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FDA Clears World’s First Mobile App for Contactless Pulse Rate Measurement

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PanopticAI’s tech turns smartphones and tablets into medical-grade vital sign monitors.This is a major milestone in the Hong Kong-based startup’s mission to ensure accessible, scalable healthcare.The AI-based technology’s diverse use cases include telehealth, remote patient monitoring, community health screening, decentralized clinical trials and personal wellness.PanopticAI’s early adopters include Gleneagles Hospital Hong Kong (part of IHH Healthcare), Mannings (Hong Kong’s leading health and beauty chain) and Bupa (multinational health insurer).

HONG KONG, Jan. 26, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — PanopticAI, a leading innovator in remote patient monitoring, announced today it has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its contactless vital signs monitoring software. The PanopticAI Vital Signs app is the first FDA-cleared mobile application for contactless pulse rate measurement using the built-in camera of iPhones and iPads. This also distinguishes PanopticAI as the first Hong Kong-based company to achieve FDA clearance for a Software as a Medical Device (SaMD).

PanopticAI’s technology leverages proprietary remote photoplethysmography (rPPG) algorithms to transform readily available smartphones and tablets into medical-grade vital sign monitors. Advanced AI and signal processing techniques are used to analyze subtle color changes in the skin captured by the device’s camera, accurately measuring vital signs like pulse rate in just 30 seconds.

This FDA clearance represents a significant milestone in PanopticAI’s mission to make healthcare more accessible and scalable. By leveraging the ubiquity of smartphones, PanopticAI’s technology eliminates the need for specialized equipment, significantly reducing costs and expanding access to vital sign monitoring for a wider population. The company’s contactless vital signs monitoring technology is already used by hospitals, insurance providers and pharmacies. Its customers include Gleneagles Hospital Hong Kong (part of IHH Healthcare, one of the world’s largest healthcare providers), Mannings (Hong Kong’s leading health and beauty chain) and Bupa (multinational health insurer).

Clinical testing was conducted on a diverse patient population reflecting US census data to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the PanopticAI Vital Signs app across a broad range of users. Rigorous non-clinical testing evaluated the app’s performance under various conditions, including different lighting, distances, and user characteristics, to ensure reliable operation in real-world settings. The PanopticAI Vital Signs app also underwent rigorous cybersecurity and human factors testing to ensure patient safety and ease of use.

“We are delighted to receive FDA clearance for our technology, validating our commitment to developing clinically sound, accessible health solutions,” said Dr. Kyle Wong, CEO & Co-founder of PanopticAI. “This clearance for contactless pulse rate measurement is the first of several anticipated approvals, and we look forward to building upon this success as we expand our technology’s capabilities.”

Dr. Kenneth Tsang, Chief Executive Officer of Gleneagles Hospital Hong Kong (Gleneagles) and Regional Chief Executive Officer of IHH Healthcare North Asia, said, “Gleneagles embraces innovative solutions and new technologies to make personalised healthcare more accessible and encourage patients to have better awareness and management of their own health and wellbeing. As the first private hospital in Hong Kong to collaborate with PanopticAI to adopt the solution in the hospital’s mobile application, we are pleased to be able to help more patients through participating in the validation of the reliability and effectiveness of this innovative technology.”

Chibo Tang, Managing Partner of Gobi Partners, said, “Gobi Partners were early supporters of PanopticAI and are excited by this important milestone. Traditional vital sign monitoring wearables are often costly and uncomfortable, leading to poor adherence. PanopticAI’s FDA-cleared app, however, makes monitoring your vital signs as easy as using your smartphone, empowering patients to become active participants in their own healthcare journeys.”

The PanopticAI Vital Signs app is not intended to be the sole method to assess a subject’s physical health condition. The measurements it provides should complement, not replace, professional medical care and/or medication.

About PanopticAI

PanopticAI is Hong Kong’s leading health technology company revolutionizing vital signs monitoring with its clinically validated remote photoplethysmography (rPPG) technology. Our award-winning Vitals™ SDK transforms smartphones, tablets, and computers into medical-grade vital signs monitors, making health monitoring accessible and scalable for everyone. In just 30 seconds, Vitals™ SDK accurately measures key physiological parameters, including heart rate, heart rate variability, breathing rate, oxygen saturation, blood pressure, stress level and more – all without wearables or specialized equipment. This breakthrough in remote patient monitoring enables healthcare providers, wellness organizations, and insurance enterprises to reduce the burden on healthcare staff while empowering users with insights for early detection and chronic disease management. PanopticAI is backed by Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund, Gobi Partners, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and The Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation.

About Gobi Partners

Gobi Partners is an Asia-focused venture capital firm with US$1.6 billion in Assets Under Management (AUM). Headquartered in Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong, the firm supports entrepreneurs from the early to growth stages and focuses on emerging and underserved markets. Founded in 2002, Gobi has raised 21 funds and invested in over 380 startups with 62 operating in the Circular Economy. Gobi has grown to 15 locations across key markets in Bangkok, Beijing, Dhaka, Guangzhou, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur, Lahore, Manila, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Singapore and Tianjin. As a Participant in the United Nations Global Compact, Gobi Partners is committed to aligning strategies and operations with universal human rights, labour, environment, and anti-corruption principles to ensure long-term value creation and sustainability across its portfolio. The firm launched its third Sustainability Report in June 2024. For more information about Gobi Partners, please visit https://gobi.vc.

