Technology

Popcorn AI Secures $500,000 to Define Next-Generation Conversational Commerce

Published

2 months ago

November 15, 2024

DUBAI, UAE, Nov. 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ –Popcorn AI, the future of conversational commerce, today announced its $500,000 pre-seed funding round, with participation from Spring Studio’s fund, backed by Salica Investments and Al Waha Fund of Funds, and strategic angel investors from across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This investment marks a significant milestone in transforming how businesses connect, engage, and transact with their customers through AI-powered conversations.

Popcorn AI’s platform represents a paradigm shift in digital commerce, moving beyond traditional chatbots to create intelligent AI agents that handle the entire customer journey – from personalised product discovery to seamless payment processing – all within a natural conversation. The platform’s capabilities were recently demonstrated when one of its AI agents independently managed and closed a $400,000 real estate transaction from initial inquiry to final sale. Early adopters across sectors have reported up to a 90% decrease in customer acquisition costs while seeing conversion rates improve by up to 20%, demonstrating the transformative potential of intelligent conversational commerce.

“The future of commerce is conversational,” said Yousef Al Arif, founder and CEO of Popcorn AI. “Today’s customers expect personalised, instant, and effortless shopping experiences. We’re not just building another AI chatbot – we’re creating intelligent commerce agents that understand context, remember preferences, and guide customers through their entire shopping journey, just like an exceptional sales associate would.”

“We are proud to support Popcorn AI’s mission to enhance how businesses interact with their customers,” said Josh Rodger, Principal of the Spring Studio’s fund. “Their innovative approach to conversational commerce has the potential to transform industries and redefine the customer experience.”

Drawing from over a decade of experience in scaling e-commerce and marketplace businesses across MENA, Al Arif has positioned Popcorn AI at the intersection of AI innovation and commercial practicality. The platform is already transforming customer interactions across e-commerce, real estate, and hospitality sectors, proving that conversational commerce is the next frontier in digital business.

The new funding will accelerate Popcorn AI’s mission to make conversational commerce the new standard for business-customer interactions, with investments focused on advancing the platform’s conversational AI capabilities and expanding its team of AI and commerce experts.

About Popcorn AI

Founded in 2023, Popcorn AI is leading the conversational commerce revolution by enabling businesses to create sophisticated AI shopping assistants that combine the convenience of digital commerce with the personalized experience of in-person shopping. The platform empowers businesses to engage customers in natural, productive conversations that drive results.
For more information, visit our website at www.trypopcorn.ai

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/popcorn-ai-secures-500-000-to-define-next-generation-conversational-commerce-302306999.html

Technology

HevenDrones Partners with SMARTSHOOTER for Drone Defense

Published

12 minutes ago

January 15, 2025

New partnership addresses mission-critical demand for counter-drone technology amid escalating global conflicts

MIAMI, Jan. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — HevenDrones (Heven), the market leader in hydrogen-powered drones, announced today a partnership with SMARTSHOOTER, a global innovator in fire control systems that significantly increase hit probability against static and moving ground and aerial targets.

The collaboration integrates SMARTSHOOTER’s SMASH Dragon platform with Heven’s H100 and Urban drone platforms, enabling precision targeting and engagement of both ground and aerial threats.

“As drone conflicts escalate, we know that counter-drone technology will prove critical to the evolving needs of the armed forces,” said Bentzion Levinson, CEO of Heven. “By integrating our drones with SMARTSHOOTER’s fire control systems, we aim to address customer demand for the future needs of remotely-controlled warfare.”

SMASH Dragon is an advanced robotic weapon payload that can be mounted on various drones and unmanned aerial platforms. Leveraging SMARTSHOOTER’s SMASH proprietary fire control and target acquisition algorithms, along with ballistic-calculated shot release, the system directs the weapon and accurately times the shot to achieve a precise hit. The system is uniquely designed to lock, track, and engage unknown targets in unpredictable environments, whether static or dynamic, day or night, unaffected by target movements or human errors such as fatigue and stress.

Staying at the forefront of military technology innovation, SMASH’s proven track record includes recent successful deployments and significant contracts to supply the SMASH 3000 system to NATO Countries for counter-drone operations and equipping the British Army with SMASH systems for counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) capabilities.

