Brahmin, a leader in luxury leather goods, appointed Jocelyn Thornton as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective April 6. Thornton brings a strong track record across consumer brands, retail, and product innovation, along with a clear point of view on how to grow brands while staying true to what makes them special.

Thornton most recently served as CEO of MISSION and previously as President of Dearfoams at RG Barry. She also held senior leadership roles across the Wolverine Worldwide portfolio, leading product, merchandising, and design initiatives. Her background spans brand strategy, product, and consumer insight, giving her a well-rounded perspective as she steps into this role.

“For nearly 45 years, Brahmin has built something pretty rare — a loyal customer who doesn’t just buy once but comes back again and again because the product delivers,” said Thornton. “The quality is there, the craftsmanship is there, and the use of color is unlike anything else in the market. There’s a real emotional connection to this brand.”

She continued, “I stepped into this role because we have the opportunity to expand our digital business, strengthen our wholesale partnerships, and most importantly, lean into what our customer already loves. Brahmin has all the ingredients — that’s what makes this such an exciting opportunity.”

Founded in Massachusetts, Brahmin has built a distinct identity around polished craftsmanship, timeless silhouettes, and a bold approach to everyday luxury. The brand’s handbags are designed to feel both elevated and approachable, pairing recognizable textures and rich color stories with practical details suited to modern life.

Brahmin, best distinguished by its signature croc-embossed Melbourne leathers and expressive use of color, has been designing luxury handbags and accessories that spark confidence in all who carry them since 1982. Each Brahmin piece is artfully and thoughtfully crafted — with form and function at the center — to stand the test of time.

“This brand already has everything you’d want — heritage, quality, and a deeply engaged customer,” Thornton added. “The focus now is making sure more people discover it. That’s where we’re headed.”

About Brahmin

Since 1982, Brahmin has made a name for itself as a leading brand in the leather goods industry. With a special emphasis on luxury materials and intriguing textures, the brand prides itself on crafting high-quality handbags and accessories that blend fashion and function, down to the last stitch. Brahmin is the original tastemaker of color and texture, the authoritative voice on quality and functionality, and the unapologetic architects paving a lane for self-expression. For more information, visit brahmin.com or follow Brahmin on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Pinterest.

Media Contact

Megan Reeves
megan@amp3pr.com

Warmy.io, the email deliverability platform, today released a research report on the SURBL Blacklist (Spam URI Realtime Blocklist), one of the most widely used yet least understood threat databases in email security. The report identifies SURBL as a growing source of silent delivery failures in 2026 — cases where emails reach the inbox but all links inside are quietly disabled by Gmail and Outlook, leaving senders with no bounce, no alert, and no obvious explanation for the drop in performance.

Unlike traditional IP-based blacklists, SURBL does not evaluate who is sending an email. It evaluates what is inside it. Every link, redirect, and tracked URL in an email body is scanned against SURBL’s five specialized sub-lists — covering phishing domains, malware-hosting sites, compromised websites, and high-volume spam domains. A clean sending IP and a positive sender reputation score provide zero protection if a flagged domain appears anywhere in the message.

The Warmy research identifies five root causes behind listings of legitimate senders: hacked CMS infrastructure with hidden redirect scripts installed without the owner’s knowledge; affiliate links that carry the reputation history of every sender who has previously used them; snowshoe linking tactics that mirror known spammer behavior; insecure contact forms that can be exploited to route spam through a legitimate domain; and links to newly registered domains under 72 hours old, which SURBL treats as a high-risk signal by default.

“You don’t have to do anything wrong to end up on SURBL. A hacked website, a borrowed affiliate link, or an insecure contact form is enough to get your domain flagged — with no actual spam required on your part,” says Daniel Shnaider, Email Deliverability Expert at Warmy.io. “The absence of a bounce is not a signal that everything is fine. It’s often the opposite.”

The report details four warning signs that indicate a SURBL listing may be in effect: SMTP 554 bounce codes arriving from a server with a clean IP; a significant and unexplained drop in click-through rates across delivered campaigns; “too many hops” errors generated when receiving servers attempt to follow redirect chains; and complaint spikes tied to a specific URL rather than a sending domain.

For senders already listed, the research outlines a three-step removal process: identifying the specific SURBL sub-list via the lookup tool at surbl.org, remediating the root cause before submitting any removal request, and filing a formal submission with a documented technical explanation of both the cause and the corrective steps taken. The report notes that vague removal requests are routinely deprioritized by SURBL reviewers.

The full report, including sub-list analysis, detection methodology, and a step-by-step remediation framework, is available at www.warmy.io.

About Warmy

Warmy.io is an email deliverability platform that helps businesses and agencies improve inbox placement through AI-powered email warm-up, sender reputation management, and continuous deliverability monitoring. Its research division publishes analysis on spam filtering systems, blacklists, and email authentication standards. Warmy.io monitors domains against major blocklists including SURBL, Barracuda, and Spamhaus in real time. To learn more, visit www.warmy.io.

Media Contact

Warmy.io Communications
press@warmy.io

Touchstone Education, the property investment education company co-founded by Paul Smith and Aniko Smith, is expanding its global operations to serve a growing international demand for structured property investment training. The company is broadening access to its online programmes, live group coaching, and deal-focused education model for students outside Europe, including those in North America.

Expanding Access to Established Training

While the organization is busy expanding its international presence, its focus remains on offering a consistent educational framework. This expansion helps students in their own territories to access Touchstone’s programmes, which encompass the online Wealth through Property course and the 12-month Wealthy Academy programme. 

The company’s growth has been built on a model designed to grow and serve students across multiple regions. Touchstone has been able to integrate digital coursework with live group coaching and specialized deal clinics, with an aim of educating students about the practical side of property investment. These training modules cover several investment strategies, including residential property, serviced accommodation, commercial property, and joint ventures. Each is composed of material that can apply to a number of diverse market conditions.  

A More Structured Education

At the root of the company's growth is a curriculum built directly from Paul Smith's personal investment history, not theory, but strategies he implemented with his own capital across more than four decades before teaching a single paying student. Smith purchased his first London property for under £10,000 at the age of 17 in 1981. He built his portfolio alongside a full-time corporate career that took him from a Ford Motor Company factory floor to Managing Director of Allied Distillers, a multi-billion-pound operation spanning 26 sites across more than 100 countries. His final corporate redundancy came in 2004, at the age of 39. He has never worked as an employee since. The curriculum Touchstone teaches, lease options, rent-to-rent, serviced accommodation, commercial property, joint ventures, reflects strategies Smith used personally across those decades, adapted for students at every stage of their investment journey.

A Foundation Built on Expertise

The company's curriculum is influenced by the professional background of its leaders. Founder Paul Smith transitioned into the property sector after exiting the corporate world. His personal experience, which includes the initial purchase of a property, followed by the development of a diverse portfolio, has contributed to the practical angles the company offers. His background in navigating market cycles and property management is also the basis for the training modules.  

As a result of Smith’s influence, the company utilizes a “three-legged milking stool” concept, which emphasizes diversifying income streams in order to balance financial risk. The curriculum guides students from one strategy to another, along with offering access to Touchstone's course library. Students are also exposed to real investment opportunities. Notably, the programme includes a money-back guarantee if students don't generate returns equal to or greater than their tuition fees. 

"Property is where you earn the right to invest," Smith explains. "It is the most accessible vehicle for building your first million in net worth, because the bank helps you buy it, you can improve it, and you can do it in parallel with your existing career. Once you have built that foundation, you diversify into other asset classes and geographies. That is the full arc Touchstone teaches: creation, protection, and legacy. We are bringing that framework to North America because the principles are universal, and American investors deserve access to a system that has been validated by tens of thousands of students across more than 150 countries."

About Touchstone Education

Touchstone Education is a Liechtenstein-based property investment education company co-founded by Paul Smith and Aniko Smith. The company provides online courses, live group coaching, deal clinics, and structured training programmes designed to help students learn property investment strategies, including residential property, serviced accommodation, commercial property, and joint ventures. For more information, visit touchstoneeducation.com.

Media Contact

Influencer Press
maria@influencerpress.com

Award-winning entrepreneur, humanitarian, and Philadelphia native Shelton Mercer III today announced the launch of the MERCER 250 Outcomes & Innovation Fund, with an initial $250,000 investment through the Mercer Family Trust designed to accelerate innovation, strengthen community impact, and create measurable outcomes across Philadelphia and beyond. Launched in celebration of America's 250th Anniversary and Philadelphia's role as a host city for FIFA World Cup 2026™, the initiative reflects Mercer's lifelong commitment to transforming moments of opportunity into lasting outcomes.

The MERCER 250 Outcomes & Innovation Fund will be grown and distributed over the next five years, initially supporting six Philadelphia-based organizations whose work is advancing the social, cultural, and economic vitality that helps make Philadelphia a world-class city.

Building on this initial investment, Mercer aims to grow the MERCER 250 Outcomes & Innovation Fund into a $25 million catalyst for transformational outcomes by 2030, supporting innovative organizations and transformational leaders across Philadelphia and communities nationwide.

