Theme news

New York – – September 22, 2026 -- Aliko Dangote, President and CEO of Dangote Group, told more than 3,000 African and global business leaders and heads of state that Africa must stop exporting its capital to foreign banks and markets if it wants to replicate Asia's industrial rise. His remarks came at Unstoppable Africa 2026, a two-day forum in New York organized around the theme of continental industrialization and investment.

Dangote Calls for Domestic Capital Retention to Fund Industrial Projects

Dangote argued that the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) provides the scale needed for major industrial ventures, but only if capital stays on the continent to fund them. "We must believe in our continent," he said, adding that early movers face the steepest hurdles but that momentum builds once projects begin.

Virginia – – September 22, 2026 -- Virginia Housing has named Davon Gray and Michael Olivieri to its Board of Commissioners, the panel that sets policy, approves budgets and oversees operations for the state's public mortgage and housing finance authority.

Gray brings 25 years of advocacy and policy strategy to the board

Gray currently serves as Vice President of Policy for Purpose Built Communities. He previously held roles at the American Institute of Architects, including Managing Director of Advocacy and Engagement programs. A 12-year veteran of the U.S. Army National Guard and Reserves, Gray holds a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Southern Mississippi and a master's degree in public administration from DeVry University.

Hsinchu – September 22, 2026 -- ICP DAS will demonstrate its iTLC-9000 Series Redundant Multifunctional Traffic Signal Control System at APTA 2026 TRANSform & EXPO, running October 4–7 at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. The company will occupy Booth 4625, running a live simulated intersection where the iTLC-9000 operates two actual sets of traffic signals in real time.

System supports up to 16 signal phases across 32-way intersections

Cleveland – September 22, 2026 -- Inglewood Associates and Gordon Brothers confirmed that the court-appointed Receiver overseeing the sale of 925 Euclid Avenue in Cleveland has not selected a stalking horse bidder, despite months of marketing the 1.45 million-square-foot historic tower.

Bidders opt for open auction over stalking horse role

Hangzhou, China – September 21, 2026 -- A joint survey by asmag.com and Hikvision found that 38.2% of video security professionals call storage cost or capacity a "major challenge," while another 43.2% rate it "moderate," together accounting for 81.4% of respondents.

Storage costs have climbed over the past 12 months for most operators

Asked how the storage challenge has changed compared with a year earlier, 43.2% of respondents said pressure has "increased moderately," pointing to persistent upward cost trends across video security deployments rather than a one-time spike.

Hong Kong – September 21, 2026 -- Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE: NOAH; HKEX: 6686) hosted its 2026 Global Investor Summit in Hong Kong, gathering investment professionals from Global Infrastructure Partners (a part of BlackRock), Macquarie Asset Management, Bridgepoint, HarbourVest Partners and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management to discuss AI-driven shifts in global asset allocation for Chinese high-net-worth families.

Noah pairs global manager network with AI to systematize investment judgment

The summit, themed "The Year of Realization: A New Chapter in Global Allocation," was organized jointly with Noah's global asset allocation platform, Olive Asset Management. Noah said its ongoing investments in funds worldwide have built long-term relationships with managers and accumulated underlying research data, which the company now combines with AI tools to validate investment judgments for client portfolios.

Jinan – September 21, 2026 -- Bestzyme, a synthetic biology unit of GenScript Biotech, has completed what it calls the world's first dedicated, automated smart production line for sweet proteins at its Jinan facility, integrating R&D, mass production and application for the ingredient category for the first time globally.

Jinan facility delivers 100 tons of annual capacity equal to 300,000 tons of sucrose sweetness

The 5,000-square-meter plant runs a fully automated fermentation-purification-freeze-drying process for Bestzyme's flagship Mellia® Brazzein sweet protein. Once operational, the line will produce over 100 tons annually, a volume the company says matches the sweetness output of 300,000 tons of sucrose. Bestzyme expects capacity to potentially double within two years.

Dallas – September 21, 2026 -- AI Hospitality Group (AIHG) launched with $7.5 million in seed funding and a pledge to deliver more than 500 basis points of gross operating profit margin improvement to hotel owners through a fully AI-native management model. The company, founded by former Remington Hospitality CEO Sloan Dean, signs hotel management agreements directly with owners and takes responsibility for the P&L rather than licensing software to existing operators.

