A recent demonstration by Mastercard at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 showcased the potential for payment systems to transition towards a model where software agents, rather than individuals, execute purchases. This presentation highlighted what Mastercard called its first fully authenticated "agentic commerce" transaction. During the demo, an AI agent autonomously searched for a product, […]
AI technology in the APAC retail sector is evolving, moving from mere analytics and pilot programs into full-scale workflows and daily operations. This shift is driven by factors such as dense urban populations, high employee turnover, and the need for rapid service in competitive quick-commerce markets. According to a survey by GlobalData conducted in Q4 […]
For financial leaders, the time for experimentation with generative AI has ended; 2026 marks a shift toward operational integration. Initial efforts focused on content generation and enhancing isolated workflows. Now, the goal is to industrialize these capabilities, allowing AI agents to autonomously execute processes within well-defined governance structures. This transition presents challenges in architecture and […]
Major Chinese technology companies, including Alibaba, Tencent, and Huawei, are advancing in the field of agentic AI—intelligent systems capable of autonomously executing complex tasks and interacting with software, data, and services independently. This technology is increasingly tailored for specific industries and workflows. Alibaba’s Open-Source Approach Alibaba focuses its efforts on the Qwen AI model family, […]
The evolution from prototypes of generative AI to scalable, production-grade agents faces significant engineering challenges, particularly surrounding reliability. Given the stochastic nature of large language models (LLMs), prompts that succeed once may not yield the same result upon repetition. To counter this unpredictability, development teams typically implement complex error-handling mechanisms, which can complicate maintenance. Researchers […]
Klarna has announced its support for Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), a move aimed at addressing the current challenges of interoperability between conversational AI agents and backend payment systems. This partnership positions Klarna as one of the early adopters of a standardized framework for automated shopping, which will allow AI agents to perform transactions more […]
OpenClaw’s AI assistants are now building their own social network The AI personal assistant formerly known as Clawdbot has undergone yet another rebranding, now officially named OpenClaw. This change follows a brief period where it was called Moltbot due to a legal challenge from Anthropic, the company behind Claude AI. OpenClaw’s creator, Peter Steinberger, took […]
Corporate networks are increasingly populated with AI agents, leading to significant governance challenges for leaders overseeing multi-cloud infrastructures. As various business units quickly embrace generative technologies, CIOs find their ecosystems cluttered with fragmented and inadequately monitored assets, reminiscent of the shadow IT complications that arose during the cloud era. The emerging issue highlights the presence […]
Shopify is revolutionizing enterprise commerce with its latest initiative focusing on agentic AI, aimed at automating operations and expanding sales channels. In its Winter ’26 Edition, termed "Renaissance," Shopify moves beyond typical AI applications like customer support chatbots and basic content generation, introducing a model for agentic commerce. This model empowers AI systems to actively […]
The TechCrunch Equity podcast team is looking ahead to 2026 by reflecting on the significant developments of 2025 in their latest episode. Hosts Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, Rebecca Bellan, and Build Mode host Isabelle Johannessen come together to share their insights and predictions for the upcoming year. The discussion touches on a range of topics, […]