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Number of new homes given go ahead last year was lowest since 2014View the full article

Firms including Deloitte and Accenture told to justify billions of dollars’ worth of contractsView the full article

Salesforce (NYSE: CRM) has launched AgentExchange, a new marketplace integrated into its Agentforce platform, aimed at expanding opportunities in the $6 trillion digital labor market. The company announced that AgentExchange debuts with over 200 partners, including Google Cloud, Docusign, and Box, offering trusted AI solutions that businesses can use to build AI agents efficiently. Building on the success of AppExchange, Salesforce’s long-established enterprise cloud marketplace, AgentExchange provides a platform for developers, partners, and the Agentblazer community to create, distribute, and monetize agentic AI components. AgentExchange offers businesses access to hundreds of prebuilt actions, topics, and templates, all designed to enhance efficiency and innovation. According to Salesforce, these solutions have undergone rigorous security and customer reviews to ensure trustworthiness. “Accelerating our speed of execution is critical to Goodyear’s ability to deliver for our customers and maximize our end-to-end value proposition. We’re excited about the potential of the ready-to-use solutions from AgentExchange to enhance our speed, efficiency, and customer experience,” said Goodyear CEO and President Mark Stewart. Key Partner Contributions Several major partners have already begun integrating solutions into AgentExchange: Google Cloud: Enables Agentforce agents to access up-to-the-minute data, news, and insights using Vertex AI and Google Search. Box: Helps agents extract insights from unstructured data and interact with content using natural language. Docusign: Automates agreement generation, routing, signature tracking, and workflow management. Workday: Enhances HR processes, including onboarding and benefits management, by automating self-service workflows. Salesforce states that these partnerships will help businesses implement AI-driven workflows that improve productivity across various industries. Comprehensive AI Solutions AgentExchange introduces new partner-built components, allowing businesses and developers to expand the capabilities of AI agents within Agentforce. These components include: Actions: Prebuilt integrations such as APIs, workflows, and automation scripts. Prompt Templates: Standardized prompts for guiding AI interactions and responses. Topics: Predefined workflows that structure AI agent behavior for specific tasks. Agent Templates: End-to-end AI solutions that incorporate multiple actions and topics for industry-specific applications. Salesforce notes that these features simplify AI adoption by allowing businesses to discover, test, and implement AI solutions directly from the marketplace or within Agentforce’s development tools. AgentExchange aims to facilitate collaboration among businesses, partners, and developers. Companies can access industry-specific solutions while engaging with the broader Agentblazer community to refine AI agent capabilities. “AgentExchange empowers customers to seamlessly integrate trusted AI solutions within their workflow,” said Alice Steinglass, EVP & GM of Platform, Integration and Automation at Salesforce. “Now our developer community can directly tap the expertise of our partner ecosystem to get the right industry-specific solutions so they can build and implement AI agents, and be the pioneers turning their businesses into Agentforce companies.” Image: Salesforce This article, "Salesforce Unveils AgentExchange, Expanding the Digital Labor Market" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Salesforce (NYSE: CRM) has launched AgentExchange, a new marketplace integrated into its Agentforce platform, aimed at expanding opportunities in the $6 trillion digital labor market. The company announced that AgentExchange debuts with over 200 partners, including Google Cloud, Docusign, and Box, offering trusted AI solutions that businesses can use to build AI agents efficiently. Building on the success of AppExchange, Salesforce’s long-established enterprise cloud marketplace, AgentExchange provides a platform for developers, partners, and the Agentblazer community to create, distribute, and monetize agentic AI components. AgentExchange offers businesses access to hundreds of prebuilt actions, topics, and templates, all designed to enhance efficiency and innovation. According to Salesforce, these solutions have undergone rigorous security and customer reviews to ensure trustworthiness. “Accelerating our speed of execution is critical to Goodyear’s ability to deliver for our customers and maximize our end-to-end value proposition. We’re excited about the potential of the ready-to-use solutions from AgentExchange to enhance our speed, efficiency, and customer experience,” said Goodyear CEO and President Mark Stewart. Key Partner Contributions Several major partners have already begun integrating solutions into AgentExchange: Google Cloud: Enables Agentforce agents to access up-to-the-minute data, news, and insights using Vertex AI and Google Search. Box: Helps agents extract insights from unstructured data and interact with content using natural language. Docusign: Automates agreement generation, routing, signature tracking, and workflow management. Workday: Enhances HR processes, including onboarding and benefits management, by automating self-service workflows. Salesforce states that these partnerships will help businesses implement AI-driven workflows that improve productivity across various industries. Comprehensive AI Solutions AgentExchange introduces new partner-built components, allowing businesses and developers to expand the capabilities of AI agents within Agentforce. These components include: Actions: Prebuilt integrations such as APIs, workflows, and automation scripts. Prompt Templates: Standardized prompts for guiding AI interactions and responses. Topics: Predefined workflows that structure AI agent behavior for specific tasks. Agent Templates: End-to-end AI solutions that incorporate multiple actions and topics for industry-specific applications. Salesforce notes that these features simplify AI adoption by allowing businesses to discover, test, and implement AI solutions directly from the marketplace or within Agentforce’s development tools. AgentExchange aims to facilitate collaboration among businesses, partners, and developers. Companies can access industry-specific solutions while engaging with the broader Agentblazer community to refine AI agent capabilities. “AgentExchange empowers customers to seamlessly integrate trusted AI solutions within their workflow,” said Alice Steinglass, EVP & GM of Platform, Integration and Automation at Salesforce. “Now our developer community can directly tap the expertise of our partner ecosystem to get the right industry-specific solutions so they can build and implement AI agents, and be the pioneers turning their businesses into Agentforce companies.” Image: Salesforce This article, "Salesforce Unveils AgentExchange, Expanding the Digital Labor Market" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Borrowing costs rise amid global sell-off sparked by GermanyView the full article

