Artificial Intelligence
Huize Holding Limited Reports Second Quarter 2020 Unaudited Financial Results
SHENZHEN, China, Aug. 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Huize Holding Limited, (“Huize”, the “Company” or “we”) (NASDAQ: HUIZ), a leading independent online insurance product and service platform in China, today announced its unaudited financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2020.
Second Quarter 2020 Operational and Financial Highlights:
1 Non-GAAP net profit is a non-GAAP financial measure. For more information, please see the section of “Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measure Statement” and the table captioned “Unaudited Reconciliations of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results” set forth at the end of this press release.
Mr. Cunjun Ma, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Huize, commented, “As the global economy was severely affected by the unfortunate COVID-19 outbreak in the first half of the year, the overall development of the insurance sector in China slowed down, with a single digit growth in GWP of 6.5% year over year. Despite the challenging macro conditions, we are pleased to report solid results outpacing industry growth. During the second quarter, total GWP facilitated on our platform increased by 51.0% year over year to RMB596.0 million, of which long-term life and health GWP accounted for 93.0%, a ratio which has stayed above 90% for the past three consecutive quarters. Furthermore, we have long been committed to seeking a balance between business growth and financial stability and were able to establish strong liquidity and a healthy financial position. As of quarter end, we had a combined cash and cash equivalents balance of US$63.3 million while we also recorded our ninth consecutive profitable quarter on a non-GAAP basis.”
“As a data-driven and technology-empowered insurtech platform focused on transforming the distribution of long-term life and health insurance for the industry, we believe that the business model that we have developed and continue to optimize is the core to better serve our customers and drive customer lifetime value. In the second quarter, Huize launched AI Proposal – an innovative application utilizing artificial intelligence to automatically create personalized insurance proposals, which significantly reduced customer waiting time to just a matter of minutes. On June 16, Huize and Southwestern University of Finance and Economics announced an agreement to set up a joint laboratory to focus on the application of innovative technologies, such as big data and knowledge graph construction, in the insurance sector to enable the creation of more accurate actuarial models and further mitigation of adverse selection risks in online insurance.” “Going forward, we will continue to invest in technology such as data analytics and machine learning to further improve our capabilities in the areas of risk management, product customization, customer experience and operating efficiency. Looking ahead into the second half of 2020, we are confident in the prospects for both the development of the company and the entire industry. As the pandemic has forced the education of the market and accelerated the offline-to-online transition in consumer behavior, we believe we are well-positioned to capture the industry sweet spot and benefit from the growing opportunities.”
Second Quarter 2020 Financial Results
Total operating revenue
Total operating revenue in the second quarter of 2020 increased by RMB35.1 million, or 17.6%, to RMB235.0 million (US$33.3 million) from RMB199.9 million in the same period of 2019. The increase in total operating revenue was primarily driven by an increase in brokerage income, which increased by 18.3% year over year to RMB234.2 million (US$33.1 million) in the second quarter of 2020. The increase in brokerage income was primarily driven by the 51.0% increase in total GWP facilitated which amounted to RMB596.0 million during the second quarter of 2020, of which first year premiums accounted for RMB319.7 million and renewal premiums accounted for RMB276.3 million.
Total operating costs Cost of revenue in the second quarter of 2020 increased by RMB13.4 million, or 10.7%, to RMB139.8 million (US$19.8 million) from RMB126.4 million in the same period of 2019, which was primarily attributable to increased personnel costs paid to insurance consultants and service fees paid to user traffic channels.
Total operating costs in the second quarter of 2020 increased by RMB13.7 million, or 10.8%, to RMB140.5 million (US$19.9 million) from RMB126.8 million in the same period of 2019, primarily attributable to the increase in cost of revenue.
As a percentage of total operating revenue, total operating costs declined to 59.8% in the second quarter of 2020 from 63.4% in the same period of 2019.
Operating expenses
Selling expenses in the second quarter of 2020 increased by RMB14.4 million, or 42.7%, to RMB48.1 million (US$6.8 million) from RMB33.7 million in the same period of 2019. This increase was primarily attributable to increased personnel costs as we increased our headcount, an increase in share-based compensation expenses, and to a lesser extent due to an increase in advertising and marketing expenses. Research and development expenses in the second quarter of 2020 increased by RMB3.1 million, or 41.9%, to RMB10.6 million (US$1.5 million) from RMB7.5 million in the same period of 2019, primarily attributable to increase in number of R&D personnel.
