Global Times: Silk Road Maritime Forum kicks off in Xiamen with focus on shared growth, open cooperation

BEIJING, Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The 8th Silk Road Maritime International Cooperation Forum opened in the coastal city of Xiamen, East China's Fujian Province on Tuesday. Domestic and foreign officials and industry insiders agreed that in the face of multiple challenges including geopolitical risks and the green transition, all parties in the shipping industry should strengthen connectivity and open cooperation, while actively embracing the valuable certainty and development opportunities that the Chinese market brings to the world.

The forum, held under the theme of "A new chapter of the Silk Road Maritime for shared growth: higher-standard open cooperation in ports, shipping and trade," brings together more than 1,800 representatives from 19 countries and regions to discuss deeper cooperation in ports, shipping, logistics, trade, finance and technology.

At the opening ceremony, speakers discussed topics ranging from global supply chains and maritime connectivity to port development and trade, highlighting the importance of international cooperation as global trade faces mounting headwinds — from trade tensions to supply chain fragmentation.

Gu Jinshan, president of the China Ports and Harbours Association, said that China's port industry has demonstrated strong commitment to serving the real economy and promoting coordinated development across ports, shipping, and trade in recent years. It has achieved substantial results and laid a solid waterborne transport foundation for China's high-level opening-up and steady economic growth.

Ren Weimin, director of the Transport Division of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, stressed the need to enhance the resilience of maritime connectivity in the Asia-Pacific region and safeguard supply chain stability, to guard against the effects of geopolitical crises and climate change on the global maritime transport system.

Zhang Ruosi, a counselor at the Trade in Services and Investment Division of the World Trade Organization, analyzed the new challenges that trade fragmentation poses to shipping, emphasizing that open and facilitative trade policies, together with stronger shipping connectivity, are effective tools for addressing supply chain fragmentation.

Amid rising geopolitical uncertainty, which has increased concerns over the security of major maritime routes and longer transport times, logistics costs and route-planning risks, participants agreed that the development of Silk Road Maritime must focus not only on efficiency, but also on resilience.

A major highlight of the forum was the official launch of the Silk Road Maritime Arctic route meteorological routing service, jointly developed by the China Meteorological Administration and the Silk Road Maritime Association.

The service uses Fengyun meteorological satellites to build an Arctic sea-ice observation network and combines numerical forecasting with artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to provide 15-day daily sea-ice forecasts and polar cyclone monitoring, offering decision support for safe navigation in polar waters, according to the organizers.

Chen Zhiping, chairperson of the Fujian Provincial Port Group Co, which is the forum's organizer, told the Global Times that the company has a partnership with the Xiamen meteorological bureau to develop an AI-powered Maritime Silk Road port meteorological risk intelligent agent. The system provides a centralized display of meteorological risks for 58 Chinese and foreign ports, integrating key information such as risk levels, distances from the centers of typhoons, and whether a port is open or closed to shipping.

"This is the first of its kind internationally," Chen said. "It enables ports, shipping, trade, insurance and other upstream and downstream sectors to quickly grasp conditions across multiple ports, significantly reducing the cost of coordinated decision-making." Chen added that the group will continue to improve the intelligent agent and expand connectivity to more Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) ports.

Addressing the forum, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Jamaica Johnson Smith emphasized the critical importance of secure and uninterrupted maritime trade, highlighting China's important role in this regard.

"China can continuously contribute to enhancing the resilience of international supply chains while promoting international cooperation. Through strong multilateral trade cooperation and Silk Road Maritime-based collaboration, we can jointly build a more effective, secure, sustainable and resilient future of prosperity and development," she noted.

Permanent Secretary of Nigeria's Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment Chris Osa Isokpunwu stated that the forum's theme aligns closely with the current direction of Nigeria's economic development.

"For us, the Silk Road Maritime is not just about the movements of ships and cargo; it is more about how to better connect us with the global economy, attract more investment, and create sustainable development pathways to seek well-being for our people," he said, adding that Nigeria hopes to strengthen the technical capabilities of its local workforce through Silk Road Maritime cooperation and learn from China's remarkable development experience.

Jan Van der Borght, representative of the Antwerp-Bruges Port Authority, told the Global Times on Tuesday that this forum, together with the Silk Road Maritime Association, will be a very good cooperation mechanism and will also set a good example for cooperation between Europe and China.

He also mentioned that China's economic development is reflected not only in increased cargo volumes but also in the transformation of industrial value. China's AI, intelligent-driven technologies and products will open up the European market, and European ports must also transform toward digitalization to better promote China-Europe trade.

The forum also saw the launch of the Hunan-Fujian Silk Road Maritime sea-rail intermodal corridor, a move expected to connect inland China more efficiently with seaports on the coast. The corridor will help open the most convenient export route for central China, cutting logistics costs by 20 percent to 30 percent and shortening transport times by five to seven days.

In addition, the forum released the report on the integrated development of ports, shipping, and trade under the Silk Road Maritime Initiative, the blue book on Silk Road Maritime 2025-2026, the 2026-2028 Silk Road Maritime port-shipping development support policy and the Arctic waterway ship navigation collaborative service system.

