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Cboe Global Markets Announces Winners of the 2024 Options Institute Research Grant Program, Sponsored by S&P Dow Jones Indices and SpiderRock Advisors

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CHICAGO, July 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Cboe Global Markets, Inc. (Cboe: CBOE), the world’s leading derivatives and securities exchange network, today announced the recipients of The Options Institute Research Grant Program for 2024, sponsored by S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI) and SpiderRock Advisors. The recipients for the grant programs are as follows:

The Options Institute S&P Dow Jones Indices Fixed Income Index Ecosystem Research Grant:Siamak JavadiDr. Ali NejadmalayeriWilliam CampbellThe Options Institute SpiderRock Advisors Derivatives Solutions for Private Wealth and Institutional Investors Research GrantAnup BasuAdam Clements

The Options Institute, Cboe’s education arm, has been providing best-in-class investor education on the responsible use of options and trading strategies for more than 35 years. The Options Institute Research Grant Program supports academic research that catalyzes the understanding and advancement of derivatives usage and financial exchange marketplace structures. Recent grant topics have included the exploration of dispersion as an asset class, the impact of inflation on options markets, and retail options trading behaviors.

“Academic research plays an important role in educating market participants and shaping the conversation around our products and markets, especially as they evolve and new innovations come to the forefront,” said Alexandra Szakats, Head of The Options Institute at Cboe. “Cboe congratulates this year’s esteemed grant recipients, and we are excited to support academic research that explores how derivatives can offer opportunity to private wealth and institutional investors. We are also very interested to delve into the cross-section of indexing and the fixed income ecosystem.”

The Options Institute S&P Dow Jones Indices Fixed Income Research Grant

As recipients of The Options Institute S&P Dow Jones Indices Fixed Income Index Ecosystem Research grant, Mr. Javadi, Dr. Nejadmalayeri and Mr. Campbell will conduct research focused on price efficiency and liquidity in the fixed income index ecosystem.

Mr. Javadi, the lead researcher for the grant, is an Associate Professor of Finance at University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, and has held academic positions at Ohio University and California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. His primary research interests include corporate finance, corporate governance, climate finance and empirical asset pricing. Dr. Nejadmalayeri is the John A. Guthrie Endowed Chair in Banking and Financial Services and a Professor of Finance at the University of Wyoming College of Business. Mr. Campbell, who has over three decades of experience as a risk manager, trader and consultant to the financial industry, is a consultant and university lecturer in economics and finance at the University of IllinoisUrbanaChampaign.

“S&P Dow Jones Indices is proud of our ongoing collaboration with Cboe and to sponsor this timely and essential research on the fixed income marketplace. S&P DJI believes in the trusted and reliable performance metrics of fixed income indices and hopes that this grant only further advances the crucial role that indices serve in fixed income markets,” said Frans Scheepers, Head of Fixed Income, Currency and Commodity Products at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

The Options Institute SpiderRock Advisors Derivatives Solutions Research Grant

The Options Institute SpiderRock Advisors Derivatives Solutions for Private Wealth and Institutional Investors Research Grant, awarded to Mr. Basu and Mr. Clements, will be focused on derivatives solutions within private wealth management and institutional investing. SpiderRock Advisors, as of May 2024, is a wholly owned subsidiary of BlackRock.

Mr. Basu, a Professor of Finance at Queensland University of Technology, has many years of experience in the banking and financial services industry and will serve as the lead researcher. His previous research focused on pension economics, investment management, and investor behavior. In 2023, Mr. Basu received the Government of India’s SPARC grant for examining strategic asset allocation choices for India’s National Pension System (NPS). Mr. Clements is a Professor in Finance at Queensland University of Technology, and his main research interests include financial econometrics, nonparametric estimation, time series modelling of asset return volatility and correlation and forecast evaluation.