Net profit and Non-GAAP net profit for the period
Net loss in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB3.7 million (US$0.5 million), compared to a net loss of RMB40.6 million in the second quarter of 2019. Non-GAAP net profit in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB14.1 million (US$2.0 million), compared to RMB21.2 million in the second quarter of 2019.
Cash and cash equivalents
As of June 30, 2020, the combined balance of the Company’s cash and cash equivalents amounted to RMB447.3 million (US$63.3 million), compared to RMB88.1 million as of December 31, 2019. The increase was primarily due to the cash proceeds raised from the Company’s initial public offering in February 2020. Business Outlook
Based on the Company’s preliminary assessment of the current market conditions, the Company currently expects total operating revenue for the third quarter of 2020 to be in the range of RMB310 million to RMB340 million. This forecast reflects the Company’s current and preliminary views on the market and operational conditions, which are subject to change caused by various uncertainties, including those related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Share Repurchase Program
As of June 30, 2020, the Company had purchased an aggregate of 6,647 ADSs for a total amount of approximately US$0.04 million, under its share repurchase program pursuant to which the Company has been authorized to repurchase up to US$10 million ADSs by April 15, 2021, as previously announced on April 15, 2020.
Conference Call The Company’s management team will hold a Direct Event conference call on Thursday, August 20, 2020, at 8:00 A.M. Eastern Time (or 8:00 P.M. Beijing Time on the same day) to discuss the financial results. Details for the conference call are as follows:
All participants must use the link provided above to complete the online registration process in advance of the conference call. Upon registering, each participant will receive a set of participant dial-in numbers, the Direct Event passcode, and a unique access PIN, which can be used to join the conference call.
A replay of the conference call will be accessible through August 28, 2020, by dialing the following numbers:
A live and archived webcast of the conference call will also be available at the Company’s investor relations website at ir.huize.com.
About Huize Holding Limited For more information, please visit http://ir.huize.com.
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measure Statement
In evaluating our business, we consider and use non-GAAP net profit/(loss) as a supplemental measure to review and assess our operating performance. The presentation of the non-GAAP financial measure is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. We define non-GAAP net profit/(loss) as net profit/(loss) excluding share-based compensation expenses and interest on convertible bond. Such adjustments have no impact on income tax because either the non-GAAP adjustments were recorded at entities located in tax free jurisdictions, such as the Cayman Islands or because the non-GAAP adjustments were recorded at operating entities located in the PRC for which the non-GAAP adjustments were not deductible for tax purposes.
We present the non-GAAP financial measure because it is used by our management to evaluate our operating performance and formulate business plans. Non-GAAP net profit/(loss) enables our management to assess our operating results without considering the impact of share-based compensation expenses and the interest on convertible bond. We also believe that the use of this non-GAAP financial measure facilitates investors’ assessment of our operating performance.
This non-GAAP financial measure is not defined under U.S. GAAP and is not presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The non-GAAP financial measure has limitations as an analytical tool. One of the key limitations of using adjusted net profit/(loss) is that it does not reflect all items of income and expense that affect our operations. Further, the non-GAAP financial measure may differ from the non-GAAP financial information used by other companies, including peer companies, and therefore their comparability may be limited. The non-GAAP financial measure should not be considered in isolation or construed as an alternative to net profit/(loss) or any other measure of performance or as an indicator of our operating performance. Investors are encouraged to review the historical non-GAAP financial measure in light of the most directly comparable GAAP measure, as shown below. The non-GAAP financial measure presented here may not be comparable to similarly titled measure presented by other companies. Other companies may calculate similarly titled measures differently, limiting the usefulness of such measures when analyzing our data comparatively. We encourage investors and others to review our financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure.
Exchange Rate Information
This announcement contains translations of certain RMB amounts into U.S. dollars at a specified rate solely for the convenience of the reader. Unless otherwise noted, all translations from RMB to U.S. dollars and from U.S. dollars to RMB are made at a rate of RMB7.0651 to US$1.00, the exchange rate on June 30, 2020 set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the Federal Reserve Board. The Company makes no representation that the RMB or U.S. dollars amounts referred could be converted into U.S. dollars or RMB, as the case may be, at any particular rate or at all.
