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79 years after Partition, museum to remember those uprooted in 1947 and honour stories of resilience, rebuilding and hope

Aug 15: The Partition Museum, Delhi, in collaboration with the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), commemorated the 79th year of India’s Partition on Friday, August 14th, 2026, at 11 A.M. at the Partition Museum and Cultural Hub, Dara Shukoh Library Building, inside Dr. B.R. Ambedkar University Campus, Lothian Road, Delhi.

The memorial ceremony was held in the distinguished presence of Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi, Member Secretary, IGNCA, as the Guest of Honour, Lady Kishwar Desai, Founder and Chair, Partition Museum, Ms Lakshmi Puri (Former Assistant Secretary General, United Nations), Shri K. Mahesh (MD, DKVIB and Secretary ACL Department under the Government of NCT of Delhi). 

Though unable to be present in person, Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, Sardar Taranjit Singh Sandhu, shared his thoughts as, “Partition was not merely the drawing of a border; it was the uprooting of millions from their homes, communities and memories. Delhi bears the imprint of that history in neighbourhoods such as Lajpat Nagar, Punjabi Bagh, Model Town and Khan Market, shaped by the rehabilitation of displaced families who arrived with little, yet rebuilt their lives and contributed to the making of a new nation.

It is this lived history that Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi sought to preserve by designating 14 August as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day—a day to remember the pain, honour the resilience of survivors and reaffirm our commitment to unity and harmony.

For me, this resilience has a deeply personal resonance. My grandfather, Sardar Teja Singh Samundri, dedicated his life to courage, non-violence and service, and chose principle over personal liberty, attaining martyrdom in Lahore Central Jail in 1926. His life reminds us that true resilience lies not merely in enduring adversity, but in standing by one’s values and serving a larger cause.

As we remember Partition, let us preserve these stories as legacies of courage, rebuilding and nation-building.”

Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi, Member Secretary, IGNCA and Guest of Honour, shared his views as, “The preservation of memory is an essential part of preserving culture. It is also essential to remember the agony of the Partition to keep our Country united and strong. The stories of Partition live not only in history books, but in oral histories, family photographs, documents and personal belongings passed down through generations. It is also to tell the world about this tragedy, which is one of the biggest human displacements of all time.

IGNCA values its association with the Partition Museum in bringing these lived histories into a larger cultural conversation, so that they may continue to be documented, studied and understood by generations to come.”

The programme brought together Partition survivors and families of eyewitnesses to remember the millions uprooted in 1947, evoking applause and teary eyes. The occasion also marked Partition Horrors Remembrance Day, designated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and was followed by a museum tour offering a glimpse into the personal histories, objects, photographs and documents that keep Partition’s memories alive.

Lady Kishwar Desai, Founder and Chair, Partition Museum, whose vision has been central to creating the Partition Museums, emoted, “The Partition Museum was created to ensure that the voices of ordinary people are not lost to the passage of time. The objects they carried, the photographs they preserved, the documents they saved and, most importantly, the stories they shared, tell us what Partition meant at a deeply personal level. On Partition Horrors Remembrance Day, we remember not statistics or borders, but people, their homes, their losses, their journeys and their extraordinary resilience. This commemoration is also an invitation to younger generations to listen to those memories and understand why they must never be forgotten.“

Lady Kishwar Desai furthered announced that as a special initiative for the 80th year of India’s Independence and Partition, The Partition Museum will undertake a project along with city governments and several young artists to create and place sculptures across the cities of New Delhi, Amritsar and Mumbai to honor the resilience and perseverance of the refugees who began a new life post partition. These sculptures would be of men, women and children, placed at key locations like Lajpat Nagar, Friend’s Colony, Khan Market and Kingsway Camp in New Delhi to mark the pain of those uprooted overnight. In Amritsar and Wagah Border as well there will be sights from the Partition of 1947. This project attempts at bringing the glimpse of personal tragedies of victims of partition out of the closed doors of museums and brings people together from all walks of life to identify with their profound pain.

The Partition Museum in Amritsar, established to mark the 70th anniversary of India’s Partition, was the first museum in the world to collect and publicly display oral histories, documents, photographs and objects carried across the border by refugees of 1947. It was established by The Arts and Cultural Heritage Trust (TAACHT) under the chairmanship of Lady Kishwar Desai, with Mallika Ahluwalia as its first curator. The museum has received more than seven national and international awards.

