Overview In celebration of International Women’s Day, CIO Leadership Live Middle East is proud to feature Heide Young, a trailblazer in the cybersecurity space and co-founder of Women in Cybersecurity Middle East (WiCSME). As an advocate for diversity, inclusion, and the empowerment of women in tech, Heide has played a pivotal role in shaping the region’s cybersecurity landscape.Join us for an inspiring conversation as we explore the evolving role of women in cybersecurity, the challenges they face, and the opportunities that lie ahead. From mentorship to leadership and breaking industry barriers, this session will highlight the impact of women driving change in one of the world’s most critical sectors. Register Now source

Shopify and Shopify Plus serve different types of businesses, with Shopify Plus tailored to enterprises and larger operations. While Shopify is great for small to mid-sized businesses with its affordability and ease of use, Shopify Plus is built for high-growth brands that need automation, custom checkout, and enterprise-level support. I’d recommend Shopify Plus for businesses already earning a steady $80,000 in monthly sales. 1 Creatio CRM Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Large (1,000-4,999 Employees), Enterprise (5,000+ Employees) Large, Enterprise Features 24/7 Customer Support, Accounts Receivable/Payable, Analytics / Reports, and more 2 Pipedrive CRM Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features 24/7 Customer Support, Analytics / Reports, API, and more 3 CrankWheel Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features Analytics / Reports, API, Dashboard, and more Here’s a breakdown of their pricing structures, including a breakdown of Shopify Plus features you won’t get with Shopify plans. A glance at Shopify vs Shopify Plus Shopify Shopify Plus Best for Small businesses Mid-size and large enterprises; global businesses Pricing $39-$399/month Starts at $2,500/month (annual contract) Transaction Sales Fees 0.5-5% per transaction 0.2% Contract Requirements Monthly, Annual, Biennial Annual, Triennial Online Stores 1 Unlimited (but one brand only) Customer Support 24/7 live chat, email and phone 24/7 live chat, email and phone; dedicated account manager Shopify Plus vs Shopify feature comparison Looking at the differences between Shopify and Shopify Plus, Shopify Plus essentially has everything included in the standard Shopify plans and more. So, I outline the key differences between the two in the table below, along with detailed explanations below. Feature Shopify(Basic, Shopify, Advanced) Shopify Plus Staff Accounts 2-15 Unlimited Custom Checkout Standard checkout process Fully customizable checkout processAccess to Shopify Scripts for discounts, shipping rules, and payment methods Support 24/7 support via email, live chat, and phone Dedicated account manager24/7 priority support with guaranteed response times Customization & Integrations Expansive but limited to third-party app integrations in its app store Full access to APIs and custom integrationsAdvanced third-party integrations Advanced Reporting & Analytics Basic reports and analytics Advanced reporting and real-time analytics B2B Features Not included Custom B2B pricing, private storefronts, and bulk ordering International Selling Multi-currency support via third-party apps Built-in multi-country and multi-currency support Security & Compliance PCI-compliant PCI DSS Level 1 compliance, enhanced security features API Access Limited API access Full API access with higher call limits Apps Access to Shopify App Store (limited functionality) Access to exclusive Shopify Plus apps like Shopify Flow, Launchpad Global Expansion Requires third-party apps for full international setup Built-in global store management, localization, and tax configurations Payment Gateways Shopify Payments or third-party gateways Support for advanced payment integrations with lower fees Here are some Shopify Plus features that elevate Shopify Plus above Shopify’s basic and mid-tier offerings, particularly for large businesses or enterprises that require custom workflows, scalability, and advanced support. 1. Dedicated account management and support Shopify is known for its outstanding support — reviewed and validated by its users. It is one of the few e-commerce platforms that provide 24/7 support via phone, live chat, and email — in multiple languages. If these aren’t enough, you can hire Shopify experts. All these are available to you under the usual Shopify tiers. However, with Shopify Plus, you are included in the Merchant Success Program on top of the support previously mentioned, which gives you access to the following: Dedicated account manager: Personalized support and guidance for business strategy, growth, and troubleshooting Priority 24/7 support: Access to priority customer support with guaranteed response times, including technical support from a dedicated team Launch support: Assistance from a Shopify Plus expert during store setup or significant changes. Under the Merchant Success Program, you gain access to exclusive resources such as: A private Facebook community where you can interact with other Shopify Plus users Shopify Plus Partners, a directory you can consult to  keep you abreast of industry trends and help with staging events