Lithium batteries now form an integral part of modern-day living and can be seen in multiple applications such as power tools, vacuum cleaners, mobile devices, and electric bicycles. Holtek, with its extensive development involvement in lithium battery management products for many years, has accumulated a rich array of research and development experience. Holtek will continue to build upon this experience and fully intends to extend its charger series of MCUs as well as its lithium battery management AFE/MCUs series to meet the lithium battery charger application needs for a wide range of diverse market areas.Charger MCUsThe Holtek charger MCU series, the HT45R/F5Q, incorporates a number of technology advantages to meet the basic specification needs of chargers but also offers additional functions to improve charger safety and functionality. The MCUs have a predictive protection mechanism that can detect the battery status before charging commences to provide additional safety. In addition, the charging management process supports a customized charging curve design that can adapt to the needs of different batteries. For production efficiency optimization, Holtek MCUs include up to two fully integrated 14-bit DACs, which can implement both precise voltage and current control. By using the "Charger Volume Production Fixture" platform, the calibration time can be reduced from 60 seconds to 10 seconds. This time reduction will provide significant improvements in production efficiency and also reduce production line manpower. These MCUs also provide support for battery identification and online updating of the program library using a CAN Bus, ensuring that the charger used can adapt to newly shipped batteries which will extend battery life and compatibility.Lithium battery management AFE/MCUHoltek's range of lithium battery management devices is divided into AFEs and BMS MCUs. These have a complete array of lithium battery safety protection mechanisms that can adapt to different design requirements. The battery detection and protection functions are able to precisely monitor and control over-voltage and under-voltage conditions and have an additional function to detect when the battery pack is disconnected. There is also a fully integrated power component protection function to detect and protect from short-circuit situations which can set the response time in accordance with the product needs to ensure battery pack stability. The battery balancing function will reduce any voltage difference to extend battery life and its ultra-low power consumption mode can reduce the standby current to only 0.1µA, thus providing extended standby times.The Holtek lithium battery management devices can support up to eight battery strings, but during 2025 the company expects to also release further devices that will support 10, 13, 16, and 24 strings. These new devices will meet the lithium battery pack management requirements for products in high-voltage and large-capacity applications. To provide assistance to designers in order to reduce their development time, Holtek provides a "Charger Development Workshop" and a "Lithium Battery Management Development Workshop". With an easy-to-use graphical interface, chargers and lithium battery management products can be rapidly developed removing the need for writing code. More details are available on the Holtek official website or if preferred contact Holtek's sales representatives and agents.

Smiths Interconnect is thrilled to announce that its DaVinci 112 high-speed test socket received the prestigious Best Test Measurement Award of the Year at the Global Electronics Achievement Awards (GEAA) ceremony held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Shenzhen. This annual event honors industry leaders and companies making significant contributions to global electronics innovation.Organized by ASPENCORE, the Global Electronics Achievement Awards recognizes the industry's elite, including companies, managers, and products that have demonstrated exceptional performance and leadership. The award review committee, comprising senior ASPENCORE industry analysts and user groups from Asia, the United States, and Europe, selected the DaVinci 112 test socket for its outstanding commercial performance and technical innovation.Representing Smiths Interconnect at the ceremony were Frank Zhou, Global R&D Director, and Eason Xu, Sales Director of China Semiconductor Testing Division. Together with industry peers, they celebrated the achievements of the year and the bright future of semiconductor technology.Photo: Smiths Interconnect Global R&D Director Frank Zhou came to the stage to receive the award.Credit: Smiths InterconnectThe DaVinci 112 high-speed test socket is engineered to meet the rigorous demands of chip testing. It supports large-size chips up to 130x130mm with more than 30,000 input/outputs and a coplanarity tolerance of up to 0.65mm, effectively preventing connection issues due to poor coplanarity and ensuring superior signal integrity.Credit: Smiths InterconnectSmiths Interconnect's R&D team developed an innovative mechanical structure to prevent socket warping, a common challenge in high-pin-count and high-power testing applications. This design enhancement guarantees reliable ground contact, delivering improved power transmission and signal isolation. Additionally, the DaVinci 112's use of advanced IM conductive materials offers robust mechanical stability, making it an ideal choice for high-speed, high-power chip testing in sectors such as high-performance computing, data centers, and mobile devices.Frank Zhou, Global R&D Director of Smiths Interconnect Semiconductor Test Division, shared his pride in the DaVinci 112's recognition, stating, "We are honored by the positive feedback from both customers and the market. Smiths Interconnect remains committed to pushing the boundaries of technology, embracing innovation, and prioritizing customer needs as we look forward to introducing the next game-changing products in our DaVinci series."