The Partition Museum, Delhi, is the second Partition Museum in the world. Both museums were conceived as people’s museums, centred on the lived experiences of those affected by Partition, and are run entirely through donations.

Their collections and exhibitions encompass the Punjab and Bengal Partitions, as well as the Lost Homeland of Sindh, bringing together personal narratives and material histories from communities whose lives were transformed in 1947. The museums also feature art installations and artworks by well-known artists who have themselves been impacted by Partition.

Today, the museums welcome national and international visitors, school and college students from India and abroad, and have been written about by international historians and featured in films and documentaries.

The August 14 ceremony at the Delhi museum will bring these strands together—memory, history, culture and lived experience—in an effort to ensure that the human stories behind Partition remain alive for generations that did not witness it.

77 DAYS TO GO: 7 WONDERS OF FUTURE CITIES COUNTS DOWN TO START OF VOTING

DUBAI, UAE, Aug. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — 7 Wonders of Future Cities today marks 77 days until global voting begins on www.7wondersfc.com on 31 October 2026. The day, also known as World Cities Day, will be when the public can start choosing amongst the participating cities and developments, to become historically recognised as the leading representatives of the future of urban life.

According to Jean-Paul de la Fuente, Chairman of the 7 Wonders of Future Cities campaign, “Public participation, global visibility and the status of our recognised brand can transform urban vision into a shared cause, and we are seeing this already with motivating engagement from participating cities and developments from all over the world.”

Chie Kobayashi, Global Initiatives Manager for Minato Mirai 21 in Yokohama, Japan, says “We are proud to contribute our experience and vision for creating sustainable, people-focused cities of the future through the 7 Wonders of Future Cities initiative.”

Sabine Müller, Chairwoman of aspern Seestadt in Vienna, Austria, says: “We joined the 7 Wonders of Future cities initiative to stand alongside world-leading urban developments, to share our vision of an innovative, sustainable and liveable city for many future generations.”

Jeremy Fasser, Mayor of Stellenbosch, South Africa, considers that the future city vision for Adam Tas Corridor “is about creating walkable, connected, mixed-use and mixed-income neighbourhoods where homes, schools, workplaces, public spaces and opportunities are within easy reach – about building a city that connects rather than divides.”

Eduardo Pimentel, Mayor of Curitiba, Brazil, says participating “is an opportunity to show the world a city that combines planning, innovation, sustainability and, above all, care for people.”

Służewiec, in Warsaw, Poland, believes that “participating in the competition will highlight the work put into the transformation process and allow other cities around the world to learn from our example.”

For participant Konza Technopolis, southeast of Nairobi, Kenya, its CEO John Paul Okwiri believes that participation in the campaign provides an opportunity to share Kenya’s experience in developing a purpose-built smart city with a global audience.

7 Wonders of Future Cities campaign Chairman Jean-Paul de la Fuente summarises the growing momentum: “With 77 days remaining to voting, now is the time that participating cities and developments can build strong foundations of awareness and support locally, nationally and internationally, and that will for sure become valuable assets for when the competition gets underway.”

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Michael Owen Joins ehamarkets as Global Brand Ambassador

HONG KONG and NEW YORK, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — ehamarkets today announced a global brand partnership with England football legend and 2001 Ballon d’Or winner Michael Owen, who has joined the brand as its Global Brand Ambassador.

Owen said he was drawn to ehamarkets’ focus on technology, reliability and a simpler trading experience.

“I’m delighted to join ehamarkets as its Global Brand Ambassador. I like the way ehamarkets uses technology to make trading simpler and more efficient. It’s exciting to be part of a brand that is building a modern trading experience for people around the world.”

Markus Weber, CEO of ehamarkets, said the partnership marks a new chapter for the company as it continues to grow its global presence and invest in trading technology.

“Michael Owen is one of the most recognizable names in English football, and we are proud to welcome him to ehamarkets. His career, achievements and international appeal make him a great fit for our global brand. This partnership is an important step as we continue to grow in markets around the world.

Our goal is simple: make advanced trading technology easier to use. We will keep investing in secure systems, smart technology and AI to make trading simpler, faster and more efficient. With ehamarkets AI, we are building a platform that helps traders navigate the markets with greater ease.”

ehamarkets is a global multi-asset trading platform offering access to forex, commodities, equities and indices. Its focus is to make trading simpler through advanced technology, stable systems and ehamarkets AI, an intelligent trading assistant that helps users monitor markets, receive real-time alerts and interact with trading tools through natural language.

