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FORT WASHINGTON, Pa. — Amtech Software, the leading software platform for the packaging industry, today announced key additions to its leadership team as the company accelerates innovation, expands its product portfolio, and enhances customer success initiatives.
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With strong backing and continued investment, Amtech is doubling down on innovation, customer success, and operational excellence to support its global packaging customers. The new appointments strengthen Amtech’s leadership team to scale, while maintaining continuity of its mission and culture. These additions reflect the company’s commitment to growth and customer-first innovation.
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“Amtech is entering an exciting new chapter, and I remain focused on helping our customers grow their businesses,”
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said Chuck Schneider, CEO of Amtech Software. “
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Our commitment to growth and customer support has required us to expand our existing leadership team. Each of these leaders was carefully chosen for their experience, expertise, and ability to help us scale. Together, they bring the right mix of vision and execution to accelerate our vision and ensure customers remain at the heart of everything we do.”
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Leadership Additions to Amtech Software
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Vinod Kumar – Chief People & Culture Officer
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Amtech Software appointed Vinod Kumar as Chief People & Culture Officer, underscoring the company’s commitment to expanding its team and investing in a strong people and culture foundation.
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Kumar brings over 20 years of international HR leadership experience, having led talent strategy, employee engagement, and organizational transformation at private equity-backed and multinational software companies. Most recently, he served as Chief Human Resources Officer at Khoros, where he oversaw global talent development
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At Amtech, Vinod will lead the development of a global talent strategy, shape a high-performance culture, and strengthen Amtech’s ability to scale as a global enterprise. In addition to his global talent role, he is responsible for overseeing and building out Amtech’s operations in India.
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Vinod holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from Bangalore University and a Postgraduate Certificate in Human Resources Management from XLRI, Jamshedpur.
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“Amtech’s future depends on the strength of our people and the culture we build together. I’m passionate about creating an environment where our teams can thrive and deliver their very best to our customers,” said Vinod Kumar
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Kostas Vassilakis – SVP, Technology
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Amtech Software has appointed Kostas Vassilakis as Senior Vice President of Technology as part of a strategic reorganization to strengthen its product and technology focus. To maximize growth, Amtech has split its product and technology functions: Danna Nelson, SVP of Products, will lead product strategy and customer insight, while Kostas will drive technology innovation, cloud migration, security, and AI capabilities.
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Vassilakis is a senior technology executive with more than 30 years of experience leading digital transformation and platform modernization. He has held leadership roles at PartsTech, Roofstock, Chewy, and Staples, where he delivered large-scale SaaS programs, built global engineering organizations, and ensured best-in-class system resilience and availability.
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He holds advanced degrees in Computer Science from Yale University and Applied Mathematics from Carnegie Mellon University, and a B.S. in Mathematics from the University of Crete.
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At Amtech, Kostas will focus on scaling product delivery and building a world-class technology team to deliver expanded capabilities to customers worldwide. His commitment to building upon the company’s engineering excellence will help drive Amtech’s innovation, cloud migration, security, and AI capabilities even further.
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“The packaging industry is transforming rapidly, and technology is at the heart of that change. I’m excited to lead Amtech’s efforts in cloud, security, and AI so that our customers can be more agile, efficient, and competitive,” said Kostas Vassilakis
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Cory King – SVP, Customer Operations
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Amtech Software also welcomed Cory King as Senior Vice President of Customer Operations, reinforcing its commitment to delivering best-in-class support and services for its global customer base.
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King brings more than 20 years of experience managing customer operations across the Americas, EMEA, and Asia-Pacific, having held senior roles at Aptean, Finastra, FIS, and Oracle.
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In his new role, King will oversee the refinement of Amtech’s customer operations framework, focusing on integrating teams, processes, and technology to enhance client value and support sustainable growth. He will also build out a dedicated customer success group to deliver an exceptional experience to Amtech customers worldwide.
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“Customers are at the heart of Amtech’s mission. My focus is on building strong, scalable operations that ensure every customer interaction adds value and strengthens long-term partnerships,” said Cory King
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Joe Buckley – Director of Strategic Programs
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Amtech appointed Joe Buckley as Director of Strategic Programs, reinforcing its focus on execution excellence and disciplined growth. Joe brings a diverse background in strategy and transformation, having developed high-performing teams and guided organizations through complex business challenges. His work has centered on driving growth, leading transformation initiatives, and improving performance through data-driven strategies
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Prior to Amtech, Joe served at Boston Consulting Group, advising public and commercial clients on digital, technology, and business transformation. Earlier in his career, he was a U.S. Navy Submarine Officer, with tours aboard the USS Alaska and in staff roles within the Office of Legislative Affairs.
President Trump signed a proclamation that imposes a $100,000 fee on H-1B visa applications, the immigration allocation set aside for highly skilled workers the U.S. economy needs. The new rules threaten the availability and deployment of human capital in the United States. This is misguided and will hurt U.S. growth and innovation, at a time when the global arms race for AI creates a vital need for the sharpest human talent and innovators.
We are professors who study and teach innovation-related topics at U.S. research universities. As immigrants to the United States from India and Panama respectively, we understand firsthand the sometimes painful discussions around H-1B immigration. Tensions around immigration routinely affect our academic institutions, our current students and former students now in industry. But there should be a lot of common ground on this polarizing topic.
STEM immigrants are creating substantial value in the United States. Immigrants play a significant role in entrepreneurial ventures in the United States and particularly startup innovation. Further, such immigrants are responsible for 23% of innovation output in the United States. This effect is in part based on policies that allow for foreign students to study and stay in the United States to work in startups.
H-1B immigration is like a natural selection process that benefits the U.S. immensely. Highly skilled immigrants in areas such as technology and medicine come hungry for hard work and full of ideas to better the world — to create new products, services and even markets as well as to cater to existing needs through more incremental improvement and optimization. Many of our best students are immigrants who are looking to stay in the United States and create work opportunities that would not be possible anywhere else in the world. In the United States, we recognize entrepreneurial success perhaps more than any other country. It is one of our greatest attributes as a society.
Nevertheless, we do have an immigration problem in the United States. The problem is that the distribution of benefits across the United States is highly skewed. Much of the wealth generated in terms of company creation and jobs has redounded to innovative clusters. But the idea to reduce the total number of H-1B immigrants by increasing the cost is exactly the wrong way to “solve” this problem — by dragging down the thriving parts of the economy rather than lifting up the rest.
To grow economic prosperity throughout the country, we need to offer more opportunities for more H-1B visa applicants. There are simply not enough trained U.S. nationals to take on the sort of labor required for the next wave of a tech-enabled industrial revolution.
Distributing the fruits of H-1B visa holders’ work more broadly requires a different approach than the U.S. has taken before. We should increase the total number of new H-1B visa recipients each year to 350,000 from around 85,000, with the additional visas apportioned across states so that locations like college towns — places like Lawrence, Kan., Gainesville, Fla., and Clemson, S.C., as well as cities such as Birmingham, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Salt Lake City and Boise receive sufficient numbers of H-1B workers. Visas could be allocated through a process akin to the resident-matching system for medical doctors, thereby sending workers to states where they would create greater value by filling economic and technological gaps. This infusion of labor would improve technological innovation in local economies and create local spillover effects in job creation and additional innovation.
Such immigration is necessary particularly now given a global push toward increased industrial policy, as China and others invest in AI and broader digital transformation. At a time when our national security is linked to technological innovation, it is shortsighted not to open ourselves to more immigration. If we do not, we will lose some of the best and brightest minds to Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, Singapore and other countries.
Immigration is currently a volatile political issue in the U.S., as it has been at some other moments in the nation’s history. Although this is a country of immigrants, for people who feel insecure about pocketbook and cultural issues, continued immigration can feel threatening. As a percentage of people living in the United States, it has been more than 100 years since there were as many immigrants here as there are now. But as with past waves of immigration, productivity and transformation have followed.
This is particularly clear for H-1B visa holders, who create opportunities for people born in the U.S. and ensure the vitality of American innovation, security and democratic values. Increasing the costs of such visas would chill their use and reduce U.S. prosperity and innovation exactly at a time of great need.
Hemant Bhargava is a professor of business at UC Davis Graduate School of Management and director of the Center for Analytics and Technology in Society. D. Daniel Sokol is a professor of law and business at USC.
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The $100,000 fee imposed on H-1B visa applications represents a misguided policy that will harm U.S. growth and innovation at a critical time when the global competition for artificial intelligence talent demands access to the sharpest human capital and innovators.
STEM immigrants generate substantial economic value for the United States, with such immigrants responsible for 23% of the nation’s innovation output and playing significant roles in entrepreneurial ventures and startup innovation.
The H-1B immigration system functions as a natural selection process that immensely benefits the United States by attracting highly skilled workers in technology and medicine who arrive motivated to create new products, services, and markets while improving existing systems through optimization.
Rather than reducing H-1B immigration through increased costs, the United States should dramatically expand the program by increasing annual H-1B recipients from 85,000 to 350,000, with additional visas distributed across states to benefit college towns and smaller cities that would create greater value by filling economic and technological gaps.
Expanding H-1B immigration is essential for national security, particularly as China and other nations invest heavily in AI and digital transformation, since restricting such immigration will result in losing the best talent to Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and other competing countries.
