VANCOUVER, BC, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Market Updates News Commentary - The global tungsten market is valued at approximately $6.66 billion in 2026 and is projected to reach about $9.62 billion by 2030, a compound annual growth rate of roughly 9.6%, according to The Business Research Company. In the United States, the bigger story is where that tungsten will come from. Beginning January 1, 2027, U.S. defense procurement rules restrict tungsten sourced from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, and Washington has spent the past month funding domestic capacity ahead of that date. Nevada, home to several of the country's past-producing tungsten camps, sits at the center of that effort. Active Companies from around the markets with current developments this week include: Western Star Resources Inc. (CSE: WSR) (OTC: WSRIF) (FRA: 4K2), The Elmet Group Co. (NASDAQ: ELMT), Perpetua Resources Corp. (NASDAQ: PPTA), United States Antimony Corporation (NYSE: UAMY), ioneer Ltd (NASDAQ: IONR).

The largest commitment so far came on September 14, when the U.S. Department of War announced a $450 million committed investment in The Elmet Group, alongside a Defense Logistics Agency contract with a ceiling of $2 billion for tungsten supply to the National Defense Stockpile. About $150 million of that investment is earmarked for the Springer Tungsten Complex in Imlay, Nevada. Federal support is reaching the powder end of the chain as well: on October 2, the Export-Import Bank of the United States finalized a $27.4 million loan to 6K Additive to expand domestic production of refractory metal powders for defense.

China still controls roughly 80% of the mined supply and refining chain for tungsten products, which is why the procurement deadline has turned old U.S. tungsten districts into exploration targets again. The question for each of them is the same: what is left in the ground beneath the historical workings, and how quickly can it be tested with a drill.

Western Star Resources Defines Priority Drill Targets and Outlines a Planned 3,050-Foot Drill Program at the Past-Producing Rowland Tungsten Property, Nevada

On October 13, Western Star Resources Inc. (CSE: WSR) (OTC: WSRIF) (FRA: 4K2) announced the priority drill targets and a planned six-hole, approximately 3,050-foot (930-metre) drill program for its 100% owned, past-producing Rowland Tungsten Property in Elko County, Nevada. Highlights include:

- Two priority drill targets defined at Rowland Main and Northern Zone B, where the 2026 soil program defined tungsten-in-soil anomalies over zones of historical workings.

- Six planned holes from four drill pads, all sited on existing disturbance; hole locations are preliminary and subject to field verification and permitting.

- Rowland Main (four holes, 1,850 feet): three holes beside the historical open cut, where rock-chip, float and channel samples returned up to 4.02% WO₃, plus a fourth hole testing the bedrock source of soil sample R079 (4,240 ppm W; 0.53% WO₃), the highest value of the Phase 2 soil program.

- Northern Zone B (two holes, 1,200 feet): holes test beneath historical shafts and an ore chute, where rock-chip samples returned 0.35% to 1.22% WO₃, and the roof of a modelled magnetic body approximately 165 metres below surface.

- A Plan of Operations is being prepared by KC Harvey Environmental for submission to the U.S. Forest Service, in parallel with a Nevada reclamation permit.

The targets come from four datasets the Company assembled in a single field season: the Phase 2 tungsten-in-soil anomalies, a three-dimensional inversion of its 2026 UAV magnetic survey completed by East Coast Consulting, the historical workings confirmed in Phase 1, and the 2026 rock-chip and channel assays. Each planned hole tests a soil anomaly at depth where it coincides with a modelled magnetic contact or with the ground beneath historical workings, and holes are oriented to cross those contacts at a high angle where the geometry allows.

At Rowland Main, the model shows a compact magnetic body beneath the core of the soil anomaly and immediately west of the historical open cut. Hole ROW26-01 is planned to enter the modelled contact at approximately 86 metres down-hole and ROW26-02 at approximately 76 metres, while ROW26-03 tests beneath the open cut. At Northern Zone B, ROW26-05, the longest hole in the program at 700 feet, is planned to reach the roof of a larger modelled body at approximately 159 metres down-hole. The Company notes that no new assay results are reported in the release and that the planned holes remain preliminary.