In 2026, ehamarkets was named Best Mobile Trading Platform Global and Most Trusted Trading Platform Global.

A former Liverpool, Real Madrid, Newcastle United and Manchester United striker, Michael Owen made 89 appearances for England and won the 2001 Ballon d’Or.

Official Website >> https://www.ehamarkets.com/

Download the App >> https://go.onelink.me/Flyh?pid=prhome

Risk Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only. CFDs are leveraged products and carry a high level of risk, which may result in the loss of all invested capital.

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FERRERO GROUP TO ACQUIRE PURELY ELIZABETH, A LEADING U.S. MODERN WELLNESS BRAND

LUXEMBOURG and BOULDER, Colo., Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Ferrero Group today announced it has signed an agreement to acquire Purely Elizabeth, the high-growth modern wellness brand and a leading better-for-you food company based in the U.S. The acquisition further enhances Ferrero’s relevance at the American breakfast table with Purely Elizabeth joining its portfolio. Following closing, Ferrero intends to support Purely Elizabeth’s next phase of growth through continued product innovation, operational capabilities and expanded distribution, helping the brand reach more consumers while preserving its distinct identity and commitment to quality.

Founded in 2009 and based in Boulder, Colorado, Purely Elizabeth has more than doubled its sales in the past two years, driven by its innovative portfolio of granola, oatmeal and cereals while more recently expanding into the fast-growing protein segment. The brand has built a leading position and helped shape evolving consumer expectations around breakfast and wellness by pioneering premium and taste-forward products containing ingredients such as oats, whole grains, nuts and seeds.

“Purely Elizabeth, with its terrific portfolio of quality, tasty products, is a great addition to Ferrero,” said Giovanni Ferrero, President of Ferrero International S.A., holding company of the Ferrero Group. “With this transaction, Ferrero builds on its recent acquisition of WK Kellogg Co, reinforcing both its presence at breakfast time in America and its reach in the better-for-you segment.”

“We are delighted to welcome Purely Elizabeth to the Ferrero Group,” said Lapo Civiletti, President of Ferrero Ice Cream and WK Kellogg Co. “This acquisition reflects our long-term strategy to invest in high-growth categories and further enhance our presence in the better-for-you offerings across breakfast occasions and beyond. Purely Elizabeth has built a distinctive brand by being in tune with evolving consumer preferences through premium, innovative and delicious products, making it a highly complementary addition to our portfolio. We look forward to supporting the brand’s continued growth while preserving the entrepreneurial spirit that has made it successful.”

“Building Purely Elizabeth from an idea 17 years ago into the brand it is today has been one of the most rewarding journeys of my life, and I’m incredibly proud of what our team has accomplished,” said Elizabeth Stein, Founder and CEO of Purely Elizabeth. “As I thought about the next chapter, finding a partner who understood what makes Purely Elizabeth special and shared our commitment to quality, innovation, and building for the long term was incredibly important to me. In Ferrero, we’ve found a family-owned company that believes deeply in what we’ve built and sees the tremendous opportunity still ahead. I couldn’t be more excited to continue leading Purely Elizabeth alongside our team as we bring our mission and products to even more people.”

The company will continue to operate as a standalone brand within the Ferrero Group, with Founder and CEO Elizabeth Stein, continuing in her role alongside the existing leadership team. The business will benefit from Ferrero Group’s long-term commitment to support the brand’s product-development pipeline and innovation, supporting the continued growth of Purely Elizabeth and its product offering.

The acquisition builds on Ferrero Group’s growing portfolio in the U.S., following the 2025 acquisition of WK Kellogg Co. It also further expands the company’s presence in both the breakfast and better-for-you categories, alongside brands including Eat Natural and FULFIL in Europe, Power Crunch in North America and Bold Snacks in Brazil.

The proposed transaction is expected to close in the coming months, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

About Ferrero Group

Ferrero Group is a global leader in sweet-packaged foods, renowned for iconic brands such as Nutella®, Kinder®, Ferrero Rocher®, and Tic Tac®, alongside local favorites.

