Mastercard and PayPal have partnered to co-develop features using Mastercard’s One Credential, a solution that enables consumers to use a single credential when shopping online or in-store. The companies aim to use this solution to give consumers more choice and control over how they pay at checkout, allowing them to access multiple payment options. One Credential can also help PayPal users improve their creditworthiness and progress from debit to installments and other structured credit. “We both want to reduce friction for consumers and bring them more power over how they pay,” Chris Sweetland, senior vice president of partnerships at PayPal, said. Bunita Sawhney, chief consumer product officer at Mastercard, said that the partnership with PayPal will build on “our collective strength of global payments innovation. With One Credential, we’re delivering the personalized digital experiences that build consumer confidence and trust.” Mastercard’s One Credential will allow consumers to choose to pay with debit, installments, prepaid or credit. Users can set their preferences online or in an app. They can also set preferences based on transaction type and time. For example, users can specify their checking account for expenses under $100, their credit card for expenses over $100 and installments for occasional larger purchases. Mastercard is now rolling out One Credential as a network-level capability worldwide.
Phonely’s conversational AI agents reduce response times by more than 70% the awkward delays that immediately signal to callers they’re talking to a machine
A three-way partnership between AI phone support company Phonely, inference optimization platform Maitai, and chip maker Groq has achieved a breakthrough that addresses one of conversational AI’s most persistent problems: the awkward delays that immediately signal to callers they’re talking to a machine. The collaboration has enabled Phonely to reduce response times by more than 70% while simultaneously boosting accuracy from 81.5% to 99.2% across four model iterations, surpassing GPT-4o’s 94.7% benchmark by 4.5 percentage points. The improvements stem from Groq’s new capability to instantly switch between multiple specialized AI models without added latency, orchestrated through Maitai’s optimization platform. The system works by collecting performance data from every interaction, identifying weak points, and iteratively improving the models without customer intervention. “Since Maitai sits in the middle of the inference flow, we collect strong signals identifying where models underperform,” Matai founder Christian DalSanto explained. “These ‘soft spots’ are clustered, labeled, and incrementally fine-tuned to address specific weaknesses without causing regressions.” The performance gains translate directly to business outcomes. “One of our biggest customers saw a 32% increase in qualified leads as compared to a previous version using previous state-of-the-art models,” Will Bodewes, Phonely’s founder and CEO noted. For call centers and customer service operations, the implications could be transformative: one of Phonely’s customers is replacing 350 human agents this month alone.
Fintech OneBanx’s APIs enable banks to integrate cash deposit and withdrawal capabilities into their mobile banking apps via OneBanx kiosks
UK-based fintech OneBanx is integrating cash deposit and withdrawal capabilities into partner banks’ mobile apps, aiming to bridge the gap between digital banking and physical cash access. The company is developing secure APIs to enable customers to initiate and complete cash deposits and withdrawals from OneBanx kiosks using their existing mobile banking apps. This integration complements existing digital payment solutions, providing a more comprehensive service offering. OneBanx’s joint white paper with Enryo highlights the importance of a long-term strategic approach for cash users. Benefits for Banks and Their Customers : Enhanced Customer Experience: Customers can enjoy a unified banking experience, managing their finances and accessing cash through a single, familiar platform. Increased Digital Engagement: Introducing cash access features within bank apps can serve as a gateway for customers who are less digitally active, encouraging gradual adoption of digital banking services. Cost-Effective Infrastructure: Banks can extend their service reach without the overhead of maintaining traditional branch networks, leveraging OneBanx’s kiosk infrastructure.
CSI partners digital engagement provider WaveCX to enable banks to deliver tailored marketing, tutorials and educational experiences based on user behavior directly within their banking apps
WaveCX, provider of personalized, digital product engagement solutions for financial institutions, announced a strategic partnership with CSI, provider of end-to-end financial software and technology. Through this integration, CSI clients using the NuPoint® and Meridian® core platforms are equipped to increase digital adoption and deliver more dynamic customer experiences directly within their banking applications. The partnership opens new possibilities for customer engagement within digital banking environments, allowing financial institutions to go beyond traditional marketing channels. With WaveCX, CSI clients can now: Deliver tailored in-app marketing and educational experiences based on user behavior; Promote awareness and adoption of underutilized digital features; Proactively guide users with contextual messages, tutorials and announcements at the point of need. Jon Tvrdik, CEO of WaveCX “By reaching users directly inside the app, banks and credit unions can increase adoption, improve education, and ultimately drive stronger engagement and loyalty.”
