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From Establishing the First Commercial Credit Ratings to Powering Today’s AI Economy, Dun & Bradstreet Celebrates 185 Years of Innovation

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The company that once counted Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, Grover Cleveland, and William McKinley among its credit reporters continues to bring confidence to the global economy

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., July 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Few companies have contributed to the growth of American commerce like Dun & Bradstreet. As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, Dun & Bradstreet is marking 185 years of enabling businesses and financial institutions to make more confident decisions, build stronger relationships, and drive economic growth.

Founded in 1841 during America’s westward expansion, Dun & Bradstreet pioneered a new way for businesses to assess creditworthiness, manage risk, and extend commerce into new markets. At a time when businesses relied on local knowledge and personal relationships, the company established a broader framework for evaluating business reputation and financial standing across expanding markets. Since then, the company has continued to evolve to support the needs of an increasingly connected global economy.

“We have been innovating for businesses since 1841,” said Stephen Tulenko, CEO of Dun & Bradstreet. “Dun & Bradstreet pioneered the first standardized commercial credit rating system, facilitating commerce and growth across the country, intelligence that became one of the world’s first business databases and laid the foundation for 185 years of innovation.”

The company’s earliest innovation was a nationwide network of correspondents who reported on businesses and the individuals running them. Their observations were captured in handwritten ledgers, creating a structured view of companies and the people behind them. Among these correspondents were four future U.S. presidents: Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, Grover Cleveland, and William McKinley. Those handwritten volumes are preserved today in the R.G. Dun & Company Credit Report Volumes at Harvard Business School’s Baker Library. As the network grew, those individual reports were standardized into published reference books and commercial credit ratings that merchants and lenders across the country came to depend on to do business at a distance.

As commerce became more complex and interconnected through computing, Dun & Bradstreet continued to standardize how businesses evaluated risk and trust. In 1963, the company introduced the D-U-N-S® Number, a unique identifier for businesses, similar to a Social Security Number, that helped organizations connect and identify companies across systems, databases and borders.

Today, Dun & Bradstreet gives companies the verified business identity and grounding context they need to use AI safely and at scale. Anchored by the D-U-N-S® Number and powered by the D&B Commercial Graph™, the company helps organizations understand corporate relationships and ensures AI is working from accurate, verified information about real businesses.

“For 185 years, the most important questions in commerce haven’t changed: who am I doing business with and can my business rely on them enough to move forward?” said Tulenko. “What’s changed is who needs the answer. Increasingly, it isn’t just people making decisions, it’s AI. We provide the verified identity and context that let businesses and their agents act with confidence.”

From pioneering standardized commercial credit ratings in the 1840s to grounding today’s agentic economy, Dun & Bradstreet now helps power AI workflows across leading platforms including Anthropic, AWS, Cursor, Databricks, Google Cloud, IBM, Microsoft 365 Copilot, OpenAI, Salesforce, Snowflake, and more. The company’s role has not changed since 1841: providing the trusted information that lets commerce move and, in doing so, helping power the economic growth that has followed.

About Dun & Bradstreet

Dun & Bradstreet provides the verified commercial identity foundation for enterprises to deploy AI at scale. The company originated the D-U-N-S® Number in 1963, now the global standard for identifying commercial entities. Anchored by this identifier, the D&B Commercial Graph™ structures and connects business identity consistently across systems, enabling AI to operate on accurate, validated data. Since 1841, businesses of every size have relied on Dun & Bradstreet to navigate change and accelerate growth. For more information, visit www.dnb.com.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/from-establishing-the-first-commercial-credit-ratings-to-powering-todays-ai-economy-dun–bradstreet-celebrates-185-years-of-innovation-302816225.html

SOURCE Dun & Bradstreet, Inc.

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Portland General Electric schedules earnings release and conference call for Friday, July 31

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PORTLAND, Ore., July 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Portland General Electric Company (NYSE: POR) announced today that it will host an analyst conference call and webcast at 11 a.m. ET on Friday, July 31, to review its second quarter 2026 financial results.

Portland General Electric plans to release its second quarter 2026 earnings summary before financial markets open in the United States on July 31. 

The conference call will be hosted by Maria Pope, President and CEO; Joe Trpik, Senior Vice President of Finance and CFO; and Erin Schwartz, Senior Manager of Investor Relations.

To hear the conference call by webcast, log on to Portland General Electric’s investor website at investors.portlandgeneral.com, select Events & Presentations from the menu, and the webcast will be listed under Upcoming Events. A replay of the webcast will be available beginning at 2 p.m. ET on July 31. The webcast replay will be listed under Archived Events within the investor website Events & Presentations page.