Historical precedent demonstrates that immigration waves have consistently led to increased productivity and transformation, with H-1B visa holders specifically creating opportunities for U.S.-born citizens while ensuring the vitality of American innovation, security, and democratic values.
The H-1B program has been systematically exploited by employers to replace American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled foreign labor rather than supplementing the domestic workforce, undermining both economic and national security through large-scale displacement of qualified American citizens[1][3].
Wage suppression has become a widespread practice facilitated by H-1B program abuse, creating disadvantageous labor market conditions for American workers while making it more difficult to attract and retain the highest skilled temporary workers in critical STEM fields[3].
The foreign share of the U.S. STEM workforce has grown disproportionately, with foreign STEM workers more than doubling from 1.2 million to 2.5 million between 2000 and 2019, while overall STEM employment increased only 44.5 percent during the same period[3].
In computer and mathematics occupations specifically, foreign workers’ share of the workforce expanded from 17.7 percent in 2000 to 26.1 percent in 2019, demonstrating the extent of foreign worker integration in key technology sectors[3].
Major technology companies have engaged in practices of laying off qualified American workers while simultaneously hiring thousands of H-1B workers, with one software company alone receiving approval for over 5,000 H-1B workers in fiscal year 2025[3].
The $100,000 fee serves as a necessary mechanism to address program abuse, stop the displacement of U.S. workers, and ensure that only employers with legitimate high-skilled needs utilize the H-1B system, while directing the Departments of Labor and Homeland Security to prioritize high-skilled, high-paid workers in future rulemakings[1][2].
California lawmakers want Gov. Gavin Newsom to approve bills they passed that aim to make artificial intelligence chatbots safer. But as the governor weighs whether to sign the legislation into law, he faces a familiar hurdle: objections from tech companies that say new restrictions would hinder innovation.
Californian companies are world leaders in AI and have spent hundreds of billions of dollars to stay ahead in the race to create the most powerful chatbots. The rapid pace has alarmed parents and lawmakers worried that chatbots are harming the mental health of children by exposing them to self-harm content and other risks.
Parents who allege chatbots encouraged their teens to harm themselves before they died by suicide have sued tech companies such as OpenAI, Character Technologies and Google. They’ve also pushed for more guardrails.
Calls for more AI regulation have reverberated throughout the nation’s capital and various states. Even as the Trump administration’s “AI Action Plan” proposes to cut red tape to encourage AI development, lawmakers and regulators from both parties are tackling child safety concerns surrounding chatbots that answer questions or act as digital companions.
California lawmakers this month passed two AI chatbot safety bills that the tech industry lobbied against. Newsom has until mid-October to approve or reject them.
The high-stakes decision puts the governor in a tricky spot. Politicians and tech companies alike want to assure the public they’re protecting young people. At the same time, tech companies are trying to expand the use of chatbots in classrooms and have opposed new restrictions they say go too far.
Suicide prevention and crisis counseling resources
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, seek help from a professional and call 9-8-8. The United States’ first nationwide three-digit mental health crisis hotline 988 will connect callers with trained mental health counselors. Text “HOME” to 741741 in the U.S. and Canada to reach the Crisis Text Line.
Meanwhile, if Newsom runs for president in 2028, he might need more financial support from wealthy tech entrepreneurs. On Sept. 22, Newsom promoted the state’s partnerships with tech companies on AI efforts and touted how the tech industry has fueled California’s economy, calling the state the “epicenter of American innovation.”
He has vetoed AI safety legislation in the past, including a bill last year that divided Silicon Valley’s tech industry because the governor thought it gave the public a “false sense of security.” But he also signaled that he’s trying to strike a balance between addressing safety concerns and ensuring California tech companies continue to dominate in AI.
“We have a sense of responsibility and accountability to lead, so we support risk-taking, but not recklessness,” Newsom said at a discussion with former President Clinton at a Clinton Global Initiative event on Wednesday.
Two bills sent to the governor — Assembly Bill 1064 and Senate Bill 243 — aim to make AI chatbots safer but face stiff opposition from the tech industry. It’s unclear if the governor will sign both bills. His office declined to comment.
AB 1064 bars a person, business and other entity from making companion chatbots available to a California resident under the age of 18 unless the chatbot isn’t “foreseeably capable” of harmful conduct such as encouraging a child to engage in self-harm, violence or disordered eating.
SB 243 requires operators of companion chatbots to notify certain users that the virtual assistants aren’t human.
Under the bill, chatbot operators would have to have procedures to prevent the production of suicide or self-harm content and put in guardrails, such as referring users to a suicide hotline or crisis text line.
They would be required to notify minor users at least every three hours to take a break, and that the chatbot is not human. Operators would also be required to implement “reasonable measures” to prevent companion chatbots from generating sexually explicit content.
Tech lobbying group TechNet, whose members include OpenAI, Meta, Google and others, said in a statement that it “agrees with the intent of the bills” but remains opposed to them.
AB 1064 “imposes vague and unworkable restrictions that create sweeping legal risks, while cutting students off from valuable AI learning tools,” said Robert Boykin, TechNet’s executive director for California and the Southwest, in a statement. “SB 243 establishes clearer rules without blocking access, but we continue to have concerns with its approach.”
A spokesperson for Meta said the company has “concerns about the unintended consequences that measures like AB 1064 would have.” The tech company launched a new Super PAC to combat state AI regulation that the company thinks is too burdensome, and is pushing for more parental control over how kids use AI, Axios reported on Tuesday.
Opponents led by the Computer & Communications Industry Assn. lobbied aggressively against AB 1064, stating it would threaten innovation and disadvantage California companies that would face more lawsuits and have to decide if they wanted to continue operating in the state.
Advocacy groups, including Common Sense Media, a nonprofit that sponsored AB 1064 and recommends that minors shouldn’t use AI companions, are urging Newsom to sign the bill into law. California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta also supports the bill.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation said SB 243 is too broad and would run into free-speech issues.
Several groups, including Common Sense Media and Tech Oversight California, removed their support for SB 243 after changes were made to the bill, which they said weakened protections. Some of the changes limited who receives certain notifications and included exemptions for certain chatbots in video games and virtual assistants used in smart speakers.
Lawmakers who introduced chatbot safety legislation want the governor to sign both bills, arguing that they can both “work in harmony.”
Sen. Steve Padilla (D-Chula Vista), who introduced SB 243, said that even with the changes he still thinks the new rules will make AI safer.
“We’ve got a technology that has great potential for good, is incredibly powerful, but is evolving incredibly rapidly, and we can’t miss a window to provide commonsense guardrails here to protect folks,” he said. “I’m happy with where the bill is at.”
Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda), who co-wrote AB 1064, said her bill balances the benefits of AI while safeguarding against the dangers.
“We want to make sure that when kids are engaging with any chatbot that it is not creating an unhealthy emotional attachment, guiding them towards suicide, disordered eating, any of the things that we know are harmful for children,” she said.
During the legislative session, lawmakers heard from grieving parents who lost their children. AB 1064 highlights two high-profile lawsuits: one against San Francisco ChatGPT maker OpenAI and another against Character Technologies, the developer of chatbot platform Character.AI.
Character.AI is a platform where people can create and interact with digital characters that mimic real and fictional people. Last year, Florida mom Megan Garcia alleged in a federal lawsuit that Character.AI’s chatbots harmed the mental health of her son Sewell Setzer III and accused the company of failing to notify her or offer help when he expressed suicidal thoughts to virtual characters.
More families sued the company this year. A Character.AI spokesperson said they care very deeply about user safety and “encourage lawmakers to appropriately craft laws that promote user safety while also allowing sufficient space for innovation and free expression.”
In August, the California parents of Adam Raine sued OpenAI, alleging that ChatGPT provided the teen information about suicide methods, including the one the teen used to kill himself.
OpenAI said it’s strengthening safeguards and plans to release parental controls. Its chief executive, Sam Altman, wrote in a September blog post that the company believes minors need “significant protections” and the company prioritizes “safety ahead of privacy and freedom for teens.” The company declined to comment on the California AI chatbot bills.
To California lawmakers, the clock is ticking.
“We’re doing our best,” Bauer-Kahan said. “The fact that we’ve already seen kids lose their lives to AI tells me we’re not moving fast enough.”
Chairman Clay Higgins, R-La., opens a hearing entitled “From Protection to Persecution: EPA Enforcement Gone Rogue Under the Biden Administration,” at a House Oversight Subcommittee on Federal Law Enforcement session Tuesday on Capitol Hill in Washington.. Photo by Bridget Erin Craig/UPI
WASHINGTON, Sept. 16 (UPI) — As the United States faces shifts stemming from President Donald Trump‘s climate priorities and changes within the Environmental Protection Agency, Republican lawmakers held back-to-back hearings Tuesday to challenge climate intervention strategies and EPA enforcement under former President Joe Biden.
The House Oversight Committee hearings unfolded against the backdrop of major Trump administration moves to roll back environmental oversight.
Since January, the EPA has enacted changes that scrap emissions reporting and dismantle research offices, a signal Democratic lawmakers think the agency is prioritizing industry concerns and cost savings over transparency and scientific independence.
On Tuesday morning, the Delivering on Government Efficiency Subcommittee met to discuss “Playing God with the Weather-A Disastrous Forecast,” which focused heavily on geoengineering and weather modification.