"Rowland has come a long way in a single field season," said Blake Morgan, CEO and President of Western Star. "We started with a historical record that pointed to one past-producing zone, and we are finishing with three zones of confirmed workings, an integrated modern dataset, and a ranked drill target inventory ready for permitting and drill testing. This is exactly the outcome we set out to deliver when we acquired Rowland."

Rowland is part of a portfolio of past-producing tungsten assets Western Star is advancing in Nevada and New Mexico. In New Mexico, the Company has outlined a 17-hole, approximately 6,070-foot drill program at its Eagle Point Tungsten Project, which it believes will be the first drilling at Eagle Point in more than 70 years.

CONTINUED... Read this and more news for the sector at: Market Updates

In other industry developments and happenings in the market this week include:

The Elmet Group Co. (NASDAQ: ELMT)

Elmet announced on September 14 that the Department of War made a $450 million committed investment in the company, funded through an initial $200 million drawdown at closing, in exchange for redeemable preferred equity and warrants for up to 19.9% of its common stock. Its subsidiary Elmet Technologies was also awarded a Defense Logistics Agency contract with a ceiling of $2 billion and a guaranteed funded commitment of $150 million for tungstate and tungsten supply to the National Defense Stockpile. About $150 million is allocated to restarting and expanding ammonium paratungstate conversion at the Springer Tungsten Complex in Imlay, Nevada, through a majority-owned joint venture.

"The Department is committed to empowering the American warfighter and workforce," said George K. Kollitides II, Director of the Economic Defense Unit.

Perpetua Resources Corp. (NASDAQ: PPTA)

Perpetua reported on September 28 that its exploration drilling at the Stibnite Gold Project in Idaho passed 10,000 metres in August and will continue into the fall with four rigs. At the Clark Tunnel Fault Zone, five holes totaling 1,900 metres were completed by the end of August, tungsten mineralization was identified and scheelite continues to appear in core. The company says the project holds the only identified domestic reserve of antimony, and construction on the Burntlog Route, worker housing and the powerline continued through the summer.

"This progress reflects the dedication of every member of the Perpetua Resources team," said Jon Cherry, President and CEO.

United States Antimony Corporation (NYSE: UAMY)

United States Antimony provided a third quarter update on September 30 on its deliveries of military-specification antimony ingots to the Defense Logistics Agency under its existing $245 million sole-source supply contract. Antimony flake from a partner's Bolivian hydrometallurgical facility arrived at its Thompson Falls, Montana smelter during the quarter, and more than 400,000 pounds of antimony material from Stibnite Hill, Montana is stockpiled at Radersburg, where processing has begun. The company describes itself as the sole producer of MIL-SPEC antimony ingots in the Western Hemisphere.

ioneer Ltd (NASDAQ: IONR)

ioneer, which is developing the Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project in Nevada, reported that it raised approximately US$50 million from new and existing shareholders during the six months to June 30, 2026 and remains in compliance with its closed US$996 million U.S. Department of Energy loan facility. The company also received a conditional U.S. Army award for a long-term land lease at Tooele Army Depot for a critical mineral processing facility. A federal court upheld the project's permit, and ioneer said it expects the plaintiffs' appeal to the Ninth Circuit not to delay construction.

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Board member since April moves into an operating role, leading corporate strategy and commercialization of the business across marketing, product and sales

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Empiric Earth today named Jen Vescio President, effective immediately. Vescio, a member of the company's board since April and former Chief Business Development Officer at Uber, reports to Chief Executive Officer Zach Greenberger.

As President, Vescio leads the buy, build and partner functions across Product, Corporate Development/IR, Business Development/Sales and Marketing, along with the post-M&A integration of the two companies. The appointment follows the September merger of Nexar and Nauto which has been recently rebranded Empiric Earth.

"Every major technology shift is won by the people who get it into the world," said Greenberger. "Jen knows how a breakthrough becomes a business. I've known that since our days on opposite sides of the table, Jen at Uber and me at Lyft. She's continued to prove it across multiple generations of technology and layers of AI, from hardware and compute to software and networks. Now she's bringing that experience to Physical AI, and there's no one I'd rather have alongside me as we build Empiric Earth."