Safe Harbor Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about Huize’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates,” “confident” and similar statements. Among other things, business outlook and quotations from management in this announcement, contain forward-looking statements. Huize may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: Huize’s goal and strategies; Huize’s expansion plans; Huize’s future business development, financial condition and results of operations; Huize’s expectation regarding demand for, and market acceptance of, its online insurance products; Huize’s expectations regarding its relationship with insurer partners and insurance clients and other parties it collaborates with; general economic and business conditions; and assumptions underlying or related to any of the foregoing. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in Huize’s filings with the SEC. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and Huize does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.
For investor and media inquiries, please contact:
Huize Holding Limited Jack Wang SOURCE Huize Holding Limited Huize Holding Limited Huize Holding Limited
General and administrative expenses in the second quarter of 2020 decreased by RMB34.8 million, or 44.5%, to RMB43.5 million (US$6.2 million) from RMB78.3 million in the same period of 2019. This decrease was primarily attributable to the decrease in share-based compensation expenses, which amounted to RMB15.5 million in the second quarter of 2020, compared to RMB61.8 million in the same period of 2019. Excluding the impact of share-based compensation expenses, general and administrative expenses in the second quarter of 2020 increased by 70.3% year over year.
International:
+61-2-8199-0299
Mainland China Toll Free:
400-632-2162
United States Toll Free:
+1-855-452-5696
Hong Kong, China Toll Free:
800-963-117
Huize Holding Limited is a leading independent online insurance product and service platform in China. Targeting the younger generation, Huize is dedicated to serving its insurance clients for their life-long insurance needs. Leveraging its online platform, Huize offers a wide variety of insurance products with a focus on long-term life and health insurance products, and empowers its insurer partners to reach a large fragmented client base in the insurance retail market efficiently and enhance their insurance sales. Huize provides insurance clients with digitalized insurance experience and services, including suitable product recommendations, consulting service, intelligent underwriting and assistance in claim application and settlement, which significantly improve transaction experience. According to the Oliver Wyman Report, Huize was the largest independent online long-term life and health insurance product and service platform in China as measured by gross written premiums, or GWP facilitated in 2018.
E-mail: [email protected]
ICR, Inc.
Tel: +1-212-365-4862
E-mail: [email protected]
Unaudited Consolidated Balance Sheets
(all amounts in thousands, except for share and per share data)
As of December 31
As of June 30
2019
2020
RMB
RMB
USD
Assets
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents
88,141
447,264
63,306
Restricted cash
161,186
169,204
23,949
Accounts receivable, net of allowance for doubtful
accounts
180,393
136,347
19,299
Insurance premium receivables
2,329
2,123
300
Amounts due from related parties
280
183
26
Prepaid expense and other receivables
29,196
34,225
4,846
Total current assets
461,525
789,346
111,726
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment, net
8,006
8,493
1,202
Intangible assets, net
1,652
1,470
208
Deferred tax assets
64
195
28
Long-term investments
23,395
24,195
3,425
Other assets
14,163
859
122
Operating lease right-of-use assets
–
12,677
1,794
Total non-current assets
47,280
47,889
6,779
Total assets
508,805
837,235
118,505
Current liabilities
Short-term borrowings
36,880
77,727
11,002
Accounts payable
124,441
88,293
12,497
Insurance premium payables
125,587
83,691
11,846
Other payables and accrued expenses
30,211
19,502
2,760
Payroll and welfare payable
43,993
47,452
6,716
Income taxes payable
206
1,080
153
Operating lease liabilities
–
8,751
1,239
Amounts due to related parties
465
–
–
Total current liabilities
361,783
326,496
46,213
Non-current liabilities
Long-term borrowings
–
2,308
327
Deferred tax liabilities
530
605
86
Operating lease liabilities
–
4,158
589
Payroll and welfare payable
–
5,848
828
Other non-current liabilities
518
102
14
Total non-current liabilities
1,048
13,021
1,844
Total liabilities
362,831
339,517
48,057
Mezzanine equity
