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Rice launches AI venture accelerator to fuel industry innovation in collaboration with Google Public Sector

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HOUSTON, April 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Today Rice University announced the launch of the Rice AI Venture Accelerator (RAVA), designed to drive early stage artificial intelligence (AI) innovation and commercialization. In collaboration with Google Public Sector, RAVA is powered by Google Cloud technology and services and aims to connect AI-focused startups with large companies and public sector organizations to solve critical business and industry challenges through AI.

“We are creating an ecosystem where industry leaders can access the next generation of AI-driven solutions.”

“We are thrilled to announce the launch of the Rice AI Venture Accelerator in partnership with Google Public Sector,” Rice President Reginald DesRoches said. “This collaboration builds on Rice’s decades-long history of innovation and aligns perfectly with our mission to transform breakthrough research into real-world impact. Through RAVA, we are creating an ecosystem where industry leaders can access the next generation of AI-driven solutions.”

The AI accelerator is led by Rice Nexus, the university’s innovation hub located in Houston’s Ion District. RAVA partners will have exclusive access to Google Public Sector’s leadership in AI and machine learning research, cloud computing and AI-focused sandbox services.

Google Cloud will provide the necessary technology to help AI startups build minimum viable products rapidly and scale those solutions for deployment across industries. This will include leading-industry technology around cybersecurity, AI-optimized infrastructure and valuable datasets. In addition, partners will benefit from Rice’s top AI researchers, who bring expertise from the Ken Kennedy Institute and the Houston innovation ecosystem.

“Google Public Sector is proud to partner with a leading institution like Rice University to launch the Rice AI Venture Accelerator,” said Reymund Dumlao, director of state and local government and education at Google Public Sector. “By providing access to Google Cloud’s cutting-edge AI, secure cloud infrastructure and expertise, we’re enabling the next generation of AI pioneers to develop solutions that address critical challenges across industries and within the public sector. This unique partnership between education and industry will give participants access to cutting-edge research, leading technologists, specialized resources and a collaborative academic ecosystem, fostering an environment for rapid innovation and growth.”

RAVA will also collaborate with non sibi ventures, a venture capital firm that specializes in identifying and selecting high-potential early stage startups to further enhance the program’s value.

While Rice Nexus — a state-of-the-art 10,000-square-foot innovation hub — will serve as the physical hub, RAVA will extend its support to AI startups from across the U.S., enabling them to develop solutions for industry and public sector challenges. This aligns with Rice’s broader strategic plan, Momentous, which prioritizes leadership in responsible AI, computing and disruptive technologies.

“By leveraging the vast resources and leadership of Google Public Public Sector from AI research, cloud service and the AI-focused Rapid Innovation Team, we will provide RAVA partners access to unparalleled technology,” said Paul Cherukuri, vice president for innovation at Rice. “This partnership is poised to accelerate the commercialization and real-world impact of AI solutions in ways that were previously unimaginable.”

Under the leadership of Sanjoy Paul, an AI expert and entrepreneur, the Nexus aims to be a key driver for innovation across multiple industries including biotech, energy, climate and health care.

“This hub enables AI startups to go beyond building minimum viable products that meet industry privacy standards by utilizing the latest AI technologies from Google Cloud,” said Sanjoy Paul, executive director of Rice Nexus. “Our goal is to maximize the return on investment for our corporate partners, driving meaningful innovation that will have lasting impact on their industries.”

RAVA represents the next step in Rice’s commitment to innovation, advancing AI research and supporting the growth of the Houston innovation ecosystem. The program will provide crucial resources to ensure that AI solutions are not only developed but also deployed at scale, changing industries and advancing technology globally, university officials said.

For more information about RAVA, please visit https://nexus.rice.edu/rava.

About Rice University
Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of architecture, business, continuing studies, engineering and computing, humanities, music, natural sciences and social sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. Internationally, the university maintains the Rice Global Paris Center, a hub for innovative collaboration, research and inspired teaching located in the heart of Paris, and Rice Global India in Bengaluru. With 4,776 undergraduates and 4,104 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just under 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for lots of race/class interaction and No. 7 for best-run colleges by the Princeton Review. 