Vescio was Uber's Chief Business Development Officer where she led global BizDev (across Uber Rides and Uber Eats) and new business development (Autonomous) and most recently was principal of Awestruck Ventures, an advisory firm focused on buy-side, sell-side and go-to-market strategy. Jen has worked across many sectors and stages of company growth. She has raised over $300M for a portfolio of Physical AI companies including Fort Robotics and, recently has helped to launch open-source projects like OpenClaw.

"Trust and safety is at the center of the Physical AI ecosystem," said Vescio. "Empiric Earth has a combined two decades of real world assets and holds that record to date. My goal is to build trust with our customers, our employees and our investors by developing products, platforms and services that bridge the real world to the Physical AI ecosystem in a manner that enables sustainability, safety and trust."

About Empiric Earth

Empiric Earth holds a record of how the physical world behaves. 300M+ real-world miles are captured every month across 98% of US roads and 50 or more countries, built on more than 10 billion miles of driving history and 60 million edge cases, de-identified. Because Empiric Earth does not build vehicles, pick winners, or compete with the systems it measures, developers, automakers, fleets, insurers and public agencies can rely on it as independent ground truth. Empiric Earth was formed in 2026 through the merger of Nexar and Nauto. www.empiricearth.com

SOURCE Empiric Earth

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PHAL Launches the World's First Total Hotel Agentic AI Solution, as a Third Top 10 Global Operator Selects PHAL

SINGAPORE, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- PHAL today launched PHAL OS™, the world's first Total Hotel agentic AI solution. PHAL OS is a single agentic AI that reads an entire hotel across its four Ps, Performance, Profit, Preference and People, and across the full life of the asset, and it runs inside the operator's own infrastructure. Alongside the launch, PHAL confirmed its third mandate, as a Top 10 global hotel group selected PHAL for an initial proof of concept. As with PHAL's earlier engagements, the client remains confidential.

PHAL's inaugural client, a Top 10 global hotel group, has proved three projects and is scaling to further bespoke builds, with the first solutions ready for production. A globally recognised luxury operator, on a signed Letter of Intent, is progressing to its next steps.

Watch The PHAL OS Launch Film at www.phal.sg/launch

"To have three of the world's most significant hotel groups trust PHAL within six months is humbling. A hotel is one business, and it deserves one intelligence that can see all of it. That is what we have built. It lives inside the operator's own infrastructure, every number can be trusted, and every decision stays with the operator."

Saurabh Prakash, CEO and Founder, PHAL

A hotel rarely fails one function at a time. It fails in the gaps between them. PHAL OS begins from the whole hotel, reading all four Ps together every day, across six stages, from the feasibility of a deal and pre opening, through the daily total hotel performance review, forecasting and budgeting, CapEx and projects, to owner alignment and asset management.

By PHAL's own calculations, a hotel department head loses close to two hours a day to spreadsheets. Across four department heads, that is some 200,000 hours a year in a 100 hotel portfolio. PHAL hands those hours back, moving the time from the spreadsheet to the guest.

PHAL's method, patent pending in Singapore, traces every figure back to its source before it reaches a leader. The agents read and recommend, the group's own people decide, and nothing executes on its own.

"I saw a demo of PHAL in action, and was quite impressed. It gives specific recommendations with a comprehensive view of hotel operations, and is very user-friendly. Well done PHAL."

Dave Roberts, Faculty, Nolan School of Hotel Administration, Cornell University

ABOUT PHAL

PHAL (Prakash Hospitality Advisory Pte Ltd) is the World's First Agentic AI Advisory and Solutions for Hospitality, and the creator of PHAL OS™. The Singapore firm was founded by Saurabh Prakash, a 25 year hospitality operator and an Accredited Board Director of the Singapore Institute of Directors. PHAL takes its name from the Sanskrit phal, meaning fruit, outcome and consequence. More at www.phal.sg.

MEDIA CONTACT

Saurabh Prakash, CEO and Founder, PHAL

+65 9722 3868 | [email protected]

SOURCE PHAL

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The Creative Curriculum is the only curriculum designed to work with the GOLD® assessment

WASHINGTON, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Teaching Strategies, the leading provider of early childhood curriculum, assessment, professional development and family engagement solutions, today announced two state-specific versions of its flagship curriculum have earned a "Tier 1" quality designation—the highest rating available—from the Louisiana Department of Education. The Creative Curriculum® for Preschool and The Creative Curriculum® for Pre-K are approved and available for use in Louisiana early childhood classrooms. The Creative Curriculum is the only curriculum designed to work with the GOLD® assessment.

