News

Artificial Intelligence
Global AI Hardware Demand Powers East Asia Growth Beyond World Bank Forecasts
October 06, 2026

Several economies in the East Asia and Pacific (EAP) region are growing faster than expected due to their involvement in manufacturing and exporting high-tech goods that support artificial intelligence-related activity, the World Bank Group said in a Tuesday (Oct. 6) press release. The World Bank...

Artificial Intelligence
South Korea Says AI Helped Hackers Break Into Banks
October 06, 2026

South Korea has reportedly seen evidence of artificial intelligence involvement in recent cyberattacks on banks. As the Financial Times (FT) reported, President Lee Jae Myung said on Tuesday (Oct. 6) that hacks had revealed user data at seven financial firms, with indications of AI use in...

Artificial Intelligence
DeepSeek Looks to Raise $12 Billion Ahead of IPO
October 06, 2026

Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek is reportedly close to raising $12 billion in a new funding round. That figure would surpass the company’s financing target as it prepares to go public next year, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday (Oct. 6). Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. and tech giant Tencent are...

Artificial Intelligence
Pinterest Intros New Guides to Provide How-To Beauty Guidance
October 06, 2026

Pinterest says it wants to help its beauty-focused online users employ that knowledge offline. The social media platform on Tuesday (Oct. 6) launched “Beauty Guides,” described as an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered experience that “turns hair and nail Pins into personalized, actionable guides” to help users...

Artificial Intelligence
AI Agents Bring Shoppers, but Merchants Must Close the Sale
October 06, 2026

Watch more: The Digital Shift With Visa’s Pavan HS Artificial intelligence shopping agents are creating a new kind of customer at the merchant’s front door: software that may know what a consumer wants, yet arrives without many of the signals merchants have learned to trust....

Artificial Intelligence
Will Holiday Shopping Go Agentic? 40 Senior Execs Weigh In
October 06, 2026

AI may be ready to shop. Consumers are still deciding how much freedom they want to give it. “Holiday Retail’s AI Test Starts With Who Gets to Hit Buy” was produced by PYMNTS following a closed-door roundtable at Mastercard’s New York technology hub. The discussion brought...

B2B Payments
Karen Webster Says the Agentic Enterprise Is Already Here
October 06, 2026

October. Some readers mark it on the calendar for the return of autumn and chilly temperatures. Others get ready for the full dose of sports that comes with the NFL season and the World Series. Here at PYMNTS, it’s B2B Payments time. This year marks...

Loyalty & Rewards
Credit Union Members Want Rewards on the Tech Agenda
October 06, 2026

Credit unions deciding where to put their next technology dollar are getting a different answer from consumers than they might expect. The PYMNTS Intelligence playbook “Credit Union Innovation Readiness: The Rewards Opportunity Credit Unions Can No Longer Ignore,” produced in collaboration with Velera, found in...

Retail
Amazon’s Retail Lead Goes Beyond Electronics
October 06, 2026

Amazon now captures more spending than Walmart in five of seven retail categories, extending its reach from electronics and apparel into health and personal care. That breadth gives Amazon several ways to grow as consumers shift more purchases toward goods they can research, order and...