Press Releases

ORLANDO, Fla., June 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Ricoh today announced how its latest technologies, services and solutions are creating more inclusive, productive collaboration for the new era of digital workplaces. From huddle rooms to board rooms, companies are looking for creative ways their ideas can come together with people in different locations. At  INFOCOMM 2017 (booth 2861), Ricoh is showcasing its innovative solutions featuring hologram, artificial intelligence and IoT technologies, and a new team of AV Solution Managers that can help design fully integrated collaboration solutions tailored to unique visual communication and mobile collaboration needs.

The meeting of the future will be on display at InfoComm with Ricoh’s Intelligent Workplace Solution. The industry’s first IBM Watson-powered Interactive Whiteboards act as a meeting participant that can make workplaces more efficient and engaging. Real-time analytics help guide discussions so teams can conduct better meetings and make faster, better, more informed decisions. With the new Meeting Manager, users can leverage IBM’s Watson intelligence and voice technologies to hold a better meeting – with automatic attendee tracking, capture of notes, transcripts and action items, social intelligence, and even live translation into other languages. This customizable, easy-to-use feature also integrates with Ricoh’s Advanced UCS for videoconferencing, and with Google Calendar for easy scheduling and calendar insight.

Visitors can also experience how Ricoh’s expanded line of interactive whiteboards goes beyond hardware and transcend silos to offer flexibility and increased productivity. For companies looking for a user-friendly whiteboard with built-in collaboration, Ricoh offers its Business controller for simple operation and maximum security. Ricoh also offers interactive whiteboards with a full Windows 10 controller that can be easily used with any Windows 10-compatible software, including specialized, industry-specific applications.

In addition to the portable 21.5-inch RICOH D2200 and the room-filling 84-inch D8400 interactive whiteboards, Ricoh is previewing its expanded line of whiteboards at the show: the new 55-inch D5520, 65-inch D6510, and 75-inch D7500, which represents a new size in the portfolio that is ideal for collaboration in lecture halls and larger meeting rooms. Visitors can experience these solutions in lifelike, real-time collaboration situations that emulate working across a variety of connected devices, locations, and use cases, such as product development, blueprint markups, brainstorming sessions or interactive learning. These newest additions continue to boast the benefits of Ricoh’s interactive whiteboard line, such as the ability to connect to up to 1,420 participants, an intuitive mobile IWB companion app, and an optional interactive pen.

“At its heart, Ricoh is about helping individuals to work smarter,” said John Brophy, Vice President, Product Marketing, Ricoh USA, Inc. “To communicate that, this year’s booth goes beyond displaying individual technologies as standalone examples. Instead, we wanted to highlight how our solutions – and more importantly, our people – can bring expertise and services to provide an end-to-end collaboration experience that is greater than the sum of its parts.”

The huddle room trend, which empowers collaborative, productive meetings in flexible spaces, is in full force at the booth. Convenient meeting room and desk scheduling from Condeco will be onsite to show visitors how they can optimally manage their meeting space resources in the era of mobile workforces and hot desking.

Visitors can also experience convenient, easy-to-use, pre-tested collaboration packages that combine Ricoh solutions, such as its industry leading ultra-short throw projectors and 21.5-inch interactive whiteboards, and efficient speaker/microphones units and high resolution videoconferencing cameras.

The digital employee of the future will also be onsite. Sharon, a RICOH Virtual Self-Service Hologram, will welcome show attendees and automatically and intelligently transform into a product specialist that adds a new layer of engagement to solution demos. Visitors to the Ricoh booth will have the opportunity to take photos of themselves with Sharon and participate in the #RicohHoloSelfie contest for a chance to win an ultra-mobile pico projector for on-the-go collaboration.

Since last year’s show, Ricoh has continued to expand its projector lineup, which includes breakthrough technologies, such as affordable laser illumination, maintenance-free features, and a range of XGA, WXGA and WUXGA resolutions with the RICOH PJ WXL5670 and WUL5670. For educational settings where collaborative curriculums and flipped classrooms are trending, the new RICOH PJ X4152N series can support interactive media, be positioned at any angle for 360-degree mounting, and enable a presenter to stand in front of a screen without casting a shadow or being blinded by glare.