The Tier 1 designation recognizes strong alignment with Louisiana's Birth to Five Early Learning and Development Standards and reflects the state's rigorous expectations for high-quality instructional materials.

"Louisiana has long set one of the nation's highest bars for early childhood quality, and we're honored that The Creative Curriculum has earned the state's highest rating in its instructional materials review process," said Mike Derezin, CEO of Teaching Strategies. "This recognition reflects our commitment to equipping educators with research-based, practical resources that support joyful, engaging learning while helping every child build the skills they need to thrive in kindergarten and beyond. We look forward to continuing to partner with educators across Louisiana as they create exceptional learning experiences for young children."

Teaching Strategies is a longtime partner to providers across Louisiana. Stacey Milton, early childhood supervisor for Livingston Parish Public Schools, said her schools have used the preschool and pre-K curricula for more than a decade and also recently invested in Kickstart Literacy.

"The results have been outstanding. Teachers across our district, including our special education pre-K teachers, have reported significant growth in student achievement and literacy development," Milton said. "We look forward to many more years of collaboration and success together."

For more than 45 years, The Creative Curriculum has helped educators create engaging, developmentally appropriate learning experiences grounded in research on how young children learn best. The latest editions strengthen that foundation with updated guidance, enhanced support for inclusive classrooms, stronger connections between assessment and instruction, and embedded professional learning.

The curriculum is part of Teaching Strategies' integrated early childhood ecosystem, which combines curriculum, ongoing formative assessment through GOLD®, professional learning, and family engagement tools to help educators individualize instruction and better understand each child's progress.

The Louisiana approval adds to a growing body of evidence supporting Teaching Strategies' comprehensive early childhood ecosystem. Recent independent research found preschool teachers who participated in professional development aligned to Teaching Strategies' curriculum and assessment experienced significantly higher retention than their peers, while children in their classrooms demonstrated stronger growth across multiple domains of learning and development, as measured by GOLD®.

Teaching Strategies has also submitted Louisiana-specific versions of The Creative Curriculum® for Infants, Toddlers & Twos for review by the Louisiana Department of Education.

About Teaching Strategies

Teaching Strategies® is the most widely used provider of early childhood curriculum, assessment, professional development, and family engagement solutions. Teaching Strategies has the only evidence-based early childhood comprehensive system of curriculum, assessment, professional development and family engagement. Its flagship products, The Creative Curriculum® and GOLD®, reach about 4.5 million children each year in more than 80 countries. A trusted partner and advocate for the early education community for 45 years, today Teaching Strategies connects teachers, children and families to inspired teaching and learning experiences, insightful data, stronger family partnerships, and robust professional learning through SmartTeach™, the leading early learning platform. Learn more at www.teachingstrategies.com.

SOURCE Teaching Strategies

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New agentic platform combines predictive analytics, anomaly detection, scenario modeling and conversational intelligence to provide real-time insights for faster, better business decisions.

HICKORY, N.C., Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Transportation Insight (TI), a leading logistics and technology provider serving enterprise and mid-market shippers, today announced the launch of Transportation Insight Infinity (TI Infinity), an AI-powered Decision Intelligence platform designed to transform how business decisions are made. By combining live transportation data with advanced AI capabilities, TI Infinity helps shippers move beyond historical reporting to anticipate what's next, evaluate alternatives and determine the best course of action.

"For over 25 years at Transportation Insight, our mission has always been focused on delivering unique insights and value to drive competitive advantage for our clients," said Paul Thompson, Founder and Chairman of Transportation Insight. "We are excited to build on this mission with the launch of TI Infinity, combining our extensive transportation data, market intelligence and AI-powered capabilities to deliver actionable insights and recommendations. While transportation intelligence is our foundation, our vision for TI Infinity extends well beyond logistics by helping clients connect transportation decisions to broader business outcomes, including profitability, margin management and overall enterprise performance."

Shippers have more transportation data and visibility than ever, yet turning that information into timely insights and decisions remains difficult. Data often sits across multiple freight, parcel and enterprise systems, while traditional analytics still depend on users knowing what to look for, combining reports and interpreting what the data means.

