Bluefin announced a strategic partnership with Authvia, a pioneer in conversational commerce technology. Through the partnership, Authvia’s flagship product, TXT2PAY®, is now available via Bluefin’s PayConex™ payment platform, bringing fast, secure, app-free payments to messaging channels including SMS, RCS, and email. Authvia’s TXT2PAY® enables businesses to request and receive PCI-compliant, tokenized payments directly within a message thread. Customers simply receive a payment link by text, click, and complete their payment securely in seconds. This frictionless process reduces barriers to payment, improves cash flow, and enhances the customer experience with real-time engagement and conversion. The solution leverages Bluefin’s PCI-validated security framework, including vaultless tokenization and encryption, ensuring that payment card data never touches the merchant’s systems. “This partnership bridges secure commerce and consumer behavior in the most seamless way possible,” said Chris Brunner, CEO of Authvia. “People text constantly, and now with TXT2PAY® through PayConex™, they can complete payments, approvals, and even tips within the same thread. It’s a powerful way to drive engagement, satisfaction, and revenue.”
Chainlink partners Mastercard to create a unified, compliant and intuitive UX to enable cardholders worldwide to purchase crypto assets directly on-chain through a secure and interoperable fiat-to-crypto conversion
Chainlink announced a new partnership with Mastercard to securely enable payment cardholders worldwide to easily purchase crypto assets directly onchain through a secure fiat-to-crypto conversion. This breakthrough is powered by Chainlink’s secure interoperability infrastructure and Mastercard’s trusted global payments network, removing long-standing barriers that have kept mainstream users from accessing the onchain economy. zerohash provides the onchain service and liquidity needed to convert fiat into crypto with seamless smart contract execution. Additional integration support comes from Shift4 Payments, Swapper Finance, and XSwap to deliver a next generation app experience, which utilizes the Uniswap protocol. Swapper Finance leverages XSwap, the leading DEX built out of the Chainlink ecosystem that uses the Chainlink standard for data and interoperability, via an integration between zerohash and Shift4 Payments. zerohash provides the core compliance, custody, and transaction infrastructure, making it possible to convert fiat into crypto for smart contract consumption in a regulated manner. Shift4 enables seamless card processing, while XSwap sources liquidity from decentralized exchanges like the Uniswap protocol, enabling the final execution of swaps onchain. Together, these technologies create a unified, compliant, and intuitive user experience that brings crypto access directly to mainstream payment cardholders. Bringing zerohash, Shift4 Payments, Swapper Finance, and XSwap technologies together with the Chainlink standard and the power of the Mastercard network allows large amounts of previously hard to access value to now be leveraged for executing transactions onchain.
Paycode taps Algorand’s blockchain to migrate its digital payment infrastructure on-chain for offering secure, inclusive payments at scale to underserved and remote communities through offline-first payment systems
The Algorand Foundation announced a new strategic partnership with Paycode to advance inclusive financial infrastructure across underserved and remote communities. Through this collaboration, Paycode and Algorand will explore integrating public blockchain technology to strengthen digital identity systems, improve transparency, and unlock new models for delivering secure, inclusive payments at scale. As part of the partnership, Paycode has selected Algorand as the blockchain to migrate its digital payment infrastructure on-chain, leveraging Algorand’s high speed, security, and energy efficiency to power future offline-first payment systems. Paycode’s technology is currently used by more than 6 million individuals across 8 countries, many of whom live in offline, remote, and underserved regions. To date, Paycode has facilitated the secure disbursement of $250m in aid and social payments, helping drive financial inclusion through biometric identity, offline digital wallets, and real-time payments. The two organisations will work together to host elements of Paycode’s digital payment infrastructure on the Algorand blockchain, with a focus on supporting transparent disbursement of aid, integrating stablecoin-based settlement mechanisms, and building resilient, offline-first financial tools. The partnership reflects a shared mission to deliver systems that are scalable, interoperable, and secure, even in regions with little or no connectivity.
Increasingly, enterprise customers are systematically rejecting single-vendor AI strategies in favor of multi-model approaches that match specific LLMs to targeted use cases.