“SpiderRock Advisors (SRA) has always incorporated research and academic principles in our investment management philosophy and commercial offering. SRA is committed to augmenting its investment management capabilities with industry leaders to continually deliver the highest value to our clients. We look forward to working alongside Mr. Basu and Cboe to further educate investors within the growing derivatives marketplace,” said Eric Metz, President & Chief Investment Officer at SpiderRock Advisors.

Both research teams may claim Cboe historical data sets valued up to $35,000, subject to applicable terms and regulatory approvals.

About Cboe Global Markets, Inc.

Cboe Global Markets (Cboe: CBOE), the world’s leading derivatives and securities exchange network, delivers cutting-edge trading, clearing and investment solutions to people around the world. Cboe provides trading solutions and products in multiple asset classes, including equities, derivatives, FX, and digital assets, across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. Above all, we are committed to building a trusted, inclusive global marketplace that enables people to pursue a sustainable financial future. To learn more about the Exchange for the World Stage, visit www.cboe.com.

Media Contacts

Cboe Analyst Contact

Angela Tu 

Tim Cave

Kenneth Hill, CFA 

+1-646-856-8734 

+44 (0) 7593-506-719

+1-312-786-7559 

atu@cboe.com

tcave@cboe.com

khill@cboe.com

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Cboe® and Cboe Global Markets® are registered trademarks of Cboe Exchange, Inc. All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners. S&P®, iBoxx®, iTraxx® and CDX® are trademarks of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC or its affiliates.  Dow Jones® is a trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC.  

Cboe Global Markets, Inc. and its affiliates do not recommend or make any representation as to possible benefits from any securities, futures or investments, or third-party products or services. Cboe Global Markets, Inc. is not affiliated with S&P DJI and SpiderRock Advisors. Investors should undertake their own due diligence regarding their securities, futures and investment practices. This press release speaks only as of this date. Cboe disclaims any duty to update the information herein.

Nothing in this announcement should be considered a solicitation to buy or an offer to sell any securities or futures in any jurisdiction where the offer or solicitation would be unlawful under the laws of such jurisdiction.  Nothing contained in this communication constitutes tax, legal or investment advice. Investors must consult their tax adviser or legal counsel for advice and information concerning their particular situation.

Cboe Global Markets, Inc. and its affiliates, to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, make no warranty, expressed or implied, including, without limitation, any warranties as of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, completeness or timeliness, the results to be obtained by recipients of the products and services described herein, or as to the ability of the S&P DJI indexes to track the performance of the general market or any segment thereof, and shall not in any way be liable for any inaccuracies or errors. Cboe Global Markets, Inc. and its affiliates have not calculated, composed or determined the constituents or weightings of the securities that comprise the S&P DJI indexes and shall not in any way be liable for any inaccuracies or errors.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cboe-global-markets-announces-winners-of-the-2024-options-institute-research-grant-program-sponsored-by-sp-dow-jones-indices-and-spiderrock-advisors-302192429.html

SOURCE Cboe Global Markets, Inc.

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Chef Robotics Physical AI Models Can Now Automate Baked Goods Packing

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SAN FRANCISCO, April 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Chef Robotics, a leader in physical AI for the food industry, today announced that Chef robots can now automate tray assembly for baked goods packing. The application places baked products, such as burger buns, chocolate chip cookies, biscotti, butter cookies, biscuits, fortune cookies, granola bars, rusks, and shortbreads into trays and packaging containers before sealing.

Watch Chef robots in action.

Baked goods packing has historically been difficult to automate for high-mix production. Each item behaves differently on the production line—a granola bar compresses under the wrong grip, while a biscotti or rusk can crack if placed at the wrong angle. Surface textures range from glazed and smooth to crumbly and irregular, and strict presentation requirements leave little room for error. This variability has made it challenging for automation systems to reliably handle baked goods at production speeds, leaving food manufacturers dependent on manual labor and traditional bakery equipment.

To address this, Chef built its baked goods packing application on its existing piece-picking capability, which uses Chef’s AI-powered computer vision and physical AI models trained across diverse real-world production environments. This allows Chef robots to assess each item’s position, shape, and orientation in real time and determine how to pick the items from the pan and place them quickly and precisely without damaging them.