TI Infinity changes that model. The platform continuously analyzes market, spend and performance data to identify meaningful trends, emerging risks and opportunities. Users can then interact directly with their data in plain language, investigate what is driving a change, evaluate potential outcomes and determine the next best action. Expanded capabilities will include the ability to connect transportation intelligence with broader enterprise data, helping customers better understand the impact of supply chain decisions on profitability, margins and overall business performance.

"Our goal isn't to give customers another dashboard to monitor. It's to create an intelligence layer that is continuously working on their behalf, identifying changes and opportunities, anticipating potential outcomes, modeling alternatives and recommending the next best action," said Jared Wilson, President of Managed Transportation at Transportation Insight. "When you combine that technology with TI's proprietary data set and supply chain expertise, we can dramatically shorten the distance between data and decision, and ultimately from decision to measurable business impact."

TI Infinity draws on the scale of Transportation Insight's own logistics business. TI manages $14.4 billion in total client spend, including $2.4 billion in freight and $12 billion in parcel, and reviews over $30 billion in parcel carrier performance data each year. The company audits 2.8 billion shipments annually, drawing on more than 25 years of experience serving thousands of clients.

More information about TI Infinity is available on the Transportation Insight website.

About TI Infinity

Transportation Insight Infinity (TI Infinity) is a proprietary, AI-powered Decision Intelligence platform designed to transform transportation data into faster, more informed decisions. TI Infinity combines continuous monitoring, predictive analytics, anomaly detection, scenario modeling and conversational intelligence to identify what is changing, explain why it matters, anticipate potential outcomes and recommend what to do next.

Built on TI's transportation data and decades of freight and parcel expertise, Infinity lets users interact directly with their transportation information, investigate opportunities and risks, model alternative scenarios and understand the potential financial and operational impact of their decisions. Combined with TI's transportation experts, the platform creates a continuous intelligence layer designed to move organizations toward proactive, prescriptive transportation and enterprise operations management. TI Infinity is powered by the beon technology platform.

About Transportation Insight

Transportation Insight is a leading logistics and technology provider delivering managed transportation, parcel and multimodal solutions that help shippers improve cost, service and visibility across their supply chains. Through advanced technology, strong carrier relationships and expert managed services, Transportation Insight helps clients improve performance, protect margin and build more resilient supply chains. For more information, visit http://www.transportationinsight.com.

SOURCE Transportation Insight LLC

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16th annual Aflac WorkForces Report® shows 37% of Gen Z and 40% of millennials turning to AI to learn more about benefits options

COLUMBUS, Ga., Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Americans in the workplace are feeling more confident about their personal finances and benefits than they did a year ago, yet beneath those encouraging gains lies a more complex reality: they are increasingly burned out, more financially vulnerable and far more unprepared to weather the cost of a serious health event, according to the 16th annual Aflac WorkForces Report1. The report, released today by Aflac Incorporated, the leading provider of supplemental health insurance products in the U.S.2, also shows that AI is quickly becoming a top research tool for younger Americans seeking information about workplace benefits. The report tracks the state of the American workplace among employees and employers — capturing trends, attitudes, needs and experiences in healthcare and benefits administration.

Confidence masks healthcare unpreparedness and exposes financial risk

Although 50% of employees say they fully understand their health insurance coverage (up from 42% in 2025) and 66% believe their benefits would protect them well during a serious illness, many American workers are one paycheck away from financial hardship. Nearly half (47%) of Americans overall — and 61% of Gen Z — say they could not cover $1,000 in out-of-pocket costs from a medical event. Forty-five percent couldn't go for one month without a paycheck, and concerns about medical costs remain widespread. Consequently, Americans have made risky tradeoffs: nearly half (49%) have delayed medical care, and 30% have postponed or avoided treatment specifically due to cost.

Furthermore, employees may be misinformed and financially exposed when it comes to the cost of a serious illness. Three-quarters (75%) — significantly higher for U.S. Hispanics (88%), Asian Americans (88%) and African Americans (85%) — believe an insured American diagnosed with cancer would pay less than $2,000 out of pocket during the year following diagnosis. A recent study by the American Cancer Society and National Cancer Institute3 found that overall cancer-attributable medical service costs are an average $45,063 during the initial phase after diagnosis.