For the latest updates and insights on Ricoh’s solutions and InfoComm17 activities, visit https://www.ricoh-usa.com/en/about-us/events/infocomm-2017 or follow @RicohTweets on Twitter, Ricoh USA, Inc. on Facebook and LinkedIn. Media interested in scheduling briefings at the show should contact Tracey Sheehy at 908-705-4596.

| About Ricoh |

Ricoh is a global technology company that has been transforming the way people work for more than 80 years. Under its corporate tagline – imagine.change. –Ricoh continues to empower companies and individuals with services and technologies that inspire innovation, enhance sustainability and boost business growth. These include document management systems, IT services, production print solutions, visual communications systems, digital cameras, and industrial systems.

Headquartered in Tokyo, Ricoh Group operates in approximately 200 countries and regions. In the financial year ended March 2017, Ricoh Group had worldwide sales of 2,028 billion yen (approx. 18.2 billion USD).

For further information, please visit www.ricoh.com.

© 2017 Ricoh USA, Inc. All rights reserved. All referenced product names are the trademarks of their respective companies.

Contact:

John Greco
Ricoh USA, Inc.
(973) 882-2023
john.greco@ricoh-usa.com

Tracey Sheehy
Breakaway Communications for Ricoh
(908) 705-4596
tsheehy@breakawaycom.com

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ricoh-empowers-collaborative-workplaces-with-deep-expertise-innovative-av-solutions-and-comprehensive-services-300472970.html

SOURCE Ricoh USA, Inc.

SAN FRANCISCO, June 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Pure Storage (NYSE: PSTG), the market’s leading independent all-flash data platform vendor for the cloud era, today announced Pure1^® META, it’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform for delivering on the vision of self-driving storage. Pure1 META is delivers global predictive intelligence by collecting and analyzing over 1 trillion array telemetry data points per day and enables effortless management, analytics and support. Pure1 META represents a major breakthrough in enterprise artificial intelligence and machine learning. Through the new Workload DNA generated by Pure1 META, customers will be able, for the first time in the industry, to predict both capacity and performance and get intelligent advice on workload deployment, interaction and optimization.

With Pure1 META, Pure Storage continues to advance in its vision of delivering self-driving storage. Pure set up the foundation for self-driving storage with array-level automation delivered by Purity, which eliminates manual management and tuning operations. Building a global sensor network with thousands of connected arrays allowed Pure to deliver cloud-based management and predictive support that has prevented more than 500 Severity 1 issues to date. Now, with Pure1 META, customers can get answers to performance forecasting questions, instead of workarounds that resulted in wasted expenses from over-provisioning or downtime from under-provisioning.

“For the first time, customers can leverage intelligent storage that constantly analyzes historical data across our global network of devices to improve their overall environment,” said Matt Kixmoeller, VP of Products, Pure Storage. “Pure1 META helps customers more accurately forecast performance through growth, answer questions about capacity and performance additions, and how their environment will change over time, which allows organizations to manage future needs.”

The key driver behind the global predictive intelligence of Pure1 META, is the META AI Engine, which analyzes a data lake of more than 7 petabytes of data to generate both Issue Fingerprints and Workload DNA. META scans all incoming array telemetry against a library of issue fingerprints to predict and resolve incidents in real-time, before they impact customer environments, and captures hundreds of variables related to performance that are used to forecast performance load.

Customers can leverage META’s Workload DNA through the new Workload Planner in Pure1. This new capability will allow customers to answer questions about new workload deployment, interaction, performance and capacity growth, and workload optimization, helping reduce risk, increase consolidation, and provide better visibility to plan for upgrades or expansions.