Founded in 1946 in Alba, Italy, Ferrero marks 80 years as a family-owned group with more than 50,000 employees and operations in over 170 countries. The company combines a strong heritage and commitment to quality with continuous innovation across brands and categories, including ice cream, biscuits and bakery, breakfast cereals, and better-for-you offerings. Guided by a long-term vision, Ferrero focuses on sustainable and responsible growth, strengthening its presence in emerging segments while staying true to its values of excellence and care.

About Purely Elizabeth:

Founded in 2009 by wellness entrepreneur and holistic nutrition counselor Elizabeth Stein, Purely Elizabeth is a modern wellness brand that is redefining the better-for-you breakfast category and beyond. What began with Elizabeth’s vision to create nourishing food without compromising on taste has grown into a beloved portfolio spanning granola, oatmeal, cereal and more. A pioneer in bringing ancient grains, thoughtfully sourced ingredients and functional nutrition into the mainstream, Purely Elizabeth continues to create products that meet consumers at the intersection of nutrition and deliciousness. Its mission is simple: to help people thrive on their wellness journey, one delicious bite at a time. For more information, visit www.purelyelizabeth.com or follow @purely_elizabeth on Instagram and TikTok.

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Bybit TradFi Perpetuals Extend 24/7 Exposure to Over 200 Global Equities and Pre-IPO Assets

DUBAI, UAE, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, is pleased to announce TradFi Perpetual Contracts now offer over 200 curated TradFi-themed listings, marking one of the highest quality coverage of TradFi derivatives exposure available on a crypto-native platform. The lineup now spans equities, ETFs, precious metals, indices, and oil, with coverage extending across premium US, Hong Kong, South Korean and other equities markets.

Listing Strategy: the Best Global Opportunities and the Latest Market Trends

Bybit is expanding its TradFi offering as it builds a broader, always-on trading environment connecting mature crypto infrastructure with global financial markets. One of Bybit’s strongest suits traditionally, the perpetual contracts product line is centered around listing quality, timeliness, and access to global opportunities.

Since introducing TradFi Perpetual Contracts in April 2026, Bybit has added new weekly listings, building out a product suite of a total of 200+ high-quality, high-potential TradFi Perpetual listings, with a lineup of coveted assets such as gold, silver, crude oil, technology sectors across Asia and North America, global indices, ETFs, inverse ETFs, semiconductors, and artificial intelligence. The expansion reflects sustained trader demand for accessible multi-market, multi-asset exposure on a familiar interface, and with leverage tools. Bybit TradFi Perpetuals enable traders to respond to market-moving events around the clock, including during hours when the physical exchanges are closed.

Alongside standard equities and ETFs, Bybit has introduced pre-IPO TradFi perpetuals, giving traders exposure to high-profile private companies ahead of public listings. The latest lineup includes Unitree Robotics, a leading humanoid robotics developer, and Moonshot AI, the company behind the Kimi AI assistant. Pre-IPO perpetuals extend Bybit’s TradFi Perpetuals beyond publicly traded names, capturing demand for exposure to companies at the center of the AI and robotics investment cycle well before formal listings.

The expansion takes place as interest in AI infrastructure, robotics and cross-border equity access continues to shape both traditional and digital asset markets. By combining established large-cap names with pre-IPO access and multi-region ETF coverage, Bybit’s TradFi Perpetuals give traders a single, comprehensive venue to build diversified, round-the-clock exposure. With Bybit TradFi Perpetuals, this level of access no longer requires multiple brokerage relationships across different time zones and regulatory jurisdictions.

Bybit TradFi Perpetuals: Trading Movements and Exposure With Agility

Financial innovation such as TradFi Perpetuals allows traders to navigate the evolving global markets with unprecedented flexibility and access. Within one platform and account, users can plan strategies around price movements and gain sector exposure to some of the most traded TradFi assets from NASDAQ to KOSPI, without having to own and manage actual shares.

TradFi Perpetual Contracts are USDT-denominated and USDT-settled derivatives that track the price of the underlying asset. Offering up to 100x leverage and competitive rates and fees, Bybit traders can gain price exposure and trade market movements without holding the underlying shares directly. Combined with Bybit’s deep market depth and powerful trading infrastructure, this structure removes the custody, brokerage account and market-hour constraints associated with owning shares outright, while still allowing traders to express a directional view, hedge existing exposure or diversify across regions and asset classes from within their existing Bybit account.