Adobe (Nasdaq: ADBE) has launched Photoshop for iPhone, bringing its widely used image editing and design application to mobile devices. The new app, available starting today, delivers Photoshop’s core tools, including layering, masking, and Firefly-powered Generative Fill, in a mobile-friendly interface. An Android version is set to launch later this year. The mobile expansion is part of Adobe’s broader initiative to make Photoshop more accessible, with the new mobile app and an enhanced web experience now included in all current Photoshop plans. According to Adobe, these additions provide flexibility for established Photoshop users while also welcoming a new generation of creators. The introduction of Photoshop’s mobile app marks the first time the software’s advanced editing capabilities are available in a single free mobile application. Users can create and edit visuals with Photoshop’s signature tools, including selections, layers, and masks. The app also features the Tap Select tool for easy image adjustments, the Spot Healing Brush for removing distractions, and Firefly-powered generative AI tools like Generative Fill and Generative Expand. The mobile app integrates with Adobe Express, Adobe Fresco, and Adobe Lightroom, allowing creators to transition between workflows seamlessly. Additionally, users can access Adobe Stock’s extensive asset library for added creative elements. Adobe has introduced a new Photoshop Mobile and Web plan, priced at $7.99 per month or $69.99 annually. This plan provides expanded access to Photoshop on the web and advanced editing features for mobile and iPad users. Features available in this plan include: Seamless transitions between mobile and web for cross-device editing Firefly-powered AI tools, such as Generate Similar and Reference Image, to enhance creativity More than 20,000 fonts with the ability to import additional options Object Select for precise selections of people and objects Advanced retouching tools like Remove Tool, Clone Stamp, and Content-Aware Fill Enhanced control over transparency, color effects, and blend modes Lighten and Darken tools for non-destructive image adjustments All current Photoshop paid plans now include Photoshop on iPad, Photoshop on the web, and the new mobile app. Adobe has emphasized its commitment to ethical AI development, ensuring that Firefly-powered tools are commercially safe. “Firefly is commercially safe and only trained on content that Adobe has permission to use, including licensed content from Adobe Stock and public domain content where copyright has expired,” the company stated. Additionally, content created using Firefly-powered tools will include Content Credentials, which serve as a “nutrition label” for digital content, promoting transparency in AI-generated media. Photoshop for iPhone is now available worldwide in the Apple App Store. The Android version is expected to launch later this year. Existing Photoshop customers will receive access to the new mobile app at no additional cost as part of their current plans. Image: Adobe This article, "Adobe Brings Photoshop to Mobile" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Adobe (Nasdaq: ADBE) has launched Photoshop for iPhone, bringing its widely used image editing and design application to mobile devices. The new app, available starting today, delivers Photoshop’s core tools, including layering, masking, and Firefly-powered Generative Fill, in a mobile-friendly interface. An Android version is set to launch later this year. The mobile expansion is part of Adobe’s broader initiative to make Photoshop more accessible, with the new mobile app and an enhanced web experience now included in all current Photoshop plans. According to Adobe, these additions provide flexibility for established Photoshop users while also welcoming a new generation of creators. The introduction of Photoshop’s mobile app marks the first time the software’s advanced editing capabilities are available in a single free mobile application. Users can create and edit visuals with Photoshop’s signature tools, including selections, layers, and masks. The app also features the Tap Select tool for easy image adjustments, the Spot Healing Brush for removing distractions, and Firefly-powered generative AI tools like Generative Fill and Generative Expand. The mobile app integrates with Adobe Express, Adobe Fresco, and Adobe Lightroom, allowing creators to transition between workflows seamlessly. Additionally, users can access Adobe Stock’s extensive asset library for added creative elements. Adobe has introduced a new Photoshop Mobile and Web plan, priced at $7.99 per month or $69.99 annually. This plan provides expanded access to Photoshop on the web and advanced editing features for mobile and iPad users. Features available in this plan include: Seamless transitions between mobile and web for cross-device editing Firefly-powered AI tools, such as Generate Similar and Reference Image, to enhance creativity More than 20,000 fonts with the ability to import additional options Object Select for precise selections of people and objects Advanced retouching tools like Remove Tool, Clone Stamp, and Content-Aware Fill Enhanced control over transparency, color effects, and blend modes Lighten and Darken tools for non-destructive image adjustments All current Photoshop paid plans now include Photoshop on iPad, Photoshop on the web, and the new mobile app. Adobe has emphasized its commitment to ethical AI development, ensuring that Firefly-powered tools are commercially safe. “Firefly is commercially safe and only trained on content that Adobe has permission to use, including licensed content from Adobe Stock and public domain content where copyright has expired,” the company stated. Additionally, content created using Firefly-powered tools will include Content Credentials, which serve as a “nutrition label” for digital content, promoting transparency in AI-generated media. Photoshop for iPhone is now available worldwide in the Apple App Store. The Android version is expected to launch later this year. Existing Photoshop customers will receive access to the new mobile app at no additional cost as part of their current plans. Image: Adobe This article, "Adobe Brings Photoshop to Mobile" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Sweeping geographic labels had sparked break-up speculation and been deemed inappropriate by some staff View the full article