A total of 12 new Silk Road Maritime routes were announced at the forum, 15 new members joined the association, and 11 cooperation projects were signed on-site, the Global Times learned.

At the forum's roundtable on Tuesday, a new initiative involving nearly 30 representatives of domestic and overseas ports, shipping lines, logistics firms, technology companies, and research institutions was adopted. It outlines five areas of cooperation: expanding connectivity networks, deepening the integration of port-shipping-trade resources, advancing digital and smart empowerment, promoting green development, and building a shared ecosystem for prosperity.

As global trade continues to evolve, China is accelerating efforts to integrate ports, shipping, and trade through more efficient and intelligent logistics networks. A key platform in this push is the Silk Road Maritime, the country's first comprehensive international logistics service platform centered on maritime shipping under the BRI.

Launched in South China's Fujian Province in 2018, Silk Road Maritime has expanded rapidly. The number of shipping routes making up the Silk Road Maritime network stands at 160, connecting 153 sea ports across 50 countries and regions, and 393 members across industries including shipping, energy, manufacturing and the internet.

Zhang Jingquan, a professor at the School of International Relations of Jinan University, told the Global Times on Tuesday that after years of development, the Silk Road Maritime is expected to provide strong support for high-quality BRI cooperation and the high-quality development of the marine economy.

It has evolved into an important platform for opening up to the outside world, with growing strengths in route organization, port coordination, logistics services and digital empowerment.

Forum organizers said that the platform will further integrate international resources and explore new models linking ports, cities, industries and trade, with the goal of building a smarter and more resilient maritime cooperation ecosystem.

SOURCE Global Times

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TerraPay Connects its Wallet Interoperability Network, Xend to Alipay+, Strengthening Global Payments Interoperability

DUBAI, UAE, Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- TerraPay, a global money movement company, and Alipay+, Ant International's unified wallet gateway, today announced a strategic partnership to enable seamless cross-border QR payments for digital wallets, significantly enhancing global payments interoperability for users across Latin America, the Middle East and Africa.

In the initial phase, 15 of the digital wallets across Africa that are connected to Xend, TerraPay's wallet interoperability network, will be able to pay at more than 150 million merchants across Alipay+'s global merchant ecosystem. The partnership also expands TerraPay's cross-border payment capabilities from account-to-account to global in-store acceptance.

Pay Like a Local, anywhere in the World

Many continue to face friction when transacting across borders. While their digital wallet works seamlessly locally, often when travelling, they revert to cash, foreign exchange counters, and payment methods that feel unfamiliar and costly.

Through the Xend, TerraPay's wallet interoperability network, wallet partners across the world piloting with Africa, can enable their users to pay directly at Alipay+'s global merchant ecosystem. Wallet users can simply scan a QR code to pay, using the same wallet they already trust.

"The home wallet on your phone, that is from Kenya or Colombia or any country, should work the same way in Singapore or China or anywhere in the world, as easily as it does at home," said Ambar Sur, Founder and CEO, TerraPay. "That's the promise of Xend. This partnership with Alipay+ is a major step toward making cross-border wallet payments as natural as paying locally."

Supporting a growing mobile economy

As digital wallets become the preferred payment option, users increasingly expect their trusted financial interfaces to work seamlessly across borders, merchants, and payment ecosystems. Wallet providers have built powerful domestic ecosystems - loyal users, trusted rails, meaningful scale, yet cross-border utility remains limited.

Xend, TerraPay's wallet interoperability network solves this by connecting to a global ecosystem, via Alipay+, through a single integration, enabling wallet providers to offer their customers something genuinely new: the ability to spend internationally, without switching apps or carrying cards. Alipay+ connects over 50 international payment partners to more than 150 million merchants across 220 destination markets, including through over 10 national payment systems.

"By bringing TerraPay's network of wallets to Alipay+, we're helping more people and businesses connect across borders, creating new pathways for growth, and unlocking new opportunities," said Edward Yue, General Manager of Alipay+ Global Power Center, Ant International. "This reflects our joint commitment towards a more connected and inclusive global commerce ecosystem."

Ant International is a leading global digital payment, digitisation and financial technology provider, offering a unified techfin platform supporting financial institutions and merchants of all sizes to achieve inclusive growth. It's unified wallet gateway, Alipay+, provides cross-border payment and digital services that help connect global merchants to consumers.

About TerraPay

TerraPay simplifies global money movement, providing a single connection to one of the most expansive cross-border payment networks, regulated across multiple markets. Our network enables payments to receiving and sending countries worldwide, reaching a vast network of mobile wallets, bank accounts, and cards. We make money transfers instant, reliable, transparent, and fully compliant for its partners, connecting them to 7.5Bn+ bank accounts, in 156+ countries. We work behind the scenes as the trusted partners for some of the world's most innovative financial players, from banks and digital wallets to MTOs, corporates and fintech platforms. On a mission to create a borderless financial world, TerraPay launched Xend – the first-of-its-kind wallet interoperability network, enabling secure, real-time cross-border payments, to and from 3.7B wallets through a single, unified connection. TerraPay is headquartered in London, with offices in cities including, Dubai, Miami, Milan, Singapore, Bogota, Johannesburg, Kampala, Bangalore.