Hotel EBITDA margins have eroded to 20% from roughly 30% over the past decade

AIHG says U.S. hotel EBITDA margins have fallen approximately 20% since 2019, while CMBS delinquency rates for limited-service hotels hit 8.35% in July 2025, more than double their 2022 low. The company cites 65% of North American hotels reporting staffing shortages in 2025, with labor costs rising 11.2% year over year.

Fountain Valley, Calif. – September 21, 2026 -- Hyundai has renewed and extended its sponsorship of the Atlanta Braves through the 2029 season, continuing a partnership that began in 2014 and has spanned the franchise's entire tenure at Truist Park and The Battery Atlanta.

Hyundai retains stadium signage and broadcast sponsorships at Truist Park

The renewed deal keeps Hyundai visible through outfield wall placements in Left Field and seating bowl signage behind the Visitors Dugout, seen by fans during TV broadcasts and in-stadium attendance. Hyundai remains the presenting sponsor of the Braves Radio Network's Sunday broadcasts, which reach 170 markets across eight states, described as the largest radio network in professional sports, as well as BravesVision, the team's owned television network.

Milan – September 21, 2026 -- Tethis S.p.A. has completed the acquisition of the See.d software and engineering business unit from MACS S.r.l., gaining full control over intellectual property and engineering know-how behind its liquid biopsy platform. Alongside the transfer, Tethis signed a long-term manufacturing and supply agreement with Everex S.r.l., an Italian in-vitro diagnostic instrumentation maker, to handle production and future scale-up of the system.

Tethis consolidates full ownership of its liquid biopsy pre-analytical platform

See.d is the cornerstone of Tethis' liquid biopsy workflow, developed jointly with MACS to standardize pre-analytical blood processing. From a single blood sample, the platform generates plasma for cfDNA analysis and cytology slides preserving nucleated cells for downstream characterization, automating plasma separation, red blood cell lysis, and deposition onto Tethis' proprietary SmartBioSurface slides.

Iselin, N.J. – September 21, 2026 -- Hackensack Meridian Health's Board of Trustees announced that CEO Robert C. Garrett will retire effective June 30, 2027, ending a tenure that built New Jersey's largest health network from the ground up. A national search for his successor is now underway, with the Board targeting a decision by the end of the first quarter of 2027.

Network expanded to 18 hospitals and 41,000 employees over ten years

Since HMH's creation a decade ago, the system has grown to 18 hospitals, 41,000 team members and more than 500 patient care locations across New Jersey — nearly triple its size at launch. Under Garrett, the network also opened the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, the state's first new private medical school in decades, alongside a new discovery research center.

Seattle – September 21, 2026 -- Sudheer Koneru, CEO and founder of Zenoti, unveiled a new book, Growth Diaries: How the Best Beauty and Wellness Brands Scale from 1 Store to 100+, drawing on interviews with 42 founders, CEOs, and industry leaders across nine countries.

Book maps four growth phases for multi-unit beauty and wellness operators

Growth Diaries organizes the operators' experiences into four stages: the first store, the early chain, infrastructure, and institutional scale, providing a stage-by-stage framework for founders scaling service-based businesses. The book argues that beauty, wellness, and fitness brands face distinct scaling challenges compared to software, retail, or restaurant companies, since services are delivered live and an unfilled appointment cannot be recovered as revenue later.

Taipei – September 21, 2026 -- Merry Life Biomedical has advanced TML-6, a Taiwan-developed oral therapy for early Alzheimer's disease, into a global Phase 2 trial spanning 20 clinical sites across Taiwan, Sweden, and the United States, targeting approximately 210 participants.

Twenty sites across three countries anchor the trial's design

The study includes nine medical centers in Taiwan, seven sites in Sweden, and four centers in the United States, with Taiwan forming the largest single group of participating sites. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial will assign patients to TML-6 100 mg, TML-6 200 mg, or placebo, administered once daily for 52 weeks.

Hong Kong – September 21, 2026 -- Akeso, Inc. (9926.HK) will present nearly 30 clinical studies of its bispecific antibodies at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress in Madrid on October 23-27, 2026, including a Late-Breaking Abstract selected for the Presidential Symposium.

Phase III biliary tract cancer trial secures Presidential Symposium slot

Overall survival results from the Phase III HARMONi-GI1 trial, comparing ivonescimab plus chemotherapy against durvalumab plus chemotherapy as a first-line treatment for advanced biliary tract cancer, will be delivered as a late-breaking oral presentation (LBA8) on October 25 at 16:30-18:15 in Madrid. The presentation will be given by Jian Zhou of Shanghai during Presidential Symposium II.