Pure also announced the new Global Dashboard in Pure1, which simplifies the management experience by providing key aggregate metrics from an entire fleet of arrays. From a single dashboard, customers will be able to view the total data reduction and average load performance for all arrays. Performance trends for the last 24 hours are also shown and customers can plan more effectively with capacity consumption prediction across all arrays. Recent alerts and messages across the fleet of arrays also enables better visibility of the storage footprint.

To learn more about the new Pure1 META, Workload Planner, VM Visibility, and Global Dashboard, please visit our blog. You can also join us today and tomorrow – June 13 & 14 – for our annual user conference, Pure//Accelerate, at Pier 70 in San Francisco via live stream.

About Pure Storage
Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) helps companies push the boundaries of what’s possible. Pure’s end-to-end data platform – including FlashArray, FlashBlade and our converged offering with Cisco, FlashStack – is powered by innovative software that’s cloud-connected for management from anywhere on a mobile device and supported by the Evergreen business model. The company’s all-flash based technology, combined with its customer-friendly business model, drives business and IT transformation with solutions that are effortless, efficient and evergreen. With Pure’s industry leading Satmetrix-certified NPS score of 83.5, Pure customers are some of the happiest in the world, and include organizations of all sizes, across an ever-expanding range of industries.

Connect with Pure Storage:
Read the blog
Converse on Twitter
Follow on LinkedIn
FlashStack Solutions

Analyst Recognition:
Gartner Magic Quadrant for Solid-State Arrays
IDC MarketScape for All-Flash Arrays

Pure Storage, the “P” Logo, Pure1, Evergreen and FlashBlade are trademarks or registered trademarks of Pure Storage, Inc. All other trademarks or names referenced in this document are the property of their respective owners.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements including, among other things, statements regarding the expected performance and benefits of Pure Storage’s product offerings. The words “believe,” “may,” “will,” “plan,” “expect,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. If the risks materialize or assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. Risks include, but are not limited to, risks described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including future reports that we may file with the SEC from time to time, which could cause actual results to vary from expectations. Pure Storage assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

Any unreleased products, features, or functions referenced in this release, our website or other press releases or public statements that are not currently available are subject to change at Pure Storage’s discretion and may not be delivered as planned or at all. Customers who purchase Pure Storage’s product offerings should make their purchase decisions based upon products, features and functions that are currently available.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pure-storage-announces-vision-for-self-driving-storage-powered-by-pure1-meta-ai-platform-300473034.html

SOURCE Pure Storage

SAN FRANCISCO, June 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Today at Pure//Accelerate 2017, Pure Storage (NYSE: PSTG) unveiled its vision for the data platform for the cloud era. As modern organizations become increasingly reliant on technology, companies that have existed for decades across a wide range of industries have evolved into fundamentally digital businesses. Globally, digital business tools drive nearly half of revenue for enterprise organizations. Modern digital businesses require a data platform capable of delivering data with speed, agility and intelligence, across increasingly complex workloads and applications.

The Pure Storage data platform helps customers put their data to work. Now, organizations can run all operations with cloud agility, improve the economics of data analytics at high velocity and scale, and ultimately derive new insights to deliver data-driven customer results never before possible.

Data is the lifeblood of the digital generation. Current estimates are that approximately 50 zettabytes (ZB) of data will be created in 2020 alone (up from just four in 2016), and 180 ZB five years later in 2025 – an unprecedented growth rate. As data creation pivots from humans to machines – driven by sensors, IoT, digital cameras and myriad connected devices – it has exploded in volume. Simultaneously, the ability to analyze this data has transcended human cognition, with traditional analytics giving way to artificial intelligence (AI), machine and deep learning, neural networks and real-time data stream analytics. These new, data-driven applications require a different approach to storage, designed to deliver massively-parallel access to data at a very high bandwidth.

“Modern organizations require a data platform that enables organizations to build a new class of applications, to extract new insights from data and to do so in real-time,” said Scott Dietzen, CEO, Pure Storage. “With an infrastructure in place that supports mission-critical analytics at real-time speed, organizations can increase their pace of innovation, improve time to market and ultimately deliver better results for customers.”

