Connected Economy news and trends

Meta Launches AI-Powered Ray-Bans for Users in Europe
Meta // November 18, 2024

Meta AI says its Ray-Ban smartglasses are now available in four European countries. Beginning Monday (Nov. 18), users in France, Spain, Ireland and Italy can use these artificial intelligence (AI)-powered glasses to get answers to questions, with those responses now available in French, Italian and...

Straight Outta Stealth: Connyct Builds Social Media for the Next Generation
Connected Economy // November 18, 2024

It’s hard to believe it was more than 20 years ago. Feb. 4, 2004. George W. Bush was president. The Lord of the Rings ruled the movie box office. “Hey Ya!” ruled the top 40. And in Cambridge a sophomore named Mark Zuckerberg registered the URL...

Shopify’s Surge Can’t Keep CE 100 Index From Slipping 1.5%
Connected Economy // November 18, 2024

The scorching post-election rally that lifted stocks across all market capitalizations and verticals paused this past week. Even post-earning surges in select CE 100 names were not enough to lift the overall index, which slipped 1.5%. Eight of the 11 pillars lost ground, along with...

The Mantra This Week in B2B: Integrate, Automate and Secure
News // November 14, 2024

Today’s B2B businesses want digital solutions to deliver efficiency without compromising on security. While that may be a tall order, modern solutions aimed at everything from smarter cash flow tools to fraud-busting artificial intelligence (AI) systems are increasingly delivering it. It’s now a digital-first world,...

Interviews & Exclusives
Straight Outta Stealth: Connyct Builds Social Media for the Next Generation

November 18, 2024
It’s hard to believe it was more than 20 years ago. Feb. 4, 2004. George W. Bush was president. The Lord of the Rings ruled the movie box office. “Hey Ya!” ruled the top 40. And in Cambridge a sophomore named Mark Zuckerberg registered the URL for TheFacebook.com. You know the rest. And so do David […]

Shopify’s Surge Can’t Keep CE 100 Index From Slipping 1.5%

November 18, 2024
The scorching post-election rally that lifted stocks across all market capitalizations and verticals paused this past week. Even post-earning surges in select CE 100 names were not enough to lift...

Apple’s AI-Powered Smart Home Hub May Be Able to Order Groceries

November 14, 2024
Apple’s reported upcoming artificial intelligence (AI)-powered display, launching as early as March, could shake up the connected device market by giving the tech giant its first central command center to drive...

Panel: Small Businesses Want Control, Automation Gives It to Them

November 13, 2024
Small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) have historically faced outsized challenges relative to their own footprint. From managing ever-growing tech stacks to optimizing cash flow amidst economic volatility, SMBs already have...

Quick Reads
Meta Launches AI-Powered Ray-Bans for Users in Europe

November 18, 2024
Meta AI says its Ray-Ban smartglasses are now available in four European countries. Beginning Monday (Nov. 18), users in France, Spain, Ireland and Italy can use these artificial intelligence (AI)-powered glasses to get answers to questions, with those responses now available in French, Italian and Spanish, as well as in English. “With Meta AI on […]

Google Rolls Out Gemini AI Offerings for the iPhone

November 14, 2024
Google has brought its Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) offering to the iPhone. The company’s app now lets users access Google’s Gemini Live voice assistant as well as its premium image...

Ahold Delhaize Reports Breach at Pharmacy and eCommerce

November 11, 2024
Grocery giant Ahold Delhaize said Friday (Nov. 8) that it detected a cybersecurity issue within its U.S. network and that some Ahold Delhaize USA brands and services were affected when the...

Meta Testing Experiential Retail to Sell Ray-Ban Smart Glasses

November 11, 2024
Meta is promoting its Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses at a Meta Lab pop-up store in Los Angeles that lets visitors experience the glasses firsthand. The temporary brick-and-mortar store at 8600 Melrose Avenue...