Seoul, South Korea – September 21, 2026 -- Kakao Pay and Kakao Bank have signed a memorandum of understanding with Fireblocks to build secure onchain infrastructure for Korea's emerging digital asset market, with stablecoins as an initial focus area.

Three parties will test stablecoin distribution frameworks through proof-of-concept trials

Under the agreement, Kakao Pay, Kakao Bank and Fireblocks will jointly explore business opportunities based on Korea's market conditions and infrastructure demand. The companies plan to design digital asset distribution frameworks tailored to Korea's regulatory, security, and service requirements, then run proof-of-concept tests to validate their applicability.

Denver – September 21, 2026 -- Phillip A. Washington, the former chief executive officer of Denver International Airport, has joined engineering firm HNTB Corporation as president of strategy and client service, markets and services, and senior vice president.

Washington brings leadership from three major U.S. transportation agencies to HNTB

Washington most recently ran Denver International Airport, one of the world's busiest airports, where he oversaw a multibillion-dollar capital improvement program targeting capacity, customer experience and safety. He previously served as CEO of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, leading an 11,000-person organization responsible for the largest modern public works program in North America, and earlier headed Denver's Regional Transportation District, where he delivered the FasTracks expansion program and the redevelopment of Denver Union Station.

Elmhurst, N.Y. – September 21, 2026 -- Century Fasteners Corp. will exhibit at the 2026 International Fastener Expo in Phoenix, Arizona, from October 7-9, presenting its authorized distributor relationship with Cherry Aerospace at Booth 2756.

Century Fasteners expands aerospace fastener access through Cherry Aerospace distribution deal

Century Fasteners Corp., an authorized distributor for Cherry Aerospace, said the partnership broadens availability of Cherry's fastening systems to distributors and OEMs. Cherry Aerospace, headquartered in Santa Ana, California, is a member of the SPS Fastener Division of Precision Castparts Corp. and manufactures the CherryMax line of rivets, widely used across the aerospace industry alongside blind bolts, rivetless nut plates, shear pin fasteners and installation tools.

Sydney – September 21, 2026 -- TMGM Group has extended its sponsorship of Chelsea Football Club into a fourth year, expanding its regional rights to include the Middle East alongside its existing Asia-Pacific footprint.

TMGM branding appeared on Chelsea's FA Cup shirts for the first time in club history in 2026

The milestone marked the highest-profile moment yet in the three-year partnership. TMGM also joined Chelsea's 2026 Asia-Pacific Pre-Season Tour as an Official Partner, securing open training access, pitch-side presence and post-match tunnel experiences for clients.

Nevada – September 21, 2026 -- i-80 Gold Corp. has completed a feasibility study for its Granite Creek Underground project outlining initial proven and probable mineral reserves of 556,500 ounces of gold at 7.87 grams per tonne across 2.20 million tonnes.

Measured and indicated resources jump 229% versus March 2025 preliminary assessment

The updated mineral resource estimate shows measured and indicated resources rising to 3.73 million tonnes grading 7.17 g/t gold, containing 859,500 ounces, a 229% increase from the PEA published in March 2025. Inferred resources fell 38% to 0.89 million tonnes at 7.06 g/t gold (202,800 ounces) as infill drilling converted material into higher-confidence categories. The estimate incorporates roughly 36,470 meters of drilling from 164 core holes completed between 2023 and the end of 2025.

Mexico City – September 21, 2026 -- ESENTIA Energy Development, S.A.B. de C.V. (BMV: ESENTIA) has agreed to acquire 100% of Energía Occidente de México, S. de R.L. de C.V. (EOM) for a gross purchase price of US$400 million, the company announced.

The deal, signed today, gives ESENTIA the approximately 313-kilometer Guadalajara-Manzanillo natural gas pipeline system, which runs from Jalisco to the Pacific port of Manzanillo, Colima.

Acquisition links Permian Basin gas supply to the Pacific coast

The Guadalajara-Manzanillo System interconnects directly with ESENTIA's existing Villa de Reyes-Aguascalientes-Guadalajara (VAG) pipeline, operated by its subsidiary Esentia Pipeline de Occidente. Upon closing, ESENTIA says it would become the only private company operating an integrated natural gas pipeline network connecting the Permian Basin in Texas to Mexico's Pacific coast.