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Yet another food retailer has joined the growing list of companies that have recalled pasta-related products over the last few weeks. Sprouts Farmers Market, a supermarket chain headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, with stores across more than two dozen states, has voluntarily recalled select lots of Sprouts Smoked Mozzarella Pasta Salad due to a risk of contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. On October 9, a recall notice was published to the website of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). To date, no illnesses have been reported in connection with this recalled product. According to the notice, the recall is in response to Sprouts being alerted by its supplier, Fresh Creative Foods, that the pasta within the pasta salad could potentially be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. Fast Company has reached out to Fresh Creative Foods for comment. Which products are impacted by the recall? The affected lots of Sprouts Smoked Mozzarella Pasta Salad were packaged in plastic containers and sold from the “grab and go” section of stores or packaged directly from in-store deli service counters. Here are the specific product details: Grab and go: Sprouts Smoked Mozzarella Pasta Salad (UPC 2-15786-00000): Best use by dates from October 10, 2025, to October 29, 2025. Deli service counter: Sprouts Smoked Mozzarella Pasta Salad (UPC 2-15587-00000): Best use by dates from October 10, 2025, to October 29, 2025. The affected items were sold in the following states: Alabama Arizona California Colorado Delaware Florida Georgia Kansas Louisiana Maryland Missouri North Carolina New Jersey New Mexico Nevada Oklahoma Pennsylvania South Carolina Tennessee Texas Utah Virginia Washington Wyoming Don’t eat the affected product If you purchased the affected product, you should throw it away or return it to your local store for a full refund. To reduce the risk of cross-contamination, the FDA recommends taking extra care to clean and sanitize any surfaces or containers that have come into contact with the product. If you have any questions about the recall, call Sprouts Customer Relations at 480-814-8016 or submit a form at the Sprouts website. The list of retailers recalling pasta products is growing Last month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a food safety alert regarding a Listeria outbreak linked to prepared pasta meals. According to the CDC, the outbreak has hit 15 states. It has sickened 20 people, with 19 requiring hospitalization. Four people have died due to the outbreak, which dates back to last year. Sprouts is one of many retailers that have voluntarily recalled ready-to-eat pasta products in the weeks following the CDC’s alert, although the notice does not mention the outbreak. Here are some other recent pasta-related recalls to be aware of: Ready-to-eat pasta meals from Trader Joe’s, Kroger, and Walmart More pasta meals sold at Albertsons and Trader Joe’s Kroger pasta salads What is Listeria and who is at risk of infection? Listeria is a disease-causing bacteria that can be spread to and from foods. Listeria infection is caused by eating food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. As the Mayo Clinic notes, healthy people rarely become very ill from Listeria infection. However, the disease can turn deadly for some. Pregnant women, adults 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems are more at risk for infection. View the full article

Abu Dhabi carrier Etihad said Friday it is launching flights to Kabul, making it the latest airline to offer direct routes to the Afghan capital. Etihad, which announced a record $476 million profit in 2024, said the new service responded to “growing demand” for travel between the United Arab Emirates and Afghanistan and that the three weekly flights starting in December would support “trade, travel, and community ties.” “The UAE hosts one of the largest Afghan communities in the Gulf, with around 300,000 Afghans living and working in the country, according to the Afghan Business Council,” the airline said in a statement. “The new flights will further strengthen these economic and social ties while enhancing connectivity through Abu Dhabi.” Other international carriers flying direct to Kabul include Turkish Airlines and FlyDubai. The oil-rich UAE has forged close ties with the Taliban-led government of Afghanistan in recent years. In June 2024, the Emirati leader, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, met a top official and Cabinet member, Sirajuddin Haqqani, who had a U.S. bounty on his head over his involvement in an attack that killed an American citizen and other assaults. A few months later, the UAE accepted the credentials of a Taliban government ambassador. Even though the Taliban are largely isolated from the West, due to their restrictions on women and girls, they have successfully established bilateral relations with regional powers. In July, Russia became the first country to recognize them as the legitimate government of Afghanistan. And, on Friday, India said it was upgrading its technical mission in Kabul to a full embassy. —Associated Press View the full article

Threads has rolled out a new feature aimed at enhancing community engagement on its platform: Communities. This initiative provides small business owners with a fresh avenue to connect with their audience and foster deeper relationships within niche interest areas. As Threads expands its capabilities, it’s crucial to explore how these Communities can be leveraged effectively. Designed as casual, public spaces, Communities on Threads allow users to engage in conversations about a variety of popular topics, from basketball to TV shows. Currently in the testing phase, this feature covers over 100 interests, paving the way for users to join discussions that resonate with their passions. “Communities build on features like custom feeds and topic tags to help you meaningfully connect with people who share your interests,” Threads notes. This functionality can be particularly beneficial for small business owners looking to cultivate a loyal customer base. By joining or even creating a community relevant to their sector, businesses can position themselves as thought leaders while fostering a sense of belonging among their customers. The membership is public, meaning that communities you join will be visible in your profile and feed menu. This transparency can be advantageous for small businesses. For instance, if a local bakery joins or initiates a “Baking” community, it showcases its expertise and passion, potentially drawing in clients who share a similar interest. Connecting on shared hobbies creates a natural platform for promoting services or products organically. Each community features a custom Like emoji tailored to the topic, which enhances the engagement experience. For example, in a book-related community, members may use a stack of books as a Like, reinforcing their affinity for the topic. This personalization contributes to the overall interactive experience, making it easier for members to bond and engage, which is important for businesses seeking to build community around their brand. Exploring and joining communities on Threads is straightforward. Users can search for communities by name or simply tap on a community tag in their feed. By offering over 100 communities in its initial rollout, Threads is encouraging users to discover those that align with their interests. This approach supports small business owners in identifying and connecting with potential customers who are already enthusiastic about related topics. However, while the introduction of Communities provides exciting opportunities, small business owners should also be mindful of potential challenges. With the public nature of community membership, businesses need to maintain a consistent and professional presence, ensuring that their engagement reflects their brand identity. Furthermore, the landscape of these communities is evolving. As Threads plans to introduce special badges for standout contributors and establish ranking systems within communities, it’s essential for businesses to remain active and engaged to gain visibility. The competition to stand out may intensify as more users flock to these spaces, making consistent, quality engagement critical. “We’re also working on ranking within communities and the For You feed so that you see the most relevant posts first,” Threads states. This will enhance user experience by surfacing the information that’s most pertinent to them, requiring businesses to stay up-to-date on community trends and effectively target their content. Small business owners should also remain cautious about the time commitment required to nurture these communities. As engagement increases, the task of monitoring discussions and contributing meaningfully may demand more resources than initially anticipated. Prioritizing effective time management will be vital for businesses hoping to leverage these new features without detracting from other critical operations. As the Threads platform continues to evolve, small business owners have a unique opportunity to capitalize on community engagement to build brand loyalty and connect with their audience in meaningful ways. Stay informed about these developments by reading more on Threads’ official announcement here: Threads Communities Announcement. This article, "Threads Unveils Communities: Connect Over Shared Interests in Real-Time" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Threads has rolled out a new feature aimed at enhancing community engagement on its platform: Communities. This initiative provides small business owners with a fresh avenue to connect with their audience and foster deeper relationships within niche interest areas. As Threads expands its capabilities, it’s crucial to explore how these Communities can be leveraged effectively. Designed as casual, public spaces, Communities on Threads allow users to engage in conversations about a variety of popular topics, from basketball to TV shows. Currently in the testing phase, this feature covers over 100 interests, paving the way for users to join discussions that resonate with their passions. “Communities build on features like custom feeds and topic tags to help you meaningfully connect with people who share your interests,” Threads notes. This functionality can be particularly beneficial for small business owners looking to cultivate a loyal customer base. By joining or even creating a community relevant to their sector, businesses can position themselves as thought leaders while fostering a sense of belonging among their customers. The membership is public, meaning that communities you join will be visible in your profile and feed menu. This transparency can be advantageous for small businesses. For instance, if a local bakery joins or initiates a “Baking” community, it showcases its expertise and passion, potentially drawing in clients who share a similar interest. Connecting on shared hobbies creates a natural platform for promoting services or products organically. Each community features a custom Like emoji tailored to the topic, which enhances the engagement experience. For example, in a book-related community, members may use a stack of books as a Like, reinforcing their affinity for the topic. This personalization contributes to the overall interactive experience, making it easier for members to bond and engage, which is important for businesses seeking to build community around their brand. Exploring and joining communities on Threads is straightforward. Users can search for communities by name or simply tap on a community tag in their feed. By offering over 100 communities in its initial rollout, Threads is encouraging users to discover those that align with their interests. This approach supports small business owners in identifying and connecting with potential customers who are already enthusiastic about related topics. However, while the introduction of Communities provides exciting opportunities, small business owners should also be mindful of potential challenges. With the public nature of community membership, businesses need to maintain a consistent and professional presence, ensuring that their engagement reflects their brand identity. Furthermore, the landscape of these communities is evolving. As Threads plans to introduce special badges for standout contributors and establish ranking systems within communities, it’s essential for businesses to remain active and engaged to gain visibility. The competition to stand out may intensify as more users flock to these spaces, making consistent, quality engagement critical. “We’re also working on ranking within communities and the For You feed so that you see the most relevant posts first,” Threads states. This will enhance user experience by surfacing the information that’s most pertinent to them, requiring businesses to stay up-to-date on community trends and effectively target their content. Small business owners should also remain cautious about the time commitment required to nurture these communities. As engagement increases, the task of monitoring discussions and contributing meaningfully may demand more resources than initially anticipated. Prioritizing effective time management will be vital for businesses hoping to leverage these new features without detracting from other critical operations. As the Threads platform continues to evolve, small business owners have a unique opportunity to capitalize on community engagement to build brand loyalty and connect with their audience in meaningful ways. Stay informed about these developments by reading more on Threads’ official announcement here: Threads Communities Announcement. This article, "Threads Unveils Communities: Connect Over Shared Interests in Real-Time" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