Pure//Accelerate will showcase the ways Pure Storage enables customer innovation and business transformation through a host of comprehensive new hardware and software updates:

Tier 1 Storage, re-defined. For years, organizations have had to choose between the highest reliability (Tier 1 disk arrays) and storage purpose-built for the cloud era (modern all-flash arrays). Pure Storage has made a series of announcements to end this compromise. Now, organizations can leverage Tier 1 reliability (99.9999 percent availability and active multi-site clustering for a true zero RPO/RTO) with the innovation of rich data services, native cloud integration, and 100 percent NVMe flash for the fastest, future-proofed performance.  

From Big Data to intelligent data. The big data movement has helped organizations centralize data, but big data has historically meant slow data. Pure’s revolutionary FlashBlade system makes big data into fast data, and unlocks iterative real-time analytics, advanced AI and machine learning (ML), and rich simulation for data of any size. And now with a fast object interface, tomorrow’s web-scale applications can be big, fast and intelligent, too.

Multi-Cloud, delivered. Cloud is everywhere – in core data centers, and in edge data centers where data volume and latency necessitate local processing. It’s also stretched between multi-cloud IaaS and SaaS providers. No matter what cloud an organization chooses or where they choose to run it, Pure’s data platform helps simplify storage in multi-cloud environments with new advances that deliver the simplest cloud on every platform: Support for VMware VVOLs, Microsoft ODX, Docker Persistent Containers, native data protection integration with public cloud providers, and pre-validated FlashStack solutions to speed the time to cloud.

Self-driving storage. Cars have become more and more autonomous. They can self-navigate, avoid collisions and soon, they’ll drive themselves, too. It’s time for storage to catch up. Pure uses big data, real-time analytics, and advanced AI/ML techniques to change the storage ownership experience, and deliver a new level of reliability through predictive maintenance and support. Meet META, Pure’s new AI Engine, and get ready for a whole new era of storage intelligence and automation.

For additional detail on today’s news, please visit our blog. You can also join us today and tomorrow – June 13 & 14 – for our annual user conference, Pure//Accelerate, at Pier 70 in San Francisco via live stream.

About Pure Storage
Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) helps companies push the boundaries of what’s possible. Pure’s end-to-end data platform – including FlashArray, FlashBlade and our converged offering with Cisco, FlashStack – is powered by innovative software that’s cloud-connected for management from anywhere on a mobile device and supported by the Evergreen business model. The company’s all-flash based technology, combined with its customer-friendly business model, drives business and IT transformation with solutions that are effortless, efficient and evergreen. With Pure’s industry leading Satmetrix-certified NPS score of 83.5, Pure customers are some of the happiest in the world, and include organizations of all sizes, across an ever-expanding range of industries.

Connect with Pure Storage:
Read the blog
Converse on Twitter
Follow on LinkedIn
FlashStack Solutions

Analyst Recognition:
Gartner Magic Quadrant for Solid-State Arrays
IDC MarketScape for All-Flash Arrays

Pure Storage, the “P” Logo, Evergreen and FlashBlade are trademarks or registered trademarks of Pure Storage, Inc. All other trademarks or names referenced in this document are the property of their respective owners.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements including, among other things, statements regarding the expected performance and benefits of Pure Storage’s product offerings. The words “believe,” “may,” “will,” “plan,” “expect,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. If the risks materialize or assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. Risks include, but are not limited to, risks described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including future reports that we may file with the SEC from time to time, which could cause actual results to vary from expectations. Pure Storage assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

Any unreleased products, features, or functions referenced in this release, our website or other press releases or public statements that are not currently available are subject to change at Pure Storage’s discretion and may not be delivered as planned or at all. Customers who purchase Pure Storage’s product offerings should make their purchase decisions based upon products, features and functions that are currently available.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pure-storage-unveils-the-premier-all-flash-data-platform-for-the-cloud-era-300472949.html

SOURCE Pure Storage

SAN FRANCISCO, June 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Pure Storage (NYSE: PSTG), the market’s leading independent all-flash data platform vendor for the cloud era, today announced the results of Evolution, a groundbreaking independent global research survey that explores the ways businesses are balancing infrastructure and applications today and beyond.

Emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and machine learning have changed the way businesses operate and what it takes to thrive in a digital economy. An independent survey of IT leaders in more than 9,000 businesses spanning twenty-four countries across the US, EMEA and Asia Pac found that digital solutions drive around half of revenue (47% on average) for organizations, whether through customer facing applications or more back-office functionality.  It’s clear that digital transformation is no longer just a buzzword, it’s actually happening.

But despite this growth, technical complexity and strategic uncertainty from an infrastructure standpoint have prevented businesses from truly becoming digital. Public, private and hybrid cloud, SaaS and traditional on-premises all have momentum, but businesses still lack confidence in where to place specific workloads:

• On average, businesses are running 41% of applications with traditional on-premises IT – higher than both public cloud (26%) and private cloud (24%).
• Public cloud is poised to grow in the next 18-24 months (61% say their use will increase). Alongside this, a combined 87% of respondents see their use of either private cloud (52%) or traditional on-premises (35%) accelerating.
• Despite strong indications of public cloud growth, a significant number of companies that ran workloads in public cloud environments have actually moved some or all of those workloads back on-premises (43% of businesses in North America have done so). In EMEA, 65% say they have reduced use of public cloud in the last 12 months because of security concerns.
• Businesses run approximately one in five applications via SaaS currently (22%), and more than half (51%) see their use of SaaS increasing over the next 18-24 months.

“Emerging technologies have started to drive true digital transformation, but businesses remain in a cycle of lure and regret when it comes to public cloud,” said Scott Dietzen, CEO of Pure Storage. “Rather than being viewed as competing options, companies should embrace cloud and on-premises storage as complementary offerings. By doing so, storage infrastructure becomes agile and future-proof, which drives the data advantage that enterprises seek.”

For more on this year’s Evolution survey, check out our blog and the full survey results here.

Methodology
Research was conducted by three separate research agencies – Maru / edr in the US, Madbox in Asia Pac and Insight Avenue in EMEA.  9,302 interviews were conducted in total with IT decision makers in businesses with 500+ employees in EMEA and the US, and 100+ employees in Asia Pac.

About Pure Storage
Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) helps companies push the boundaries of what’s possible. Pure’s end-to-end data platform – including FlashArray, FlashBlade and our converged offering with Cisco, FlashStack – is powered by innovative software that’s cloud-connected for management from anywhere on a mobile device and supported by the Evergreen business model. The company’s all-flash based technology, combined with its customer-friendly business model, drives business and IT transformation with solutions that are effortless, efficient and evergreen. With Pure’s industry leading Satmetrix-certified NPS score of 83.5, Pure customers are some of the happiest in the world, and include organizations of all sizes, across an ever-expanding range of industries.

Connect with Pure Storage:
Read the blog 
Converse on Twitter 
Follow on LinkedIn

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-study-reveals-cloud-is-gathering-momentum-but-tech-pros-struggle-with-optimal-strategy-300472928.html

SOURCE Pure Storage

NEW YORK, June 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Yext, the global digital knowledge management provider, has announced its Summer ’17 Product Release featuring the new Yext App Directory, which allows customers to connect digital knowledge from Yext with software systems across the enterprise. The Yext App Directory integrates digital knowledge seamlessly throughout an organization, creating opportunities for growth and time-saving efficiencies with apps for over 20 leading companies, including Salesforce, HubSpot, Smartling, Domo, and Zendesk.

Brands today live across a variety of intelligent services, from Google to Facebook to Siri, that show facts like hours, product offerings, and customer reviews. It’s more important than ever for businesses to manage and maintain this digital knowledge everywhere it lives, and yet this crucial data is often scattered across the enterprise. With the Yext App Directory, businesses can connect information from systems across the company — like workforce management systems, CRM databases, and more — to create a single customer-facing view of the public knowledge about their brands.

