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Ann Arbor – September 18, 2026 -- Merge has launched MergeIQTM, an artificial intelligence layer embedded across its imaging platform, targeting radiology, cardiology, pathology and other imaging specialties without adding standalone systems for IT teams to manage.

Two AI applications debut inside Merge Workflow Orchestrator

The first MergeIQ applications, RelevancyIQTM and NaviIQ, are now available within Merge Workflow Orchestrator, the platform that unifies enterprise worklists for caseload management, interpretation and collaboration. RelevancyIQ identifies and ranks prior reports by relevance to the current case, while NaviIQ searches within those prior reports to surface findings and historical context. Both tools are embedded directly into the radiologist's diagnostic reading workflow, delivering supporting data at the point of interpretation rather than requiring clinicians to search across disconnected systems.

Maryland – September 18, 2026 -- Savvas Learning Company and University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC) have struck a strategic alliance that lets high school students earn UMGC-accepted college credits through Savvas's Outlier dual-enrollment platform, with qualifying students receiving a 25 percent discount on out-of-state tuition for most UMGC undergraduate programs.

UMGC will accept Outlier college credits earned by high schoolers

The Outlier by Savvas solution delivers asynchronous online college courses to K-12 districts, allowing students to simultaneously bank high school and college credit that UMGC will recognize. UMGC, part of the University System of Maryland, serves more than 100,000 learners annually and is the second-largest public university in the U.S. as of 2026, offering skills-based programs in AI, business, cybersecurity, and healthcare.

Atlanta – – September 18, 2026 -- Roughly 350 high school student-athletes will gather at Atlanta's Loudermilk Conference Center on Sept. 26, 2026, for the inaugural AJT Academy Student-Athlete Leadership Conference presented by Truist, a program built around the AJ Terrell Jr. Foundation founded by Atlanta Falcons All-Pro cornerback AJ Terrell Jr.

Truist funds leadership program spanning three Atlanta-area high schools

Students from Westlake High School, Frederick Douglass High School and Benjamin E. Mays High School will attend the five-hour event, running 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 40 Courtland St NE. Katie Saez, Truist regional president for Georgia and Alabama, said the bank's partnership with the AJ Terrell Jr. Foundation aims to give young people tools that extend beyond athletics.

Denver – – September 18, 2026 -- WellBiz Brands, Inc., franchisor of five beauty and wellness brands, has appointed Benjamin Marmor as chief financial officer effective Aug. 10, bringing more than 25 years of finance and strategy leadership to the multi-brand franchise platform.

Marmor previously oversaw an $840 million restaurant portfolio

Marmor most recently served as chief financial and strategy officer at Diversified Restaurant Group, the largest Taco Bell franchisee by revenue, where he led finance, accounting and strategy across 370 restaurants generating $840 million in revenue.

Hackensack, N.J. -- September 15, 2026 -- Hindsait, Inc. has been approved for the Electronic Prior Authorization category within the CMS Health Tech Ecosystem, placing the clinical AI firm among organizations working with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to modernize prior authorization ahead of the CMS Interoperability and Prior Authorization Final Rule (CMS-0057-F), which takes effect in 2027.

CMS ecosystem brings payers and providers together on interoperable workflows

The Electronic Prior Authorization initiative unites payers, providers, EHR vendors, and digital health developers to shift prior authorization toward end-to-end interoperable processes before the 2027 deadline.

Dallas – September 18, 2026 -- E Source has launched advanced scenario planning capabilities within its GridInform® Vegetation Intelligence software, allowing electric utilities to model multi-year vegetation management strategies and quantify reliability, risk, and cost tradeoffs before deploying field crews or capital.

New tool cuts vegetation planning timelines from months to minutes

The software lets utilities run long-term planning scenarios directly within the platform rather than relying on static, point-in-time analyses or external studies. Planners can evaluate vegetation investment strategies over five- to ten-year horizons by integrating infrastructure data, vegetation conditions, weather exposure, and outage history.

Users can compare cycle-based maintenance against targeted work programs and test how changes in funding levels and prioritization affect future reliability outcomes and cost trajectories.

Delray Beach, Fla. – September 18, 2026 -- The global transformer oil market is projected to grow from $2.18 billion in 2026 to $2.87 billion by 2031, expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 5.6%, according to MarketsandMarkets. The market stood at $2.07 billion in 2025.