As society becomes increasingly aware of people’s diverse needs, accessible design has become the hot topic. Years ago at Michael Graves Design, our president Donald Strum, our chief design officer Rob Van Varick, and I were reviewing student portfolios. All the designs were about sustainability. Today, we see a lot of focus on accessibility. We love it. This makes sense, because gaining empathy for your products’ future users is at the core of product design. The design community is ready for accessibility. Our challenge today is proving that it makes great business sense. At Michael Graves Design, we have long embraced accessible design; our North Star is activities of daily living (ADLs), a term used to describe the fundamental skills required to successfully live independently. Guided by our “Delight for All” philosophy, and with the ADLs prioritizing the most impactful objects to design, we’re dedicated to designing products that people love and products that enhance lives, regardless of age or physical ability. To do that, we look for product opportunity gaps—unmet consumer needs—and fulfill them with new product designs. By definition, this is pioneering, creating solutions that previously have not existed. We embrace pioneering as a cherished value that we want to share. Our true mission has been to design everyday objects in a way that works for the widest audience possible. At the same time, the products should look great and make users love them because the products enhance their lives. Brands want to make emotional connections with consumers and helping someone do something that was previously a struggle is the best way to fall in love. We understand that expanding the addressable market size is fundamental to growth and that people always want a better mousetrap. We’re designing products that give equal focus to style and safety. Democratization of design Michael Graves, an esteemed architect and designer, founded our firm with a visionary mission to shift design from abstract modernism to a human-centered approach that puts the person at the center of all design decisions. This philosophy brought color and art back into the built environment, and prioritized human comfort, understanding, and joy. This approach provides cognitive accessibility. Later, Michael Graves Design’s partnership with Target defined America’s expectation that great design should be affordable to everyone. Design became a corporate strategy. The democratization of design was born, and our company delivered financial accessibility. Over his last decade, after becoming paralyzed, Michael discovered the indignities the built environment imposed on people, and he became a passionate advocate among the disabled. This moved our company to focus on physical accessibility, directing the power of design to improve lifestyles and healthcare experiences for every body. Michael transformed the role of the architect in society and left the world a better place than he found it. Delight for All Now, our mission is Delight for All, to create moments of joy through products that are visually appealing, full of character and purpose, and designed to enhance people’s lives. We take pride in being one of the most accessible design brands, creating functional, beautiful products for every body and encourage other companies and designers to do the same. We’ve brought over 2,500 products to market, from our iconic teakettles to healthcare products that transform the acute care experience, to home products that prioritize universal accessibility and appeal. We create products with purpose and personality, safety, and style, so that no one has to choose between living with one or the other—the concepts can coexist harmoniously. This approach is rooted in empathy and an understanding of how profoundly good design improves quality of life, making everyday environments more intuitive and enjoyable for everyone. “Design for All” led to good design becoming a “cost of entry” consideration for most companies. Our brand ethos is now pushing other companies and designers to consider physical accessibility from the onset of their design processes rather than as an afterthought. Once this reaches critical mass and competition is everywhere, the promise of universal design will be achieved and we want to get there together. How is this done? To design any product with a Delight for All vision, a rigorous ethnographic research process, known as “Design With,” is essential to the discovery of novel functional enhancements. We start each design project by generating insights based on the lives of real people. We conduct interviews and observations with a diverse range of potential users, including older adults and individuals with disabilities. By understanding the unique needs of these communities, we ensure that our products are not only aesthetically pleasing but also practical and empowering, making them suitable for every body. Human-focused ethos This human-focused ethos guided our recent collaboration with Pottery Barn, where consumer preference testing feedback informed the designs for our new products. By prioritizing user feedback, companies can create designs that blend safety with style, showing that accessibility is as essential to great furniture design as are aesthetic considerations. Design has the power to enrich all of our lives and this collaboration allows us to make beautiful and purposeful furniture available to everyone. We also focus on collaborating with design schools and advocacy groups to raise awareness about the importance of accessibility in design, ensuring this ethos spreads. Our goal is to set new consumer expectations with products that seamlessly blend safety with style, proving to the world that accessible design makes great business sense by broadening the total addressable market. We remain committed to redefining accessible design, ensuring that innovation and empathy continues to shape a more inclusive world and want to see more brands do so with us. Accessible design is part of our ongoing mission: to create functional, accessible, and beautiful products that enhance the lives of every body, paving the way for a more inclusive world. Ben Wintner is CEO of Michael Graves Design. View the full article

