed to serve as a centralized hub for enterprise workers to access data and complete tasks across multiple applications using natural language. The solution aims to address the challenge of critical business data being scattered across various systems, positioning itself as "everything you want to do with ChatGPT at work, but can't." What you should know: Quick Suite functions as an AI-powered workspace that connects to numerous enterprise applications and data sources. Workplace administrators can integrate the platform with personal repositories like Google Drive, Office 365, Slack, and email,...
read Oct 9, 2025The eye in AI: World’s first AI-driven robotic cataract surgery completed successfully
Horizon Surgical Systems has completed the world's first robotic cataract surgery using its Polaris platform, with the procedure performed by Los Angeles-based surgeon Uday Devgan, M.D., FACS. This milestone represents the convergence of AI-driven visualization and micro-robotic control in ophthalmic surgery, potentially addressing workforce shortages and standardizing outcomes in the most commonly performed operation worldwide. What you should know: The Polaris system combines artificial intelligence with robotics specifically designed for eye surgery, aiming to reduce variability and increase precision in cataract procedures. Cataract surgery is performed more than five million times annually in the United States alone, but outcomes can...
read Oct 9, 2025Google unfurls Gemini Enterprise to compete in business AI market
Google has launched Gemini Enterprise, a new AI platform designed specifically for business customers, as the tech giant intensifies its push to capture more corporate clients in the competitive enterprise AI market. The platform enables employees to interact conversationally with their company's data, documents, and applications using Google's most advanced AI models, positioning the company to compete directly with Microsoft, OpenAI, and Anthropic in the lucrative business AI sector. What you should know: Gemini Enterprise offers both pre-built AI agents and tools for companies to create custom solutions tailored to their specific needs. The platform provides pre-built Google AI agents...
read Oct 9, 2025Tongue Tech: AI diagnoses diseases by tongue color with 96% accuracy
Artificial intelligence systems can now diagnose diseases by analyzing tongue color with over 96% accuracy, bridging ancient medical wisdom with cutting-edge machine learning technology. This breakthrough represents a fascinating convergence where traditional Chinese medicine meets modern healthcare innovation, potentially offering a non-invasive, rapid diagnostic tool for conditions ranging from diabetes to COVID-19. The technology stems from a practice thousands of years old. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners have long examined patients' tongues as part of comprehensive health assessments, studying color, shape, and coating to detect illness. What was once entirely dependent on human observation and interpretation is now being standardized...
read Oct 8, 2025In remote era, AI tasked not only with automation but workplace supervision
AI is increasingly taking over not just workplace tasks but managerial roles, fundamentally reshaping traditional work structures from the physical office to corporate hierarchies. This shift raises critical questions about algorithmic governance and oversight, with the U.S. and Europe offering contrasting regulatory approaches to managing AI's expanding influence in the workplace. The big picture: Traditional work structures are dissolving as AI moves beyond task automation to occupy supervisory roles, dictating workflows and evaluating performance. The physical office, factory positions, schedules, and hierarchical management structures are becoming obsolete as AI systems take control. Algorithms are becoming "ubiquitous, impersonal, and, for now,...
read Oct 8, 2025AI transforms tasks rather than eliminates jobs, says conservative think tank analyst
AI won't replace entire jobs but will transform the specific tasks workers perform, according to James Pethokoukis, an economic policy analyst at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank. His perspective challenges common narratives about AI-driven unemployment, suggesting a more nuanced view of how artificial intelligence will reshape the workforce rather than eliminate it entirely. What you should know: Pethokoukis argues that AI's impact on employment will be task-specific rather than job-eliminating, fundamentally changing how work gets done without necessarily reducing overall employment.• This perspective appeared during a CNBC "Power Lunch" discussion about recent AI employment analysis.• The conversation...
read Oct 7, 2025The customer journey of a 1,000 miles begins with 3 ways data, AI are shaping audience engagement
Artificial intelligence is fundamentally reshaping how businesses connect with their audiences, but the transformation goes deeper than most companies realize. Traditional marketing approaches—built around predictable customer journeys through company websites and advertising touchpoints—are becoming obsolete as consumers increasingly rely on AI-powered search tools and conversational interfaces to make purchasing decisions. This shift creates both unprecedented challenges and opportunities. While audiences fragment across an expanding array of digital channels, their expectations for personalized, frictionless experiences continue to rise. Companies that master the intersection of data strategy and AI implementation can accelerate their marketing effectiveness from months-long campaign cycles to real-time optimization....