Terms and conditions apply. Trading carries risk. For more information about Bybit TradFi Perpetuals, users may explore: What are TradFi Perpetuals on Bybit? Trading traditional markets 24/7

#Bybit / #NewFinancialPlatform 

About Bybit

Bybit is The New Financial Platform.

We believe every person should have access to every financial opportunity on earth. That’s why we’re building the first intelligent platform that connects anyone, anywhere to the world’s finance.

Trusted by more than 80 million users worldwide, Bybit brings together investing, trading, payments, and wealth-building in a single secure and intelligent ecosystem. Through the combination of AI-powered technology, deep global liquidity, robust security, and transparent operations, Bybit makes global finance more accessible, efficient, and empowering for everyone.

Built for everyone. Powered by intelligence. Open to the world.

Learn more at Bybit.com

For more details about Bybit, please visit Bybit Press

For media inquiries, please contact: media@bybit.com

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RemotePeople Completes 2026 SOC 2 Type II Audit Across Security, Availability, and Confidentiality

The New York-headquartered global Employer of Record renews its SOC 2 Type II attestation for a full 12-month period, adding to its ISO 27001 and GDPR certifications and its recent A+ platform security rating from Astra Security.

NEW YORK, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — RemotePeople, a global provider of Employer of Record (EOR), payroll, and recruitment services operating in more than 150 countries, today announced the successful completion of its 2026 SOC 2 Type II audit, covering the Security, Availability, and Confidentiality Trust Service Criteria. The independent examination was performed by INTERCERT CPA LLC in accordance with AICPA SSAE 21 attestation standards and covered a continuous 12-month observation period from May 31, 2025 to May 30, 2026.

Unlike a SOC 2 Type I report, which evaluates the design of controls at a single point in time, a Type II report evaluates whether those controls actually operated effectively over a sustained period — in this case, an entire year. The auditor issued a clean opinion, confirming that RemotePeople’s controls were both suitably designed and operating effectively throughout the period to achieve its service commitments and system requirements.

What the audit covered

The examination scope covered RemotePeople’s cloud-hosted platform, including the following Trust Service Criteria:

• Security — protection of the system against unauthorized access, both physical and logical.
• Availability — the system is available for operation and use as committed or agreed.
• Confidentiality — information designated as confidential is protected as committed or agreed.

Many EOR and HR technology providers scope their SOC 2 examination to Security alone. Extending to Availability and Confidentiality reflects the reality of RemotePeople’s work: the platform runs payroll for employees in more than 150 countries and holds sensitive personal, tax, and banking data on behalf of thousands of organizations. Downtime and data disclosure both carry direct consequences for customers.

Layered assurance across independent frameworks

The 2026 SOC 2 Type II attestation is the third pillar of RemotePeople’s independent security assurance stack, joining its ISO 27001 certification, GDPR compliance program, and the A+ platform security rating recently awarded by Astra Security following an AI-augmented penetration test of app.remotepeople.com. Together, these attestations cover control design, sustained operating effectiveness, data protection, and offensive security testing — from independent third parties operating under different methodologies.

“Our customers trust us with contracts, payroll, tax IDs, and banking details for their people in more than 150 countries. That trust has to be earned every year, not claimed once. A SOC 2 Type II covering not just Security but also Availability and Confidentiality, alongside our ISO 27001 and our recent Astra A+ rating, is how we prove — with independent third parties — that the platform behind the promise is doing what we say it is.”

— Antoine Boquen, CEO of RemotePeople

The full SOC 2 Type II report is available to RemotePeople customers and qualified prospects under NDA through the company’s Trust Center at eu.sprinto.com/trust-center/view/0656f314-c72e-4fad-a251-258d8102fef8.

About RemotePeople

RemotePeople is a global Employer of Record (EOR), payroll, and recruitment provider headquartered in New York, helping companies hire, pay, and manage employees in 150+ countries without setting up a local entity. Its platform covers the full “recruit, employ, incorporate” journey: international recruitment through an in-house team, EOR, global payroll, benefits administration, Contractor of Record (COR), global mobility with work-visa sponsorship, US PEO, and company incorporation. RemotePeople is the trusted solution of more than 3,000 organizations, including Binance, Boeing, Coinbase, Porsche, LVMH, and Bang & Olufsen, and is certified SOC 2 Type II, GDPR, and ISO 27001. The company was named best Employer of Record platform in the G2 Summer 2026 reports, with 80+ badges, and ranked #1 in the 2026 best EOR guides published by People Managing People, SelectSoftwareReviews, and Outsource Accelerator. Learn more at remotepeople.com.