A coalition of national financial organizations filed a friend-of-the-court brief for preemption after regulators filed one against it in a key servicing case. View the full article

On Wednesday, Utah became the first state in the country to pass legislation mandating that app stores verify users’ ages and get parental consent for certain activity on minors’ accounts. The controversial App Store Accountability Act, which will now head to the desk of Utah Governor Spencer Cox, has pitted app store giants Google and Apple against social media companies like Meta and is part of a wave of similar proposals that have been introduced in a number of states, including Texas and Alabama. The bill received broad support from the social media platforms that have borne the brunt of criticism for failing to protect children online. Those platforms have long argued that app stores themselves ought to take on more responsibility to shield kids from harmful apps. In a statement provided on behalf of Meta, Snap, and X, a Meta spokesperson applauded Utah for “putting parents in charge” with the passage of the law. “Parents want a one-stop shop to verify their child’s age and grant permission for them to download apps in a privacy-preserving way,” the statement reads. “The app store is the best place for it.” App stores, of course, see things differently. Google declined Fast Company’s request for comment, and Apple didn’t respond. But Chamber of Progress, a tech advocacy group that represents both companies, has come out forcefully in opposition of the legislation. In public testimony and writing platforms, the group has accused the bill of infringing on the First Amendment rights of Utah’s citizens and violating their privacy by forcing app stores to collect sensitive data in order to verify ages. Chamber of Progress has argued the law would require companies to collect even more data than they already do. In a statement to Fast Company, Chamber of Progress’s government relations senior director Robert Singleton suggested a legal battle would inevitably follow if the bill is signed into law. Indeed, another law in Utah that attempted to require social media platforms to verify users’ ages was blocked in court last year on First Amendment grounds. Similar social media age-verification laws in other states have also been blocked, but that has not deterred states, including Utah, from approaching the issue from a new angle. And yet, Singleton predicted, “The same thing is likely to happen here. This bill invades everyone’s privacy and forces even adults to share sensitive data just to use their own devices.” Utah state representative Jim Dunnigan, who sponsored the bill in the State House, says parent groups were a significant force in getting the legislation over the finish line. “This is at least partly driven by parents who are concerned about the adult contacts that their children have available to them,” he says. “Parents aren’t always there, and their kids are curious. We’re trying to protect them until they get older.” One leading child advocacy group that has been circulating the bill across the country as model legislation is the Digital Childhood Alliance. In a statement, the alliance’s founding chair Melissa McKay said, “The momentum behind this issue is growing, and today’s victory is a testament to the urgent need for accountability from the platforms that shape the digital lives of children.” In addition to requiring app stores to verify ages and get parental consent every time a child wants to download or purchase something on an app, the bill would require app stores to share age categories and consent data with developers. It would also enable minors or their parents who have been harmed to file a civil suit against app stores. Utah’s governor was supportive of the social media age-verification law that was blocked, and according to Rep. Dunnigan, Governor Cox is expected to support this new bill as well. If that happens, it seems unlikely the app store giants will go down without a fight. A recent investigation by the Wall Street Journal revealed how Apple’s lobbying blitz in Louisiana helped kill a similar attempt to regulate the App Store. In the meantime, the company appears eager to send a message that it’s prepared to implement changes without regulation. Last week, in apparent anticipation of the law’s passage, Apple announced a slew of new child-safety offerings, including giving parents the ability to share their children’s ages in the App Store—information that is then passed on to app developers. That’s a welcome step, says Rep. Dunnigan, but “we need consistency across all platforms, and that’s what this bill tries to accomplish.” View the full article