CONTACT: hello@panoptic.ai

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/fda-clears-worlds-first-mobile-app-for-contactless-pulse-rate-measurement-302359711.html

SOURCE PanopticAI Limited

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Zifo Transforms Ontology Engineering with AI-Powered Intelligent Automation

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Advanced AI solution speeds up ontology creation by 80%, generating structured, interoperable knowledge models for science-driven organizations.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and CAMBRIDGE, England, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Zifo, the leading global enabler of AI and data-driven enterprise informatics for science-driven organizations, has developed an Intelligent Automation solution for Ontology Engineering, which is designed to seamlessly generate structured, interoperable knowledge models while accelerating ontology creation by 80%.

Overcoming the Bottlenecks of Manual Ontology Creation

Manual ontology creation in the biopharma industry has traditionally been a time-consuming process that requires specialized expertise. Organizations frequently struggle with semantic ambiguity, complex integration challenges, and limited scalability, resulting in workflows that can take weeks to complete. Zifo’s AI-powered automation tackles these challenges head-on by eliminating 80% of the manual work through automated class generation, description creation, and precise IRI mapping.

Addressing the Complexities of Semantic Knowledge

Developing comprehensive knowledge models often demands deep domain expertise to define relationships and align terminology. Zifo’s intelligent solution overcomes this by providing an AI-guided workflow featuring an intuitive interface, meaning specialized ontology engineering knowledge is no longer required. By leveraging LLM-powered generation, the solution creates precise definitions with a deep understanding of domain-specific context, while generating standardized synonyms and establishing controlled vocabulary alignment to eliminate inconsistent terminology.

A Solution Designed for Scalable Scientific Data Modeling

The AI-powered solution addresses critical format compatibility and integration points in ontology management:

Seamless Integration: Automated mapping connects directly to established ontologies, including NCIT, CHEBI, OBI, and EFO, via BioPortal and OLS APIs.Massive Scalability: Parallel processing and batch operations empower teams to execute large-scale ontology projects without performance limitations.Automated Hierarchies: The AI autonomously generates semantic relationships and parent-child hierarchies based on domain context and predefined relation vocabularies.Format Compatibility: The solution produces direct OWL/RDF exports with proper URIs, ensuring seamless downstream integration.

Unique Features include:

Multi-Source Integration: The solution combines BioPortal, OLS, and EMBL-EBI APIs to guarantee comprehensive ontology coverage.Intelligent Ranking System: The system uses AI-powered relevance scoring and justification for precise ontology mappings.Precise IRI Mapping: It ensures that each generated class is linked to the correct IRI, directly promoting semantic web compatibility.Human-in-the-Loop Design: The solution automates repetitive tasks while maintaining vital expert oversight.End-to-End Workflow: Users are guided through a complete pipeline, from initial domain knowledge input straight to exportable OWL files.Visual Knowledge Graph: An interactive graph visualization allows for intuitive relationship exploration and validation.Multi-Format Exports: Provides seamless export options in CSV, OWL, or HTML Ontograph formats for downstream use, collaboration, and visualization.

Strategic Value Across the Scientific Chain

This solution breaks down the traditional barriers of data structuring. Built on a robust backend of Python, LangChain, and leading LLM models, alongside a frontend framework using Next.js 15 and Cytoscape.js for graph visualization, the solution is highly adaptable. Furthermore, future optimization enhancements will include provisions for uploading user-defined classes or semi-ready ontologies.

About Zifo

Zifo is the leading global enabler of AI and data-driven enterprise informatics for science-driven organizations. With expertise spanning research, development, manufacturing, and clinical domains, Zifo serves a diverse range of industries including Pharma, Biotech, Chemicals, Food and Beverage, and more. Trusted by over 190 organizations worldwide, Zifo is the partner of choice for advancing digital scientific innovation.

For more information, visit www.zifornd.comhttps://zifornd.com/practical-ai-blueprints/

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2731415/Zifo_Technologies_Logo.jpg

 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/zifo-transforms-ontology-engineering-with-ai-powered-intelligent-automation-302758975.html

SOURCE Zifo Technologies

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UNC-Chapel Hill establishes ‘Carolina in the Capital’ with new Washington, D.C. office

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CHAPEL HILL, N.C., April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has opened a new office in Washington, D.C., establishing an expanded presence for the University in the nation’s capital and creating exciting opportunities for students, faculty, staff and alumni.

Located at 101 Constitution Avenue NW, the 10,861-square-foot space – coined “Carolina in the Capital” – will support a variety of functions, including educational programming for undergraduate and graduate students, alumni relations and engagement with government partners.

As a leading R1 university, UNC-Chapel Hill annually attracts more than $1.6 billion to the state’s economy to fund research that creates a better quality of life for all its citizens. More than 60% of UNC-Chapel Hill’s total research funding comes from federal sponsors with the majority of that federal funding coming from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is based in the Washington area.