The future belongs to those who build, evolve, and admit their mistakes. Gear Up for Growth With Jean Caragher For CPA Trendlines Go PRO for members-only access to more Jean Marie Caragher. View the full article

The future belongs to those who build, evolve, and admit their mistakes. Gear Up for Growth With Jean Caragher For CPA Trendlines Go PRO for members-only access to more Jean Marie Caragher. View the full article

Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web. Google Business Profiles has a new way to report review extortion scams...View the full article

Billionaire hedge fund manager’s CIFF has focused donations on issues such as climate changeView the full article

Pope Leo XIV encouraged international news agencies on Thursday to stand firm as a bulwark against the “ancient art of lying” and manipulation, as he strongly backed a free, independent and objective press. History’s first American pope called for imprisoned journalists to be released and said the work of journalists must never be considered a crime. Rather, journalism is a right and a pillar upholding “the edifice of our societies” that must be protected and defended, he said. “If today we know what is happening in Gaza, Ukraine and every other land bloodied by bombs, we largely owe it to them,” Leo said of journalists. “These extraordinary eyewitness accounts are the culmination of the daily efforts of countless people who work to ensure that information is not manipulated for ends that are contrary to truth and human dignity.” Leo’s comments came in a speech to executives of international news agencies belonging to MINDS International, a consortium of leading agencies including The Associated Press. In his five months as pope, the Chicago-born Leo has spoken out strongly on the need to protect freedom of expression and the rights of journalists. In his first meeting with reporters right after his election, Leo called for the release of imprisoned journalists and affirmed the “precious gift of free speech and the press.” More recently, he insisted that journalism was “not only an act of justice, but a duty of all those who long for a solid and participatory democracy.” In a letter to a crusading Peruvian journalist repeatedly sued for her work, Leo affirmed the freedom of the press was an “inalienable common good.” On Thursday, he strongly encouraged news agencies amid a double crisis they are facing, with economic pressures threatening their survival and consumers increasingly unable to distinguish truth from lies. “I urge you: Never sell out your authority!” Leo said. He quoted Hannah Arendt’s “The Origins of Totalitarianism” in asserting that the world needs free and objective information. He cited her warning that “the ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction and the distinction between true and false no longer exist.” Leo said even with the challenges posed today by artificial intelligence, news agencies must stand firm. “With your patient and rigorous work, you can act as a barrier against those who, through the ancient art of lying, seek to create divisions in order to rule by dividing,” he said. “You can also be a bulwark of civility against the quicksand of approximation and post-truth.” Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. —Nicole Winfield, Associated Press View the full article