Armand Ruiz, VP of AI Platform at IBM detailed how Big Blue is thinking about generative AI and how its enterprise users are actually deploying the technology. A key theme that Ruiz emphasized is that at this point, it’s not about choosing a single LLM provider or technology. Increasingly, enterprise customers are systematically rejecting single-vendor AI strategies in favor of multi-model approaches that match specific LLMs to targeted use cases. IBM has its own open-source AI models with the Granite family, but it is not positioning that technology as the only choice, or even the right choice for all workloads. This enterprise behavior is driving IBM to position itself not as a foundation model competitor, but as what Ruiz referred to as a control tower for AI workloads. IBM’s response to this market reality is a newly released model gateway that provides enterprises with a single API to switch between different LLMs while maintaining observability and governance across all deployments. The technical architecture allows customers to run open-source models on their own inference stack for sensitive use cases while simultaneously accessing public APIs like AWS Bedrock or Google Cloud’s Gemini for less critical applications. “That gateway is providing our customers a single layer with a single API to switch from one LLM to another LLM and add observability and governance all throughout,” Ruiz said. The company has developed ACP (Agent Communication Protocol) and contributed it to the Linux Foundation. ACP is a competitive effort to Google’s Agent2Agent (A2A) protocol which was contributed by Google to the Linux Foundation. The agent orchestration protocols provide standardized ways for AI systems to interact across different platforms and vendors. IBM’s real-world deployment data suggests several critical shifts for enterprise AI strategy: Abandon chatbot-first thinking: Organizations should identify complete workflows for transformation rather than adding conversational interfaces to existing systems. The goal is to eliminate human steps, not improve human-computer interaction. Architect for multi-model flexibility: Rather than committing to single AI providers, enterprises need integration platforms that enable switching between models based on use case requirements while maintaining governance standards. Invest in communication standards: Organizations should prioritize AI tools that support emerging protocols like MCP, ACP, and A2A rather than proprietary integration approaches that create vendor lock-in.
Google announced its open-source Gemini-CLI that brings natural language command execution directly to developer terminals, offering extensibility architecture, built around the emerging MCP standard
Google announced its open-source Gemini-CLI that brings natural language command execution directly to developer terminals. Beyond natural language, it brings the power of Google’s Gemini Pro 2.5 — and it does it mostly for free. The free tier provides 60 model requests per minute and 1,000 requests per day at no charge, limits that Google deliberately set above typical developer usage patterns. The tool is open source under the Apache 2.0 license. While Gemini CLI is mostly free, OpenAI and Anthropic’s tools are not. Google senior staff software engineer Taylor Mullen noted that many users will not use OpenAI Codex or Claude code for just any task, as it carries a cost. Another key differentiator for Gemini CLI lies in its extensibility architecture, built around the emerging Model Context Protocol (MCP) standard. This approach lets developers connect external services and add new capabilities and positions the tool as a platform rather than a single-purpose application. The extensibility model includes three layers: Built-in MCP server support, bundled extensions that combine MCP servers with configuration files and custom Gemini.md files for project-specific customization. This architecture allows individual developers to tailor their experience while enabling teams to standardize workflows across projects. If an organization wants to run multiple Gemini CLI agents in parallel, or if there are specific policy, governance or data residency requirements, a paid API key comes in. The key could be for access to Google Vertex AI, which provides commercial access to a series of models including, but not limited to, Gemini Pro 2.5. Gemini CLI operates as a local agent with built-in security measures that address common concerns about AI command execution. The system requires explicit user confirmation for each command, with options to “allow once,” “always allow” or deny specific operations. The tool’s security model includes multiple layers of protection. Users can use native macOS Seatbelt support for sandboxing, run the agent in Docker or Podman containers, and route all network traffic through proxies for inspection. The open-source nature under Apache 2.0 licensing allows complete code auditing.
BitGo partners with Reown to enable direct access to DeFi, DAO governance, and trading protocols through a single, secure interface bringing together BitGo’s enterprise-grade security controls with Reown’s fast, scalable connectivity layer
BitGo announced the launch of its WalletConnect integration powered by Reown’s WalletKit SDK, enabling institutions to securely access decentralized applications (dApps) and the broader DeFi ecosystem directly from BitGo’s self-custody hot wallets. The integration enables direct access to DeFi, DAO governance, and trading protocols through a single, secure interface. It brings together BitGo’s enterprise-grade security controls with Reown’s fast, scalable connectivity layer. What You Can Do—All Directly From Your BitGo Self-Custody Wallet: Supply or borrow assets via leading DeFi protocols; Vote in governance proposals across supported DAOs; Access perpetual trading; Swap tokens on AMMs like Uniswap. These capabilities allow institutional clients to deploy capital, participate in protocol operations, and execute onchain strategies—all without leaving BitGo’s custody framework. No asset movement required: Interact with DeFi protocols while keeping assets in your self-custody BitGo wallet; Maintain enterprise-grade security: All transactions are governed by BitGo’s policy engine and access controls; Streamlined experience: Secure, fast, and intuitive access to dApps through WalletConnect—without the need for custom integrations.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are ordered by FHFA to consider crypto as asset for mortgages
U.S. Federal Housing FHFA Director William J. Pulte has ordered Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to consider cryptocurrency as an asset for single-family mortgage loan risk assessments. Pulte said he ordered the change because cryptocurrency may offer an opportunity to build wealth outside of the stock and bond markets, cryptocurrency has not typically been considered in the mortgage risk assessment process, and the consideration of additional borrower assets in that process “may enable the Enterprises to assess the full spectrum of asset information available for reserves and to facilitate sustainable homeownership to creditworthy borrowers.” The order directs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to each prepare a proposal for making this change to their single-family mortgage loan risk assessments, consider only cryptocurrency assets that are stored on a U.S.-regulated centralized exchange, and consider additional risk mitigators. “Prior to implementing any changes, each Enterprise must submit and receive approval from its Board of Directors prior to submitting to U.S. Federal Housing FHFA for review,” the order said. Pulte said that his department would review whether crypto holdings should affect Americans’ mortgage applications.