Later in the day, the Subcommittee on Federal Law Enforcement held a hearing on “From Protection to Persecution: EPA Enforcement Gone Rogue Under the Biden Administration,” which focused on instances of the EPA’s involvement in small businesses.
Chairman Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., opened the morning hearing by placing modern climate intervention in a long tradition of weather control, from Native American rain dances to Cold War era military projects, but warned today’s techniques of cloud seeding, carbon removal and blocking sunlight could pose unpredictable risks to human health and agriculture.
Greene argued that efforts to fight what she called a “climate change hoax” could lead to reckless global experiments.
“Some scientists think they can predict and control the impact of geoengineering, but even the best scientific models will never be able to capture all of God’s wonderful creation and nature’s mysteries,” she said.
Some lawmakers warned of unchecked experimentation with climate interventions, and the administration has signaled it will not pursue new regulatory frameworks for geoengineering research, but instead emphasize transparency and voluntary disclosure.
This was solidified when a video of EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin was shared at the hearing. Zeldin explained his commitment to total transparency by promising to publicly release all geoengineering research so that “baseless conspiracies” will be met “head on.”
On Friday, the agency proposed ending a rule that required about 8,000 facilities to publicly report their greenhouse gas emissions — a program that provided transparency into the country’s biggest polluters.
In the afternoon, the Subcommittee on Federal Law Enforcement looked at the EPA in a different light, focusing on what Republican lawmakers cited as an aggressive policy during the Biden administration.
“Instead of pursuing massive industrial polluters who employ highly paid legal defense teams, EPA under the Biden administration chose to focus on mom-and-pop shops, and with the shops that have limited means to argue their case against the legal might of the Department of Justice backed by the EPA,” Chairman Clay Higgins, R-La, said.
He added: “Often, EPA’s enforcement actions involved raids on shops by teams of armed EPA agents who intimidated small businesses with threats of criminal prosecution.”
The committee showcased small businesses as examples of what GOP
members called EPA’s overreach, including one from Higgins’ home state of Louisiana.
Kory Willis, owner and founder of Power Performances Enterprise Inc. of Baton Rouge, who runs a performance tuning shop, described an almost decade-long legal fight that culminated in a consent decree that nearly put him out of business.
According to an EPA press release in 2022, federal prosecutors described Willis’ company as among the country’s leading developers of “delete tunes” — software that disables emissions controls in diesel trucks.
Court records show his company tuned more than 175,000 vehicles, moving over $1 million in products monthly at its peak, with emissions expected to release more than 100 million pounds of excess pollutants over the lifetime of those vehicles.
Another witness, Eric Schaeffer, former executive director of the Environmental Integrity Project and EPA Office of Civil Enforcement director, subtly questioned Willis in his testimony.
“If you’re stuck behind a diesel truck, or a bunch of diesel trucks, in a traffic jam, and being showered with soot, live in an apartment next to a highway or the is city cooked by smog … don’t you have the right to breathe clean air? We used to think so,” Schaeffer said.
In its press release, the EPA said “Diesel emissions include multiple hazardous compounds and harm human health and the environment. Diesel emissions have been found to cause and worsen respiratory ailments such as asthma and lung cancer. One study indicated that 21,000 American deaths annually are attributable to diesel particulate matter.”
In March 2022, Willis and Power Performances Enterprise Inc. pleaded guilty to conspiracy and Clean Air Act violations, agreeing to pay $3.1 million in criminal fines and civil penalties and to stop selling defeat devices.
Schaeffer noted that the crackdown on defeat devices did not begin with the Biden administration.
“The launching of this enforcement initiative to crack down on the sale of these aftermarket devices started under the Trump administration in President Trump’s first term,” he said, pointing to EPA guidance at the time that warned of criminal penalties and urged companies to self-disclose violations.
Since then, federal courts have consistently upheld that the Clean Air Act covers aftermarket tampering devices.
Democratic members pushed back on the GOP positions, framing the hearing as not an examination of enforcement tools, but instead as part of the broader efforts for this administration to roll back environmental protections.
Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa., highlighted the dismantling of environmental justice functions, warning that loosened oversight would leave vulnerable communities more exposed to soot, asthma and cancer.
For example, in July, the EPA announced it was dismantling its Office of Research and Development, the branch long responsible for the agency’s core scientific work, laying off many staff.
A new Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions will replace it — a change that EPA officials under Trump say will streamline research and save nearly $750 million.
Together, the hearings and EPA’s actions indicated a present and future narrowing of the agency’s enforcement reach, pulling back climate transparency rules and reframing scientific research.
Authors: Talal Alhathal and Amir Dhia*
In a dynamic world where higher education is a gateway to opportunity, far too many talented youth remain locked out—trapped behind financial, social, and political barriers. For marginalized and conflict-affected youth, the dream of attending university is often deferred, if not entirely extinguished. Yet, there is a proven solution hiding in plain sight: inclusive, quality and relevant scholarship programs.
Scholarships must not be seen as charity, but as investments in human capital and development in society. Inclusive scholarships do more than fund tuition. They serve as transformative interventions—paving futures and restoring dignity. And for higher education institutions (HEIs), these scholarships can be catalysts for innovation, reshaping the global education landscape.
Overcoming the Persistent Barriers to Higher Education
According to international organizations, millions of young people worldwide face multiple, overlapping challenges that limit access to higher education. Refugees, internally displaced persons, underserved women, students with disabilities, and those from low-income backgrounds often encounter systemic marginalization and underfunding.
Access to higher education opportunities is only the first step. UNHCR signals that 7% of refugees today have access to higher education compared to only 1% in 2019. This is far below the global average of higher education enrollment among non-refugees, which currently stands at around 42%. To achieve the target of 15% enrolment by 2030, UNHCR emphasizes that coordination, commitment and the sustained engagement of a range of partners as well as a focus on HEIs and systems in primary hosting countries will be required.
Tuition fees on the rise remain out of reach for many. Even when financial aid exists, students struggle with hidden costs—transportation, learning materials, digital access, and psychosocial support. In fragile or conflict-affected contexts, political instability and displacement further disrupt educational continuity. For these students, a scholarship can mean the difference between social exclusion and becoming a leader in their community.
One of the biggest challenges in scaling scholarship programs is sustainable financing. Traditional donor-driven models, while foundational, are insufficient on their own. According to UNESCO, an alarming potential loss of US$21 trillion—equivalent to 17% of global GDP—could occur in lifetime earnings for students due to escalating education inequities, learning poverty, and loss of learning opportunities. Hence, innovation in how scholarships are funded, sustained, and delivered is becoming paramount. Blended finance models, cost-sharing mechanisms, and outcome-based funding are key to building effective and resilient partnerships.
Scholarship Programs that Transform Higher Education Institutions
Scholarships significantly ease the financial burden on students and families, particularly in low-income economies and crisis-affected contexts. When this burden is lifted, students are less likely to drop out and more likely to excel. Improved retention, higher completion rates, and stronger academic performance enhance the reputation and competitiveness of HEIs on the global stage.
Inclusive scholarships also foster diversity and equity in higher education. By supporting underserved communities and individuals, scholarships not only close the access gap but also transform campus demographics and academic discourse. When students from diverse backgrounds thrive, institutions become more representative, socially responsive, and globally relevant.
Moreover, high-quality scholarship programs attract high-caliber applicants who might otherwise be excluded. These students often become some of the most driven and impactful members of their communities and societies. Their presence raises the standard of academic engagement and reinforces a virtuous cycle of inclusion and excellence. Scholarships also support adult learners, foster career mobility, and promote lifelong learning—vital in a world where cross-skilling and adaptability are key to navigating complex futures.
For HEIs most compellingly, scholarships drive innovation. With more diverse learners come stronger demands for accessible technology, inclusive pedagogy, support services, and flexible learning models. These needs accelerate institutional investment in blended learning, digital inclusion, and universal design. Such advancements of HEIs are also directly aligned with global priorities such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A recent research highlights that the successful implementation of the SDGs depends on the existence of well-functioning and capacitated HEIs in every society. It adds that inclusive scholarship programs contribute to the investment in local higher education systems and institutions, strengthening their infrastructure in the host countries.
Stories of Resilience, Ambition, and Transformation
For scholarship programs to be truly impactful, they should also be relevant and designed around the lived realities of the underserved students. A scholarship is not merely a ticket to the classroom—it must serve as a bridge to employability and social contribution. Thus, market-driven higher and tertiary education programs should align to both the needs of society and future trends in workforce.
Facts and feedback from the Education Above All (EAA) Foundation scholarship recipients and alumni show how inclusive and quality higher education scholarships drive positive change. For marginalized and conflict-affected youth, these opportunities are not just financial—they have become lifelines. EAA’s Qatar Scholarship programs, spearheaded by Al Fakhoora Program and in collaboration with key partners, has empowered recipients to access sustainable employment and thrive within society. The programs provide holistic support by covering tuition, ending social isolation, and offering pathways to dignity and opportunity.
In one of EAA’s scholarship programs, for instance, nearly 91% of the recent graduates from top-tier universities found employment within six months of completing their degree studies. The remaining 9% did so within a year. Most graduates now work in fields aligned with their studies, contributing meaningfully to their communities and professions. According to the recipients themselves, these scholarships did more than alleviate financial pressure—they enabled inclusion, ensured access to quality education, and fostered a sense of belonging and equality.
