New data from NIQ reveals that 51% of US shoppers used an AI application to assist them with their shopping decisions in the past month. This marks the first time the adoption rate has exceeded the 50% threshold, as tracked by NIQ’s Agentic Commerce Tracker. Usage of AI-powered shopping tools has steadily increased over the last two quarters, highlighting a growing reliance on artificial intelligence to enhance consumer experiences.
Precision Neuroscience announced the closing of a $250 million Series D funding round for its brain-computer interface technology. The investment round was led by Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square, the Ackman Oxman Institute, and an undisclosed life sciences fund. This latest funding values the New York-based company at just over $1 billion, according to The New York Times. The influx of capital highlights growing interest in advanced neurotechnology solutions.
In August, ChatGPT accounted for 95.1% of all AI chatbot referral traffic to websites, marking its highest share this year, BrightEdge reports. The search marketing firm highlighted a 101% increase in ChatGPT's referral traffic from January to August. Gemini followed with 2.4%, while Perplexity and Claude contributed 1.1% and 0.8%, respectively.
A recent survey conducted by Dataiku highlights a significant challenge facing chief information officers (CIOs): over 80% admit they do not have full visibility into AI agents being developed by their teams outside of officially sanctioned IT systems. The survey, which included responses from 685 CIOs and was carried out online by The Harris Poll between July 9 and 29, emphasizes concerns about governance and oversight in the growing use of AI within organizations.
Would you be ready to trust an AI agent to manage your Amazon store? This possibility might be closer than you think. However, true AI-driven transformation goes beyond simple AI tools that just fill gaps. It demands developing a foundational infrastructure that enables AI agents to design and oversee their own workflows. We gathered perspectives from 7 seasoned e-commerce experts on what still isn’t working and what the industry needs to advance.
Anthropic has entered into a significant seven-year contract worth $11.6 billion to utilize Akamai's cloud infrastructure, as announced by Akamai after the US market closed on Thursday. The agreement includes an option to expand by an additional $9 billion, potentially raising the total value to approximately $20 billion. Additionally, Akamai has granted Anthropic a warrant for 7.7 million shares on an as-converted basis, representing a 5% equity stake in Akamai.
Anthropic's AI, Claude, has identified a previously unknown enzyme system within the DNA of bacteriophages, viruses that target bacteria. Adjacent to the gene for this enzyme is a lengthy sequence of repeating DNA similar to a CRISPR array. The functionality of this new system remains unclear. The discovery was shared by Anthropic in an announcement on Wednesday.
The United States has taken a firm stance against the idea of a unified global governance model for advanced artificial intelligence. Speaking at the UN Security Council in New York, Michael Kratsios, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, emphasized that the regulation of AI technology should be handled individually by each nation. His statement came following briefings from experts in science and industry during the session.
Cyera's CEO, Yotam Segev, highlighted the company's focus on building trust in AI agents' capabilities as a crucial step before scaling their use. On Tuesday, Cyera announced a $400 million investment from Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, part of their Series G funding round. This recent infusion brings Cyera's total funding to $1.4 billion over the year, reinforcing their commitment to improving AI security and monitoring for enterprise clients, particularly among the Global 2000 companies.
Amazon took decisive action against AI shopping agents on Monday by blocking Muse, Meta's new AI assistant, from accessing Amazon.com. Additionally, Amazon filed an amended legal complaint against Perplexity, alleging the company misled a federal appeals court. The block on Muse was implemented first, and users trying to use Muse for shopping on Amazon started encountering pop-ups over the weekend.
