Apple cancels preexisting military drone Pentagon contract after acquiring AI company

Apple | January 30, 2020

Less than three weeks after quietly acquiring artificial intelligence company Xnor.ai, Apple has swiftly canceled the company’s preexisting contract with the Pentagon that would have seen its tech used in the controversial “Project Maven” military drone operation. That’s according to a report from The Information, citing a person familiar with the matter. Project Maven is the Pentagon’s initiative to use artificial intelligence to identify objects and targets of interest in aerial footage captured by military drones. The project has been highly controversial due to the potential for AI to presumably identify and label potential targets. Thousands of employees at Google staged protests last year over the company’s contracts for Project Maven. Those protests ultimately lead to Google withdrawing from the contract.

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EMERGING TECHNOLOGY, GOVERNMENT FINANCE

Government of Alberta Awards Applexus with IGF Grant

Applexus | February 20, 2023

Applexus, a technology-based company for business consultation and SAP services, has recently announced that it has secured an Investment and Growth Fund IGF grant from the Government of Alberta, establishing its business in Canada. Invest Alberta supported it, and Calgary Economic Development made key introductions for funding application processes. This investment and expansion will help it to develop new technology solutions, hire and reach with better services. Calgary's graduates will be its team for a skilled workforce with exceptional infrastructure. Being a consulting firm, it spends a lot of money and time traveling to the client sites, so Calgary, an air travel hub, will offer convenient access to its clients from the US market. Calgary is an affordable settlement place with a strong public education system, a high standard of living with diversity, importance to the quality of life, and being friendly with other communities. It will gain skilled professionals from other places than North America through Alberta's new immigration program for technology professionals. CEO and Founder of Applexus, Sam Mathew, said, "The IGF grant will allow us to take our company to the next level, help strengthen our presence, expand our offerings, bring new jobs to the region, and positively impact the community. We're grateful for the support of the Government of Alberta as we work to build a stronger and more diverse economy for the state." (Source – Cision PR Newswire) CEO of Invest Alberta, Rick Christiaanse, said, "Applexus is a welcome addition to Alberta's tech and innovation sector, and we are excited the company has chosen our province to establish its Canadian headquarters." He added, "This investment in Alberta will help support our local economy through the creation of 125 new jobs over five years while giving Applexus access to the skilled talent Alberta is known for so it can thrive in a rapidly growing sector. The support the company received from the Government of Alberta, Invest Alberta, and Calgary Economic Development positioned our province as a destination of choice and is a tangible example of Alberta's world-renowned 'make it happen attitude' when it comes to global investment." (Source – Cision PR Newswire) About Applexus Headquartered in Federal Way, Washington, Applexus Technologies has been offering SAP services and business consulting to transform the customer experience through digital innovation since 2005. It specializes in advisory, implementation, migration, and management solutions for SAP S/4HANA and B/4HANA. In addition, it offers solutions for business transformation, business analytics, AMS, cloud services, SAP CAR solutions, data migration, organizational change leadership, quality engineering, accounts payable automation, import-export and retail solutions. It has centers in North America, India, the Middle East, and the United Kingdom to influence the business communities worldwide.

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EMERGING TECHNOLOGY

BlueAlly Announces Acquisition of n2grate, Expands Access to Federal Government

BlueAlly | February 03, 2023

On February 02, 2023, a source capital portfolio company that delivers everything from hardware and software BlueAlly, announced it has acquired n2grate Government Technology Solutions; with specialist expertise, it provides service and offers IT solutions to its customers. BlueAlly and n2grate’s combined entity will help expand BlueAlly’s access to federal customers who can now benefit from an expansive suite of managed and professional services. n2grate has a wide range of end-to-end solutions that are best for large businesses and the government. The team has specialized knowledge and is set up to provide IT solutions that meet the IT needs of regulated industries and federal clients. In addition, the n2grate team knows a lot about networking, security, and infrastructure. George Barkley, CEO of BlueAlly, said, "the acquisition of n2grate provides strategic diversification to BlueAlly's core business while accelerating our maturation as a preferred national solution provider. Several of our core vendor alliances are immediately strengthened, ultimately helping us serve our clients more comprehensively." He also said, "We are excited to welcome a team of focused professionals with deep understanding of the federal space, and I have great confidence in the success of our combined efforts." (Source: Cision) About BlueAlly Founded in 1999, BlueAlly helps clients optimize, scale, and manage IT capacity to achieve the company's business goals. The company is headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, with 700+ global engagements delivered successfully. It tops in providing Managed Services, Consulting Solutions, and Converged Infrastructure. In addition, the services of BlueAlly include Infrastructure Assessment and Advisory Services, managed services, Data Center Solutions and network and security solutions.

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EMERGING TECHNOLOGY,GOVERNMENT BUSINESS

UK Government’s G-cloud 13 Supplier Network Status for Precisely

Precisely | January 11, 2023

Global leader in data integrity solutions, Precisely, is selected to be a supplier for the Crown Commercial Service's G-Cloud 13 Framework. Precisely's portfolio of data integrity solutions is now available on the G-Cloud procurement platform, further establishing the company's reputation as a trusted solutions provider to the central and local governments as well as the public sector. The G-Cloud initiative aims to make cloud-based services more accessible to the UK government and public sector organizations. The framework only includes suppliers and solution providers who meet the UK Government's highest privacy, security, and scalability standards, allowing organizations to procure the services and solutions they require more quickly and with less risk. Government and public sector services are under considerable stress, which the COVID-19 pandemic aggravated, and many organizations assigned with meeting demanding digital transformation efforts are struggling with the change. This causes data silos, inefficient resource use, a lack of understanding of citizen needs, and even regulatory compliance concerns. Data analytics continues to be the most pressing issue for central government departments, a recent Central Gov Strategy Forum study revealed, with 65% of the departments planning to increase spending in this area in 2023. "Whether organizations are looking to move from antiquated mainframes to the cloud, create data governance frameworks, build data quality for a 360° view of their citizens, or leverage powerful spatial insights, successful digital transformation programs need to be fuelled by accurate, consistent, and contextual data," said Jay Reilly, SVP - EMEA at Precisely. He further stated, "Our placement on G-Cloud 13 means public sector organizations can more easily access our portfolio of data integrity solutions, empowering them to make the confident decisions needed to improve the lives of citizens." (Source: Businesswire) About Precisely Precisely is the world's leading data integrity firm, serving 12,000 customers in over 100 countries, including 99 of the Fortune 100, by ensuring data consistency, context and accuracy in data. Precisely's data integration, quality, governance, location intelligence, and enrichment technologies help businesses make better decisions and accomplish better results.

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