Biobeat Brings Leading Hypertension Voices to AHA Hypertension Scientific Sessions as Conversation Shifts to Cuffless 24-Hour Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring

The expert panel will explore clinical evidence and practical application for cuffless 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring as it becomes the trusted way in hypertension care

BOCA RATON, FL / TEL AVIV, ISRAEL — October 7, 2026 — Biobeat, the company transforming hypertension management with its FDA-cleared, medical-grade, single-use, 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) sensor, today announced it will host an expert panel session and exhibit at the American Heart Association’s Hypertension Scientific Sessions 2026. The panel, comprising leading voices in hypertension, will delve into the shift toward cuffless 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring as it enables healthcare professionals’ to monitor and manage hypertension, while giving attendees a first look at new clinical data from a large multinational hypertensive cohort.

Hypertension affects nearly 50% of U.S. adults, and nearly 80% of them do not have it under control. A single office reading misses nighttime blood pressure and cannot reliably distinguish true hypertension from white-coat or masked hypertension, making the condition hard to measure accurately and manage effectively.

While 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) is the diagnostic standard for confirming hypertension, traditional ABPM monitors depend on a cuff that inflates repeatedly around the clock, including overnight. Repeated cuff inflation can cause discomfort and disturb sleep and may cause patients to cut the test short or refuse follow-up monitoring. 

Biobeat’s wireless, cuffless chest patch redefines monitoring by providing clinically meaningful blood pressure data for physicians to interpret and make actionable decisions. Worn for the full monitoring period, it captures 96 blood pressure measurements across 24 hours and automatically generates a physician-ready report with daytime and nighttime averages, dipping patterns, blood pressure load, and indicators of masked or white-coat hypertension.

At the AHA Hypertension Scientific Sessions, Biobeat will host a Learning Studio session titled “From Evidence to Practice: How Clinically Validated Cuffless 24-Hour Ambulatory BP Monitoring is Changing Hypertension Diagnosis and Management.” The panel will explore the clinical validation of cuffless 24-hour blood pressure monitoring and its real-world use in hypertension care. Panelists will also share practical strategies for using full day-and-night blood pressure data to guide treatment decisions.

Panelists include:

• Gianfranco Parati, MD – Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Milano-Bicocca, and Scientific Director, Istituto Auxologico Italiano
• Ziad Zoghby, MD, MBA, FACP – Associate Professor of Medicine, Mayo Clinic
• Maria Carolina Delgado-Lelievre, MD – Founder and Director, Comprehensive Hypertension Center, University of Miami Health System
• Elias G. Hellou, MD –Cardiologist – Emek Medical Center, Afula, Israel & Research Collaborator, Mayo Clinic

“The question in hypertension is no longer whether 24-hour data matters, but how we make clinically validated 24-hour blood pressure data more accessible to healthcare professionals. Cuffless monitoring can provide measurements collected outside the office for healthcare professionals to use with patients who have suspected hypertension,” said Arik Ben Ishay, CEO and Co-Founder of Biobeat. “Medical-grade, clinically validated cuffless monitoring shows what office readings miss so clinicians can act on it. This panel brings both the evidence and the real-life practice from leading voices in hypertension.”

Biobeat’s session will take place on Thursday, October 8, 2026, from 10:00 to 10:30 a.m. ET, in Regency Ballroom A&B at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City.

AHA Hypertension Scientific Sessions 2026 takes place October 7–11 at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia. Attendees can visit Biobeat at Booth 13 throughout the event to see the chest patch and physician reporting platform, and to speak with the team.

Verifact Markets Unveils First Trading Platform to Find Truth in Disputed Facts

Think prediction markets, but instead of asking what will happen, Verifact Markets combines evidence analysis and market structure to settle what actually happened.

CHICAGO, Oct. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Verifact Markets launches the first trading platform built to resolve disputed facts. This is a new category of markets, focused on topics of public interest where people genuinely disagree about what is true.

“We’re living in the age of disputed facts. Making or amplifying a claim has never been easier. Resolving one has never been harder,” said Rodrigo Aquino, CEO of Verifact Markets. “Our company exists to change that.”

Verifact Markets is headquartered in Chicago and backed by Positron Capital Management, a multibillion-dollar family office with active investments at the intersection of technology and finance, including prediction markets.

How it works

Users can review arguments and trade True or False contracts. The experience is similar to prediction markets, but the resolution is based on evidence, which users may contribute to.

Verifact Markets uses a patent-pending framework to evaluate evidence at scale along with market structure to resolve markets.

Verifact analyzes data from many sources, including evidence discovered by our systems and evidence submitted by users, and assesses how strongly the overall body of information supports each side.

A market resolves only when Verifact reaches a high level of confidence.

Winning positions pay $1, losing positions pay $0. Same as prediction markets.

When markets remain inconclusive, users still receive their payout. If trading activity fades and no new evidence emerges after a period of time, Verifact may expire the market. Positions are then settled using a trusted expiration price calculated from recent qualifying trades.

Examples of Verifact Markets

Markets offer a mix of long-contested claims and current ones, spanning political, business and cultural topics.

• “COVID-19 originated in a laboratory in the Wuhan Institute of Virology.”
• “Meta overstated the privacy of WhatsApp in its ‘Not Even WhatsApp’ ad campaign”
• “The Pentagon fired Stars and Stripes journalists due to USS Abraham Lincoln reporting.”

During its recent private beta, a market on whether the “LA Clippers used Kawhi Leonard’s endorsement deals to circumvent the NBA salary cap” resolved True.