As steep tariffs on Canadian goods took effect this week, banks on both sides of the border expressed concern about the economic fallout and the uncertainty their customers face. View the full article

Buyers face decreased return on investment as home prices and rates remained at challenging levels while economic uncertainty clouded the outlook, Redfin said. View the full article

When Google rolled out AI Overviews for Search last year, it didn't go over so well. The company's AI made some pretty massive mistakes with its results, many of which went viral. In response, Google pulled back the feature, reworked it, and slowly reintroduced it to the masses. You've probably noticed. This month, Google is continuing its work of adding AI to Search—whether you want it or not. First, it's rolling out a new version of AI Overviews that's powered by Gemini 2.0, the company's latest AI model. Google says this update will help with "harder questions," like coding, math, and multimodal (prompts using different types of media) requests. In addition, teens can now see AI Overviews, as can users without a Google Account. Yippee. Introducing AI ModeBut the larger AI announcement from Google is something the company is currently testing: AI Mode. See, Google says that they've heard from "power users" that they are looking for AI responses from more of their Google searches. In response, AI Mode lets you ask the AI multi-part questions, that offers more advanced reasoning, thinking, and multimodal functions. On paper, it sounds like a more complex AI Overview, but it's a bit more nuanced than that. AI Mode is its own tab in Search, that turns the UI into more of what you'd expect from ChatGPT or Gemini. Google says this experience is supposed to combine what would've taken multiple searches into one: You ask the AI something complicated, it reasons through it (showing its thinking along the way) and delivers a full answer with multiple results, claims, and summaries—citing its sources for each of its generations. Credit: Google Google says AI Mode uses a “query fan-out” technique to generate its results. Essentially, it searches for multiple related things at the same time, combining those results together into the response you see at the end. AI Mode pulls from many different data points for its results, including web results, Google's Knowledge Graph, and shopping data. Google uses the following query to demonstrate this approach: “What's the difference in sleep tracking features between a smart ring, smartwatch and tracking mat?" AI Mode supposedly takes that multi-part question, develops a multistep "plan" to conduct a number of searches to find the information, and changes that plan according to the results it returns. This is still obviously a work in progress (as AI search is across the board) so Google says AI Mode won't get it right all the time. In fact, you may simply see a result of just web links, if the program thinks the AI result isn't good enough. I'm not sure how useful AI Mode actually is, especially when compared to either searching with Gemini, or a traditional Google Search (especially one without the AI). I'll need to wait until Google lets me try the feature out for myself before making any judgement calls. My guess, though, based on my current experience with AI, is that I'll prefer the usual Search method. How to try Google's AI ModeIf you have any interest in trying Google's new AI Mode, there are a couple ways to get in. First, if you are a Google One AI Premium subscriber, you'll be among the first to be invited to try out AI Mode in Labs. If you aren't a subscriber, however, you'll need to jump on the waitlist. Sign into your Google Account, then head to Google Labs. Under "Introducing the AI Mode Experiment," choose "Join waitlist." Google will then bring you to a page advertising the feature, where you can confirm you are on the waitlist. View the full article

