Agent

Homebuyers more cautious due to possible mortgage rate rises and higher inflation as sellers sit on propertiesFears of higher mortgage rates and rising inflation as a result of the Middle East conflict are leading to a subdued and downbeat housing market, according to estate agents.Demand from potential homebuyers across England and Wales has shown a “noticeable softening” recently, according to a monthly survey of estate agents by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Continue reading...

• Anecdotes, an enterprise governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) platform powered by agentic AI, has been recognized as a Rising in Cyber 2026 honoree by leading cybersecurity analysts. • The platform uses autonomous AI agents to transform enterprise security operations and streamline compliance workflows across organizations. • The recognition reflects the growing market trend of agentic AI reshaping cybersecurity and enterprise risk management, with AI agents now central to modern security operations.

Eileen Wang, 58, mayor of Arcadia, agreed to plead guilty over the felony count brought by the justice departmentEileen Wang, the mayor of a southern California city, resigned suddenly on Monday after the US Department of Justice (DoJ) announced she had been charged with acting as an illegal foreign agent of China.Wang, 58, agreed to plead guilty to the felony count and could face a sentence of 10 years in prison. Continue reading...

• Quiq Inc. launched a new voice-enabled AI agent platform on May 11, 2026, extending its conversational AI beyond text for enterprise rollouts. • The update targets scaling customer service past pilot phases, integrating voice capabilities to handle complex interactions more naturally. • As enterprises accelerate AI adoption, Quiq's move positions it to capture demand for multimodal AI in high-volume support operations, with refreshed branding to emphasize reliability.

• New York Giants coach John Harbaugh revealed he has spoken with free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. three to four times in the past week about a possible reunion after Beckham's workout with the team last month. • Beckham, 33 and a former Giants first-round pick in 2014 from LSU, impressed Harbaugh by 'looking good' in the workout and is currently training in Arizona while spending time with his son. • The coach emphasized honest talks, stating 'It's got to be right for both parties,' with Beckham aiming to prove he can still make a difference in the NFL after posting nine catches for 55 yards with the Miami Dolphins in 2024.

• Alibaba Cloud introduced a new multimodal agent suite, Tongyi AgentStudio, on May 8, 2026, embedding vision, speech, and document‑processing capabilities into a single enterprise‑oriented platform. • The suite supports up to 128 concurrent tool calls per session and can autonomously manage procurement, HR ticketing, and multi‑cloud cost‑optimization workflows, with early pilots at Chinese banks reporting a 32% reduction in internal‑service turnaround time. • Alibaba says Tongyi AgentStudio is now priced at $1.20 per million input tokens for large‑enterprise contracts, below the rate of comparable Western agents, reinforcing its strategy of undercutting global cloud rivals.

• Sierra, an AI customer experience startup, secured $950 million in a Series E funding round led by Tiger Global and Google Ventures on May 8, 2026, achieving a valuation exceeding $15 billion. • The round highlights the strength of high-growth vertical AI companies amid surging demand for agentic AI solutions in enterprise settings. • This funding victory underscores investor confidence in specialized AI applications, positioning Sierra as a leader in automating customer interactions.

• ServiceNow announced on May 8, 2026, a goal of $32 billion in revenue by 2030, introducing the 'Action Fabric' AI agent pricing layer. • The strategy counters SaaS market challenges by embedding advanced AI agents into its platform for automated workflows. • This move signals enterprise software's pivot toward AI orchestration, potentially reshaping IT service management.

• Cognizant announced the launch of Cognizant Secure AI Services on May 7, 2026, from its Teaneck, N.J. headquarters to help enterprises secure and scale AI and agentic systems. • The new integrated offering provides AI-powered defense across operations and supports provable trust practices for AI systems, targeting businesses adopting advanced AI technologies. • This development matters as it addresses rising cybersecurity risks in agentic AI deployment, enabling safer scaling amid growing threats from autonomous AI applications.