Series A redeemable preferred shares
84,072
–
–
Series B redeemable preferred shares
261,272
–
–
Series B+ redeemable preferred shares
81,654
–
–
Series B++ redeemable preferred shares
27,629
–
–
Total mezzanine equity
454,627
–
–
Shareholders’ (deficit)/equity
Common shares
33
–
–
Class A common shares
–
62
9
Class B common shares
–
10
1
Treasury stock
–
(319
)
(45
)
Additional paid-in capital
64,882
874,063
123,716
Accumulated other comprehensive income
414
3,909
553
Accumulated deficit
(373,982
)
(380,007
)
(53,786
)
Total shareholders’ (deficit)/equity
(308,653
)
497,718
70,448
Total liabilities, mezzanine equity and
shareholders’ equity
508,805
837,235
118,505
Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income
(all amounts in thousands, except for share and per share data)
For the Three Months Ended June 30,
For the Six Months Ended June 30,
2019
2020
2019
2020
RMB
RMB
USD
RMB
RMB
USD
Operating revenue
Brokerage income
197,951
234,177
33,146
447,954
481,866
68,204
Other income
1,945
828
117
3,512
1,832
259
Total operating revenue
199,896
235,005
33,263
451,466
483,698
68,463
Operating costs and
expenses
Cost of revenue
(126,368
)
(139,849
)
(19,795
)
(280,312
)
(287,645
)
(40,714
)
Other cost
(414
)
(616
)
(87
)
(815
)
(1,535
)
(217
)
Total operating costs
(126,782
)
(140,465
)
(19,882
)
(281,127
)
(289,180
)
(40,931
)
Selling expenses
(33,724
)
(48,118
)
(6,811
)
(62,649
)
(101,072
)
(14,306
)
General and administrative
expenses
(78,286
)
(43,476
)
(6,154
)
(96,635
)
(82,463
)
(11,672
)
Research and development
expenses
(7,491
)
(10,627
)
(1,504
)
(13,905
)
(21,814
)
(3,088
)
Total operating costs and
expenses
(246,283
)
(242,686
)
(34,351
)
(454,316
)
(494,529
)
(69,997
)
Operating loss
(46,387
)
(7,681
)
(1,088
)
(2,850
)
(10,831
)
(1,534
)
Other income/(expenses)
Interest expenses
(118
)
(206
)
(29
)
(262
)
(619
)
(88
)
Unrealized exchange
(loss) /income
–
(5
)
(1
)
369
(38
)
(5
)
Others, net
5,817
4,897
693
9,319
5,983
847
(Loss)/profit before income
tax, and share of income of
equity method investee
(40,688
)
(2,995
)
(425
)
6,576
(5,505
)
(780
)
Income tax expense
(112
)
(731
)
(103
)
(144
)
(819
)
(116
)
Share of income/ (loss) of
equity method investee
179
–
–
(23
)
299
42
Net (loss)/profit
(40,621
)
(3,726
)
(528
)
6,409
(6,025
)
(854
)
Net profit attributable to
non-controlling interests
78
–
–
91
–
–
Net (loss)/profit attributable
to Huize Holding Limited
(40,699
)
(3,726
)
(528
)
6,318
(6,025
)
(854
)
Redeemable preferred
shares redemption value
accretion
(7,325
)
–
–
(15,108
)
(4,274
)
(605
)
Allocation to redeemable
preferred shares
20,458
–
–
(3,176
)
1,074
152
Net loss attributable to
common shareholders
(27,566
)
(3,726
)
(528
)
(11,966
)
(9,225
)
(1,307
)
Net (loss)/profit
(40,621
)
(3,726
)
(528
)
6,409
(6,025
)
(854
)
Foreign currency
translation adjustment,
net of tax
58
(1,028
)
(146
)
4
3,495
495
Comprehensive
(loss)/income
(40,563
)
(4,754
)
(674
)
6,413
(2,530
)
(359
)
Comprehensive income
attributable to non-
controlling interests
94
–
–
94
–
–
Comprehensive
(loss)/income attributable
to Huize Holding Limited
(40,657
)
(4,754
)
(674
)
6,319
(2,530
)
(359
)
Weighted average number
of common shares used in
computing net
profit/(loss) per share
Basic and diluted
445,428,365
1,015,971,202
1,015,971,202
452,445,068
904,708,668
904,708,668
Net loss per share
attributable to common
shareholders
Basic and diluted
(0.06
)
(0.00
)
(0.00
)
(0.04
)
(0.01
)
(0.00
)
Huize Holding Limited
Unaudited Reconciliations of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results
(all amounts in thousands, except for share and per share data)
For the Three Months Ended June 30,
For the Six Months Ended June 30,
2019
2020
2019
2020
RMB
RMB
USD
RMB
RMB
USD
Net (loss)/profit
(40,621
)
(3,726
)
(528
)
6,409
(6,025
)
(854
)
Share-based
compensation expenses
61,832
17,828
2,523
67,774
42,326
5,991
Non-GAAP net profit
21,211
14,102
1,995
74,183
36,301
5,137
Artificial Intelligence
Lucinity’s AI Innovation Recognized at Microsoft’s Prestigious Global Partner Awards 2024
![lucinity’s-ai-innovation-recognized-at-microsoft’s-prestigious-global-partner-awards-2024](https://roboticulized.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/150829-lucinitys-ai-innovation-recognized-at-microsofts-prestigious-global-partner-awards-2024.jpg)
REYKJAVIK, Iceland, June 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Lucinity has been recognized as a finalist in the AI Innovation category at the prestigious Microsoft Global Partner Awards 2024, recognizing its breakthrough AI solution and contribution to financial security through its collaboration with Microsoft.