for your online store Shopify Plus Academy, an exclusive program with more advanced self-guided resources, including courses and webinars to enhance your online store’s design, operations, marketing, and more Access to exclusive beta programs 2. Lower fees with higher transaction volume Shopify’s transaction fees are waived when using Shopify Payments for both Shopify and Shopify Payments. However, if you go with another payment provider, the following transaction fees apply: Standard Shopify transaction fees: Shopify Starter: 5% Basic Shopify: 2% Shopify: 1% Advanced Shopify: 0.5% Shopify Plus transaction fees: If using only Shopify Payments or both Shopify Payments and a third-party provider: Minimal rates apply and will vary based on location If using a third-party provider exclusively: 0.20% per transaction For example, a business earns around $1 million in annual revenue and uses a third-party payment provider. If it is under a standard Shopify plan (say, Advanced Shopify, which charges 0.5% in transaction fees),  transaction fees would be $5,000/year. Under Shopify Plus, transaction fees would only be $1,500/year (0.15% transaction fee). 3. Custom integrations and private apps Under Shopify’s standard plans, you already have access to more than 8,000 third-party integrations or apps in the Shopify App Store. For Shopify Plus merchants, API integrations have more flexibility with external systems, such as ERP or CRM platforms. For example, Shopify Plus users can integrate their online stores with their existing platform systems, something those under Shopify standard plans cannot do. Shopify Plus merchants can also build their own private apps through Shopify Functions. Some examples of Shopify Plus API solutions include: Gift Card: Unique gift cards that work in the Shopify POS and can be used as an alternative payment method Multipass: Unite customer logins for your forum, website, and online store without needing to synchronize any customer database User: Add, remove, edit, and retrieve data about Shopify staff accounts 4. More theme and checkout customization

The Trump administration on Tuesday pulled the trigger on promised tariffs targeting goods and services from China, Mexico, and Canada, escalating new conflicts with America’s top three trade partners. Goods and services from Mexico and Canada will face tariffs of 25%, while Chinese goods will face an additional 10% (on top of the 10% announced a month ago). Those tariffs will be paid by importers, who will likely pass price increases onto consumers. Those countries have all announced retaliatory tariffs on American goods and services and other actions. Trump said the tariffs were enacted to stop the flow of fentanyl and chemicals used in the drug’s production from entering the US. He has also stated the tariffs will spur domestic manufacturing. China announced immediate retaliatory tariffs of 10% to 15% on select US imports and new export restrictions for designated US entities. The country also said it filed complaints about the new tariffs with the World Trade Organization. Canada struck back with a 25% tariff on $20.7 billion worth of US imports, promising to add another $83.7 billion worth of goods and services in 21 days. Mexico was expected to announce its response on Tuesday. Gary Shapiro, CEO and vice chair of the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), says the tariffs will spur increased technology pricing across the board. “Tariffs will spur inflation, and not just on groceries,” Shapiro said in a statement. “CTA research shows tariffs make the tech products Americans love and rely on more expensive.” Related:How Mass Deportations and Federal Buyout Packages Impact Tech IT leaders will feel the pinch as well. Budgets, already stretched thin to accommodate increased spending on artificial intelligence, will now face pricing pressure for components and materials mostly produced abroad. Jason Miller, a professor of supply chain management at Michigan State University, tells InformationWeek that even enacted for a short period, the tariffs will have long-lasting consequences. “I think we’ll have to start seeing negative consequences to the point that the decision is made to end the current tariff regime,” he says in a phone interview. “The challenge with that is that the President will have to have the optics that he’s coming out a winner, so it’s difficult to see how that gets resolved soon. [Trump] seems to have a chronic inability to ever admit to having made a mistake.” Tariffs on Materials The Trump Administration’s announcement of a blanket 25% tariff on aluminum and steel imports would also increase costs for the technology sector through direct and indirect economic pressure, experts warn. Related:How to Create a Winning AI Strategy Amid a flurry of President Donald Trump’s executive actions in the first weeks of holding office, the administration has also announced a plan to charge a 25% tariff on aluminum and steel imports. Trump says steel and aluminum tariffs will encourage US companies to produce more domestically. But industries, including the tech sector, are dependent on steel and aluminum for building and machinery. The tech sector uses steel and aluminum for server racks, data center infrastructure, electronic components housing, and more. Miller said its not yet clear now the aluminum and steel tariffs will be applied along with the tariffs on all Canadian, Mexican, and Chinese goods. “Will it be on top of those tariffs? There’s no clarity there yet,” he says. How IT Leaders Should Respond An IBM report spending outside of traditional IT operations could surge 52% this year as enterprise ramps up AI-driven transformation. Those costs could increase substantially as new tariffs are factored in. MSU’s Miller says companies that were on the fence about capital outlays should act now. “If you’re on the fence about bringing something in now, versus a couple of months, I would get it now,” he says, adding Trump may respond to retaliation efforts with even more tariffs. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re not looking at 40%-50% before all is said and done at the rate we’re going.” Related:Tech Company Layoffs: The COVID Tech Bubble Bursts Whatever the case, the cost of the tariff action will likely be felt for years, Miller says. “There will be lasting impact from this,” he says. “So, you need to have those conversations with customers, and say, ‘Hey, we’ve got to pass some percentage of this cost increase on because we have to stay profitable.’ It’s about being transparent about what tariffs are doing to cost structures.” source

At the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025, Huawei has positioned itself at the forefront of technological innovation, showcasing its latest advancements in 5G, artificial intelligence, and cloud computing. The Chinese tech giant presented cutting-edge solutions aimed at enhancing connectivity, smart cities, and enterprise digital transformation, with a particular emphasis on how these developments will impact the Middle East. The company unveiled its next-generation 5G infrastructure, promising faster speeds, lower latency, and greater efficiency. The company also introduced its vision for 6G, emphasizing AI-driven networks that will redefine the future of connectivity. With a strong focus on AI, Huawei demonstrated how artificial intelligence is integrated into its cloud computing services, providing enhanced cybersecurity, automated operations, and data-driven insights for businesses and telecom operators. The Huawei Cloud Summit at MWC 2025, themed “Accelerate Intelligence, Amplify Success,” brought together industry leaders from telecom, finance, government, and more. Huawei Cloud unveiled cutting-edge AI-native cloud services, reinforcing its commitment to intelligent transformation. AI is reshaping industries globally, and Huawei Cloud is at the forefront of this shift. Jacqueline Shi, President of Huawei Cloud Global Marketing and Sales Service, emphasized Huawei Cloud’s strategy of transitioning from cloud-native to AI-native, integrating AI across all cloud services and offering platforms to accelerate AI adoption. In 2024, Huawei Cloud expanded by over 50% outside of China, partnering with over 140 carriers and 500 financial institutions. source

2月26日起，銅鑼灣食街＠Fashion Walk將會迎來全新換裝企劃— CHEER-FOOD STREET 暢遊．食佳，與大家一同尋找真正的用餐之樂，更首度聯乘比利時國際得獎設計團隊Globall concept，設計一系列繽紛食物笑臉，打造八大食物藝術打卡裝置遍佈CHEER-FOOD STREET 暢遊．食佳版圖，歡迎顧客到訪食街滿足味蕾，同時體驗鮮艷街頭藝術帶來的攝影樂趣。一連六個月的CHEER-FOOD STREET 暢遊．食佳，亦會定期推出限定優惠及驚喜活動，送出多款主題限量紀念品，讓銅鑼灣食街不僅是一個用餐的好去處，更是一個飲食文化交流的空間，展現香港美食之都及社區文化。放鬆心情，be a Food Chiller！快來銅鑼灣食街享受滿滿的情緒價值。   LinkedIn Email Facebook Twitter WhatsApp 非常媒體 Veri-Media 轉載請務必保留本文鏈接 source

By Matt Perez ( February 28, 2025, 4:13 PM EST) — ProctorU Inc., which does business as Meazure Learning, was hit with a nationwide class action in California federal court Thursday for its alleged failure to properly administer the state’s February bar exam, despite mounting technical issues during the run-up to the test…. Law360 is on it, so you are, too. A Law360 subscription puts you at the center of fast-moving legal issues, trends and developments so you can act with speed and confidence. Over 200 articles are published daily across more than 60 topics, industries, practice areas and jurisdictions. A Law360 subscription includes features such as Daily newsletters Expert analysis Mobile app Advanced search Judge information Real-time alerts 450K+ searchable archived articles And more! Experience Law360 today with a free 7-day trial. source

Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More Contextual AI unveiled its grounded language model (GLM) today, claiming it delivers the highest factual accuracy in the industry by outperforming leading AI systems from Google, Anthropic and OpenAI on a key benchmark for truthfulness. The startup, founded by the pioneers of retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) technology, reported that its GLM achieved an 88% factuality score on the FACTS benchmark, compared to 84.6% for Google’s Gemini 2.0 Flash, 79.4% for Anthropic’s Claude 3.5 Sonnet and 78.8% for OpenAI’s GPT-4o. While large language models have transformed enterprise software, factual inaccuracies — often called hallucinations — remain a critical challenge for business adoption. Contextual AI aims to solve this by creating a model specifically optimized for enterprise RAG applications where accuracy is paramount. “We knew that part of the solution would be a technique called RAG — retrieval-augmented generation,” said Douwe