pxCode provides a no-code web development tool like WordPress that significantly shortens the learning curve for webpage designers, saving them from having to learn how to split a webpage layout into sections and write code. More than that, pxCode's tool allows webpage designers to export high-quality responsive code to meet wide-ranging customization needs, thereby largely cutting down development costs and time. For traditional webpages to properly display across today's growingly diverse mobile devices, web developers have to transform them into responsive web design (RWD) so that they render well on screens of all sizes. This imposes a great burden on development engineers.According to pxCode founder Chris Chang, when transforming a traditional website into RWD, development engineers have to split the webpage design into multiple sections, write the code, and then rearrange the layout. The process is complex and cumbersome. In particular, webpages made with no code or low code tools generally have a large amount of useless code. They are a huge hassle for development engineers to work on. There are a lot of design-to-code solutions available on the market but their usability has room for improvement. pxCode automates the complex work of splitting webpage layout, making web development 20 times more efficientAs a seasoned veteran in web development, Chang established pxCode with his partners in 2023. The aim is to provide an automated tool that creates high-quality responsive webpage code and thereby saves developers from the tedious work of writing line after line of code and checking if the code matches the design. Not only does the tool meet developer needs, but it also enables them to create applications faster and more efficiently. pxCode's tool can automate 80% of code writing. The code it generates is easy to read, modify, and integrate so that developers can focus on designing the programming logic, user interface, and appealing features. Making the web development job at least 20 times more efficient, pxCode's tool has more than 200,000 registered users worldwide.Chang commented that the traditional approach wherein web developers manually write code corresponding to the page layout is not only time-consuming but also error-prone. A minor mismatch may result in a significant impact on brand image. Combining AI and manual editing capability, pxCode's tool features high precision. It ensures the generated HTML code is 100% correct while staying true to the original webpage design with minimum human interference. Furthermore, pxCode provides a collaborative environment that facilitates collaboration between designers and developers so as to boost project efficiency. Last but not least, the user's original design, for example, a Figma file, can be directly imported to pxCode's tool and converted to an ideal HTML structure.For example, pxCode's tool allows developers to preview the webpage with just a simple click to see how it renders on different browsers and screens of different sizes. They can also share the webpage URL with others for real-time feedback and updates, thereby increasing project efficiency.Boasting speed and quality, pxCode expands into global marketsFor example, it takes one to two days for a front-end web developer at a well-known web design firm in New York to split a webpage layout into sections. That is, just splitting the webpage layout into sections for a 30-page project requires one to two months. Now with pxCode' tool, it takes about two weeks for one of the firm's developers to complete three projects and split the layout for more than 100 webpages. pxCode' tool helps the firm effectively reduce operating expenses and boost front-end web developers' work efficiency. Although pxCode's tool has made great achievements, the current code naming quality has room for improvement. To address this, pxCode hopes to make use of the generative AI services made available by Amazon Web Services (AWS) through its participation in the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS JIC program. As a matter of fact, it is now incorporating Claude 3.5 Sonnet, a large language model (LLM) on Amazon Bedrock, a fully managed service that makes high-performing foundation models (FMs) from leading AI companies, for code naming optimization as well as proof-of-concept for transforming image files and metadata into program code. It is currently able to achieve up to 80% accuracy in generating code combined with CSS naming and other functions, resulting in significant man-hour savings. After further fine-tuning, this feature will be made available to users in the upcoming product upgrade.According to Chang, two foreign companies offer similar tools and services to pxCode. Customers indicate that pxCode's tool outperforms competitors in terms of development speed and code quality. In 2024, pxCode is undertaking all-out efforts to expand into the U.S. It hopes to leverage the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS JIC program to make its product even more competitive so as to gain ground in the global marketplace going forward.pxCode’s AI responsive code editor makes web development 10 times fasterPhoto: pxCode

To meet the strong market demand for translation tools, translation technology developments have been well underway for years. However, machine translation of natural languages has mostly been based on statistical models or linguistic rules coupled with vocabulary and sentence correlations built from a large parallel corpus. These types of tools are mostly for general-purpose use and are only good for translating commonly used terms or simple everyday conversations. They are inadequate for professional applications such as translating books and financial reports. These types of translation tasks often require qualified human translators but it may take longer and cost more.According to Universal Language AI COO Yu-De Fei (Alan), a financial report is generally longer than 200 pages and has more than 200,000 words. It takes months to translate a financial report. In the case of a tight deadline, the company will need to hire multiple professional translators and pay a higher fee to have its financial report translated in time. When it comes to translation for medical, financial, mechanical, and legal sectors, translators with field-specific knowledge are needed. Not only are they hard to find but they are also expensive to hire. Many companies are endeavoring to use generative AI to develop