Mental health resources have become a crucial corporate benefit among employers who are looking to recruit the best talent, with more and more companies now offering access to therapy and wellness apps. Even so, many workers report feeling like they don’t have the support they are seeking—particularly as they encounter rising levels of stress in and out of the workplace. In a new report from mental-health-benefits provider Lyra Health, 89% of the 7,500 employees surveyed said they had faced at least one mental health challenge over the past year, citing stress and anxiety as the biggest issues. In many cases, work was the leading source of their stress—namely, overwhelming workloads and staff shortages—and 73% of employees believed that those work-related mental health issues were, in turn, impacting their performance in the workplace. There are, of course, other factors driving these mental health challenges, from the political climate to financial stress. Women were more likely to cite caregiving responsibilities as a reason for their stress—though in comparison to their male counterparts, they also reported higher levels of anxiety and mental health struggles on the whole. Despite all this—not to mention, the growing investment in mental health benefits across corporate workplaces—many employees claimed to have limited access to the support they need or want. While the majority of workers said their employers care about their mental health and take stock of their well-being, only 29% of respondents think their workplace provides adequate mental health resources. (Of the 500 HR and benefits leaders who were surveyed, however, 45% argued that their companies offer those resources.) More than half of younger workers are likely to switch jobs in the next year to find more comprehensive mental health support, with millennials being the most likely to take advantage of those resources. But nearly all employees surveyed said they strongly consider mental health benefits when looking for jobs. There are signs that employees don’t always use mental health benefits even when they are available to them; also, that there can be a disconnect between which benefits employers typically offer and what their workers might be looking for. But companies have also seen the effects of securing these benefits for their workers: 81% of HR and benefits leaders said that mental health offerings had boosted their company’s reputation and made it a more appealing opportunity for job candidates. It’s clear that workers are clamoring for more mental health support—and that along with fertility and family-building benefits, these resources can be a real differentiator for employers who are looking to attract and retain top talent. View the full article

Los Angeles County said Wednesday that it’s suing Southern California Edison, alleging the utility’s equipment sparked January’s Eaton Fire, which destroyed more than 9,400 structures and killed 17 people in the Altadena area. The lawsuit seeks to recover costs and damages sustained from the blaze that damaged “essential community infrastructure” and “massively impacted the County’s natural resources, harmed the environment and wildlife, and threatened public health,” LA County said in a statement. Additional costs have been incurred by county departments for ongoing support in assisting residents recovering from the fire’s destruction, according to the lawsuit. “The County’s case is essential to the restoration and rebuilding process for the community, including residences and businesses, to recover from the devastation,” the statement said. Edison was reviewing the lawsuit and “will address it through the appropriate legal process,” utility spokesperson Kathleen Dunleavy said Wednesday. The fire’s cause is still under investigation. The complaint alleges that witnesses, photos, and videos indicate the fire started directly under Edison transmission lines in Eaton Canyon. The county seeks to recoup costs and receive compensation for destroyed infrastructure, recreational areas, parks, road damage, cleanup and recovery efforts, flood and mudslide prevention, workers compensation claims, overtime for workers, lost taxes and more. Costs and damage estimates were expected to total hundreds of millions of dollars, the county said, adding that assessments were ongoing. “We are committed to seeking justice for the Altadena community and the taxpayers of Los Angeles County,” County Counsel Dawyn R. Harrison said in a statement. The County, the County Flood Control District, and the County’s Consolidated Fire Protection District are the plaintiffs in the case. The cities of Pasadena and Sierra Madre are also filing suits against Edison for damages to taxpayer resources and public infrastructure incurred from the Eaton Fire, according to the county. —Christopher Weber, Associated Press View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Bone conduction headphones are ideal for activities where it is vital to your safety to hear your surroundings. That's because they use a technology that sends audio vibrations through to the inner ear while leaving your ear canals open. Shokz is one of, if not the best, brand making bone conduction headphones right now; at the high end of Shokz's offerings is the OpenRun Pro 2, which I got to review and put to the test. But the OpenRun Pro are also quality headphones and are currently discounted on Best Buy for $99.99 (originally $179.95), the lowest price they've been, according to price-tracking tools. SHOKZ OpenRun Pro Sound: Stereo, Connection Type: Wireless, Connectivity: Bluetooth, Maximum Wireless Range: 33 feet. $99.99 at Amazon $179.95 Save $79.96 Get Deal Get Deal $99.99 at Amazon $179.95 Save $79.96 If you've never used bone conduction headphones, they're worth a try, and the Shokz OpenPro are a great introduction. The technology has come a long way since their early days. The major downside of the way they work has been that the bass doesn't sound as good as their in-ear counterparts. The OpenRun Pro is designed to compensate for some of that—you won't get the same thumpy bass you'd get from regular headphones, but it'll be the best you can get from any other bone conduction headphones. As the name implies, these are meant to be used on runs outdoors. They have an IP55 rating for dust- and water-resistance, are lightweight and comfortable, and, because of their design, can be worn with bicycle helmets and sunglasses. You can use these as everyday headphones around the house as well since they can take calls; just be mindful that they don't block any sound. If you plan to use these in a location with a loud music or has a lot of ambient noise, you'll hear everything, so you might prefer taking regular headphones—but that will defeat the purpose of the "open ear" headphones. View the full article