Kiela, CEO and cofounder of Contextual AI, in an exclusive interview with VentureBeat. “And we knew that because RAG is originally my idea. What this company is about is really about doing RAG the right way, to kind of the next level of doing RAG.” The company’s focus differs significantly from general-purpose models like ChatGPT or Claude, which are designed to handle everything from creative writing to technical documentation. Contextual AI instead targets high-stakes enterprise environments where factual precision outweighs creative flexibility. “If you have a RAG problem and you’re in an enterprise setting in a highly regulated industry, you have no tolerance whatsoever for hallucination,” explained Kiela. “The same general-purpose language model that is useful for the marketing department is not what you want in an enterprise setting where you are much more sensitive to mistakes.” A benchmark comparison showing Contextual AI’s new grounded language model (GLM) outperforming competitors from Google, Anthropic and OpenAI on factual accuracy tests. The company claims its specialized approach reduces AI hallucinations in enterprise settings.(Credit: Contextual AI) How Contextual AI makes ‘groundedness’ the new gold standard for enterprise language models The concept of “groundedness” — ensuring AI responses stick strictly to information explicitly provided in the context — has emerged as a critical requirement for enterprise AI systems. In regulated industries like finance, healthcare and telecommunications, companies need AI that either delivers accurate information or explicitly acknowledges when it doesn’t know something. Kiela offered an example of how this strict groundedness works: “If you give a recipe or a formula to a standard language model, and somewhere in it, you say, ‘but this is only true for most cases,’ most language models are still just going to give you the recipe assuming it’s true. But our language model says, ‘Actually, it only says that this is true for most cases.’ It’s capturing this additional bit of nuance.” The ability to say “I don’t know” is a crucial one for enterprise settings. “Which is really a very powerful feature, if you think about it in an enterprise setting,” Kiela added. Contextual AI’s RAG 2.0: A more integrated way to process company information Contextual AI’s platform is built on what it calls “RAG 2.0,” an approach that moves beyond simply connecting off-the-shelf components. “A typical RAG system uses a frozen off-the-shelf model for embeddings, a vector database for retrieval, and a black-box language model for generation, stitched together through prompting or an orchestration framework,” according to a company statement. “This leads to a ‘Frankenstein’s monster’ of generative AI: the individual components technically work, but the whole is far from optimal.” Instead, Contextual AI jointly optimizes all components of the system. “We have this mixture-of-retrievers component, which is really a way to do intelligent retrieval,” Kiela explained. “It looks at the question, and then it thinks, essentially, like most of the latest generation of models, it thinks, [and] first it plans a strategy for doing a retrieval.” This entire system works in coordination with what Kiela calls “the best re-ranker in the world,” which helps prioritize the most relevant information before sending it to the grounded language model. Beyond plain text: Contextual AI now reads charts and connects to databases While the newly announced GLM focuses on text generation, Contextual AI’s platform has recently added support for multimodal content including charts, diagrams and structured data from popular platforms like BigQuery, Snowflake, Redshift and Postgres. “The most challenging problems in enterprises are at the intersection of unstructured and structured data,” Kiela noted. “What I’m mostly excited about is really this intersection of structured and unstructured data. Most of the really exciting problems in large enterprises are smack bang at the intersection of structured and unstructured, where you have some database records, some transactions, maybe some policy documents, maybe a bunch of other things.” The platform already supports a variety of complex visualizations, including circuit diagrams in the semiconductor industry, according to Kiela. Contextual AI’s future plans: Creating more reliable tools for everyday business Contextual AI plans to release its specialized re-ranker component shortly after the GLM launch, followed by expanded document-understanding capabilities. The company also has experimental features for more agentic capabilities in development. Founded in 2023 by Kiela and Amanpreet Singh, who previously worked at Meta’s Fundamental AI Research (FAIR) team and Hugging Face, Contextual AI has secured customers including HSBC, Qualcomm and the Economist. The company positions itself as helping enterprises finally realize concrete returns on their AI investments. “This is really an opportunity for companies who are maybe under pressure to start delivering ROI from AI to start looking at more specialized solutions that actually solve their problems,” Kiela said. “And part of that really is having a grounded language model that is maybe a bit more boring than a standard language model, but it’s really good at making sure that it’s grounded in the context and that you can really trust it to do its job.” source