About Portland General Electric Company:
Portland General Electric Company (PGE) (NYSE: POR) is an integrated energy company that generates, transmits and distributes electricity to nearly 960,000 customers serving an area of approximately 2 million Oregonians. Since 1889, PGE has been powering economies, delivering safe, affordable and reliable electricity while working to transform energy systems to meet evolving customer needs. PGE continues to make progress towards emissions reduction targets, and customers have set the standard for prioritizing clean energy with the No. 1 voluntary renewable energy program in the country. PGE is ranked a top ten utility in the 2025 Forrester U.S. Customer Experience Index. In 2025, PGE employees and retirees volunteered over 18,300 hours to more than 400 nonprofits organizations. Through the PGE Foundation, along with corporate contributions and the employee matching gift program, more than $5 million was directed to charitable organizations supporting economic growth and community resilience across our service area. For information: portlandgeneral.com/our-company/news-room.

For more information please contact:
Erin Schwartz, PGE, 503-464-7751

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/portland-general-electric-schedules-earnings-release-and-conference-call-for-friday-july-31-302816276.html

SOURCE Portland General Company

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Selling Scottsdale TV Series Spotlights Scottsdale Real Estate and Lifestyle on REAL Shows Network

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Locally hosted series led by Becky Kennard highlights the people, neighborhoods, and businesses that define Scottsdale and the greater Valley.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., July 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — REAL Shows Network (RSN), the national TV platform dedicated to elevating real estate and lifestyle storytelling, has added Selling Scottsdale, a new locally hosted series in Scottsdale, AZ, to its lineup. The Scottsdale real estate and lifestyle TV series is hosted by local real estate leader Becky Kennard and produced by RSN’s Emmy-nominated, Telly Award-winning team.

Viewers can learn more about the series and watch episodes of Selling Scottsdale at realshows.tv.

The series captures the spirit of Scottsdale by blending real estate, local culture, and community stories into a vibrant viewing experience. Each episode features Becky Kennard:

Highlighting notable neighborhoods and distinctive properties across Scottsdale and the greater Phoenix areaShowcasing real clients, real properties, and real numbers across vacation homes, investment properties, and luxury estatesPulling back the curtain on the design and renovation decisions that transform houses into standout homes

As owner of Desert Luxe by My Home Group and Lux Renovations, Kennard brings a rare blend of luxury market expertise, design vision, and practical guidance to buyers, sellers, and investors throughout the Scottsdale area. Through Desert Luxe, she and her hand-selected team have closed transactions across a wide range of price points, while Lux Renovations extends that experience beyond the transaction through thoughtful updates that elevate finishes and unlock property value.

“When I started in real estate, I saw right away that not all clients were treated equally,” said Becky Kennard, host of Selling Scottsdale. “I wanted to create a space where every buyer and seller is given the same white-glove experience, whether they are purchasing their first property or selling a signature Scottsdale estate.”

“Selling Scottsdale is a chance to show what really goes into this market, from the strategy behind each deal to the renovation and design choices that can completely change a home’s value and feel,” Kennard said. “At the heart of it all is my belief that every client deserves luxury service, no matter the price point.”

Selling Scottsdale is part of REAL Shows Network’s growing lineup of locally branded series that highlight communities across the United States.

As part of RSN’s national network of locally branded shows, Selling Scottsdale gives its host a full 30 minutes to build a recognizable, personality-driven brand while authentically representing the unique character of Scottsdale, AZ. The show provides local organizations, including nonprofits and philanthropic initiatives, along with entrepreneurs and community influencers, a high-quality platform to share their stories through cinematic, lifestyle-driven segments.

Rooted in RSN’s mission of positive media, Selling Scottsdale focuses on authenticity, connection, and the everyday experiences that make communities stand out. It uplifts the people, businesses, and causes that make each community extraordinary, offering viewers fresh insight along with engaging, professionally produced entertainment. High-resolution images and video clips from Selling Scottsdale are available upon request.