Former UK prime minister takes up part-time, paid advisory role at ex-Florida governor’s Finback Investment Partners View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Testing the Ikarao Shell S1 karaoke speaker during my review has been one of the highlights of my job as tech reviewer. Now that it's $100 off, reaching the price of $249.99 (originally $349.99) after the on-page coupon, it's at its lowest price ever, according to price-tracking tools. While you might've never heard of the brand before, I can attest that this speaker is quality, and now, it's a bargain for its price. Ikarao Shell S1 Smart Karaoke Speaker Battery Life: 9 hours, Connectivity: USB, AUX In/Out, HDMI, Wifi, OTG, and Bluetooth V5.4. $349.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $349.99 at Amazon It bewilders me why no company before thought of doing what Ikarao has done with the Shell S1: Combine a touchscreen tablet, two Bluetooth microphones, and powerful sound to a small portable speaker. None of those things are new technologies, yet it took until Ikarao thought of it to make it happen. The Shell S1 is their newest and most affordable karaoke speaker. And it's loud enough to host a house party with its 104dB stereo speaker (it fills my whole 1,300 square foot home with sound loud enough to have a party). The two wireless microphones have a 20-hour rechargeable battery life while the speaker itself lasts about nine hours if you're using the screen. The screen is a 10.1-inch touchscreen tablet that lets you control the music. It comes with an integrated Spotify app but unfortunately no YouTube app (it does have a direct link to it using a web browser). You can hook up the speaker to a TV to have more people sing along with you, but you'll need to hook up an HDMI cable. There is a casting option but it's done through a third-party app that you need to download. It's not as easy as AirPlay or connecting an HDMI cable. If you're looking for a reliable and compact karaoke machine that you can hook up to your TV and play for hours, the Shell S1 at $250 is the best you can get right now. View the full article

Izzy Englander still owns 100% of one of the world’s top hedge fundsView the full article

Digg, the dominant link aggregator of the mid-2000s, is attempting yet another comeback. Kevin Rose, one of Digg's original founders, has acquired the brand name for an undisclosed sum and is teaming up with Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian to build a new-ish social network. The plan was announced this morning in articles on Techcrunch and in the New York Times. There aren't many concrete details in these articles about what the site will look like, though they do note it will use AI as a key moderation tool. "Online communities thrive when there’s a balance between technology and human judgment,” Ohanian told Techcrunch, adding that, "AI should handle the grunt work in the background while humans focus on what they do best: building real connections." Rose surveyed current Reddit moderators in an attempt to learn what improved moderation tools could look like. That's about it in terms of specifics—both pieces focus less on the tech and more on the founders themselves. But we do know the new Digg won't look like an "old school forum" according to Rose. He said that, in a few years, it "will be an interface that is unlike any other that you've seen." Whatever that means. Digg was founded in 2004—more than two decades ago, an eternity in internet terms—by Rose and other collaborators. Reddit arrived on the scene around a year later, in 2005, founded by current CEO Steve Huffman, the late hacktivist Aaron Swartz, and Ohanian. The two websites fought to be the dominate link aggregator for a half-decade, a competition Reddit eventually won. One way of looking at this history is that Reddit ultimately won over users, though you could also argue that Digg destroyed itself: An extremely buggy and widely unpopular 2010 redesign, launched under Rose's leadership, prioritized the posts of certain contributors and ultimately led to a mass exodus of users. The site never recovered and was soon more or less sold off piecemeal in 2012. How to sign up for early access to the new DiggInvitations to the new version of the site will be sent in the next few weeks—you can sign up here to try it if you're curious. With any luck it won't just be yet another place to yell about screenshots taken from other social networks; the internet sure could use something that's actually new. Only time will tell, though. View the full article

Discussions with militant group come as efforts to extend ceasefire between Israel and Hamas have stalledView the full article

France’s president proposes discussions with European allies amid fears about US pullback and Russia’s threatView the full article