Learn more at www.terrapay.com

About Alipay+

Ant International's Alipay+ is a unified wallet gateway with cross-border payment and digitisation services that help connect global merchants to consumers. Consumers enjoy seamless payments a broad choice of deals and the convenience of digital services using their preferred payment app/e-wallet while travelling abroad. Many small and medium-sized businesses already use Alipay+ digital tools to enhance efficiency and achieve omni-channel growth.

Media Contacts

TerraPay: [email protected]

Ant International / Alipay+: [email protected] 

Forward-looking statements in this release are subject to risks and uncertainties. Transaction volumes and network reach figures are approximate and subject to change.

SOURCE TerraPay

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LONDON, Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Trevor Raymond, CEO of the World Platinum Investment Council, comments:

"The shift to a forecast platinum market surplus in 2026 is overwhelmingly due to investment outflows that occurred during the first half of the year against a backdrop of heightened macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty. The modest forecast surplus follows three consecutive years of significant deficit and does little to reduce the platinum market's reliance on exceptionally lean and increasingly illiquid above ground stocks. This comes at a time when platinum's strategic importance, in particular its expanding use in AI and data centre infrastructure, continues to grow. It is our expectation that platinum will continue to trend in line with overall sentiment towards precious metals, which could provide potential upside for platinum investment demand during the remainder of the year, especially should interest rate increases fail to materialise or be lower than expected."

- Forecast platinum market surplus of 265 koz in full year 2026 reflects investment outflows in H1'26 linked to heightened geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty

- Net disinvestment of 83 koz projected for full year 2026

- Jewellery demand expected to decline 15% as higher prices and weak domestic consumption impact the market in China

- Forecast full year 2026 industrial demand growth of 5% to offset a 4% reduction in automotive demand

- Revised 2025 deficit to over 1.4 Moz further depletes above ground stocks - even with the forecast surplus they will remain at just 3.4 months' cover to meet global demand by the end of 2026

The World Platinum Investment Council - WPIC® - today publishes its Platinum Quarterly for the second quarter of 2026 with an updated full year 2026 forecast.

Disclaimer

Neither the World Platinum Investment Council nor Metals Focus is authorised by any regulatory authority to give investment advice. Nothing within this document is intended or should be construed as investment advice or offering to sell or advising to buy any securities or financial instruments and appropriate professional advice should always be sought before making any investment.

SOURCE World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC)

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ZeroRisk sammelt 10 Millionen Dollar ein, um seine Cybersicherheitsplattform für Händler auszubauen

Die Finanzierungsrunde wird die weltweite Expansion, die Produktentwicklung und die Einführung von ZeroRisk bei den wichtigsten Zahlungsanbietern beschleunigen.

ZeroRisk hat sich zum Ziel gesetzt, das aufstrebende Segment der Risiko-Orchestrierung im Markt für Zahlungsabwicklung zu dominieren.

DUBLIN, 9. September 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- ZeroRisk, das irische Cybersicherheitsunternehmen, das Zahlungsdienstleister dabei unterstützt, Cyberrisiken in ihrem Händlerportfolio zu verwalten und zu reduzieren, hat in einer Series A-Finanzierungsrunde 10 Millionen US-Dollar eingeworben.

ZeroRisk wurde im Jahr 2023 gegründet und bietet Banken und Zahlungsdienstleistern einen umfassenden Überblick über die Cyberrisiken in ihrem gesamten Händlerportfolio. Das Unternehmen vereint Risikoüberwachung, Compliance, Schulungen, angeleitete Abhilfemaßnahmen und Schutzdienste auf einer einzigen Plattform. Händler erhalten klare Anleitungen zu den für ihr Unternehmen relevanten Risiken und zu den Maßnahmen, die sie ergreifen können, um diesen zu begegnen.

Die Finanzierungsrunde wurde von MiddleGame Ventures angeführt, unter Beteiligung des bestehenden Investors Elkstone. Die Investition wird die weltweite Expansion von ZeroRisk, die weitere Produktentwicklung sowie die betrieblichen Kapazitäten unterstützen, die für den Einsatz der Plattform in großen Händlerportfolios erforderlich sind.

ZeroRisk arbeitet bereits mit verschiedenen Zahlungsdienstleistern zusammen, darunter Bank of America, Global Payments, Checkout.com sowie Trust Payments. Das Unternehmen rechnet damit, seinen Umsatz im Jahr 2026 zu verdreifachen, da vertraglich vereinbarte Programme in die Umsetzungsphase übergehen und der internationale Kundenstamm wächst.

Cyber-Sicherheitsprogramme für Händler haben sich traditionell auf jährliche Compliance-Maßnahmen konzentriert. Die Risiken, denen kleinere Unternehmen heute ausgesetzt sind, gehen jedoch weit über die reine Compliance hinaus und umfassen Betrugsversuche, gestohlene Zugangsdaten, Sicherheitslücken auf Websites, Angriffe auf vernetzte Geräte sowie die Fähigkeit, sich im Falle eines Vorfalls wieder zu erholen. ZeroRisk unterstützt Zahlungsabwickler zudem dabei, ihre Compliance-Verpflichtungen in Umsatzchancen umzuwandeln, indem es den Händlern wertschöpfende Dienstleistungen anbietet.

