Connect with us

Technology

50/50 Women on Boards™ Announces Featured Speakers for 2026 Breakfast of Corporate Champions

Published

on

Event to Honor More Than 230 Companies with At Least 40% Women Directors on Their Boards and Recognize Costco CEO Ron Vachris with the Muriel F. Siebert Leadership Award

LOS ANGELES, June 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — 50/50 Women on Boards™, the leading global nonprofit advancing the business case for diverse boards, today announced featured speakers for the 2026 Breakfast of Corporate Champions, including leaders from Dow, S&P Global, Costco Wholesale, AMD, Nasdaq, Mastercard, Wells Fargo, Edelman, and SoFi.

Taking place September 17, 2026, from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. ET at 48 Wall Street in New York City, the Breakfast of Corporate Champions will honor CEOs from more than 230 S&P 500 and Fortune 1000 companies recognized for having achieved at least 40% women directors on their boards.

The event will also include the presentation of the prestigious Muriel F. Siebert Leadership Award to Ron Vachris, President and Chief Executive Officer of Costco Wholesale, in recognition of his commitment to advancing women in leadership and corporate governance.

The exclusive event kicks off the 50/50 Women on Boards annual Global Summit: The Future Board Agenda, where the conversation will shift from recognition to responsibility and convene CEOs, corporate directors, investors, and governance leaders for conversations on governance, AI oversight, risk, and the future of board leadership.

“The companies recognized at the Breakfast of Corporate Champions demonstrate what forward-looking board leadership looks like today,” said Heather Spilsbury, CEO of 50/50 Women on Boards. “The composition of their boards reflects a commitment to risk oversight, innovation, and long-term growth — all of which strengthen performance for their companies, investors, and shareholders.”

“Since the inception in 2011, the Breakfast of Corporate Champions has shined a light on companies and leaders who recognize gender balance in the boardroom as a clear and critical business imperative,” said Janice Ellig, founder of the event, when she was President of the Women’s Forum of New York. “As challenges ramp up, companies more than ever need to tap into the incredible talent pool women represent.”

Topics and speakers to date include:

Board Leadership in the Age of AI

Ruth Cotter, Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, AMDRichard Davis, Lead Director, Dow; Board Director, Mastercard and Wells FargoKirsty Graham, CEO, EdelmanByron Loflin, Global Head of Board Advisory and Nasdaq Center for Board ExcellenceShannon Nash, COO/CFO, Vibrant Planet; Board Director, NETSCOUT and SoFi Bank

CEO Leadership: Driving Gender Parity as a Business Imperative

Jim Fitterling, Chair and Chief Executive Officer, DowMaggie Wilderotter, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Wilderotter Vineyard; Board Director: DocuSign, Costco, Sonoma Biotherapeutics, Inc., and Tanium, Inc.

Additional speakers and honorees will be announced in the coming months.

Sponsors of the 2026 Breakfast of Corporate Champions to date include:
Official Airline: United Airlines
Diamond Sponsors: Broadridge, Genworth Financial and S&P Global
Platinum Sponsors: AptarGroup and Bank of America 
Gold Sponsor: Patterson-UTI Energy
Silver Sponsor: New York Stock Exchange
Bronze Sponsor: Globe Life

Registration and sponsorship opportunities for the Breakfast of Corporate Champions and Global Summit are available at 50/50 Women on Boards Global Summit Week.

About 50/50 Women on Boards (50/50WOB)
50/50 Women on Boards™ (50/50WOB) is the leading global nonprofit advancing the business case for diverse boards. Through research, education, and advocacy, 50/50WOB cultivates a pipeline of board-ready candidates and engages the companies and governance leaders who shape board appointments and succession planning. Since 2010, 50/50WOB has published its Gender Diversity Index™ and research reports tracking the composition of Russell 3000 company boards. The organization’s educational programs, Global Summit, and strategic convenings provide aspiring and experienced directors with the insights, networks, and resources to advance their board journeys. For more information, visit www.5050wob.com.

About The Breakfast of Corporate Champions
The Breakfast of Corporate Champions is a biennial salute that was launched in 2011 by the Women’s Forum of New York, when Janice Ellig was the President. The objective was to convene CEOs and directors to speak on the topic that gender balance in the boardroom is a strategic business imperative, and to recognize those companies at or above the national S&P 500 average of women on boards. In 2026, we honor S&P 500 and Fortune 1000 companies with at least 40% of board seats held by women. These Corporate Champions are an inspiration for other companies to accelerate positive change.