The 2026 MERCER 250 Outcomes & Innovation Fund recipients are:

• Sharing Excess
• The Lenfest Institute for Journalism
• City Year Philadelphia 
• African American Chamber of Commerce
• Please Touch Museum 
• Global Philadelphia Association

"Throughout my career, whether building companies, launching innovation districts, advising global organizations, or leading humanitarian initiatives, I've been driven by a key aspiration: How do we produce transformational outcomes? Philadelphia is where that mindset began,” said Shelton Mercer III, founder and Chairman of Mercer Innovation Group and Managing Trustee of Mercer Family Trust. “This city taught me the value of resilience, collaboration, and possibility. As Philadelphia welcomes the world during America's 250th anniversary and the World Cup, I believe we have an opportunity to do more than host major events. We can use this moment as a catalyst for innovation and invest in the people and organizations creating and envisioning meaningful outcomes that will strengthen our city for generations."

For Mercer, innovation has never been limited to technology or business growth. It is a framework for solving complex challenges, creating opportunities, and generating measurable outcomes that improve people's lives.

"Shelton understands that meaningful impact happens when innovation is paired with action," said Evan Ehlers, founder and CEO of Sharing Excess. "At Sharing Excess, we're focused on solving food insecurity by redirecting surplus food to the people who need it most. Shelton's investment reflects a belief we share, that transformational outcomes are possible when leaders come together to tackle big challenges and create lasting solutions for Philadelphia."

"Shelton's investment reflects a powerful belief that meaningful change happens when leaders invest in people and communities," said Regina A. Hairston, President and CEO of the African American Chamber of Commerce of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. "We're honored to be part of the MERCER 250 initiative and excited about the opportunities it will create across Philadelphia."

“We are deeply grateful to Shelton Mercer and his family for their generous support of The Lenfest Institute for Journalism," said Jim Friedlich, Executive Director and CEO of The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. "The Lenfest Institute mission is to leverage technology, innovation, and creative capital to support local journalism in the public interest. No one embodies these values better than my entrepreneurial, inventive, and deeply civic-minded friend Shelton Mercer. He has inspired us to live and to act with great purpose."

As founder of The Mercer Innovation Group and architect of the MiOS™ (Mercer Innovation Outcomes System), Mercer has spent decades helping organizations transform ideas into action and vision into results. Through the MERCER 250 Outcomes & Innovation Fund, he is applying that same outcomes-focused approach to philanthropy by supporting organizations whose work is strengthening Philadelphia's future through education, civic engagement, culture, food security, and community development.

About Shelton Mercer III

Shelton Mercer III, Next-Level CEO — Chief Executive of Outcomes is an award-winning entrepreneur, speaker, humanitarian, and investor who has founded or co-founded more than 10 companies. He is the co-founder of Audigent, a leading AI and blockchain-powered advertising technology company acquired by Experian in 2024, and founder and chairman of The Mercer Innovation Group. Through his MiOS™ (Mercer Innovation Outcomes System), Mercer has launched multiple innovation districts and hubs with Ivy League and Tier 1 universities advised Fortune 100 companies and global organizations, including Disney, Amazon, GE, Microsoft, and Comcast NBCUniversal, to drive innovation and measurable growth.

A renowned humanitarian, Mercer has mobilized millions of volunteers and raised hundreds of millions of dollars supporting disaster relief, poverty alleviation, food security, housing initiatives, and clean water access around the world. His leadership and impact have been recognized by organizations including Inc. 5000, Deloitte Fast 500, Fast Company, Wired, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the United Nations Foundation. For more information on Shelton Mercer III, visit sheltonmercer.com or follow Mercer on LinkedIn, Instagram, or X. 

Media Contact

Jenny McIntosh
Krupp Agency
jmcintosh@kruppagency.com
+1 480-202-7112

RéVive Skincare, a science-driven luxury skincare brand founded by plastic and reconstructive surgeon Dr. Gregory Brown, today announced a limited-time Prime Day promotion featuring its Fermitif Neck Renewal Cream SPF 15 Sunscreen.

Renewal Cream SPF 15 Sunscreen will be available at 50% off from June 23–26. The timing gives consumers a chance to experience one of RéVive's signature products while exploring the research-driven philosophy behind the brand.

"As a plastic surgeon, I know it is possible to recreate a youthful appearance with surgery. However, lasting beauty comes from supporting the skin's natural ability to renew itself," said Dr. Gregory Brown, founder and Chief Scientist of RéVive. "That philosophy remains at the heart of RéVive's mission to give new life to skin through science-driven innovation."

A Signature Formula for Neck and Décolleté Care

The neck and décolleté are often among the first areas to show visible signs of aging, including dryness, loss of firmness, and the appearance of lines. To address these concerns, RéVive developed the Fermitif Neck Renewal Cream using the brand's signature Bio-Renewal Technology, inspired by breakthrough EGF research into how skin naturally renews itself. The formula combines RéVive's signature peptides with botanical ingredients to help skin feel more hydrated and appear firmer, smoother, and better defined over time.

The formula also includes SPF 15 broad-spectrum protection to help defend against everyday UV exposure, an important consideration for an area that is often exposed but frequently neglected in daily sun care routines.

According to brand-sponsored clinical evaluations, participants reported a 77% improvement in skin moisture, a 68% improvement in firmness, and a 56% reduction in the appearance of lines after regular use.

Bringing Skin Renewal to More Consumers This Prime Day

For nearly three decades, RéVive has remained committed to advancing the science of skin renewal while helping consumers take a long-term approach to skincare. The philosophy is reflected in the brand's enduring mission: Give New Life to Skin.

From June 23–26, consumers can take advantage of the 50% Prime Day savings on the RéVive Fermitif Neck Renewal Cream SPF 15 Sunscreen exclusively through the official RéVive Amazon Store.

About RéVive Skincare

RéVive is a luxury skincare line powered by Bio-Renewal Technology, a proprietary science that visibly rejuvenates the skin. Developed by Dr. Gregory Brown, the brand focuses on science-driven solutions to optimize skin health and restore a youthful glow. For more information, visit reviveskincare.com or follow the brand on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

Media Contact

Judy Collins
info@reviveskincare.com

Raúl Rocha Cantú and Legacy Holding are entering a defining year as the Miss Universe Organization prepares for the 75th anniversary edition of Miss Universe, scheduled to take place in Puerto Rico in November 2026. The milestone marks 75 years of the global brand and places Rocha Cantú, who public communications continue to identify as President of the Miss Universe Organization, at the center of one of the most internationally visible events on the entertainment calendar.

The anniversary year gives a fixed timeline to the broader business structure Rocha Cantú has built across industrial operations, service sectors, and global platforms through Legacy Holding and the Miss Universe Organization. With the 75th edition set for November, national directors, broadcasters, sponsors, and event partners across more than 130 countries and territories now have a concrete date to coordinate around.

According to public materials, Legacy Holding operates across strategic industries including energy, technology, aviation, real estate, marketing, entertainment, and related business areas. That multi-industry footprint provides the operational continuity and partner network the organization draws on as it scales toward the anniversary edition.

"Reaching the 75th anniversary year of Miss Universe is a milestone that very few global brands achieve, and it reflects both the heritage of the platform and the long-term structure behind it," said Raúl Rocha Cantú

Rocha Cantú's business profile has been linked to industrial and manufacturing-related activity serving sectors such as steel, cement, automotive, mining, petrochemical, and manufacturing. That industrial base helps explain the operational logic behind his broader trajectory, where continuity, structure, and execution remain central. The Miss Universe Organization adds an international brand dimension to that profile, combining a diversified group structure with a globally recognized platform tied to entertainment, partnerships, sponsorships, and worldwide market visibility.

The combination illustrates how diversification can extend beyond entering different industries to include the integration of global platforms into a single business model. As companies increasingly look for resilience, flexibility, and broader sources of value creation, the pairing of Legacy Holding's multi-industry base with the Miss Universe Organization's international reach positions Rocha Cantú within a business narrative focused on adaptability, scale, and long-term continuity, now anchored to a clear 2026 milestone.

About Legacy Holding

Legacy Holding is a diversified business group active across several strategic industries, including energy, technology, aviation, real estate, marketing, entertainment, and related business areas. According to its public corporate materials, the company focuses on identifying growth opportunities through a structured platform designed to support operational continuity, business development, and long-term expansion. For more information, visit www.thelegacyholding.com.

Disclaimer

This press release is issued by Legacy Holding for informational and promotional purposes only. It contains forward-looking statements regarding future operational milestones — including the 75th Miss Universe event in November 2026 — which are subject to change, market risks, and variables beyond management's control. Actual results may differ materially. This content does not constitute financial, investment, or legal advice. Statements regarding corporate footprints, leadership roles, and asset integration reflect the views of the issuing entity as of June 2026 and have not been independently verified. Direct all inquiries to the media contact provided.

Media Contact

Communications Department
prensa@missuniverse.com

Gate announced a major upgrade to its AI service platform, Gate.AI, providing enterprises and developers with a one-stop intelligent large model routing service. Through core capabilities including unified model access, intelligent routing, organizational governance, cost management, and data security, Gate.AI aims to lower the barriers to AI adoption and accelerate the large-scale deployment of foundation models across real-world business scenarios.