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rice-launches-ai-venture-accelerator-to-fuel-industry-innovation-in-collaboration-with-google-public-sector-302417394.html

SOURCE Rice University

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Ellucian Recognizes Partner Award Winners

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Key Highlights:

Ellucian honors eight strategic partners for exceptional collaboration, innovation, and measurable impact on customer success across the global higher education ecosystem.Award winners demonstrated leadership in advancing SaaS adoption, delivering seamless integrations, and enhancing the student and institutional experience.The Ellucian Partner Network continues to drive shared success through deep alignment across technology, services, and go-to-market execution.

RESTON, Va., April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Ellucian, the leading higher education technology solutions provider, announced the winners of the 2025 Ellucian Partner Awards. The annual awards program recognizes Ellucian Partner Network (EPN) members for their collaboration and impact in delivering excellent customer experience to higher education institutions.

“Our partners play a critical role in helping institutions navigate transformation and deliver better outcomes for students, faculty, and staff,” said Jeff Dinski, Chief Strategy and Corporate Development Officer, Ellucian. “The 2025 Partner Award winners exemplify what’s possible, and also the strategic expansion of our partner program as whole. We are proud to recognize their contributions and the meaningful impact they continue to drive across the higher education community.”

Celebrating Excellence Across the Partner Ecosystem

Ellucian’s Partner Awards program recognizes industry partners for outstanding achievements across categories including Innovation Excellence, Sales Excellence, Integration Excellence, Customer First, SaaS Transformation Leader, Most Enabled Partner, Service Partner of the Year and EPN Partner of the Year.

The Ellucian 2025 Partner Award Winners are:

EPN Partner of the Year: TouchNet, A Global Payments Company
Driving scale, adoption, and shared customer success
TouchNet achieved a major milestone in 2025 by surpassing 1,000 mutual customers and successfully supporting Ellucian SaaS implementations to live status. Their deep collaboration on integrations and consistent execution has strengthened the overall SaaS ecosystem and elevated the customer experience.

Service Partner of the Year: Strata Information Group (SIG)
Outstanding delivery and commitment
SIG was recognized for outstanding delivery across both sales and services, consistently ensuring smooth implementations and high customer satisfaction. Their commitment to quality and operational excellence has made them a trusted partner for institutions navigating transformation.

SaaS Transformation Leader: Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Accelerating cloud adoption and modernization
AWS continues to play a pivotal role in enabling institutional transformation through scalable cloud infrastructure and close collaboration across Ellucian teams. Their expertise helps institutions reduce migration complexity and confidently adopt SaaS solutions.

Innovation Excellence: Entrinsik, Inc.
Elevating product excellence through innovative technology
Entrinsik’s Informer AI platform brings governed, personalized AI assistants into the Ellucian ecosystem, transforming how students, faculty, and staff engage with institutional data. Their innovation enables real-time, contextual insights to enhance decision-making and student success.

Sales Excellence: Emburse, Inc.
Delivering aligned, high-impact co-selling execution
Emburse demonstrates exceptional collaboration with Ellucian through a highly coordinated co-selling approach that strengthens pipeline conversion and customer confidence. Their ability to align strategy, execution, and customer engagement has driven measurable outcomes and competitive wins.

Integration Excellence: Illumia (formerly Transact)
Most inventive and extensible integration
Illumia delivers a robust, real-time integration with Ellucian SaaS solutions ensuring continuous synchronization of student financial data. This approach enhances data accuracy, reduces manual processes, and strengthens trust in institutional systems.

Customer First: Evisions
Prioritizing collaboration and customer success
Evisions exemplifies a customer-first mindset through proactive collaboration and rapid response to shared customer needs. The strong partnership with Ellucian ensures institutions receive timely support, reliable solutions, and a consistently high-quality experience.

Most Enabled Partner: Ferrilli
Investing in expertise, training, and ecosystem readiness
Ferrilli demonstrates a strong commitment to enablement through deep investment in training, certifications, and product expertise. Their readiness and knowledge empower institutions to maximize the value of Ellucian solutions and accelerate success.

Driving Impact Through the Partner Ecosystem
Ellucian works with approximately 3,000 higher education institutions around the world supporting more than 21 million students on their education journey. The Ellucian Partner Network focuses on shared success through joint marketing, sales collaboration and technology enablement. With more than 150 members, Ellucian maintains one of the largest networks of strategic partners providing solutions specific to the needs of higher education.

