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Cathay FHC Enters “Agent First” Phase: 2026 Cathay Technology Conference Draws Nearly 7,000 Registrants, Unveils “AI Digital Colleague” Pilots, and Focuses on Autonomous Finance, Stablecoins and Responsible AI

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Vice Chairman Joseph Tsai Joins Fireside Chat, Maps Strategy for the Next Decade in the AI Era

TAIPEI, Oct. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Cathay Financial Holdings (Cathay FHC) recently hosted its 2026 Cathay Technology Conference, one of Taiwan’s flagship fintech events, as the company marked the 10th anniversary of its digital transformation. Cathay FHC Vice Chairman Joseph Tsai participated in a fireside chat, reflecting on a decade of transformation and outlining the Group’s strategic roadmap for the years ahead.

This year’s Cathay Technology Conference focused on three key areas: Agentic AI and Digital Colleagues, AI-driven IT modernization, and digital assets and Web3. Cathay FHC unveiled, for the first time, trials of “digital colleagues” built with AI agents, while examining cybersecurity governance, access controls and audit practices as AI enters enterprise workflows, as well as emerging financial use cases including stablecoins, AI-agent payments and autonomous finance. The event brought together leaders from OpenAI, Google Cloud, Microsoft Taiwan, KPMG, National Chengchi University, National Taiwan University and the Taiwan Virtual Asset Service Provider Association. Nearly 7,000 people registered and combined online and in-person concurrent viewership exceeded 3,500.

Cathay FHC Vice Chairman Joseph Tsai said Cathay FHC’s transformation since 2016 was not about “digitizing for the sake of digitization,” but about recognizing the need for greater collaboration across business units and a more customer-centric approach. He said digital technologies were used to address practical business challenges and customer pain points.

Cathay FHC has remained guided by its core values of integrity, accountability and innovation, Tsai said. Cathay FHC has also sought to build trust among management, employees and customers through stronger horizontal and vertical communication, making this a key cultural transformation throughout its digital transformation.

Tsai cited Cathay United Bank’s CUBE credit card as an example. As an industry first at the time, the CUBE credit card consolidated multiple cards into a single card, empowering customers to choose and switch benefits according to their individual needs. The strategic shift reflected a customer-centric digital approach that uses technology to empower customers with greater choice and flexibility.

Looking ahead, Tsai said Cathay FHC will continue to explore opportunities in areas including asset management and wealth management. He called on businesses to use AI to rethink how work is done and how value is created, while building on their respective strengths to deliver more and better results for customers. AI could give Cathay FHC and businesses an opportunity to leapfrog, he added.

Taiwan has benefited from robust economic growth in recent years, Tsai said. As a major financial institution, Cathay FHC will continue to seize opportunities while addressing the challenges facing industry and society, growing alongside Taiwanese businesses and communities and living up to the expectations and trust of the public.

Building on GAIA 2.0, Cathay FHC’s generative AI technology framework introduced in 2025, Cathay FHC unveiled AI-Agent-powered “digital colleagues” for the first time, including pilots for project management, technology governance and legal contract review. Designed with defined roles and operating boundaries, the digital colleagues can autonomously use enterprise knowledge and tools to carry out tasks, while critical decisions and exceptions remain subject to human review. Controls covering identity and access rights, enterprise knowledge, system integration, cybersecurity monitoring and audit trails support Cathay FHC’s responsible-AI approach.

Building on its “Cloud First” infrastructure strategy, Cathay FHC is moving toward “Agent First” by applying governed AI workflows and an agent platform to develop scalable Group-wide IT capabilities. Through the BMad Framework, Cathay FHC has developed an Agent for SDLC requirements management, shortening the requirements analysis cycle. Cathay United Bank has also established AI Scrum and AI SDLC teams to support requirements organization, development and testing, as well as document preparation.

This year’s conference also featured Oliver Jay, Managing Director, International at OpenAI, and Harry Lin, Technical General Manager of Google Cloud Taiwan, who shared insights on enterprise AI adoption, secure deployment and multi-agent governance in financial institutions.

In digital assets, the conference explored virtual-asset custody, stablecoins, AI Agent payments and autonomous finance. Industry and academic experts discussed how financial institutions and VASPs (Virtual Asset Service Providers) can balance innovation with anti-money laundering, asset security and regulatory compliance.

