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Opportunity@Work Names LaFawn Davis to Board of Directors as Skills-First Movement Gains Ground in the AI Economy

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Accomplished STAR executive join the board as the nonprofit expands its STARs Advisory Council – and reports 20% gains in jobs newly opened to STARs

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Opportunity@Work, the nonprofit social enterprise working to rewire the U.S. labor market for the more than 70 million workers who are Skilled Through Alternative Routes (STARs) – rather than a bachelor’s degree – today announced the appointment of its newest member to its Board of Directors: LaFawn Davis, former Chief People and Sustainability Officer at Indeed. The organization also announced the addition of 12 new members to its STARs Advisory Council, supporting and guiding Opportunity@Work’s strategy and direct partnerships with STARs – including ambassadorship, advocacy, and advisory services.

The appointments come as the skills-first movement is gaining momentum at a pivotal moment for the American workforce. As artificial intelligence reshapes career pathways and opportunities, employers in Opportunity@Work’s networks have taken intentional action that is already producing measurable results for workers. According to the organization’s 2026 State of the Paper Ceiling Report, over the last year employers have increased the number of jobs open to STARs by nearly 20% for a total of almost 600,000 jobs – with 90,000 STARs having experienced upward mobility since 2022.

“Today’s labor market is full of bad design choices and unintended consequences, and this AI labor market transition is a vital opportunity to rewire it – using AI as amplified intention – to create new pathways, solve new problems, and empower more problem solvers,” said Byron Auguste, CEO and co-founder of Opportunity@Work. “LaFawn is exactly the kind of leader we need today. She is a STAR who built a remarkable career on the strength of her skills and experience and she has led talent teams at the highest levels of large, complex organizations. She knows firsthand that when you hire for skills rather than pedigree, you unlock talent that makes your business more competitive, innovative, and resilient. Her lived experience and operator’s instincts will sharpen our work as we help employers turn AI into a tool for amplified opportunity.”

LaFawn Davis is a C-suite enterprise transformation executive known for designing operating models that align people, technology, and strategy at the intersection of human and AI-enabled capability. As former Chief People and Sustainability Officer at Indeed, she led globally scaled teams across talent, learning, DEIB, ESG, and responsible technology. At Indeed she also helped implement skills-first hiring practices, giving her a practical, operator-level understanding of the barriers, incentives, and platform levers involved in moving beyond credential-based hiring. A STAR who entered the workforce navigating the barriers faced by workers without formal credentials, she brings lived experience alongside a systems-level perspective on AI, employment, and the talent platforms shaping the future of work.

“I’ve sat in the seat where decisions get made about who is considered ‘qualified,’ and I know how much talent gets filtered out before anyone ever looks at what a person can actually do,” said Davis. “AI is about to make those decisions at a speed and scale we’ve never seen. We can either bake the old degree bias into these systems or we can build them to recognize skills. That choice is everything, and it’s why joining Opportunity@Work matters. Our work together will make skills, not pedigree, the default signal of who gets a shot.

Expanding the STARs Advisory Council
Opportunity@Work also welcomed 12 new members to its STARs Advisory Council, reflecting the organization’s belief that STARs should be co-creators – not just beneficiaries – of the systems that shape their economic mobility. The Council is chaired by LaShana Lewis, CEO and founder of L.M. Lewis Consulting, and its full roster of 19 members can be found here.

“Every STAR knows what it feels like to be told you’re ‘one in a million’ – when the truth is we’re one of millions, ready to contribute if someone will just open the door,” said Lewis. “The progress we’re celebrating today didn’t happen by accident. It happened because real people made intentional choices to recognize skills over credentials. As we grow this Council and welcome a leader like LaFawn to the board, we’re making sure STARs are co-creators of the solutions — not just the people they’re designed for. The folks closest to the paper ceiling should be in the room helping tear it down, especially now, as AI rewrites the rules of who gets hired.”

Momentum Built on Intentional Action
Today’s announcement builds on the momentum Opportunity@Work generated in 2025, when it released the first State of the Paper Ceiling – a report showing that, after a decade of decline, STARs had stopped losing ground in their share of good-paying jobs.

The story of 2026 is what comes next: how intentional action by employers, governments, and individuals – amplified rather than undermined by AI – can convert that stabilization into real, sustained upward mobility. The nearly 600,000 jobs newly opened to STARs and the 90,000 STARs who have moved up since 2022 are early proof that the movement is not only holding the line, but advancing.

This worker progress is matched by the rapid growth of the movement’s infrastructure. The Tear the Paper Ceiling Coalition has grown to more than 90 members, 33 states have now removed degree requirements for many public-sector roles, and Opportunity@Work’s Transformers in the Public Sector cohort has tripled in size. Together, these milestones show a movement that is not only widening at the top, with more employers and governments committing to skills-first hiring, but deepening on the ground, where those commitments turn into jobs and mobility for STARs.