Press contact

RemotePeople

Pierre Pradier — Chief Marketing & Innovation Officer

pierre.pradier@remotepeople.com

remotepeople.com

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Hippocratic AI Unveils Agentic Orchestrators: NYSE Content Update

NYSE issues a pre-market daily advisory direct from the trading floor.

NEW YORK, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) provides a daily pre-market update directly from the NYSE Trading Floor. Access today’s NYSE Pre-market update for market insights before trading begins. 

Kristen Scholer delivers the pre-market update on August 14th

• Hippocratic AI says it’s announced the next generation of healthcare AI
  • Agentic orchestrators feature teams of conversational voice AI agents focused on delivering outcomes.
  • Co-founder and CEO Munjal Shah will join NYSE Live to take viewers through how the new product works.
• Renewable energy construction company SunScout to celebrate its dual listing
  • SunScout (NYSE American: SNSC) began trading on NYSE American and NYSE Texas earlier this week.
  • CEO Edwin Cywinski and COO Mark Cywinski will join NYSE Live to discuss the milestone.
• The S&P 500 will look to build off Thursday’s record close.
  • The large-cap index surpassed 7,800 for the first time during Thursday’s session.
  • Investors are parsing through July U.S. retail sales data.

Opening Bell

Tutor Perini (NYSE: TPC) celebrates 22 years of being listed on the NYSE

Closing Bell

NYC Parks celebrates its commitment to providing recreational facilities and programs

For market insights, IPO activity, and today’s opening bell, download the NYSE TV App and check out the NYSE YouTube: TV.NYSE.com and YouTube.com/@NYSEofficial

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Fractal’s Vaidya.ai Powers BMC Health AI Chatbot on WhatsApp for Mumbai

First deployment under the MoU with BMC to pioneer integrated AI solutions spanning patient interactions, doctor support, and public health intelligence

MUMBAI, India, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Fractal Analytics Ltd. (BSE: 544700) (NSE: FRACTAL), a globally recognized enterprise AI company serving Fortune 500^® organizations, today announced launch of the beta version of BMC Health AI Chatbot on WhatsApp powered by Vaidya.ai (accessible at +91 9892993368). The deployment marks a key milestone under the Memorandum of Understanding signed between Fractal and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in July 2026.

Designed to support one of India’s largest public healthcare networks, this free multilingual and multimodal service delivers trusted health information for Mumbai, through a familiar WhatsApp interface, making healthcare guidance more accessible and easier to understand.

As part of the deployment, individuals can:

• Receive AI-generated simplified summaries of laboratory reports in English, Marathi and other select languages, helping them understand key findings and observed values in easy-to-understand language.
• Identify nearby BMC healthcare facilities based on their healthcare needs.
• Access trusted health and wellness information anytime through a conversational interface.

Fractal has been selected by the Government of India under the IndiaAI Mission to build the nation’s first reasoning model with a focus on Healthcare. Fractal has built Vaidya.ai which is world’s first AI model to score above 50 on OpenAI’s HealthBench (Hard), outperforming GPT-5 and Gemini Pro 3. The model combines multilingual and multimodal capabilities with Responsible AI principles.

The BMC Health AI Chatbot on WhatsApp is one component of a broader AI-powered public health initiative being piloted by BMC and Fractal. The initiative also includes:

• AI-guided pre-consultation support for doctors that capture patients’ chief complaints, self-reported medical history and medication details before a consultation, generating structured summaries for doctors within the Hospital Management Information System (HMIS).
• A Public Health Intelligence Dashboard that provides healthcare administrators with anonymized, aggregated insights from laboratory reports, enabling real-time visibility into emerging health trends across the city.

The pilot is being implemented across various BMC facilities, ranging from dispensaries to major hospitals including KEM, with a privacy-first architecture aligned with the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act. Patient information is processed within a framework designed to support privacy, security, and responsible use of healthcare data.