Since launching its digital transformation in 2016 under the leadership of Vice Chairman Joseph Tsai, Cathay FHC, has continued to build capabilities in digital technology, data and cloud, extending into generative AI, Agentic AI and digital assets as technology evolves. Looking ahead, Cathay FHC will continue to strengthen its capabilities in AI, cybersecurity governance and financial technology talent development, while connecting industry, government and academic partners in Taiwan and overseas under its “BETTER TOGETHER” brand spirit and advancing toward its goal of becoming “a technology company with finance at its core.”

 

 

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/cathay-fhc-enters-agent-first-phase-2026-cathay-technology-conference-draws-nearly-7-000-registrants-unveils-ai-digital-colleague-pilots-and-focuses-on-autonomous-finance-stablecoins-and-responsible-ai-302908205.html

SOURCE Cathay Financial Holdings

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Popmenu Unveils the Next Big Thing in Restaurant Menu Technology

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ATLANTA, Oct. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Restaurants are bringing their dishes to life like never before courtesy of groundbreaking new menu technology by Popmenu. The company’s new Spotlight Menu pairs its signature SEO and AEO with Instagram-style dish videos to help restaurants rank high in Google and AI searches and boost orders.

Nearly a decade ago, Popmenu reinvented the restaurant menu, replacing static lists with a visual, interactive, mobile-first experience that drives more traffic and sales. Now serving 12,000+ restaurants globally, Popmenu is once again reimagining menus to reflect how guests prefer to consume digital content today.

Restaurants can build the vibe they want and stand out from competitors and third-party marketplaces by:  

Showcasing a highlights reel with mouthwatering videos of featured dishes, loyalty rewards, the restaurant’s story, and more.Providing all the information guests need to choose a dish: photos, videos, reviews posted through their website and Google, allergens and nutritional information.Promoting events, specials and more through a menu ads reel.Leveraging AI to enable guests to search the menu using text prompts.

View the new menu experience at this link.

“Bringing an Instagram or TikTok feel to your menu helps you compete at a much higher level for customers choosing their next dining destination, especially among younger consumers who have grown up immersed in short-form videos and other engaging content,” said Brendan Sweeney, CEO and Co-founder of Popmenu. “Guests instantly get a taste of what they’ll experience at your restaurant. If I’m scrolling and come across a menu with a lot of text versus one with videos, the choice is pretty easy. I’m going with what I can see.”

According to a 2026 Popmenu survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers, 82% are more likely to choose restaurants with online menus that feature photos and reviews compared to those with text-only menus. The same percentage are more likely to order a dish with a video compared to one with just a photo.

“Guests are reining in spend,” Sweeney continued. “Every missed order or empty table hits harder. You have to make your food impossible to ignore. Our new menu experience was built to do just that.”

On average, consumers spend $100 a week on restaurants, down from $115 in June 2025. Nearly 7 in 10 (68%) say they are reducing their spend on restaurants this year.

Popmenu’s AI-powered solutions are designed to help restaurants of all sizes win business at every step of the guest journey—from the moment they start searching for a place to eat online to when they order and decide whether to return. This includes everything from custom websites, direct online ordering, and automated, personalized marketing to AI phone answering, waitlisting and reservations, and a consumer app. Popmenu also offers the most native integrations for online ordering, delivery and reputation management.

About Popmenu

As a leader in restaurant technology, Popmenu is on a mission to make profitable growth easy for all restaurants. Digital marketing, online ordering, and on-premise technologies headline a powerful product suite infused with AI, automation, and deep data on guest preferences. The company consolidates tools needed to engage guests, serving as a digital control center for more than 12,000 independent restaurants and hospitality groups in the US, UK, Canada and Mexico. For more information, visit popmenu.com.

Jennifer Grasz
Vice President of Marketing, Popmenu
jennifer.grasz@popmenu.com 

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/popmenu-unveils-the-next-big-thing-in-restaurant-menu-technology-302909352.html

SOURCE Popmenu Inc.

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A Fresh Start with ViaBTC: New Users Get 50% Off Mining Pool Fees for 30 Days

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HONG KONG, Oct. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — ViaBTC, a leading global cryptocurrency mining pool, has announced “A Fresh Start with ViaBTC,” a promotion for new users. Users who register between October 16, 2026, at 08:00 and November 15, 2026, at 08:00 (HKT) will receive a coupon offering 50% off mining pool fees for 30 days. The offer applies to mining BTC, LTC, ZEC, BCH, KAS, and DASH.