“Knowledge is powering your company, and it’s powering the next generation of intelligent services,” said Marc Ferrentino, Chief Strategy Officer at Yext. “The Yext App Directory extends the power of a brand’s digital knowledge to many of the other systems it uses every day. With more than 20 self-serve, pre-built integrations with the world’s leading business technologies, businesses can create a fully synced and up-to-date web of data to fuel today’s new era of business and artificial intelligence.”

With the Yext App Directory’s HubSpot integration, businesses can use Yext Reviews to request feedback from their customers stored in HubSpot, helping to improve online ratings, customer engagement, and search prominence.

“Integrating with Yext through the Yext App Directory gives our customers and partners a powerful tool to tie key data sources together across their businesses,” said Brad Coffey, Chief Strategy Officer of HubSpot. “Instead of manually entering information from HubSpot into Yext, this integration allows the two to work together seamlessly to create a more customer-centric organization.”

The Smartling app in the Yext App Directory allows companies to seamlessly push digital knowledge from Yext to Smartling for translation, and return it to Yext for delivery to any market in any language.

“Our integration makes it simple for Yext Customers to translate their digital content for different markets,” said Matt DeLoca, VP Channels & Alliances for Smartling. “Our app in the Yext App Directory is a one-click solution to enable the high quality translation of any content, like a company’s description, special offers, and more, for international audiences around the world.”

Zendesk’s app within the Yext App Directory leverages Yext’s review monitoring to automatically generate a Zendesk support ticket when a review of a pre-specified rating is published online. This can help businesses route dissatisfied customers to the proper support channels, or better engage customers who share positive feedback.

“Zendesk builds software for better customer relationships. Integrations like the one with Yext allow companies to turn online reviews into rich conversations with their customers,” said Douglas Hanna, general manager of Zendesk’s developer platform. “This empowers agents to resolve customer issues quickly and easily, solving a major pain point for customers and ultimately strengthening customer loyalty.”

Other integrations in the Yext App Directory give businesses the ability to publish store hour updates from Storeforce across the 100+ sites in the Yext PowerListings^® Network, to generate feedback from customers in Salesforce, and to export data from Yext Analytics into Domo to see it alongside other business data, enabling businesses to make faster, better-informed business decisions.

Sears Auto Center is an early beta tester of the Yext App Directory, and is piloting the Domo app:

“The Yext App Directory allows us to pull the analytics from our online presence from Yext into Domo, where we can combine it with our sales data to capture new insights about how we can drive more leads,” said Marie Lafkiotes, Director of Digital Strategy & Ops at Sears Auto Center. “These integrations will help us get the most out of our digital knowledge to grow our business.”

Ferrentino added, “In order for a business to present the best version of itself throughout the digital ecosystem, it first needs to make sure that all of its internal systems are on the same page. The Yext App Directory creates a more intelligent enterprise by connecting the internal systems that businesses use with their latest digital knowledge, creating new ways to reach customers at their moments of intent.”

The following companies are launching integrations in the Yext App Directory in its first week:

• Acquisio
• Agendize
• Binary Fountain
• Branding Brand
• Burbio
• DialogTech
• Domo
• evvnt
• GoSite
• Insycle
• Kyruus
• Lobster
• Movylo
• OpenMenu
• Partoo
• Phocus.io
• PromoRepublic
• Radius8
• Sentic Technologies
• Smartling
• Splash
• StoreForce
• TapClicks
• VidMob
• Zapier
• Zendesk

Yext’s Summer ’17 release also includes key updates to the Yext Knowledge Manager, Yext Reviews, and Yext Analytics. For more details about the Yext App Directory, visit the Yext website.

