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EMERGING and Promethean Launch $300M Experience Fund to Back AI for Hospitality

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CHICAGO, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — EMERGING and Promethean today announced the launch of The Experience Fund (XPR), a $300 million vehicle with a $500 million hard cap, co-sponsored 50/50 by the two firms. Led by EMERGING Managing Partner Mathew Focht and Promethean Managing Partner Michael Burt, XPR will invest in artificial intelligence, IP holdings Companies and automation platforms built for hospitality and experiential entertainment.

The fund formalizes a six-year working relationship, pairing EMERGING’s origination and operating engine with Promethean’s twenty-year history of institutional private equity investing and capital structuring. XPR targets the intelligence layer of the experience economy—the AI, automation and data infrastructure beneath consumer-facing brands—spanning order and beverage automation, computer vision, autonomous service, and labor and supply-chain intelligence and gaming intellectual property.

The opportunity is scale: the restaurant and foodservice industry is the second-largest private-sector employer in the U.S.—roughly 15.7 million jobs, about 10 percent of the workforce—yet runs on 35 to 40 percent turnover, single-digit margins and heavy manual process.

“Hospitality has enormous scale and very little legacy technology to defend, which is a rare combination,” said Focht. “The winners won’t be the flashiest consumer app. They’ll be the AI platforms that take cost, labor friction and guesswork out of every location—and we can see which ones actually work, because we see the operating data across roughly a third of U.S. restaurants.”

That vantage point comes through Buyers Edge Platform, the industry’s largest food and beverage platform, which works with nearly one in three U.S. restaurants. Prospective portfolio companies gain a route to market across tens of thousands of operators on day one. John Davie is GP of EMERGING and CEO of Buyers Edge Platform.

“Technology is now transforming entertainment the way it already transformed music, film and television,” said Burt. “We’re investing in the infrastructure that drives physical entertainment. The businesses that we are investing in are delivering a technology driven experience as well as the B2B infrastructure that helps deliver the best in-person experience for the consumers.

EMERGING’s category history includes IP-driven social entertainment concepts F1 Arcade, Flight Club US, Poolhouse and Batbox, alongside technology platforms TaiV, Botrista, BrewBird and Serve.

About EMERGING FUND MANAGEMENT LLC

EMERGING is an investment and operating platform focused on AI and technology for hospitality, competitive social entertainment and experiential hospitality. Founded by Mathew Focht, it is headquartered in Chicago.

About Promethean Investments LLP

Promethean is a U.S. and U.K-based private equity investment firm with more than 20 years of experience structuring, scaling and investing in consumer, retail and services businesses.

xpr.fund

This release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security. Any such offer will be made only to qualified investors pursuant to definitive offering documents.

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360factors Launches Fair Lending Compliance Testing Agent in Ask Kaia

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New AI digital assistant streamlines fair lending compliance testing and peer benchmarking, helping financial institutions produce exam-ready workpapers with less manual data analysis.

AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — 360factors Inc., a leading provider of AI-powered risk and compliance solutions for financial organizations, announced the launch of the Fair Lending Compliance Testing agent within Ask Kaia, its AI platform for U.S. banks and credit unions.

Fair lending compliance issues can be difficult to detect in individual loan files. Patterns emerge when institutions analyze thousands of records and compare outcomes across borrower segments, geographies, pricing, and peer benchmarks. Compliance teams often perform this work manually, extracting loan data into spreadsheets and compiling supporting evidence, sometimes under significant time pressure before an examination.

The Fair Lending Compliance Testing agent streamlines that process through a guided workflow. Users upload a LAR data file and supporting documentation, then select the peer institutions for comparison. The agent generates a dashboard highlighting segment, geographic, and pricing patterns, document-evidence coverage, and workpapers formatted for regulatory review.

“We built this agent so fair lending reviews no longer have to begin with a blank spreadsheet. It brings peer benchmarking, document coverage, and exam-ready workpapers into one on-demand workflow. This work that traditionally requires extensive manual analysis or outside consulting support,” said Chris Duden, 360factors CTO.

The Fair Lending Compliance Testing agent is the third addition to Ask Kaia’s Agents Framework in recent months, following the Marketing Ad Review and HMDA Compliance Testing agents. It is available as an optional add-on for Ask Kaia Enterprise customers.

About 360factors Inc.
360factors delivers AI-powered risk and compliance solutions for the financial industry. Its flagship products — Predict360, Ask Kaia, and Lumify360 — enable financial organizations to enhance business performance, ensure compliance, and manage risk intelligently.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/360factors-launches-fair-lending-compliance-testing-agent-in-ask-kaia-302851864.html

SOURCE 360factors

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ThinkAndor® Remote Patient Monitoring Now Available in Epic Toolbox, Enabling CMS ACCESS Participation

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AI-Native Remote Patient Monitoring Service Combines Connected Devices, Intelligent Automation, and Clinical Services to Help Health Systems Scale Virtual Care

ORLANDO, Fla., Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Andor Health, the AI company reimagining virtual care through AI-native clinical services for healthcare, announces that ThinkAndor® Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) is now available in Epic Toolbox. ThinkAndor® received Epic Toolbox designation for the Remote Patient Monitoring category and helps health systems expand virtual care, population health, and patient access initiatives through a comprehensive AI-native remote patient monitoring service. Psynergy Health, an Andor Health Ventures company and a certified CMS ACCESS clinic, relies on ThinkAndor® as the enabling foundation for its ACCESS clinic under the CMS Innovation Center’s ACCESS Model, Medicare’s nationwide approach to technology-supported chronic care. For an organization already on Epic, ThinkAndor® is a practical path to partner with an ACCESS participant inside the record clinicians already use.