About HevenDrones

HevenDrones was founded in 2019 with a clear vision: To unlock the immense potential of the drone economy. Heven’s hydrogen-powered, runway-independent drones are designed with endurance and adaptability in mind. Built for the most complex missions, Heven’s drones operate anywhere—efficiently, quietly, and reliably— providing the warfighter with the technology to get the job done.

About SMARTSHOOTER

Founded in 2011, SMARTSHOOTER is an Israeli-based company that has developed world-leading fire control systems to enhance the accuracy and effectiveness of small arms. Their SMASH product line, which includes the SMASH Dragon, utilizes artificial intelligence, computer vision, and advanced algorithms to enable precise targeting of both ground and aerial threats, including drones. Headquartered in Yagur, Israel, SMARTSHOOTER also operates subsidiaries in the U.S. (Maryland), Europe (Germany), and Australia, serving a diverse array of global clients such as the Israel Defense Forces, U.S. Army, British Army, and other NATO member forces.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hevendrones-partners-with-smartshooter-for-drone-defense-302352140.html

SOURCE Heven Drones

Technology

HevenDrones Partners with SMARTSHOOTER for Drone Defense

Published

12 minutes ago

January 15, 2025

New partnership addresses mission-critical demand for counter-drone technology amid escalating global conflicts

The collaboration integrates SMARTSHOOTER’s SMASH Dragon platform with Heven’s H100 and Urban drone platforms, enabling precision targeting and engagement of both ground and aerial threats.

About HevenDrones

About SMARTSHOOTER

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hevendrones-partners-with-smartshooter-for-drone-defense-302352140.html

SOURCE Heven Drones

Technology

Extinguishing Wildfires with Light at Meta Photonix

Published

12 minutes ago

January 15, 2025

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — MetaPhotonix Inc. (MPI), a Silicon Valley startup, is developing a revolutionary method to extinguish large-scale wildfires using nothing but light – eliminating water! The innovative technology also aims to significantly reduce the need for aircraft, and firefighters, enabling fires to be extinguished by AI remotely at the speed of light.

In 2024, MPI achieved a small yet groundbreaking milestone, by remotely extinguishing a tiny flame, equivalent to the size of a candle, using only light. While small in scale compared to actual wildfires, this experiment serves as a vital proof-of-concept, paving the way for a future where wildfires can be managed quickly and cost-effectively.

“It’s like the first transistor—early stage, but with transformative potential,” said CEO, Dr. Leo DiDomenico, a former NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientist.

MPI’s technology, known as photopyrokinesis, leverages “structured light” from lasers and millimeter-wave sources. These initially low-intensity beams traverse the atmosphere where they would get focused to high-intensity at the disaster area to suppress wildfires without water, chemicals, or close-range human intervention.

This innovation could save the U.S. up to $1 trillion annually in wildfire-related costs, an amount rivaling the nation’s military budget, while addressing up to 20% of global CO₂ emissions.

Using precise light beams, MPI’s technology can potentially even target fires near buildings, offering a critical tool for protecting lives and property. Therefore, this approach is a potential game-changer for the insurance industry, allowing them to keep insuring homes, by reducing claims from wildfires. Each community might someday have its own quick-acting AI fire sentry protecting lives and homes – making fire insurance viable again.

Photopyrokinesis works by directing beams of structured light to fire zones to manipulate the electronic structure of the atmosphere and create localized shockwaves that deny oxygen to the fire. This process provides millions of tiny, controlled explosions each second, extinguishing flames rapidly and efficiently. It is like using dynamite to put out an oil well fire, but much more controlled and targeted.

The structured light’s unique properties allow it to even propagate on curved trajectories, like water from a hose, enabling precise targeting of the fire even in extreme wind conditions like Santa Ana winds.

Founded in 2022 by Dr. DiDomenico, MetaPhotonix Inc. is advancing in the XPRIZE Wildfire competition, but needs visionary investors to help scale this technology and protect lives, ecosystems, and economies from the devastating effects of wildfires.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/extinguishing-wildfires-with-light-at-meta-photonix-302351269.html

SOURCE MetaPhotonix Inc