To learn more about the Ellucian Partner Network, visit: https://www.ellucian.com/partners

WHAT IS ELLUCIAN
Ellucian powers innovation for higher education, partnering with approximately 3,000 customers across 50 countries, serving more than 21 million students. Ellucian’s AI-powered platform, trained on the richest dataset available in higher education, drives efficiency, personalized experiences, and strengthened engagement for all students, faculty and staff. Fueled by decades of experience with a singular focus on the unique needs of learning institutions, the Ellucian platform features best-in-class SaaS capabilities and delivers insights needed now and into the future. These solutions and services span the entire student lifecycle, including data-rich tools for student recruitment, enrolment, and retention to workforce analytics, fundraising, and alumni engagement. Ellucian’s innovative solutions, vast ecosystem of partners and user community of more than 45,000 provides best practices leading to greater institutional success and achieving better student outcomes.

Media Contacts
Greg Giangrande, Chief Marketing Officer
Greg.Giangrande@Ellucian.com 

Jess Weston, Manager, Communications
Jess.Weston@Ellucian.com

 

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ellucian-recognizes-partner-award-winners-302747281.html

SOURCE Ellucian

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Lorex for Business Launches X Series: AI-Powered Security for Modern Businesses

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TORONTO, April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Today, Lorex Technology announced the launch of the new X Series, a line of AI-powered security cameras and Network Video Recorders (NVRs) designed for professional security applications. The X Series combines high-performance video surveillance with AI-powered analytics, helping businesses not only capture critical evidence, but also gain insights to improve security, operations, and day-to-day decision-making.

As AI continues to reshape how businesses operate, security systems are evolving beyond basic monitoring. The X Series brings together reliable wired hardware, AI-powered analytics, and the new Lorex Connect app into a single, connected system that helps businesses monitor, manage, and respond in real time.

Built for both installers and business owners, the X Series is designed to be easy to deploy, scalable, and reliable in demanding environments. From retail stores and warehouses to gyms, convenience stores, and construction sites, it combines dependable performance with AI-driven capabilities to support and improve a wide range of business operations.

“At a time when businesses are facing more complex operational and security challenges, the X Series represents a shift from passive monitoring to intelligent protection,” said Steve Hong, VP, Global Sales and Marketing at Lorex Technology. “We’re enabling businesses not just to see incidents, but to understand, respond, and even prevent them.”  

X Series: Clear Visibility and Proactive Protection

The X Series delivers high-performance video surveillance designed for demanding environments. Combining crystal clear 4K video with proactive deterrence, it provides clear, reliable footage while helping businesses actively prevent incidents before they occur. 

X Series: AI-Driven Security and Business Intelligence

Beyond video surveillance, the X Series uses AI to help businesses better understand and manage their environments. By analyzing activity in real time, it provides actionable insights that improve security, support faster response to incidents, and enhance day-to-day operations. From identifying people, vehicles, and behaviors such as loitering and line crossing to delivering insights through people counting and heat mapping, it enables a more proactive and informed approach to security and operations. 

Lorex Connect: A Unified Platform for Control and Insight

At the center of the X Series is the Lorex Connect app, providing instant access to your system from anywhere. It enables businesses to monitor live and recorded footage, receive intelligent real-time alerts, and view multiple cameras at once, helping them stay connected, respond faster, and maintain control at all times.

X Series: A Comprehensive Lineup for Every Business Environment

X5 4K PoE Fixed Cameras (Bullet & Turret)

Delivers top-tier surveillance with the most advanced AI capabilities, built for environments where visibility, awareness, and prevention are critical. Featuring real-time 4K at 30 FPS and True AI Color Night Vision (AI-ISP), it provides smooth, clear video with enhanced detail, helping capture more accurate evidence at any time of day. Combined with Advanced Deterrence, including a built-in siren, white-light illumination, red and blue strobe lights, and 2-way talk, it not only records incidents but actively helps prevent them by drawing attention and discouraging unwanted activity in real time.

X3 4K Motorized Varifocal Cameras (Bullet & Turret)

Along with 4K video and Color Night Vision, the X3 delivers added flexibility through its motorized varifocal lens, allowing users to remotely adjust the field of view using its 4× optical zoom to capture detail at a distance without sacrificing image quality. With built-in white-light deterrence and audio capabilities, including two-way talk on bullet models and listen-in audio on turret models, it adds an extra layer of awareness and control.

