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A startup called Adapt is betting that it can be an AI hub connecting other software tools to help answer questions and get things done. When users pose questions or ask for help with a business task, Adapt can answer based on information from the web and business data to which its been given access, similar to other AI tools. But it can also automatically launch a virtual machine, essentially a computer in the cloud from which it can connect to a wide range of internet-based software, pull information from databases, and craft custom code to analyze data and create charts and visualizations. Its an approach that cofounder and CEO Jim Benton says lets users with minimal coding experience work with data from a wide variety of sources, from customer-relationship management software to email programs, without needing to involve engineers or download and manipulate cumbersome datasets on their own computers. Adapts AI can provide detailed information about everything from sales trends to marketing spending based on live access to relevant data, and it can freely merge and compare data from multiple cloud-based business software products in ways that the AI increasingly built into those individual products often cant, says Benton. The challenge that we see in the market right now is that people have all sorts of different, fragmented tools in their company, Benton says. So if you want to understand the business, you are trying to stitch together all these different pieces. Adapt ships with built-in integrations with a variety of common software, and it can generate the SQL code needed to pull information from database systems. And it can also write code to connect to less common tools and custom software if its provided with API documentation and the right credentials. That means that to answer a question about, say, customer churn, the AI might pull numbers and written notes from a CRM, a credit card processor, and a customer support ticketing system, merging and processing all that data without the need for human coding expertise. [Screenshot: Adapt] Once it accesses and analyzes the relevant data, it can provide quick answers through chat or Slack, generate charts and slideshows, andunlike some competing AI toolspush updated information to external cloud systems. One of the most incredible things about Adapt is giving it permission to write data, which I never thought I would be okay with an AI getting, says Jonathan Nahin, founder of corporate gift-giving platform RevSend. [Screenshot: Adapt] Nahin says RevSend uses Adapt for tasks like crunching sales numbers and validating that custom gifts that its customers commission match their design requirements. But RevSend also uses the tool to update its sales contact databases, merging in information like contact locations from other data sources. Thats a pain to do manually and even to automate with other tools, Nahin says, but easy to explain verbally to the Adapt AI, which can set up a suitable process and run it on a regular schedule. Tech-savvy users can also review Adapt-generated code before relying on it for important figures or database updates, and users can ask the AI to make tweaks to its processes as needed, Benton says. You can go through the code and see exactly what the query was, says Benton. [Screenshot: Adapt] Other companies have also recently announced AI tools that can help with work tasks and data analysis, like Anthropics Claude Cowork and Slacks recently upgraded Slackbot. But Benton says he believes that San Francisco-based Adaptwhich just announced a $10 million seed round, on top of a $3 million pre-seed round announced in Augusthas an edge through its ease of integration with other software and its virtual machine approach, which doesnt require users to locally run its software or data. The company initially onboarded new customers individually, aiding with integration, and recently added self-service options. Unlike some other AI tools, Adapt doesnt charge a monthly per-user fee, instead charging based on usage. Charges cover the cost of connecting to a variety of AI models, with Adapt routing different queries to different models based on their expertise, and computation by the virtual machines. Businesses can set up spending alerts and thresholds to avoid surprise charges, says Benton. And Adapt, which calls itself the AI computer for business, works with customers to help ensure they get a good return on their spending, often by letting humans focus on work other than data manipulation. I think you’re just going to find that there’s more time for the humans to tackle the real work nd the real value than stitching together and chasing down the metrics, Benton says.
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Want more housing market stories from Lance Lamberts ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter. In the second half of 2025, there was a notable jump in delistings, as some home sellersparticularly in the Sun Beltwho couldnt get their desired price decided to pull their homes off the market. Indeed, U.S. delistings as a share of inventory ticked up to 5.5% in fall 2025a decade-high reading for that time of year. In December 2025, ResiClub noted to readers: Looking ahead, in markets seeing the biggest jumps in delistings right now, many of those listings will likely return to the resale market in spring 2026or test out the rental market. Fast-forward to January 2026, and we are indeed seeing an upswing in relistings, according to Compass chief economist Mike Simonsens analysis of Altos Research data. A relisted property is a home that was previously listed for sale, taken off the market (expired, withdrawn, or canceled), and then later put back on the market. Relistings as a share of single-family housing inventory for sale: January 24, 2025 > 10.1% January 23, 2026 > 11.0% Total relistings: January 24, 2025 > 64,410 January 23, 2026 > 76,426 What housing markets are most likely to see the biggest upswing in relistings over the coming months? The answer, of course, is the markets that saw the most delistings last fall. Last fall, Midwestern marketswhich, relatively speaking, remain on the tighter sidesaw the fewest delistings. Meanwhile, weaker and softer housing markets in places like Texas and Florida saw the highest levels of delistings. Why should buyers pay attention? Rising relistings can create buying opportunities. A relisted home often signals that the property was previously marketed, failed to transact at the sellers desired price, and is now returning with perhaps more realistic expectations. That dynamic can produce real seller fatigue, as months of showings, price cuts, and stalled negotiations reset pricing psychology and increase willingness to negotiate on price, concessions, repairs, or rate buydowns. Relistings also give buyers an information advantage by revealing prior list prices, time on market, and whether earlier deals fell apart, helping anchor offers to true market-clearing levels rather than aspirational pricing. Savvy buyersand their agentsshould always do their homework and confirm whether a property was listed in the prior year, how pricing evolved, and why it didnt sell, as that context can materially strengthen negotiating leverage.
