Thomson Reuters has launched an AI platform designed to help professionals automate complex workflows. The platform — Agentic Intelligence — integrates with professional applications to plan, reason and act across tasks while maintaining audit trails and data controls. The launch also includes a new tool, CoCounsel for Tax, developed for tax, audit and accounting professionals. It connects internal knowledge, regulatory materials and firm-specific data into a single workspace. Early users report gains in speed and accuracy. Accounting firm BLISS 1041 used the system to reduce residency and filing code reviews from several days to under an hour. CoCounsel for Tax is now available in the U.S., with expanded features and geographies expected by year-end. The company said Agentic Intelligence draws on more than 20 billion proprietary and public documents and is supported by 4,500 subject matter experts. It leverages recent investments in AI infrastructure and partnerships with OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Cloud and AWS. The next product, Ready to Review, will focus on tax return preparation. Thomson Reuters plans to expand the platform into legal, compliance and risk sectors in 2025.
Anthropic’s new feature update to enable Claude to incorporate data from SaaS applications into its prompt responses while its Research tool to allow preparing detailed reports about user-specified topics with more thorough analysis
Anthropic updated Claude with a feature called Integrations that will enable the chatbot to access data from third-party cloud services. The company rolled out the capability alongside an enhanced version of Research, a tool it introduced last month. The latter feature enables Claude to prepare detailed reports about user-specified topics. Research can now perform the task more thoroughly than before. The new Integrations capability will enable Claude to incorporate data from software-as-a-service applications into its prompt responses. If customers wish to connect Claude to an application for which a prepackaged integration isn’t available, they can build their own. Anthropic estimates that the process takes as little as 30 minutes. According to the company, developers can further speed up the workflow by using a set of tools that Cloudflare introduced in March to ease such projects. Claude’s new connectors are powered by MCP, a data transfer technology that Anthropic open-sourced. It provides software building blocks that reduce the amount of work involved in connecting a LLM to external applications. OpenAI, Anthropic’s top competitor, rolled out MCP support to its Agents SDK last month. Anthropic added MCP to Claude immediately after open-sourcing the technology last year. Until now, however, the chatbot only supported connections to applications installed on the user’s computer, which limited the feature’s usefulness.
Postman’s agent framework enables developers to build AI agents by discovering the right APIs and LLMs, evaluating them across providers and testing them, and keeping them running reliably
In this exclusive episode of DEMO, Keith Shaw discusses the platform Postman, the world’s leading API collaboration platform. Postman is designed for developers and enterprises to build intelligent AI agents, simplifying the agent-building process, reducing platform sprawl, and unlocking the full potential of APIs and large language models. One key benefit of Postman is its suite to discover the right APIs and LLMs to use in agents, allowing users to test functionality, integrate, and build through the Flows experience all in one platform. Postman leverages internal APIs and connects to hundreds of thousands of public APIs, enabling agents to access tools like Slack, Notion, UPS, and more. The agent framework involves building agents, discovering APIs and models, evaluating and testing them, and keeping them running reliably. Postman’s core workspace includes a made-up company called ShelfWise, which stores all APIs used by the company. Postman supports multiple protocols like HTTP, GraphQL, and gRPC, and has introduced a new request type: LLMs. With the rise of AI, Postman offers options like OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic. Postman also allows users to evaluate multiple models across providers using a collection runner, which can be run manually or integrated into their CI/CD pipeline. It also provides visualization tools to help teams make smarter decisions. Postman AI Agent Builder is available on postman.com, where users can find collections, examples, and Flows to fork and use right away.
Fifth Third Bank is surprising families with babies born at certain hospitals in Detroit on May 3 with a special voucher to open a college savings account
Fifth Third Bank announced that it is surprising families with babies born at certain hospitals in Detroit on May 3 with a special voucher to open a college savings account. Each year, Fifth Third celebrates May 3 (5/3) with community service and giving activities. According to the bank, this year, they are bringing the program to Detroit and partnering with the hospitals affiliated with Henry Ford Health, Detroit Medical Center and McLaren Health. The families that have babies born on May 3 will receive a $1,053 voucher for a 529 College Savings Plan, a DoorDash gift card and baby gifts, the bank says. Local labor and delivery nurses will also receive gifts. The bank will also do the giveaways at hospitals in Fort Myers and Naples, Florida.