As AI technologies continue to evolve rapidly, enterprises are increasingly demanding greater efficiency in model invocation, cost control, security governance, and organizational collaboration. To address these industry challenges, Gate.AI has built a comprehensive solution covering model integration, resource scheduling, enterprise management, and security compliance, helping organizations deploy and manage AI applications more efficiently and cost-effectively.

Gate.AI currently integrates more than 200 leading foundation models worldwide and supports both the OpenAI and Anthropic protocols. Through a single API, enterprises can access models from multiple providers without the need to integrate with separate service interfaces. Development teams can flexibly select model resources based on business requirements while benefiting from unified management and seamless switching, reducing development, operations, and migration costs.

One of Gate.AI's core capabilities is intelligent routing. Given the differences among models in performance, cost, and response speed, Gate.AI can automatically match the most suitable model based on task complexity, budget constraints, and performance requirements, achieving a dynamic balance between capability and cost. The platform also supports vendor priority configuration and an automatic fallback mechanism. If a model or service becomes unavailable, the system can automatically switch to backup resources to ensure business continuity and service stability.

Beyond model invocation optimization, Gate.AI further strengthens enterprise governance capabilities. The platform supports organizational structure management, role-based access control, member management, and centralized API key management. Enterprises can build multi-level organizational structures of up to four tiers and configure differentiated permission strategies for different teams. Through a unified console, administrators can centrally manage members, resources, and invocation policies, enabling standardized AI resource governance across the organization.

Cost governance is another key focus of this upgrade. As enterprise AI adoption continues to scale, effectively controlling spending and improving resource utilization have become critical priorities. Gate.AI provides features such as shared organizational quota pools, budget guardrails, and cost attribution. Enterprise administrators can monitor overall organizational usage, member consumption, cost data, and model utilization structures in real time, enabling a more transparent and granular cost management framework.

In terms of data security and privacy protection, the platform adopts a Zero Data Retention (ZDR) mechanism by default and supports enterprise-grade Data Processing Agreements (DPA), helping organizations better safeguard data security and privacy. To further enhance enterprise risk management, Gate.AI introduces a guardrail mechanism. Administrators can set budget limits, API key quotas, and member count restrictions for different organizational levels, adding an additional layer of governance and risk control beyond model routing to ensure the secure and responsible use of AI resources.

As AI increasingly becomes a core component of enterprise digital transformation, demand for model access, cost optimization, security governance, and organizational collaboration continues to grow. This upgrade not only strengthens the foundational infrastructure capabilities of enterprise AI applications but also provides organizations with a more mature and controllable framework for large-scale AI adoption.

As an important part of Gate's Intelligent Web3 strategy, Gate.AI is advancing the integration of AI capabilities with Web3 infrastructure. By connecting globally leading model resources with enterprise-grade governance systems, Gate.AI helps developers and enterprise users unlock the productivity potential of AI more efficiently. Looking ahead, Gate.AI will continue expanding its model ecosystem and enterprise service capabilities, building an open AI platform that spans model access, intelligent routing, enterprise governance, and application innovation, while providing long-term support for the intelligent transformation of enterprises worldwide.

About Gate

Founded in 2013 by Dr. Han, Gate is one of the world's leading cryptocurrency and integrated financial services platforms. Serving over 54 million users globally, the platform supports trading across more than 4,700 digital assets and 11,500 stock assets. Gate provides access to a comprehensive range of traditional finance (TradFi) assets—including metals, stocks, indices, forex, and commodities—delivering a unified, multi-asset trading experience and full-suite blockchain services. As an industry benchmark, Gate was among the first exchanges to implement 100% proof of reserves. Its ecosystem includes Gate Wallet, Gate Ventures, Gate for AI Agent, and a diverse range of Web3 products.

For more information, visit www.gate.com or follow on X, Telegram, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube.

Disclaimer

This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer, solicitation, or recommendation regarding any financial instrument or investment decision. Gate.AI is an enterprise infrastructure platform; users are responsible for ensuring their use of AI tools complies with local regulations. Gate services may be restricted or prohibited in certain jurisdictions. Always seek independent professional advice before making investment or operational decisions. For more details, please review the Gate User Agreement.

Media Contact

Kana Wen
kana@gate.com

Smartling, the AI-powered translation company, today announced it has been named a winner of the 2026 AI Breakthrough Award for Machine Translation Innovation. The win comes as AI translation usage across its customer base has grown 218% year-over-year, proving enterprises have moved well beyond experimentation and into production-scale adoption.

For most organizations, generating AI translations was never the hard part. The hard part is creating translations they can trust: maintaining brand voice, ensuring quality at scale, and governing AI output across millions of words without a human reviewing every string. At production scale, that requires infrastructure, not just a tool.

“What we're seeing is that the companies that are successfully growing globally are deploying translation and localization at a scale not feasible a couple of years ago,” said Bryan Murphy, CEO of Smartling. “That's where Smartling has focused its innovation, helping enterprises grow globally while maintaining quality, governance, and brand integrity."

That focus has drawn recognition from three distinct audiences this year:

1. Industry experts: AI Breakthrough Award for Machine Translation Innovation

Smartling was named a 2026 AI Breakthrough Award winner for Machine Translation Innovation, selected from more than 5,000 nominations. The program has previously recognized companies including Nvidia, Glean, Databricks, and EY for innovation across the AI landscape.

2. Business leaders: Fast Company No. 3 in Business Services

In March, Fast Company ranked Smartling No. 3 in Business Services on its annual list of the World's Most Innovative Companies of 2026, citing rapid enterprise adoption of AI translation and measurable improvements in cost and speed.

3. Customers: Strongest G2 quarter to date

Customer momentum has continued to accelerate. Smartling earned 41 G2 badges this quarter, up from 37 last quarter, and reached No. 1 on G2's Implementation Index for Translation Management. The company has held the top overall ranking in Translation Management for 15 consecutive quarters. G2’s rankings are based on verified customer reviews and market presence, reflecting how quickly teams are realizing value in production environments.

Enterprises are seeing measurable impact. Pinterest reduced time-to-market by 83% and delivered content to 100 million users across 31 languages simultaneously. Marriott International scaled training content from 7 to 38 languages, cut translation timelines from weeks to days, and reduced costs by 40%. A Fortune 500 software company saved $3.4 million in a single year while accelerating delivery by 50% and maintaining 99+ MQM quality scores across 50 million words.

About Smartling

Smartling is transforming how global enterprises create, manage, and scale multilingual content in the AI era. Its LanguageAI™ platform combines AI translation, workflow automation, and quality assurance infrastructure to help organizations automate multilingual content operations at enterprise scale. Trusted by leading global brands, Smartling enables companies to move faster globally while maintaining the quality, trust, and oversight required for enterprise AI translation. For more information, visit www.smartling.com.

Media Contact

Brianna McGarry
Smartling
brianna@sixeastern.com

Just weeks after announcing new ownership and a strategic investment, Spyker is heading back to Le Mans. The Dutch brand returned to the Circuit de la Sarthe with its historic C8 Double12R, marking the first major milestone in its revival under new co-owner Volodymyr Nosov and W Group.

This return follows Volodymyr Nosov, founder and President of W Group and WhiteBIT, acquiring a major stake in Spyker and becoming co-owner of the renowned hypercar brand. This move started a long-term plan to revive Spyker, support its technological development, and help it grow worldwide.

Less than a month after sharing news of its new chapter, Spyker will join Le Mans Classic 2026 with its first Le Mans endurance car, the 2003 Spyker C8 Double12R, chassis 009. As it restarts production and works on new models, the company is also reconnecting with its racing history that built Spyker’s global reputation.

“Spyker is back at Le Mans, and this means more than just joining a historic race. It shows the brand is returning to the world stage. When we invested in Spyker, we believed in its engineering and its strong heritage. Le Mans has always been part of Spyker’s story, and bringing the brand back to this famous circuit is a key moment in its comeback,” said Nosov. “But this is just the start. We want to rebuild the brand’s global presence, help develop new vehicles, and make sure Spyker is once again seen as one of the world’s leading sports car manufacturers.”

In 2026, Spyker was officially accepted into the Le Mans Classic competitive programme in Plateau 9, a category dedicated to cars from the 2000–2010 era, one of the key periods in modern endurance racing. The brand will race in the GT2 class from July 3-5, 2026.

A Historic Car on a Historic Track

At Le Mans Classic, Spyker will race with the original factory-built C8 Double12R, chassis 009. This car is one of the first from the brand’s early 2000s endurance racing program.

This car competed in the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2003 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2002 and 2003. Over twenty years later, chassis 009 is back at the Circuit de la Sarthe, with Hans Hugenholtz Jr. driving the same car he raced at Le Mans in 2002 and 2003.

“The return of Spyker C8 Double12R chassis number 009 to Le Mans after 23 years is a very special moment for Spyker. This car started our journey in endurance racing and brought Spyker back to international motorsport. More than twenty years later, having this car race again at the Circuit de la Sarthe honors the people, ambition, and pioneering spirit that have always defined our company. Seeing Hans Hugenholtz Jr. back with 009 at Le Mans makes this moment even more special,” said Victor Muller, founder and CEO of Spyker.