Gary Nolan, Mitbegründer und CEO von ZeroRisk, erklärte heute: „Zahlungsdienstleister versuchen seit Jahren, das Händlerrisiko durch jährliche Compliance-Prüfungen zu kontrollieren. Das reicht nicht mehr aus. Ihre Kunden sind täglich mit Betrugsfällen, dem Diebstahl von Zugangsdaten, Sicherheitslücken auf Websites und Angriffen auf Geräte konfrontiert. Unsere Aufgabe ist es, Zahlungsanbietern einen Überblick über das gesamte Portfolio zu verschaffen und Händlern einen klaren Weg zum Handeln aufzuzeigen."

„ZeroRisk hat den Schritt vom Nachweis der Produkttauglichkeit zur groß angelegten Einführung vollzogen. Diese Investition wird es uns ermöglichen, das Team zu vergrößern, die Plattform weiterzuentwickeln und die Zahlungsdienstleister zu unterstützen, die sich dafür entschieden haben, gemeinsam mit uns ihre Cyber-Sicherheitsprogramme der nächsten Generation für Händler aufzubauen."

Das Unternehmen ist derzeit in Irland und den Vereinigten Staaten tätig und unterhält Niederlassungen in Dublin (Irland), Atlanta (USA) und Longford (Irland).

Patrick Pinschmidt, Co-Managing Partner bei MiddleGame Ventures, fügte hinzu: „Das ZeroRisk-Team vereint auf einzigartige Weise kaufmännisches und technisches Fachwissen, das durch die enge Zusammenarbeit mit führenden Zahlungsanbietern noch verstärkt wird. Als ehemalige Akteure in dieser Branche kennen sie die grundlegenden Probleme aus erster Hand und haben eine Technologie entwickelt, die einen entscheidenden Arbeitsablauf im Finanzdienstleistungsbereich transformiert und ihn sowohl für Zahlungsanbieter als auch für Händler intuitiver und nahtloser gestaltet. Wir freuen uns sehr über die Partnerschaft mit Gary und dem Team, das einen neuen Standard für diese entscheidende Funktion etabliert."

Niall McEvoy, Head of Venture bei Elkstone, sagte: „Elkstone hat ZeroRisk erstmals in der Seed-Phase unterstützt, als Gary und das Team ihre überzeugende Vision darüber vorstellten, in welche Richtung sich der Bereich der Cybersicherheit und Compliance für Händler entwickeln würde. Die geschäftlichen Fortschritte, die in kurzer Zeit erzielt wurden, sind beeindruckend, und diese Serie-A-Finanzierungsrunde bestätigt einmal mehr das Vertrauen der Investoren, dass ZeroRisk weltweit einen transformativen Wandel in dieser Branche bewirken kann. Wir freuen uns, unsere Unterstützung gemeinsam mit dem neuen Investor MiddleGame Ventures zu verstärken."

Hinweise für die Redaktion

Informationen zu ZeroRisk

ZeroRisk bietet Cybersicherheits- und Compliance-Technologien für Händler in der Zahlungs- und Finanzdienstleistungsbranche an. Die Plattform des Unternehmens wird von Acquirern, Zahlungsabwicklern, PayFacs und Finanzinstituten genutzt, um Risiken in ihren Händlerportfolios zu überwachen und Händlern dabei zu helfen, konkrete Maßnahmen zum Schutz ihrer Unternehmen zu ergreifen. ZeroRisk wurde 2023 in Irland gegründet und betreut Kunden in Europa und Nordamerika.

Herausgegeben im Auftrag von ZeroRisk durch Gordon MRM

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Tržby spoločnosti SANY Heavy Industry za 1. polrok 2026 medziročne vzrástli o 19,49 % na 7,89 miliardy USD, pričom tržby zo zahraničia predstavovali 61,33 %

HONG KONG, 9. septembra 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Spoločnosť SANY Heavy Industry (600031.SH) vykázala za 1. polrok 2026 tržby vo výške približne 7,89 miliardy USD, čo predstavuje medziročný nárast o 19,49 %, a pripísateľný čistý zisk vo výške 838,887 milióna USD, čo znamená nárast o 9,13 %.

Tržby za 2. štvrťrok vzrástli o 24,39 % na 4,328 miliardy USD, čím prekonali tempo rastu za 1. polrok, zatiaľ čo pripísateľný čistý zisk sa zvýšil o 16,93 % na 473,108 milióna USD. Prevádzkový peňažný tok dosiahol celkovú sumu 1,440 miliardy USD. K 30. júnu predstavovali celkové aktíva 26,708 miliardy USD a vlastné imanie akcionárov dosahovalo výšku 13,576 miliardy USD.

Spoločnosť SANY optimalizovala svoju globálnu prítomnosť, rozšírila zámorské kanály a servisné siete, vyvinula integrované riešenia zariadení pre konkrétne scenáre, zvýšila globálny podiel na trhu a zaviedla pokročilé štíhle riadenie prevádzky na podporu efektívnosti a vysokokvalitného rastu.