Team

Verifact Markets is led by a team with decades of experience at the intersection of financial markets and technology, combining hands-on experience founding, operating, and investing in companies with deep expertise in building intelligence systems that process large amounts of information to separate signal from noise.

About Verifact Markets

Verifact Markets is the first trading platform built to find truth in disputed facts. Unlike prediction markets, which ask what will happen, Verifact Markets asks what actually happened. Users trade True or False contracts on contested topics of public interest. Market resolution is based on evidence, which users may contribute to.

Verifact is available to eligible users in several jurisdictions outside the United States, while pursuing the necessary regulatory pathway for a U.S. launch.

Verifact Markets – Trade on disputed facts. 

See the evidence. Take a position. Join the search for truth.

For more information, visit verifact.markets or reach out to press@verifactm.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/verifact-markets-unveils-first-trading-platform-to-find-truth-in-disputed-facts-302900225.html

SILVERSEA UNVEILS 103 NEW SAILINGS FOR 2028-2029, INCLUDING NEW S.A.L.T. CULINARY VOYAGES AND A SOUTH AMERICA CIRCUMNAVIGATION

From Carnival in Rio to truffle season in Tuscany, Silversea’s newest sailings place guests at the heart of the world’s most captivating cultural moments across 56 countries

MIAMI, Oct. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Silversea, the leading experiential luxury and expedition travel brand, has revealed new sailings within its Voyage Collection 2028-2029, ‘Let the World Surprise You.’ Itineraries are timed to the world’s most captivating cultural moments, from Carnival in Venice and Rio de Janeiro to New Year’s Eve in Funchal and Sydney, alongside new S.A.L.T. Culinary Voyages built around Europe’s truffle season and Southeast Asia’s iconic markets. Spanning September 2028 to May 2029, the program comprises 103 voyages across 219 destinations in 56 countries, including 29 new ports of call across the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, and South America. General sales open on October 8, 2026. 

“Our Voyage Collection 2028-2029 offers industry-leading depth across every region,” said Bert Hernandez, president, Silversea. “Guests can select a voyage designed around a culinary season through our new S.A.L.T. Culinary Voyages, take on an entire continent aboard Silver Nova during Grand South America 2029, or spend an afternoon on the exclusive island of Canouan, where our Destination Experience carries guests from a Carnival welcome to a beachside celebration. These moments are what allow our guests to experience each destination at its most authentic.” 

New features across these sailings include: 

• A TWO-SHIP MEDITERRANEAN DEPLOYMENT: A two-ship deployment in the Mediterranean, with 17 sailings aboard Silver Nova and Silver Dawn, including immersive experiences at Venice Carnival and Funchal’s New Year’s Eve fireworks. 
• NEW S.A.L.T. CULINARY VOYAGES: Wine & Truffle voyages across Spain and Italy, and new Asian Markets voyages between Singapore and Hong Kong. 
• CANOUAN – A SPECIAL DESTINATION EXPERIENCE BY SILVERSEA: A full-day call at Canouan, a secluded island within St. Vincent and the Grenadines, featuring a Carnival welcome and a beachside soiree. 
• GRAND SOUTH AMERICA 2029: A round-trip circumnavigation of the continent aboard Silver Nova, including Antarctic Peninsula scenic cruising. 

THE MEDITERRANEAN AT ITS MOST INTIMATE

Silver Nova and Silver Dawn will welcome guests on 17 Mediterranean voyages between October 2028 and March 2029, calling at 53 destinations across 12 countries, including new calls at Brindisi and Imperia. Overnight stays are scheduled in Cadiz, Funchal (Madeira), Fusina (Venice), Genoa, Istanbul, Livorno (Tuscany), Naples, and Valletta, with the two-ship deployment enhancing combinability between the Eastern and Western Mediterranean. 

Silver Dawn‘s overnight calls in Venice will allow guests to experience the Carnival after dark, including an evening event inspired by Casanova. A separate sailing positions the ship in Funchal, Madeira, for New Year’s Eve, with the island’s fireworks display visible from the ship, before continuing on to Casablanca and Tangier. Silver Dawn will also add three sailings featuring Alexandria, including a Great Pyramids and Grand Egyptian Museum excursion, alongside two additional sailings calling at Istanbul. 

A NEW COLLECTION OF S.A.L.T. CULINARY VOYAGES

Silversea is also making new additions to its S.A.L.T. Culinary Voyages – a collection of itineraries shaped by the seasons, rooted in regional cuisine, and led by local experts, master chefs, sommeliers, and mixologists. Three Wine & Truffle sailings will take guests across Italy and Spain aboard Silver Dawn from October through December, tracing the truffle trail from Livorno, gateway to Tuscany, to Palamos, on the edge of Catalonia’s truffle country, with truffle-hunting excursions, guided vineyard tours, and onboard tastings and chef programming. Four Asian Markets sailings aboard Silver Muse will journey between Singapore and Hong Kong, with shore excursions led by local food experts, chef-led market tours, and visits to hawker stalls and street food destinations. 

SILVER NOVA AND SILVER RAY LEAD SILVERSEA’S CARIBBEAN DEPLOYMENT

Silver Ray, Silver Nova, Silver Spirit, and Silver Shadow will anchor Silversea’s Caribbean and Central America deployment, spanning 38 voyages between November 2028 and March 2029, and calling at 34 destinations across 21 countries, including a new call at La Romana, Dominican Republic. All four ships offer round-trip departures from Miami, Fort Lauderdale, or San Juan. 

Silversea will also offer an exclusive Destination Experience at Canouan during the season: a private beach day featuring a Carnival-style welcome with local dancers and a steel band, along with a beachside soiree with light bites, flowing drinks, and live music. Silver Ray and Silver Spirit will each depart on round-trip Miami sailings of eight to 12 days, featuring St. Barts alongside Antigua, Anguilla, or St. Kitts. 