With Halloween on the horizon, Chicago Costume is stuffed. Packaged costumes, including superheros and Japanese animation characters in both kid and adult sizes, dangle near colorful wigs and bottles of fake blood. Downstairs, vintage clothes from the 1970s beg for one more boogie night. The frightening possibilities mask the work that’s gone on behind the scenes to stock the family-owned shop and its sister store for the spooky season. Owner Courtland Hickey said he ordered 40% fewer costumes this year because of President Donald The President’s tariffs on products from China. To fill the gap, Hickey and his mother, Chicago Costume founder Mary Hickey Panayotou, looked to their decade’s worth of unsold costumes and accessories to see what could be repackaged or repurposed. The tariffs made new imports more expensive, and storewide price increases might spook customers, he said. “If people have less money in their pocket to spend, … then costumes are going to be lower on their list,” Hickey said. “So the more we have to invest in new products, the riskier it is for the business because we aren’t going to sell it.” Tapping the old inventory required sorting through several thousand items stored in backrooms and a warehouse. Vintage pieces once reserved for rentals combined with fresh items became sets. A surplus of black robes became the foundation for Halloween wizards, judges, choir members and graduating students, Hickey said. “They’re a staple piece that gets transformed by the accessories we pair with them,” he said. Courtland Hickey Some of Chicago Costume’s 35 employees also got busy sewing fabric scraps and foam material into imitations of the miter headdresses worn by high-ranking Catholic clergy. Paired with a robe, the headwear would let someone dress up as Pope Leo, a Chicago native. Panayotou founded Chicago Costume in 1976 by custom-designing and renting costumes for the Windy City’s theater companies. It fast became a destination for non-actors looking for Halloween outfits. Commercially made children’s costumes followed, and a stockpile of capes, masquerade masks, “Star Wars” kits and other leftovers grew from there. “I’m kind of a hoarder,” Panayotou said. “I didn’t want to throw stuff away. So there’s a lot of accessory items and pieces. Here’s the dress, but we have only one glove.” Having excess inventory typically is avoided in retail, but the practice has given Chicago Costume a supply cushion during what has been an unpredictable 2025 for import-reliant segments of the industry, including toy manufacturers and stores. Hickey said tariffs weren’t on his radar until he and and other Chicago Costume staff members met with suppliers at the Halloween & Party Expo in January. Whether The President would impose duties on Chinese goods after his inauguration the following week was a big topic of conversation at the Las Vegas event, he said. On Feb. 1, the president signed the first tariff order of his second term. Hickey already had ordered his usual number of new costumes but put fulfillment and delivery on hold when the tariff rate on imports from China ballooned to 145% in April. Nearly 90% of the costumes Chicago Costume sells in stores and online are made in China, in line with the costume industry average, he said. Some suppliers already had products ready and said they would not charge him extra, Hickey said. Others said he would have to pay more to cover the cost of tariffs. “Take it or leave it,” he recalls being told. “I pretty much left it.” Other small businesses that rely on Halloween describe similar their own tariff-related woes. Trick or Treat Studios, which designs masks based on characters from popular horror movies as well as costumes and props, laid off 15 employees, one-fourth of its staff, in May, co-founder Christopher Zephro said. Zephro uses factories in China to make plastic masks but said he is reducing the amount of work done there and shifting it to Mexico, where his latex masks are manufactured. In the meantime, he raised prices by 15%. At Chicago Costume, which generates well under $1 million dollars in annual sales, shoppers will see fewer sales promotions and discounts, Hickey said. Children’s costumes of officially licensed characters and bulky sets will cost at least 25% more, he said. A lederhosen costume, for example, is priced at $49.99, or $10 more that it did a year ago. Hickey, who has served on the board of the National Costumers Association for 20 years, initially saw a silver lining in The President’s tariffs. Big retail chains have siphoned sales from independent costume shops with the help of cheap costumes from China, he said. In May, Hickey published a column on the National Costumers Association’s website that outlined Chicago Costume’s can-do, environmentally superior approach this year. He hoped it would galvanize the trade group’s 100 independent store members — a group that numbered 220 a decade ago — to dust off old stock, reorganize their shops and prepare for “a potentially great Halloween.” Tariffs have “peeled back the curtain on just how deep our reliance on cheap overseas manufacturing has become,” he wrote. “If this shift hurts Amazon dropshippers, Spirit Halloween, or Walmart’s over-imported costume lines, I’m not going to mourn. In fact, I see it as a chance for us to reclaim what made local retail special.” Some of Hickey’s idealism has since faded. The impact of tariffs on Halloween played out differently than he expected. The largest retail chains doubled down, flooding the market with cheap costumes and dropping prices to hold onto customers. “It’s been a lot harder than I hoped, but I still believe that optimism, adaptability, and differentiation are what will keep independent costume shops like us alive,” he said. Chicago Costume is used to embracing challenges. To keep revenue flowing year-round, the stores cater to cosplay fans and themed parties. The Hickey-Panayotou family has a separate business making mascot costumes for the Chicago Bulls and other professional sports teams, and acquired a theatrical services company founded in 1886 along with its collection of period pieces. Diversifying made it easier to rotate and refurbish old stock instead of slashing prices after Halloween or throwing pieces away, he said. For a customer who wanted to be a Hollywood diva, his wife, Erin, who handles social media for Chicago Costume, paired a robe trimmed with feather boas from the vintage collection with a new cigarette holder, hat and pair of sunglasses. Total cost: $65. Damien Johnson, 53, is a longtime Chicago Costume patron whose birthday is Oct. 31. He has spent as much as $300 on his Halloween getups and said he would never shop online or at discount stores. Despite his loyalty, Johnson delayed his costume-buying by a month this year. He also gave himself a spending cap. Transforming himself into the clown-faced Pennywise character from Stephen King’s “It” will come to $90, including hair and makeup. “I always overbought.” he said. “This year, I am good.” Terry Chea contributed from Santa Cruz, California. —Anne D’Innocenzio, AP Retail Writer View the full article

With search traffic flat and AI accelerating zero-click, publishers face a survival test that demands SEO maturity and sharper strategies. The post AI Survival Strategies For Publishers appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

Oil prices declined on Friday, after settling around 1.6% lower in the previous session, as the market’s risk premium faded after Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a plan to end the war in Gaza. Brent crude futures were down 66 cents, or 1%, at $64.56 a barrel at 1016 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was down 61 cents, or 1%, to $60.90. “Finally having some kind of peace process in the Middle East is lowering the shoulders a little bit,” said Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB. This could ease fears about crude carriers passing through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea, he said. BOTH BENCHMARKS ON TRACK FOR WEEKLY GAINS Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas signed a ceasefire agreement on Thursday in the first phase of U.S. President Donald The President’s initiative to end the war in Gaza. Under the deal, which Israel’s government ratified on Friday, fighting will cease, Israel will partially withdraw from Gaza, and Hamas will free all remaining hostages it captured in the attack that precipitated the war, in exchange for hundreds of prisoners held by Israel. Numerous vessels have been attacked by the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen since 2023, targeting ships they deem linked to Israel in what they described as solidarity with Palestinians over the war in Gaza. On a weekly basis, Brent was up around 1% and WTI was relatively flat, so far. Both benchmarks fell steeply last week. Prices climbed about 1% on Wednesday to a one-week high because of stalled progress on a Ukraine peace deal, a sign that sanctions against Russia, the world’s second-largest oil exporter, could continue. The Gaza ceasefire deal means the focus can move back to the impending oil surplus, as OPEC proceeds with the unwinding of production cuts, said Daniel Hynes, an analyst at ANZ. A smaller-than-expected November hike in output agreed by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) on Sunday eased some of those oversupply concerns. “Markets’ expectations for a sharp ramp up in crude supply have not manifested themselves in substantially lower prices,” BMI analysts said in a note on Friday. “The most recent rise in production is lower than previously feared, contributing to a slight rise in prices for the week,” they said. Investors are also worried that a prolonged U.S. government shutdown could dampen the American economy and hurt oil demand in the world’s largest crude consumer. Additional reporting by Sudarshan Varadhan —Anna Hirtenstein, Reuters View the full article