“Carolina in the Capital is a state-of-the-art facility that reflects our commitment to creating experiential learning opportunities for our students and faculty,” said Chancellor Lee H. Roberts. “The space is designed as an immersive learning environment where students can translate classroom knowledge into hands-on experience, which has never been more important. The facility also strengthens our ability to support engagement between our staff, alumni, policymakers and partners.”

Supporting students participating in Carolina’s Washington-based academic programs is a priority. For years, students and faculty have relied on temporary or borrowed spaces across the city. The new office provides a permanent home where students can gather, learn and build community while living and studying in Washington. A robust schedule of classes and events will fill the space throughout the year.

The Washington, D.C. region is home to the largest concentration of out-of-state Carolina alumni anywhere in the country. The new office creates a dedicated space to strengthen those connections and support networking, mentorship, professional development and community-building among D.C.-based Tar Heels.

The space will also serve as a platform to bring Carolina’s research and academic expertise into closer conversation with policymakers, industry leaders and member organizations. Carolina is the nation’s 11th largest university in the country based on research volume with primary federal funding coming from NIH and the National Science Foundation (NSF), both based in the D.C. area. Carolina is a proud member of the Association of American Universities (AAU) and the Association of Public & Land Grant Universities (APLU), which are both based in Washington.

The office is funded entirely through the UNC-Chapel Hill Foundation and does not use any state appropriations.

You can view additional photos of the space here.

Media Contact: UNC Media Relations, 919-445-8555, mediarelations@unc.edu

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SOURCE University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Office of Communications

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Investing.com Acquires Stonki to Accelerate Its Entry into the Agentic AI Era

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The acquisition strengthens Investing.com’s AI capabilities, advancing a next-generation research assistant that can analyze markets, generate insights, and guide investors in real time

NEW YORK, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Investing.com, one of the world’s largest financial platforms used by more than 60 million investors each month, today announced the acquisition of Stonki, an AI-powered investing assistant designed to help traders turn ideas into structured, actionable trading plans.

The move marks a major step in the company’s evolution toward agentic AI, strengthening its ability to deliver faster, deeper, and more actionable market insights to a growing base of more than 300,000 paying subscribers across its InvestingPro suite, the company’s premium subscription offering for advanced market data, tools, and AI-driven insights.

Over the past 12 months, nearly 3 million users have used WarrenAI, Investing.com’s AI-powered financial research assistant launched last year, to perform market analysis, making AI a central entry point into the platform’s ecosystem. With the addition of Stonki, the company is moving beyond traditional AI tools toward agentic systems that can proactively guide users through the investment process.

“We’re entering the age of agentic AI, where the technology moves beyond just answering questions to actively helping investors think, analyze, and act,” said Omer Shvili, CEO of Investing.com. “Bringing Stonki.ai into the fold accelerates our goal of building an agentic platform that will serve as a 24/7 analyst for our users. We are developing this to be more than just a tool; it will be a partner that identifies opportunities, tracks unfolding situations, and surfaces trade ideas even when the user isn’t active—giving our users the kind of edge that was previously only available to professional investors.”

Founded in 2025, Stonki is developing a new category of ‘agentic’ AI for investing, enabling users to turn investment ideas into fully defined strategies with entry and exit conditions, risk management rules, and continuous monitoring.

“We started Stonki because, as investors and traders ourselves, we knew how much time and focus it takes to stay on top of the market and properly manage a day trade, a swing trade, an investment idea, or a portfolio,” said Ulas Bilgenoglu and Itay Verkh, co-founders of Stonki. “We set out to build AI that could carry part of that load by continuously monitoring the market, turning ideas into structured strategies, and helping users make better decisions with clear entry and exit conditions, disciplined risk management, and ongoing tracking. Joining Investing.com gives us the scale, data, reach, and strong AI foundation to accelerate that vision. Together, we can create an experience where AI helps users stay ahead of the market, manage risk, and act with greater confidence.”

The acquisition expands Investing.com’s AI capabilities across both technical and fundamental investing workflows. Stonki’s technology is built around persistent, real-time intelligence, continuously monitoring markets, tracking user-defined strategies, and alerting investors when conditions align, rather than relying on one-off prompts or static analysis.

For active traders, the platform is evolving into a real-time analysis engine designed to support high-frequency decision-making with precision and speed. For long-term investors, it is becoming a central hub for research, enabling users to evaluate opportunities, set personalized alerts, and monitor portfolios based on their individual investment strategies.

Users will be able to define specific conditions, such as a stock crossing a long-term moving average, and have the AI continuously monitor the market, analyze relevant signals, and surface actionable insights in real time. The system will also review portfolios on an ongoing basis, helping investors avoid potential losses and uncover new opportunities aligned with their strategy.

This latest step builds on Investing.com’s broader strategy of expanding its AI-powered suite, including WarrenAI, ProPicks AI, and its recently launched AI Chart Analysis, all aimed at delivering faster, more accurate and more actionable insights to investors.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/investingcom-acquires-stonki-to-accelerate-its-entry-into-the-agentic-ai-era-302756588.html

SOURCE Investing.com

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