GRAND SOUTH AMERICA 2029 VOYAGE

Silver Nova will host the Grand South America 2029 voyage, a 75-night round-trip circumnavigation of the continent departing Fort Lauderdale on January 13, 2029, and returning March 29, 2029. The voyage includes a Panama Canal transit, scenic cruising of the Antarctic Peninsula, and overnight stays in Manaus, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Callao (Lima), and Cartagena. 

Three exclusive events are planned for guests on this voyage, starting with a sunset reception in Gustavia, St. Barts, where guests will gather with champagne and local cocktails, followed by dinner and live music in a setting inspired by the atmosphere of Saint-Tropez. Guests will then watch Rio’s Carnival from a reserved space at the Sambadrome, with preferred seating along the parade runway and dedicated hospitality service throughout the evening. Before returning to Fort Lauderdale, the ship will call at Cartagena for a private event at a rooftop venue overlooking the bay, featuring live music, dancers, and cultural performances. 

NEW YEAR’S EVE IN SYDNEY AND EIGHT NEW PORTS ACROSS ASIA

Silver Moon will spend the season in Australia and New Zealand, covering 10 voyages between October 2028 and March 2029 and visiting 42 destinations across three countries, including new calls at Batemans Bay and Phillip Island, and a scenic cruise through Dusky Sound. New combination voyages in New Zealand – including a round-trip Melbourne itinerary – and new routes linking Australia and Indonesia expand how these itineraries can be combined. Silver Moon will also host an overnight New Year’s Eve call in Sydney. 

Silver Moon and Silver Muse will together complete 26 Asia voyages between September 2028 and May 2029, calling at 62 destinations across 11 countries. This collection adds eight new ports, including Yeosu, Hitachinaka, Miyako-jima, Vigan, Muara, Sihanoukville, Makassar, and Maizuru (Kyoto), and introduces Kobe and Bali as new turnaround ports, expanding how guests can combine itineraries. Sailings are timed to Japan’s cherry blossom season and Hong Kong’s Lunar New Year. 

General sales for these sailings within Silversea’s Voyage Collection 2028-2029 open on October 8, 2026, following a preview for Venetian Society members on October 6. 

For more information on Silversea’s Voyage Collection 2028-2029, visit https://www.silversea.com/lp-new-winter-itineraries-2028-2029.html

About Silversea

Silversea is the leading experiential luxury and expedition travel brand, offering guests immersive experiences on all seven continents, personalized service, and an innovative culinary offering aboard its 12 intimate ocean and expedition ships. Silversea’s itineraries encompass an unparalleled range of destinations worldwide, from the Mediterranean and the Caribbean to the Galápagos, both Polar Regions, and hundreds of fascinating places in between. Set to strengthen its destination leadership starting in 2026, the brand is developing the southernmost hotel on Earth, The Cormorant at 55 South, in Puerto Williams, Chile – offering guests a uniquely seamless journey to Antarctica. Silversea brings its like-minded guests closer to their destination in uncompromised comfort, championing the joy of travel, an enriching spirit of discovery, and an enduring commitment to Silversea’s signature “To Finding More” promise. Silversea is owned and operated by global cruise company Royal Caribbean Group (NYSE: RCL). For more information, visit www.silversea.com. Media can stay up to date by visiting the brand’s press center. 

Silversea, Otium, S.A.L.T., The Cormorant at 55 South, To Finding More, and the various ship names are registered trademarks of Silversea Cruises LLC. 

About Royal Caribbean Group

Royal Caribbean Group is a leading global vacation company spanning cruise, one-of-a-kind destinations, and land-based vacation experiences. The company operates 71 ships sailing to more than 1,000 destinations across all seven continents through its three wholly owned brands – Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea – and a 50% joint venture interest in TUI Cruises, which operates the Mein Schiff and Hapag-Lloyd brands. 

The Group is expanding its portfolio of private destinations through its Perfect Day and Royal Beach Club collections, and the company will enter river cruising in 2027 with Celebrity River Cruises. Powered by innovative brands, advanced technology, and an industry-leading loyalty program, the company has built a connected vacation ecosystem, turning the vacation of a lifetime into a lifetime of vacations. 

Named to the Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies 2026 list and to Forbes’ 2026 Best American Companies lists, Royal Caribbean Group is guided by its mission to deliver the best vacations responsibly. For more information, visit royalcaribbeangroup.com.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/silversea-unveils-103-new-sailings-for-2028-2029-including-new-salt-culinary-voyages-and-a-south-america-circumnavigation-302900207.html

femtoAI Opens Developer Community to Build New AI Powered Products

SAN BRUNO, Calif., Oct. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — femtoAI, a leading full-stack AI silicon and compression platform, today announced open access to its developer community after a successful beta program. Developers now will have access to femtoAI’s full-stack compression AI platform including the femtoAI Sparse Processing Unit (SPU) chip evaluation kit, compressed models, compiler and Sparsity Studio™ that easily enable development of new AI powered products. femtoAI technology turns patented neural-network sparsity and advanced model compression into real savings, delivering a 10X lower power draw and 10X smaller memory footprint without sacrificing accuracy. Developers can now see what’s possible with femtoAI tools and systems at developer.femto.ai.

“We’ve been working behind the scenes in our developer community with dozens of enterprises as they create new products based on femtoAI’s unique full-stack AI silicon and compression platform. The time to open this experience to more enterprises and developers is now,” said Bill Hoppin, Chief Business Officer, femtoAI. “Customers such as Legato and Marshall gained a competitive advantage by easily developing and deploying using our developer tools and systems. By now opening up the experience for everyone, we can’t wait to see how developers across all industries innovate with the power of our full-stack AI compression platform.”