• Meta Platforms has acquired Manus, a Singapore-based AI startup, in a $2 billion deal announced on May 7, 2026, focusing on autonomous agents that plan and execute complex tasks. • Manus specializes in agentic AI technology, enabling systems to independently handle multi-step processes without constant human oversight. • The acquisition positions Meta to expand its AI portfolio amid intensifying competition in generative and autonomous AI development globally.

• Anthropic released 10 financially-focused AI agents on May 5 that can automate tasks like building pitchbooks, auditing statements, and drafting credit memos for banks and insurers. • The company announced new data sources for its Claude AI model and revealed that 40% of its top 50 customers are financial institutions, making finance its second-largest revenue segment after technology. • CEO Dario Amodei predicted further software disruption across industries and called for legislation governing the release of powerful AI models, noting that Claude's Mythos model has likely identified tens of thousands of vulnerabilities.

• Anthropic unveiled 10 new AI agents designed for banks and insurers to automate tasks like building pitchbooks, auditing statements, and drafting credit memos. • Major global firms such as Goldman Sachs, Citi, Visa, and AIG have adopted Anthropic's Claude AI, with banks using the Claude Mythos model for cybersecurity enhancements. • The agents integrate directly with Claude Code and Cowork products, allowing customization to firm-specific policies and styles, accelerating finance sector AI adoption.

Michael Marx was shot by authorities multiple times and then taken to a hospital after bystander was woundedA man accused of firing a gun at law enforcement officers near the Washington monument this week was walking along the path of JD Vance’s motorcade before the shooting and made a vulgar remark about the White House after the confrontation, according to a court filing on Wednesday.Michael Marx, 45, of Midland, Texas, was shot multiple times during Monday’s confrontation and was in the back of an ambulance on his way to a hospital when he said: “‘F—k the White House’ and ‘Kill me, kill me, kill me’”, a Secret Service agent said in an affidavit. Continue reading...

• Indian cybersecurity companies are deploying in-house AI agents built on large language models to combat threats. • These AI agents reduce software vulnerability detection and remediation times from days to hours. • The acceleration matches attackers' machine-speed operations, where human response windows shrink to near zero.

• Anthropic unveiled 10 specialized AI agents designed for the financial services sector, automating critical tasks for banks and insurance companies. • The agents can autonomously handle operations including pitchbook construction, financial auditing, and other complex processes with limited human intervention. • The launch, timed to Anthropic's New York event, represents the company's deepening commitment to enterprise AI adoption across the financial industry.

• Anthropic released 10 new AI agents on Tuesday designed for banks and insurers to automate tasks like building pitchbooks, auditing statements, and drafting credit memos with limited human intervention. • The agents integrate with Claude Code and Cowork products, can be customized to firm policies, and access expanded data sources for financial work, adopted by Goldman Sachs, Visa, Citi, and AIG. • This marks Anthropic's rapid expansion into finance less than a year after announcing ambitions, with executives noting a 'dramatic change' in capabilities over the past six months.

John Andrew Spillman was part of an external screening security detail for the PGA Championship, which Trump is attendingA US Secret Service officer has been placed on administrative leave after being arrested for allegedly exposing and fondling himself in a public area of a Miami hotel.Local sheriff’s office deputies say they arrested John Andrew Spillman, 33, on Sunday after he was found naked while off duty on the sixth floor of the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel Miami airport & convention center, according to a sworn law enforcement statement reviewed by the Guardian. Continue reading...

• AI agents are emerging as tools to help social enterprises scale operations efficiently with leaner teams, addressing resource constraints in the social impact sector. • Without proper boundaries, AI agent deployment risks eroding trust, compromising data safety, and diminishing human connection—critical elements for social enterprises. • The development highlights the need for responsible AI implementation frameworks that balance automation benefits with ethical considerations and user trust in mission-driven organizations.