Lucinity beat more than 4,700 companies to be named a finalist at the annual Microsoft Global Partner Awards, which highlights Lucinity’s achievements as a Microsoft partner in optimizing business processes, improving customer experiences, and opening new pathways for digital transformation.
This achievement comes in addition to winning two prestigious awards at Microsoft Partner Awards 2024 last month, including Partner of the Year – Iceland, and the Sustainability and Social Impact award.
The accolade recognizes Lucinity’s significant advancements in AI for financial crime operations, particularly through their AI-powered copilot, Luci. This innovative solution utilizes Microsoft Azure OpenAI technology to integrate advanced generative AI into financial crime investigations and regulatory compliance, optimizing processes and saving significant time and resources for financial institutions.
The Lucinity platform streamlines compliance, provides instant insights, and reduces typical investigation times from three hours to just 30 minutes. The technology can also save financial institutions an estimated $100 million in productivity savings, as well as savings in training and recruitment.
Microsoft comments on Lucinity’s award recognition, saying “Financial crime profoundly impacts our global community, with far-reaching economic, security, and social implications. It can harm a country’s reputation and increase exposure to criminal activities, emphasizing the critical need for robust anti-money laundering initiatives and persistent vigilance. Lucinity, with their innovative AI solutions, has really tried to combat this huge global challenge. They use ‘Human AI’ to enhance financial crime prevention, combining AI with human expertise for efficient, user-friendly solutions. Additionally, Lucinity has developed a tool called Luci, an AI-powered copilot that helps transform financial crime prevention from a process that took hours to one that takes minutes.”
“Being recognized as a finalist at the Microsoft Global Partner Awards is validation of our impactful collaboration with Microsoft in financial crime operations. Our partnership has been pivotal for our innovations, enabling us to use Azure OpenAI to bring tools like Luci to life and deliver impactful results for our clients,” says Guðmundur Kristjánsson, Founder & CEO of Lucinity.
Contact:Name: Celina PabloEmail: [email protected]: +354 792 4321
Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2208676/4669079/Lucinity_Logo.jpg
View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/lucinitys-ai-innovation-recognized-at-microsofts-prestigious-global-partner-awards-2024-302186091.html
Artificial Intelligence
Asia Pacific View: Foreigners Looking for the Most Practical Smart Technology at the 2024 World Intelligence Expo
![asia-pacific-view:-foreigners-looking-for-the-most-practical-smart-technology-at-the-2024-world-intelligence-expo](https://roboticulized.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/150827-asia-pacific-view-foreigners-looking-for-the-most-practical-smart-technology-at-the-2024-world-intelligence-expo.jpg)
BEIJING, June 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Bionic robots that speak both Chinese and English can have the same skin and nails as humans? A flying car powered solely by wind can have a maximum payload of 160 kg? A smart wheelchair can control its operation with just the “mind”? Kevin and Daria, two foreign bloggers, have experienced during the World Intelligence Expo held in Tianjin how the artificial intelligence can empower people’s future lives in industries such as technology, trade, logistics and cultural tourism.
With the theme of “Intelligent Travel Empowering Future”, the Expo integrates exhibitions, experiences and events, attracting more than 550 exhibitors and institutions from all over the world, including more than 70 well-known enterprises such as Huawei, Alibaba, Baidu and Danfoss, and 57 universities and research institutions such as Peking University, Tsinghua University, Nankai University and Tianjin University. The Expo set up 10 major themes such as artificial intelligence, intelligent networked vehicles, intelligent manufacturing and robots, covering the frontier hot spots of the intelligent industry. A number of cutting-edge new technologies, new products, and new experiences from all over the world were showcased centrally, reminding people that technology will completely change the lifestyles in the future.