Key features of the femtoAI developer community include: 

• SPU Evaluation Kit: Order your own kit to access the SPU chip
• Self-service development: Access to the full suite of femtoAI tools, compilers and models
• Model flexibility: Bring your own model, use one of femtoAI’s prebuilt models, or develop from scratch with easy-to-use tools and agent-friendly documentation readily available.
• Sparsity Studio^™: See actual power and memory savings unlocked by femtoAI sparsity with this measurement tool
• Community Forum: Ongoing open discussion and Q&A with femtoAI experts and developers 

“At femtoAI, not only do we deliver first-class sparsity in both our hardware and software tooling and applications,” said Sangnam Choi, VP of Audio & Sensing at femtoAI, “but we also apply advanced model compression techniques that have allowed us to deliver open-source models such as OpenAI Whisper at 10X less memory, and develop custom solutions like local voice commands.  Our team continues to unearth and implement emerging techniques and methods, and in turn, we’re able to deliver with an even lower power and memory footprint. We’ll continue to push the possibilities on performance without sacrificing accuracy.”

femtoAI developer community enables faster time-to-market

The femtoAI developer platform has already been instrumental for work across femtoAI’s audio and sensing business with customers such as smart glasses disruptors Legato, and headphone and earbud icon Marshall and innovative companies like NewSound have leveraged femtoAI’s technology to build AI enhanced audio solutions with 10X less memory and 10X less power.

“Integrating advanced AI audio solutions on the femtoAI platform has been a tremendous success for us. The combination of easy-to-use tools, innovative capabilities, and amazing support helped us achieve a level of hearing performance for Legato Frames that was previously impossible in the form factor on a remarkable timeline,” MehulTrivedi, CEO at Legato Hearing said. “We’ve loved working with the femtoAI team and are excited to continue delivering industry-leading products with them. It’s an extraordinarily valuable partnership for Legato, both now and as we grow.”

Join the Community

Meet the femtoAI team on Wednesday October 7 for an SF Tech Week developer happy hour at Barebottle Brewing Company’s beer garden located at Salesforce Park. You’ll enjoy drinks, light bites, and an exclusive walk-through of the developer community from femtoAI experts. RSVP today to join us.

To join our developer community and access the femtoAI platform, visit developer.femto.ai.

About femtoAI 

femtoAI is a leading full-stack AI silicon and compression platform that turns patented neural-network sparsity into real savings for enterprises. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, femtoAI was founded in 2018 by researchers from the Brains in Silicon Lab at Stanford University. femtoAI’s full-stack AI silicon and compression platform enables low-latency, 10X lower power draw and 10X smaller memory footprint for customers like Marshall, NewSound and Legato. From wearables and household appliances to smart glasses and robotics, femtoAI brings the power of AI to every device.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/femtoai-opens-developer-community-to-build-new-ai-powered-products-302900035.html

Cambridge Heartwear Awarded £184 Million NHS Tender for World’s First Medical-Grade, Wirelessly Charged, Reusable ECG Wearable

CAMBRIDGE, England, Oct. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Cambridge Heartwear® Limited (www.camheartwear.com) has secured a landmark £184 million tender with the National Health Service (NHS) of the UK for HeartSense®, the world’s first medical-grade, multi-channel, portable, wirelessly charged ECG wearable straight to one’s mobile phone, representing a significant advancement in global Medical technology, AI application and cardiovascular diagnostics. 

The agreement with the UK National Health Service Supply chain enables the deployment of advanced cardiac monitoring technology across primary and secondary care and civil service departments, empowering patients to diagnose heart rhythm problems whenever and wherever they are to prevent heart failure and strokes earlier, reduce waiting times and support a more preventative approach to Heart Disease, which can take place in the comfort of their own homes. 

HeartSense® is the world’s first wearable to combine diagnostic-grade multi-channel ECG monitoring, adaptive artificial intelligence and wireless charging in a single device. Manufactured to bridge the gap in women’s cardiovascular care with its ergonomic design, the technology gives healthcare professionals and patients access to continuous, real-time ECG data on a mobile phone. giving you back the control of your health at every stage. 

Engineered in Cambridge and manufactured in Britain, HeartSense® has been developed to help identify cardiovascular disease and stroke risk before conditions become acute. Its proprietary engineering and AI technology with (86 patents ) support earlier intervention, enabling clinicians to make more informed decisions and improve patient outcomes. 

The system is UKCA approved and ISO 13845 certified, with FDA 510(k) applications currently in progress. 

“We did not have a UK ECG manufacturer and reporter until now,” said Professor Rameen Shakur, Founder of Cambridge Heartwear. “HeartSense® is the world’s first medical-grade, AI-powered, multi-channel ECG wearable and demonstrates what can be achieved when clinicians, engineers and AI specialists work together. We want to help move healthcare towards earlier diagnosis, better prevention and improved outcomes for patients across the NHS.” 

The partnership with the NHS Supply Chain allows Integrated Care Boards to deploy HeartSense® at scale, supporting the delivery of diagnostic-quality heart monitoring beyond hospital environments. The initiative is intended to reduce pressure on secondary care services while improving access to high-quality cardiac diagnostics in community settings. 

Founded by Professor Rameen Shakur, Cambridge Heartwear is a medical technology company based at Cambridge Science Park coming out of the University of Cambridge dedicated to making heart health monitoring simple, accessible and accurate. Combining medical research, engineering excellence and artificial intelligence, the company develops advanced wearable technologies that empower patients and healthcare professionals with diagnostic-quality cardiovascular insights anytime, anywhere. HeartSense® helps detect heart conditions earlier, enabling more informed clinical decision-making and better patient care.