• ReN3, an enterprise agentic AI work productivity platform, announced a US$5 million seed funding round to expand operations across Southeast Asia, focusing on accuracy and deployment flexibility for regional enterprises. • The funding will support ReN3's growth in the region as it positions itself as a solution for enterprise productivity automation through agentic AI technology. • The investment reflects growing venture capital interest in AI-powered enterprise solutions targeting the Southeast Asian market, where digital transformation adoption is accelerating.

• Aviatrix Inc. announced the launch of a new platform designed to contain artificial intelligence agents and enforce security controls across AI workloads without requiring changes to AI agents or code. • The platform extends Aviatrix's Cloud Native Security Fabric with two new products: Zero Trust for AI Workloads (now generally available) and Aviatrix AgentGuard (in early access), enabling IT teams to set policies that allow or deny access to external AI services and block shadow AI with allowlists. • The solution provides network-layer enforcement across workloads and regions, addressing the growing need to secure AI agents, large language model proxies, and agentic frameworks in enterprise environments.

• OpenAI is developing a smartphone launching production in 2028, where AI agents fully replace traditional apps for US consumers. • The device faces potential hurdles from global memory shortages that could delay or derail rollout. • This breakthrough could disrupt mobile ecosystems dominated by Google and Apple, redefining user interfaces.

Federal raids unfold in Twin Cities amid ongoing tensions between the Trump administration and Minnesota officialsSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxFederal agents under the command of the Trump administration have descended on Minnesota’s Twin Cities again to primarily target alleged fraud at daycares after the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s so-called “Operation Metro Surge” all but wound down earlier in the year.“Today the FBI with federal, state and local law enforcement is involved in court-authorized law enforcement activity as part of an ongoing fraud investigation,” the US justice department told the Guardian in a statement on Tuesday. Continue reading...

• Google announced a $750 million fund on April 27, 2026, targeting startups developing AI agents. • The fund aims to accelerate innovation in AI agent technologies amid intensifying competition. • This initiative underscores Google's commitment to fostering the AI ecosystem, potentially challenging rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic.

Buffalo’s Rohingya community pushes for NY state law to protect immigrants after Nurul Amin Shah Alam’s deathSince Nurul Amin Shah Alam’s death in February, the fear across Buffalo’s East Side has been palpable.Alam, a 56-year-old Rohingya refugee from Myanmar, who spoke no English and had mental health issues, was dropped by federal immigration officers outside a closed coffee shop in the middle of a brutal winter. He had spent months in custody following a confusing encounter with local law enforcement, then was released – alone, in the cold – far from the Rohingya community hub where he might have found help. Days later, he died. Continue reading...

• Google's AI agent platform is taking the lead as enterprises transition from question-answering and content generation AI to systems that execute tasks and actions autonomously. • The platform enables practical AI applications in business workflows, accelerating adoption. • This positions Google dominantly in the US enterprise AI market, driving productivity gains and influencing competitive developments.

• Copperhelm raised $7 million in funding to launch an agentic cloud security platform leveraging AI agents for threat detection. • The platform automates real-time remediation at scale, addressing escalating cloud vulnerabilities in US enterprises. • This funding enables Copperhelm to commercialize innovative AI-driven cybersecurity amid rising breach incidents.

• IBM announced IBM Autonomous Security on April 15, 2026, deploying coordinated AI agents to detect and contain threats at machine speed without human intervention. • The service addresses a critical gap: attackers now achieve full network lateral movement in as little as 27 seconds, compared to an average of 29 minutes in 2024—a 65% speed improvement driving urgent demand for AI-powered defenses. • AI-enabled attacks surged 89% year-over-year in 2025, with a 44% increase in assaults exploiting public-facing applications, prompting major security vendors to adopt autonomous AI defense strategies.

• Operant AI launched CodeInjectionGuard on April 22, 2026, a tool that blocks malicious code execution by AI agents at runtime. • The guard defends against code injection attacks, preventing supply chain compromises in autonomous AI systems. • It secures AI agents used in critical operations, addressing rising cybersecurity risks in AI deployments.