IBM’s hybrid technologies enable businesses to build and deploy AI agents with their own enterprise data- offering Agent Catalog in watsonx Orchestrate to simplify access to 150+ agents
IBM is unveiling new hybrid technologies that break down the longstanding barriers to scaling enterprise AI – enabling businesses to build and deploy AI agents with their own enterprise data. IBM is providing a comprehensive suite of enterprise-ready agent capabilities in watsonx Orchestrate to help businesses put them into action. The portfolio includes: 1) Build-your-own-agent in under five minutes, with tooling that makes it easier to integrate, customize and deploy agents built on any framework – from no-code to pro-code tools for any kind of user. 2) Pre-built domain agents specialized in areas like HR, sales and procurement – with utility agents for simpler actions like web research and calculations. 3) Integration with 80+ leading enterprise applications from providers like Adobe, AWS, Microsoft, Oracle, Salesforce Agentforce, SAP, ServiceNow, and Workday. 4) Agent orchestration to handle the multi-agent, multi-tool coordination needed to tackle complex projects like planning workflows and routing tasks to the right AI tools across vendors. 5) Agent observability for performance monitoring, guardrails, model optimization, and governance across the entire agent lifecycle. IBM is also introducing the new Agent Catalog in watsonx Orchestrate to simplify access to 150+ agents and pre-built tools from both IBM and its wide ecosystem of partners. IBM is also introducing webMethods Hybrid Integration5, a next-generation solution that replaces rigid workflows with intelligent and agent-driven automation. It will help users manage the sprawl of integrations across apps, APIs, B2B partners, events, gateways, and file transfers in hybrid cloud environments.
IBM watsonx to support enterprise-grade AI solutions at the edge with Lumen’s edge network offering <5ms latency
Lumen and IBM announced a new collaboration to develop enterprise-grade AI solutions at the edge—integrating watsonx, IBM’s portfolio of AI products, with Lumen’s Edge Cloud infrastructure and network. The new AI inferencing solutions optimized for the edge will deploy IBM watsonx technology in Lumen’s edge data centers and leverage Lumen’s multi-cloud architecture, enabling clients across financial services, healthcare, manufacturing and retail to analyze massive volumes of data in near real-time to help minimize latency. This will allow enterprises to develop and deploy AI models closer to the point of data generation, facilitating smarter decision-making while maintaining data control and security, plus accelerating AI innovation. Lumen’s edge network offers <5ms latency and direct connectivity to major cloud providers and enterprise locations. When paired with IBM watsonx, the infrastructure has the potential to enable real-time AI processing, which can help mitigate costs and risks associated with public cloud dependence. IBM Consulting will act as the preferred systems integrator, supporting clients in their efforts to scale deployments, reduce their costs and fully leverage AI capabilities through their deep technology, domain, and industry expertise. The collaboration aims to solve contemporary business challenges by turning AI potential into practical, high-impact outcomes at the edge. For enterprise businesses, this can mean faster insights, lower operational costs, and a smarter path to digital innovation. Ryan Asdourian, Chief Marketing and Strategy officer at Lumen said, “By combining IBM’s AI innovation with Lumen’s powerful network edge, we’re making it easier for businesses to tap into real-time intelligence wherever their data lives, accelerate innovation, and deliver smarter, faster customer experiences.”
MuleSoft now has features to help organizations control which APIs are made available to agents in the Salesforce ecosystem
MuleSoft is an enterprise integration platform company known for its API-centric connectivity capabilities and its low-code/no-code API lifecycle management services. The company is now extending its core platform and tools to offer an increasing number of agentic AI-facing technologies. Shari Lava, senior director for AI and automation at analyst house IDC said, “MuleSoft now has features to help organizations control which APIs are made available to agents in the Salesforce ecosystem, although that capability is of course narrowed to Salesforce-specific software implementations. In addition, MuleSoft like many integration vendors has been quick to add MCP support and works with Google’s A2A protocol (an agent-to-agent communications layer), demonstrating a responsive focus on solving barriers to AI adoption in the hopes of getting more customers agent-ready.” MuleSoft has now provided support for Model Context Protocol in Beta. A new but already widely lauded technology standard, MCP is an open protocol that enables integration between large language model applications and external data, services and tools. It enables language model and agent-based applications to communicate with each other in a consistent form. With all the focus on agentic connections, MCP provides ways for LLMs to get access to the live data flowing through external systems and their executing actions via a standardized protocol layer. MuleSoft says that because LLMs need access to the API specifications, they must be annotated with metadata that the LLMs can reason with. In other words, the freedom to build custom-aligned API technologies can actually cause incongruent complexity, so MuleSoft MCP Support (Beta) addresses these challenges.
