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Flexxon awarded funding for the third time under CyberCall to tackle AI agent security at the hardware level

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X-PHY AI Armor will watch AI agents at the protocol level and enforce controls at the hardware level, closing the gap left open by software-only controls.

SINGAPORE, Nov. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Flexxon has been named an awardee of the Cybersecurity Industry Call for Innovation (CyberCall) 2025. Since 2024, CyberCall has been organised by the CyberSG Talent, Innovation and Growth Collaboration Centre (TIG Centre), a joint initiative by the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA). The award, made under the “Cybersecurity for AI” challenge, was announced at the CyberSG Innovation Day on 10 November 2026.

The project, X-PHY AI Armor, will be a hardware-rooted secure Model Context Protocol (MCP) gateway, building on the company’s hardware cybersecurity expertise. It will sit between the AI agent and the systems it reaches, inspecting every request the agent makes and looking for injected instructions and hijacked tools. Anything high-risk will be handed to the hardware, which will lock it down.

Because authorisation will be anchored in X-PHY hardware rather than in software, a stolen credential on its own will not be enough to get through. Generic API gateways inspect traffic at the network layer and can be reconfigured by anyone who has taken control of the host. X-PHY’s enforcement will sit below that: authorisation for high-risk operations will be verified by the device, and the audit record will be written to the hardware. An attacker who controls the host will not be able to alter the decision or erase the trace of it.

Ms Camellia Chan, Co-founder and CEO of Flexxon, said, “Agents are useful precisely because they act without waiting for a person, and that is exactly what makes them dangerous. An agent following a malicious instruction is indistinguishable from an agent doing its job. You cannot solve that by asking software to watch itself more carefully – the judgement has to sit somewhere an attacker cannot reach. Our thanks to CSA and to the TIG Centre, and to the judging panel, for backing us once again and for the collaboration that makes much-needed solutions like ours possible.”

A third award, and a new frontier

The award is Flexxon’s third under the same initiative. The company was one of eight selected from 72 submissions in CyberCall 2019 for its X-PHY Solid State Drive (SSD), and an awardee of the 2021 edition for its server security module.

The previous projects secured data at rest and the systems around it, while AI Armor will address a problem that did not exist when they were funded. In the last two years, agentic AI has moved from demonstration to deployment, and the security model has not kept pace with it.

Agents hold credentials, reach databases and APIs, and act at machine speed, and the controls meant to supervise them run on the very software layers an attacker is trying to take over.

The scale of the AI agent problem

An AI agent works by holding credentials and using them – reading files, querying databases, calling tools and passing instructions to other agents, without a person checking each step. Those instructions arrive as text, and text can be poisoned. A single injected line in a document, a web page or another agent’s reply can redirect the agent, while every action it then takes remains technically authorised.

CSA’s Singapore Cyber Landscape 2025/2026, published in June this year, warned that agentic AI systems “could potentially automate significant parts of the cyber kill chains by chaining exploit steps together autonomously at speed”, and that “intrusions that previously unfolded over days can now proceed within hours, narrowing the gap between criminal and state-level operators”. The report cites OpenClaw, “the open-source agentic AI technology that was abused to breach development pipelines at scale”, as a case in point.

Singapore organisations are meeting that on uneven ground. CSA’s Singapore Cybersecurity Health Report 2025, published in October 2026, surveyed 2,005 businesses and non-profits and found almost nine in 10 had encountered at least one cybersecurity incident during the year. Organisations are adding AI agents and their associated threats to that environment.

In fact, Gartner forecasts that up to 40 per cent of enterprise applications will ship with task-specific AI agents integrated by the end of 2026, up from fewer than 5 per cent a year earlier.

The organisations that will feel this most immediately are those that have given agents access to something worth taking: the financial services, healthcare and government sectors, and the data centre operators running the infrastructure beneath them.

“Securing AI agents will be a major cybersecurity challenge in the coming years, and it is exactly the kind of problem CyberCall was established to address. We are pleased to support Flexxon as it builds on its expertise to develop X-PHY AI Armor to tackle this emerging challenge,” said Mr Willis Lim, Executive Director, TIG Centre.