Hlavné body:

- Zahraničné tržby dosiahli 4,724 miliardy USD, čo predstavuje nárast o 21,82 % a 61,33 % z tržieb z hlavnej činnosti. Tržby v Afrike vzrástli o 47,66 % na 790,234 milióna USD; v Amerike o 24,70 % na 930,294 milióna USD; v Ázii a Austrálii o 17,38 % na 1,981 miliardy USD a v Európe o 12,68 % na 1,022 miliardy USD.

- Rast vo všetkých hlavných produktových radoch: tržby pilótovacích strojov prudko vzrástli o 63,11 % na 322,433 milióna USD; tržby z rýpadiel zaznamenali nárast o 21,77 % na 3,141 miliardy USD; tržby z betonárskych strojov vzrástli o 21,25 % na 1,330 miliardy USD; tržby zo zdvíhacích strojoc sa zvýšili o 8,22 % na 1,245 miliardy USD a tržby z cestných strojov vzrástli o 5,52 % na 335,850 milióna USD.

Globalizácia zostáva najdôležitejšou stratégiou SANY Heavy Industry. Spoločnosť prechádza od exportu produktov k lokalizovaným priemyselným prevádzkam v zahraničí, čím približuje predaj, služby, vývoj produktov a prevádzku lokálnym trhom.

SANY bude podporovať globalizáciu, digitalizáciu a dekarbonizáciu, reorganizovať zahraničné zastúpenia a riadenie výskumu a vývoja, posilňovať inovácie produktov a zlepšovať výrobu, kvalitu, ziskovosť a konkurencieschopnosť. Jej cieľom je poskytovať inteligentnejšie, efektívnejšie a udržateľnejšie riešenia po celom svete – spoločne vytvárame budúcnosť.

Dodatok: Pôvodné údaje v čínskych jüanoch (RMB)

Finančné údaje: tržby za prvý polrok dosiahli 53,506 miliardy RMB; pripísateľný čistý zisk za prvý polrok predstavoval 5,690 miliardy RMB; tržby za 2. štvrťrok boli na úrovni 29,359 miliardy RMB; pripísateľný čistý zisk za 2. štvrťrok dosiahol 3,209 miliardy RMB; prevádzkový peňažný tok sa vyšplhal na 9,768 miliardy RMB; celkové aktíva predstavovali 181,153 miliardy RMB; vlastné imanie 92,084 miliardy RMB.

V zahraničí: celkovo 32,040 miliardy RMB; Ázia a Austrália 13,440 miliardy RMB; Európa 6,930 miliardy RMB; Amerika 6,310 miliardy RMB; Afrika 5,360 miliardy RMB.

Produkty: rýpadlá 21,306 miliardy RMB; betonárske stroje 9,022 miliardy RMB; zdvíhacie stroje 8,446 miliardy RMB; pilótovacie stroje 2,187 miliardy RMB; cestné stroje 2,278 miliardy RMB.

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SINGAPORE, Sept. 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Accels today announced its launch, with a vision to accelerate the growth of the agentic economy. Accels brings together AI infrastructure and financial services into a single platform built for how AI agents actually operate, spend, and grow.

A New Vision for a New Economy

As AI shifts from single-response chatbots to autonomous agents that plan, act, and transact on their own, tokens — not seats or subscriptions — are becoming the basic unit of AI's economic activity. Accels is built around this shift, combining AI model infrastructure with financial products designed specifically for the economics of agents, so that businesses and developers can build, scale, and monetize agentic applications without having to stitch together infrastructure and financial services on their own.

Why the AI Token Economy Is the Next Frontier

The scale of this shift is significant. Goldman Sachs Research forecasts that global AI token consumption will grow 24-fold by 2030 as enterprises and consumers adopt agentic AI, and separate industry forecasts point to annual token-related spending growing from roughly $200 billion today to as much as $2.5 trillion a year. Much of this growth will be driven by AI agents themselves: as the number of active agents multiplies, each one operating continuously rather than on-demand, agents are expected to consume far more tokens per unit than individual human users ever did. Accels believes this shift — from a world of people occasionally querying AI to a world of always-on agents constantly consuming tokens — will define the next decade of AI infrastructure and financial services alike.

What Accels Offers

Accels' product suite spans three areas that together support the full lifecycle of building and running AI agents:

- AI model routing — a unified API gateway connecting developers and businesses to leading large language models, currently covering 15 of the world's leading model providers and 150+ AI models, spanning both major international and domestic Chinese model families. For details, visit https://router.accels.tech/.

- Token lending & financial products — including payment terms that let customers pay for token usage on account rather than upfront, and compute credit lines ("compute loans") that give businesses access to the AI compute and token capacity they need to scale, without large upfront cash outlays.

- Merchant acquiring — enables businesses to accept payments seamlessly, manage complex billing intelligently, and expand globally, all through a single unified platform, removing commerce friction so companies can focus on building their product and growing their customer base.

About Accels

Accels is headquartered in Singapore and is dedicated to building AI infrastructure for the agentic economy. Combining deep experience in financial services with a growing AI infrastructure business, Accels aims to launch inclusive, accessible financial products that help businesses and developers participate in — and benefit from — the growth of AI agents and the token economy that powers them.

SOURCE Accels

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Joint research team modeled a 12,635-atom protein, the largest-known to be simulated using quantum computers.