Image: nmann77/Adobe Stock IBM has finally completed its acquisition of San Francisco-based HashiCorp for $6.4 billion, 10 months after its announcement. The companies aim to address the growing complexity enterprises face in managing multicloud and hybrid cloud infrastructures, especially with the rise of AI-driven applications that constantly shift workloads and require rapid scaling. From today, HashiCorp’s automation tools, such as Terraform and Vault, are available with IBM’s hybrid cloud platform, allowing customers to automate infrastructure provisioning and security management across their systems. IBM said infrastructure provisioning from Terraform will enable a number of its products to run more smoothly in hybrid cloud environments. These include the Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, which automates the configurations and middleware deployments of applications, and the development of IBM Z mainframe software. HashiCorp Vault, a password and encryption key management tool, can also be deployed across hybrid clouds with Red Hat’s container-based application platform OpenShift. HashiCorp will operate as a division of IBM Software rather than being brought into Red Hat, IBM’s open-source subsidiary it acquired for $34 billion in 2019. SEE: Differences between Hybrid Cloud and Multicloud explained in this TechRepublic Premium download “Organizations globally are looking to deploy modern, hybrid cloud-ready apps, which require automated cloud infrastructure at significant scale,” said Rob Thomas, senior vice president, IBM Software and Chief Commercial Officer, in a press release. “With this acquisition, IBM is committed to continuing to invest in and grow the HashiCorp capabilities, and together, with HashiCorp’s leading technology and extensive developer community, IBM’s global reach and R&D resources, our aim is to infuse HashiCorp technology in every data center.” Armon Dadgar, chief technology officer and cofounder of HashiCorp, added: “We’ve built a portfolio of products to help customers embrace a cloud native approach to Infrastructure and Security Lifecycle Management that has been embraced by hundreds of thousands of organizations around the world. “I’m excited for HashiCorp to join the IBM family, where there is clear alignment on the vision of enabling hybrid infrastructure for the world’s biggest enterprises. Together, we can continue to invest deeply in R&D innovation and enable the next generation of applications to be built and scaled.” Must-read big data coverage IBM-HashiCorp deal faced antitrust investigations, lawsuit On Tuesday, the transaction was approved by the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority after finding it would not negatively impact competition. This aligns with the country’s new pro-innovation stance, which it hopes will attract big tech investment, highlighted by recently hiring an ex-Amazon executive as the CMA interim chairperson. The deal has also been quietly approved by the U.S.’s Federal Trade Commission, according to TechCrunch, after both antitrust investigations delayed its anticipated completion date of the end of 2024. But these investigations aren’t the only challenges IBM and HashiCorp have faced since announcing the acquisition. In June, a HashiCorp investor sued the company, claiming that the acquisition by IBM disproportionately benefited its board members over the shareholders, as executives allegedly stood to gain “golden parachutes” and the ability to cash out their illiquid stock. However, the suit was mysteriously withdrawn two days later. Deal finalised after Terraform’s controversial relicensing HashiCorp’s stock jumped 4% following the acquisition announcement, recovering somewhat from significant declines in 2023. These were triggered by the decision to relicense Terraform from the open-source Apache 2.0 to the more restrictive Business Source License. The move alienated parts of the open-source community, and they forked the original Terraform code into the open-source OpenTofu and placed it under the oversight of The Linux Foundation. However, the license change likely helped attract IBM into the deal, as the added executive control would enable it to integrate and monetize the technology within its own ecosystem. source

ROBS: Using Retirement Funds To Start a Business — Benefits, Risks, and Key Considerations We may earn from vendors via affiliate links or sponsorships. This might affect product placement on our site, but not the content of our reviews. See our Terms of Use for details. Rollovers as Business Startups, also known as rollovers for business startups or ROBS, is an arrangement that lets you use your retirement savings to launch or purchase a business without taking on debt. While it provides access to capital without loan repayments, it comes with strict compliance requirements and potential risks. We’ll explore how ROBS works, its benefits, drawbacks, and costs, and whether it’s right for you. Key takeaways: It allows entrepreneurs to use retirement funds for business financing. You can invest your retirement savings into a new or existing business without taking on debt or incurring early withdrawal penalties. It is not a loan and does not require repayment or interest charges. It is a complex structure subject to strict tax and legal regulations.  