X PTZ 4K Dome Camera with 30× Zoom

Equipped with 4K resolution and 30× optical zoom, it enables operators to monitor large areas and capture fine detail from a distance. With pan, tilt, and zoom capabilities, it supports active monitoring by allowing users to follow movement and respond to activity in real time. Built for wide-area coverage, it is ideal for environments where visibility and control across large spaces are critical. 

X Series Network Video Recorders (NVRs)

Provide secure, centralized recording and system management across deployments of all sizes. Built to support advanced and evolving AI analytics, they enable smarter monitoring, improved awareness, and more informed decision-making for businesses. Available in 8, 16, and 32-channel configurations.

Together, the X Series combines reliable hardware with AI-powered intelligence, helping businesses move beyond monitoring to smarter, more proactive operations. Now available on pro.lorex.com.

About Lorex Technology

Lorex is a leading provider of smart security and monitoring solutions, with over 30 years of experience delivering reliable video surveillance across North America. Founded in Canada, Lorex offers a comprehensive ecosystem of solutions for both residential and commercial applications. Lorex for Business, its professional division, supports security installers, integrators, and business owners with scalable, professional-grade systems that combine proven reliability with intelligent features to enhance visibility, streamline operations, and support growing businesses.

To learn more, visit Lorex.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lorex-for-business-launches-x-series-ai-powered-security-for-modern-businesses-302746983.html

SOURCE Lorex Technology

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CANADIAN FIBER OPTICS COMING SOON TO WHITECOURT ALBERTA

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Select Homes and Businesses to Receive 100% Pure Lightning-Fast Fiber Internet

CALGARY, AB, April 20, 2026 /CNW/ – Canadian Fiber Optics Corporation (CFOC), a leading Alberta-based fiber broadband provider, today announced plans to invest in a state-of-the-art fiber optic network to over 1,500 businesses and residences in Whitecourt, Alberta. Construction will start immediately with service expected to be available before the end of the summer.

“Whitecourt is a vibrant, growing community, and we’re proud to be building a world-class 100-percent pure fiber network to support their momentum,” said Jodi Bloomer-Kaput, Co-Founder and Executive at Canadian Fiber Optics Corporation. Added Bloomer-Kaput,” Thank you to the Whitecourt Town Council and Mayor Hilts for the encouragement and support.”

Whitecourt Mayor Ray Hilts added, “I am delighted that Canadian Fiber Optics has chosen to invest millions of dollars in our town, to bring world-class fiber optics to residents and businesses, enabling different connectivity options and availability of service throughout the community. This investment supports our growing community and aids in our economic development and growth.”

Construction of the fiber network will commence right away, with construction crews showing up on select streets of Whitecourt starting this month. While there will be some disruption to traffic, by the end of summer roads will be properly restored and fifteen hundred residences and businesses will be able to enjoy ultra-fast, reliable and affordable Internet.

Bloomer-Kaput added: “We are looking-forward to bringing more reliable, faster fiber internet services at affordable prices to Whitecourt. Being an Alberta-based company, we know what powerful world-class infrastructure means to our local communities and our growing Alberta economy. We can’t wait to start offering fiber services to our neighbours later this summer.”

To stay current on our construction progress, or to learn more about our products and service availability dates for Whitecourt, Alberta, please visit our service brand website at www.northernlightsfiber.ca

About Canadian Fiber Optics Corporation

Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canadian Fiber Optics Corporation (CFOC), is a privately-owned and operated Alberta-based fiber broadband provider, offering internet connectivity over its 100% pure fiber optic network. Canadian Fiber Optics Corporation designs, builds, owns, and operates fiber optic networks, providing symmetrical, multi-gigabit bandwidth services to residential, business and enterprise customers in rural communities. The flagship brand, “Northern Lights Fiber” (www.northernlightsfiber.ca) provides internet to its retail customers. For more information about Canadian Fiber Optics Corporation please visit www.canadianfiberoptics.ca.

Why this Announcement Matters for Whitecourt

The construction of this new fiber network is important because across parts of the town of Whitecourt, many residents and businesses still rely on outdated cable or copper infrastructure, which were never designed to handle today’s internet needs and speeds. With our true end-to-end fiber network, Canadian Fiber Optics Corporation is ensuring towns and communities like Whitecourt have world-class, state-of-the-art infrastructure needed to support today’s digital demands and the capacity for generations to come.

SOURCE Canadian Fiber Optics Corp.

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