Pervasive workplace stress reaches alarming levels

The report reveals an all-time high 75% of employees experience workplace stress, compared to 72% in 2025. Among nearly 2 out of 5 (39%) of all employees who say they are experiencing burnout in their current roles, 83% reported having experienced at least moderate burnout at work. The highest rate of at least moderate burnout of all generations is Gen X (89%), compared to 84% of millennials and 73% of Gen Z. Personal mental health has had a negative influence on work and ability to get work done over the past year for Gen Z (37%) and millennials (33%), compared to Gen X (24%) and baby boomers (5%).

"The convergence of rising burnout, financial vulnerability and misconceptions about healthcare costs is creating risks for both workforce well-being and organizational resilience," said Aflac Incorporated Chief Human Resources Officer and Chief Administrative Officer Matthew Owenby. "For employers, the cost of inaction could be significant — impacting engagement, productivity and retention. Employers can make a meaningful difference by helping their teams better understand their benefits and provide protection that supports their physical, mental and financial well-being."

AI is emerging as a benefits advisor

The report shows GenAI platforms such as ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini are becoming a source of information regarding workplace benefits, with 30% of Americans saying they turn to it for research. In fact, AI is becoming more of a tool with Gen Z (37%) and millennials (40%), compared to Gen X (21%) and baby boomers (4%). However, 58% of employees also say they use their company's benefits portal or their benefits provider's website as a key source of information, indicating that while AI is a growing influence, employees still rely on information closest to the source. Thirty-three percent of employees also seek counsel from a benefits advisor to ensure they are maximizing their options.

Misunderstanding benefits can be costly

Costly mistakes are becoming more common as nearly one-third (32%) of employees say they have overpaid for healthcare — significantly higher for U.S. Hispanics (52%) — because they misunderstood what their insurance would cover, a sharp increase from 24% in 2025. Even among employees who claim to fully understand their policies, 35% report making costly coverage mistakes.

Competitive benefits are a business imperative despite financial pressures

Employers are increasingly viewing benefits as a strategic tool for satisfaction, productivity and talent attraction and retention — despite economic pressures and rising healthcare costs. At the same time, a record high 95% of Americans feel supplemental health insurance can help to protect their financial security. Employers are nearly evenly divided on what they consider to be a primary benefits objective: improving employee satisfaction and engagement (27%), creating a healthy and productive workforce (27%), supporting competitiveness (23%) or attracting and retaining talent (23%). For many employers, preserving comprehensive benefits offerings requires difficult tradeoffs, as they are increasingly balancing what they spend on benefits against other workforce investments — and shifting more financial responsibility to employees through premiums (35%), deductibles (32%) and copays (26%).

Gen Z is redefining the employee value proposition

While 49% of all American employees prioritize salary when looking for a new job, only 30% of Gen Z do so. Instead, younger workers emphasize fulfilling work (28% vs. 23% overall), career growth and development (22% vs. 17% overall) and workplace values that match their own (21% vs. 14% overall). Compensation is becoming a less effective retention strategy for younger talent, and benefits importance is rising. Employees' willingness to trade some salary for stronger benefits reached 39% overall and climbed to 53% among Gen Z — both all-time highs. In the past 12 months, Gen Z has contacted Human Resources about healthcare benefits at least once (92% vs. 70% overall), suggesting that better education and digital access could drive engagement.

The winning benefits experience combines digital tools and human support

As employees increasingly seek self-service benefits experiences, demand for digital access continues to grow. Eighty-five percent of workers — and 94% of Gen Z — say online benefits management is important, yet significant access gaps remain, with one-third of employees lacking online benefits access and two in five employers not offering online enrollment. One-third of employees now use AI to research benefits information, yet human advisor support resonates — mostly with Gen Z (90%) reporting its importance compared to 41% of baby boomers.

"Benefits remain one of the most important investments employers make, but the goalposts are shifting," said Owenby. "Employees need more than coverage. They need financial protection that reflects real-world risks, information they can understand and guidance they can trust. The organizations that deliver all three will be better positioned to provide support, build resilience and strengthen their workforces."