About Ellig Group
Ellig Group is a New York based, certified woman-owned executive search firm with a nearly 50-year legacy of placing inclusive leaders in C-suite and board roles, driving lasting success for corporate and nonprofit clients while championing exceptional diverse talent.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/5050-women-on-boards-announces-featured-speakers-for-2026-breakfast-of-corporate-champions-302794414.html

SOURCE 50/50 Women on Boards

Continue Reading

Technology

TCL Showcases AI Inspired Life at IFA 2026 Through Its Screen Universe

Published

on

By

From next-generation displays and AI-powered smart home experiences to sports-inspired moments, TCL presents an immersive vision of everyday life in the AI era.

BERLIN, Sept. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — TCL today unveiled its vision for an AI Inspired Life at IFA 2026 through the “Inspiration Habitat,” an immersive smart-living environment that brings together next-generation displays, AI-powered smart home experiences and sustainable energy solutions. Built around TCL’s Screen Universe, the exhibition shows how screens across forms and applications are evolving into intelligent interfaces connecting people with content, services and the physical world.

With the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2026 taking place in Berlin during IFA, TCL is extending this vision from the exhibition floor to sports-inspired fan experiences, showing how display innovation and AI-enabled living can bring the energy of the court closer to everyday life.

“At IFA 2026, TCL is showing how AI and display innovation can create more intuitive, immersive and human-centered experiences,” said Daniel Sun, CTO of TCL Industries. “Through our Screen Universe, TCL is turning advanced display technologies and AI capabilities into tangible home experiences.”

TCL’s Screen Universe Turns Display Innovation into Everyday Intelligence

At IFA 2026, TCL brought together voices from technology, entertainment and creative industries to examine how larger screens, improved picture quality and intelligent interaction are shaping immersive home entertainment.

A key highlight is the TCL X11L SQD-Mini LED TV, which delivers up to 100% BT.2020 All-Scene Wide Color Gamut, precise dimming and up to HDR 10,000 nits peak brightness through next-generation display technologies. TCL also introduced RayNeo GT Max AR Glasses, the world’s first Dolby Vision-certified AR glasses, extending premium viewing beyond the living room into personal, mobile scenarios.

AI Inspired Life: Intelligence That Lives in Everyday Moments

Through the latest NXTHOME™ ecosystem, TCL presents a future-oriented approach to connected living, where smart displays, connected home appliances, AI experiences, interior design and sustainable living create a home environment that adapts to people’s needs.

The AiMe Family Companion Robot brings intelligent technology to life through natural multimodal interaction and lifelike motion control. TCL’s AI-powered appliances, including the FreshIN 3.0 Ultra Air Conditioner, TCL Free Built-in Refrigerator and TCL AI SuperDrum Laundry Tower P9 Ultra, translate AI capabilities into practical experiences across air care, food storage and laundry care.

Inspire Your Passion: Bringing the Thrill of Sport Beyond the Court

From the Olympic Games to the world’s top arenas, TCL continues to use sport as a powerful way to connect people through shared moments of passion, performance and possibility that Inspire Greatness in everyday life.

With IFA 2026 and the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2026 both taking place in Berlin, TCL is bringing the energy of women’s basketball into its Inspiration Habitat through basketball-inspired experiences and fan interactions. TCL is embedding the spirit of #TCLforHer across its activations and global communications, celebrating the confidence, resilience and ambition represented by women’s basketball.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/tcl-showcases-ai-inspired-life-at-ifa-2026-through-its-screen-universe-302870862.html

Continue Reading

Technology

VITG Unveils Modern Managed Services and Managed Detection & Response as Part of a Broader AI and Cybersecurity Transformation across ANZ

Published

on

By

SYDNEY, Sept. 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — As organisations across Australia and New Zealand navigate the accelerating impact of artificial intelligence, increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, and growing governance requirements, Virtual IT Group   (VITG) has announced the launch of Modern Managed Services  (MMS)  and Managed Detection & Response  (MDR) , that are next-generation managed services and managed security offerings designed to help organisations remain secure, resilient and ready for what’s next.

Modern Managed Services delivers a Modern Defensible Architecture framework for managed IT operations, ensuring security controls, governance frameworks and operational best practices are embedded and continuously maintained. Complementing this, Managed Detection & Response provides organisations with 24×7 Security Operations Centre (SOC) capability, actively monitoring, investigating and responding to threats using advanced security analytics and response technologies.

Jeremy Nees , Chief Product Officer, VITG , said:

“Too often, organisations purchase managed services only to discover they do not have the standard level of security they need. As businesses adopt AI, the old-world IT solutions that Managed Service Providers (MSP) are selling are simply not going to cut it. We’ve baked common security requirements into the MMS service from day one, applying the key principles of Modern Defensible Architecture: Secure-by-Design, Defense in Depth, and Zero Trust.

MDR and ZDR   can be layered on top or are available independently if you have your own IT service or team. The push to adopt AI is leaving security gaps across the ANZ mid-market. Our goal is to provide customers with technology that is secure, resilient, and ready for what’s next.”