Opportunity@Work and its partners continue to work toward the goal of enabling 1 million STARs to attain better upward mobility through higher-wage jobs, generating a $20 billion annual earnings boost by 2030.

To learn more about Opportunity@Work, the STARs Advisory Council, and the Tear the Paper Ceiling movement, visit opportunityatwork.org.

About Opportunity@Work
Opportunity@Work is a 501(c)3 nonprofit social enterprise on a mission to rewire the labor market so all Americans can work, learn, and earn to their full potential. Our work advances economic opportunities for the 70+ million U.S. workers who are Skilled Through Alternative Routes (STARs) instead of through a bachelor’s degree. Opportunity@Work engages with corporate, public sector, talent technology, and philanthropic partners through landmark research and labor market data analysis, public awareness and narrative change, STARs-centric software tools, and multi-sector networks. Our goal is to enable upward mobility for 1 million STARs by opening up 10 million jobs, and boost their earnings by 100 billion dollars by 2035. Learn more at opportunityatwork.org

Rena Ramirez | rena@opportunityatwork.org

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SOURCE Opportunity@Work

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SCX.ai (ASX: SCX) Strategic Partnership With Global AI Leader DDN to Power Australia’s Largest Sovereign AI Inferencing Cloud

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August 25, 2026

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Alliance to scale sovereign AI capacity as demand for Australian-based AI infrastructure grows

SYDNEY, Aug. 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Australian sovereign AI infrastructure pioneer SCX.ai and global AI data intelligence leader DDN today announced a landmark partnership to expand and accelerate Australia’s largest sovereign AI inferencing cloud.

The partnership brings together SCX’s ASIC-accelerated infrastructure with DDN’s Infinia data intelligence platform. The combined solution provides Australian enterprises, government agencies and research institutions with a secure, high-performance, multi-tenant AI factory designed to accelerate inference and lower the cost per token, while ensuring models, workloads and data remain strictly within Australia.

The announcement follows SCX.ai’s debut on the Australian Securities Exchange on 21 August, following a fully underwritten $40 million IPO, making it Australia’s first ASX-listed pure-play sovereign AI inference infrastructure company.

SCX.ai enters the public market with growing commercial momentum. Contracted annual recurring revenue reached $6.5 million at the end of July, up 20.9% since May. The platform now has more than 400 active users.

Building on the successful launch of SCX’s first sovereign AI node at the Equinix SY5 data centre in Sydney, the integration of DDN Infinia ensures the underlying data layer can keep pace with massive concurrency and high-throughput inferencing demands.

By delivering sub-millisecond latency and up to 27x faster KV cache loading, Infinia eliminates I/O stalls and maximises hardware utilisation – enabling organisations to run large context windows and agentic AI workloads swiftly, without compromising on speed, data privacy or regulatory compliance.

“For the first time, Australian organisations have access to a fully domestic, enterprise-grade AI cloud that scales effortlessly,” said SCX founder and CEO David Keane. “By integrating DDN’s world-class data platforms into our architecture, we are ensuring that our infrastructure can handle the most data-intensive workloads on the planet. This partnership supercharges our mission to deliver advanced AI entirely onshore, without compromising speed, security or sovereignty.”

The joint infrastructure also addresses one of the major challenges confronting the rapid global expansion of AI: the power and cooling required to support growing compute demand.

SCX.ai’s infrastructure uses purpose-built SambaNova AI processors and is designed to generate significantly more AI compute from the power and physical footprint available inside existing commercial data centres. The architecture uses air cooling, avoiding the large volumes of water required by many conventional AI data centre cooling systems.

Testing disclosed by SCX.ai ahead of its ASX listing showed its SambaNova-based infrastructure delivering approximately 2.5x to 5.6x the performance per watt of GPU-based systems across selected stable inference workloads, depending on the model and hardware configuration tested.

“Sovereign AI isn’t just about where data resides, it’s about whether a nation can operate AI at scale, efficiently and without compromise,” said DDN CTO Sven Oehme. “Our partnership with SCX brings together purpose-built inferencing infrastructure with DDN’s Infinia data platform to remove the single biggest barrier to AI performance: the data layer. By eliminating I/O bottlenecks and enabling extreme concurrency with sub-millisecond latency, we’re fundamentally changing the economics of inference – delivering higher utilisation, lower cost per token and true enterprise-grade sovereignty. This is how countries turn AI ambition into real, operational capability.”

The expanded cloud capacity will support the deployment of bespoke enterprise workloads, as well as SCX.ai’s Project MAGPiE, a sovereign large language model specifically fine-tuned for the Australian cultural and commercial context.