Breakthrough was achieved through quantum and classical methods working together, expanding quantum-centric supercomputing's potential in life sciences research.

CLEVELAND and WAKO, Japan and YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, N.Y., Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A multidisciplinary team from Cleveland Clinic, RIKEN and IBM (NYSE: IBM) has been named as a finalist for the 2026 Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Gordon Bell Prize for simulating the largest biologically meaningful molecules ever modeled with quantum computers, reaching a scale of 12,635 atoms. To achieve these results, the team united the strengths of quantum and classical computing methods in a framework known as quantum-centric supercomputing.

The ACM Gordon Bell Prize recognizes outstanding achievement in high-performance computing and is one of the field's most prestigious honors. The 2026 winner will be announced at the International Conference for High-Performance Computing, Networking, Storage, and Analysis (SC26), taking place Nov. 15–20, 2026 in Chicago.

The origins of the project are rooted in the team's investigation into how computation in drug discovery can be improved. Doing so rests on two fundamental challenges: first, modeling the movement of atoms as biological processes unfold; and second, accurately computing their energies. Particularly the second challenge is well-suited for quantum computers, which operate by the laws of quantum mechanics.

In the work, initially published in May 2026, the team calculated the electronic structure of two large protein complexes using the IBM Quantum Heron processors running within the IBM quantum computers at Cleveland Clinic in the United States and RIKEN in Japan. The calculations were executed alongside two of the world's most powerful supercomputers, Fugaku at RIKEN and Miyabi-G, which is operated by the University of Tokyo and University of Tsukuba. The quantum computers used up to 94 qubits to run nearly 6,000 quantum operations within certain parts of the problem, which was essential to the computation's accuracy and success. Fugaku and Miyabi-G were used to reassemble the results and allow the team to gain a complete representation of each molecule.

The results reflect the team's innovative approach alongside the rapid maturation of quantum computing. Using the sample-based quantum diagonalization by IBM and RIKEN (featured on the cover of Science Advances) along with embedded wavefunction methods adapted by Cleveland Clinic to the question at hand, the team was able to report the first-known simulation of a 303-atom protein achieved with quantum computers. Less than a year later, the team first scaled their method roughly 40 times while also achieving 210 times improvement in accuracy. In updated results recently published in September, the team advanced the work even further. Most notably, they were able to further improve the accuracy of their computations of the binding energies of the molecular system, which reflect how tightly the molecules are bound together and can predict how they could interact with other systems.

In addition, the team validated the workflow on a third supercomputer, JHPC-quantum GPU supercomputer "ROQUO," RIKEN's newest system in a way that eliminated the need for complex manual operations and data transfers – pointing toward faster, more accessible research. By orchestrating CPUs, GPUs, and QPUs together, the team minimized the need for manual transfers and further reduced errors — an early demonstration of how classical and quantum computing can work in concert on complex scientific problems.

Taken together with the earlier results, these updates reflect continued progress on both the accuracy of computed binding energies and the time-to-solution enabled by the automated workflow.

The quantum-classical techniques developed by the team continues to reduce the computational overhead required to directly represent the chemistry of molecular systems with accuracy and is pushing the frontiers of what is possible with quantum-centric supercomputing in the field. The work has demonstrated a path to further increase the accuracy of how molecular system can be calculated and is a step towards helping researchers better predict how medicines may interact with protein targets.

The research team includes Kenneth Merz Jr, Akhil Shajan, Danil Kaliakin, Fangchun Liang of Cleveland Clinic, Yuichi Otsuka, Tomonori Shirakawa, Lukas Broers, Han Xu, Miwako Tsuji, Mitsuhisa Sato, Seiji Yunoki of RIKEN Center for Computational Science, and Ryo Wakizaka, Yukio Kawashima, Jun Doi, Hitomi Takahashi, Toshinari Itoko, Hiroshi Horii, Thaddeus Pellegrini, Javier Robledo Moreno, Kevin J. Sung, Ella Fejer, Robert Walkup, Seetharami Seelam, Mario Motta of IBM.

To read the full study, visit: https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.01138

Research Support

This research is supported by NEDO (New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization), an organization under the jurisdiction of Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)'s "Research and Development of Quantum-Supercomputers Hybrid Platform for Exploration of Uncharted Computable Capabilities" (Project Leader: Mitsuhisa Sato) as part of the "Project for Research and Development of Enhanced Infrastructures for Post 5G Information and Communications Systems (JPNP20017)."

About Cleveland Clinic

Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit multispecialty academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based upon the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation, Cleveland Clinic has pioneered many medical breakthroughs, including coronary artery bypass surgery and the first face transplant in the United States. Cleveland Clinic is consistently recognized in the U.S. and throughout the world for its expertise and care. Among Cleveland Clinic's 83,000 employees worldwide are more than 6,600 salaried physicians and researchers, and 21,900 registered nurses and advanced practice providers, representing 140 medical specialties and subspecialties. Cleveland Clinic is a 6,725-bed health system that includes a 173-acre main campus near downtown Cleveland, 23 hospitals, 300 outpatient facilities, including locations in northeast Ohio; Florida; Las Vegas, Nevada; Toronto, Canada; Abu Dhabi, UAE; and London, England. In 2025, there were 15.9 million outpatient encounters, 343,000 hospital admissions and observations, and 336,000 surgeries and procedures throughout Cleveland Clinic's health system. Visit us at clevelandclinic.org. Follow us at x.com/CleClinicNews. News and resources are available at newsroom.clevelandclinic.org.