automated translation solutions. Lingo Bagel focuses on the translation of financial reports and medical documents. It collaborates with multiple translation agencies to allow the expertise of professional translators to deliver maximum benefit. Lingo Bagel also builds dedicated translation models for companies to guarantee top-quality and top-speed translation services.Using a dedicated model coupled with a professional terminology database, Lingo Bagel completes financial report translation in 60 minutesWith traditional translation, the process takes a long time, the quality may be poor and it is difficult to find professional native speakers. To address the three major pain points, Universal Language AI, established in 2023, used AI coupled with a group of accountants' expertise to develop Lingo Bagel. Its solution has been successfully used by a great many customers. First of all, Universal Language AI worked with dozens of accountants to build a professional terminology database containing more than 2,000 terms compliant with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Secondly, it built a dedicated AI model for financial reports, which together with the professional terminology database ensures the terms used in the translation are correct and consistent. To speed up the translation process, Universal Language AI incorporated a systematic workflow, which enables Lingo Bagel to complete the translation of a 200-page, 200,000-word financial report in 60 minutes. Alan noted that Lingo Bagel can precisely translate Chinese financial reports containing professional finance and accounting terminologies into English even if they come in different structures. Lingo Bagel has helped multiple small and mid-size accounting firms complete the translation of financial reports totaling more than one million words and one thousand pages. With respect to translation speed, Lingo Bagel completed the translation of a nursing book that has 400,000 words and 800 pages into Chinese in five days for Taipei Medical University. According to a translation agency that the university approached for a quote, the same task would cost NT$1 million and take 18 months. With Lingo Bagel, the cost was reduced to just one-tenth and the amount of time saved was far more significant. Apart from financial reports and medical books, Universal Language AI has also expanded into game and press release translation. For example, Lingo Bagel translated a Japanese game for a gaming company. The translated script was given back to the game marketing team in a snap for proofreading and polishing, significantly shortening the upgrade cycle. Lingo Bagel also translated a Korean press release for a gaming company. The task was assigned in the morning and completed in the afternoon on the same day. The amazing speed largely boosted the efficiency of press release distribution.Leveraging Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS JIC resources to target global marketsAs a seasoned entrepreneur, Alan learned of the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS JIC program and immediately pushed for Universal Language AI to participate in the program. He hopes that the startup resources made available through the project will accelerate Universal Language AI's growth and help expand its footprint in the global marketplace.According to Alan, Lingo Bagel uses Amazon Rekognition from Amazon Web Services (AWS), which automates image recognition and video analysis, to quickly identify and extract the text on the customer's user interface and perform comparisons across different languages. On top of that, it uses Amazon Bedrock, a fully managed service that makes high-performing foundation models (FMs) from leading AI companies, to generate UI text and polish translation results, thereby optimizing Lingo Bagel's service quality and performance. Lingo Bagel currently offers translation in multiple languages, including Chinese-English, Chinese-Korean, Chinese-Japanese, Korean-English, and Japanese-English two-way translation services. Universal Language AI is reaching out to translation agencies across the globe for partnership opportunities.In addition, Universal Language AI plans to work with publishing houses in Taiwan to translate more foreign language books into Chinese, allowing people in Taiwan to read more quality books.

The memory technology market has experienced significant fluctuations in recent years, marked by production cuts and shifting prices. The beginning of 2024 saw a gradual recovery, driven by rising demand for DDR4 and DDR5 RAM modules, as well as high-bandwidth memory (HBM). These trends created opportunities for inventories to stabilize and spurred companies to shift support back toward memory component manufacturing.As shifts in pricing and production methods continue, electronic component procurement specials seek competitive advantages through cost-saving strategies for memory chips.Price Escalations in Early 2024The first half of 2024 experienced an escalation in memory prices due to supply chain disruptions and imbalances. In January, solid-state drive (SSD) prices surged by 15 to 35%, driven by high demand for NAND, DRAM, and CXL advancements, while high-capacity SSD allocations remained limited.In the first quarter, 3D NAND wafers and enterprise and client SSD costs went up by 23 to 28%. Forecasts for Q2 indicated NAND Flash prices would increase by another 13 to 18%. Analysts expected Micron, a major memory manufacturer, to increase costs by over 20%.At this point, the DRAM market still had lower demand and, consequently, less dramatic cost fluctuations. Inventory levels were decreasing, but they were not yet at a healthy level. Forecasts indicated DRAM contract prices would increase, but only by three to eight percent.As manufacturers recognized the turning point in the market, Samsung announced a strategic shift toward high-value products. After reducing production by up to 50% for certain items the previous year, the company ramped up 32-gigabit DDR5 and HBM3E production to cater to the increasing demand for high-density memory products, particularly in AI applications.Supply chain disruptions and further price hikesAs of October, memory module prices have increased every quarter in 2024 as manufacturers report supply imbalances and respond to supply chain disruptions. In April, Western Digital announced AI demand was increasing HDD market activity, contributing to a cyclical recovery after several quarters of weak demand. The