read Oct 7, 2025Former SpaceX engineer raises $25.5M to automate circuit board design with AI
Former SpaceX engineer Sergiy Nesterenko has raised $25.5 million in Series B funding for Quilter, his AI-powered circuit board design startup that aims to automate the traditionally labor-intensive process of creating printed circuit boards. The Los Angeles-based company is now valued at around $200 million and uses physics-based training rather than human designs to teach its AI system, positioning it to address growing demand amid hardware manufacturing shifts and designer shortages. What you should know: Quilter's AI transforms circuit board design from a months-long manual process into an automated system that can generate layouts from rough sketches. Traditional circuit board...
read Oct 7, 2025Here are 5 ways AI is transforming aircraft maintenance operations
Aviation maintenance has long been a reactive discipline—technicians troubleshoot problems after they occur, often working against tight deadlines to get aircraft back in service. However, artificial intelligence is beginning to transform this high-stakes industry by predicting failures before they happen and streamlining complex repair processes. Veryon, a San Francisco-based aviation software company serving over 5,500 customers globally, recently launched AIRE, an AI-powered platform that demonstrates how machine learning can revolutionize aircraft maintenance. The system combines decades of maintenance data with predictive analytics to help airlines and aircraft operators shift from reactive repairs to proactive maintenance strategies. This technological shift matters...
read Oct 7, 2025Oracle NetSuite Next brings AI-first ERP with natural language assistant
Oracle NetSuite has unveiled NetSuite Next, positioning it as "the future of NetSuite" with AI-first functionality centered around a natural language assistant called Ask Oracle. The platform represents a fundamental shift in how enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems—software that helps businesses manage day-to-day operations like accounting, procurement, and project management—operate, moving beyond traditional interfaces to conversational, AI-driven workflows that could reshape how businesses interact with their data. What you should know: NetSuite Next introduces comprehensive AI capabilities that transform how users navigate and analyze business data. Ask Oracle serves as a built-in AI assistant that allows users to navigate, search,...
read Oct 6, 2025ChatGPT now connects to Spotify, Zillow, and 5 other apps directly
OpenAI has launched app integrations for ChatGPT that allow users to access third-party services like Spotify and Zillow directly within the chatbot interface. The feature represents what OpenAI calls an "evolution of ChatGPT" toward becoming more like an operating system, enabling users to interact with apps through conversation while displaying interactive interfaces within the chat. What you should know: The app integrations go beyond traditional plugins by allowing direct access within ChatGPT prompts and displaying interactive elements like maps, playlists, and presentations. Users can query ChatGPT to access Spotify for listing and playing tracks, or search Zillow for property listings...
read Oct 6, 2025Got AI? Merck’s collars for dairy cows predict illness 48 hours before symptoms appear
Dairy farmers are now using high-tech collars equipped with movement sensors, Wi-Fi, and AI to monitor cow health and optimize milk production. These wearable devices, manufactured by Merck, a healthcare company, can predict illness up to 48 hours before symptoms appear, allowing farmers like Tony Louters in California to intervene early and prevent costly milk losses. What you should know: The collars represent a major evolution in livestock monitoring technology, transforming from basic pedometers in 2013 to sophisticated AI-powered health monitoring systems. Each of Louters's 700 cows wears a collar that continuously tracks biometric data and sends alerts to his...
read Oct 6, 2025Survey finds AI sparks hiring wave, not job losses in tech sector. Even in data entry.
Despite widespread fears that artificial intelligence will eliminate jobs across industries, recent employment data tells a markedly different story. Two comprehensive surveys reveal that technology hiring remains surprisingly resilient, with AI actually driving increased demand for both permanent employees and contract workers. This contradiction between public anxiety and market reality reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of how AI transforms work rather than simply replacing it. While automation handles routine tasks, the complexity of implementing, managing, and refining AI systems creates entirely new categories of human work. The result is a labor market where technical skills remain in high demand, though the...
read Oct 6, 2025Botting the midnight oil: Aramark deploys 24/7 auto-kitchens to feed hospital staff overnight
Aramark has strategically invested in RoboEatz's Autonomous Robotic Kitchen (ARK) technology, partnering with ABB Robotics and WellSpan Health to deploy 24/7 automated meal service in hospitals. This initiative addresses a critical gap in overnight dining options for healthcare workers, nurses, doctors, and hospital visitors who often struggle to find quality food during late-night shifts. What you should know: The ARK system operates within a compact 400-square-foot footprint and can prepare up to four personalized bowl-based meals simultaneously from a selection of up to 80 fresh ingredients.• The robotic kitchen integrates seamlessly with Aramark's existing Point of Sale system, menu management,...
read Oct 6, 2025Consulting firm Emergn appoints first Chief AI Officer to accelerate enterprise solutions
Emergn, a global consulting firm that has been developing AI and machine learning solutions since 2015, has appointed Aldis Erglis as its first Chief AI Officer. This executive appointment signals the company's commitment to accelerating AI-driven product development and positioning artificial intelligence as a core growth engine alongside its established consulting services. What you should know: Erglis brings over two decades of technological innovation experience and will lead Emergn's comprehensive AI strategy across all operations. He previously served as Emergn's Vice President of Technology Strategy, where he supported clients in digital transformation and AI initiatives while leading the Machine Learning...