Building the hardware-anchored ecosystem

Flexxon will develop X-PHY AI Armor with support from CyberCall, building on its existing expertise in hardware-level cybersecurity. The solution aims to help organisations harness the benefits of AI agents while safeguarding the security and integrity of their data and systems.

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SOURCE Flexxon

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HONGQI EHS4 Set for Global Debut in Venice: Eastern Elegance Arrives in Europe

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November 14, 2026

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VENICE, Italy, Nov. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — HONGQI, one of China’s leading automotive marques, will introduce its all-new all-electric SUV, HONGQI EHS4, to the European market. Making its global debut in Venice, Italy, on 16 November 2026, the EHS4 marks another milestone in the brand’s international expansion.

68 Years of Heritage: A Distinctive Expression of Modern Luxury
Founded in 1958, HONGQI has spent 68 years building its automotive heritage through independent innovation, engineering excellence, and craftsmanship. Guided by a longstanding commitment to quality and safety, the brand continues to bring its distinctive heritage to a global audience.

With its Munich Advanced Design Centre, HONGQI combines global design perspectives with its rich Eastern heritage. Guided by a European Neoclassical Design Philosophy, the EHS4 brings together Eastern design influences and global aesthetics. Developed around European consumer needs, it represents HONGQI’s first model tailored specifically for Europe.

HONGQI EHS4: A New Choice for All-Electric Mobility
Bringing together Eastern and Western design aesthetics, HONGQI EHS4 balances distinctive styling, driving comfort and everyday practicality. Its Celadon Paint draws inspiration from the refined beauty of traditional Longquan celadon, while the Eyes of Infinite Allure lighting design creates a distinctive visual identity. Inside, the Crystal Control Knob adds an elegant touch to the cabin.

With a driving range of up to 470 kilometres and fast-charging capability of approximately 20 minutes, the EHS4 is designed for convenient everyday electric mobility. Its 87.4% space utilization makes intelligent use of interior space, enhancing passenger comfort and practicality.

Safety and quality remain central to its development. Equipped with seven airbags and intelligent driver-assistance technologies, the EHS4 draws on FAW’s more than 70 years of automotive manufacturing expertise to deliver advanced technology, refined driving quality, and dependable vehicle performance.

Venice: A New Chapter in Europe
On 16 November 2026, HONGQI EHS4 will make its global debut at the Scuola Grande di Santa Maria della Misericordia in Venice. The event will bring together European dealers, media representatives, and industry guests to witness an important milestone in HONGQI’s European journey.

A distinctive expression of Eastern elegance, now coming to Europe.

SOURCE HONGQI

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EFICYENT to Join Banks and Fintech Companies at Singapore FinTech Festival 2026

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November 14, 2026

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DUBAI, UAE, Nov. 14, 2026 /CNW/ — EFICYENT, a cross-border payment platform, is going to attend the Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF) 2026, which is going to be one of the world’s largest gatherings of the global financial and technology ecosystem.  It will take place between November 18 – 20, 2026, at Singapore. This event will converge policymakers, financial institutions, fintech companies, and investors to discuss the developments that are going to shape the future of fintech.

As financial institutions are desperately discovering new technologies, evolving payment infrastructure, and better ways to move money across borders, SFF 2026 is going to be an ideal platform for industry collaboration and knowledge exchange. The event will explore key forces transforming the financial system, including technology, geoeconomics, capital, talent, and policy, developing opportunities for businesses to engage with global industry leaders and explore emerging possibilities.

By participating in this event, EFICYENT is looking forward to connecting with other fintech companies, banks, financial institutions, and peer industry stakeholders to share their ideas, discover potential collaborations, and hold a conversation on the growing demand for efficient global payment infrastructure. Also, the company’s presence will provide an opportunity to demonstrate how its capabilities can assist businesses navigating increasingly interconnected financial markets.