“Mumbai’s public healthcare system serves millions of citizens every year, making timely access to information and efficient clinical workflows critical. Vaidya.ai represents an important step in leveraging AI to strengthen healthcare delivery. As we evaluate this pilot across selected BMC facilities, our focus is on improving patient experience, supporting healthcare professionals and enabling more informed public health decision-making, while ensuring that clinical decisions remain with qualified medical professionals,” said Ashwini Bhide, Municipal Commissioner, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, on the occasion of MoU signing.

BMC’s healthcare network handles more than 16.8 million OPD visits and generates over 3 million laboratory reports annually. The pilot aims to evaluate how AI can improve citizen access to healthcare information, support clinical workflows and strengthen public health decision-making at scale.

“This collaboration combines BMC’s commitment to technology-led public healthcare with Fractal’s experience in responsible AI. Beyond improving access to health information for citizens, the initiative demonstrates how AI can support clinicians and public health administrators with practical, scalable solutions that deliver real-world impact,” said Srikanth Velamakanni, Co-founder, Group CEO and Vice Chairman, Fractal.

To access Mumbai’s BMC Health AI Chatbot on WhatsApp powered by Vaidya.ai, users can message on WhatsApp to +91 9892993368. The service is available 24×7 at no cost and provides secure access with responsible AI guardrails.

About Fractal 

Fractal Analytics Ltd (BSE: 544700) (NSE: FRACTAL) is a globally recognized pure-play enterprise AI company trusted by Fortune 500®-sized enterprises to power decision-making through AI services, solutions, and products. Fractal’s strategy is focused on three pillars: AI-led Transformation (AIT), which reimagines business workflows and decision-making through AI; AI Foundations (AIF), which enables scalable, trusted, and governed enterprise AI through robust data and technology foundations; and AI Work & Workforce (AIW), which helps organizations redesign work, develop AI-ready talent, and build the capabilities needed for the AI-native enterprise. All three pillars are powered by Cogentiq, Fractal’s flagship agentic AI platform.

With over 6,000 professionals across North America, EMEA, and Asia-Pacific, Fractal partners with business leaders to drive competitive differentiation for their organizations by embedding AI into critical decisions across business functions and industry verticals.

Fractal invests more than 6% of its revenue in AI R&D, supporting foundational AI research, product development, and IP creation that address both immediate client needs and long-term technological advancement. Fractal’s track record includes developing proprietary models and products such as Vaidya.ai and PiEvolve, as well as incubating and spinning out Qure.ai, a global healthcare AI leader focused on the rapid identification and management of tuberculosis, lung cancer, and stroke (or critical health conditions). Fractal’s suite of businesses consists of Asper.ai (a Revenue Growth Management product for CPG companies) and Analytics Vidhya (an Ed-tech platform).

About Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is India’s largest urban local body, responsible for providing civic infrastructure, public healthcare and essential municipal services to Mumbai. Established in 1888, BMC operates one of the country’s largest public healthcare networks, comprising tertiary care hospitals, maternity hospitals, specialty hospitals, peripheral hospitals, dispensaries and health centres, delivering healthcare services to millions of citizens annually

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Bitmine Immersion Technologies Announces Record and Payment Dates for Cash Dividends on 9.50% Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock

NORWALK, Conn., Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — (NYSE: BMNR; BMNP) Bitmine Immersion Technologies, Inc. (“Bitmine” or the “Company”) announced today that its Board of Directors has declared seventeen cash dividends on the Company’s 9.50% Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock (the “Series A Preferred Stock”), which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the trading symbol “BMNP”.

The dividends will be payable in cash in accordance with the terms of the Certificate of Designations governing the Series A Preferred Stock. The record dates, payment dates, and per-share amounts for each dividend are set forth below:

About Bitmine

Bitmine Immersion Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: BMNR), and its subsidiaries (“Bitmine” or the “Company”), is a blockchain technology infrastructure company operating across institutional digital asset staking and validation services, bitcoin mining, and strategic digital asset management. As the world’s leading Ethereum Treasury company, it implements an innovative digital asset strategy for institutional investors and public market participants. The Company provides institutional-grade staking and validation infrastructure—through which it earns staking rewards and validation income—alongside bitcoin mining activities. Bitmine holds digital assets strategically, generating yield on those holdings to support liquidity and capital formation. Since 2025, the Company has expanded its blockchain infrastructure capabilities, including developing and deploying MAVAN, its institutional staking and validation platform. The Company’s activities further include investments in early-stage blockchain opportunities (“moonshot” investments) and ancillary mining, hosting, and consulting services.