read Oct 6, 2025Waze debuts natural language-detecting AI voice reporting for rubberneckers
Waze has rolled out "Conversational Reporting," an AI-powered feature that allows drivers to report road hazards using natural language voice commands instead of navigating through menus. The feature, which was announced a year ago and has been in limited beta testing, leverages Google's Gemini AI capabilities to understand casual speech patterns and automatically categorize reports without requiring specific commands or additional button presses. How it works: Drivers can now report hazards by simply tapping the reporting button and speaking naturally about what they observe on the road.• Users can say things like "Looks like there are cars jammed up ahead!"...
read Oct 3, 2025OpenAI launches Operator AI agent and jobs platform to blend human-AI work
OpenAI is expanding its workforce integration strategy with two key initiatives: the broader rollout of Operator, an AI agent that can perform computer tasks like booking reservations and coding, and the launch of an AI Jobs Platform designed to match AI-savvy workers with companies. These developments signal OpenAI's push to blend human and artificial intelligence capabilities in workplace environments, addressing both automation needs and human employment concerns in the AI era. What you should know: Operator functions as a Computer-Using Agent (CUA) that can automate various tasks typically performed by humans on computers and potentially smartphones. The AI agent can...
read Oct 3, 2025RAG and vector search bridge enterprise AI adoption gap, suggests research
New research from MIT highlights a critical gap in enterprise AI adoption, revealing that while over 80% of organizations use general-purpose AI tools like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot, these focus primarily on individual productivity rather than driving organization-wide transformation. The study identifies retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and vector search as essential technologies for bridging this divide, enabling businesses to create contextually-aware AI systems that leverage proprietary data for more accurate, relevant outputs. The big picture: Enterprise AI adoption faces significant challenges despite widespread use of consumer AI tools, with MIT's Nanda Project attributing failures to "brittle workflows, lack of contextual learning...
read Oct 3, 2025Ringing the AI bell: 70% of independent hotels say tech is crucial to compete with major chains
Independent hospitality businesses are increasingly adopting artificial intelligence to compete with major hotel chains, with new research showing 70% of property owners view AI as crucial for staying competitive. The technology is democratizing tools once exclusive to large corporations, allowing boutique hotels, bed-and-breakfasts, and vacation rentals to streamline operations while preserving their personal touch. What you should know: AI adoption among independent hospitality operators is driven by immediate efficiency gains and competitive necessity. Nearly 39% of current AI users say it provides a significant competitive edge, while 30% consider it essential for survival. Time savings and efficiency are the top...
read Oct 3, 2025Promise Robotics, Mattamy Homes partner to scale AI-powered homebuilding in Canadian heartland
Promise Robotics, a Canadian AI and robotics technology company, has partnered with Mattamy Homes' Alberta Division in a multi-year agreement to automate homebuilding using AI-powered industrial robots. The collaboration aims to address Canada's housing crisis by scaling construction capacity through Promise's Factory-as-a-Service™ platform, which the company describes as "push-button" home manufacturing. What you should know: Promise Robotics uses off-the-shelf industrial robots to manage the entire production lifecycle for residential construction. The technology will support Mattamy Homes in delivering single-family, semi-detached and multi-family residences across two master-planned communities in Alberta. Promise's Calgary facility is staffed by local workers and supported by...
read Oct 3, 2025Texas private school flaunts morning classes with AI learning, teachers with large salaries
Alpha School in Austin, Texas, has created an AI-driven educational model where fourth and fifth graders spend just two hours each morning on traditional academics through personalized software, with the rest of their day focused on life skills projects. The $40,000-per-year private school represents a radical departure from conventional education, using artificial intelligence to customize learning while human "guides" focus on motivation rather than instruction. How the model works: Students progress through science, math, and reading at their own pace using AI-driven software that adapts to individual learning speeds. Adults in classrooms are called "guides" rather than teachers and earn...
read Oct 3, 2025AI detects brain lesions with 94% accuracy in Australian healthcare
Australia's healthcare system is embracing artificial intelligence through innovations ranging from daily check-in chatbots for home care patients to AI "detectives" that can identify brain lesions in medical scans with up to 94% accuracy. These developments represent a significant expansion of AI applications beyond traditional back-office medical tasks, with experts emphasizing that healthcare AI adoption is still in its early phases despite already showing measurable benefits for both patients and healthcare workers. What you should know: AI chatbots are providing daily social interaction and health monitoring for home care patients, with promising results from early trials. St Vincent's At Home,...
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