The launch marks VITG’s second major solution release of the year, following the introduction of its Zero Trust Consulting Practice  and Zero Trust Detection & Response  (ZDR)  offering earlier in 2026. It is also the Group’s first launch since acquiring cybersecurity outfit Security Centric , building on the addition of Auckland based The Instillery  in 2025 and further strengthening VITG’s capabilities across managed services, cloud, cybersecurity, data and AI. VITG is also advancing a dedicated Data & AI Practice and Momentum, a continuous improvement framework currently being piloted with customers ahead of a market launch later this year.

Since joining VITG  at the start of the year, Maurice McCarthy , Chief Executive Officer , is committed to moving at pace to meet the demand that has been created off the back of the market’s rapid adoption of AI.   

McCarthy said, “The traditional managed services model was built for a different era. Today’s organisations need partners that can help them unlock the value of data and AI while strengthening cybersecurity, managing risk, and continuously evolving their technology environment.

Through the acquisition of Security Centric and The Instillery we have brought together market-leading expertise across managed services, data and AI, and cybersecurity. This launch is the first of several innovations we will introduce as we help organisations accelerate transformation and realise greater value from AI.”

Sash Vasilevski , Chief Security Officer, VITG , said:

“The technology businesses are using to unlock the value of AI, integrate systems, and build strong data foundations, is rapidly introducing new risks and attack surfaces.

As business leaders accelerate their adoption of AI, the gap between the threats they face and the security capabilities they have in place is growing faster than many businesses realise.”

Modern Managed Services and Managed Detection & Response are available immediately.

For more information, visit:

Modern Managed Services (MMS)

Managed Detection & Response (MDR)

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/vitg-unveils-modern-managed-services-and-managed-detection–response-as-part-of-a-broader-ai-and-cybersecurity-transformation-across-anz-302870081.html

SOURCE Virtual IT Group

Continue Reading

Technology

DUVA Introduces DUVA ONE at IFA 2026: Personalized Sleep Earbuds That Respond in Real Time

Published

on

By

The Sleep System That Understands You Best.

BERLIN, Sept. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — DUVA, created by Fitnexa, is introducing DUVA ONE at IFA Berlin 2026. This intelligent in-ear sleep system is designed to sense changes in the user and the bedroom, then personalize audio, noise control, and device behavior throughout the night.

Most sleep wearables explain what happened after users wake up. DUVA ONE is designed to help while the night is still happening. Its low-profile earbuds, environment-sensing charging case, and app work together to determine when and how to respond.

A user might start the night with a podcast over Bluetooth. After they fall asleep, DUVA ONE can introduce locally stored sleep audio and optimize power use. If a partner begins snoring or traffic grows louder, it can adjust ANC or add sound masking. In the morning, a private offline alarm wakes only the wearer, without requiring an active phone connection.

In-ear PPG and motion sensors estimate sleep stages and track heart rate, HRV, sleep position, and movement, while the case monitors noise, light, temperature, and humidity. The AI Agent interprets these signals alongside playback status and personal preferences to select an appropriate response. Users control sleep audio, playback duration, ANC strategy, and nighttime interventions in the DUVA App.

“Sleep does not happen in a static environment, so sleep technology should not remain static either,” said Diego, Founder of Fitnexa. “DUVA ONE is designed to respond while sleep is still happening.”

Key Highlights

Layered noise relief: Passive isolation, Hybrid ANC, and sleep audio provide noise reduction of up to 42 dB, with Transparency Mode and adaptive ANC calibration.Personalized AI sleep guidance: The AI analyzes the user’s real-time sleep state and generates personalized audio guidance to help them gradually fall asleep.Side-sleeping comfort: Each fitted earbud weighs approximately 3.3 grams and has an approximately 9.9 mm low-profile design. Two ear-tip shapes and multiple tip and stabilizing-wing sizes provide more than 40 fit configurations.All-night battery: Up to 16 hours in the most power-efficient configuration, including 13 hours of local audio with ANC off and 9.5 hours with ANC on. The USB-C and wireless charging case provides up to five additional recharges.Private offline alarm: Alarms gradually increase in volume and offer 5, 10, or 15-minute snooze options through the earbud controls.Privacy-first sensing: DUVA ONE does not record conversations, store ambient audio, or upload raw environmental audio. Users can disable individual sensors and delete historical data.

DUVA ONE is planned for release in October 2026 at a target retail price of US$349.99, with target markets including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Union, and Australia.

Media Contact: essie@duva.com
Learn more: duva.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/duva-introduces-duva-one-at-ifa-2026-personalized-sleep-earbuds-that-respond-in-real-time-302870832.html

SOURCE DUVA

Continue Reading

Trending