A Call to Action
We are at a pivotal moment. Global displacement is at an all-time high. Conflict, climate change, and economic inequality are creating new education emergencies. If we fail to act now, we risk consigning generations of youth to exclusion and despair. But there is another path. We can choose to invest in the futures of those left long behind. The impact is proven, the means exist, and the moral imperative is undeniable.
Over time, inclusive scholarships do more than serve individual students—they create ripple effects. They enhance the institutional reputation, strengthen the social contract between universities and communities, and even empower the scholars to contribute to the advancement of society through civic engagement, peace and global citizenship, and intergenerational mobility.
No single actor can do this alone. Real impact requires coordination across borders and sectors. The private sector, more than ever before, also has a critical role to play—from tech companies enhancing digital access to employers offering internships and job opportunities. The future of work is global, and so must be the response to educational inequality.
EAA continues to advocate with the global higher education community and beyond for inclusive, quality-driven, and scalable scholarship solutions. EAA has pioneered multi-stakeholder collaboration, bringing together UN agencies, development banks, universities, philanthropic organizations, and local governments to co-fund scholarship pathways. These models are scalable, replicable, and demonstrate that with institutional will and strategic partnerships, solutions are within reach.
*Amir Dhia is the Technical Manager of Higher Education at the Education Above All (EAA) Foundation. His career spans over twenty-five years of global experience in the private, public, non-governmental, and state institutions. He has held several senior executive positions internationally, including Advisor, Dean, and Director General, contributing to the advancement of higher and executive education, certification institutions, language institutes, and international education partnerships. Amir holds a PhD (summa cum laude), specializing in the Knowledge Society and Diplomacy, along with a number of designations in leadership, management, and business development.
About the Education Above All (EAA) Foundation
The Education Above All (EAA) Foundation is a global foundation established in 2012 by Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser. EAA Foundation aims to transform lives through education and employment opportunities. We believe that education is the single most effective means of reducing poverty, creating peaceful and just societies, unlocking the full potential of every child and youth, and creating the right conditions to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Through our multi-sectoral approach, unique financing models, focus on innovation as a tool for social good, and partnerships, we aim to bring hope and real opportunities to the lives of impoverished and marginalised children and youth. EAA Foundation is comprised of the following programmes: Educate A Child (EAC), Al Fakhoora, Reach Out To All (ROTA), Silatech, Protect Education in Insecurity and Conflict (PEIC), Innovation Development (ID) and Together project.
The World Series could end in November this year. Major League Baseball can do without all the “Mr. November” jokes, so the league took a creative step last year: a flexible start date for the World Series.
It’s not easy to cram a four-round postseason in a month. But it’s even less ideal if the World Series teams roll through the league championship series, then sit around for close to a week before the World Series starts.
MLB unveiled this creative reform last year: If both World Series teams complete the league championship series in no more than five games, the start of the World Series would move up three days. Nothing kills interest in an everyday sport like a week off before the most important games of the season.
The reform did not come into play last season. Although the New York Yankees won the American League Championship Series in five games, the Dodgers needed six games to complete the NLCS.
When MLB announced its postseason schedule Tuesday, the flexible start date for the World Series was gone. With the Dodgers coming within one victory of making that happen last season, league officials and television partners had the chance to prepare for two possibilities for the start of the World Series. The uncertainty of what date to promote, and the need for alternate travel plans and hotel blocks, left the parties with the thought that a fixed date for the World Series remained a better plan.
The World Series this year is set to start on Friday, Oct. 24, with a possible Game 7 on Saturday, Nov. 1.
The wild-card round starts Tuesday, Sept. 30, with the division series round starting Saturday, Oct. 4. The teams with the top two records in each league earn a bye in the first round and advance directly to the division series.
If the postseason started Tuesday, the Dodgers (68-51) would be the No. 3 seed in the NL, behind the Milwaukee Brewers (74-44) and the Philadelphia Phillies (69-49). The wild card teams, in order of seed, would be the Chicago Cubs (67-50), San Diego Padres (67-52) and the New York Mets (63-55).
In that scenario, the Dodgers and Mets — the NLCS combatants last season — would meet in the wild-card round this season.
When a shift of this nature occurs, bankers are driven and evaluated more on customer acquisition, product innovation, and digital engagement which we can see in the market. Interestingly, the findings also revealed that artificial intelligence (AI) is generating measurable business value, with more banks seeing strong returns as initiatives mature.
The renewed focus on innovation is aligned with measurably increased investments in scaling AI and cloud capabilities that accelerate digital transformation – and brings positive change to customer and employee experiences. Our experience with top banks shows that innovation thrives when business, IT, compliance, and product teams collaborate. To achieve this, all leaders need to be familiar about the possibilities with AI, data analytics and cloud. Even non-technical roles require clear guidance on how these technologies intersect and impact hyper-personalized banking experiences and operations into the future.
Source: Infosys Bank Tech Index: Volume 5, Infosys Knowledge Institute
AI now comprises 9% of technology budgets across APAC with increasing impact. Approximately 26% of banks in APAC indicated that AI generates the most business value in fraud detection. DBS for example uses AI for real-time transaction screening, anomaly detection, and behavioural pattern analysis to detect fraud and unauthorised activities. In another example, Westpac uses a real-time AI-powered call assistant to help their scam and fraud teams detect signs of scams during live customer calls. The bank has reported that this has saved Westpac customers more than AUD500 million.
Approximately 25% of banks cite customer service as where AI delivers the highest value. Leading banks are already realising these benefits: ANZ Bank uses AI to help customers manage their finances more effectively through smarter insights and improved data interactions.AI also has significant potential to enhance productivity in banks with the possibility that generative AI alone could add between $200 billion and $340 billion in value to the sector, through productivity gains. AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants are streamlining interactions, enabling personalised, real-time customer engagement while optimising operational costs.
In our work with clients, often the focus is on the challenges of tackling unique business opportunities. Aligned with this, our banking-specific small language model, Infosys Topaz BankingSLM, is designed to improve how financial institutions operate by delivering accurate, tailored AI capabilities. Taking advantage of very advanced enterprise AI capabilities helps banks innovate confidently in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
Yet, the journey is ongoing: our research shows nearly half of AI initiatives remain in the early stages, hindered by data management challenges, regulatory complexities and the lack of the right talent. This signals a clear mandate for banks to strengthen data architectures and governance frameworks to unlock AI’s full potential.
Data privacy and security remain the foremost challenges to AI and cloud adoption. Banks are navigating complex regulatory landscapes while ensuring robust data protection. Interestingly, over half of APAC banks consider their data architecture AI-ready – yet they face the most challenges in implementing AI in their data architecture. Security concerns also dominate cloud migration decisions. Strong governance, encryption, and compliance frameworks are essential to manage sensitive customer data safely.
Recruiting tech talent remains a significant hurdle for many banks in the region. Many banks are investing in reskilling initiatives and Governments are also playing a key role to bridge the talent gap. For example, the Australian government is developing a National AI Capability Plan focusing on boosting research, talent development, ethical AI use, and collaboration with industry and academia.
In an environment where talent is the most valuable asset, agentic AI is crucial in augmenting employee capabilities, supporting continuous learning, and powering smarter, faster, and more personalised banking experiences for customers. Our launch of the Infosys Agentic AI Foundry represents a significant step forward in how enterprises can responsibly and effectively adopt AI agents at scale. This platform offers a practical and ethical framework for integrating AI the enterprise. By implementing a multi-agent invoice automation solution within our finance team, we’ve boosted productivity by more than 50%, while achieving notable cost savings and improving overall operational efficiency. This kind of practical AI application is helping us work smarter and deliver better outcomes.
This year presents important opportunities for banks across the high growth APAC region. Those with clear AI-led transformation strategies can build out better capabilities, leading to improved operational efficiency and better customer experiences. As banks continue to test agentic AI, they will see its benefits in enhancing customer experiences through personalized recommendations, seamless onboarding, and proactive support across all channels. This will help attract and retain customers while maintaining a solid position in the market. Although challenges around data privacy, security, and regulatory compliance remain, banks that carefully balance investment in digital tools with effective risk management will be well-placed to navigate the evolving landscape.
Andrew Groth
Executive Vice President, Industry Head – Financial Services, Region Head – Asia Pacific| Infosys
Andrew is the Region Head for Infosys AsiaPac and is part of the Global Financial Services Executive. Having lived and worked across Europe, Asia Pacific and the United States, Andrew has rich strategic experience with many of the largest organisations in the world – including major financial institutions. Andrew is a Senior Associate of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance, a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and holds an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management. Andrew also represents Infosys in the Business Council of Australia and participates in the BCA’s Future Growth Industries Committee.
July 15 (UPI) — Pennsylvanians and the nation will benefit from $100 billion in energy- and artificial intelligence-related investments announced on Tuesday to energize the nation’s growing AI economy.
The investments should create tens of thousands of new jobs for Pennsylvanians in the energy and AI sectors while helping the United States improve its economy and global AI standing, President Donald Trump said during Tuesday’s inaugural Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit in Pittsburgh.
“We’re here today because we believe America’s destiny is to dominate every industry and be the first in every technology,” Trump told attendees.
“That includes being the world’s No. 1 superpower in artificial intelligence,” he added.
The president said the United States is “way ahead of China” in AI development and has many plants under construction.
“China and other countries are racing to catch up to America having to do with AI,” Trump said.