manufacturer consequently warned customers to expect changes in NAND Flash and hard drive prices. Samsung followed Western Digital's lead and raised enterprise SSD prices by 20 to 25% due to supply shortages and increased interest in AI.A significant challenge arose in April when a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan. This disaster led to widespread production halts and delays in pricing negotiations, with forecasts predicting potential price increases of up to 20% across various memory products. Following the earthquake, Micron temporarily suspended quoting activities, resulting in a 25% increase in prices for LPDDR5 and DDR5, alongside extended lead times exceeding 12 weeks for certain components.Adding to the supply chain complexities, a strike at Samsung began in July, resulting in about 20% of workers ceasing production. The strike included workers from the device experience and semiconductor divisions nationwide, with early reports suggesting the consumer electronics side of Samsung's business would be most affected. The NSEU, which represents about 30,000 members, accounts for a quarter of the company's workforce in South Korea.Operations resumed on August 1, but the possibility of disruption highlighted how the supply chain continues to be subject to disruption, especially with companies like Samsung controlling one of the largest shares of the memory market.AI: A Driving Force for Memory ProductsThe growing popularity of HBM, especially among AI customers, prompted manufacturers to pivot toward this higher-margin product. Samsung is one of the companies leading this trend, as they have pivoted production away from components like DDR5 to support HBM3. Samsung has since joined forces with Nvidia to provide HBM3 and maintain packaging for Nvidia's in-demand AI GPUs. Nvidia recently qualified Samsung's HBM3E chips, and Samsung plans to allocate existing DRAM capacity to HBM3E production.Shifts like these are what lead to end-of-life notices as manufacturers prioritize newer technologies. DDR3 was the first to fall in this instance, as Samsung and SK Hynix announced their exit from DDR3 in May. Prices consequently increased by 20% as supply dwindled, a trend expected to persist through the end of the year. DRAM module costs were similarly subject to change, with market intelligence sources indicating costs would increase by another 10% to 15% throughout Q2.Even with the pivots towards HBM capacity support, supply is unable to match demand. Major players Micron and SK Hynix signaled around mid-year that tight supply conditions would persist into 2025. Both companies had already sold out of 2024 product capacity by June, with 2025 allocation depleting quickly.Demand shows no signs of slowing down, which means manufacturing will likely continue to struggle with meeting demand. Industry leaders anticipate AI applications will sustain profitability through the latter half of 2024. As demand continues to expand, key manufacturers are prepared to implement further price increases, with Micron announcing a 15% increase for LPDDR5 at the start of the third quarter.Adjusting to Evolving Pricing DynamicsAs 2024 approaches its end, evolving pricing dynamics persist for the memory market. Suppliers like Samsung are advocating significant price hikes, and some reports estimate increases of up to 12% in the fourth quarter. Unsurprisingly, there have been noticeable pushbacks from customers, leading to speculation that a more moderate growth of 5 to 8% may be more realistic as buyers resist steeper price jumps.The market shows signs of stabilization as major manufacturers like Micron, Samsung, and SK Hynix have largely recovered from earlier losses, particularly in Q2. Coupled with growing customer pushback on inflated costs, this is driving suppliers to reassess pricing strategies. As a result, the anticipated Q4 price increases are lower than expected, signaling a potential for more balanced pricing moving forward.Strategic Recommendations for Procurement ProfessionalsKnowing how global supply chain trends affect supply and demand cycles is crucial for navigating market complexities. Staying agile and informed is the key to thriving in this ever-evolving memory commodity supply chain.To navigate the complexities of the current memory market, procurement, and supply chain professionals can implement the following strategies:1. Monitor Market Trends: Stay informed about fluctuations and strategic shifts in production priorities, particularly concerning HBM and DDR5.2. Build Buffer Stocks: Consider building buffer stocks to mitigate risks associated with supply constraints and price increases. This proactive approach can help maintain stability in your supply chain.3. Diversify Suppliers: Expand your supplier base to ensure a consistent supply of high-demand memory products. Relying on multiple sources can reduce the impact of disruptions from any single supplier.4. Leverage Strategic Partnerships: Form strategic partnerships with key manufacturers to secure better pricing and priority access to critical memory components. These relationships can provide a competitive edge in a tight market.5. Adapt to New Pricing Models: Be prepared to adjust your pricing strategies in response to suppliers' transitions, such as Samsung's shift to a quarterly pricing model.Preparing for the Future of Memory TechnologyAs the memory market evolves, characterized by significant price fluctuations and ongoing supply chain challenges, cost savings and strategic sourcing will be pivotal in navigating further uncertainties in 2025. Staying informed about market trends and implementing proactive strategies will be essential for procurement professionals to maintain competitive advantages.About Fusion WorldwideFusion Worldwide is the preeminent open-market distributor of electronic components and products. We source, inspect, test, and deliver a broad range of components to a large and diversified customer base that includes OEMs, CMs, and ODMs across a wide array of verticals. Founded in 2001, Fusion is headquartered in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and maintains offices and quality centers in major manufacturing centers around the world.For more information about the impact of AI on the memory, hardware, networking, and other commodity groups within the electronic component supply chain – visit fusionww.com and download The State of the Industry Report | Volume Two: The Impact of AI on the Electronic Component Supply Chain.