The 2026-2027 Aflac WorkForces Report highlights the vital role of comprehensive benefits in employees' well-being, satisfaction, resilience and retention. Additional survey findings, trends and more can be found at Aflac.com/AWR.

ABOUT THE 2026-2027 AFLAC WORKFORCES REPORT®

The 2026-2027 Aflac WorkForces Report is the 16th annual employee study examining benefits trends and attitudes. Conducted by Kantar on behalf of Aflac, the employer survey took place online between April 20 and May 10, 2026, and the employee survey took place online between April 20 and May 29, 2026. Throughout this report, some percentages may not add up to 100%, and Top 2 Box may appear higher or lower due to rounding. The surveys captured responses from 1,000 employers and 2,001 employees across the United States. Aflac includes Aflac and/or Aflac New York and/or Continental American Insurance Company and/or Continental American Life Insurance Company. For more information, visit Aflac.com/AWR.

ABOUT AFLAC INCORPORATED

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE: AFL), a Fortune 500 company, has helped provide financial protection and peace of mind for more than seven decades to millions of policyholders and customers through its subsidiaries in the U.S. and Japan. In the U.S., Aflac is the No. 1 provider of supplemental health insurance products.2 In Japan, Aflac Life Insurance Japan is the leading provider of cancer and medical insurance in terms of policies in force.4 The company takes pride in being there for its policyholders when they need us most, as well as being included in the World's Most Ethical Companies by Ethisphere for 20 consecutive years (2026) and Fortune's World's Most Admired Companies for 25 years (2026). In addition, the company became a signatory of the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in 2021. To find out how to get help with expenses health insurance doesn't cover, get to know us at aflac.com or aflac.com/español. Investors may learn more about Aflac Incorporated and its commitment to corporate social responsibility and sustainability at investors.aflac.com under "Sustainability."

Media contact: Jon Sullivan, 706.573.7610 or [email protected]

Analyst and investor contact: David A. Young, 706.596.3264 or [email protected]

1 Aflac.com/AWR

2 LIMRA 2025 U.S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- National trial law firm Hagens Berman alerts investors in FuelCell Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ: FCEL) that a securities class action has been filed, and reminds investors that they have until November 10, 2026, to seek appointment as lead plaintiff.

If you purchased or acquired FuelCell securities during the Class Period and suffered significant financial losses, submit your losses now.

Key Details

- Class Period: June 24, 2026 – Sept. 1, 2026

- Lead Plaintiff Deadline: Nov. 10, 2026

- Visit: www.hbsslaw.com/fcel

- Direct Contact Email: [email protected]

- Firm Telephone: 844-916-0895

- Video: https://youtu.be/GlhunVARgjo

What is the FuelCell Securities Class Action About?

The lawsuit focuses on whether FuelCell Energy and certain top executives—including CEO Jason B. Few and CFO Michael S. Bishop—violated the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by making materially false and misleading statements regarding the company's manufacturing capacity, production economics, and a major commercial agreement.

Specifically, the action alleges that throughout the Class Period, defendants touted a high-profile Capital Equipment Purchase Agreement (CEPA) announced on June 24, 2026, under which FuelCell agreed to supply carbonate fuel cell block systems for up to 380 megawatts (MW) of clean, baseload on-site power for data centers to Fit Energy USA LP (beginning with an initial 30 MW phase). Concurrently, FuelCell capitalized on the market enthusiasm by completing a massive underwritten public offering of over 12 million shares of common stock at $21 per share, raising roughly $245.5 million in net proceeds.

However, the complaint alleges that defendants failed to disclose critical operational realities to investors:

- That FuelCell's actual manufacturing capacity was wholly inadequate to generate the production rates required under the Fit Energy CEPA;

- That the lagging production volume meant product costs and manufacturing overhead heavily exceeded the contractual pricing, locking the company into severe gross losses; and

- That the company was tracking multi-million-dollar charges and inventory commitments tied to Phase 0 of the agreement that would decimate its quarterly profitability.

The truth emerged before the market opened on September 2, 2026, when FuelCell reported its fiscal third-quarter 2026 financial results. The company revealed a staggering net loss of $45.3 million and a massive jump in gross losses—driven by $17 million in charges recorded for Phase 0 of the Fit Energy CEPA because current product costs and overhead exceeded contract pricing.