America’s defense technology sector is rapidly expanding. Top talent, ambitious founders, and serious capital are flooding into a mission that matters, delivering products and solutions that will send us to the moon, deploy unimaginably capable unmanned aerial devices, and redefine what’s possible in modern warfare. It’s an exciting moment—one full of possibility and potential. But here’s the problem: while everyone is focused on the moonshots, we’re overlooking the foundation. The unsexy stuff. The quiet, mission-critical gaps that don’t make headlines but could leave us dangerously vulnerable. We’re building skyscrapers without checking if the ground beneath us is solid. I’ve spent decades navigating this ecosystem—from antitrust law to Capitol Hill and building critical technology at Palantir for Defense, Intelligence, and Public Health. And I can tell you: America’s national security demands the big bets. But if we want true resilience, we need to get serious about filling the gaps. Here’s where we’re falling short—and how we can fix it. The barrier to entry? It’s not paperwork—it’s people Government go-to-market is notoriously hard. Requests for Proposals (RFPs), Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS), Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP)—these acronyms form their own labyrinth, sidelining products and burning through runway. But the real barrier isn’t the bureaucratic maze. It’s the human one. Success in this space requires identifying, cultivating, and maintaining relationships with every critical stakeholder group throughout a program’s lifecycle. There’s no shortcut. And the complexity multiplies because every agency and department operates differently. They have distinct cultures, decision-making processes, and procurement rhythms. Then there’s the churn. People rotate roles. Administrations change every four years. Priorities shift. Which means yes, you do have to rebuild relationships constantly. This reality demands a level of operational maturity, business development sophistication, and long-term investment that most startups simply can’t sustain. Innovation gets hampered before it even starts. We’re funding moonshots—and ignoring everything else These sky-high barriers create a funding environment that rewards only the most ambitious ideas: building America’s missile defense shield, designing next-generation autonomous drones, launching satellites into low-Earth orbit. These projects are critically important. They must get done. But what about everything else? For every loud leap forward, there are thousands of quiet, mission-critical problems leaving us exposed. Not because they’re unsolvable, but because they fall outside traditional models of scale, funding, and attention. What good is a billion-dollar drone without a reliable charging system? Why are life-saving field surgeries still being conducted with techniques from Vietnam? Why is mission-critical data being stored on local hard drives? Yes, we need hydrogen-powered autonomous jets. But we also need better military construction techniques. Better gimbals. Better field logistics. The unglamorous stuff that keeps the glamorous stuff running. Platforms need products—and we don’t have enough Despite an abundance of platforms, we’re facing a shortage of components. Companies like Anduril and Palantir are building some of the most ambitious, technically sophisticated defense platforms ever created. But here’s the catch: They’re not incentivized to populate those ecosystems with specialized applications—nor should they be. Their business models reward scale and horizontal integration, not the painstaking work of solving narrow, specific mission problems. The result? Platforms without components are like operating systems without apps: powerful in theory, underutilized in practice. Real value emerges when platforms are filled with verticalized, specialized tools tuned to specific mission sets, environments, and workflows. What’s missing is an ecosystem that supports a new generation of builders—small, agile companies creating plugins, widgets, and mission-focused modules that integrate seamlessly into existing infrastructure. This requires new funding models that reward precision problem-solving, not just scale. Speed isn’t optional anymore—it’s survival In an age of exponential technological change, speed is strategy. For five decades, we’ve overvalued perfection: building exquisite, bespoke systems engineered to the exact specifications of a single mission. We’ve undervalued iteration—especially in the field where conditions change rapidly. That approach won’t cut it anymore. We need to identify what’s needed today and ship it to the frontlines as fast as possible, anticipating and removing blockers before they become catastrophic delays. It’s time for a “build fast, fix faster” mindset. That means embracing edge manufacturing, hardening supply chains with domestic production, and structuring R&D teams for maximum autonomy. Yes, some projects require decade-long timelines. Some problems demand ambitious, wide-reaching platforms. But we also have urgent gaps in our resilience that demand urgency to fix. Build with your users, not for them Iteration and urgency only work with partnership. I’ve seen too many well-intentioned solutions developed at breakneck speed that completely miss the mark. Why? Because they were built in a vacuum. Teams delivered what they thought was needed instead of what was actually necessary. Usually, it’s because they lacked the prerequisites for success: direct access to end users, their leadership, and a deep understanding of program requirements. Every product lifecycle should begin with a concrete demand signal. What’s the urgent problem blocking mission success today? Not what you assume it is—what the people on the frontlines are actually experiencing. Warfighters. Field operators. Career civil servants. Then build alongside them. Attend field exercises. Sit in the mud. Watch systems fail in real conditions. Learn from the people whose lives depend on your technology working. Surface these solutions to leadership. Invest in problems and solutions that have buy-in from every level. Because defense technology is ultimately public service—and a team sport. Like any team sport, listening matters more than speaking. Everyone has a role to play to win. The path forward We’re not short on vision, talent, or commitment. What we need now is alignment: between technologists and operators, platforms and products, and urgency and execution. The opportunity in front of us is extraordinary. If we can bridge the gap between innovation and implementation, we won’t just build better systems. We’ll build a stronger, safer, more resilient future—one that can handle both the moonshots and the fundamentals that keep them flying. View the full article

OpenAI has announced Instant Checkout on ChatGPT. ChatGPT acts as an intermediary agent for commerce purchases on behalf of the customer. This provides a foundation that connects people and businesses for the next era of agentic commerce. What does the buying process look like? The Instant Checkout flow keeps ChatGPT at the center of every step – from discovery to payment confirmation. After finding a product through conversations with ChatGPT, the user taps “Buy” and confirms payment and shipping. ChatGPT passes this signal, and the merchant then gathers fulfillment options. ChatGPT presents these options to the user who makes a selection. This information is again passed to the merchant by ChatGPT. The merchant calculates the tax and final price. ChatGPT renders that total to the user, who then confirms the purchase. ChatGPT gathers secure payment tokens and other details and passes them to the merchant. That merchant then accepts or declines the order. The payment processor then charges the payment method, and confirmations cascade down the line: merchant, ChatGPT, and user. How ChatGPT’s Instant Checkout stacks up to Perplexity’s ‘Buy with Pro’ Instant Checkout on ChatGPT sounds similar to Perplexity’s “Buy with Pro,” which launched last November. The difference? ChatGPT’s version: Drops the “free shipping” perk. Removes the paid-subscriber limitation. Gives merchants a faster path to participate – all with the potential to scale much faster given ChatGPT’s far larger user base. Dig deeper: ChatGPT Shopping is here – and it’s changing ecommerce SEO rules Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. See terms. The opportunity – and early friction – in ChatGPT’s checkout experience This underscores the importance of measuring brand and product visibility in ChatGPT and properly optimizing product feeds for agentic commerce experiences. Though this experience is launching as organic/non-sponsored for now, we expect it’s only a matter of time before OpenAI rolls out a paid placement version. With that noted, it remains to be seen if consumer behavior will keep up with technology. At the moment, performing a transaction requires significant prompting and allows for limited selection, resulting in a poor user experience, at least for this first iteration. What’s available now? Instant Checkout is currently available for U.S. merchants who sell on Etsy, supporting single-item purchases only. This is the first stage of the rollout, with more merchant integrations expected over time. How merchants can participate Merchants who want to move forward can: Integrate their products into ChatGPT Search results. Enable Instant Checkout through the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP). Merchants pay a small fee on completed purchases – refunded if the product is returned – while the experience remains free for users. ChatGPT acts as the user’s AI agent, securely passing information between the user and the merchant. ACP is designed to be straightforward to integrate and flexible across payment processors and platforms. How organic visibility works in ChatGPT Product results are organic and unsponsored, ranked based on relevance to the user’s query and the context of the conversation. The embedded shopping experience must be triggered by user intent during the conversation. When that happens, ChatGPT displays product cards that allow users to purchase directly. Instant Checkout items do not receive preferential ranking, according to OpenAI. However, when multiple merchants sell the same product, ChatGPT considers: Availability. Price. Quality. Whether the merchant is a primary seller. Whether Instant Checkout is enabled to optimize the experience. Dig deeper: How ChatGPT search ranks products and merchants How orders, payments, and fulfillment work Orders, payments, and fulfillment are handled by the merchant using their existing systems. Stripe users can enable payments with a single line of code. When someone places an order, ChatGPT sends the necessary details to the merchant’s backend via ACP. The merchant then: Accepts or declines the order. Processes the payment. Manages fulfillment and customer support as usual. What’s still evolving Many details are still emerging around how ChatGPT will operate the broader Instant Checkout function. Our team is closely tracking several areas, including: Fees and cost structure: While OpenAI has said merchants will pay a small fee on completed purchases, the exact amount has not been disclosed. Shopify integrations: These are next in line, opening Instant Checkout to more than a million Shopify merchants once available. The specific steps for merchants to activate and run the integration have not yet been detailed by OpenAI. Beyond Shopify: Additional merchant integrations are in development. Revenue optimization capabilities: Basket size, cross-sell, and up-sell functionality – including support for multi-item transactions – are still being defined. Global reach: For now, Instant Checkout is limited to U.S. consumers. Dig deeper: When AI agents do the shopping: Insights from 100 conversations with ChatGPT Agent mode Preparing product feeds Now is the time for merchants to review how complete and descriptive their product data is. Feed quality directly impacts how well ChatGPT can match products to conversational prompts and generate accurate responses. There are key aspects of a client’s feed that can help determine fit: Are key product descriptors present – especially those that influence customer decisions? In the conversational context of ChatGPT queries, these attributes carry high value. How complete is the product schema? The more structured information provided, the more effectively ChatGPT can reference those details in responses. Example: height, width, and depth measurements of a nightstand. The richer and more structured your feed, the stronger your visibility potential in ChatGPT’s embedded shopping experience. Next steps for merchants Merchants can apply through OpenAI’s Instant Checkout form. (Etsy and Shopify sellers are automatically covered.) OpenAI will onboard eligible merchants on a rolling basis. In the meantime: Prepare and validate your product feeds. Begin building integrations. Track organic product visibility within ChatGPT’s shopping experience. Optimize product pages for high-intent prompts that trigger embedded shopping. View the full article