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AI slop seems to be everywhere. Low-quality digital content made with artificial intelligence has flooded our feeds, screens and speakers. Is there anything we can do about it? If you want fewer cartoonish videos of dead celebrities, creepy or absurd images or fake bands playing synthetic tunes, a few platforms have rolled out settings and features to help minimize AI-generated content. Here is a guide on how to use them. But first, a caveat from Henry Ajder, who advises businesses and governments on AI and has been studying deepfakes since 2018. He warned that it’s incredibly difficult to entirely remove AI slop content entirely from all your feeds. He compared AI slop to the smog generated from the industrial revolution, when there weren’t any pollution controls in place. It’s going to be very, very hard for people to avoid inhaling, in this analogy. Pinterest Pinterest’s move to lean into the AI boom made it something of a poster child for the AI slop problem, as users complained that the online moodboard for pinning inspirational material by themes has become overrun with AI content. So Pinterest recently rolled out a tuner that lets users adjust the amount of AI content they see in their feeds. It rolled out first on Android and desktop operating systems, before starting on a more gradual rollout on iOS. Now, users can dial down the AI and add more of a human touch, Pinterest said, adding that it would initially cover some categories that are highly prone to AI modification or generation, such as beauty, art, fashion, and home decor. More categories have since been added, including architecture, art, beauty, entertainment, mens, womens, and childrens fashion, health, home décor, and sport, food, and drink. To use the tuner, go to Settings and then to refine your recommendations, and then tap on GenAI interests, where you can use toggles to indicate the categories you’d like to see less AI content. TikTok It’s no surprise that AI-generated videos proliferate on TikTok, the short-video sharing app. The company says there are at least 1.3 billion video clips on its platform it has labeled as AI-generated. TikTok said in November it was testing an update to give users more control of the AI-generated content in their For You feeds. It’s not clear when it will be widely available. TikTok did not respond to requests for comment. To see if you have it on the TikTok mobile app, go to Settings, then Content Preferences, then to Manage Topics where you’ll see a set of sliders to control various types of content, such as dance, humor, lifestyle, and nature. You can also access the controls from the For You feed, by tapping the Share button on the side of a post, then tap Why this Video, then Adjust your For You, and then Manage topics. There should be a new slider that allows you to dial down or turn up the amount of AI-generated content that you receive. If you don’t see it yet, it might be because you haven’t received the update yet. TikTok said late last year that it would start testing the feature in coming weeks. These controls are not available on the desktop browser interface. You won’t be able to get rid of AI content altogether TikTok says the controls are used to tailor the content rather than removing or replacing it entirely from feeds. This means that people who love AI-generated history content can see more of this content, while those whod rather see less can choose to dial things down, it said. Deezer Song generation tools like Suno and Udio let users create music merely by typing some ideas into a chatbot window. Anyone can use them to spit out polished pop songs, but it also means streaming services have been flooded with AI tunes, often by accounts masquerading as real artists. Among the music streaming platforms, only Deezer, a smaller European-based player, gives listeners a way to tell them apart by labeling songs as AI. Deezer has been really, really pushing the anti-AI generation music narrative, said Henry Ajder. Deezer says 60,000 fully AI-generated tracks, or more than 39% of the daily total, are uploaded to its platform every day and last year it detected and labeled more than 13.4 million AI tracks. The company says the people doing it are trying to make money by fraudulent streams. Change your platform If you can tear yourself away from Big Tech platforms, there is a new generation of apps targeting users who want to avoid AI. Cara is a portfolio-sharing platform for artists that bans AI-generated work. Pixelfed is an ad-free Instagram rival where users can join different servers, or communities, including one for art that does not allow AI-generated content. Spread is a new social media platform with content for people who want to access human ideas and escape the flood of AI slop. Watch out for the upcoming launch of diVine, a reboot of Twitter founder Jack Dorsey’s defunct short-form video app Vine. The app has only been available as a limited prerelease for Apple iOS. It promises No AI Slop and uses multiple approaches to detect AI. An Android beta app is expected soon. The company plans to launch it in app stores soon but needs more time to get ready for unexpectedly high demand. ___ Is there a tech topic that you think needs explaining? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your suggestions for future editions of One Tech Tip. Kelvin Chan, AP business writer