“We’re not going to let them do it,” he said. “We have the great chips [and] the great everything.”
Trump said the United States is “going to be fighting them in a very friendly fashion,” adding that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping have a “great relationship.”
“Remaining the world’s leader in AI will require an enormous increase in energy production,” Trump told the audience.
He said “clean, beautiful coal” and oil production will be a key element in producing more electrical power to support AI endeavors in the United States and to stay ahead of China in AI development.
More than $56 billion in new energy infrastructure and $36 billion in new data projects were announced on Tuesday, the president said.
A $15 billion investment by Knighthead Capital Management will create the largest natural gas-fired power generation plant in North America in Homer City, Pa.
Google also is investing “billions and billions” to revitalize two hydropower facilities in the commonwealth, Trump added.
Westinghouse officials also have announced that the company will build several nuclear power plants throughout the nation to ensure the AI economy has ample energy available.
“A lot more than that will be announced in the coming weeks and months,” Trump added.
The president said 20 “leading technology and energy companies” are poised to invest in Pennsylvania to develop an AI economy that utilizes the commonwealth’s energy and technology assets, CBS News reported.
Many firms are investing elsewhere in the country, too, in order to support the nation’s AI economy, according to the New York Post.
Trump spoke for about 30 minutes during the hour-long Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit, which was organized by Sen Dave McCormick, R-Pa., and held on the campus of Carnegie Mellon University.
Pennsylvania’s Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and others joined Trump and McCormick to discuss energy matters and the growth of AI in the United States.
New Delhi, India – Getting into one of the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) schools was supposed to be the end of the financial woes for Paras* and his family. Instead, things have only worsened due to the federal government’s long delays in dispensing Paras’s monthly fellowship allowance of 37,000 rupees ($435).
At the IIT, Paras is a research fellow, looking into solutions to a global public health crisis created by the spread of infectious diseases. His fellowship comes from the INSPIRE scheme, funded by India’s Department of Science and Technology (DST).
But delays in the scheme’s payment have meant that Paras was not able to pay the instalments on the laptop he bought for his research in 2022. His credit score plummeted, and his savings plans crashed.
Paras’s parents are farmers in a drought-affected region of western India, and their income depends on a harvest that often fails. So, he has resorted to borrowing money from friends, including as recently as between August and December, he told Al Jazeera.
Paras is not alone. Al Jazeera spoke to nearly a dozen current and former fellows enrolled in top institutes across India under the Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) programme. The interviewees studied at institutions such as the IIT, a network of engineering and technology schools across the country, and the Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research, another network.
All had gone from three to as long as nine months without a stipend.
The funding delays and procedural lapses have marred the fellowship and impaired their research capacity, they said.
Many researchers recently took to social media to complain, tagging Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Minister of Science and Technology Jitendra Singh.
“For over a year now, many of us who are pursuing PhDs under DST-funded fellowships have not received our stipends,” Sayali Atkare, an INSPIRE fellow, wrote on LinkedIn. “This has pushed many young researchers into severe financial and emotional stress.”
Last year, India ranked 39th in the Global Innovation Index of 133 countries, up one spot from the year prior. It leads lower-middle-income countries like Vietnam and the Philippines in innovation. China leads upper-middle-income countries and is followed by Malaysia and Turkiye.
The federal government termed the ranking an “impressive leap” in a news release. It said that India’s “growing innovation potential has been supported by government initiatives that prioritise technological advancement, ease of doing business, and entrepreneurship”.
At a federal government conference in April, Modi boasted of India’s growing research acumen. Under his leadership in the past decade, the government has doubled its gross spending on research and development from 600 billion rupees ($7.05bn) to more than 1,250 billion rupees ($14.7bn), while the number of patents filed has more than doubled – from 40,000 to more than 80,000.
The numerous steps taken by the government – like doubling of expenditure on R&D (research and development), doubling of patents filed in India, creation of state-of-the-art research parks and research fellowships and facilities – ensure “that talented individuals face no obstacles in advancing their careers”, Modi said.>
However, an analysis of government documents, budgets and interviews with researchers reveals that the government is more focused on commercial research, primarily product development led by start-ups and big corporations. It is offering little funding for research conducted at the country’s premier universities.
For instance, in the current financial year, 70 percent of the Science and Technology Department’s annual budget has been allocated to a scheme under which interest-free loans are provided to private companies conducting research in sunrise domains, such as semiconductors.
At the same time, the government has made misleading statements about its investments in the country’s research institutes, including with schemes like the INSPIRE fellowship, where funds have actually been cut instead of being increased as touted by the government.
The INSPIRE scheme offers PhD and faculty fellowships to “attract, attach, retain and nourish talented young scientific Human Resource for strengthening the R&D foundation and base”.
The fellowships are offered to top-ranking postgraduate students and doctoral researchers to conduct research in areas from agriculture, biochemistry, neuroscience and cancer biology to climate science, renewable energy and nanotechnology.
Under the scheme, PhD fellows are to receive 37,000 rupees ($435.14) to 42,000 rupees ($493.94) per month for living expenses and 20,000 rupees ($235.21) annually for research-related costs, such as paying for equipment or work-related travel.
Faculty fellows are offered teaching positions with a monthly salary of 125,000 rupees ($1,470) and an annual research grant of 700,000 rupees ($8,232).
In the year 2024-25, 653 fellows were enrolled in the PhD fellowship, and 85 in the faculty fellowship programme.
“I couldn’t attend an important annual meeting in our field because it required travel, and I was not sure if I would get my allowance,” a faculty fellow at an institute in eastern India said. He has not received his payments since September 2024.
Atkare, the PhD student who wrote about the government’s failure on LinkedIn, also wrote, “We’ve made endless phone calls, written countless emails – most of which go unanswered or are met with vague responses. Some officials even respond rudely.”
Another INSPIRE PhD fellow told us of a running joke: “If they pick up the phone, you can buy a lottery ticket that day. It’s your lucky day.”
In May, DST Secretary Abhay Karandikar accepted that there were funding delays and said that they would soon be resolved.
Karandikar told the Hindu newspaper that he was “aware” of the disbursement crisis but said that from June 2025, all scholars would get their money on time. “All problems have been addressed. I don’t foresee any issue in the future,” he said.
Al Jazeera requested a comment from the science and technology minister, the DST secretary and the head of the department’s wing that implements the INSPIRE scheme, but has not received a response.
In January, the federal government folded three R&D-related schemes to start Vigyan Dhara or “the flow of science” to ensure “efficiency in fund utilisation”. The INSPIRE scheme had been funded under one of those schemes.
But instead of efficiency, there has been chaos.
Under Vigyan Dhara, DST asked institutes to set up new bank accounts, leading to delays in payments for INSPIRE fellowships.
New Delhi also said that it had “significantly increased” funding for the Vigyan Dhara scheme, from 3.30 billion rupees ($38.39m) in the last financial year to 14.25 billion rupees ($167.58m) in the current financial year.
However, that math was incomplete. The 3.30 billion rupees ($38.39m) is what the government earmarked for the scheme, which was only launched in the last quarter of the fiscal year. The budget for the full fiscal year of the three schemes that Vigyan Dhara replaced amounted to 18.27 billion rupees ($214.93m). So, in effect, the current budget saw a 22 percent decrease in allocation from 18.27 billion rupees to 14.25 billion rupees ($167.58m).
Overall, the budget for Vigyan Dhara’s constituent schemes reduced 67.5 percent from 43.89 billion rupees ($513.2m) in financial year 2016-17 to 14.25 billion rupees ($167.6m) in financial year 2025-26.
DST officials did not respond to Al Jazeera’s query requesting clarification of Vigyan Dhara’s budgetary allocations.
On the other hand, the Indian government earmarked 200 billion rupees ($2.35bn) for the new Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) scheme targeting the private sector.
This money is part of a larger 1-trillion-rupee ($11.76bn) corpus previously announced by India’s finance minister to provide long-term financing at low or no interest rates.
These changes in schemes are intended to make India a “product nation”, get more patents filed in India, and curb the brain drain, as Union Minister Aswini Vaishnaw and DST officials explain in different videos.
But the plight of the researchers at state-run organisations remains unaddressed.
“The government throws around big terms, but those toiling in laboratories are suffering,” said Lal Chandra Vishwakarma, president of All-India Research Scholars Association.
“Stipends should be similar to salaries of central government employees. Fellows should get their money every month without fail,” he said.
In the current scenario, most fellows Al Jazeera spoke to said that they would prefer a fellowship abroad.
“It’s not just about funds but the ease of research, which is much better in Europe and [the United States]. We get so much staff support there. In India, you get none of that,” said a professor at an IIT, who supervises an INSPIRE PhD fellow who faced funding issues.
While the private sector is being heavily financed, researchers told us they downplay their funding costs as that improves their chances of landing government research projects.
“Cutting-edge research is so fast; if we lose the first few years due to cost-cutting, we are behind our colleagues abroad,” the IIT professor said.
“Once we submit necessary documents, like annual progress reports, DST takes at least three months to release the next instalment. It’s usual,” said a PhD fellow who is a theoretical mathematician.
“Right now, I would say only people with privilege [and high-income backgrounds] should be in academia. Not because that’s how it should be, but because for others, it’s just so hard,” the IIT professor said.
*Al Jazeera has changed names to protect the identity of interviewees.