Ahead of the participation, Aravinth Ramesh, CTO at EFICYENT, said:

“As financial services entered a chapter where businesses expect something beyond the ability to transfer money. They need payment platforms that offer speed, transparency, flexibility, and access to global markets. So I think events like SFF create a better opportunity to know in which direction the industry is moving, to share our perspectives with industry leaders, and explore partnerships that drive meaningful progress.”

Balasubramanyam K, CEO at EFICYENT, added:

“The future of fintech will be shaped by how effectively technology, financial institutions and payment networks work together. And this SFF event is going to remain an excellent opportunity to connect with industry leaders, better understand emerging requirements, and discover new approaches to making cross-border payments more accessible and efficient.”

About EFICYENT

EFICYENT is a global cross-border payments and financial infrastructure platform that concentrates on enabling seamless international money transfers.

They focus on simplifying international transactions and advancing digital finance. EFICYENT is committed to supporting a seamless and interconnected global payments ecosystem.

Media Contact: 
EFICYENT
Dubai, UAE
Website: https://eficyent.com/ 
Email: support@eficyent.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/eficyent/

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SOURCE EFICYENT

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SmallRig Joins Art World Figures to Discuss Creativity and Authenticity in the AI Era–and How Art and Technology Can Drive Innovation

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November 14, 2026

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SHENZHEN, China, Nov. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — As generative AI changes how images are made, one question grows more urgent: what still belongs to the human behind the lens? On November 11, Shenzhen International Art Museum and SmallRig, the imaging-gear brand built for creators, took up that question together by hosting an international exchange on how art and technology ecosystems are being reshaped in the AI era.

The conversation brought together leaders of Chinese art museums, Anett Holzheid, senior curator at Germany’s ZKM Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe, artists and SmallRig co-founder Gao Haiyan.

Zhang Zikang, director of Shenzhen International Art Museum and professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, said art and technology are a key direction for the museum, rooted in Shenzhen’s tech environment. Wang Shaoqiang, director of the Guangdong Museum of Art, described using AI to produce short films about classic works, which cut cost and production time, yet stressed that art must return to personal growth, understanding of the world and the expression of Eastern aesthetics. Holzheid views exhibitions as shared ground for artists, audiences and curators, and sees AI widening perception and enabling collaboration across disciplines.

Zadok Ben-David used AI to explore bird forms for an installation, repeatedly refined the images and selected some for the work, determined that it retain an artist’s character, emotion and humanity. A photographer set an AI-generated lightning strike against a desert he had photographed himself, gaining new ideas but noting that generated imagery tends toward sameness, while real presence at a scene cannot be substituted. Spatial artist Feng Yu championed honesty of material, where imperfection and unplanned outcomes can carry sincerity.

Speaking for SmallRig, Gao noted that technology has opened imaging to everyone, but “AI cannot replace real-life experiences or the act of capturing them.” AI can be an efficient, enabling creative tool, he said, but it cannot meet the human need for real images.

In SmallRig’s view, technology helps more people express what is real, while art and creator’s real needs give innovation its direction. The company will therefore move closer to creative scenes and the creators themselves, developing solutions faster for people who make real images.

After the forum, guests visited SmallRig’s headquarters to unveil Ode to the Orchid, an installation co-created with Feng Yu and the first of his works placed in a corporate workplace. Instead of sponsoring an exhibition or releasing a co-branded product, SmallRig placed art in everyday spaces, so people meet it in passing rather than behind museum walls.

Gao said companies often move from manufacturing to technology, while SmallRig also wants to merge with art and creativity. The space is only the surface. The real aim is an open, diverse, inclusive and creative culture, and a lasting bond with creators built on shared taste. SmallRig will keep working with artists, exploring art IP and cultural products, and linking products, content and services into one ecosystem. More activities to support creators are also on the way, bringing the meeting of technology and art into everyday creative practice. Real images remain where SmallRig starts, and where it hopes to innovate alongside creators.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/smallrig-joins-art-world-figures-to-discuss-creativity-and-authenticity-in-the-ai-eraand-how-art-and-technology-can-drive-innovation-302938911.html

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