Contact: info@camheartwear.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/cambridge-heartwear-awarded-184-million-nhs-tender-for-worlds-first-medical-grade-wirelessly-charged-reusable-ecg-wearable-302900084.html

femtoAI Opens Developer Community to Build New AI Powered Products

SAN BRUNO, Calif., Oct. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — femtoAI, a leading full-stack AI silicon and compression platform, today announced open access to its developer community after a successful beta program. Developers now will have access to femtoAI’s full-stack compression AI platform including the femtoAI Sparse Processing Unit (SPU) chip evaluation kit, compressed models, compiler and Sparsity Studio™ that easily enable development of new AI powered products. femtoAI technology turns patented neural-network sparsity and advanced model compression into real savings, delivering a 10X lower power draw and 10X smaller memory footprint without sacrificing accuracy. Developers can now see what’s possible with femtoAI tools and systems at developer.femto.ai.

“We’ve been working behind the scenes in our developer community with dozens of enterprises as they create new products based on femtoAI’s unique full-stack AI silicon and compression platform. The time to open this experience to more enterprises and developers is now,” said Bill Hoppin, Chief Business Officer, femtoAI. “Customers such as Legato and Marshall gained a competitive advantage by easily developing and deploying using our developer tools and systems. By now opening up the experience for everyone, we can’t wait to see how developers across all industries innovate with the power of our full-stack AI compression platform.”

Key features of the femtoAI developer community include: 

• SPU Evaluation Kit: Order your own kit to access the SPU chip
• Self-service development: Access to the full suite of femtoAI tools, compilers and models
• Model flexibility: Bring your own model, use one of femtoAI’s prebuilt models, or develop from scratch with easy-to-use tools and agent-friendly documentation readily available.
• Sparsity Studio^™: See actual power and memory savings unlocked by femtoAI sparsity with this measurement tool
• Community Forum: Ongoing open discussion and Q&A with femtoAI experts and developers 

“At femtoAI, not only do we deliver first-class sparsity in both our hardware and software tooling and applications,” said Sangnam Choi, VP of Audio & Sensing at femtoAI, “but we also apply advanced model compression techniques that have allowed us to deliver open-source models such as OpenAI Whisper at 10X less memory, and develop custom solutions like local voice commands.  Our team continues to unearth and implement emerging techniques and methods, and in turn, we’re able to deliver with an even lower power and memory footprint. We’ll continue to push the possibilities on performance without sacrificing accuracy.”

femtoAI developer community enables faster time-to-market

The femtoAI developer platform has already been instrumental for work across femtoAI’s audio and sensing business with customers such as smart glasses disruptors Legato, and headphone and earbud icon Marshall and innovative companies like NewSound have leveraged femtoAI’s technology to build AI enhanced audio solutions with 10X less memory and 10X less power.

“Integrating advanced AI audio solutions on the femtoAI platform has been a tremendous success for us. The combination of easy-to-use tools, innovative capabilities, and amazing support helped us achieve a level of hearing performance for Legato Frames that was previously impossible in the form factor on a remarkable timeline,” MehulTrivedi, CEO at Legato Hearing said. “We’ve loved working with the femtoAI team and are excited to continue delivering industry-leading products with them. It’s an extraordinarily valuable partnership for Legato, both now and as we grow.”

Join the Community

Meet the femtoAI team on Wednesday October 7 for an SF Tech Week developer happy hour at Barebottle Brewing Company’s beer garden located at Salesforce Park. You’ll enjoy drinks, light bites, and an exclusive walk-through of the developer community from femtoAI experts. RSVP today to join us.

To join our developer community and access the femtoAI platform, visit developer.femto.ai.

About femtoAI 

femtoAI is a leading full-stack AI silicon and compression platform that turns patented neural-network sparsity into real savings for enterprises. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, femtoAI was founded in 2018 by researchers from the Brains in Silicon Lab at Stanford University. femtoAI’s full-stack AI silicon and compression platform enables low-latency, 10X lower power draw and 10X smaller memory footprint for customers like Marshall, NewSound and Legato. From wearables and household appliances to smart glasses and robotics, femtoAI brings the power of AI to every device.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/femtoai-opens-developer-community-to-build-new-ai-powered-products-302900035.html

Cofounder.AI Names Former Google X Leader AJ Thomas Chief Operating Officer

Venture investor, operator and founder coach joins the AI-native startup to scale partnerships and operations, and brings Cofounder.AI to every Good Trouble Ventures portfolio founder

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Cofounder.AI, the venture-backed, AI-native startup leveling the playing field for small business owners and entrepreneurs, today announced that AJ Thomas has joined as Chief Operating Officer. Thomas will lead Partnerships and oversee Finance, Legal and HR alongside CEO Clarence Wooten, her former colleague at Google X, Alphabet’s Moonshot Factory. At Google X, she served as Global Head of Talent & People Products. She is also cofounder of Troublemaker Ventures, home to the venture fund Good Trouble Ventures and the growth advisory firm The Troublemaker Lab.

The appointment brings Thomas’s work full circle. After years of investing in, coaching and championing founders, she will now help build technology that puts that same support in the hands of entrepreneurs everywhere.

“Most small business owners are building alone, without a cofounder, operating leverage or a board to lean on,” said Clarence Wooten, Founder and CEO of Cofounder.AI. “AJ has spent her career giving founders exactly that kind of support, at Google X, as an investor, and as an operator and leadership coach. She knows what it takes to build teams and companies that last, and she’s the right person to scale Cofounder.AI’s partnerships and operations.”