Taco Bell accepting PayPal, Venmo for online and mobile payment, promoted with a limited-time deal to receive 20% cash back on any purchase over $5 with a $10 cash back maximum per purchase.
Taco Bell now allows customers to pay via PayPal or Venmo. In addition, Taco Bell is offering customers who check out with PayPal in its app or website a limited-time deal to receive 20% cash back on any purchase over $5 with a $10 cash back maximum per purchase. Customers can tap to save the exclusive offer, available until Thursday, July 31, 2025, in the PayPal app, and the cash back will apply with weekly redemption when they pay with PayPal for their order. To take advantage of this promotion, customers can download the PayPal app and save the Taco Bell offer in the Deals tab. They then place their order in the Taco Bell app or website and use PayPal to check out. Once the purchase is complete, cash back will be added to the customer’s PayPal account. Whether for credit, debit or balance, customers can select PayPal or Venmo as their default payment option in the Taco Bell app for ease of use every time they place a Taco Bell order. In addition, PayPal Debit Mastercard customers can earn an additional 5% cash back on top if they choose restaurants as their monthly PayPal Debit Mastercard cash back category.
Walmart is testing the use of dark stores (smaller warehouses that are closed to the public) to provide faster delivery amid improvement in batch density and increased penetration of paid expedited delivery orders
Walmart is reportedly testing the use of dark stores to provide faster delivery to customers. The company has opened a dark store in Dallas, plans to add one in Bentonville, Arkansas, and is considering adding more locations. Dark stores are smaller warehouses that are closed to the public and carry popular items in order to support a wider delivery radius and faster deliveries to customers. Walmart opened a few such stores in the mid-2010s but closed them after the pandemic. The company said in November that consumers were showing resilience while prioritizing delivery speed and convenience. Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said that the company’s eCommerce margins were benefiting from its delivery densification, increased penetration of paid expedited delivery orders, and automation of the supply chain. “As we scale our store-fulfilled delivery business, we’ve seen significant improvement in batch density with orders per delivery up 20%,” Rainey said. “In addition, the popularity of expedited delivery has resulted in more than 30% of orders coming from customers and members that elected to pay a convenience fee to receive their delivery in less than one hour or less than three hours.”
Birdeye’s AI Publishing Agent auto-generates and auto-schedules brand-aligned and industry-specific content across all locations for weeks by drawing on insights from top-performing posts, competitors’ social activity, and upcoming local holidays and events
Birdeye unveiled its Social AI Publishing Agent, a first-of-its-kind innovation built for Hyperlocal brands ready to dominate on social media. Powered by BirdAI, including the newly launched Brand AI and Industry AI engines, this intelligent agent doesn’t just assist with content planning — it does the job. While traditional tools leave marketers staring at blank calendars and scrambling to create and schedule posts, Birdeye’s Social AI Agent auto-generates and auto-schedules brand-aligned content across all locations for weeks, before you even log in. specific content, your competitors’ social activity, and upcoming local holidays and events, the publishing agent auto-generates weeks worth of social content right on your social calendar. The publishing agent offers businesses multiple configuration options, including post frequency, theme, channel selection, and post time. Depending on the organization’s preference, the agent can share posts as drafts on the calendar, send for approval, or publish autonomously. Brand AI ensures every post reflects the brand’s unique voice, tone, compliance guardrails and visual identity. Industry AI tailors content to the specific nuances of each company’s vertical, local trends, and audience preferences. Together, these proprietary models enable Social AI to auto-generate and schedule content that’s not only on-brand, but also highly relevant and effective. With Birdeye’s AI Agent, marketing teams can finally: Eliminate hours of manual planning; Keep every location’s social feed fresh and consistent; Scale brand engagement without scaling headcount.