It requires a C Corporation (C-corp) structure. Your business must be a C-corp to qualify for ROBS, as this entity type is necessary to issue Qualified Employer Securities (QES), which facilitates the rollover process. It has significant costs and compliance requirements. Setting it up typically costs $3,000 to $5,000, with ongoing administrative fees. You must also follow strict IRS and DOL regulations to avoid potential legal and tax issues. It comes with risks, but there are alternatives. While it provides a debt-free way to fund a business, it also puts your retirement savings at risk if the business fails. Alternative financing options — such as SBA loans, business credit lines, and equity financing — should be considered before proceeding with ROBS. How a ROBS structure works ROBS works by rolling funds from your personal retirement account into a newly created C-corp’s retirement plan, which then purchases stock in the company. This provides your business with capital, similar to how publicly traded companies raise funds through stock sales. To successfully utilize a ROBS arrangement, you must follow a structured process to ensure compliance with IRS and DOL regulations. While it can be a powerful financing tool, it requires careful execution to avoid legal and tax complications. Here is how to set up and use a ROBS transaction. Step 1: Establish a C-corp. A new C-corp must be created because ROBS relies on the sale of QES, which only a C-corp can issue. Other business structures — such as LLCs, S-corps, and sole proprietorships — do not qualify. Step 2: Create a retirement plan under the C-corp. The C-corp must establish a retirement plan, typically a 401(k), though options like defined benefit or profit-sharing plans may be available. This plan will be used to facilitate the rollover of funds. Step 3: Choose a custodian and rollover funds from personal retirement accounts to the C-corp’s plan. A plan custodian, such as Guidant Financial, must be selected to manage investments and handle administrative tasks, including tax reporting and participant account management. You, as the business owner, will then transfer funds from an existing eligible retirement account (e.g., a 401(k) or traditional IRA) into the newly created C-corp retirement plan. This step is tax and penalty-free because it is a rollover, not a withdrawal. Step 4: Use the C-corp’s plan to purchase stock in the company. The newly funded retirement plan purchases stock in the C-corp through a QES transaction. This allows your business to access the rolled-over retirement funds as working capital. Step 5: Use the available funds for business purposes. Once the QES transaction is complete, the business can use the funds for operational expenses, such as purchasing equipment, leasing office space, paying franchise fees, and hiring employees. To remain compliant with IRS and DOL regulations, the funds must be used strictly for business-related expenses. Elements of the ROBS structure (Source: Guidant Financial) ROBS compliance requirements Establishing and maintaining a ROBS arrangement requires strict adherence to several compliance requirements to meet IRS and DOL regulations. Key obligations include: C-corp structure: The business must be established as a C-corp, as only this structure permits the issuance of QES necessary for ROBS. 401(k) plan establishment and maintenance: A new 401(k) retirement plan must be created within the C-corp. This plan should be compliant with ERISA? and the Internal Revenue Code, ensuring all eligible employees can participate. Annual filing of IRS Form 5500: The C-corp must file Form 5500 annually, detailing the plan’s financial condition, investments, and operations. This includes reporting the valuation of the 401(k) plan’s assets, notably the company’s stock held by the plan. Annual business valuation: An independent annual valuation of the C-corp’s stock is necessary to determine the fair market value (FMV) of the shares held by the retirement plan. This valuation supports accurate reporting on Form 5500 and ensures compliance with IRS regulations. Fidelity bond acquisition: As the plan trustee, the business owner must obtain an ERISA fidelity bond. This bond protects the retirement plan against losses caused by acts of fraud or dishonesty. Payroll and compensation compliance: The business owner must be an active employee of the C-corp, receiving reasonable compensation through the company’s payroll system. This includes making regular payroll tax payments and ensuring that 401(k) plan contributions are properly managed. Offering benefits to eligible employees: The 401(k) plan must be nondiscriminatory, offering benefits to all eligible employees who meet the plan’s criteria, typically those working over 1,000 hours per year. This may involve making employer contributions, such as safe harbor matching, to ensure compliance with ERISA guidelines. Corporate tax filings: As a C-corp, the business is required to file federal and state corporate tax returns annually, adhering to all applicable tax laws and deadlines. Maintaining strict compliance with these requirements is essential to preserve the tax-deferred status of the retirement funds and to avoid potential legal issues. Due to the complexity of ROBS arrangements, it is advisable to consult with financial and legal professionals experienced in

Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More Salesforce has just unveiled a new marketplace called AgentExchange, creating what it describes as the first trusted marketplace for AI agents in enterprise software and positioning itself at the center of what it estimates will be a $6 trillion “digital labor” market. The company’s push into AI agents — software that can perform complex tasks autonomously — represents one of Silicon Valley’s most ambitious attempts to transform how businesses operate. “We’ve seen great adoption across customers like ZoomInfo, Remarkable, and Mimit Health who are using Agentforce in Slack to boost productivity,” said Rob Seaman, SVP of product management at Salesforce, in an exclusive interview with VentureBeat. The new marketplace launches with more than 200 partners, including Google Cloud, DocuSign, Box and Workday, who are building pre-packaged agent solutions that businesses can implement without extensive technical expertise. While much of the attention around artificial intelligence has focused on text-generating tools like ChatGPT, Salesforce is betting that specialized AI agents will deliver more immediate business value. These agents don’t just generate text — they take actions within business systems. “If you look at the overall labor market, we don’t actually have enough people to do the jobs we currently need them to do,” Seaman explained. “This is a big transformation that will change many jobs, but it’s providing more labor capacity into the system.” The company’s research suggests significant demand for automation of administrative tasks. Amit Khanna, SVP and GM for Salesforce Health, cited research showing that “around 87% of people in healthcare say they work late each day to finish up administrative tasks.” Targeting healthcare’s administrative burden with specialized AI agents Healthcare presents a compelling use case for AI agents. The industry is administratively burdened, with clinicians spending significant time on documentation rather than patient care. Khanna outlined several healthcare-specific applications: “We are looking at three areas: patient access — making appointments, finding providers, benefits verification; public health paperwork; and clinical trial matching.” For patient privacy, Salesforce has implemented multiple safeguards. “When we send data to language models for summarization, we remove all protected health information first,” Khanna explained. “It uses tags instead of names, generates a summary, and then replaces those tags with actual names before presenting to the user.” Salesforce’s no-code approach makes AI agent creation accessible to business teams A significant aspect of Salesforce’s approach is lowering the technical barriers to creating AI agents. According to Seaman, what has surprised him most is “the speed of creation and iteration.” “The number of people now that can create technology to solve problems has expanded greatly because it’s based on topics and instructions written in natural language, not programming languages,” Seaman said. This simplification could enable business users to create their own automation solutions without depending on technical teams. What early Salesforce customers have learned about deploying AI agents successfully Early adopters have discovered important considerations for effective AI agent deployment. Seaman noted that many organizations “don’t spend enough time thinking about dead ends or negative instructions.” “It’s just as important to give topics and instructions as it is to provide guidance on what to do if the agent doesn’t know how to proceed,” he explained. Remarkable, one early adopter, has deployed an IT help-desk agent that employees interact with directly in Slack. The agent handles routine tasks like password resets and helps new hires set up their equipment, while knowing when to involve human IT staff. Salesforce’s vision for how AI agents will transform workplace roles and responsibilities As AI agents become more capable, questions about their impact on employment are inevitable. Seaman frames the technology not as a replacement for human workers but as a complement. “I don’t think about it as replacing people. I think about it as augmenting them and helping them focus on the work that really matters,” he said. In healthcare, Khanna believes AI agents will first tackle administrative tasks before gradually moving into clinical support roles. “The next wave will move toward the clinical side as doctors build trust in the technology,” he predicted. The market for AI agents is still developing, but Salesforce is positioning itself as a platform company rather than trying to build every possible agent itself. With AgentExchange, it’s creating an ecosystem where partners can build specialized agents for different industries. Whether businesses embrace these AI agents as essential productivity tools or view them as interesting but not-yet-critical technology remains to be seen. For now, Salesforce is betting that the future workplace includes both human employees and digital ones. source