FCTI partners NCR Atleos to enable surcharge-free cash withdrawals and cash deposits at over 4,000 7-Eleven stores across the US for its issuer members and their cardholders through the Allpoint Network
NCR Atleos has partnered with FCTI, a trusted provider and partner to 7-Eleven, to bring Atleos’ Allpoint Network to more than 4,000 7-Eleven stores across the United States providing expanded, more convenient access to everyday banking transactions for its issuer members and their cardholders. By enabling Atleos’ Allpoint Network surcharge-free cash withdrawals and cash deposits at thousands of 7-Eleven stores, FCTI is fulfilling on its “ATM as a Destination” strategy aligning their services with the tools to grow consumer foot traffic at 7-Eleven’s stores. Additionally, Allpoint member issuers will continue their long-held access at over 3,000 Speedway branded store locations. “Growing foot traffic through the enhanced features and capabilities of our networked ATMs is core to FCTI’s mission,” said Masanori Sakaguchi, CEO of FCTI. “Implementing Allpoint aligns with our strategy and commitment to power the success of FCTI’s partners.” “Utility banking solutions are growing globally,” said Stuart Mackinnon, EVP & COO for Atleos. “Aligning with an established operator in FCTI presents Atleos and the Allpoint issuers we serve with significantly more endpoints to complete cash in and out transactions.”
Forward-flow funding offers a reliable way to offload credit exposure and tap into short-duration, yield-generating assets by using granular, behavior-based data to underwrite and monitor risk
Forward-flow funding is emerging as a key capital access strategy for FinTech-enabled SMB lenders, offering a structured, upfront capital commitment from investors to support continuous loan origination and efficient risk offloading. For SMB lenders, particularly those in the FinTech space, this model provides a reliable way to offload credit exposure and recycle capital quickly. For investors, it offers predictable access to loan assets under predefined terms, often backed by real-time or near-real-time performance data. The appeal of forward-flow funding lies in its structural elegance and practical utility. Rather than waiting to secure capital post-origination or bundling loans into pools for one-off sales, lenders can secure capital commitments upfront. This allows them to maintain a continuous lending cadence, a crucial advantage in markets where speed and responsiveness define customer retention. What sets FinTech-enabled forward flow apart from its traditional counterparts is the use of alternative data to underwrite and monitor risk. This granular, behavior-based data creates a dynamic risk profile for SMB borrowers, enabling forward-flow buyers to evaluate and price credit risk with unprecedented precision. In turn, this has opened the door for more agile, customizable forward-flow structures — with investors opting for specific credit boxes or sectors, and even fine-tuning risk-return profiles based on real-time triggers. Forward-flow agreements offer a way to tap into short-duration, yield-generating assets while retaining some control over credit exposure. Merchant cash advances, invoice factoring, equipment financing and revenue-based financing are all seeing similar structural integrations. As underwriting models evolve, these products are increasingly being bundled into forward-flow arrangements to cater to investors with specific sectoral or product appetites. By integrating funding at the infrastructure level, these platforms can offer seamless, data-driven credit products that scale efficiently.
Albertsons to looking to expand digital media capabilities and measurement and optimization beyond signage and marketing materials in store, now into in-store environments
According to Sean Barrett, chief marketing officer at Albertsons Cos, the grocer wants value-seeking, time-strapped consumers to be able to shop its stores and feel like they’ve made a good decision in doing so. “Retail media, and commerce marketing in general, plays a really important role to interrupt and lead that shopper with great value, great offerings, a great message that makes them feel like a smart shopper buying your brand on that shopping trip, as well as delivering them a personalized offer, for instance, so they can get great value on your product in the place that they prefer to shop, the place that they primarily shop.” When it comes to the value equation of “what you pay is what you get,” Barrett asserted that Albertsons is working closely with its brand partners and leveraging its scale to lower prices for shoppers. Relevant, personalized offers, as well as the grocer’s revamped loyalty program, are also making a positive impact on the “what you pay” side of that value equation.. The grocer is also leveraging what it knows about specific customers to offer them helpful, relevant communication that encourages them to make a purchase. That inevitably leads to in-store retail media and marketing opportunities, which Barrett said Albertsons is actively pursuing. “We’ve all done this with signage and marketing materials in store, but really that next frontier is to bring digital media capabilities and measurement and optimization into our in-store environments,” he said. Barrett also stressed the use of data to bring all of these tactics together, and of having it in one place to make it more actionable. Further, connecting data to all of its marketing channels allows Albertsons to be more personal and relevant, and thus drive convenience for customers every time it engages with them.