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Coffee giant Starbucks just announced its rewards program is about to get a major overhaul. On Thursday, the chain said its newly revamped rewards program will make its debut on March 10. According to Starbucks, it will feature a new, three-tier membership structure that will allow for “greater earning power” for its 35.5 million active North American members. The new program will allow consumers to move through three tiers: green (the starter level), followed by gold, and finally, its reserve membership tier. To achieve gold status, 500 stars are required. To become a reserve member, you’ll need to accumulate 2,500 stars within a 12-month period. The higher the tier, the more earning potential gets unlocked, with green members earning one star for every dollar spent, gold members earning 1.2 stars per dollar, and reserve members earning 1.7. The company also stated that, in response to customer feedback, it will be allowing customers to access rewards quicker with a new “60-star redemption tier.” After just 60 stars, members will be entitled to $2 off any item. Were redefining the industry with customer-focused benefits that set a new standard and ignite fandom,” Tressie Lieberman, Starbucks global chief brand officer, said in a press release. “Starbucks Rewards has always been about creating connection, and were evolving the program based on what our members told us matters most, offering faster, more meaningful benefits that make them feel appreciated. This evolution is a key milestone in our Back to Starbucks strategy and will reinvigorate what it means to be a Starbucks Rewards member. Starbucks’ announcement comes a day after the company released its first quarter fiscal earnings report, which showed the company made some major strides. Starbucks announced earnings per share of $0.56, just short of the company’s projection of $0.59. However, Starbucks traffic rose for the first time in eight quarters (two years). And, per the report, its earnings exceeded revenue expectations, earning $9.9 billion — more than the $9.7 billion it had anticipated. CEO Brian Niccol expressed optimism about the company’s future on CNBC’s Squawk Box, saying This is really just the beginning,” Niccol said. In fiscal 2026, were going to be shifting to play offense and to innovate. Were not finished with our Back to Starbucks plan or our broader transformation, but I am confident in our strategy, our progress, the pace of change, and the opportunity ahead of us. The company also outlined a long-term growth strategy, and is projecting that by 2028, U.S. same store sales will grow by at least 3% with operating margins of 13.5% to 15%. According to an analysis by InvestingPro, Starbucks has a market capitalization of $108.41 billion and annual revenue of $37.7 billion. The chain is trading at its Fair Value, with shares up 13% year-to-date.
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Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Companys weekly newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. Im Mark Sullivan, a senior writer at Fast Company,covering emerging tech, AI, and tech policy. This week, Im focusing on a new class of AI video generation tools that could let scammers speak with a completely different face and voice on video calls. I also look at how Apple employees see Tim Cooks appeasement of President Donald Trump, and why OpenAI models got worse at writing. Sign up to receive this newsletter every week via email here. And if you have comments on this issue and/or ideas for future ones, drop me a line at sullivan@fastcompany.com, and follow me on X @thesullivan. A scammers dream Video generation models have been improving over the past several years. Weve always known that things could get weird when generative video becomes nearly indistinguishable from real video, and were entering that phase now. Weve already seen convincing political and sexual imagery deepfakes. Another devious application of AI generative video will be phishing scams. Over the past six months or so, people have been posting on X about new AI tools that are capable of face swapping in real-time video. For example, the AI might make it look like its Leonardo DiCaprio or Scarlett Johansson saying my words and performing my facial expressions during a Zoom call. The AI analyzes the users facial movements and vocalizations in real time and sends them out via the faces of another person entirely. Some of these AI tools can generate a new face overlay using a single still image. So it may be possible for a scammer located anywhere in the world to find an image of a person on social media, use the AI to develop a reasonably convincing AI face from it, and then call one of the persons relatives asking for money. The scammer might use a sample of the persons voice to simulate the sound of the AI overlay character. Of course, the first people to be targets of such deepfake calls would likely be the elderly. They might be happy to hear from a grandchild, for instance, and perhaps less likely to question the authenticity of the video. They may not even know that such a simulation is possible. Theres a special place in hell for the perpetrator of such a scam, but it appears