About Yext

Yext puts business on the map. The Yext Knowledge Engine™ lets companies manage their digital knowledge in the cloud and sync it to over 100 services in the PowerListings® Network. Yext Listings, Pages, and Reviews help businesses around the globe facilitate face-to-face and digital interactions that boost brand awareness, drive foot traffic, and increase sales.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/launch-of-yext-app-directory-makes-it-even-easier-for-brands-to-structure-digital-knowledge-for-the-intelligent-era-300473221.html

SOURCE Yext

SYDNEY, June 12, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Lingmo International, an Australian technology start-up, has today launched Translate One2One, an earpiece powered by IBM Watson that can efficiently translate spoken conversations within seconds, being the first of its kind to hit global markets next month.

With estimates indicating that businesses lose upwards of $2 billion in the United States¹ and £48 billion in the United Kingdom² each year due to language barriers, this technology will meet a growing gap for businesses and consumers alike.

Unveiled at last week’s United Nations Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Good Summit in Geneva, Switzerland, the Translate One2One earpiece supports translations across English, Japanese, French, Italian, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, German and Chinese. Available to purchase today for delivery in July, the earpiece carries a price tag of $179 USD, and is the first independent translation device that doesn’t rely on Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connectivity.

With IBM Watson’s Natural Language Understanding and Language Translator APIs, the intuitive technology overcomes many of the contextual challenges associated with common languages, as well as understanding the nuances of local slang and dialects. For example, in Spanish ‘LL’ could be pronounced “y”, “j” or “sh”, depending on the dialect.

“By eliminating the friction of the traditional translation process, devices like Translate One2One will not only remove one of the biggest challenges for professionals when meeting and collaborating between cultures, but also offers enormous potential for communities around the world,” said Danny May, Lingmo’s Founder and Director. “As the first device on the market for language translation using AI that does not rely on connectivity to operate, it offers significant potential for its unique application across airlines, foreign government relations and even not-for-profits working in remote areas.”

In addition to the translation earpiece, which works when each user is wearing the earpiece, customers can download an app version, which also includes a currency converter.

“It’s an absolute game-changer for the global translation market, offering significant potential for both commercial and social benefit, which we’ve only just begun to explore,” said Neil Sahota, IBM Watson Master Inventor and keynote speaker at the Summit. “Lingmo’s latest breakthrough demonstrates the transformative potential that cognitive computing platforms like Watson can offer in solving some of the world’s largest and most persistent challenges.”

Media Contact:
Andrea Acton
IBM External Relations, Australia
anacto@au1.ibm.com 
P. 0429 460 327

About the AI for Good Global Summit:
THE AITU and the XPRIZE Foundation have organised the first AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, 7-9 June, 2017, in partnership with a number of UN sister agencies. The Summit aims to accelerate and advance the development and democratisation of AI solutions that can address specific global challenges related to poverty, hunger, health, education, the environment, and others.

The Summit provides a neutral platform for government officials, UN agencies, NGO’s, industry leaders, and AI experts to discuss the ethical, technical, and societal and policy issues related to AI, offer recommendations and guidance and promote international dialogue and cooperation in support of AI innovation.

About Lingmo International:
Lingmo International is a leading edge Australian technology company making its mark on the global language translation industry, through the development and implementation of revolutionary custom built software capable of translating across voice and text platforms. The technology is available in retail and commercial versions.

Translate One2One was developed in conjunction with IBM Watson and features a fully independent earpiece, which does not rely on Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.

For more information on Lingmo go to www.lingmo.global

About IBM Watson – Pioneering a New Era of Computing:
Watson represents a new era in computing called cognitive computing, where systems understand the world in a way more similar to humans: through senses, learning, and experience. Watson continuously learns from previous interactions, gaining in value and knowledge over time. With the help of Watson, organizations are harnessing the power of cognitive computing to transform industries, help professionals do their jobs better, and solve important challenges.

As part of IBM’s strategy to accelerate the growth of cognitive computing, Watson is open to the world, allowing a growing community of developers, students, entrepreneurs and tech enthusiasts to easily tap into the most advanced and diverse cognitive computing platform available today. Watson solutions are being built, used and deployed in more than 45 countries and across 20 different industries.

For more information on IBM Watson, visit: ibm.com/Watson. Join the conversation at #ibmwatson.