While technology has become an important channel for information among homebuyers, many still see real estate agents as smarter than any other resource. View the full article

James was charged with one count of alleged bank fraud and one count of making false statements to a financial institution. The indictment made public on Thursday follows allegations from The President administration officials that James engaged in mortgage fraud. View the full article

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for her struggle to achieve a democratic transition in the South American nation, winning recognition as a woman “who keeps the flame of democracy burning amid a growing darkness.” The former opposition presidential candidate is a “key, unifying figure” in the once deeply divided opposition to President Nicolás Maduro’s government, said Jørgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel committee. “In the past year, Ms. Machado has been forced to live in hiding,” Watne Frydnes said. “Despite serious threats against her life, she has remained in the country, a choice that has inspired millions. When authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognize courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist.” Machado says she’s humbled and grateful Machado’s ally, Edmundo González, who lives in exile in Spain, celebrated the Nobel award as a “very well-deserved recognition” of her fight and that of Venezuelans for freedom and democracy. He posted a short video on X of himself speaking by phone with Machado. “I am in shock,” she said, adding, “I cannot believe it.” “This is something that the Venezuelan people deserve,” Machado said in a call with the Norwegian Nobel Institute. “I am just part of a huge movement. … I’m humbled, I’m grateful and I’m honored not only by this recognition, but I’m honored to be part of what’s going on in Venezuela today.” “I believe that we are very close to achieving, finally, freedom for our country and peace for the region,” she said, adding that “even though we face the most brutal violence, our society has resisted” and insisted on struggling by peaceful means. “I believe that the world will now understand how urgent it is to finally, you know, succeed.” Crackdown on dissent Maduro’s government has routinely targeted its real or perceived opponents. Machado, who turned 58 this week, was set to run against Maduro in last year’s presidential election, but the government disqualified her. González, who had never run for office before, took her place. The lead-up to the election saw widespread repression, including disqualifications, arrests and human rights violations. The crackdown on dissent only increased after the country’s National Electoral Council, which is stacked with Maduro loyalists, declared him the winner despite credible evidence to the contrary. The election results announced by the Electoral Council sparked protests across the country to which the government responded with force that ended with more than 20 people dead. They also prompted an end to diplomatic relations between Venezuela and various foreign countries, including Argentina. Machado went into hiding and has not been seen in public since January. A Venezuelan court issued an arrest warrant for González over the publication of election results. He went into exile in Spain and was granted asylum. More than 800 people are in prison in Venezuela for political reasons, according to the human rights advocacy group Foro Penal. Among them is González’s son-in-law, Rafael Tudares, who was detained in January. Dozens of those prisoners actively participated in Machado’s efforts last year. Some of her closest collaborators, including her campaign manager, avoided prison by sheltering for more than a year at a diplomatic compound in Caracas. They remained there until May, when they fled to the U.S. Early Friday in Caracas, some people heading to work expressed disbelief at the news of Machado’s win. “I don’t know what can be done to improve the situation, but she deserves it,” said Sandra Martínez, 32, as she waited at a bus stop. “She’s a great woman.” There was no immediate reaction from Maduro’s government. Support for Machado and the opposition in general has decreased since the July 2024 election — particularly since January, when Maduro was sworn in for a third six-year term and disappointment set in. Machado was included in Time magazine’s list of 100 most influential people in April. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote her entry, in which he described her as “the Venezuelan Iron Lady” and “the personification of resilience, tenacity, and patriotism.” Machado becomes the 20th woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, of the 112 individuals who have been honored. Speculation about The President’s Nobel chances There had been persistent speculation ahead of the announcement about the possibility of the prize going to U.S. President Donald The President, fueled in part by the president himself and amplified by this week’s approval of his plan for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Asked about lobbying for and by The President, Watne Frydnes said: “I think this committee has seen any type of campaign, media attention. We receive thousands and thousands of letters every year of people wanting to say what for them leads to peace. “This committee sits in a room filled with the portraits of all laureates, and that room is filled with both courage and integrity. So we base only our decision on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel.” White House spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a post on X Friday morning that “President The President will continue making peace deals around the world, ending wars, and saving lives.” He added that “the Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace.” The peace prize is the only one of the annual Nobel prizes to be awarded in Oslo, Norway. Four of the other prizes have already been awarded in the Swedish capital, Stockholm this week — in medicine on Monday, physics on Tuesday, chemistry on Wednesday and literature on Thursday. The winner of the prize in economics will be announced on Monday. Garcia Cano reported from Mexico City and Moulson from Berlin. Jorge Rueda contributed from Caracas, Venezuela, and Mike Corder from The Hague, Netherlands. AP coverage of Nobel Prizes: https://apnews.com/hub/nobel-prizes —Kostya Manenkov, Regina Garcia Cano and Geir Moulson, Associated Press View the full article