The Spyker C8 Double12R was built for international endurance racing. It has a 4.0-litre V8 engine with about 480bhp and a sequential racing gearbox. This car is still one of the most important in Spyker’s recent history.

For Spyker, participation in Le Mans Classic is not only a tribute to its racing heritage, but also a symbol of the brand’s future ambitions. This appearance will become the first major public step in a broader strategy to restore the marque’s position in the global automotive industry while preserving the craftsmanship, exclusivity, and engineering character that have defined Spyker for more than 140 years.

Spyker’s return to Le Mans Classic also comes as WhiteBIT, the largest European cryptocurrency exchange by traffic and a key part of W Group, has become an official partner of Le Mans Classic 2026. This partnership strengthens W Group’s role in international motorsport and shows its long-term support for innovation, engineering, and iconic car brands.

About W Group

W Group is a global fintech ecosystem that makes blockchain and crypto easy, secure, and accessible for everyone. It is built on the values of security, professionalism, and innovation, serving 35 million users across 150 countries worldwide. At the center of W Group is WhiteBIT, the largest European crypto exchange by traffic, offering over 900 trading pairs, over 340 assets, and supporting 8 fiat currencies. WhiteBIT collaborates with Visa, FACEIT, FC Barcelona, Juventus FC, and the Ukrainian national football team. For more information, visit w.group.

About Spyker

Founded in 1880 in the Netherlands, Spyker is one of the world’s oldest ultra-luxury automotive brands, hand-building exclusive hypercars to individual commission. The brand’s rich heritage includes creating the world’s first four-wheel-drive car in 1903, building planes from 1914 to 1918, and participating in Formula One and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Today, the company produces vehicles exclusively in extremely limited numbers featuring aviation-inspired design elements. For more information, visit spykercars.com.

Media Contact

Whitebit PR Team
pr@whitebit.com

LaceLocker®, a patented footwear innovation, is announcing a strategic partnership opportunity designed to accelerate development and expand market reach. With applications across athletics, child safety, caregiving, and wearable technology, the announcement marks a new phase of growth for the brand after 13 years of market validation. 

Founded by Carol “Stash” Stanley, LaceLocker developed a patented lace-locking device that secures shoelaces with adjustable tension while helping reduce the risk of slips, trips, and falls. According to Stanley, the brand is validated by multiple U.S. patents and has been used by active individuals and children for more than a decade. The company is now inviting collaboration from investors, technological partners, footwear companies, and licensing organizations interested in participating in the next stage of the platform’s evolution. 

LaceLocker® has been designed as a transferable device that installs in under sixty seconds without requiring users to cut or replace their laces. Stanley believes the platform’s value extends well beyond a single use case. “The challenge has never been finding one market,” Stanley says. “The device serves athletes, families, caregivers, children, outdoor enthusiasts, and others. What makes LaceLocker compelling is the number of opportunities it creates from one proven platform.”

Stanley observes several partnership pathways, including prototype development for future technology-enabled applications, licensing agreements, strategic ownership participation, and acquisition of the company’s intellectual property portfolio. From her viewpoint, the company is structured to accommodate different forms of collaboration depending on a partner’s expertise and long-term objectives. 

She says, “We have proven the concept, secured the patents, established manufacturing pathways, and demonstrated demand. The right partnership can help unlock what comes next.” 

Part of that vision involves positioning LaceLocker as a foundation for connected footwear applications. The company has explored opportunities for GPS-enabled integration that could support safety-focused solutions for children, neurodivergent individuals, caregivers, and outdoor users. Stanley believes footwear offers an overlooked opportunity within the broader wearable technology landscape because it fits naturally into daily routines. 

“People often look at wearable technology through the lens of another device that needs to be carried or charged, but we see an opportunity to build functionality into something people already use every day,” Stanley explains. 

The company’s partnership model also reflects the broad applicability of the platform. Stanley notes that potential collaborators may see value in athletic performance, child independence, caregiver support, workplace safety, or connected technology initiatives. She posits that the platform is designed to absorb external technology, not compete with it. Licensing opportunities could allow organizations to integrate their own technologies while leveraging LaceLocker’s established intellectual property and patented locking mechanism.

According to the company, loose shoelaces remain a common contributor to preventable falls and interruptions during physical activity. LaceLocker® was developed to address that issue through a lightweight device that secures tied laces while preserving comfort and fit. 

“We are open to conversations with organizations that recognize the potential of the platform,” Stanley says. “Some may want to help build the next generation of the product. Others may want licensing rights or a deeper strategic role. What matters is finding partners who see the opportunity to scale something that already has a strong foundation.”

Ultimately, LaceLocker’s focus remains on expanding the reach of a patented technology that can serve multiple industries while creating new opportunities for innovation in footwear safety and connected mobility. 

About LaceLocker

LaceLocker® is a patented device that keeps kids, runners, even golfers, from having their shoe laces becoming undone. This little weightless device securely stores tied laces so that the laces do not flop around, come loose or get dirty or wet. No need to double or triple knot laces either. The functional beauty and elegant simplicity of the LaceLocker gives the user something that simplifies shoe lace storage and because of how well it works, parents, athletes, and sight impaired individuals quickly understand what LaceLocker can do. For more information, visit www.lacelocker.com.

Media Contact

Carol "Stash" Stanley
stash@stashsports.com

Ventora expanded its AI business builder platform with automated Meta Ads campaign generation, adding one of the final components needed to help entrepreneurs build, launch, and grow online businesses through a unified AI-powered workflow.

The new functionality enables users to generate and launch Meta advertising campaigns directly from the platform. Combined with Ventora's existing Google Ads capabilities, the update significantly expands the platform's marketing automation features and moves it closer to the company's vision of helping entrepreneurs build complete online businesses without relying on traditional startup teams.

The announcement comes as AI-powered coding tools have become a standard part of software development. Entrepreneurs can now build functional SaaS products, AI applications, online services, marketplaces, and e-commerce stores in hours rather than months, dramatically reducing the technical barriers to creating digital products.

Yet building software is no longer the biggest challenge.

Launching a profitable business still requires market research, business analysis, competitive positioning, pricing strategy, customer acquisition, advertising, and continuous optimization. These activities have traditionally required multiple specialists working across different disciplines.

Ventora was developed to simplify that process.

Rather than functioning solely as an AI coding platform, Ventora combines specialized AI agents designed to support the entire business creation journey. The platform helps entrepreneurs identify business opportunities, analyze competitors, validate ideas, generate products, prepare marketing assets, launch advertising campaigns, and support customer acquisition from a single workspace.

With the addition of Meta Ads automation, Ventora now supports campaign creation across both Google Ads and Meta Ads, allowing entrepreneurs to prepare product launches and customer acquisition strategies without switching between multiple platforms.

Through Ventora's AI Business Builder, users can work alongside AI agents that perform many of the tasks traditionally handled by business analysts, developers, marketers, copywriters, product managers, and growth specialists. Instead of coordinating numerous tools and service providers, entrepreneurs can manage much of the business creation process through one integrated platform.

The objective is not simply to automate individual tasks but to automate the operational complexity that prevents many aspiring entrepreneurs from bringing their ideas to market. The platform is designed to support a wide variety of digital businesses, including SaaS products, AI applications, subscription businesses, online services, digital marketplaces, e-commerce stores, educational platforms, and niche online products. By combining business analysis, product generation, launch preparation, and marketing execution within a unified workflow, Ventora aims to help entrepreneurs focus on what matters most: identifying valuable opportunities and building businesses customers genuinely want.

"The first generation of AI transformed software development," said Igor Trunov, founder and CEO of Ventora. "Today almost anyone can build an application. The bigger challenge is turning that application into a profitable business. Our goal is to help entrepreneurs overcome that challenge by bringing business strategy, product creation, and customer acquisition together through specialized AI agents."

The company believes this approach may significantly expand access to entrepreneurship by reducing the expertise and operational resources traditionally required to launch digital ventures. Professionals with industry knowledge, creators, consultants, freelancers, and first-time founders can increasingly build and test multiple business ideas without assembling conventional startup teams or hiring specialists across every function.

Information about Ventora's launch workflows demonstrates how specialized AI agents collaborate throughout business planning, product creation, marketing preparation, advertising execution, and customer acquisition. Pricing information is available through Ventora's pricing page, while additional articles covering AI-powered entrepreneurship, startup execution, and business creation can be found in Ventora's founder resources.

As artificial intelligence continues to evolve beyond content generation and software development, Ventora believes the next stage of innovation will focus on helping entrepreneurs build complete businesses rather than simply creating software. The expansion of its marketing automation capabilities represents another step toward that vision.

About Ventora

Ventora is an AI business builder platform operated by DEKS Media LLC. The platform combines specialized AI agents that support opportunity discovery, business analysis, market validation, product planning, software generation, marketing execution, launch workflows, and customer acquisition. By bringing these capabilities together in a single, AI-powered environment, Ventora helps entrepreneurs build SaaS products, AI applications, online services, marketplaces, e-commerce businesses, and other digital ventures with fewer traditional barriers. For more information, visit ventora.cc.