¹ U.S. Committee on Economic Development 

² UK Department of Business Innovation and Skills

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/australian-start-up-taps-ibm-watson-to-launch-language-translation-earpiece-300472072.html

SOURCE IBM

IRVINE, Calif., June 12, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Conexant Systems, LLC, a leading provider of audio and voice technology solutions that enable a more natural user experience, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Synaptics Incorporated (NASDAQ: SYNA) pursuant to which Synaptics has agreed to acquire Conexant and its portfolio of silicon and software solutions for audio, voice and imaging applications for $300 million in cash and 726,666 shares of Synaptics common stock in a cash-free, debt-free transaction.

“I would like to thank each and every employee for their dedication and hard work over the past four years as we turned Conexant into a leader in audio and imaging. We are witnessing a positive inflection point in the business with voice becoming the human interface to machines and with the move to next-generation USB-C headphones,” said Cynthia Paul, Chairman of the Board, Conexant. “I am excited about the next chapter in Conexant’s life as Synaptics helps scale the business.”

Combined, Conexant and Synaptics, together with partners and customers, have the ability to deliver powerful solutions that redefine how people interact with machines, including smart home devices, automobiles, computers, industrial applications, connected devices, IoT products, and wearables. The two companies offer highly complementary, innovative solutions, and the scale of the combined entity should be well positioned to invest in new opportunities that greatly enhance the human-machine-interface experience.

“We have spent the past few years sharpening Conexant’s focus on providing silicon and software solutions for voice-enabled devices, consumer and commercial imaging, and next-generation audio applications,” said Jan Johannessen, CEO, Conexant. “We believe that by joining Synaptics, we will further scale in the USB-C headphone market, while also enabling device makers to develop innovative applications for some of the industry’s most advanced human-machine-interface technologies, including voice.”

Conexant, with a portfolio of more than 480 patents granted or pending, is a leader in far-field voice solutions with more than 27 million units shipped. Conexant’s far-field voice processing solutions have been featured in more than 60 different products, including a variety of home appliances, home audio/video applications, home networking devices, lighting, security devices, set-top-boxes, smart thermostats, robots, and toys.

Recognized for its superior-performing voice solutions, as well as its powerful supply chain and engineering support capabilities, Conexant has been selected by industry leaders to collaboratively develop noise robust, voice-enabled products and development kits for leading artificial intelligence (AI) platforms. In addition to its voice solutions, Conexant is helping the 13-billion-dollar headphone industry go digital with its USB-C CODEC solutions for next generation hearables and wearables.

“At Synaptics, we have a knack for bringing the right technologies to the right growth markets. Adding voice and audio processing solutions to our portfolio blends perfectly into the company’s innovative technology product mix,” said Rick Bergman, President and CEO, Synaptics, “The acquisition broadens Synaptics’ portfolio of human interface solutions and rapidly accelerates the execution of our IoT strategy, driving our next major phase of growth. Conexant adds an established and highly profitable revenue base, a diverse set of customers, new tier-one accounts, impressive global talent, and a deep portfolio of intellectual property.”

The Conexant transaction is expected to close in the third calendar quarter of 2017, subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory clearances.

Conexant was advised by Cowen and Company, LLC and O’Melveny & Myers LLP.

To learn more about Conexant and this announcement, please visit www.Conexant.com, or follow them on LinkedIn, like them on Facebook, and view their videos on YouTube.

About Conexant Systems, LLC:

Conexant Systems, LLC, is the industry’s go-to source for hardware and software solutions that offer unrivaled performance for audio and voice applications. The company combines its significant IP portfolio in DSP, analog and mixed signal technology with embedded software to enrich and expand audio and voice capabilities of products across nearly every vertical. Conexant also is a leader in advanced imaging solutions designed to improve performance of image dependent electronic equipment, such as document and photo imaging controllers and digital video. Founded in 1999, Conexant is a privately-held fabless semiconductor and audio technology engineering company headquartered in Irvine, California with offices and design centers worldwide.

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SOURCE Conexant Systems, LLC