With year-to-date hiring plans sinking to a 16-year low according to a report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, many people are beginning to feel the impacts—and it’s reasonable enough to believe that artificial intelligence (AI) might have something to do with the slump. Zip, a company that creates procurement software, recently released a study that shows how AI might be factoring into hiring decisions even more than previously believed. The report surveyed 1,030 “experienced leaders” who are also responsible for some degree of spending and supply management within their companies. Seven in 10 of the leaders—which amounts to 67%—reported that they’re already using AI in “spend and supplier management,” while 17% say they’re using it widely. Basically, AI is taking over faster than most individuals and companies expected. One of the more interesting parts of the study found that optimism about AI is outpacing readiness. This can seem contradictory when you consider that 75% of companies are factoring AI into hiring decisions, but this number could reflect companies that list AI literacy in their job descriptions. The more alarming finding may be that 17% of companies now require proof from hiring managers that a job can’t be performed by AI before a role is approved. Human skills will still matter The study found that the skills being prioritized among the leaders are changing, with “AI and automation fluency” being the most critical skill expected in the next three years, followed by data analysis and decision support. The evidence further implies that AI is leading companies to rearrange their spending priorities. Respondents identified professional and legal services, gig workers, consultants, and travel and events among the areas where they’re looking for cost reductions this year. “By gathering these broad perspectives, we aimed to illuminate not just how spend is managed today, but what it reveals about the future of business,” Nick Heinzmann,” Zip’s head of research, wrote in the report, which Zip calls the “State of Spend” survey. The study reflects that the desire to save money by having AI replace workers may represent an overall contradiction of most companies’ overall goals—especially when establishing relationships with clients is more important than ever. View the full article

Key ChatGPT updates mapped for marketers, highlighting AI-driven trends that helped shape search behavior and visibility strategies. The post Timeline Of ChatGPT Updates & Key Events appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding Lifehacker as a preferred source for tech news. Doing things the old-fashioned way and hand-writing your notes is better for retaining what you’ve learned, but it definitely has drawbacks that can make typing notes more appealing. Hand-written notes aren’t searchable on your phone or laptop, for example, and unlike your phone, your notebook probably won’t always be with you for a quick study session on the bus or train. That’s why you should take advantage of both methods: once you’ve written them out, you should digitize your notes in some fashion to make studying easier, blending the old style with the new. Here are the best ways to do so. The easiest way to digitize your notes: A cameraThe most straightforward way to digitize your notes is by taking a picture of them and uploading it to your Google Drive or straight to your computer. You can name and file the images however you want, and though they won’t be easily searchable, they will be legible to you. Though this is super basic, it’s on the list because there’s one major advantage here: After uploading the image of your paper, you can stick it at the top of a document and use it as a guide to further revise your notes in the space for typing below. Manual revision (especially when done right after class) is extremely beneficial to understanding and retention, so if you’re trying to grasp the content at hand, it might be better to just type and revise it all yourself than to, say, let an app or gadget do the work for you. That said, phones are getting smarter, and the built-in photos app on iPhone allows you to search for specific words within photos. For example, if you know you have a page of notes about the respiratory system saved as a photo, you should be able to search "respiratory system" or "lungs" or "alveoli" and it will search all your photos for those phrases. Google Photos has something similar. On that note, let’s talk apps and gadgets. (No judgment.) Use an app to digitize your notesThe most popular app for digitizing notes is Evernote, which advertises itself as a “pocket scanner” on your phone. You use an in-app camera to scan the document and, if your notes are “clearly written,” they’ll become editable and searchable. I tested this one out and didn't love it, but it's still the most popular and worth your time to consider. (You can read my full review of Evernote here.) For what it's worth, in a head-to-head notes app battle, I tend to favor Notion over Evernote, but in this instance, that's not true because Notion doesn't allow for the scanning of handwritten notes. If you want to hand-write into an app, try Microsoft OneNote, which is free and easily converts what you write with your finger or stylus into searchable, editable text and makes it available across all your devices with Microsoft’s tools installed. Use a smart notebook to digitize your notesTo make the writing-to-digital process super easy, try a tool designed for the purpose: A smart notebook. You have a few options when it comes to devices that turn your writing into easily accessible notes. The most popular is the Rocketbook ($22–$40), which comes in a few different sizes and styles and is simple to use. You write on the pages with the pen that comes with it, scan the page with the associated app, and then wipe the page clean to start again, as whatever was already on it is syncing to your device. I picked one up for myself when I started grad school and got one for my boyfriend when he went back to school, too. We both found it easy to use, functional, and simple to transport. While those are more like traditional paper and pen, you also have the option of a smart notebook that is more like a tablet. There are a number of these on the market, but Lifehacker's Joel Cunningham spent a year testing eight of them and comprised this list of the best ones. With e-ink notebooks tablets aimed at those who need an AI assist, those who require a lot of writing space, or those who also want to read textbooks and other materials on it, you'll find one that aligns with your own needs. Just be warned that with prices between $285 and $690, they're quite a bit pricier than the Rocketbook. Still, a resource that can help you through school and beyond is always a good investment. For what it's worth, the best-performing one of the bunch is the Boox Note Air 4C 10.3-Inch Digital Notebook ($530) for a few reasons. Its 10.3" screen is big enough to write on, but not so big that it makes it hard to carry this thing around. The ease of writing with the stylus is notable, according to Joel's review, as is the varied functionality of its native note-taking app, which helps you not only write your notes, but organize them. Make a mind map insteadRevising your notes and turning them into readable, portable, and digital versions is smart no matter how you do it and you'll probably want to keep them, well, looking like notes. But there's value in making a mind map, too. Part of your revision process can be using an app like Xmind to create a visual mind map that shows the connections between the concepts, ideas, and facts in your notes. Studying with a mind map is helpful, especially for visual learners, because it helps you think critically about how everything you're going over works together, both while you're creating and reviewing the map. When you use an app to do it, your maps stay on your phone, so you still have the ease of studying whenever you can find time. View the full article

European shares were mixed in early trading while Asian shares mostly fell on Friday after a respite from Wall Street’s recent feverish rally. The price of gold also pulled back from record highs following recent torrid runs. The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were both up less than 0.1%. Oil prices slipped. In early European trading, Germany’s DAX rose 0.2% to 24,652.73, while France’s CAC 40 added 0.4% to 8,076.96. Britain’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.1% to 9,498.95, weighed down by losses for mining and energy stocks. Most Asian indexes fell. But South Korea’s Kospi climbed 1.7% to 3,610.60 as trading reopened after a holiday. India’s BSE Sensex also gained, adding 0.5%. The Kospi’s surge was fueled by a rally of tech shares including SK Hynix, which rose 8.2%. Samsung Electronics added 6.1%, boosted by news that Nvidia-backed Reflection AI had raised $2 billion in funding, increasing its market value to $8 billion. Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed 1% lower to 48,088.80, pulling back from big gains the previous day after data showed producer prices rose more than expected in September. Political uncertainty also loomed after the ruling Liberal Democrats failed to persuade their junior coalition partner, the Buddhist-backed Komeito, to stay. The Komeito’s leader said the group was unhappy with the Liberal Democrats’ stance on cleaning up corruption. The Komeito’s move was a significant blow to hopes for LDP leader Sanae Takaichi, an ultra-conservative lawmaker, to become Japan’s first female prime minister. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index shed 1.8% to 26,277.84, while the Shanghai Composite index slipped nearly 1% to 3,897.03. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slid more than 0.1% to 8,958.30. Taiwan’s stock market was closed for a holiday. On Thursday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.3% from its latest all-time high for just its second loss in the last 10 days. The Dow dropped 0.5% and the Nasdaq composite lost 0.1%. Gold also fell following its stellar rally this year, losing 2.4% to drop back below $4,000 per ounce, while Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. They’re taking a moment following big runs driven in large part by expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates to support the economy. Financial markets have been climbing so relentlessly, including a 35% leap for the S&P 500 from a low in April, that worries are mounting that prices may have shot too high. Concerns are particularly strong about the frenzy lifting stocks related to artificial-intelligence technology. In other dealings early Friday, U.S. benchmark crude oil shed 6 cents to $61.45 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, edged down 14 cents to $65.08 per barrel. The U.S. dollar fell to 152.71 Japanese yen from 153.05 yen. The euro rose to $1.1585 from $1.1569. —Teresa Cerojano, Associated Press View the full article