Grid modernization and renewable integration drive new demand

Utilities and grid operators are accelerating investment in transmission and distribution infrastructure, replacing aging transformers and expanding high-voltage networks to evacuate renewable power. This buildout is fueling demand for insulating fluids used for electrical insulation and heat dissipation in both new and refurbished transformers.

New York – September 18, 2026 -- Qloo has secured a spot in the top-tier "Set Diamonds (Front Runners)" category of a Gartner report on synthetic population and behavioral simulation, ranking as one of just two companies in the upper-right segment among 33 vendors profiled.

Gartner report singles out Qloo among 33 profiled AI vendors

The recognition comes from Gartner's "Emerging Tech: AI Vendor Race: Startups to Watch in Synthetic Population and Behavioral Simulation" report, authored by analyst Vibha Chitkara. Qloo's placement in the highest-maturity category distinguishes it from the broader field of startups tracked in the space.

San Diego – – September 18, 2026 -- Obsidian Sensors has secured a contract under the DUTCH project to deliver high-resolution thermal cameras at attritable price points for the Drone Dominance program, using a manufacturing process the company says will eventually cut costs by an order of magnitude versus incumbent suppliers.

Obsidian fabricates MEMS sensors on glass panels 20 times larger than standard silicon wafers

The company's proprietary Large Area MEMS Platform (LAMP) departs from the thermal imaging industry's traditional reliance on 8-inch silicon wafers. Instead, Obsidian builds its MEMS thermal sensor structures on large glass substrates inside a standard flat-panel display factory, borrowing the scale and cost structure of the display manufacturing sector rather than the semiconductor industry.

Anaheim, Calif. – September 18, 2026 -- Nellson Nutraceutical LLC has appointed Raj Krishnamachari as Vice President, Quality & Regulatory, effective September 14, 2026, placing a returning executive in charge of quality and compliance across the company's North American manufacturing network.

Krishnamachari rejoins Nellson after prior tenure as Senior Director of Quality

Krishnamachari previously served as Senior Director of Quality at Nellson, where he worked on strengthening quality systems, advancing food safety programs, and supporting regulatory inspections. He succeeds Marty Hudak-Roos, who is retiring after leading the company's quality and regulatory function.

Manassas, Va. and Wichita, Kan. – September 18, 2026 -- Electra and The Atlas Group have signed an airframe manufacturing agreement for the EL9 Ultra Short aircraft, with Atlas set to build and assemble airframes for Electra's flight test and certification program starting this month.

Atlas begins airframe production this month with first deliveries targeted for 2027

Work commences at Atlas facilities immediately, feeding Electra's certification campaign for the nine-passenger hybrid-electric EL9, which is designed to take off and land in as little as 150 feet. The two companies will jointly mature production architecture and reduce manufacturing risk ahead of scaled output.

"Realizing this vision requires more than a breakthrough aircraft; it requires the ability to build and deliver it with the consistency and scale of an advanced production system," said Marc Allen, CEO of Electra.

Shenzhen – – September 18, 2026 -- InkSonic launched the Spark F13, a 13-inch direct-to-film printer aimed at small apparel businesses and independent creators, the company announced. The device becomes available starting September 15, 2026 through InkSonic's website, with a waitlist open for early access and launch offers.

Automated maintenance targets printhead downtime for small shops

The Spark F13 includes an automated maintenance routine designed to keep the printhead clean with minimal manual intervention, which InkSonic says significantly reduces downtime. An intelligent ink-level monitoring system alerts operators before supplies run out, addressing a common production delay for small-batch printers.

San Diego – September 18, 2026 -- Wildfire Systems has tripled quarterly booking volume on its Wildfire Commerce Network (WCN), with 235 unique advertisers now recording returns on ad spend of up to 72x.

Advertiser growth accelerates as brands chase measurable, closed-loop results

The San Diego-based loyalty and consumer insights platform said the surge is driven by advertisers in banking, fintech and travel who are increasingly targeting WCN's high-intent shopper audiences across client networks including KashKick, Shop Your Way and Travel Arrow. Top advertisers are rebooking five to seven times per year, while a growing pool of new brands is launching campaigns on the network. In the second quarter of 2026, 54% of WCN bookings came from net-new advertisers, according to Wildfire.