Abstract: Amidst the challenges of digital transformation in developing countries, M-Pesa emerges as a local innovation that successfully empowers communities through mobile phone-based financial services. Launched in Kenya in 2007, M-Pesa expands access to financial services, drives regional economic integration, and opens up new opportunities for small businesses. While offering great potential to expand global financial inclusion, M-Pesa faces challenges such as global fintech competition, digital security risks, and regulatory misalignment between countries. To maintain its relevance, M-Pesa must continue to innovate while remaining rooted in local needs and the principle of inclusivity.
In the midst of global digital transformation, many developing countries face major challenges in accessing and utilizing technology to drive economic growth. Limited infrastructure, low levels of digital literacy, and unequal access to financial services are major obstacles in this process. Despite these challenges, local innovations have emerged that address the specific needs of their communities. One example is M-Pesa, a mobile phone-based financial service introduced in Kenya in 2007. From a simple need for a safe and fast money transfer system in areas with limited access to banks, M-Pesa has grown into a global phenomenon that is changing the face of local and regional economies.
M-Pesa not only offers easy financial transactions for individuals but also opens access to microcredit, insurance, and business payment services (Kagan, 2023). Thus, M-Pesa shows how innovation based on local needs can be a catalyst for inclusive digital transformation. The presence of M-Pesa contributes to economic integration, both at the national level and between countries in the East African region. This service proves that digital solutions designed with local context in mind can address structural challenges, accelerate economic growth, and improve social stability. Through the design of M-Pesa, it can be understood that empowering local innovation is essential in driving sustainable digital transformation for local needs while strengthening economic connectivity in an increasingly digitized world.
M-Pesa: Local Innovation in the Digital Age
In the discourse of digital transformation in developing countries, M-Pesa has become a hot topic of discussion as one of the successful models of innovation based on local needs. Understanding the significance of M-Pesa needs to be seen through the process of formation, development dynamics, and the implications of this innovation on socio-economic structures. M-Pesa emerged in 2007 in Kenya, developed by Safaricom—a subsidiary of Vodafone—as an answer to the lack of access to formal banking services (Wachira & Njuguna, 2023). At the time, the majority of Kenyans, especially in rural areas, did not have bank accounts. This created a need for a simple, cheap, and widely accessible financial system. Herein lies the main strength of M-Pesa, which does not seek to replicate Western banking systems but rather builds solutions that fit local realities. This shows that successful innovation in the digital age is not a mere transplant of global technology but rather a smart contextual adaptation.
The rapid development of M-Pesa brings features from an SMS-based money transfer service to a financial ecosystem that includes bill payments, goods purchases, savings, microloans, and insurance (Schachter, 2018). This transformation not only expands financial services but also disrupts the traditional role of banks, which has been exclusive to the upper middle class. Amidst the praise for M-Pesa’s financial inclusion, there is also criticism about the unequal access to technology. Although based on a relatively simple SMS, the service still requires ownership of a mobile phone and a stable telecommunications network, two things that are unevenly distributed across Kenya and East Africa. This shows that digital innovation, if not accompanied by investment in basic infrastructure, can deepen the gap between those who are connected and those who are left behind. M-Pesa is proof that local innovation can be a lever for structural change. In the current context of globalization, the challenge ahead is to ensure that digital transformation based on local innovation is not just a tool of market integration but also an instrument of sustainable social empowerment.
M-Pesa as an Instrument of Economic Integration
In the era of economic globalization, integration is no longer only determined by the relationship between large countries but also by the ability of lower society groups to connect directly through technology. In this context, M-Pesa emerges as an innovative instrument that accelerates economic integration, especially in the Global South, which has often been marginalized in global finance. M-Pesa accelerates cross-border transactions by providing a simple and fast money transfer solution, even without requiring access to a traditional bank. Services such as Mobile Money Transfer (MMT) enable migrant workers in the East African region to send money to their families at a much lower cost and in a much faster time than conventional financial institutions (Safaricom, 2023).
M-Pesa also opens up opportunities for small businesses to connect with a wider market. With easily accessible digital payment services, micro-merchants can conduct transactions across regions without having to rely on expensive banking infrastructure. This strengthens the position of small businesses as important actors in the global supply chain while encouraging more inclusive, people-based economic growth. Innovations in M-Pesa are able to overcome classic barriers, such as the inability to access credit. With M-Pesa, there is an increase in regional financial connectivity, particularly in East Africa. With widespread adoption in Kenya, Albania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ghana, India, Lesotho, Mozambique, Romania, and Tanzania, M-Pesa creates a kind of digitally connected regional financial ecosystem (Owigar, 2017). This reduces both domestic and cross-border transaction costs and ultimately increases the efficiency of the region’s economy. In the long term, M-Pesa shows potential to accelerate the formation of a more integrated and competitive regional market.
Opportunities and Challenges of M-Pesa in the Future
Given its multiple successes in revolutionizing financial services in East Africa, M-Pesa has a great opportunity to expand its role in the global digital economy. M-Pesa’s success cannot rely solely on the old model. Continuous innovation and adaptation to new technology trends are key to sustaining M-Pesa. Despite its success in Kenya and several other countries, many other regions in the Global South still face similar problems. By adapting its approach to local characteristics, M-Pesa has the potential to become an inclusive financial platform that transcends regional boundaries and becomes a global player in digital financial inclusion.
While M-Pesa offers great opportunities to expand financial inclusion and strengthen economic integration, it is undeniable that the platform also faces serious challenges that could hinder or even reverse its achievements. When M-Pesa is not managed properly, its success today can become a source of vulnerability in the future. One of the main challenges is the increasing competition from global financial technology companies. With the entry of big players like PayPal and various local fintech startups, the digital financial services market has become increasingly competitive. When M-Pesa fails to innovate or expand services according to the needs of the new digital generation, it will be very risky to be abandoned, especially by the younger generation, who are more sensitive to faster and more flexible technology options. In addition, digital security issues are a threat that cannot be ignored. The growing volume of transactions through M-Pesa makes the platform a potential target for cyberattacks, data theft, and digital fraud. In a context where many users do not yet have strong digital literacy, a security breach can destroy the trust that has been built over the years and worsen the stability of the service.
As M-Pesa expands, differences in legal frameworks and consumer protection between countries are a major obstacle. If there is no alignment in terms of policies, users in certain countries may become more vulnerable to data abuse. In facing the future, M-Pesa must stay true to its core principle of addressing the needs of the community through simple, affordable, and inclusive technology. Consideration of digital risk resilience, the courage to compete fairly, and a commitment to maintaining economic justice in the midst of an increasingly complex digital ecosystem need to be improved. Innovation created from local needs is the key for M-Pesa to survive, not only as a transaction tool but also as the foundation for a more equitable and sustainable digital economy.
Uncertainty continues to cloud the global economic horizon, with tariffs remaining a dominant con- cern in both political and financial circles. In the
United States, decisions by the Trump administration have increasingly been subject to legal scrutiny and challenged in court, and what’s legal one week may be overturned the next. As economists at BNP Paribas aptly describe it, the legal status of trade decisions moves like a yo-yo.
Meanwhile, formal and informal trade talks between sovereign nations continue moving up and down. Financial markets reflect this instability with sharp reactions. But for the corporate world, time doesn’t stop. Daily decisions must be made—regardless of the uncertainty hanging over long-term strategies. Questions abound: Will multinational infrastructure projects go ahead? Will financing for wind and alternative energy initiatives hold firm? These are difficult questions, and for many, the answers remain elusive. And yet, in this uncertainty, one sector shows remark- able resilience: innovation. In this issue, we’re proud to present our annual awards for innovation and innovators, along with a selection of some of the most dynamic innovation labs around the world. Unsurprisingly, artificial intelligence leads the way, both in concept and in real- world application. Many of the financial institutions and fintech firms recognized this year are not just adapting to the future—they are helping to shape it.
The innovations profiled by our global team of reporters and analysts are impressive on their own merits. But more striking is the broader trend they represent. Despite economic and political volatility, organizations across the financial and technology spectrum—banks, startups, consulting firms, and independent labs—are continuing to invest aggressively in R&D. Why? Because innovation is not a luxury. It’s a necessity.
This strong commitment to innovation suggests something profound: in uncertain times, looking forward becomes more important, not less. Innovation, in this context, is not merely a growth strategy—it’s a survival strategy. And in many ways, it proves to be counter-cyclical. When the present is unstable, thinking ahead becomes not just prudent, but essential.
Andrea Fiano | Editor At Large | [email protected]
Access the digital edition.
In April 2025, a familiar tension resurfaced on the global trade stage. The United States, through its 2025 National Trade Estimate (NTE) report, criticized Indonesia’s national QR payment system, QRIS (Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard), and its domestic payment network GPN for allegedly restricting access to foreign firms like Visa and Mastercard. This came at a politically sensitive moment: just as the U.S. announced a 32% reciprocal tariff on Indonesian goods—a move temporarily suspended by the Trump administration for 90 days starting April 9, 2025 (Office of the United States Trade Representative, 2025).
At the center of this trade dispute is a quiet yet transformative success story: Indonesia’s regulator-led push to unify, simplify, and democratize digital payments. While the U.S. frames QRIS as protectionist, many in the Global South see it differently. They see it as sovereignty in code form—a model where innovation doesn’t only emerge from Silicon Valley, but from sovereign policy designed with inclusion, affordability, and national interoperability at its core.