Not only have flourishing developments of social media changed how people communicate with each other but they have also made social media a key marketing channel that companies rely on to grow their business. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, the practice of keeping person-to-person contact to a minimum accelerated the popularity of social media, making them a major communication channel for commercial activities. Small and midsize businesses (SMB) or farmers lack the resources to keep up with the rapid emergence of different types of social media. They are often unable to respond to consumer inquiries in time and end up losing business. In view of this, many developers are endeavoring on commercial chat platforms that integrate multiple social media.According to Eslitec co-founder and CEO Yu-Han Hsu, social media have become a major communication channel today. Even farmers that may not be tech-savvy have begun to market their produce via social media. However, farmers and SMBs generally do not have the human resources and budget for social media marketing. They usually give priority to their work and can only respond to consumer inquiries or process orders when they have time to spare. Unfortunately, speed is everything in customer service in this day and age. Consumers will go to another vendor if they can't get their questions answered in an instant. To help address this challenge, Eslitec has introduced MantaGO, an AI chatbot that enables companies to respond to consumer inquiries effortlessly and seize every revenue opportunity.Integrating five major social media, MantaGO enables users to build an AI chatbot in 30 minutesStarting out its business with a project from Taiwan's Agency of Rural Development and Soil and Water Conservation, Eslitec has accumulated a wealth of experience and technological strength in developing agriculture data integration platforms and helping farmers make flexible use of digital tools. Eslitec is committed to developing top-quality software applications. It ensures every element of its product R&D is agile and rigorous, including design, development, market survey, and user experience, while guaranteeing the usability and quality of its products. It creates value for farmers and SMBs by resolving their pain points amid the social commerce surge. Its MantaGO integrates five major platforms including LINE, FB, IG, Google, and Live Chat, and offers smart AI chatbot capabilities to help users effortlessly harness the power of marketing technology. Hsu remarked that most of the time, consumers ask similar questions. For example, they often inquire about the availability and price of a product or the business hours and location of a store. An AI chatbot is ideal for answering such repetitive and trivial questions and thus easing the burden on SMBs and farmers. Featuring an intuitive user interface, MantaGO provides three ways for users to build their own AI chatbot. For example, by importing a Q&A database or applying a template, users can build an AI chatbot in just 30 minutes. Eslitec also offers one-to-one customization services to help users who are not digitally fluent make use of MantaGO.MantaGO is being used by more than 800 companies spanning across e-commerce, tourism, consultation, and government sectors. For example, Farm Life, an educational farm in operation for longer than a decade, uses MantaGO to respond to all sorts of questions that are repetitive so that first-time visitors can easily get access to farm information.Actively targeting Japan, Thailand, Korea, and Vietnam, Eslitec leverages AWS JIC to boost its generative AI strengthTo ensure it offers the most stable and reliable services to customers across sectors and borders, MantaGO uses Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) and Amazon API Gateway from Amazon Web Services (AWS). On top of that, Eslitec leverages the generative AI resources made available through the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS JIC program to continue developing and enhancing its products and services based on generative AI and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) technologies. This will enable Eslitec to stay ahead of the competition.According to Hsu, MantaGO focuses on LINE Chats so Eslitec's overseas expansion will first target countries where LINE is popular, starting with Japan and Thailand in 2024, followed by Korea and Vietnam in 2025.The Eslitec teamPhoto: Eslitec

Taiwan is a food lover's paradise where dining out is an essential part in the lifestyle in Taiwan. This has driven significant growth in Taiwan's food service industry, which includes from Michelin-starred restaurants and franchise chains to independent restaurants to breakfast shops. Despite their market position, many restaurants in Taiwan struggle to fill job vacancies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant number of skilled food service workers changed careers, creating ongoing labor shortages that persist even as the pay increases. The situation gives rise to the burgeoning development of food service technology. This challenge has driven many restaurant operators to turn to food service technology, both to reduce the burden on their staff and to elevate customer experience.According to DotDot Global CEO Ting Hsieh, labor costs represent around 40% of total operating expenses, with 60% of that cost directed toward food preparation, and another 30% to 40% toward tasks such as order-taking, payment handling, and packaging. Food service technology helps restaurants reduce these costs significantly. For example, a breakfast shop using these technologies can save between NT$30,000 to NT$50,000 per month. DotDot Global's latest solution, DDPay, is a comprehensive payment platform that supports mobile and credit card transactions for small restaurants, allowing them to enhance customer experience, reduce costs, and boost revenue.Empowering Small Restaurants in the Mobile Payment WaveEstablished in 2019, DotDot Global is dedicated to developing AIoT solutions, food service and retail applications, as well as smart fintech platforms. The company is proficient in synergizing innovative technology and information services to support small to mid-size restaurants or retail stores, large-scale franchises, commercial districts, food courts, and campus cafeterias with business operations and marketing campaigns. DotDot Global's offerings range from online ordering systems, in-store networks, payment service systems, and queue and reward management systems. Its solutions are being used in over 15,000 food service locations and 100 smart service sites, processing transactions that exceed NT$30 million. This volume makes DotDot Global the largest food and retail service platform in Taiwan and the only startup capable of offering a complete suite of food service technology solutions.Hsieh noted that DotDot Global's first solution, Quickclick, is a self-order system based on LINE that