Trust3 AI’s customizable guardrails, integrate with Snowflake RBAC mitigating prompt injection, unauthorized access, and sensitive data exposure
Trust3 AI has unveiled its innovative AI trust layer, focused on improving Cortex AI adoption and providing enterprises with robust tools to address challenges in scaling and managing AI systems. Available as a native app on Snowflake, Trust3 AI key components include—Trust3 IQ, Trust3 Visibility, and Trust3 Guard. Together, these features create a groundbreaking platform that simplifies semantic layer building, enhances contextual understanding, and ensures AI systems’ reliable and secure operation at scale. Trust3 IQ unifies structured and unstructured datasets, delivering a unified semantic layer that bolsters accuracy and enhances retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and Cortex agents. Offering a significant increase in reliability of conversational AI, Trust3 IQ accelerates AI adoption across multiple industries. Through Trust3 Visibility, enterprises gain real-time observability for all AI assets built on Snowflake and other platforms, enabling teams to measure, catalog, and govern systems effectively. This governance layer provides critical oversight for system behavior, ownership, and performance, mitigating risks related to security, legal and operational efficiency. Additionally, Trust3 Guard powers dynamic, context-aware security controls to safeguard structured and unstructured data. Its customizable guardrails, integrated with Snowflake RBAC and guardrails, mitigate risks such as prompt injection, unauthorized access, and sensitive data exposure, ensuring operational trust and compliance. Trust3 AI accelerates AI adoption and builds trust with end users by: Building enterprise context faster with intelligent metadata and semantic models; Delivering real-time observability for proactive risk mitigation; and Enhancing operational efficiency and reducing AI costs with adaptive controls.
Postman looks to streamline API and agentic AI development with Agent Mode that automates API design, testing, documentation, and monitoring through natural language inputs
Postman Inc. is rolling out a suite of AI-driven features aimed at transforming API development. The company’s latest introduction, Agent Mode, automates API design, testing, documentation, and monitoring through natural language inputs. This feature acts as a fully capable execution agent, streamlining development workflows and reducing manual effort. Beyond Agent Mode, Postman is enhancing real-time API observability, enterprise-ready integrations, and support for the Model Context Protocol (MCP), which standardizes the way AI agents interact with third-party tools. Developers will soon have the ability to create their own AI agents and deploy them in their workspaces, improving efficiency in both daily engineering tasks and broader operations. One standout addition is Postman Insights, which provides real-time tracking for API usage, failure patterns, and proactive debugging. The Repo Mode feature further simplifies testing, allowing developers to reproduce API failures for easier troubleshooting. Meanwhile, integration with the Model Context Protocol enables APIs to function as callable agent tools, generate MCP servers, and connect with Postman’s newly launched MCP server network. The company is also introducing workflow integrations designed to accelerate API delivery and shorten development cycles. The integration with GitHub enables real-time collection synchronization and branch-based governance, while Jira supports context-aware issue tracking. Postman is strengthening collaboration among developer teams by linking its platform with Slack and Microsoft Teams.
Palantir and fintech Bolt partner for Checkout 2.0 that delivers personalized flows that evolve with the user—prioritizing preferred payment methods, remembering prior selections and surfacing relevant information at just the right time
Bolt and Palantir have partnered to usher in a new era of intelligent ecommerce checkout—one that’s personalized, dynamic and deeply informed by data. Checkout 2.0, a self-learning, self-improving checkout, replaces static, form-based flows with an adaptive, real-time system that responds to each shopper’s unique preferences, behaviors and context. Rather than displaying the same interface to every shopper, Checkout 2.0 delivers personalized flows that evolve with the user—prioritizing preferred payment methods, remembering prior selections and surfacing relevant information at just the right time. Bolt will leverage Palantir’s platform to help scale Checkout 2.0 across enterprise retailers and expand it within Bolt’s recently launched SuperApp—an all-in-one finance and crypto hub that delivers real-time shopper signals. As both platforms evolve, Checkout 2.0 will bring deeper personalization and intelligence to every phase of the buying journey. Through this partnership, Bolt will integrate Palantir’s advanced decisioning engine to dynamically adapt checkout flows and enable smarter, contextually aware logic. Merchants will also benefit from intelligent post-checkout payment routing. Checkout 2.0 will evaluate transaction attributes—such as volume, category or geography—and select the optimal payment gateway to maximize authorization rates and reduce processing costs. This behind-the-scenes intelligence delivers better margins and a smoother experience. Checkout 2.0’s architecture includes: Self-learning shopper profiles that adapt over time based on usage, behavior and purchase history; Dynamic payment method reordering based on shopper preferences and device; Post-checkout routing optimization to improve processing economics in real time; Native crypto payment support.