At the exhibition site, various intelligent robot products such as humanoid robots, bionic robots, and intelligent robot dogs interact with the audience on the spot. They are no longer fantasies in science fiction or movies, but play an important role in monitoring, rescue, cultural tourism and other fields. In the low-altitude economic exhibition area, a number of drones, flying vehicles, and aerospace technology companies collectively display advanced technology products. A low-altitude aircraft shaped like a helicopter brought by the German company Tensor can independently complete cargo transportation, takeoff and landing according to pre-set routes according to the instructions. Robotic arms incorporating technologies such as 5G, IoT, edge computing, rocker robotics, and artificial intelligence can shoot high-frame-rate video and support autofocus, achieving effects that cannot be achieved in traditional shooting modes. Viewers can also have more novel experiences with the help of smart technology.
The Expo also hosted three major events such as the Asia-Pacific Robotics World Cup Tianjin International Invitational, the World Intelligent Driving Challenge, and the International Intelligent Sports Conference. A number of technological achievements and innovative applications were demonstrated in the competitions. For exhibiting companies, this Expo is also an opportunity to further promote the transformation of enterprises to information technology and digitalization, and will also bring huge business opportunities.
Contact: Guo RanPhone: 008610-68332663Email: [email protected]
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjjzurfN_r0 Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2451195/logo_Asia_Pacific_View_Logo.jpg
View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/asia-pacific-view-foreigners-looking-for-the-most-practical-smart-technology-at-the-2024-world-intelligence-expo-302186046.html
Artificial Intelligence
Tech Companies Leading the Charge in the Transformative AI Era
![tech-companies-leading-the-charge-in-the-transformative-ai-era](https://roboticulized.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/150825-tech-companies-leading-the-charge-in-the-transformative-ai-era.png)
USA News Group Commentary
Issued on behalf of Avant Technologies Inc.
VANCOUVER, BC, June 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — USA News Group – The world is changing rapidly thanks to artificial intelligence (AI), with what’s being called the Transformative AI era which comes with great benefits and also potential dangers. The economic impacts are global, with a new report from The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) urging central banks to adapt rapidly to AI advances. Now it’s become apparent how important it is for companies to understand how to harness the full potential of GenAI to secure strategic revenue growth in the coming years. The surge of AI’s usefulness is accelerating innovation in R&D, while behind the scenes tech companies are advancing the infrastructure required to keep this revolution going, including new developments from Avant Technologies Inc. (OTCQB: AVAI), Accenture plc (NYSE: ACN), Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE: NET), Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG, GOOGL), and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN).
Known for pioneering advancements in AI, Avant Technologies Inc. (OTCQB: AVAI) has persistently refined and expanded its premier offering, Avant AI™. This sophisticated AI platform, celebrated for its machine learning and deep learning capabilities, is the culmination of Avant’s efforts to deliver unprecedented and cost-effective compute infrastructure that unlocks the full potential of AI and ushers in a new era of technological advancement.
“There is a real unmet need as rapid growth across the entirety of the AI and big data industries is outpacing the necessary infrastructure for an industry that demands exponential power and capacity while remaining cost effective,” said Avant’s CEO William Hisey in a recent address of progress on AI supercomputer-driven data centers. “Avant’s ‘edge-native’ approach doesn’t rely on cloud-based services so we can offer AI and big data companies many advantages over the more familiar ‘cloud-native’ approach, including, reduced latency, improved security and privacy, increased scalability, and reduced costs.”
In a recent strategic development, Avant entered into a Binding Letter of Intent (BLOI) with Flow Wave, LLC (FW), a prominent Florida-based firm specializing in immersible computer server technology. This agreement allows Avant to acquire up to 50 cutting-edge immersible computer servers from FW, in a transaction valued at $50 million.
“By integrating proprietary machine learning algorithms with open-source innovations into these servers, Avant is developing a highly intelligent system designed to optimize resource allocation, enhance performance, and drive unprecedented levels of efficiency and automation,” said Hisey. “This marks the beginning of a new era for Avant Technologies, positioning us at the forefront of the supercomputer-driven data center industry and setting new standards for managing and storing AI applications.”
Flow Wave Immersible AI Supercomputer Servers are engineered for demanding AI and machine learning applications, delivering powerful processing capabilities that accelerate data analysis. Their cutting-edge cooling system is both energy-efficient and cost-effective, reducing environmental impact. These servers’ compact design facilitates easy installation in space-constrained data centers, and their robust construction ensures longevity and lower maintenance requirements.