The baked goods packing application supports four distinct placement capabilities.

First, Chef’s vision system detects the angle at which each item sits in the pan and reorients it after picking, placing it on the tray at the exact angle required, regardless of its original position, enabling retail-ready presentation for SKUs that require precise angular placement.

Second, Chef robots can place multiple baked goods into the same packaging container in a single automated pass, completing full tray assembly without manual intervention.

Third, for packaging containers with multiple small compartments, Chef robots can precisely place items into each designated section, including multiple items in the same compartment, using Chef’s AI vision model to detect compartment positions and orientations in real time.

Fourth, Chef’s vision system identifies the exact center of each tray and places every item at a predefined offset from that center, ensuring a uniform, consistent arrangement across every pack regardless of how trays arrive on the conveyor.

For food manufacturers evaluating bakery systems and baked goods packaging automation, the application offers higher throughput, reduced labor dependency, and consistent presentation across shifts. The capability runs on Chef’s existing robotic hardware and software, allowing manufacturers to deploy it without requiring any changes to their production lines.

Chef’s baked goods packing application is available in the U.S., Canada, Germany, and the UK and is included as part of Chef’s robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) pricing model.

About Chef Robotics
Chef is the first company to have commercialized a scalable AI-driven food robotics solution. With over 104 million servings made in production, Chef leverages ChefOS, an AI platform for food manipulation, to offer a Robotics-as-a-Service solution that helps industry-leading food companies increase production volume and meet demand. Headquartered in San Francisco, CA, Chef aims to empower humans to do what humans do best by accelerating the advent of intelligent machines. Visit https://chefrobotics.ai to learn more.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/chef-robotics-physical-ai-models-can-now-automate-baked-goods-packing-302756923.html

SOURCE Chef Robotics

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Chef Robotics Physical AI Models Can Now Automate Baked Goods Packing

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SAN FRANCISCO, April 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Chef Robotics, a leader in physical AI for the food industry, today announced that Chef robots can now automate tray assembly for baked goods packing. The application places baked products, such as burger buns, chocolate chip cookies, biscotti, butter cookies, biscuits, fortune cookies, granola bars, rusks, and shortbreads into trays and packaging containers before sealing.

Watch Chef robots in action.

Baked goods packing has historically been difficult to automate for high-mix production. Each item behaves differently on the production line—a granola bar compresses under the wrong grip, while a biscotti or rusk can crack if placed at the wrong angle. Surface textures range from glazed and smooth to crumbly and irregular, and strict presentation requirements leave little room for error. This variability has made it challenging for automation systems to reliably handle baked goods at production speeds, leaving food manufacturers dependent on manual labor and traditional bakery equipment.

To address this, Chef built its baked goods packing application on its existing piece-picking capability, which uses Chef’s AI-powered computer vision and physical AI models trained across diverse real-world production environments. This allows Chef robots to assess each item’s position, shape, and orientation in real time and determine how to pick the items from the pan and place them quickly and precisely without damaging them.

The baked goods packing application supports four distinct placement capabilities.

First, Chef’s vision system detects the angle at which each item sits in the pan and reorients it after picking, placing it on the tray at the exact angle required, regardless of its original position, enabling retail-ready presentation for SKUs that require precise angular placement.

Second, Chef robots can place multiple baked goods into the same packaging container in a single automated pass, completing full tray assembly without manual intervention.

Third, for packaging containers with multiple small compartments, Chef robots can precisely place items into each designated section, including multiple items in the same compartment, using Chef’s AI vision model to detect compartment positions and orientations in real time.

Fourth, Chef’s vision system identifies the exact center of each tray and places every item at a predefined offset from that center, ensuring a uniform, consistent arrangement across every pack regardless of how trays arrive on the conveyor.