QRIS, launched in 2019 by Bank Indonesia, now boasts over 50 million users and 32 million merchants—92% of whom are MSMEs. Its impact is visible not only in transaction volumes but in the radical reshaping of Indonesia’s informal economy. Through a single interoperable QR standard, QRIS reduced barriers for small vendors, brought millions into the financial system, and enabled digital literacy at scale (Bank Indonesia, 2025; QRIS Interactive, 2025). Features like QRIS TUNTAS and QRIS Antarnegara extend its utility to ATM-like services and cross-border payments with neighboring ASEAN countries (“Riset Sukses QRIS Indonesia”, 2025).
Today, QRIS is accepted not only across Indonesia but also in partner countries including Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Vietnam, Laos, Brunei Darussalam, Japan, and South Korea. These regional agreements strengthen QRIS as a payment bridge across Asia, facilitating tourism, trade, and local currency settlements.
In contrast to the U.S. critique, QRIS represents a strategic choice to design for dignity rather than dependence. The lesson here is not anti-global—it is about asserting a model of digital governance where financial infrastructure, when governed wisely, can serve local resilience while remaining open to fair, mutually beneficial cooperation.
In fact, the Indonesian government has consistently expressed openness to global firms—including Visa and Mastercard—being part of the QRIS ecosystem. This reflects a collaborative model that embraces interoperability and innovation, as long as it aligns with the public interest and meets the nation’s inclusive development goals. The QRIS story shows that sovereignty and openness can coexist, and that digital payment systems can be built on principles of both equity and cooperation.
For the Global South, Indonesia’s QRIS success offers five strategic lessons:
This trajectory stands in marked contrast to two other Global South giants: India and China.
In India, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), launched by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), created a real-time payment system that integrates bank accounts across providers. Its success stems from similar government-led standardization, free or minimal transaction fees, and integration into flagship digital initiatives. UPI has become central to India’s financial inclusion drive, particularly among underbanked rural populations (IJFMR, 2025; NPCI, 2025).
Meanwhile in China, QR payment adoption exploded via a different route: commercial super-apps. Alipay and WeChat Pay dominated over 93% of the market by 2019, offering frictionless experiences integrated into social media and e-commerce platforms. However, their dominance led to walled gardens, until government intervention in 2017 required all non-bank QR transactions to be cleared through a centralized clearinghouse known as Wanglian (REI Journal, 2025; Toucanus Blog, 2025).
This comparison reveals not just different models, but different philosophies:
As financial digitalization accelerates worldwide, the choice is no longer between Silicon Valley or state control. The new frontier lies in hybrid governance models rooted in public interest, where local needs shape global partnerships. QRIS is not perfect, but it proves a crucial point: the Global South can chart its own fintech path—inclusive, interoperable, and sovereign—while still welcoming collaboration.
The key is to ensure that such collaborations are not extractive, but mutual. Interoperability with foreign systems can and should be pursued, as long as it doesn’t compromise local resilience or digital sovereignty. Rather than rejecting international cooperation, Indonesia’s QRIS shows how it can be done on equal terms—answering local priorities first.
For many nations in the Global South, digital public infrastructure like QRIS offers not just a financial tool, but a social mission. It is directly aligned with ESG and SDG narratives—advancing financial inclusion, reducing poverty, and promoting economic equity at the last mile. As such, future cooperation—whether with international firms or multilateral agencies—must serve this broader vision: technology as a lever for dignity, not dependency.
And sometimes, that path starts with a simple square of black-and-white code.
WASHINGTON — President Trump signed executive orders Friday intended to quadruple domestic production of nuclear power within the next 25 years, a goal experts say the United States is highly unlikely to reach.
To speed up the development of nuclear power, the orders grant the U.S. Energy secretary authority to approve advanced reactor designs and projects, taking authority away from the independent safety agency that has regulated the U.S. nuclear industry for five decades.
The order comes as demand for electricity surges amid a boom in energy-hungry data centers and artificial intelligence. Tech companies, venture capitalists, states and others are competing for electricity and straining the nation’s electric grid.
“We’ve got enough electricity to win the AI arms race with China,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said. “What we do in the next five years related to electricity is going to determine the next 50” years in the industry.
Still, it’s unlikely the U.S. could quadruple its nuclear production in the time frame the White House specified. The United States lacks any next-generation reactors operating commercially and only two large reactors have been built from scratch in nearly 50 years. Those two reactors, at a nuclear plant in Georgia, were completed years late and at least $17 billion over budget.
At the Oval Office signing, Trump, surrounded by industry executives, called nuclear a “hot industry,” adding, “It’s time for nuclear, and we’re going to do it very big.”
Burgum and other speakers said the industry has stagnated and has been choked by overregulation.
“Mark this day on your calendar. This is going to turn the clock back on over 50 years of overregulation of an industry,’’ said Burgum, who chairs Trump’s newly formed Energy Dominance Council.
The orders would reorganize the independent Nuclear Regulatory Commission to ensure quicker reviews of nuclear projects, including an 18-month deadline for the NRC to act on industry applications. The measures also create a pilot program intended to place three new experimental reactors online by July 4, 2026 — 13 months from now — and invoke the Defense Production Act to allow emergency measures to ensure the U.S. has the reactor fuel needed for a modernized nuclear energy sector.
The NRC is assessing the executive orders and will comply with White House directives, spokesperson Scott Burnell said Friday.
Jacob DeWitte, chief executive of the nuclear energy company Oklo, brought a golf ball to the Oval Office. He told Trump that’s the amount of uranium that can power someone’s needs for their entire life.
“It doesn’t get any better than that,” he said, holding up the ball.
“Very exciting indeed,” Trump said.
Trump has signed a spate of executive orders promoting oil, gas and coal that warm the planet when burned to produce electricity. Nuclear reactors generate electricity without emitting greenhouse gases. Trump said reactors are safe and clean but did not mention climate benefits. Safety advocates warn that nuclear technology still comes with significant risks that other low-carbon energy sources don’t, including the danger of accidents or targeted attacks, and the unresolved question of how to store tens of thousands of tons of hazardous nuclear waste.
The order to reorganize the NRC will include significant staff reductions but is not intended to fire NRC commissioners who lead the agency. David Wright, a former South Carolina elected official and utility commissioner, chairs the five-member panel. His term ends June 30, and it is unclear whether he will be reappointed.
Critics say the White House moves could compromise safety and violate legal frameworks such as the Atomic Energy Act. Compromising the independence of the NRC or encouraging it to be circumvented entirely could weaken the agency and make regulation less effective, said Edwin Lyman, director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists.
“Simply put, the U.S. nuclear industry will fail if safety is not made a priority,” he said.
Gregory Jaczko, who led the NRC under President Obama, said Trump’s executive orders look like someone asked an AI chatbot, “How do we make the nuclear industry worse in this country?”
He called the orders a “guillotine to the nation’s nuclear safety system” that will make the country less safe, the industry less reliable and the climate crisis more severe.
A number of countries are speeding up efforts to license and build a new generation of smaller nuclear reactors to meet a surging demand for electricity and supply it carbon-free. Last year, Congress passed legislation that President Biden signed to modernize the licensing of new reactor technologies so they can be built faster.
This month, the power company in Ontario, Canada, began building the first of four small nuclear reactors.
Valar Atomics is a nuclear reactor developer in California. Founder and CEO Isaiah Taylor said nuclear development and innovation in the United States has been slowed by too much red tape, while Russia and China are speeding ahead. He said he’s most excited about the mandate for the Energy Department to speed up the pace of innovation.
The NRC is currently reviewing applications from companies and a utility that want to build small nuclear reactors to begin providing power in the early 2030s. Currently, the NRC expects its reviews to take three years or less.
Tori Shivanandan, chief operating officer of Radiant Nuclear, a California-based startup, said the executive orders mark a “watershed moment” for nuclear power in the U.S., adding that Trump’s support for the advanced nuclear industry will help ensure its success.
Daly and McDermott write for the Associated Press.
If you voted for Donald Trump last November because you believed he’d increase economic freedom, it’s safe to say you were fooled. Following a reckless tariff barrage, the White House and its allies are preparing a new wave of tax-code gimmickry that has more in common with progressive social engineering than pro-growth reform. And don’t forget a fiscal recklessness that mirrors the mistakes of the left.
Defend these policies if you like, but let’s be clear: The administration shows no coherent commitment to free-market principles and is in fact actively undermining them. Its approach is better described as central planning disguised as economic nationalism.
This week’s example is an executive-order attempt at prescription-drug price control, similar to Democrats’ past proposals. If implemented it would inevitably reduce pharmaceutical R&D and innovation.
Tariffs remain the administration’s most visible economic sin after Trump launched the most extreme escalation of protectionism since the infamous Smoot-Hawley Act of 1930. Unlike the 1930s, however, today’s economy is deeply integrated with global supply chains, making the damage extensive and far more immediate. Tariffs are only nominally imposed on imports. Ultimately, they’re taxes on American consumers, workers and businesses.
The president has made it clear that he’s fine with limiting consumer choice, blithely telling parents they might have to “settle” for two dolls instead of 30 for their children. Smug pronouncements about how much we should shop (not much) or which sectors we should work in (manufacturing) are economic authoritarianism.