For additional details, follow on X:

https://x.com/bitmnr  

https://x.com/fundstrat 

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements that constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The statements in this press release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such as “expects,” “projects,” “projected,” “intends,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” and similar expressions. This document specifically contains forward-looking statements regarding the Company’s dividend payments on the Series A Preferred. In evaluating these forward-looking statements, you should consider various factors, including: Bitmine’s ability to finance its current business, Ethereum treasury operations, and proposed future business; market conditions affecting the trading price of the Company’s common stock and Series A Preferred Stock; regulatory developments affecting digital assets, including the ultimate enactment and implementation of pending legislation and SEC initiatives; the volatility and unpredictability of digital asset prices; the performance, reliability, and security of the Company’s staking operations; and the future value of Bitcoin and Ethereum. Actual future performance outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous conditions, many of which are beyond Bitmine’s control, including those set forth in the Risk Factors section of Bitmine’s Form 10-K filed with the SEC on November 21, 2025, as well as all other SEC filings, as amended or updated from time to time. Copies of Bitmine’s filings with the SEC are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Bitmine undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release, except as required by law.

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ArkBio’s RSV Antiviral Drug Ziresovir Receives FDA Approval for Phase II Clinical Trial

SHANGHAI, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Shanghai Ark Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (“ArkBio”) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved ziresovir (AK0529) for a phase II clinical trial in the severely ill RSV infected infant patients, including the ones in pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).

Severe RSV Infection: An Urgent Unmet Need in PICU

RSV is the leading pathogen of lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) in infants and young children globally, causing approximately 33 million LRTI cases, 3.6 million hospitalizations, and more than 100,000 deaths annually. Severely ill RSV infected infants often require admission to the PICU for intensive care such as respiratory support, with rapid disease progression, high risk and a heavy medical burden. There is currently no approved RSV-specific antiviral therapy worldwide; clinical management remains limited to symptomatic and supportive care, such as oxygenation, leaving an urgent unmet need for effective antiviral treatment in hospitalized RSV infected patients with severe diseases.

Ziresovir Advances to Treat Severely Infected Infant Patients

Ziresovir is the first direct RSV antiviral drug to successfully complete a phase III clinical trial with positive results. The clinical study in 1-24 months age patients conducted in China demonstrated that ziresovir can significantly reduce viral load, accelerate the resolution of respiratory symptoms, and significantly lower the risk of recurrent wheezing and asthma over 24-month follow-up period, with a favorable safety profile. Key findings from the clinical study have been published in The New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health. In 2025, ziresovir was included as the only therapeutic drug in the WHO’s Paediatric Drug Optimization for Respiratory Syncytial Virus publication. The newly approved phase II clinical trial marks the extension of ziresovir’s clinical development into the most critically ill RSV patients, representing a key milestone in the clinical development of ziresovir globally.

FDA Approved Phase II Clinical Trial

The approved multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase II clinical trial will focus on severely ill RSV infected infants requiring hospitalization in PICU, one of the most critical RSV patient populations with the most urgent clinical treatment needs. This clinical trial is designed to evaluate clinical efficacy of ziresovir, especially the length of oxygen treatment and sustained recovery time, providing the clinical basis for the future registrational trials.

About ArkBio

ArkBio is a commercial-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of innovative therapeutics for respiratory/lung and pediatric diseases. Founded in 2014, the company has established proprietary technology platforms and a differentiated R&D pipeline through internal innovation and strategic collaborations.

Key pipeline assets include: ziresovir (AK0529), the first direct-acting antiviral for RSV with positive phase 3 results; AK3280, a potentially best-in-class anti-fibrotic agent with positive phase 2 results in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, currently in phase 3 registrational trials; AK0901, approved and commercialized in China for ADHD treatment. The company also has multiple first-in-class or best-in-class innovative drug candidates in clinical or preclinical development.

ArkBio has established strategic partnerships with multinational pharmaceutical companies including Roche and Genentech, leading academic institutions including The Scripps Research Institute and the Institute of Microbiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qilu Pharmaceutical, as well as other domestic and international biotech companies and CROs.

For more information, please visit: www.arkbiosciences.com 

Investor Inquiries: IR@arkbiosciences.com

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