For food manufacturers evaluating bakery systems and baked goods packaging automation, the application offers higher throughput, reduced labor dependency, and consistent presentation across shifts. The capability runs on Chef’s existing robotic hardware and software, allowing manufacturers to deploy it without requiring any changes to their production lines.

Chef’s baked goods packing application is available in the U.S., Canada, Germany, and the UK and is included as part of Chef’s robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) pricing model.

About Chef Robotics
Chef is the first company to have commercialized a scalable AI-driven food robotics solution. With over 104 million servings made in production, Chef leverages ChefOS, an AI platform for food manipulation, to offer a Robotics-as-a-Service solution that helps industry-leading food companies increase production volume and meet demand. Headquartered in San Francisco, CA, Chef aims to empower humans to do what humans do best by accelerating the advent of intelligent machines. Visit https://chefrobotics.ai to learn more.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/chef-robotics-physical-ai-models-can-now-automate-baked-goods-packing-302756923.html

SOURCE Chef Robotics

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Air Products to Expand Industrial Gas Supply for Samsung Electronics’ Next-Generation Semiconductor Fab in South Korea

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New investment underscores the company’s long-term commitment to Korea and its leading role in the global semiconductor industry 

LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa., April 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Air Products (NYSE:APD), a world-leading industrial gases company and serving Samsung globally, today announced it has been selected by Samsung to supply industrial gases for its new advanced semiconductor fab in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea.

Under the agreement, Air Products will build, own and operate multiple state-of-the-art production facilities and a bulk specialty gas supply system to supply nitrogen, oxygen, argon, and hydrogen for Samsung’s new semiconductor fab. The new facilities are expected to come onstream in multiple phases from 2028 through 2030.

Air Products has a long track record of executing multiple phase expansions in Pyeongtaek to support Samsung’s growing manufacturing needs. This latest project represents Air Products’ largest investment to date in the semiconductor industry and will establish Pyeongtaek as the company’s single largest operations site globally supporting the electronics industry. 

“Air Products is honored to be selected once again by Samsung and to have their continued confidence as a trusted partner supporting their strategic growth plans,” said SR Kim, President, Air Products Korea. “This significant investment reinforces Air Products’ role as a leading global supplier to the semiconductor industry and underscores our long-standing commitment to supporting our strategic customers with safety, reliability, efficiency and excellent service.”

Air Products has served the global electronics industry for more than 40 years, supplying industrial gases safely and reliably to many of the world’s leading technology companies. The company has operated in Korea for more than 50 years and has established a strong position in electronics and manufacturing sectors.

About Air Products

Air Products (NYSE: APD) is a world-leading industrial gases company in operation for over 85 years focused on serving energy, environmental, and emerging markets and generating a cleaner future. The Company supplies essential industrial gases, related equipment and applications expertise to customers in dozens of industries, including refining, chemicals, metals, electronics, manufacturing, medical and food. As the leading global supplier of hydrogen, Air Products also develops, engineers, builds, owns and operates some of the world’s largest clean hydrogen projects, supporting the transition to low- and zero-carbon energy in the industrial and heavy-duty transportation sectors. Through its sale of equipment businesses, the Company also provides turbomachinery, membrane systems and cryogenic containers globally.

Air Products had fiscal 2025 sales of $12 billion from operations in approximately 50 countries. For more information, visit airproducts.com or follow us on LinkedInXFacebook or Instagram.

This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s expectations and assumptions as of the date of this release and are not guarantees of future performance. While forward-looking statements are made in good faith and based on assumptions, expectations and projections that management believes are reasonable based on currently available information, actual performance and financial results may differ materially from projections and estimates expressed in the forward-looking statements because of many factors, including the risk factors described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2025 and other factors disclosed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, we disclaim any obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the assumptions, beliefs or expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances upon which any such forward-looking statements are based.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/air-products-to-expand-industrial-gas-supply-for-samsung-electronics-next-generation-semiconductor-fab-in-south-korea-302757497.html

SOURCE Air Products

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