Media Contact

Media Relations
DEKS MEDIA L.L.C.
support@ventora.cc

Patsnap, the global leader in AI-native innovation intelligence for IP and R&D, and Intellegens, a pioneer in advanced machine learning for R&D, today announced a strategic partnership connecting Patsnap's global patent dataset with Intellegens' Alchemite™ Suite. The partnership is designed to give R&D teams in chemicals, materials, and FMCG access to patent insight earlier in the development process, at the point of experimental design rather than after testing is complete.

Formulation development and IP review have traditionally operated as separate functions. Scientists optimize a candidate material or chemical formulation and then submit it for patent clearance, a sequence that can result in weeks of experimental work being forfeited or redirected when a conflict is identified.

Alchemite uses machine learning to predict optimal formulations from sparse experimental data, compressing development cycles by 50% to 80% by directing R&D teams toward the most promising candidates. That compression matters: according to Patsnap's 2026 R&D Benchmark Report, based on responses from 200+ R&D professionals, more than a third of organizations (37%) spend between 25% and 40% of their entire R&D budget on projects that never reach market, and when projects are terminated late in development or testing, 45% of respondents estimate the wasted investment at $1 million or more per project. 

Through the partnership, Intellegens' AI agent, Alchemite Insight, can now validate candidates against Patsnap's database of more than 170 million global patent records for novelty and freedom-to-operate before bench work begins. Where a conflict exists, the system can surface alternative ingredients or process parameters that maintain the performance target while staying clear of protected intellectual property.

The integration runs through Patsnap's Open Platform, which allows AI systems and agents to call its IP intelligence programmatically. This is what allows IP validation to sit natively inside Alchemite's design loop rather than as a separate, manual step.

"Patsnap's R&D customers have consistently flagged the gap between formulation work and IP review as a drag on their go-to-market timelines. This partnership puts IP intelligence where it can influence decisions at the design stage, not after the fact," said Ray Chohan, co-founder of Patsnap.

"By embedding Patsnap's IP intelligence directly into the Alchemite experimental design process, we remove the friction between invention and legal validation," said Ben Pellegrini, CEO of Intellegens. "Scientists don't just get a high-performing formula; they get the confidence that it is a viable, legally clear asset from day one."

Learn more about Patsnap and Intellegens by visiting www.patsnap.com and intellegens.com.

About Patsnap

Founded in Singapore in 2007, Patsnap is a leading global innovation intelligence company. Leveraging domain-specific AI agents and robust analytics tools, Patsnap empowers IP and R&D teams to unlock insights, accelerate discoveries and protect breakthroughs. Trusted by nearly 20,000 enterprises, law firms and research institutions in over 50 countries including one-third of the world’s largest R&D spenders, Patsnap transforms how organizations innovate and make critical decisions. Learn more at www.patsnap.com.

About Intellegens

Intellegens provides unique machine learning software, Alchemite™, designed to solve complex problems with sparse or noisy data. It accelerates the development of novel materials, chemicals, and processes across industries ranging from aerospace to pharmaceuticals. For more information, visit intellegens.com.

Media Contact

Kate White
media@patsnap.com

Striding AI today announced that it is developing a new generation of robotic foundation systems designed to accelerate the deployment of physical AI in real-world environments.

The company’s approach focuses on building the foundational technologies required for robots to perceive, reason, act, and continuously improve through interaction with the physical world. By integrating advanced foundation models with robotic perception, control systems, real-world action data, and deployment infrastructure, Striding AI aims to enable intelligent machines to perform useful tasks across commercial, industrial, and everyday settings.

Powered by a world-class team of researchers, engineers, product builders, and business leaders, the company is pushing the boundaries of physical AI through world action models and next-generation reinforcement learning technologies. By accelerating the large-scale adoption of robotics across commercial and industrial applications, Striding AI aims to become a leading trustworthy robotic service provider.

"We believe that breakthroughs in physical AI emerge from the continuous co-evolution of data, models, and infrastructure," said Song Yao, founder and CEO of Striding AI.

The company takes a systems-first approach to physical AI, integrating foundation models, robot hardware and software, data infrastructure, control systems, and deployment engineering for building scalable service. The company's leadership team includes founders and executives with backgrounds in AI chips, autonomous driving, robotics research, and industrial technology, combining deep technical expertise with experience bringing complex technologies into production environments.

Striding AI plans to begin with practical deployment scenarios in structured environments such as retail, where robots can support tasks including shelf restocking, inventory counting, product organization, and checkout assistance. These environments provide frequent human interaction, repeatable workflows, and rich operational data, making them a strong starting point for developing scalable physical AI systems.

Over time, Striding AI expects its robotic foundation systems to support broader applications across sectors including retail, food, agriculture, logistics, healthcare, and telecommunications. The company’s long-term vision is to build robots that learn from real-world experience, improve continuously, and become part of everyday human environments.

Behind its deployment strategy, Striding AI is developing a new generation of robotic foundation systems that can turn multimodal perception into real-world robotic action. By integrating advanced foundation models with robotic perception, control, and real-world action data, the system learns actionable representations of how actions affect and change the physical world through interaction, enabling robots to transfer skills more effectively across different tasks and environments.

These capabilities are integrated into a closed-loop robotics architecture spanning perception, planning, execution, feedback, and recovery, where human-in-the-loop reinforcement learning turns real-world operations into continuous training data.

In early internal testing, Striding AI’s human-in-the-loop RL method improved task success rates by up to 3x. To scale this flywheel, Striding AI is building infrastructure for robot pretraining, distributed reinforcement learning, and edge-to-cloud orchestration, creating a platform designed to improve as more robots operate in real-world environments.

Striding AI sees physical AI as a full-stack effort, where foundation models, robotic systems, data, infrastructure, and deployment capabilities must advance together.

The capabilities developed in real-world environments, from handling diverse objects and understanding retail shelves to planning and executing complex tasks, are part of an integrated system designed for broader robotic applications. Through this systems-first approach, Striding AI aims to build robots that learn from real-world experience, improve over time, and gradually become part of everyday human environments.

About Striding AI

Striding AI is committed to bringing ease to the world with physical AI. Powered by a world-class team of researchers, engineers, product builders, and business leaders, the company is pushing the boundaries of physical AI through world action models and next-generation reinforcement learning technologies. By accelerating the large-scale adoption of robotics across commercial and industrial applications, Striding AI aims to become a leading, trustworthy robotic service provider. For more information, visit www.striding.ai.

Media Contact

Jimei Kou
pr@striding.ai

Restore the Earth Foundation, Inc. (“REF”), in its ongoing work to restore 1 million acres in the Mississippi River Basin, demonstrates the essential role of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (“NRCS”)  backed conservation structures to support durable, land based restoration and carbon removal projects in the United States.

The NRCS is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) that provides technical and financial assistance to farmers, ranchers, forest landowners, and other land managers through voluntary conservation programs such as the Wetland Reserve Easement (WRE) program. These programs include partnership based conservation initiatives and easement mechanisms that can help protect, restore, and enhance wetlands, forests, grasslands, and other working landscapes.

For restoration organizations and carbon project developers, these structures can be paramount in ensuring long term land control, permanence, and landowner participation, which  are essential for high quality nature based carbon removals. Carbon buyers and technical evaluators increasingly scrutinize whether projects have a credible basis for long term stewardship, clear land use commitments, and enforceable mechanisms that reduce reversal and non-delivery risk. REF’s model provides this credibility, backed by federal government program support.

REF believes that conservation easement structures, including those associated with NRCS supported programs, can help strengthen the institutional foundation of restoration projects when they are paired with robust project design, transparent carbon accounting, appropriate monitoring, and straightforward environmental attribute agreements.

“Today, durability is one of the central questions in nature-based carbon removal,” said Taylor Marshall, Executive Director of Restore the Earth Foundation. “For restoration projects to be credible over time, they need more than high quality planting activities. They need sustainable partnerships,long-term stewardship, shared responsibilities, and overall alignment with local landowner and community priorities. NRCS backed conservation structures can help provide that foundation when they are integrated into quality reforestation carbon projects.”

REF’s restoration work focuses on landscape scale ecosystem recovery, native species reestablishment, environmental resilience, and the development of long term ecological and carbon outcomes. REF works with public, private, local and technical partners to support restoration models that provide the nexus that connect landowners, conservation priorities, project delivery, long term monitoring, verification and reporting (MRV), and the assignment of the resulting environmental credits.

The increasing focus on permanence reflects a broader shift in carbon markets. Buyers and evaluators are placing greater emphasis on project quality, additionality, monitoring, leakage, land tenure, and long-term management. In this context, restoration projects that can demonstrate strong land tenure  and guarantee quality stewardship for 40–80 years, are better positioned to meet the rising expectations of high integrity carbon removal markets.

“REF’s view is that the next phase of nature based carbon removal will require stronger institutional strategy development and execution,” added Marshall. “The market is moving beyond simple restoration narratives. It is asking whether projects can endure, whether benefits can be monitored, and whether local land and community structures support long term outcomes. That is where conservation based frameworks, like the ones REF has developed,can play an important role.”