enables customers to place orders themselves, easing staff workload and reducing error rates. Furthermore, after a customer orders through Quickclick, they are automatically enrolled as a member of the restaurant, allowing the business to expand its customer base without human intervention, thereby saving 30% on labor costs. DotDot Global's latest solution, DDPay, takes this further by supporting both cash and non-cash payments, reducing cashier workload, and alleviating labor shortages while also lowering labor costs by an additional 10%. Most importantly, DDPay enables small restaurants, which might otherwise struggle to secure credit card approval, to accept both mobile and credit card payments.DotDot Global has successfully assisted numerous restaurant brands, including YuLoong, MKK Ramen, and Emperor Foods.DotDot Global Expands Globally Through Public Cloud InnovationAs part of its services, DotDot Global provides AIoT solutions leveraging AWS IoT Core from Amazon Web Services (AWS). This enables DotDot Global to monitor POS devices worldwide, as well as to roll out software updates or new features that improve the user experience. By joining the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS JIC program, DotDot Global aims to leverage AWS's generative AI resources to develop premium digital marketing tools for food service providers.Hsieh explains that many Taiwan-based food service providers are eyeing overseas markets. They often prefer locally-sourced POS devices for easier support and maintenance. The key strength of DotDot Global's food service data platform is its compatibility across various brands and systems. Through strong partnerships with global POS suppliers and AWS resources, DotDot Global supports Taiwanese food service providers as they expand into international markets. Additionally, to address the need for skilled marketing professionals, DotDot Global plans to develop an AI copywriting tool using AWS generative AI services. This tool will generate marketing content that boosts foot traffic and strengthens customer engagement, helping businesses maintain a competitive edge in the market.DDPay – A Payment System Tailored for Small and Mid-Size StoresPhoto: DotDot Global

Although AI has become a powerful tool helping companies gain a competitive advantage, advances in AI technology are also making AI-generated attacks such as Deepfake rapidly mature, posing significant threats to identity verification and cybersecurity. According to a research report, Deepfake incidents surged tenfold from 2022 to 2023. The world today faces an unprecedented cybersecurity challenge. For example, in a Deepfake scam, a finance worker at an international corporation's Hong Kong office was tricked into transferring US$25 million to cybercriminals.According to Yvonne Lin, Head of Marketing at Authme, there are in general two types of Deepfake attacks. With the first type, the fraudster sets up a mobile phone or PC in front of a webcam and displays a Deepfake image or video. The person on the other side of the video call will unlikely be able to tell the difference. The second type is video replacement. The fraudster hacks into the intermediate network layer and intercepts and replaces the image or video in transmission so the person on the other side sees a Deepfake. More and more developers and researchers are making efforts to counteract Deepfake attacks. Authme's face recognition techniques enable real-time detection of Deepfake-generated images, safeguarding companies across various sectors against Deepfake scams.AI liveness detection achieves 99.7% accuracyTwo of Authme's founders were once white hat hackers. They also started a cryptocurrency exchange together. From their experience, they found all sorts of pain points with traditional identity verification techniques. This drove them to establish Authme in 2019 with an aim to address the challenges in digital identity verification for companies. During the early-stage development of Authme, the founders participated in a great number of digital identity policy discussions. They also worked with former Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang to fix vulnerabilities in government platforms. For the team's enthusiasm and industry-leading technology, Authme has been recognized and trusted by government agencies and financial institutions over the past three years.Lin noted that Authme's face recognition includes AI-based face comparison and liveness detection. All it needs is a simple selfie to complete identity verification, effectively preventing identity theft and enhancing account security. Authme's face comparison is NIST FRVT 1:1 certified, achieving a 99.7% recognition rate in the VISA-BORDER scenario. Its passive liveness detection is ISO-30107 certified. Utilizing AI liveness detection to analyze biometric features including skin texture, facial depth, and blood flow, Authme's solution achieves a 99.7% accuracy in detecting whether it's a real person in front of the camera or not, thereby spotting a Deepfake video or image shown in front of a webcam.Authme was founded to support the finance sector that sets a high standard for and attaches great importance to identity verification. For its unparalleled technologies, Authme's solutions have been adopted by multiple financial institutions. On the basis of a great number of successful use cases in the finance sector, Authme's solutions have further been adopted by cryptocurrency exchanges and vehicle rental companies.To improve its customer service quality, Authme uses Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) from Amazon Web Services (AWS) to boost the performance of its face recognition solution. On top of that, it adopts the AWS Cloud Hardware Security Module (AWS CloudHSM) for data encryption. Moreover, AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) is utilized to securely control access to AWS resources, ensuring that only authorized users and services have the minimum required permissions to access specific resources. This helps minimize potential risks if accounts are compromised. Furthermore, Authme leverages AWS CloudTrail, a service that records API calls and related events, to log every activity that occurs in the system, allowing for real-time tracking and instant detection of any suspicious access attempts, thereby effectively controlling risks.Leveraging generative AI, Authme forays into Asian marketsAuthme founders grew up in Kaohsiung but Authme's operation has largely focused on northern Taiwan since its establishment. When they learned of the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS Joint Innovation Center (JIC) program, they immediately decided to join in hopes of strengthening connections with companies based in southern Taiwan and tapping into more business opportunities through the project. Moreover, Authme is also actively expanding into Japan, Indonesia, and other countries in Asia. As part of its overseas expansion