“I’ve sat on every side of the table: operator, investor and leadership coach. The pattern is the same everywhere. Talent is evenly distributed, but support is not,” said Thomas. “Cofounder.AI gives every entrepreneur the operating leverage that used to be reserved for founders with the right network. My job is to make sure humanity and technology get equal weight as we build it, so we can deliver on our mission for the entrepreneurs and small business owners who are the heartbeat of our economy.”

Capital, culture and community

Thomas brings more than 15 years of experience across venture capital, talent and company building. Her work at Troublemaker Ventures, which backs founders and their teams with both capital and hands-on support, runs on three levers:

Capital. As General Partner of Good Trouble Ventures, she invests in founders who challenge the status quo.

Culture. As Managing Partner of The Troublemaker Lab, she coaches founders and enterprise teams on growth strategy, go-to-market, operational rigor and building cultures that hold up under pressure, including adopting AI in ways that sharpen teams rather than replace them.

Community. She connects founders, investors, operators and technologists across AI, emerging tech and venture capital, widening access to the rooms and resources that shape innovation.

At Cofounder.AI, Thomas’s early priorities include expanding university and ecosystem partnerships that bring the platform to student and early-stage founders. She is also a sought-after voice on how AI is reshaping funding, teams and communities; an executive coach and advisor to multiple startups; and a bestselling children’s book author.

Alliance with Good Trouble Ventures

Alongside the appointment, Cofounder.AI and Good Trouble Ventures are forming an alliance partnership. Every current and future Good Trouble Ventures portfolio founder will receive a free one-year Cofounder.AI license, giving them an AI cofounder for fundraising readiness, diligence and day-to-day operations from day one.

“Capital alone doesn’t build a company. Operating leverage does,” said Kat Steinmetz, Cofounder and General Partner of Good Trouble Ventures. “Putting Cofounder.AI in every founder’s hands means our support doesn’t stop when the meeting ends.”

About Cofounder.AI

Cofounder.AI is a venture-backed, AI-native startup leveling the playing field for small business owners and entrepreneurs. Founded by Clarence Wooten, a two-time exited founder and former Executive Entrepreneur in Residence at Google X, Cofounder.AI gives every entrepreneur an AI cofounder to help them plan, fund and run their business.

About Troublemaker Ventures

Troublemaker Ventures is a holding company that backs founders with both capital and hands-on support. It operates through two businesses: Good Trouble Ventures, an early-stage fund investing in category-creating founders, and The Troublemaker Lab, an advisory firm that coaches founders and enterprise teams on growth strategy, financial and operational rigor, and culture.

Media Contact

press@cofounder.ai • 310.400.2434

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ZEISS demonstrates new digital and visual enhancements across ophthalmic workflows at AAO

ZEISS Medical Technology will showcase its latest innovations and digital technologies at AAO, including:

1. Connected cataract workflow –ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner reaches 3 million surgical cases planned through cloud-based software, supporting surgical efficiency built on automation and accurate data.
2. Excellent surgical ergonomics – The HMDmd CR3 head-mounted 3D digital display technology supports surgical visualization with excellent ergonomics across surgical workflows.
3. Celebrating 1 million milestone – ZEISS celebrates more than 1 million procedures¹in the U.S. utilizing DORC TissueBlue^®(Brilliant Blue G Ophthalmic Solution) 0.025%.
4. Enhanced ocular surface disease evaluation –Updated ZEISS ATLAS 500 corneal topographer is a state-of-the-art, multi-modality solution for the anterior eye segment with its proven Placido-disk technology, connected with ZEISS FORUM for convenient patient scheduling and data storage for efficient patient flow.
5. Growing adoption of ZEISS SMILE and ZEISS SMILE pro – ZEISS celebrates more than 15 million eyes treated worldwide with SMILE^® and SMILE pro^®from ZEISS, reflecting the continued growth and accelerated adoption of ZEISS technology for Keratorefractive Lenticule Extraction by refractive surgeons around the world.
6. Improved online visibility for practices – introducing ZEISS VisioGenPractice Visibility Accelerator to help resolve website and online visibility issues; reporting early positive practice results from ZEISS VisioGen implementation.
7. Expanded glaucoma diagnostics portfolio – ZEISS previews the ZEISS MATRIX-VR headset perimeter powered by Envision Healthcare Technologies software, supporting greater flexibility for visual field screening.
8. Digital clinical management for eye care practices – recently FDA cleared, ZEISS CLINIC 360 helps streamline ophthalmic workflows to provide clinicians with more time for personalizing patient care.

JENA, Germany, Oct. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — ZEISS Medical Technology, one of the world’s leading medical technology companies, today announced it will showcase its latest innovations and digital technologies across cataract, corneal refractive, retina, and glaucoma workflows at the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting in New Orleans, from Oct. 10-12.

“From diagnosis to surgery and ongoing care, ZEISS is advancing the future of ophthalmology by redefining what is possible through optical and digital innovation. Our integrated solutions help physicians and surgeons work more efficiently across the care continuum, make better-informed decisions, and deliver personalized care with greater precision and consistency,” says Andreas Völker, Head of the Ophthalmology Strategic Business Unit, ZEISS Medical Technology.

“ZEISS continues to hit major industry milestones, whether it’s 3 million surgical cases planned with ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner or 15 million eyes treated with ZEISS SMILE and ZEISS SMILE pro, ZEISS’ leadership position in ophthalmology is undeniable in the U.S. Improving clinical outcomes and expanding access to eye care remain at the heart of our mission. Our latest innovations help physicians deliver better care to more patients,” says Federico Villegas, Head of ZEISS Medical Technology U.S. and President of Carl Zeiss Meditec Inc., USA.