REF is applying this approach across its restoration portfolio, including projects that combine native ecosystem reforestation, landowner engagement, public private cooperation and coordination, and environmental attribute development. REF’s goal is to support restoration models that are ecologically grounded, technically credible, and capable of long term management.

This release does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture or the Natural Resources Conservation Service. References to NRCS are included to describe public conservation program structures and their relevance to restoration and land stewardship.

About Restore the Earth Foundation

Restore the Earth Foundation, Inc. is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization focused on large-scale native tree species reforestation, and long-term environmental resilience. REF works with public, private, and technical partners to restore degraded landscapes, support biodiversity and ecosystem services, and develop long-term environmental outcomes, including carbon and other environmental attributes where appropriate. For more information, visit restoretheearth.org.

Media Contact

Taylor Marshall
tam@restoretheearth.org

Ground, the money infrastructure company, launched out of stealth today alongside a $3.6 million pre-seed funding round. The investment was led by Bain Capital Crypto and ParaFi, with additional funding from Nascent, Robot Ventures, Chapter One, and Consonant Ventures.

Until now, to access onchain yield, financial platforms have had two choices: leave user capital idle, or spend time and treasure building custom blockchain integrations. Ground is introducing modular API infrastructure that unifies fragmented onchain sources into a single integration, allowing any neobank, exchange, or fund manager to seamlessly embed onchain finance directly into their existing product suites.

Ground's API plugs directly into existing interfaces and ledgers, enabling Ground’s clients to configure yield strategies to their exact risk and liquidity requirements with simple, automatable allocation management. A diverse catalogue of onchain assets integrates quickly, whether manually or agentically, and granular, transparent data ensures compliance and reporting needs are met from day one.

"Making onchain finance accessible and embeddable is a fundamental shift in how capital will be managed," said Reid Cuming, CEO and co-founder of Ground. “The global asset management industry oversees more than $147 trillion, and there are trillions of dollars idling in pre-funded accounts, neobanks and blockchain wallets. That is a massive untapped opportunity, and we are building the foundation that empowers any financial application or manager to easily integrate onchain yield into their platform. Ground supercharges their products and idle balances.”  

Ground’s executive team uniquely positions the company to bridge traditional fintech with decentralized networks. The company was co-founded by CEO Reid Cuming, a co-founder of Superstate and VP and GM of Compound Treasury — the first S&P-rated decentralized finance product — alongside CTO Sam Yoon, who previously built stablecoin rails as the Technical CEO at Braid and as the product and engineering lead at HiFi. 

“Stablecoin adoption started with remittance, tokenization, and dollar-account use cases. Naturally, what fintechs and institutions are asking next is how can they further tap into onchain products, especially credit markets to give their customers higher yield and lower borrow rates. This is not at all easy to do today,” said Parth Chopra, Partner at Bain Capital Crypto. “We invested in Ground because they’re building the infrastructure to provide fintech developers with easy, secure, and compliant access to many different credit products. So they can enable delightful financial access to their customers.”   

Ground is live and onboarding new clients today. For more information, visit groundtech.co.

About Ground

Ground is the premier enterprise-grade API infrastructure layer for institutional onchain finance. Co-founded by fintech and digital asset veterans from Stripe, Superstate, HiFi and Compound, Ground enables financial applications and platforms to seamlessly embed onchain asset management directly into their products. Ground is backed by leading venture firms including Bain Capital Crypto, ParaFi, Nascent, Robot Ventures, Chapter One, and Consonant Ventures. Learn more at groundtech.co.

Media Contact

Melrose PR
ground@melrosepr.com

Hi3D is celebrating its first anniversary with a limited-time promotional campaign that includes discounted subscription plans, creator competitions, community events, and early access opportunities for upcoming platform features. The campaign highlights how the AI 3D maker platform has evolved over the past year from a model-generation tool into a broader workflow for creating print-ready 3D objects.

Watch the Hi3D anniversary campaign and workflow in action.

As part of the anniversary push, Hi3D is showcasing one of its most accessible use cases: turning a single football photo into a custom LEGO-style collectible figure using AI and a consumer 3D printer. With the 2026 FIFA World Cup approaching, the company is positioning the feature as a new way for football fans to create personalized memorabilia beyond jerseys, posters, and traditional licensed merchandise.

Until recently, creating a personalized football figurine required either purchasing expensive licensed merchandise or learning professional 3D modeling tools such as Blender. Both options come with obvious limitations. Official products are often costly and offer little customization, while creating a model from scratch can take days of work and significant technical knowledge.

Hi3D is trying to change that.

Positioned as an all-in-one AI 3D maker platform, Hi3D combines AI image generation, AI 3D modeling, model repair, automatic part splitting, articulation generation, print preparation, and slicer integration into a single workflow. Instead of spending hours moving files between different software packages, users can generate a printable model in just a few clicks.

To see how practical this workflow really is, we decided to create a LEGO-style Messi figure from start to finish and test the entire process ourselves.

• Difficulty: Beginner-friendly
• Hands-on Time: About 5 minutes (the printer does the rest)
• Cost: One Hi3D account + roughly $4 in filament

What You'll Need

Before getting started, prepare the following:

• A Hi3D account (new users receive free credits, and anniversary promotions currently provide additional discounts and usage allowances)
• A reference image of Messi
• A multicolor FDM 3D printer
• Several common filament colors such as green, white, black, and skin tone
• About 70 grams of material

For our test, we used a Bambu Lab H2D printer with an AMS multicolor system. However, Hi3D also supports workflows that connect directly with Bambu Studio, OrcaSlicer, Creality Print, and Elegoo Slicer.

An additional advantage is that users with single-color printers are not excluded. Hi3D can export monochrome printable models as well, creating a statue-like collectible rather than a multicolor figure.

Step 1: Generate a LEGO-Style Messi and Convert It Into 3D

The first step begins inside a web browser.

Using Hi3D's built-in AI image tools, we uploaded a photograph of Messi and entered a simple prompt asking the system to transform the image into a LEGO-style character.

Hi3D integrates several leading image-generation technologies, allowing users to perform style transfers, character redesigns, and image creation without leaving the platform. Within seconds, the AI produced a stylized version of Messi complete with recognizable facial features, hairstyle, and football uniform details.

Most AI image tools would stop there.

Hi3D takes the next step by converting the generated image directly into a three-dimensional model. The system automatically reconstructs major body structures, including the head, torso, arms, and legs, while preserving the visual style established in the image-generation stage.

The result is a printable 3D character rather than a flat illustration.

Step 2: Automatically Create Articulated Parts

This is where Hi3D starts to distinguish itself from traditional AI 3D generators.

Generating a model is only one part of the challenge. For hobbyists who actually want to manufacture a figure, the model also needs to be printable, assemblable, and durable.

Hi3D includes automated part-splitting technology designed specifically for physical production. The system analyzes the geometry of the character and identifies logical separation points for different body regions.

Using its built-in character templates, Hi3D can automatically divide a figure into components such as the head, torso, arms, legs, accessories, and base.

Users can then choose between fixed assembly structures or articulated connections.

For this project, we selected spherical ball joints to create a fully poseable figure. Hi3D automatically generated the required connection structures while calculating assembly tolerances to ensure proper fit after printing.

The result was a LEGO-style Messi capable of moving its head, arms, and legs rather than a static decorative object.

Traditionally, creating these joints would require significant CAD experience and repeated test prints. Hi3D completes the process in minutes.

Step 3: Optimize the Layout and Send Directly to the Slicer

Many makers know that creating a model is only half the battle.

A poorly oriented print can lead to excessive support material, surface defects, failed prints, or long production times. Traditionally, users spend considerable time inside slicers adjusting part orientation, support placement, spacing, and print parameters.

Hi3D addresses this through its intelligent print-preparation workflow.

The platform automatically evaluates model geometry and applies orientation strategies designed to improve print quality and manufacturing efficiency.

For example, full-body characters are slightly tilted to hide support marks in less visible areas, while elongated objects such as swords are angled to minimize support structures along sharp edges.

Users can choose between two optimization modes:

• Surface Quality Mode, which prioritizes visual appearance and assembly accuracy
• Support Reduction Mode, which minimizes material consumption and print time

Once optimization is complete, the model can be exported directly to Bambu Studio or other supported slicers.

Rather than transferring only an STL file, Hi3D packages the project as an enhanced 3MF file containing layout information, color assignments, print settings, and support configurations.

When we opened the project inside Bambu Studio, everything was already configured and ready for printing.

Step 4: Print and Assemble

After sending the project to the printer, the remaining work is handled by the machine.

Our multicolor print required approximately eight hours to complete.

When finished, the build plate contained several cleanly printed components:

• A multicolor torso
• A detailed Messi head
• Separate arms and legs
• Football boots and accessory elements

Because the joints and tolerances had already been optimized during the generation process, assembly was surprisingly straightforward.

• No sanding was required.
• No redesign was necessary.
• No glue was needed.