to be technically feasible. How Apple employees see Tim Cooks relationship with Trump Like other tech leaders, Apple CEO Tim Cook has chosen to engage with, rather than ignore, Donald Trump. Cook has never publicly endorsed Trump or donated to his presidential campaigns. But he did personally donate to Trumps inauguration fund, has visited the White House numerous times, and is in at least semi-regular contact with the president. During Trumps first term, Cook spoke out against the Muslim travel ban, the transgender military ban, and the presidents good people on both sides response to a deadly white-supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. In contrast, Cook has been quiet about the more extreme policies and actions Trump has brought to his second term. Until now. This week, Cook was forced to speak out, at least to Apple employees. Cook came under fire from employees and customers for attending a private VIP screening of Amazons new Melania Trump documentary at the White House on January 24, the same day that federal Customs and Border Patrol agents shot and killed VA hospital nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. This followed a January 7 incident in which an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot and killed Minneapolis resident Renee Good. Cook was silent about the Pretti shooting until the evening of January 27, when he reportedly sent a memo to Apple employees saying he is heartbroken about the Good and Pretti deaths and calling for de-escalation. He also said hed had a conversation on the matter with Trump. It may have had an effect. On Wednesday Trump tried to calm the backlash against ICE. Were going to de-escalate a little bit, he said, using the same term Cook did. (No actual de-escalation has taken place.) I suspect Cooks relationship with the president is purely transactional and strictly business. As people, Cook and Trump couldnt be more different. Based on conversations Ive had with people who work at Apple, the internal narrative is that Cook is dealing with Trump in the way thats most likely to ward off tariffs on iPhones, new regulations, and government probes of Apples various businesses. And, the narrative goes, Cook is speaking to Trump in language Trump understands. That explains the flattery and lavish gifts hes brought to the White House, the most recent of which hits some of Trumps favorite notes. The commemorative glass piece (resembling a silicon wafer) is mounted on a 24-karat gold base and engraved with Trumps name. The president loves gifts, he loves gold things, and he loves his own name. As I wrote for Fast Company earlier this week, the shootings of U.S. citizens Good and Pretti in Minneapolis may put Big Tech leaders political alliance with Trump to the test like never before. Even transactional friendships should be subject to some standards of trust and decency. If more violence happens, Cooks calls with Trump could become far less amicable. OpenAI sacrificed writing skill for coding skill in GPT-5 There was some backlash among users against OpenAIs latest model, GPT-5.2. People felt that the new model had less personality, less of a voice of its own. And these shortcomings are reflected in its writing, which many users say is harder to read and less natural-sounding than that of earlier models. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman acknowledged this week that GPT-5.2 isnt as good a writer as its predecessor GPT-4.5 was. I think we just screwed that up, Altman said during an internal developer town hall on January 26. With so much money on the line, I doubt it was a simple screwup. OpenAI was entertaining a different set of priorities when developing GPT-5.2. We put most of our effort in 5.2 into making it super-good at intelligence, reasoning, coding, engineering, that kind of thing, Altman said. And we have limited bandwidth here and sometimes we focus on one thing and neglect another. OpenAI may also have been responding to an industry-wide shift toward chatbots that are brainier but somewhat dullerthat sound less like unconditionally supportive friends and more like responsible adults. There are safety and liability reasons for this. OpenAI is now facing multiple legal claims that its chatbot failed to push back when vulnerable users (including minors) began talking about plans to end their own lives. OpenAI may also have felt pressure from Anthropics increasingly popular Claude Code tool, used by many developers to generate production-ready software code. GPT-5.2, which now underpins OpenAIs Codex coding tool, is better than earlier models at reasoning and coding skill. Whats unclear is why OpenAI cant have a model thats both a strong writer and a good coder. Anthropic seems to have achieved that with Claude. More AI coverage from Fast Company: Chip firm ASML to slash 1,700 jobs and posts record profit for 2025 thanks to AI boom Got an AI skill? Now you can prove it on LinkedIn Why Yann LeCun left Meta, and what it means for AIs next frontier How K-12 schools are left on their own to develop AI policies Want exclusive reporting and trend analysis on technology, business innovation, future of work, and design? Sign up for Fast Company Premium. How much Trump violence will tech industry stomach before backing away
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