During the promotion, new users can mine with ViaBTC and access supporting services, including earnings settlement and asset management. ViaBTC has a decade of experience operating mining pools, with a global network of nodes supporting miners worldwide. The company completed SOC 2 Type I and Type II audits in 2025 and continues to improve its mining infrastructure and security practices.

ViaBTC brings mining and asset management together on a single platform. Once earnings are credited, users can view and manage multiple crypto assets within a single account, withdraw funds as needed, or use Auto Conversion to convert supported coin balances into BTC or USDT without first transferring assets to an exchange. For miners managing earnings across multiple coins, these services can reduce the need to move between platforms, making it easier to track balances and manage cash flow.

The campaign also includes dedicated support for large-scale miners and institutional clients. Through the “VIP Application” option on ViaBTC’s homepage, they can provide details of the coins they mine, their hashrate, and their contact information. ViaBTC’s business development team will then discuss tailored fee arrangements and mining support.

During the promotion, the coupon will be issued automatically upon successful registration. Users must activate it within 15 days of issuance to receive 50% off mining pool fees for 30 consecutive days from activation. The fee discount does not apply to coins earned through merged mining.

New users can register through the ViaBTC website to participate. Users with existing mining equipment can follow the instructions for their chosen coin in the official Mining Guide to configure their equipment and direct their hashrate to ViaBTC. Full campaign rules are available in the official announcement.

About ViaBTC

ViaBTC is a multi-cryptocurrency mining pool serving miners worldwide. Launched in 2016, it specializes in secure, stable, and efficient Proof-of-Work (PoW) mining services, supporting major PoW cryptocurrencies including BTC, LTC/DOGE, BCH, ZEC, and KAS. ViaBTC has served more than 2 million users across over 150 countries and regions. Its BTC, LTC/DOGE merged-mining, BCH, and ZEC pools rank among the world’s leading mining pools.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/a-fresh-start-with-viabtc-new-users-get-50-off-mining-pool-fees-for-30-days-302909916.html

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1MORE Launches Two Over-Ear Headphones in Japan, Bringing Flagship Sound and Retro Style to Music Lovers

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SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — 1MORE, a leading audio brand, announced that its SonoFlow Max HQ60 and Classic HQ36 over-ear headphones are now available on Amazon Japan. The two models cater to different listening preferences, with the SonoFlow Max HQ60 combining flagship-level noise cancellation and high-resolution audio, while the Classic HQ36 pairs retro design with practical features for everyday use. 

From the immersive listening experience of the SonoFlow Max HQ60 to the blend of classic aesthetics and modern audio technology in the Classic HQ36, 1MORE continues to focus on sound quality, noise cancellation, comfort and design, offering options for different listening preferences and lifestyles.

1MORE SonoFlow Max HQ60: Flagship-Level Noise Cancellation and High-Resolution Audio for Immersive Listening

As the flagship model in the SonoFlow series, the 1MORE SonoFlow Max HQ60 delivers enhanced noise cancellation, improved sound quality and longer battery life, making it a versatile choice for commuting, work and leisure.

QuietMax™ 2.0 Noise Cancellation for a Quieter Listening Experience

The HQ60 features QuietMax™ 2.0 noise cancellation, offering up to 50 dB of noise reduction. Its AI-powered adaptive noise cancellation algorithm detects and suppresses ambient sounds such as low-frequency subway rumble, tire noise from passing traffic, office equipment and nearby conversations. Users can switch between Noise Cancellation, Transparency and Off modes to suit their needs.

Transparency mode allows users to hear surrounding sounds without removing their headphones, making it easier to stay aware of their environment while commuting or going about their daily activities.

Coaxial Dual-Driver Acoustic Design for Rich Musical Detail

The HQ60 uses a coaxial dual-driver acoustic architecture, with dedicated high- and low-frequency drivers working together to deliver powerful bass, detailed vocals and extended treble. The headphones carry both wired and wireless Hi-Res Audio certifications, support the LDAC high-resolution audio codec, and have been tuned with input from Grammy Award-winning sound engineer Luca Bignardi.