Small business owners across the country are facing a familiar challenge: a significant number of job openings that remain unfilled. According to the latest NFIB September Jobs Report, 32% of small business owners reported having job openings they could not fill, a statistic that has remained consistent since August. This number has not dipped below 32% since July 2020, highlighting a persistent issue in the small business sector. Amidst this backdrop, the report’s findings present both challenges and opportunities for small business owners. Bill Dunkelberg, Chief Economist at NFIB, noted, “Main Street job openings remain above their historical average, with owners reporting few qualified applicants.” He emphasized the ongoing economic uncertainty, suggesting that while a recession seems unlikely, small business owners continue to navigate labor imbalances that could impact their growth. Key Findings from the Report Job Creation Plans: Encouragingly, a net 16% of small business owners plan to create new jobs in the next three months, marking the highest hiring intentions since January. This represents a 1-point increase from August. Hiring Activity: In September, 58% of small business owners either hired or attempted to hire, up by 5 points from the previous month. Among those hiring, 88% reported that they faced challenges finding qualified candidates, up 7 points from August. Skilled vs. Unskilled Labor: Of the reported openings, 28% were for skilled roles, while 13% were for unskilled labor. The evolving landscape means that small business owners must adapt their hiring strategies to not only attract candidates but also retain them. According to the report, the percentage of small business owners prioritizing labor quality as their most significant challenge decreased to 18%, down 3 points from August. However, labor costs have emerged as a growing concern, with 11% of owners citing it as their top issue—up 3 points from the previous month. Compensation Trends Compensation is a crucial factor in attracting talent. The report revealed that a net 31% of small business owners raised wages in September, an increase of 2 points from August. However, the percentage planning future raises decreased slightly to 19%, down 1 point from the previous month. This wage pressure indicates the competitive environment small business owners must navigate to retain and attract employees. Real-World Implications Given these insights, small business owners should prioritize innovative recruitment strategies. Here are a few practical steps to consider: Broaden Recruitment: Explore non-traditional hiring pools, including remote workers and underrepresented communities. Upskill Current Employees: Invest in training and development to enhance the skills of your current workforce. This can alleviate some pressure from the skills gap. Enhance Benefits: Flexible working hours, remote work options, and competitive benefits may attract candidates who are weighing choices between multiple opportunities. However, the challenges persist. The inability to find quality candidates could hinder planned business growth. Owners must remain vigilant about balancing compensation strategies while fostering a workplace culture that retains talent. As small business owners approach the busy end-of-year season, they should carefully evaluate their hiring strategies in light of these trends. Keeping a pulse on the economic environment and adapting quickly will be essential to navigating this continuously evolving landscape. For further details on the September Jobs Report and its implications, please visit the full report here. This document provides nuanced insights into the ongoing challenges and opportunities that await small business owners as they confront the complexities of the current job market. Image via NFIB This article, "Small Businesses Struggle with Job Openings as Hiring Plans Rise" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Small business owners across the country are facing a familiar challenge: a significant number of job openings that remain unfilled. According to the latest NFIB September Jobs Report, 32% of small business owners reported having job openings they could not fill, a statistic that has remained consistent since August. This number has not dipped below 32% since July 2020, highlighting a persistent issue in the small business sector. Amidst this backdrop, the report’s findings present both challenges and opportunities for small business owners. Bill Dunkelberg, Chief Economist at NFIB, noted, “Main Street job openings remain above their historical average, with owners reporting few qualified applicants.” He emphasized the ongoing economic uncertainty, suggesting that while a recession seems unlikely, small business owners continue to navigate labor imbalances that could impact their growth. Key Findings from the Report Job Creation Plans: Encouragingly, a net 16% of small business owners plan to create new jobs in the next three months, marking the highest hiring intentions since January. This represents a 1-point increase from August. Hiring Activity: In September, 58% of small business owners either hired or attempted to hire, up by 5 points from the previous month. Among those hiring, 88% reported that they faced challenges finding qualified candidates, up 7 points from August. Skilled vs. Unskilled Labor: Of the reported openings, 28% were for skilled roles, while 13% were for unskilled labor. The evolving landscape means that small business owners must adapt their hiring strategies to not only attract candidates but also retain them. According to the report, the percentage of small business owners prioritizing labor quality as their most significant challenge decreased to 18%, down 3 points from August. However, labor costs have emerged as a growing concern, with 11% of owners citing it as their top issue—up 3 points from the previous month. Compensation Trends Compensation is a crucial factor in attracting talent. The report revealed that a net 31% of small business owners raised wages in September, an increase of 2 points from August. However, the percentage planning future raises decreased slightly to 19%, down 1 point from the previous month. This wage pressure indicates the competitive environment small business owners must navigate to retain and attract employees. Real-World Implications Given these insights, small business owners should prioritize innovative recruitment strategies. Here are a few practical steps to consider: Broaden Recruitment: Explore non-traditional hiring pools, including remote workers and underrepresented communities. Upskill Current Employees: Invest in training and development to enhance the skills of your current workforce. This can alleviate some pressure from the skills gap. Enhance Benefits: Flexible working hours, remote work options, and competitive benefits may attract candidates who are weighing choices between multiple opportunities. However, the challenges persist. The inability to find quality candidates could hinder planned business growth. Owners must remain vigilant about balancing compensation strategies while fostering a workplace culture that retains talent. As small business owners approach the busy end-of-year season, they should carefully evaluate their hiring strategies in light of these trends. Keeping a pulse on the economic environment and adapting quickly will be essential to navigating this continuously evolving landscape. For further details on the September Jobs Report and its implications, please visit the full report here. This document provides nuanced insights into the ongoing challenges and opportunities that await small business owners as they confront the complexities of the current job market. Image via NFIB This article, "Small Businesses Struggle with Job Openings as Hiring Plans Rise" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