ZEISS marks 3 million surgical cases planned with ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner

ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner has surpassed 3 million surgical cases planned, highlighting the growing utilization of connected cataract workflow solutions to optimize surgical efficiency through automation and streamlined data management. ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner is cloud-based software that automates routine tasks, connects devices and data points seamlessly, and helps make relevant information easily accessible to the clinical team, providing surgical practices with a comprehensive surgical plan within moments, anytime and anywhere. At AAO, ZEISS will celebrate the milestone of 3 million cases planned with ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner in the ZEISS booth 3719 on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 10:00 a.m. CDT, with expert insights from Dr. I. Paul Singh from Eye Centers of Racine & Kenosha.

“I was skeptical at first […] but my life is so much easier with ZEISS VERACITY,” says Dr. Nicole Fram from Advanced Vision Care, Los Angeles, CA (2025).

Bringing excellent ergonomics to ZEISS advanced visualization technology

At AAO, ZEISS will showcase a wearable, ergonomic option for digital visualization across surgical procedures. The HMDmd CR3, an optional lightweight head-mounted display, offers healthcare professionals a new way to visualize procedures performed with the ZEISS ARTEVO 850 surgical microscope. The HMDmd CR3 displays the digital features of the ZEISS ARTEVO 850, such as DCA, Smart DoF, adjustable light temperature of the RGB LED, and the overlays with AdVision^®, including OCT scans, cataract refractive assistant functions, and connected devices, on a convenient wearable display that is designed to support a neutral head position to improve visual comfort during procedures.

ZEISS will host an expert session with Dr. Jason Jones, ophthalmologist and founder of Jones Eye Clinic, on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 2:00 p.m. CDT, where he will share his experience using the ZEISS ARTEVO 850 with the HMDmd CR3 head-mounted display and discuss how it is an additional option for surgical visualization in the operating room.

More than 1 million procedures have utilized DORC TissueBlue^® 

ZEISS announces the U.S. milestone of more than 1 million procedures¹ utilizing DORC TissueBlue^®, which illustrates the continued utilization in the U.S. for staining the ILM. Attendees at AAO can learn more about DORC TissueBlue^® at the ZEISS booth 3719.   

About TissueBlue (Brilliant Blue G ophthalmic solution) 0.025%: TissueBlue (Brilliant Blue G Ophthalmic Solution) 0.025% is a disclosing agent indicated to selectively stain the internal limiting membrane (ILM). DORC TissueBlue^® is the only FDA-approved disclosing agent indicated to selectively stain the ILM. It is a clear, bright blue, single-patient-use ophthalmic solution supplied in 2.25 mL syringes and prefilled to a volume of 0.5 mL.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION

Warnings & Precautions

Excessive staining: Excess TissueBlue 0.025% should be removed from the eye immediately after staining. 

Use of the syringe: Make sure the plunger moves smoothly before injecting the solution. 

Adverse Reactions

Adverse reactions that have been reported in procedures that included the use of TissueBlue 0.025% have often been associated with the surgical procedure. The complications include retinal (retinal break, tear, hemorrhage, and detachment and cataracts.

Please see Full Prescribing Information for DORC TissueBlue^®.

ZEISS ATLAS 500 offers enhanced ocular surface disease evaluation for the anterior eye segment

ZEISS will showcase the updated ZEISS ATLAS 500 corneal topographer evaluation tool for ocular surface disease evaluation. The state-of-the-art, multi-modality solution for the anterior eye segment, now includes usability enhancements like an improved patient screen directly showing the topography map, extended tooltips, notation improvements, as well as extended topographic information with ring and zone values at 0,1,2,3 and 4 mm. The solution also includes proven Placido-disk technology and connects with ZEISS FORUM for convenient patient scheduling and data storage for efficient patient flow.

“I find the ZEISS ATLAS 500 to be a great tool in the evaluation of ocular surface disease. The ZEISS ATLAS 500 requires minimal training through its on-screen prompts and guides, but still presents intricate data captured, quantified, and analyzed on the screen,” says Dr. Joseph Nazarian, optometrist and founder of Nazarian Optometrists, New South Wales, Australia (2024).

Celebrating 15 million eyes treated with ZEISS SMILE and ZEISS SMILE pro

Marking a major milestone for refractive surgery, now more than 15 million eyes worldwide have been treated with SMILE^® and SMILE pro^® from ZEISS. Following the achievement of 10 million treated eyes in 2024, the rapid growth to 15 million highlights the increasing adoption of the ZEISS technology for Keratorefractive Lenticule Extraction (KLEx) and reinforces the confidence refractive surgeons place worldwide in SMILE^® and SMILE pro^® from ZEISS. The company commercialized ZEISS SMILE as the first KLEx solution in 2011, and ZEISS continues to help drive the evolution of refractive surgery. Today, more than 3,000 surgeons in over 80 countries use SMILE^® and SMILE pro^® from ZEISS in clinical practice, contributing to extensive clinical experience in lenticule extraction worldwide.

“Reaching 15 million treated eyes is a remarkable milestone that reflects the confidence refractive surgeons worldwide place in ZEISS technology. Growing from 10 million to 15 million treated eyes in just two years demonstrates the continued momentum and global expansion of Keratorefractive Lenticule Extraction with ZEISS SMILE and ZEISS SMILE pro,” says Michael Achtelik, MD, Head of Business Sector Refractive Lasers, ZEISS Medical Technology. 