SCX.ai’s first node at Equinix SY5 in Sydney is operational, with the company now accelerating deployment of Node 2, targeted to be operational by the end of 2026. SCX.ai is also progressing plans for additional nodes as it builds out a national sovereign AI inference network.

Asset Bank for Media
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/158tijQGvY4a8MveE98JL8ngqBubXeoeC?usp=sharing

About SCX.ai

SCX.ai is Australia’s leading provider of sovereign AI infrastructure, delivering high-performance, energy-efficient cloud solutions fully aligned with strict domestic data security and privacy requirements. Through its national network of advanced inferencing nodes, SCX enables government and enterprise clients to operate cutting-edge AI under complete domestic control.

Follow SCX: LinkedIn, X, and YouTube  

About DDN

DDN is a leading AI and data intelligence company, powering demanding AI workloads by keeping GPUs fed, efficient and productive at scale – so organisations can train, checkpoint and infer faster with less footprint and power. DDN delivers data intelligence at exabyte scale across hundreds of thousands of GPUs for hyperscalers, next-gen cloud builders, enterprises, governments and research institutions.

Follow DDN: LinkedIn, X, and YouTube 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/scxai-asx-scx-strategic-partnership-with-global-ai-leader-ddn-to-power-australias-largest-sovereign-ai-inferencing-cloud-302858797.html

SOURCE SCX.ai

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Visa Joins MAS-Led BLOOM Initiative to Connect Traditional Payments and Stablecoin Networks

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August 25, 2026

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SINGAPORE, Aug. 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Visa, the world’s leader in digital payments, announced its participation in BLOOM (Borderless, Liquid, Open, Online, Multi-currency), a new initiative led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) designed to extend settlement capabilities offered by financial institutions, including enabling interoperability between traditional payment systems and stablecoin-based payment rails.

The initiative brings together industry participants to address how financial institutions can benefit from faster, more programmable forms of payment without sacrificing the safeguards that underpin trust in the financial system. As part of this effort, Nium is Visa’s first partner to pilot the use of stablecoins for settlement under BLOOM, exploring new ways to move money across borders more efficiently while continuing to leverage Visa’s trusted payment network, security, and compliance capabilities.

Today, payment settlements typically take place on business days. Through this pilot, both organisations are exploring how stablecoins can enable settlements to occur seven days a week, including weekends and public holidays. This will help reduce delays, improve efficiency, and provide participating financial institutions with faster access to funds. The pilot will support regulated stablecoins that are backed by major currencies, including US dollar and euro-denominated stablecoins.

For businesses, this could mean greater efficiency in how payments are sent, received and managed. For consumers, it could pave the way for more seamless payment experiences regardless of the underlying technology powering the transaction. For the broader financial ecosystem, it represents an opportunity to advance innovation without compromising trust.

“The future of payments will be shaped by how different forms of money and payment networks work together for different use cases,” said Adeline Kim, Group Country Manager for Regional Southeast Asia and SVP, Global Clients & Acquirers, Asia Pacific, Visa. “Through BLOOM and our pilot with Nium in Singapore, we are exploring how stablecoins can complement existing payment infrastructure, enabling greater flexibility in settlement while preserving the security, resilience and compliance standards that underpin global commerce. As digital payments continue to evolve, interoperability will be critical to delivering meaningful value across the financial ecosystem.”

“This pilot with Visa under BLOOM is a meaningful step in our partnership to shape the next phase of payments in the region,” said Amaresh Mohan, Chief Risk and Compliance Officer at Nium. “We’re building foundational infrastructure for seamless interoperability between traditional and stablecoin-based rails. This convergence is not only inevitable, it’s essential. By bringing together the security and trust of established payment networks with the efficiency and programmability of digital currencies, we unlock real value for financial institutions and their customers. BLOOM demonstrates that innovation and compliance advance together,” he added.

As one of the world’s leading financial and innovation hubs, Singapore continues to play a key role in advancing responsible digital finance. Through collaboration across the public and private sectors, initiatives such as BLOOM are helping establish the foundations for a more connected, interoperable and trusted financial ecosystem.

About Visa

Visa (NYSE: V) is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating transactions between consumers, sellers, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. We believe that economies that include everyone everywhere, uplift everyone everywhere and see access as foundational to the future of money movement. Learn more at Visa.com. 

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SOURCE Visa

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CHT Security Receives Frost & Sullivan’s 2026 Taiwan Company of the Year Recognition for Excellence in Cybersecurity Services

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August 25, 2026

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This recognition highlights CHT Security’s leadership in AI-enabled security operations, cyber resilience, and customer-centric cybersecurity services that support secure digital transformation.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Aug. 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Frost & Sullivan is pleased to announce that CHT Security has received the 2026 Taiwan Company of the Year Recognition in the cybersecurity services industry for its outstanding achievements in innovation, strategy execution, and customer impact. The recognition highlights CHT Security’s leadership in delivering AI-enabled security operations, managed security services, and cloud security capabilities that help organizations strengthen cyber resilience while accelerating digital transformation.