The ball-joint components snapped together smoothly, creating a finished figure that could be posed in a variety of football-inspired celebrations.

What started as a single image had become a tangible collectible.

Beyond Football Figures: What Makers Are Creating

The Messi project highlights a broader trend within the maker community.

As AI-generated models become easier to create, the biggest challenge is no longer generating geometry — it is turning digital assets into physical products.

Hi3D's approach focuses on bridging that gap.

By automating tasks such as model repair, watertight conversion, part splitting, articulation generation, color optimization, print orientation, and slicer preparation, the platform allows creators to spend more time designing and less time troubleshooting.

The results can already be seen in projects created by Hi3D users around the world. Community challenges have produced everything from fantasy weapons and collectible statues to articulated toys and custom display pieces.

Many of these projects would traditionally require multiple software packages and advanced technical skills. With AI-assisted manufacturing workflows, they become accessible to a much wider audience.

Making 3D Creation More Accessible

Different users benefit from Hi3D in different ways.

Collectors and figure enthusiasts gain access to automated articulation, assembly-ready parts, and printable character models. Multicolor printing users can take advantage of AI-driven color separation and optimized material usage. Print farms and maker spaces benefit from automated repair tools and faster preparation workflows. Complete beginners can simply upload a photo and generate customized figurines, pet models, refrigerator magnets, and personalized gifts without learning professional 3D software.

In many ways, Hi3D represents a shift in the AI 3D industry — from focusing solely on model generation toward enabling real-world manufacturing.

About Hi3D and the Anniversary Event

Hi3D is an all-in-one AI 3D maker platform built to connect AI-powered creativity with physical manufacturing. Its feature set spans text-to-3D generation, image-to-3D conversion, automatic mesh repair, intelligent character segmentation, ball-joint generation, smart print layout optimization, and one-click 3MF export for major slicing ecosystems.

The company is currently celebrating its first anniversary with a limited-time promotional campaign featuring discounted subscription plans, creator competitions, community events, and early access opportunities for upcoming platform features.

Whether you're interested in building a custom football collectible, designing original figures, or creating your first 3D-printed project, Hi3D aims to make the path from idea to object dramatically easier.

New users can receive 300 free Hi3D credits through the link below and experience the complete AI-to-3D-print workflow for themselves — from concept generation to printable 3MF files.

Get started at Hi3D.ai.

About Math Magic

Math Magic is the developer of Hitem3D, a 3D generation tool powered by its proprietary high-resolution AI model, Sparc3D. With just a single reference image, users can instantly generate studio-ready 3D assets with industry-leading quality, making 3D creation faster, easier, and more accessible. This breakthrough solution empowers game developers, designers, and 3D artists to streamline their creative workflows and bring ideas to life efficiently from concept to deployment. For more information, visit hitem3d.ai.

Disclaimer

Hi3D is an independent AI technology development and software platform. The reference project described in this announcement (the creation of a custom sports figurine) was conducted strictly as an internal testing demonstration of the software's user workflow and mechanical replication tolerances. This campaign and software are not sponsored, endorsed, authorized, or licensed by, nor are they associated or affiliated with, Lionel Messi, his management, FIFA, or the LEGO Group. All product names, logos, trademarks, and celebrity likenesses are the property of their respective owners.

Media Contact

Celine Su
contact@email.hitem3d.ai

At the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, AGIBOT X2, the half-size humanoid robot developed by Shanghai-based AGIBOT Innovation (Shanghai) Technology Co., Ltd., a pioneer in embodied AI and humanoid robotics, made its most ambitious cross-cultural appearance to date — stepping beyond industrial settings and into the worlds of culture, fashion, and lifestyle entertainment on one of the world's most photographed stages.

Across five days of red-carpet moments, magazine shoots, sports crossovers, and on-stage performances, X2 demonstrated how embodied AI can move with intelligence and social fluency through everyday cultural life. Guided by AGIBOT's "1 Robotic Body, 3 Intelligence" architecture, X2 delivered interaction, manipulation, and locomotion in live, unscripted environments — marking a defining step in bringing Physical AI out of the factory and into the cultural mainstream.

A Cultural Statement

The Cannes program opened May 17 at Chinese Culture and Art Night, themed "When Technology Meets Craftsmanship," where X2 stood at the intersection of Chinese heritage and embodied AI. The cultural thread continued on May 19 at techCannes, where Pierre Asseo, CEO of Xmotion and AGIBOT's local partner, delivered a keynote on Physical AI deployment, positioning humanoid robotics as a new participant in global creative industries.

A Fashion Debut

X2's fashion arc — the centerpiece of its Cannes presence — peaked on May 21, when the robot joined supermodel and actress Aline Resplandes for an authorized GRAZIA Cannes Special Edition cover shoot and red-carpet campaign. Positioned as Aline's personal "Life Assistant," X2 became the first humanoid robot to participate in a GRAZIA editorial production. The momentum carried through the Fashion Connect Asian Film Fashion Night Cocktail on May 18, where X2 appeared alongside Hofit Golan, a Forbes-featured influencer with more than 4.16 million followers, and Kate Alexeeva, Miss Universe Latvia titleholder and host of the gala. The appearances followed AGIBOT's 2026 Met Gala pre-event debut with Alexander Wang at The Mark Hotel in New York, extending a deliberate strategy to embed Physical AI into global fashion culture.

A Lifestyle and Entertainment Crossover

X2's lifestyle dimension reached its widest audience through sports and live performance. At Fashion Connect, X2 stood alongside Duckens Nazon, captain and all-time leading goalscorer of the Haiti National Football Team, opening a World Cup-facing dimension for AGIBOT as Haiti returns to the FIFA World Cup in 2026 after a 52-year absence. That crossover is expected to continue in Atlanta, a 2026 FIFA World Cup host city, through content tied to sports analytics, training, and stadium navigation. On the entertainment side, X2 took center stage at techCannes with character voice performances and tailored Tai Chi, engaging technology, media, and production experts in a live demonstration of embodied AI's expressive range.

Toward Everyday Embodied AI

With global deployment exceeding 10,000 units as of March 2026, AGIBOT's Cannes showcase reinforces its market leadership and comes as the company advances the commercial mass production of general-purpose humanoid robots. The five-day program reflects a broader trajectory in which embodied AI is moving from industrial floors into cultural, creative, and everyday experiences. Guided by the belief in "liberating creativity and augmenting productivity," AGIBOT will continue to explore cross-disciplinary applications across diverse scenarios, bringing embodied AI closer to everyday life.

About AGIBOT

AGIBOT is dedicated to driving innovation through the integration of AI and robotics, creating world-leading general-purpose embodied robot products and an application ecosystem. Built on the foundation of the robotic body and powered by the fusion of interaction, manipulation, and locomotion intelligence — "1 Robotic Body, 3 Intelligence" — AGIBOT is a leading robotics company in the industry to deliver a complete product portfolio and deploy across all major application scenarios. In March 2026, AGIBOT announced the rollout of its 10,000th robot, marking a major milestone in large-scale production and deployment. For more information, visit www.agibot.com

Media Contact

Jocelyn Yang
marketing@agibot.com

Shenzhen HQVT Technology Co., Ltd. ("HQVT" or the "company," stock code: 1392.HK), a leading multispectral AI technology company in China, officially listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited today. This milestone marks the company’s entry into a new stage of global development.

On its first day of listing, HQVT opened at HKD 29 per share, representing a surge of over 300% from its offer price. Its total market capitalization approached HKD 25 billion, fully reflecting strong market expectations for the multispectral AI niche sector.

Established in 2013 and headquartered in Shenzhen, HQVT specializes in multispectral AI technology. By integrating sensing capabilities across ultraviolet (UV), infrared, and visible light spectrums with AI algorithms, the company identifies early risk signals such as electrical leakage, equipment aging, and abnormal temperature rises. These solutions assist customers in high-value scenarios — including power systems, information data centres (IDCs), new energy, and energy storage — to enhance intelligent perception and on-site judgment of abnormal signals. In 2025, the company was certified by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology as a national-level Specialised and Sophisticated Key "Little Giant" Enterprise. According to Frost & Sullivan, HQVT ranked first in terms of revenue among multispectral AI enterprises in China in 2025.

Building Full-Chain Technical Capabilities from Perception to Judgment 

HQVT has established full-chain capabilities encompassing optical components, sensing modules, on-device computing, and algorithm models under its "optics-sensor-imaging-computing" technical architecture. The company employs an "Edge-Cloud Collaboration" technical system: at the on-device (edge) level, lightweight AI computing units support real-time on-site identification, inference, and analysis with speeds as low as 50 milliseconds, maintaining low-latency operation even in offline or low-bandwidth environments. In the cloud, the company’s proprietary "Zhiyuan Origin Large Model" serves multi-scenario applications, accumulating risk samples and optimizing algorithm strategies to continuously improve risk judgment in complex scenarios. Notably, the model has achieved over 95% accuracy in detecting early fire signatures.

Leveraging these technical capabilities, HQVT has served more than 2,500 customers and accumulated extensive field experience in high-value scenarios such as data centres and power systems. Risk characteristics, alert results, and disposal feedback from real-world scenarios provide robust support for the company's continuous algorithm optimization and model iteration.