In response to digital era challenges, Avant intends to acquire up to 50 of these high-performance servers. Their superior cooling technology boosts performance while conserving energy, aligning with Avant’s goal of providing top-tier AI infrastructure and maximizing efficiency. Additional details about the acquisition will be shared once the final agreement is secured.
In Q3 2024, Accenture plc (NYSE: ACN) brought in over $900 million in new Generative AI bookings, for a total of $2 billion fiscal year-to-date. Despite missing its overall earnings targets, the market responded by sending its shares upward.
“We achieved strong new bookings of over $21 billion, up 22% over last year, and continued to accelerate our strategy to be the reinvention partner of choice, with another 23 clients with quarterly bookings of over $100 million, bringing the total of such bookings to 92 year-to-date,” said Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO of Accenture. “We also achieved two significant milestones this quarter — with $2 billion in Generative AI sales year-to-date and $500 million in revenue year-to-date — which demonstrate our early lead in this critical technology.”
Back in May, Accenture took steps to help its clients to scale their Generative AI responsibly.
“Clients are eager to embrace the potential of generative AI, and we are ready to help them build responsible AI into every use,” said Sweet. “We do this for ourselves, and we can use that example to help our clients find success faster. Our focus is to enable our clients to innovate AI safely and be ready to seize the opportunities that AI will bring in the decades ahead.”
Recently, the cloud-based security solution provider Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE: NET) unveiled the general availability of its AI Gateway platform. Marketed as a comprehensive interface for managing and scaling generative AI workloads, the platform has transitioned from its beta phase, which started in September 2023, to full client use after successfully handling over 500 million requests.
This launch coincides with Cloudflare’s announcement of a partnership with Hugging Face, a leading platform for AI developers. The collaboration offers a one-click global deployment for AI applications via the Workers AI platform, now also generally available. As the first serverless inference partner integrated on the Hugging Face Hub, this allows developers to deploy AI models quickly, easily, and cost-effectively on a global scale, without the need for managing infrastructure or paying for unused compute capacity.
“Workers AI is one of the most affordable and accessible solutions to run inference,” said Matthew Prince, CEO and co-founder, Cloudflare. “With Hugging Face and Cloudflare both deeply aligned in our efforts to democratize AI in a simple, affordable way, we’re giving developers the freedom and agility to choose a model and scale their AI apps from zero to global in an instant.”
In the education space, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG, GOOGL) through Google, is bringing new AI tools to Google Workspace for teen students using their school accounts to help them learn responsibly and confidently in an AI-first future, and empowering educators with new tools to help create great learning experiences.
“In the coming months, we’re making Gemini available to teen students that meet our minimum age requirements while using their Google Workspace for Education accounts in English in over 100 countries around the world, free of charge for all education institutions,” said Google in a blog post. “To ensure schools are always in control, Gemini will be off by default for teens until admins choose to turn it on as an Additional Service in the Admin console.”
Google has also developed a number of resources and trainings to help students, parents and educators use generative AI tools responsibly and effectively, including a video on how teens can responsibly use AI while learning.
After recently hitting a $2-trillion valuation, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) continues to be a big player in the AI space. Now it’s reportedly working on its own AI chatbot that some say might be smarter than ChatGPT, named Metis, which will generate answers by grabbing info from the internet.
Metis is driven by an internal Amazon AI model known as Olympus, drawing inspiration from Greek mythology. According to sources, Olympus is a more advanced version of Amazon’s publicly available Titan model.
Amazon’s CEO Andy Jassy has noted that nearly every division within the company is engaged in some form of AI project. As a pioneer in cloud computing, Amazon has been developing machine learning, a subset of AI, for many years. Jassy recently announced that Amazon’s AI initiatives are projected to generate over $1 billion in annual revenue, with expectations of driving “tens of billions of dollars” in sales in the coming years.
However, Amazon has lagged in the realm of consumer AI assistants. An internal document from last year highlighted that Amazon “does not have a publicly or internally available product that looks and works exactly like ChatGPT.”
According to a source reported by Business Insider, the tentative launch date for Metis is September, right around the time when Amazon is set to host a big Alexa event, although the timeline could still change.
Source: https://usanewsgroup.com/2023/10/26/unlocking-the-trillion-dollar-ai-market-what-investors-need-to-know/
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