As healthcare organizations work to manage growing patient populations outside traditional care settings, many face challenges related to patient engagement, staffing capacity, and care coordination. ThinkAndor® addresses these challenges by combining connected monitoring devices, intelligent patient triage, clinical workflow automation, and integrated clinical services into a single end-to-end solution designed to support scalable patient monitoring programs.

ThinkAndor® integrates with Epic by delivering patient-generated health data, device readings, alerts, and longitudinal trends directly into the patient record. Epic remains the system of record, enabling clinicians to review monitoring information and manage patient care within established workflows.

“Health systems need sustainable ways to extend care beyond the walls of the hospital while supporting growing patient populations,” said Shivali Singh, SVP of Product at Andor Health. “ThinkAndor® combines AI, connected devices, integrated clinical services, and workflows integrated with Epic to help organizations expand access, improve care coordination, and scale remote patient monitoring programs.”

ThinkAndor® simplifies participation for patients at home by enabling access to cellular-enabled monitoring devices, removing technology barriers that can limit adoption. This approach helps health systems extend monitoring programs to rural and underserved populations while supporting broader efforts to improve access to care. This rural reach aligns with the ACCESS Model’s added support for patients in rural communities.

ThinkAndor® RPM continuously analyzes incoming patient data to identify potential clinical concerns and prioritize patients who may benefit from intervention. Intelligent automation helps care teams focus on patients who require attention while reducing the operational burden associated with monitoring large patient populations.

In addition to technology and automation capabilities, ThinkAndor® RPM includes access to Psynergy Health’s clinical services that can be tailored to the needs of individual health systems. Nurses, care navigators, dietitians, and other care team resources support patient engagement, care coordination, and ongoing monitoring activities. This model helps organizations grow remote patient monitoring programs without requiring proportional increases in internal staffing resources.

Psynergy Health, a subsidiary of Andor Health Ventures and a first-cohort participant in the ACCESS Model, operates this model today as an accredited access clinic, and the same clinical-services capacity supports health systems adopting ThinkAndor® RPM.

Explore the limitless possibilities of ThinkAndor® at https://andorhealth.com/thinkandor/.

Epic is a registered trademark of Epic Systems Corporation.

About Andor Health
Andor Health revolutionizes clinical care through agentic AI-powered virtual care experiences across the care continuum. Our virtual care experiences empower healthcare providers with actionable insights & ambient monitoring to deliver care at scale, with proven return on investment. ThinkAndor®, the #1 AI-native services infrastructure for healthcare, leverages AI agents to harness generative AI unlocking data stored in various systems, including electronic medical records, biometric devices, & other signals to deliver actionable intelligence in real time to care teams. By optimizing communication workflows, ThinkAndor® accelerates time to treatment, decreases clinician burnout, and drives better patient outcomes. 

For more information, visit Andor Health or follow us on LinkedIn and X.

Media Contact:
Andor Health
Jennifer Skitsko – SVP, Marketing
Email: Jennifer.Skitsko@andorhealth.com

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Merge Cooking Collaborates with SpongeBob SquarePants for the Ultimate Food Fest in Bikini Bottom

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SINGAPORE, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Are you ready, kids? Merge Cooking brings the fun of Bikini Bottom to the kitchen with a limited-time collaboration event featuring everyone’s favorite fry cook, SpongeBob SquarePants. The “Merge Cooking × SpongeBob SquarePants: MC Food Carnival” event invites players to dive into a culinary adventure, blending the joyful spirit of Bikini Bottom into the lighthearted world of Merge Cooking.

Published by Happibits, Merge Cooking is a casual mobile game where players merge ingredients, unlock recipes, complete challenges and enjoy a cozy culinary journey at their own pace. With its approachable gameplay and charming food-themed progression, Merge Cooking has become a welcoming space for players who enjoy creativity, collection and satisfying upgrades.

During the event, players can enjoy a variety of themed activities, including the Krusty Krab Pass and Energy Quest, where players can complete tasks, build progress and unlock limited-time rewards to support their journey through the carnival.

A Wave of Themed Merge Events

From August 17 to September 27, Merge Cooking will introduce a series of weekly themed Merge Events, featuring five unique merge events inspired by fan-favorite SpongeBob SquarePants characters and memorable moments from Bikini Bottom. Players can join SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, Plankton and more as they take turns appearing in a variety of lighthearted challenges, including SpongeBob’s Food Tour to Patty Craft Mastery, Patrick’s adventures, and Plankton’s latest schemes. On September 21, the most popular merge event will make a limited-time return, giving more players a chance to join the fun.

Collect Tasty Tales in MC Culinary Journey

Players can also take part in MC Culinary Journey, a themed card collection event running from August 24 to October 1. By completing in-game tasks, players can collect special cards that tell bite-sized stories about SpongeBob, Lea and their friends in Merge Cooking. Completing card sets will unlock exclusive rewards, making the event a must-try for collectors and SpongeBob fans alike.

Build Your Own Bite-Sized Bikini Bottom

From August 27 to September 17, Bikini Bottom Bash lets players decorate their own Bikini Bottom-inspired scene. By completing tasks, players can unlock classic restaurants, familiar locations and delightful details from SpongeBob SquarePants, creating an undersea world where SpongeBob’s neighbors can stop by anytime.

All in-game content is subject to change. Please check in-game for the latest updates. The collaboration is available in select regions only, with additional regions to follow.

Download Merge Cooking now and join SpongeBob, Lea, and friends for the Ultimate Food Fest!

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/merge-cooking-collaborates-with-spongebob-squarepants-for-the-ultimate-food-fest-in-bikini-bottom-302851822.html

SOURCE Happibits

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