About REAL Shows Network
REAL Shows Network (RSN) is a national TV network for top real estate professionals and influential local leaders, giving select hosts in each market the exclusive opportunity to lead a full 30-minute show that showcases their expertise, partners, and community. Created by an Emmy-nominated, Telly Award-winning production team, RSN delivers cinematic, lifestyle-driven storytelling and strategic media exposure that builds authority, deepens community connection, and elevates positive stories in each market. For more information, visit realshows.tv.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/selling-scottsdale-tv-series-spotlights-scottsdale-real-estate-and-lifestyle-on-real-shows-network-302816414.html

SOURCE REAL Shows Network

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Soccer’s best communicators rely on clarity, not clichés, AI analysis finds

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STOCKHOLM, July 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Sinch, a global leader in cloud communications, today announces new AI analysis of 241 pre- and post-match coach press conferences across six languages shows that the soccer tournament’s clearest communicators are those who explain tactics, decisions and performances rather than rely on familiar soccer clichés. The data also reveals two distinct communication styles emerging during the group stage, with “Tacticians” consistently using clearer, more specific language while “Motivators” relied more heavily on generic themes such as belief, confidence and character. The tracker also shows that “We respect every opponent” was the tournament’s most common soccer cliché, used 15 times.

The xC Tracker, powered by Sinch, measures how often coaches use familiar soccer clichés during press conferences. Lower xC (expected cliché) scores indicate fewer clichés and clearer, more authentic communication. Coaches with the lowest xC scores consistently focused on tactics, lineup decisions and performance. In contrast, coaches with higher xC scores were more likely to rely on broad themes such as belief, character and team chemistry.

The analysis reveals two distinct communication styles emerging during the group stage. The “Tacticians” consistently explained decisions through soccer fundamentals such as team structure, positioning, transitions and decision making. The “Motivators” leaned more heavily on familiar motivational language.

Highest xC scores (Most cliché driven)

Rank

Coach

Team

xC

1

Gustavo Alfaro

Paraguay

311

2

Vincenzo Montella

Turkey

297

3

Tony Popović

Australia

293

4

Mohamed Ouahbi

Morocco

274

5

Jesse Marsch

Canada

265

 

Lowest xC scores (Clearer communication)

Rank

Coach

Team

xC

1

Marcelo Bielsa

Uruguay

28

2

Didier Deschamps

France

62

3

Graham Arnold

Iraq

68

4

Nestor Lorenzo

Colombia

86

5

Fabio Cannavaro

Uzbekistan

86

Lower xC scores indicate fewer clichés and clearer communication.

The Tacticians vs The Motivators

Coaches with the lowest xC scores consistently explained decisions through soccer fundamentals such as team structure, positioning, transitions and decision making, while avoiding overused motivational language. Uruguay’s Marcelo Bielsa, the tournament’s clearest communicator, remained focused on explaining what happened, why players were selected and how tactical decisions were made.

Coaches with higher xC scores, including Canada’s Jesse Marsch, Paraguay’s Gustavo Alfaro and Australia’s Tony Popović, relied more heavily on themes such as belief, confidence and character, making them more likely to fall back on familiar soccer clichés.

Data from Sinch’s xC Tracker also shows that the tournament’s clearest communicators maintained remarkably consistent communication styles throughout the group stage, regardless of whether their teams won or lost.

Most Used Soccer Clichés During the Group Stage

Rank

Cliché

Times Used

1

“We respect every opponent”

15

2

“We focus on what we can control”

11

3

“We know our qualities”

8

4

“We have to adapt to the conditions”

7

5

“The country is behind us”

7

Across the tournament, the most common cliché categories were humility, mindset, focus and concentration, and character.

Group stage trends

The overall data suggests that coaches became less cliché prone as the tournament progressed. Average xC scores fell from approximately 72 on the opening weekend to around 23 by the end of the group stage, indicating that the heaviest use of clichés came in early tournament press conferences.

Interestingly, coaches used more clichés before matches than after them. Average pre match xC scores reached 25 compared with 21 after matches, suggesting that coaches rely more heavily on familiar buzzwords when managing expectations before kickoff.

For further real time data analysis, please find Sinch’s xC tracker here.

Methodology

The xC Tracker – powered by Sinch – analyses every coach press conference at the 2026 World Cup, measuring responses against a 205-phrase dictionary of soccer clichés across six languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German and Arabic.

Each phrase was verified by native-speaking editors and only included if it appeared repeatedly across major tournament press conferences, could apply regardless of result, and would be recognized by fans as a familiar soccer fallback.

The AI detects exact matches, variations and paraphrased responses, while each phrase is assigned a cliché score from 3-10 based on how overused it is. References to religion, personal hardship or condolences are excluded from analysis.

CONTACT:

For more information, please contact:
Shannon Hames
Senior Manager, PR and Communications, North America
E-mail: Sinch@brands2life.com 

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/soccers-best-communicators-rely-on-clarity-not-cliches-ai-analysis-finds-302816325.html

SOURCE Sinch AB

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