San Francisco – September 18, 2026 -- Athleta, the Gap Inc. (NYSE: GAP) performance apparel brand, has signed a multiyear agreement to become the Official Off-Court Apparel Partner of the Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA franchise that sold out all 22 regular-season home games at Chase Center in its 2025 debut season.

Athleta launches limited Off-Court Edit collection modeled by Valkyries guard Veronica Burton

The retailer is releasing a curated performance-lifestyle apparel line on Athleta.com timed to the partnership launch, fronted by Valkyries guard Veronica Burton. The collection targets the crossover audience between athletic performance wear and everyday style consumption.

Ottawa, ON -- Claigan Environmental will run two identical webinars on September 23, 2026, to help manufacturers budget for restricted materials compliance requirements taking effect in 2027.

Two sessions scheduled same day due to expected demand

Claigan will hold back-to-back one-hour sessions at 10am and 2pm on September 23, each including a question-and-answer segment. The company cited anticipated demand as the reason for scheduling duplicate webinars rather than a single event.

New York – September 18, 2026 -- ARM & HAMMER Laundry will donate $100,000 to Dress for Success Worldwide as it returns for a second consecutive year as President's Circle Sponsor of the nonprofit's Women Who Inspire Luncheon, marking the sixth consecutive year of partnership between the two organizations.

Luncheon set for September 30 will honor Gloria Steinem with first-ever Impact Award

The event takes place September 30, 2026, at Tribeca 360 in New York City, gathering corporate executives, media personalities and women from the Dress for Success network. Gloria Steinem will receive the inaugural Women Who Inspire Impact Award, recognizing her decades-long advocacy for women's equality and economic opportunity.

San Francisco – September 18, 2026 -- Medallion has acquired Andros, an NCQA-certified credentials verification organization, in a deal that consolidates over a million healthcare providers across nearly 400 organizations and health plans onto a single AI-driven credentialing platform.

Deal creates largest AI-native credentialing platform in the U.S.

The acquisition combines Medallion's automated credentialing and enrollment technology with Andros's 13-year track record serving health plans, health systems, provider groups, and telehealth companies since 2013. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Bailey & Company served as exclusive financial advisor to Andros.

Dallas – September 18, 2026 -- A new Healthcare Workforce Outlook Index scored the U.S. healthcare workforce at just 38%, with none of its five underlying dimensions exceeding 50%, according to AMN Healthcare's 2026 Healthcare Workforce Outlook Survey released today.

Survey of 4,040 professionals exposes a 19-point gap between engagement and future readiness

The index, drawn from responses collected between Feb. 24 and March 31, 2026, measures employee engagement, organizational health, leadership and support, staffing confidence, and future readiness. Employee engagement scored highest at 48%, while future readiness scored lowest at 29%, a 19-point spread that AMN Healthcare says shows workers remain moderately engaged today but doubt the workforce's capacity to meet future demand.

Atlanta – September 18, 2026 -- USG Water Solutions has appointed Christina Coen as Chief Executive Officer, effective September 1, 2026, succeeding John Flaugher, who moves into a strategic advisory role.

Coen brings chemicals and agtech leadership to water infrastructure

Coen joins from UPL Corp, where she served as Chief Transformation Officer, R&D and Sustainability Lead, and previously as Chief Marketing Officer overseeing global P&L for a multi-billion-dollar portfolio. Her prior roles span senior leadership positions at Nalco Water (an Ecolab Company), FMC Corporation, and Dow Chemical, covering R&D, transformation, marketing, and commercial leadership in agricultural and specialty chemicals.

Longmont, Colo. – September 18, 2026 -- Stored Energy Systems (SENS) says its PowerCab2 platform can save data center operators an estimated $20 million to $80 million on a typical 1 gigawatt campus by eliminating dedicated battery rooms and consolidating hundreds of discrete DC power components into a single factory-tested system.

PowerCab2 removes over 300 square feet of battery-room space per structure

The integrated platform typically eliminates more than 300 square feet of dedicated battery-room space from a power distribution center (PDC) or E-house. At an estimated installed cost of $850 per square foot, SENS calculates capital savings of roughly $255,000 per structure.