efforts, Authme looks to make its products available through AWS Marketplace, a curated digital catalog that makes it easy for customers to find, buy, deploy, and manage the third-party software they need to build solutions and run their business.According to Lin, aside from its AI face recognition solution, Authme also offers an AI OCR ID document verification solution that supports the recognition of text in multiple languages, punctuation marks, and common mathematical symbols within just 1 second. Trained on a dataset of over 30,000 Chinese characters, it achieves a remarkable 99% accuracy in recognizing Chinese text. Authme is endeavoring to incorporate generative AI into its OCR ID document verification solution to increase the accuracy rate for text recognition of various languages as a way to boost its international competitiveness.It is noteworthy that as remote work has become the norm, global cybersecurity incidents such as identity theft have been on the rise. In view of this, in 2024, Authme launched its Zero Trust solution, including single sign-on (SSO) and multifactor authentication (MFA) schemes. It is a secure and high-performance identity verification solution for companies, allowing employees to securely and seamlessly access corporate resources and focus attention on tasks that are critical to business operations.Authme's AI liveness detection accurately identifies the face in front of the camera as being fake in a simulated Deepfake attackCredit: Authme

Generative AI has captured the world's attention. It has become a powerful tool that companies use to drive digital transformation, thereby boosting operational efficiency and enhancing customer experience. For example, when companies use generative AI to strengthen their customer service systems, their systems can instantly understand and respond to customer inquiries while being able to predict and satisfy potential customer needs. Most companies undertake AI development based on open-source large language models (LLM) coupled with sector-specific data for training and inferencing. This approach has inherent cybersecurity risks and challenges that cannot be overlooked.In view of this, governments around the world have been working to institute AI regulations over recent years. For example, the EU issued the Ethics Guidelines For Trustworthy AI in 2019, setting key ethical requirements that AI systems should follow. In 2021, the EU proposed the AI Act. In 2022, the U.S. released the Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights and Canada proposed the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act, both aimed to establish core principles for AI development and ensure AI systems' trustworthiness. In June 2024, Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission published the Guidelines for the Application of AI in the Financial Industry for financial institutions to follow when they utilize AI.According to OneDegree Global Senior Partnership Manager Frank Liao, there are two types of AI risks. The first is cybersecurity risks. As AI becomes part of the data structure, the system is exposed to new types of cyber threats, such as prompt injection and jailbreak. These types of attacks manipulate prompts to elicit specific output from LLMs. When companies integrate AI into their systems for processing sensitive data, hackers can exploit these attacks to gain unauthorized access to the system, potentially leading to leaks of sensitive or confidential data.The second is compliance. As generative AI becomes more and more powerful, companies are increasingly relying on AI for decision making and content creation. This gives rise to concerns over whether AI-enabled decision making and content creation are fair, human-centric, and lawful. OneDegree Global's Cymetrics Vulcan, an LLM verification platform designed to assess AI models for vulnerabilities and compliance with responsible AI standards, effectively helps companies address these risks. Its fully automated verification capability shortens AI red teaming which would usually take 200 hours to just three hours. With Cymetrics Vulcan, companies can ensure their AI systems are protected from cyber threats and compliant with AI regulations before they bring the systems online and this is achieved at a lower cost and in a shorter timeframe.OneDegree Global utilizes Amazon Bedrock as the core to probe into the risks of customers' AI models.As a pioneer in insurance technology, OneDegree Global provides present-day core solutions for insurance companies, brokerage firms, and applications/platforms. It aims to meet emerging market needs to drive innovations, provide all-round protection for consumers, and create revenue streams for insurance companies. In response to rising cyber threats, OneDegree Global helps insurance companies incorporate cybersecurity measures across every element of their process from underwriting to information security audits. Cymetrics is the cybersecurity arm of OneDegree Global. Apart from being ISO27001 and ISO27017 certified, the Cymetrics team has also obtained ISO 42001 Lead Auditor Certification.Frank pointed out that although AI ethics has been a focus of attention in recent years and AI system developers are adding cybersecurity measures in their LLMs, LLM hallucinations are not uncommon. Not only could LLMs generate inaccurate or fictitious outputs, but they could also be vulnerable to prompt manipulation, resulting in data leakage or ethical violations. If this occurs on an application service a company offers, it could damage the company's reputation and business, and worse yet, there could be legal consequences.The Cymetrics LLM verification platform from OneDegree Global helps companies assess the risks of their AI systems in terms of security, privacy, safety, and fairness, ensuring their systems comply with responsible AI standards. Leveraging comprehensive tests and advanced LLM attack techniques, the platform is able to uncover potential risks in customers' AI systems. OneDegree Global gathers the AI system risk assessment data and performs analysis using its generative AI services built on Amazon Bedrock - a fully managed service from Amazon Web Services (AWS) that makes high-performing foundation models (FMs) from leading AI companies. Based on the analysis results, OneDegree Global further provides suggestions on remedies and improvements.OneDegree Global's automated assessment process appeals to Taishin International BankA unique feature of OneDegree Global's LLM verification platform is that its complete set of automated assessment measures can reduce the time it takes to conduct a full assessment from 200 hours to three hours. This allowed OneDegree Global to win a proof-of-concept (PoC) deal with Taishin International Bank. When Taishin was planning its AI financial service system "Taishin Brain," it selected OneDegree Global's AI system assessment service to ensure compliance with Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission's Guidelines for the Application of AI in the Financial Industry. This endeavor made Taishin the first bank in Taiwan to build a responsible AI system.As part of its business expansion efforts, OneDegree Global joined the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS Joint Innovation Center (JIC) program in 2024. Tapping into AWS JIC resources, OneDegree Global hopes to commercialize more of its innovative solutions and connect with more customers across different industries, thereby building up its presence in the global marketplace.Frank noted that in view of frequent cybersecurity incidents, companies are growingly paying attention to the protection of data. They are well aware that traditional tools such as firewalls are of no help in the detection of and protection against cyber threats to generative AI applications. OneDegree Global's biggest advantage is that it can customize a solution for LLM cybersecurity risk assessment to suit different industry characteristics and requirements. Following its participation in the Startup Terrace Kaohsiung AWS JIC program, it has attended multiple match-making events which enabled it to get in touch with potential customers in the finance, manufacturing, and semiconductor sectors. This is believed to benefit the company's long-term development.OneDegree Global plans to expand its LLM cybersecurity risk assessment business from Taiwan to other Asia Pacific countries and the Middle East, where AI applications are growing rapidly across finance, healthcare, and government sectors. As these countries place more and more emphasis on AI-driven innovations and have increasing needs for robust information security solutions that comply with regulations, they offer immense market opportunities. To take it a step further, OneDegree Global will also foray into Europe as part of its all-out efforts to capture AI opportunities.OneDegree Global launches its AI compliance and security verification solution Cymetrics VulcanPhoto: OneDegree

Blockchain technology has fundamentally transformed how digital transactions and smart contracts operate across multiple industries. While initially known for cryptocurrencies, blockchain's impact now extends far beyond, revolutionizing everything from supply chain management to healthcare. The technology's transparency and security features have made it particularly valuable in sectors requiring trustless verification.The integration of blockchain in various sectors showcases its versatility. For instance, in healthcare, blockchain secures patient records while maintaining privacy. In finance, it's revolutionizing traditional banking systems through decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. The gaming industry, including online casinos, represents just one fascinating application of this technology.Understanding blockchain gaming architectureThe fundamental architecture of blockchain gaming demonstrates the technology's broader capabilities. When users interact with features like a crypto casino no-deposit bonus, they're engaging with sophisticated smart contracts that showcase blockchain's ability to automate complex processes. The blockchain technology market continues to expand rapidly across various industries. These systems employ advanced cryptographic algorithms for generating verifiable random outcomes, applicable in various industries requiring transparent randomization.The technical infrastructure supporting blockchain gaming involves multiple interconnected components working in harmony. At its core, the system utilizes distributed ledger technology (DLT) to maintain an immutable record of all transactions and game outcomes. This architecture incorporates consensus mechanisms like Proof-of-Stake (PoS) or Proof-of-Work (PoW), ensuring that all network participants agree on the state of the game. The implementation of sidechains and state channels has significantly improved scalability, allowing for faster transaction processing and reduced network congestion.Security measures, protocols, and smart contract automationBlockchain's security architecture represents a breakthrough in digital trust systems. The technology employs multiple layers of encryption and verification, making it highly resistant to tampering. Blockchain networks maintain exceptional security through their distributed nature and cryptographic protocols. This robust security framework has made blockchain particularly attractive for industries handling sensitive data, from financial services to government applications.Advanced cryptographic techniques form the backbone of blockchain security protocols. These include elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) for digital signatures, hash functions for data integrity verification, and zero-knowledge proofs for privacy-preserving transactions. The implementation of multi-signature wallets adds an extra layer of security, requiring multiple parties to authorize transactions. Additionally, time-locked smart contracts and automated security audits help prevent potential vulnerabilities from being exploited.Smart contracts represent one of blockchain's most transformative features. These self-executing contracts handle complex operations automatically, significantly reducing processing times compared to traditional systems. Oracle networks ensure real-time accuracy of external data feeds, making these contracts reliable for various applications, from supply chain management to automated financial services.Future technological developmentsThe evolution of blockchain technology continues to accelerate. Cross-chain compatibility is becoming increasingly important, enabling different blockchain networks to interact seamlessly. Layer-2 scaling solutions are addressing performance challenges, while integration with artificial intelligence is opening new possibilities in predictive analytics and automated decision-making. The implementation of quantum-resistant cryptography will further enhance security across all blockchain applications in the coming years.The impact of blockchain technology extends far beyond its initial applications, transforming how we approach digital trust and automation. While gaming and online casinos represent one innovative use case, the technology's broader implications for business, healthcare, and finance continue to expand. As development continues, we can expect to see even more groundbreaking applications of this revolutionary technology.Blockchain technology represents a fundamental shift in how digital systems operate, offering unprecedented levels of security, transparency, and automation. Its applications continue to grow across industries, from finance to healthcare, demonstrating its versatility and potential to reshape various sectors. The ongoing development of blockchain solutions promises to bring even more innovations to the digital landscape, making it an increasingly integral part of our technological infrastructure.