ZEISS reports early practice results from ZEISS VisioGen implementation; announces improved online visibility with Practice Visibility Accelerator enhancement

The company will showcase updates to ZEISS VisioGen, the first responsible AI solution for patient engagement in ophthalmology, helping practices turn website inquiries into scheduled patients, with a licensed optometrist reviewing every reply. Through the new ZEISS VisioGen Practice Visibility Accelerator, ZEISS helps resolve a practice’s website and online visibility issues, working with the practice to support a more searchable website. Also, ZEISS VisioGen now integrates with the top ten EHR and practice management systems in the U.S. so patient inquiries and scheduled evaluations flow into the practice’s systems.

Additionally, practice results from ZEISS VisioGen implementations at three U.S. ophthalmology practices² will be shared in the ZEISS booth 3719 at AAO, showing how ZEISS VisioGen answered 1,397 total website inquiries which were traced to 215 completed surgeries.

ZEISS previews addition to glaucoma diagnostics portfolio with ZEISS MATRIX-VR headset perimeter

At AAO, ZEISS will preview its new ZEISS MATRIX-VR³ ultra-light headset perimeter device (currently under development) powered by Envision Health Technologies. The virtual reality-based visual field assessment solution is designed to complement ZEISS Humphrey Field Analyzer (HFA) testing, enabling eye care professionals to screen more patients for glaucoma, provide a more engaging experience for patients, and seamlessly integrate screening results into clinical decision-making workflows. Powered by Envision Health Technologies software, ZEISS MATRIX-VR combines Envision’s expertise in virtual reality and patient engagement technologies with ZEISS’ long-standing leadership in visual field testing, clinical workflows, and diagnostic connectivity.

At booth 3719, ZEISS will host an expert session on Sunday, Oct. 11, at 10:00 a.m. CDT with Lama Al-Aswad, MD, MPH, glaucoma surgeon, Founder and CEO of Envision Health Technologies, who will discuss the future of visual field testing and the technology behind the ZEISS MATRIX-VR headset perimeter.

Digital clinical management tools help enhance ophthalmic practices

Recently FDA cleared, ZEISS will showcase ZEISS CLINIC 360, an all-in-one cloud and browser-based software solution which aggregates clinical data at scale and powers advanced analytics to streamline ophthalmic workflows, providing clinicians with more time for personalizing patient care. With the introduction of ZEISS CLINIC 360, ZEISS now offers eye care providers the flexibility to choose the data management approach that best fits their needs. While FORUM^® from ZEISS continues to provide robust on-premise data management for practices that prefer local infrastructure, ZEISS CLINIC 360 delivers a cloud-based alternative that provides flexibility and scalability in a subscription-based model with low upfront costs and predictable monthly or annual payments. At booth 3719, ZEISS will host an expert session on Sunday, Oct. 11, at 2:00 p.m. CDT with Dr. Jonathan Feistmann from NYC Retina who will share insights from his experience as a ZEISS CLINIC 360 development partner and discuss the future of digitally connected eye care.  

To learn more about the latest ophthalmic workflow enhancements from ZEISS, visit the ZEISS booth 3719 at the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting in New Orleans, from Oct. 10-12.

¹Sales figures represent cumulative global sales as of February 2026.

²Results are specific to the participating practices and vary by practice.

³Not for commercialization in the U.S.

Not all products, services or offers are approved or offered in every market and approved labeling and instructions may vary from one country to another. For country-specific product information, see the appropriate country website. Product specifications are subject to change in design and scope of delivery as a result of ongoing technical development. The statements of the healthcare professionals reflect only their personal opinions and experiences and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of any institution that they are affiliated with. The healthcare professionals alone are responsible for the content of their experience reported and any potential resulting infringements. Carl Zeiss Meditec AG and its affiliates do not have clinical evidence supporting the opinions and statements of the health care professionals nor accept any responsibility or liability of the healthcare professionals’ content. The healthcare professionals have a contractual or other financial relationship with Carl Zeiss Meditec AG and its affiliates and have received financial support.

Contact for investors:

Sebastian Frericks

Director Investor Relations

Carl Zeiss Meditec AG

Phone: +49 3641 220 116

Mail: investors.med@zeiss.com

Contact for press:

Frank Smith

Head of Global Communications

Ophthalmology, Carl Zeiss Meditec AG

Phone: +49 3641 220 331

Mail: press.med@zeiss.com

Brief Profile

Carl Zeiss Meditec AG (ISIN: DE0005313704), which is listed on the TecDAX and SDAX of the German stock exchange, is one of the world’s leading medical technology companies. The Company supplies innovative technologies and application-oriented solutions designed to help doctors improve the quality of life of their patients. The Company offers complete solutions, including implants and consumables, to diagnose and treat eye diseases. The Company creates innovative visualization solutions in the field of microsurgery. With 5,784 employees worldwide, the Group generated revenue of €2,228m in fiscal year 2024/25 (to 30 September).

The Group’s head office is located in Jena, Germany, and it has subsidiaries in Germany and abroad; more than 50 percent of its employees are based in the USA, Japan, Spain and France. The Center for Application and Research (CARIn) in Bangalore, India and the Carl Zeiss Innovations Center for Research and Development in Shanghai, China, strengthen the Company’s presence in these rapidly developing economies. Around 39 percent of Carl Zeiss Meditec AG’s shares are in free float. Approx. 59 percent are held by Carl Zeiss AG, one of the world’s leading groups in the optical and optoelectronic industries.

For further information visit: www.zeiss.com/med

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/zeiss-demonstrates-new-digital-and-visual-enhancements-across-ophthalmic-workflows-at-aao-302899463.html