For the original iTunes version...View the full article

Generative AI is no longer a single thing. Ask, “What is the best generative AI tool for writing PR content?” or “Is keyword targeting as impossible as spinning straw into gold?,” and each engine will take a different route from prompt to answer. For writers, editors, PR pros, and content strategists, those routes matter – every AI system has its own strengths, transparency, and expectations for how to check, edit, and cite what it produces. This article covers the top AI platforms – ChatGPT (OpenAI), Perplexity, Google’s Gemini, DeepSeek, and Claude (Anthropic) – and explains how they: Find and synthesize information. Source and train on data. Use or skip the live web. Handle citation and visibility for content creators. The mechanics behind every AI answer Generative AI engines are built on two core architectures – model-native synthesis and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG). Every platform relies on a different blend of these approaches, which explains why some engines cite sources while others generate text purely from memory. Model-native synthesis The engine generates answers from what’s “in” the model: patterns learned during training (text corpora, books, websites, licensed datasets). This is fast and coherent, but it can hallucinate facts because the model creates text from probabilistic knowledge rather than quoting live sources. Retrieval-augmented generation The engine: Performs a live retrieval step (searching a corpus or the web). Pulls back relevant documents or snippets. Then synthesizes a response grounded in those retrieved items. RAG trades a bit of speed for better traceability and easier citation. Different products sit at different points on this spectrum. The differences explain why some answers come with sources and links while others feel like confident – but unreferenced – explanations. ChatGPT (OpenAI): Model-first, live-web when enabled How it’s built ChatGPT’s family (GPT models) are trained on massive text datasets – public web text, books, licensed material, and human feedback – so the baseline model generates answers from stored patterns. OpenAI documents this model-native process as the core of ChatGPT’s behavior. Live web and plugins By default, ChatGPT answers from its training data and does not continuously crawl the web. However, OpenAI added explicit ways to access live data – plugins and browsing features – that let the model call out to live sources or tools (web search, databases, calculators). When those are enabled, ChatGPT can behave like a RAG system and return answers grounded in current web content. Citations and visibility Without plugins, ChatGPT typically does not supply source links. With retrieval or plugins enabled, it can include citations or source attributions depending on the integration. For writers: expect model-native answers to require fact-checking and sourcing before publication. Perplexity: Designed around live web retrieval and citations How it’s built Perplexity positions itself as an “answer engine” that searches the web in real time and synthesizes concise answers based on retrieved documents. It defaults to retrieval-first behavior: query → live search → synthesize → cite. Live web and citations Perplexity actively uses live web results and frequently displays inline citations to the sources it used. That makes Perplexity attractive for tasks where a traceable link to evidence matters – research briefs, competitive intel, or quick fact-checking. Because it’s retrieving from the web each time, its answers can be more current, and its citations give editors a direct place to verify claims. Caveat for creators Perplexity’s choice of sources follows its own retrieval heuristics. Being cited by Perplexity isn’t the same as ranking well in Google. Still, Perplexity’s visible citations make it easier for writers to copy a draft and then verify each claim against the cited pages before publishing. Dig deeper: How Perplexity ranks content: Research uncovers core ranking factors and systems Google Gemini: Multimodal models tied into Google’s search and knowledge graph How it’s built Gemini (the successor family to earlier Google models) is a multimodal LLM developed by Google/DeepMind. It’s optimized for language, reasoning, and multimodal inputs (text, images, audio). Google has explicitly folded generative capabilities into Search and its AI Overviews to answer complex queries. Live web and integration Because Google controls a live index and the Knowledge Graph, Gemini-powered experiences are commonly integrated directly with live search. In practice, this means Gemini can provide up-to-date answers and often surface links or snippets from indexed pages. The line between “search result” and “AI-generated overview” blurs in Google’s products. Citations and attribution Google’s generative answers typically show source links (or at least point to source pages in the UI). For publishers, this creates both an opportunity (your content can be quoted in an AI overview) and a risk (users may get a summarized answer without clicking through). That makes clear, succinct headings and easily machine-readable factual content valuable. Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. See terms. Anthropic’s Claude: Safety-first models, with selective web search How it’s built Anthropic’s Claude models are trained on large corpora and tuned with safety and helpfulness in mind. Recent Claude models (Claude 3 family) are designed for speed and high-context tasks. Live web Anthropic recently added web search capabilities to Claude, allowing it to access live information when needed. With web search rolling out in 2025, Claude can now operate in two modes – model-native or retrieval-augmented – depending on the query. Privacy and training data Anthropic’s policies around using customer conversations for training have evolved. Creators and enterprises should check current privacy settings for how conversation data is handled (opt-out options vary by account type). This affects whether the producer edits or proprietary facts you feed into Claude could be used to improve the underlying model. DeepSeek: Emerging player with region-specific stacks How it’s built DeepSeek (and similar newer companies) offers LLMs trained on large datasets, often with engineering choices that optimize them for particular hardware stacks or languages. DeepSeek in particular has focused on optimization for non-NVIDIA accelerators and rapid iteration of model families. Their models are primarily trained offline on large corpora, but can be deployed with retrieval layers. Live web and deployments Whether a DeepSeek-powered application uses live web retrieval depends on the integration. Some deployments are pure model-native inference, others add RAG layers that query internal or external corpora. Because DeepSeek is a smaller/younger player compared with Google or OpenAI, integrations vary considerably by customer and region. For content creators Watch for differences in language quality, citation behavior, and regional content priorities. Newer models sometimes emphasize certain languages, domain coverage, or hardware-optimized performance that affects responsiveness for long-context documents. Practical differences that matter to writers and editors Even with similar prompts, AI engines don’t produce the same kind of answers – or carry the same editorial implications. Four factors matter most for writers, editors, and content teams: Recency Engines that pull from the live web – such as Perplexity, Gemini, and Claude with search enabled – surface more current information. Model-native systems like ChatGPT without browsing rely on training data that may lag behind real-world events. If accuracy or freshness is critical, use retrieval-enabled tools or verify every claim against a primary source. Traceability and verification Retrieval-first engines display citations and make it easier to confirm facts. Model-native systems often provide fluent but unsourced text, requiring a manual fact-check. Editors should plan extra review time for any AI-generated draft that lacks visible attribution. Attribution and visibility Some interfaces show inline citations or source lists; others reveal nothing unless users enable plugins. That inconsistency affects how much verification and editing a team must do before publication – and how likely a site is to earn credit when cited by AI platforms. Privacy and training reuse Each provider handles user data differently. Some allow opt-outs from model training. Others retain conversation data by default. Writers should avoid feeding confidential or proprietary material into consumer versions of these tools and use enterprise deployments when available. Applying these differences in your workflow Understanding these differences helps teams design responsible workflows: Match the engine to the task – retrieval tools for research, model-native tools for drafting or style. Keep citation hygiene non-negotiable. Verify before publishing. Treat AI output as a starting point, not a finished product. Understanding AI engines matters for visibility Different AI engines take different routes from prompt to answer. Some rely on stored knowledge, others pull live data, and many now combine both. For writers and content teams, that distinction matters – it shapes how information is retrieved, cited, and ultimately surfaced to audiences. Matching the engine to the task, verifying outputs against primary sources, and layering in human expertise remain non-negotiable. The editorial fundamentals haven’t changed. They’ve simply become more visible in an AI-driven landscape. As Rand Fishkin recently noted, it’s no longer enough to create something people want to read – you have to create something people want to talk about. In a world where AI platforms summarize and synthesize at scale, attention becomes the new distribution engine. For search and marketing professionals, that means visibility depends on more than originality or E-E-A-T. It now includes how clearly your ideas can be retrieved, cited, and shared across human and machine audiences alike. View the full article