The private sector added 77,000 jobs in February while annual pay increased by 4.7% year-over-year, according to the latest ADP National Employment Report released in collaboration with the Stanford Digital Economy Lab. The report, based on payroll data from over 25 million U.S. employees, offers a high-frequency measure of employment trends in the private sector. The February report indicates a slowdown in hiring, marking the smallest job gain since July. “Policy uncertainty and a slowdown in consumer spending might have led to layoffs or a slowdown in hiring last month,” said Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP. “Our data, combined with other recent indicators, suggests a hiring hesitancy among employers as they assess the economic climate ahead.” The job gains in February were led by the goods-producing sector, which added 42,000 positions. Within this category, the construction industry saw the highest increase, adding 26,000 jobs, followed by manufacturing with 18,000 jobs. The natural resources and mining sector, however, reported a loss of 2,000 jobs. Service-providing industries added 36,000 jobs, with strong gains in leisure and hospitality (+41,000), financial activities (+26,000), and professional and business services (+27,000). However, declines were recorded in trade, transportation, and utilities (-33,000), information (-14,000), and education and health services (-28,000). Regionally, employment gains were concentrated in the Northeast (+55,000) and Midwest (+56,000). The South (-12,000) and West (-27,000) saw declines, with the South Atlantic (-26,000) and Pacific (-25,000) regions reporting significant job losses. Small businesses saw a net decline of 12,000 jobs, with firms employing 1-19 workers shedding 17,000 jobs. Medium-sized businesses (50-499 employees) added 46,000 jobs, and large businesses (500+ employees) contributed 37,000 jobs to the overall increase. Annual pay growth remained stable in February, with job-stayers seeing a median pay increase of 4.7%. For job-changers, year-over-year pay gains slightly decreased from 6.8% in January to 6.7% in February. By industry, the highest pay gains for job-stayers were in financial activities (5.1%), manufacturing (4.8%), and construction (4.9%). Small firms with fewer than 20 employees reported the lowest median pay growth at 2.8%, while large firms with 500 or more employees saw a 5.0% increase. The January total for job additions was revised upward from 183,000 to 186,000, reflecting slight adjustments to previously reported data. This article, "ADP National Employment Report: Private Sector Adds 77,000 Jobs in February" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

The private sector added 77,000 jobs in February while annual pay increased by 4.7% year-over-year, according to the latest ADP National Employment Report released in collaboration with the Stanford Digital Economy Lab. The report, based on payroll data from over 25 million U.S. employees, offers a high-frequency measure of employment trends in the private sector. The February report indicates a slowdown in hiring, marking the smallest job gain since July. “Policy uncertainty and a slowdown in consumer spending might have led to layoffs or a slowdown in hiring last month,” said Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP. “Our data, combined with other recent indicators, suggests a hiring hesitancy among employers as they assess the economic climate ahead.” The job gains in February were led by the goods-producing sector, which added 42,000 positions. Within this category, the construction industry saw the highest increase, adding 26,000 jobs, followed by manufacturing with 18,000 jobs. The natural resources and mining sector, however, reported a loss of 2,000 jobs. Service-providing industries added 36,000 jobs, with strong gains in leisure and hospitality (+41,000), financial activities (+26,000), and professional and business services (+27,000). However, declines were recorded in trade, transportation, and utilities (-33,000), information (-14,000), and education and health services (-28,000). Regionally, employment gains were concentrated in the Northeast (+55,000) and Midwest (+56,000). The South (-12,000) and West (-27,000) saw declines, with the South Atlantic (-26,000) and Pacific (-25,000) regions reporting significant job losses. Small businesses saw a net decline of 12,000 jobs, with firms employing 1-19 workers shedding 17,000 jobs. Medium-sized businesses (50-499 employees) added 46,000 jobs, and large businesses (500+ employees) contributed 37,000 jobs to the overall increase. Annual pay growth remained stable in February, with job-stayers seeing a median pay increase of 4.7%. For job-changers, year-over-year pay gains slightly decreased from 6.8% in January to 6.7% in February. By industry, the highest pay gains for job-stayers were in financial activities (5.1%), manufacturing (4.8%), and construction (4.9%). Small firms with fewer than 20 employees reported the lowest median pay growth at 2.8%, while large firms with 500 or more employees saw a 5.0% increase. The January total for job additions was revised upward from 183,000 to 186,000, reflecting slight adjustments to previously reported data. This article, "ADP National Employment Report: Private Sector Adds 77,000 Jobs in February" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article