About RIKEN

RIKEN is Japan's leading national comprehensive research institute in the natural sciences, conducting research across a broad range of fields including physics, engineering, chemistry, mathematical and information sciences, computational science, biology, and medical science. The RIKEN Center for Computational Science (R-CCS) operates the world-class supercomputer Fugaku, providing computing resources to a wide range of users in universities, research institutions, and industry, and carries out research and development under the banner of "The Science of computing, by computing, and for computing", contributing to the advancement of computational science and computer science.

For more information, visit https://www.riken.jp/en/.

About IBM

IBM is a leading global hybrid cloud and AI, and business services provider, helping clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Thousands of governments and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM's hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM's breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and business services deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM's legendary commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service.

For more information, visit https://research.ibm.com.

Media contacts

Alicia Reale-Cooney

Cleveland Clinic

[email protected]   

216.408.7444 

R-CCS, Computational Science Promotion Division Outreach Group

[email protected]

Danielle Cerasani Estevez 

IBM Research Communications

[email protected] 

SOURCE IBM

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LinqAlpha and KOSCOM Sign MOU to Expand Access to Korean Market Data for Global Investors

Partnership combines KOSCOM's Korean financial market data with LinqAlpha's AI-native investment intelligence platform, beginning with ETF data

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- LinqAlpha, an AI-native financial intelligence company for institutional investors, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with KOSCOM, the technology subsidiary of the Korea Exchange (KRX), to jointly develop AI-powered investment analysis services and expand access to Korean financial market data for global investors.

The partnership comes amid growing international interest in Korean equities, as Korea plays an increasingly important role in the global semiconductor and AI value chain. Through the collaboration, LinqAlpha and KOSCOM aim to make trusted Korean market data more accessible and actionable for institutional investors globally by combining KOSCOM's financial data and market infrastructure capabilities with LinqAlpha's AI-powered investment analysis technology.

Under the MOU, KOSCOM and LinqAlpha will collaborate on the provision of financial data, development of AI-powered investment analysis content and services, identification of joint customer needs, and related service and marketing initiatives. The companies plan to expand the partnership beyond ETFs into additional financial datasets and investment analysis applications over time.

"Global investors are paying increasing attention to Korea, but accessing local data can still be challenging," said Hojun Choi, CEO of LinqAlpha. "Our partnership with KOSCOM is an important step toward bridging that gap."

About LinqAlpha

LinqAlpha is an AI-native financial intelligence company building an Alpha Intelligence Layer for global financial markets. Founded by a team including former Goldman Sachs investment professionals, an MIT computer science PhD and UC Berkeley MFE alumni, LinqAlpha serves more than 70 financial institutions across the United States, Europe and Asia.

About KOSCOM

Established in 1977, KOSCOM is the technology subsidiary of the Korea Exchange (KRX) and provides a wide range of technology products and services to Korea's capital markets. Its financial data and technology infrastructure support securities firms, asset managers and other financial institutions across the Korean market.

SOURCE LinqAlpha

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Zendure reçoit deux distinctions aux Global Product Technology Innovation Awards 2026, avec le SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro remportant la médaille d'or

Lors du salon IFA 2026 à Berlin, le produit phare de Zendure, le SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro, remporte le prix d'or dans la catégorie Système de stockage d'énergie durables pour la maison, tandis que Zendure se voit décerner le prix de la meilleure marque dans la catégorie Solutions énergétiques intelligentes

BERLIN, 9 septembre 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Zendure, pionnier mondial des systèmes de gestion énergétique domestique (HEMS) branchables, a annoncé aujourd'hui avoir remporté deux prix lors des Global Product Technology Innovation Awards 2026. Son système phare de stockage domestique, le SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro, a remporté le prix Système de stockage d'énergie durables pour la maison, tandis que Zendure a remporté le prix Solutions énergétiques intelligentes. Présentés lors des journées d'ouverture de l'IFA 2026 à Berlin, les deux prix récompensent les efforts de Zendure dans le secteur du stockage de l'énergie propre et son approche privilégiant la légèreté, l'intelligence et les faibles émissions de carbone pour alimenter la maison.

Prix d'or du Système de stockage d'énergie durables pour la maison — SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro

Le SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro est un système de stockage d'énergie domestique tout-en-un bidirectionnel à courant alternatif de 4 kW, piloté par l'intelligence artificielle, qui associe une capacité et une puissance de qualité de stockage domestique à un faible encombrement. Une seule unité propose de 8 kWh à 50 kWh, et jusqu'à 150 kWh lorsqu'elle est jumelée au PowerHub de Zendure, accepte jusqu'à 13 kW d'entrée solaire totale, ce qui la rend particulièrement bien adaptée aux grandes maisons, aux thermopompes et à la recharge des véhicules électriques. Combinée à des panneaux solaires de toiture, elle réduit jusqu'à 91 % les coûts d'électricité des ménages, soit l'équivalent d'environ 2 560 € par an dans un scénario classique en Allemagne.