Frost & Sullivan evaluates companies through a rigorous benchmarking process across two core dimensions: strategy effectiveness and strategy execution. CHT Security excelled in both, demonstrating its ability to anticipate evolving cybersecurity challenges, align its innovation strategy with emerging market requirements, and consistently execute at scale through integrated managed and professional security services.

“CHT Security has demonstrated a strong ability to anticipate the cybersecurity implications of AI adoption and transform emerging technologies into practical services that help organizations strengthen cyber resilience,” said Vivien Pua, Industry Principal at Frost & Sullivan. “Its continued investments in AI-enabled security operations, AI governance, cloud security, and proprietary research, combined with disciplined execution and a customer-first approach, position the company as a leader in Taiwan’s cybersecurity services industry.”

Guided by a long-term growth strategy centered on AI innovation, cloud security, and digital transformation, CHT Security continues to strengthen its market position by addressing the evolving security needs of modern enterprises. Through sustained investments in AI-enabled security operations, proprietary technologies, and integrated cybersecurity services, the company has built a comprehensive portfolio spanning security operations, AI security assessments, offensive security services, cloud security, and governance capabilities that enable organizations to securely adopt emerging technologies.

Innovation is central to CHT Security’s strategy. The company’s AI-powered Security Operations Center (SOC) integrates proprietary AI technologies into its security risk management platform to support real-time threat detection, incident analysis, and automated reporting. Complementing these capabilities are AI application security testing services that evaluate risks such as prompt injection, model manipulation, and sensitive data exposure, along with AI cybersecurity posture assessments that help organizations establish stronger governance and operational controls. CHT Security further extends its innovation through AI Archway, its AI governance platform that provides centralized visibility into enterprise AI usage, supports policy enforcement, strengthens data leakage protection, and enhances compliance monitoring.

CHT Security’s unwavering commitment to customer experience further strengthens its competitive position. The company maintains customer retention rates exceeding 90% through continuous service optimization, proactive customer engagement, and the delivery of comprehensive cybersecurity services that span prevention, monitoring, incident response, and post-incident support. Its AI-driven tools simplify complex security processes while empowering organizations with greater visibility into their cybersecurity posture. Backed by strong operational discipline, ongoing business continuity initiatives, and extensive experience delivering complex cybersecurity projects across government, financial services, semiconductor manufacturing, and other critical industries, CHT Security delivers long-term value to customers.

Frost & Sullivan commends CHT Security for setting a high standard in competitive strategy, execution, and market responsiveness. The company’s vision, technology innovation, customer-centric culture, and commitment to securing next-generation digital ecosystems continue to shape the future of Taiwan’s cybersecurity services industry while delivering measurable business outcomes for customers.

Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents the Company of the Year Recognition to a company that demonstrates outstanding strategy development and implementation, resulting in measurable improvements in market position, customer satisfaction, and competitive excellence. The recognition honors organizations that are transforming their industries through innovation and sustained growth.

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Recognition
Frost & Sullivan’s Best Practices Recognitions honor companies across regional and global markets that exhibit exceptional achievement and consistent excellence in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer experience, and strategic product development. Each recognition is the result of a rigorous analytical process in which Frost & Sullivan industry experts benchmark performance through comprehensive interviews, deep-dive analysis, and extensive secondary research. The goal is to identify true best-in-class organizations that are driving transformative growth and setting new industry standards.
Contact us: Start the discussion.

Contact:
Tarini Singh
E: Tarini.Singh@frost.com 

About CHT Security
Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, CHT Security (TWSE: 7765) is a cybersecurity company and subsidiary of the Chunghwa Telecom Group. Established in 2017, CHT Security provides a broad portfolio of cybersecurity services and solutions, including managed security services, SOC monitoring, MDR, security testing, DFIR, and cybersecurity consulting. CHT Security also offers HorusEyes, an external attack surface management (EASM) platform, and AI Archway, a solution designed to support AI governance and security management.

With more than 400 cybersecurity professionals, CHT Security serves organizations across government, financial services, healthcare, high-tech manufacturing, retail, and critical infrastructure sectors. The company has expanded its international presence and provides cybersecurity services to customers across Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

Contact:
Selina Yeh
marketing@chtsecurity.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/cht-security-receives-frost–sullivans-2026-taiwan-company-of-the-year-recognition-for-excellence-in-cybersecurity-services-302857827.html

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