With the 1MORE app, users can access 13 built-in EQ presets and customize sound settings to match their personal preferences. The HQ60 is also tuned by THX to deliver high-quality acoustic performance. Combined with the coaxial driver design, these features help create an immersive sound experience whether listening to music, watching a movie or playing a game.

Long Battery Life and Comfortable Design for All-Day Use

The HQ60 delivers up to 105 hours of playback on a single charge and supports Q-Flash fast charging, providing up to five hours of listening time with just five minutes of charging. Bluetooth 6.0, dual-device connectivity, wired and wireless listening modes, and dual-microphone Environmental Noise Cancellation (ENC) for clearer calls make the HQ60 well suited for work, commuting and entertainment.

For enhanced comfort, the HQ60 incorporates a BalanceAir 3.0 pressure-distribution structure, high-resilience memory foam ear cushions and skin-friendly protein leather. An adjustable headband, 45-degree adaptive swivel earcups and foldable construction make the headphones comfortable to wear and easy to pack away.

Available in Warm Sun White, Flowing Silver and Midnight Black, the 1MORE SonoFlow Max HQ60 delivers flagship audio performance in a sleek, minimalist design.

1MORE Classic HQ36: Vinyl-Inspired Retro Design Meets Modern Audio Technology

For listeners drawn to classic styling, the 1MORE Classic HQ36 takes design inspiration from vinyl records and pairs retro aesthetics with modern audio technology, combining quality sound, noise cancellation and everyday convenience.

Vinyl-Inspired Textures and Lightweight Design for Style and Comfort

The HQ36 incorporates vinyl-inspired grooves and retro-style leather accents, and is available in Maillard Brown and Jazz Black. Its versatile design makes it equally at home on daily commutes, at work or school, and on outdoor excursions.

Weighing approximately 193 g, the headphones feature skin-friendly protein leather ear cushions and adjustable sliding arms for a secure and comfortable fit. The foldable design and included carrying pouch make the HQ36 easy to carry and store.

Hi-Res Wireless Audio for Detailed, High-Quality Sound

The HQ36 is Hi-Res Wireless certified and comes with 40 mm dual-magnet composite diaphragm drivers. With support for the LDAC audio codec, it delivers rich musical detail and a layered, nuanced sound.

The headphones also support dynamic spatial audio tracking and offer six professionally tuned EQ presets, along with customizable sound settings through the 1MORE app. Users can tailor their listening experience to different music genres and personal preferences.

QuietMax™ Noise Cancellation and 60-Hour Battery Life for Everyday Listening

The HQ36 features QuietMax™ hybrid noise cancellation, delivering up to 36 dB of noise reduction through its dual-channel system. Users can switch between Noise Cancellation, Transparency and Off modes to minimize distractions in environments such as public transit and cafés.

The HQ36 is equipped with Bluetooth 6.0 and a 500 mAh battery that provides up to 60 hours of playback. The headphones also support fast charging and offer both wired and wireless listening modes, with an audio cable included. Additional customization options are available through the 1MORE app, giving users greater flexibility for everyday listening and on-the-go use.

Now Available on Amazon Japan

The 1MORE SonoFlow Max HQ60 and 1MORE Classic HQ36 are now available on Amazon Japan. The HQ60 delivers advanced noise cancellation and high-resolution audio, while the HQ36 brings together vinyl-inspired retro design and practical functionality, offering consumers two distinct ways to enjoy their favorite music.

Pricing and Availability

1MORE SonoFlow Max HQ60: https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0HJ5CFKCB, Regular price: JPY 19,990; price with coupon: JPY 16,990.1MORE Classic HQ36: https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0HF7MLJKY; Regular price: JPY 11,990; price with coupon: JPY 10191.5.Limited-Time Offer Through October 31, 2026: Eligible customers can enjoy a 15% discount. Final prices, coupon eligibility, and promotional details are as listed on the respective Amazon Japan product pages.

About 1MORE

1MORE is an audio brand specializing in acoustic technology and audio products. Through continuous innovation in sound quality, product design and listening comfort, the brand aims to create audio products that combine exceptional sound with everyday practicality.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/1more-launches-two-over-ear-headphones-in-japan-bringing-flagship-sound-and-retro-style-to-music-lovers-302909835.html

SOURCE 1MORE

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