They’re also indicative of a deeper government rot. Policymaking is now done by executive orders as comatose congressional Republicans, like some Biden-era Democrats, allow the president to rule as if he’s a monarch.
A full-throated, assertive Congress would remind any president that manufacturing jobs were mostly lost to technologies that also create jobs and opportunity in members’ districts. Prosperity increases only through innovation and competition and isn’t restored by dragging people backward into lower-productivity jobs.
Now, even Trump’s tax agenda — once considered a bright spot by many free-market advocates — is being corrupted. Instead of championing the broad-based, pro-growth reforms we’d hoped for, the administration is doubling down on gimmickry: exempting tips and overtime pay, expanding child tax credits and entertaining the idea of raising top marginal tax rates.
These moves might poll well, but they’re unprincipled and unproductive. They undermine the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which aimed (however imperfectly) to simplify the code and incentivize growth, and not to micromanage worker and household behavior through the Internal Revenue Service.
And then there are the administration’s misleading, populist talking points about raising taxes on the rich to reduce taxes on lower- and middle-income workers. The U.S. income-tax system is already one of the most progressive in the developed world. According to the latest IRS data, the top 1% of earners pay more in federal income taxes than the bottom 90% combined. These high earners provide 40% of federal income-tax revenue; the bottom half of earners make up only 3% of that revenue. Thankfully, the House of Representatives steered away from that mistake in its bill.
Meanwhile, some Republican legislators are pushing to extend the 2017 tax cuts without meaningful offsets, setting the stage for a debt-fueled disaster. As noted by Scott Hodge, formerly the longtime president of the Tax Foundation, the GOP’s proposed cuts could add more than $5.8 trillion to the debt over a decade. That’s nearly three times the cost of the 2021 American Rescue Plan, which many Republicans rightly criticized for fueling inflation and fiscal instability.
To be clear: Pro-growth tax reform is essential. But not every tax cut is pro-growth, and no tax cut justifies further fiscal deterioration. Extending the 2017 cuts, which I generally support, shouldn’t be confused with true tax reform.
Some of the provisions being floated — expanded credits, exclusions for tips and overtime, rolling back the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap — are not growth policies. They are wealth redistribution run through the tax code, indistinguishable in substance from the kind of demand-side, Keynesian stimulus Republicans once decried.
Hodge notes that these measures would do more to mimic the American Rescue Plan than to reverse its pricey mistakes. And with the Federal Reserve still fighting inflation, adding trillions in unfunded liabilities to the national ledger is profoundly irresponsible.
None of this should surprise anyone paying attention. This administration is packed with advisors and surrogates who glorify union power, rail against globalization and scoff at the very idea of limited government. Some sound more like Bernie Sanders than Milton Friedman. Whether it’s directing industrial policy or distorting the tax code to reward their favorite behaviors, they are hostile to the competition and liberty of the free market.
Sadly, that hostility has real consequences: higher prices, greater economic uncertainty, sluggish investment and fewer opportunities for middle- and lower-class families.
Veronique de Rugy is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. This article was produced in collaboration with Creators Syndicate.
Digital banking usage has surged across Europe in the last decade, as the way we bank has been transformed dramatically. The percentage of EU citizens using online banking in the last decade has risen from 42% to 67%, in Spain that number was closer to 75% in 20241.
CaixaBank’s growth in digital channels reflects these trends. The Bank is, by some distance, the leading digital bank in Spain. It has the largest digital customer base, which in 2024 grew from 11.5 million customers to 12.1 million.
The bank’s digital lifestyle platform for younger customers, imagin, has surpassed 3.5 million banking customers – growth of 11% on the previous year, with almost half of CaixaBank’s new customers in the last year being recruited through imagin. Customer loyalty is increasing, with 50% of adults directly depositing their salary into the bank.
At the app user level, which includes all those who do not make financial operations but make use of the imagin app’s non-banking services, the number of imaginers now exceeds 4.5 million.
This data reinforces imagin’s position as a leading neobank and consolidates its position as a leader among young people. According to GfK statistics, imagin has a 48% market share among the main neobanks and fintechs in the 18-34-year-old segment in Spain.
In addition to increasing the number of new users, the platform has also managed to strengthen the loyalty of imaginers. In terms of activity volume, the application has an average of 60 million monthly visits and more than 11 million transactions per month are conducted through Bizum, 15% more than in 2023.
Imagin complemented its portfolio in 2024 with new products such as a fee-free debit card for use abroad, and financing and investment options, making it the only neobank with a complete banking offer tailored to a young and 100% digital audience.
The bank’s hybrid remote assistance service InTouch has more than 3.3 million users. InTouch is a new relationship model that combines remote communication tools (video call, voice call, email, WhatsApp, etc.), with the relationship of trust provided by an expert manager.
CaixaBank is also the leader in traditional website channels: this includes CaixaBankNow, the reference application for CaixaBank customers, and imagin.
Overall, CaixaBank leads in Spanish digital banking with a 45.4% penetration on digital banking users in Spain at year-end 2024.
The bank’s digital transformation is to some extent a mirror for Spain’s early adaptation to an increasingly digital and competitive global landscape.
In the latest State of the Digital Decade report outlined by the European Union, Spain stood out thanks to two main strengths, the large number of citizens with basic digital skills (66.2%), compared to the European average (55.6%), and the progress in the use of artificial intelligence by companies (9.2 %) compared to 8% in Europe.
CaixaBank’s recently launched Strategic Plan for 2025-2027 outlines an ambitious vision for the future, fully in line with the country’s determination to maintain leadership in digital innovation.
Among many commitments, the plan earmarks €5 billion in investment towards AI, cloud computing, and automation. This initiative, known as the Cosmos plan, aims to enhance operational efficiency, develop new customer-centric digital services, and strengthen the bank’s technological infrastructure.
One of the most transformative aspects of CaixaBank’s digital strategy is its integration of AI into customer interactions. AI-powered tools facilitate automated financial recommendations, conversational banking assistants, and enhanced fraud detection, streamlining both user experience and internal operations.
AI-powered tools will allow for automated financial recommendations, conversational banking assistants, and self-service options for customers. The technology will also streamline internal processes, reducing administrative burdens on bank employees while improving decision-making and fraud detection.
A key trend in this shift is the growing emphasis on technological talent, and the concern around this topic is highlighted in The Global Risks Report 2025, published by the World Economic Forum (WEF), where the shortage of skilled talent stands out as one of the key risks businesses must navigate this year. As digital banking evolves, institutions are increasingly expanding their technology hubs to attract specialists in AI, cybersecurity, and cloud computing.
Spain has again emerged as a leader in this space, with financial institutions investing heavily in developing digital capabilities. Technology jobs are growing faster in Spain than anywhere else in the world, according to the Equinix 2023 Global Tech Trends Survey.
CaixaBank, for example, has outlined an ambitious plan to strengthen its technological infrastructure while expanding its tech subsidiary, CaixaBank Tech, which is undergoing significant expansion with a goal to reach a total of 2,000 employees within the next three years. The offices in Barcelona, Madrid, and the new centre in Seville will become talent-attracting technological hubs.
Digitalisation is not just about cutting-edge AI. The rise of mobile-first banking is reshaping the financial landscape, as consumers increasingly expect seamless, secure, and accessible digital services. Across the industry, banks are investing in mobile platforms to meet the needs of a generation that prefers managing finances on the go.
67% of bank account holders in Spain handle banking via mobile devices, this trend has driven significant innovation, from digital-only banking models to flexible payment solutions that integrate with everyday mobile experiences. And it was way back in 2016 that CaixaBank’s imagin service became the first in the world where all transactions are performed using only apps for mobile phones or social media.
Today, according to data from the bank, more than 30% of in-person purchases made in Spain with CaixaBank cards are now being done via mobile phones. The bank has around 4.4 million customers with cards linked to mobile devices, figures that are on the rise, with more than 800 million transactions in the last 12 months.
Partnerships between banks and tech companies are also shaping the next generation of digital transactions. In line with this, and as a further demonstration of the bank’s firm commitment to improving the customer experience, CaixaBank, through CaixaBank Payments & Consumer, has signed a pioneering agreement with Apple.
As a result of this partnership, CaixaBank customers with iOS 18 and iPadOS18 will soon have the option to pay in full or spread the cost over multiple months directly at the point of purchase when paying with their CaixaBank cards in Apple Pay. Customers that decide to choose this option will have the choice to do so when shopping online using Apple Pay and in-app on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
This new functionality will allow customers to see payment options available to them, understand cost including any interest, and choose how they’d like to pay before completing their purchase.
As digital banking evolves, financial institutions are placing greater emphasis on automation and cybersecurity to enhance efficiency and protect customers. AI-driven analytics are enabling banks to deliver hyper-personalised financial solutions, helping individuals make more informed decisions. At the same time, advanced security frameworks, including real-time fraud detection and AI-powered risk management, are becoming critical in safeguarding digital transactions.
In Spain, financial institutions have been recognised for their strong commitment to digital security. Many banks have implemented next-generation fraud detection systems and encryption technologies to safeguard transactions. CaixaBank, for example, has been acknowledged for its advanced cybersecurity measures, reinforcing the industry’s broader push to ensure secure digital banking experiences.
As Spain’s financial sector continues to embrace digital innovation, its commitment to technology, security, and inclusivity will position it as a leader in shaping the future of banking in an increasingly digital world.