New Automated Underwriting System (AUS) purpose-built for the Non-QM lending market shifts underwriting decisions to the start of the loan lifecycle by using verified borrower data and aligning directly with investor-specific guidelines
Prudent AI has launched the industry’s first Upfront Automated Underwriting System (AUS) purpose-built for the Non-QM lending market. The new system shifts underwriting decisions to the start of the loan lifecycle by using verified borrower data and aligning directly with investor-specific guidelines, enabling lenders and brokers to scale confidently with fewer exceptions and greater certainty. Prudent AI’s Upfront AUS introduces a fundamental shift: moving critical underwriting logic upstream, where it can deliver the highest impact — enabling faster, cleaner, and more compliant decisions before loans enter underwriting queues. Purpose-Built for Modern Lending Prudent AI’s Upfront AUS: Uses verified income, credit, and asset data at submission; Applies investor-specific guidelines; Assess eligibility and conditions to clear; Offers a dual-phase review: upfront qualification and downstream consistency; Is built from the ground up to support the complexity and flexibility of Non-QM lending. Real Impact for TPOs and Lenders include: TPOs benefit from faster submissions, fewer conditions, and clearer investor alignment; Lenders gain efficiency, reduce rework, and expand underwriting capacity without adding headcount; Operational teams get cleaner data pipelines and scalable exception management.
Uber adds a new type of account with a simpler UI for the elderly with features like ride updates for family members, saved destinations, and the ability to use a family member’s card for payments
Uber revealed a new type of account, called Senior Accounts, for older users that prioritizes a simpler app experience with features like ride updates for family members, saved destinations, and the ability to use a family member’s card for payments. Uber said Senior Accounts present a simpler app experience with larger text and icons, as well as less complex screens. Users can switch this mode on using the accessibility settings in the app. Users in the U.S. can now add older adults to their family account via the “Family” menu under the Accounts tab. Users who manage the family account can add their own payment methods, edit the list of saved destinations, book a ride for older adults, and contact drivers during a ride. People in the family group can also follow senior users’ rides. Uber said senior users can add their Medicare Flex card to pay for eligible medical visits. The company said it plans to make Senior Accounts available worldwide, though it didn’t specify when the feature would roll out to other countries. Uber added teen accounts in a few cities in the U.S. in 2023 and later rolled it out to more regions and countries.
Clearstream partners Azimut to develop DLT-based private funds solution – providing broader access to private market strategies, along with a liquidity option that will allow investors to unlock the illiquidity premium embedded in private asset portfolios
Deutsche Börse’s Clearstream announced a new DLT-based solution for private market funds that it developed in conjunction with asset manager Azimut. It leverages the funds distribution platform, FundsDLT, that Clearstream acquired in late 2023. Azimut was the very first asset manager to use FundsDLT. A key goal of the DLT platform from the beginning was to reduce costs through automation and enable greater transparency. It supports the permissioned sharing of information between the asset manager, distributor and client investor, including regular reporting and asset servicing. Clearstream said it now offers a new account model that supports multiple investor portfolios under a single Clearstream Custody account. For example, this might cater to wealth managers and their clients. This structure “enables Azimut to access anonymized, detailed insights into the portfolios of individual investors.” Giorgio Medda, CEO of Azimut Holding said, “This innovative platform will provide broader access to private market strategies, along with a liquidity option that will allow investors to unlock the illiquidity premium embedded in private asset portfolios.” “By leveraging Azimut’s expertise and our robust technology, we aim to set new standards, while maintaining the highest levels of security, compliance and investor trust,” said Philippe Seyll, CEO of Clearstream Fund Services.