Prix des solutions énergétiques intelligentes — Zendure

Ce prix reconnaît le leadership plus large de Zendure en matière d'énergie domestique intelligente. L'écosystème SolarFlow de Zendure évolue en toute transparence du stockage prêt à brancher à la gestion de l'énergie dans toute la maison. Au cœur du système se trouve le système agentique de gestion de l'énergie domestique, qui analyse la consommation, la production solaire, les données météorologiques et les données dynamiques pour automatiser les décisions en matière d'énergie, déplacer certains usages vers les périodes les plus avantageuses et réduire la facture énergétique des ménages, ce qui constitue une étape claire vers la vision de l'entreprise de devenir le hub énergétique domestique de l'ère de l'IA.

Zendure présente le SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro et son écosystème complet ZEN + Home à l'IFA 2026, Hall 2.2, Stand 124, du 4 au 8 septembre à Berlin.

À propos de Zendure

Zendure est un pionnier mondial dans le domaine des systèmes enfichables de gestion de l'énergie domestique, animé par sa volonté d'accélérer la transition vers un avenir durable. Portée par des centres de R & D et d'exploitation répartis dans les principaux pôles technologiques tels que la Silicon Valley ou la région de la Grande Baie, ainsi qu'au Japon et en Allemagne, notre ambition est de devenir la plateforme d'énergie domestique de référence à l'ère de l'IA. La mission de Zendure est d'offrir à chaque foyer du monde une liberté totale en matière de gestion de l'énergie. Nous y parvenons grâce à l'écosystème SolarFlow, qui allie stockage modulaire, gestion intelligente de l'énergie et alimentation solaire flexible. Du stockage prêt à brancher à la gestion énergétique de l'ensemble du logement, en passant par la modernisation des installations, SolarFlow s'adapte tout en souplesse pour optimiser l'autoconsommation, réduire la dépendance au réseau et assurer une alimentation de secours fiable.

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L'AION UT obtient cinq étoiles au test Euro NCAP 2026

AMSTERDAM, 9 septembre 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- L'Euro NCAP a publié le 2 septembre la note de sécurité 2026 de l'AION UT, attribuant cinq étoiles à cette berline électrique à hayon. Ce résultat s'applique à tous les modèles, à conduite à gauche ou à conduite à droite.

Protocole révisé

L'Euro NCAP a présenté ses protocoles révisés pour 2026, en articulant son évaluation autour de quatre étapes de la sécurité des véhicules : conduite sûre, prévention des accidents, protection en cas d'accident et sécurité après un accident. Ce cadre examine la manière dont un véhicule assiste le conducteur avant une collision, contribue à éviter un choc, protège les occupants et les autres usagers de la route lors d'un choc, et facilite les opérations de secours après une collision.

L'AION UT a obtenu un score de 66 % pour la conduite sûre, 74 % pour la prévention des collisions, 91 % pour la protection en cas de collision et 88 % pour la sécurité après une collision. L'Euro NCAP a attribué cinq étoiles à ce modèle en fonction de ses performances globales sur ces quatre étapes.

Résultats détaillés

En matière de protection en cas de collision, l'Euro NCAP a conclu que tous les occupants bénéficiaient d'une protection « bonne » ou « suffisante » lors de l'essai de collision frontale décalée. Les deux mannequins d'enfants assis à l'arrière ont bénéficié d'une bonne protection et ont obtenu le maximum de points. Lors de l'essai de collision frontale à pleine largeur, le niveau de protection s'est révélé bon ou satisfaisant dans la plupart des zones. L'AION UT a obtenu la note maximale lors des essais de collision latérale contre un poteau, y compris lors de l'évaluation du côté opposé. Un airbag central est installé afin de limiter le contact entre les occupants des sièges avant en cas de collision latérale.

L'évaluation des systèmes de prévention des collisions a porté sur les fonctions de freinage d'urgence autonome et d'aide au maintien de la voie du véhicule, dans divers scénarios impliquant des véhicules, des motos, des piétons et des cyclistes. L'Euro NCAP a souligné que le système de freinage d'urgence autonome avait donné de bons résultats dans de nombreux scénarios de test complexes. L'AION UT est équipé de série d'un système d'aide au maintien de la trajectoire en cas d'urgence, d'un système de surveillance des angles morts, d'un système de freinage d'urgence autonome en marche arrière et d'un système conçu pour aider à prévenir les incidents impliquant des cyclistes lors de l'ouverture des portières.

Les essais après collision portaient notamment sur les informations relatives au sauvetage, la disponibilité du système eCall et le fonctionnement du véhicule après une immersion dans l'eau. L'Euro NCAP a indiqué que les vitres latérales pouvaient rester actionnables électriquement pendant plus de deux minutes après l'immersion.

Pour plus d'informations sur GAC, rendez-vous sur https://www.gacgroup.com/en-eu/.

Pour connaître le verdict de l'évaluation d'AION UT : rendez-vous sur https://www.euroncap.com/assessments/aion/ut/1236/

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