Upgrading from "Product Sales" to "High-Value Services" 

HQVT’s commercialization efforts have been validated across multiple fields. From 2023 to 2025, the company's revenue grew from RMB 117.1 million to RMB 668.5 million, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 138.9%. The company achieved a turnaround to profitability in 2024, and its adjusted net profit (non-IFRS measure) reached RMB 55.2 million in 2025.

Notably, HQVT is transitioning from a product-delivery firm to a provider of solutions and services centered on multispectral AI large models. In 2025, the Multispectral AI Large Model Services segment generated RMB 355.4 million, accounting for 53.1% of total revenue. This business focuses on algorithm optimization, model iteration, and comprehensive judgment in complex scenarios, reflecting the extension of the company's business model from module and terminal sales to model-driven solutions. As a National-level Specialised and Sophisticated Key "Little Giant," HQVT continues to invest heavily in R&D, with its R&D team accounting for 43.1% of the total workforce as of the end of 2025. As of June 1, 2026, the company had registered 101 invention patents.

IPO Proceeds to Fuel R&D Investment and Market Expansion 

According to Frost & Sullivan, the global multispectral perception market was valued at approximately RMB 85.0 billion in 2025, with North America and Europe accounting for 25% and 28% shares, respectively; the market is expected to reach RMB 305.4 billion by 2030.

According to its prospectus, HQVT plans to use the net proceeds from this offering to enhance R&D capabilities, increase investment in product development, expand production capacity, strengthen business expansion, drive global market penetration, and supplement general working capital.

This listing on the HKEX will provide support for the company’s subsequent R&D, product iteration, and market expansion while raising awareness of multispectral AI applications in industrial and safety scenarios.

About Shenzhen HQVT Technology Co.

Shenzhen HQVT Technology Co., Ltd. (Stock Code: 1392.HK) is a leading multispectral AI technology company in China established in 2013. By integrating UV, infrared, and visible light sensing with AI algorithms, the company enhances intelligent perception and on-site judgment of abnormal signals in scenarios such as power systems, data centres, and new energy storage. Recognized as a national-level Specialised and Sophisticated Key "Little Giant" Enterprise in 2025, HQVT holds the top market share among Chinese multispectral AI companies by revenue. For more information, please visit www.hqvt.com.

Media Contact

Jinzhao Wu
wujinzhao@hqvt.com

Wondershare announced the release of EdrawMind V13.5.0, introducing a brand new Hand-Drawn Mind Map Mode, now available in beta for English-language users, with full availability across English channels scheduled for July. The release also introduces EdrawMind AI, a new AI agent workspace designed to help users transform ideas, files and conversations into structured visual outputs. The update expands how users organize, develop and communicate ideas through mind mapping.

Powered by AI One-Click Hand-Drawn Generation, the feature enables users to generate a organic hand-drawn style mind map from a single text prompt in as little as 30 seconds. The mode also includes a Hand-Drawn Template Library with one-click clone support, allowing users to quickly recreate ready-made styles, while Smart Coloring automatically applies harmonious color combinations to enhance the overall visual presentation.

To enrich visual expression, the feature provides access to more than 300,000 illustrations through its AI Illustration Library, with the system automatically recommending relevant visual assets based on node content. It also integrates image processing and visual enhancement tools, including Background Remover, Crop, Replace and Flip, as well as AI Image Stylizer and AI Image Generator, helping users complete image sourcing, creation and editing within a more streamlined workflow.

The Hand-Drawn Mind Map Mode also emphasizes a more natural creation experience. Users can draw and expand branches through intuitive mouse interactions while retaining the flexibility of digital editing. Hand-drawn lines, shapes and typography are incorporated throughout the experience, creating a cohesive visual style that balances logical structure with personal expression.

Alongside the new hand-drawn experience, EdrawMind V13.5.0 also introduces EdrawMind AI, which brings AI Agent capabilities into the professional mind mapping platform. Users can create mind maps from text prompts, long-form content, uploaded documents, PDF, web links and YouTube video links. The system analyzes information, identifies key concepts and automatically organizes content into structured visual frameworks, helping users process complex information more efficiently.

Beyond idea organization, EdrawMind AI also supports project planning and execution. The platform can generate AI-powered Kanban boards by identifying tasks, priorities, deadlines and responsibilities from text and uploaded materials. Mind maps and Kanban boards can remain synchronized, allowing users to move between planning and execution while maintaining a unified project structure.

The release also supports AI-powered presentation generation. Users can generate presentation outlines from a topic, refine the structure through conversation and create presentation-ready slides using over 200 built-in templates. The feature is designed to help users turn research, meeting notes and brainstorming outputs into professional deliverables more quickly.

To further integrate AI into daily workflows, Wondershare introduces an AI floating button for desktop users. Available across browsers, Microsoft Office, Notion and other productivity tools, the assistant can understand selected content and generate visual mind maps without requiring users to switch applications, helping bring visual thinking directly into everyday work environments.

“Mind mapping is more than a productivity technique — it is a way of thinking,” said Sam Zhang, Head of Wondershare EdrawMind. “It helps transform complexity into clarity, ideas into structure, and knowledge into expression. With EdrawMind AI and Hand-Drawn Mind Map Mode, we aim to make visual thinking more intelligent, intuitive, and accessible, helping users move more efficiently from inspiration to execution.”

About Wondershare

Wondershare is a globally recognized software company founded in 2003, known for its innovative solutions in creativity and productivity. Driven by the mission “Creativity Simplified,” Wondershare offers a range of tools, including Filmora and SelfyzAI for video editing, PDFelement for document management, and EdrawMax and EdrawMind for diagramming. With over 2 billion cumulative active users across all products and a presence in over 200 countries and regions, Wondershare empowers the next generation of creators with intuitive software and trendy creative resources, continually expanding the possibilities of creativity worldwide. For more information, visit www.wondershare.com.

Media Contact

Juno Qu
qusn@300624.cn

Wondershare, a global software company known for its productivity and creativity solutions, today announced that its flagship document and video creation platforms, Wondershare PDFelement and Wondershare Filmora, have collectively earned 113 badges in G2's Summer 2026 Reports.

G2's quarterly reports are based on verified customer reviews and proprietary market data, making them one of the software industry's most widely referenced benchmarks for software performance and user experience. According to G2, only 2% of software products and service providers featured on the platform earned a Leader badge in the Summer 2026 Reports.

Among the highlights, Wondershare PDFelement was named a Leader in the PDF Editor category and earned Best Usability and Best Relationship recognitions among Mid-Market customers, while Wondershare Filmora achieved Leader status in both the Video Editing and Video Content Creation categories. The products also earned multiple Momentum Leader, Best Relationship, Best Estimated ROI and Most Implementable distinctions across various business segments and regions.

Wondershare PDFelement received 80 badges across the PDF Editor, Document Creation, Document Generation and Desktop Publishing categories. The product was recognized as a Leader in multiple global markets, including Asia Pacific, Europe, EMEA, India and Latin America, while also earning distinctions across enterprise, mid-market and small-business segments.

Building on its strong performance in G2's Summer 2026 Reports, Wondershare PDFelement continues to gain recognition among businesses and professionals seeking efficient document workflows. The AI-powered PDF solution enables users to create, edit, convert, organize, sign and secure PDF files, while offering intelligent features such as AI Summarize, Chat with PDF, AI Translate, AI Proofread and AI Rewrite to streamline document tasks and improve productivity. For organizations, PDFelement also provides enterprise-grade administration and security controls for scalable document management.

Wondershare Filmora earned 33 badges across the Video Editing and Video Content Creation categories. In addition to securing global Leader recognition, the platform was recognized as a Leader across Asia, Asia Pacific, Europe, EMEA, India, Latin America, Italy and Southeast Asia, reflecting its growing adoption among creators, educators, marketers and business users worldwide.

As Wondershare's flagship video editing software, Filmora combines an intuitive user experience with AI-powered tools such as AI Video Enhancer, AI Copilot Editing, AI Image-to-Video, AI Smart Masking and AI Sound Effect Generation. Trusted by more than 400 million users worldwide, Filmora enables creators to produce professional-quality content with greater speed and efficiency.

"These recognitions are especially meaningful because they come directly from user feedback," said Vic Yu, Head of Brand at Wondershare. "Whether users are managing business documents with PDFelement or creating content with Filmora, our goal is to deliver intuitive, AI-powered experiences that help people work and create more efficiently."

About Wondershare

Wondershare is a globally recognized software company founded in 2003, known for its innovative solutions in creativity and productivity. Driven by the mission “Creativity Simplified,” Wondershare offers a range of tools, including Filmora and SelfyzAI for video editing, PDFelement for document management, and EdrawMax and EdrawMind for diagramming. With over 2 billion cumulative active users across all products and a presence in over 200 countries and regions, Wondershare empowers the next generation of creators with intuitive software and trendy creative resources, continually expanding the possibilities of creativity worldwide. For more information, visit www.wondershare.com.

Media Contact

Essa Yang
yangys@wondershare.com