Following these disclosures, the price of FuelCell stock plummeted nearly 16% in a single trading session, severely damaging shareholders.

What Can FuelCell Investors Do?

If you purchased FCEL securities between June 24, 2026, and September 1, 2026, you may be eligible to participate in the lawsuit as a lead plaintiff.

The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 permits any investor who suffered financial losses to seek appointment as lead plaintiff. You do not need to sell your shares to join the class action.

- Click Here To Submit Your Losses

- Click Here to Discuss Your Legal Rights: Contact Hagens Berman attorneys to learn more about the case, the lead plaintiff timeline, and your options.

"We're focused on whether FuelCell may have misled investors about its manufacturing capabilities, as the suit alleges," said Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading the firm's investigation of the claims in the pending suit.

Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding FuelCell should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 844-916-0895 or email [email protected].

About Hagens Berman

Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs' rights complex litigation firm focusing on corporate accountability. The firm is home to a robust practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and other wrongdoings. Hagens Berman's team has secured more than $2.9 billion in this area of law. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com. Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw. 

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any future case.

SOURCE Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP

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Building on a seven-year partnership, Voya will leverage UnqorkAI to accelerate innovation and enhance customer experiences

NEW YORK, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Unqork, an AI-first enterprise development company, today announced that Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA)—a leading retirement, employee benefits, and investment management company supporting more than 18 million customer relationships—selected UnqorkAI to support targeted AI-enabled retirement experiences and workflow initiatives. The expanded relationship reflects Voya's broader approach to working with technology partners to apply AI where it can help improve customer experiences, streamline operations and deliver meaningful business value.

Building on its existing partnership, Voya will leverage UnqorkAI to help customers move more seamlessly from guidance to action, augment enterprise workflows and deliver more connected client experiences.

UnqorkAI is Unqork's new AI-native platform designed to empower enterprises in highly regulated industries to build and run AI-generated applications with greater speed, predictability, and governance at a fraction of current enterprise total cost of ownership (TCO).

An Unqork customer since 2019, Voya successfully leveraged Unqork's platform to build and manage mission-critical Sponsor Onboarding and Producer Onboarding applications, replacing legacy complexity with streamlined operational workflows.

"At Voya, we start with the business problem and apply AI where it can create meaningful value for our customers and clients," said Rajat Kalia, chief technology officer, workplace solutions, Voya Financial. "As an early adopter of UnqorkAI, we see an opportunity to enhance onboarding workflows and experiences while maintaining strict security, cost controls, enterprise governance and responsible AI practices. Expanding our relationship with Unqork allows us to put safe, impactful AI capabilities into practice that allow customers to make informed and timely decisions." Unqork's mission has always been to help customers reliably and securely manage complexity while controlling the costs of building and operating resilient enterprise systems. UnqorkAI continues that mission into the AI era, enabling organizations to build and deploy enterprise-grade applications faster, while reducing ongoing application maintenance overhead.

"Voya is a pioneer in delivering best-in-class retirement experiences, while proving that speed and governance can co-exist when you eliminate technical debt at the root," said Gary Hoberman, CEO and Founder of Unqork. "Voya is demonstrating how financial institutions can innovate with AI while reducing their maintenance burdens, code surface area, and enterprise risk. We are thrilled to partner with Voya on this next chapter of AI-driven innovation."

About Voya Financial®

Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA) is a leading retirement, employee benefits and investment management company. Voya's services and solutions help clear the path to financial confidence and a more fulfilling life for individual, workplace and institutional clients, supporting more than 18 million customer relationships. Certified as a "Great Place to Work" by the Great Place to Work® Institute, Voya fosters a culture that values customer centricity, integrity, accountability, agility and inclusivity. Together with customers and partners, Voya employees fight for everyone's opportunity for a better financial future. For more information visit voya.com and follow Voya Financial on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

About Unqork

Unqork empowers enterprises to leverage AI to build, run, and evolve complex, mission-critical software without creating unvetted, unsecured code. By streamlining the software lifecycle, Unqork helps enterprises, like Goldman Sachs, Marsh, and BlackRock accelerate digital transformation while reducing risk and total cost of ownership across their application portfolio. To learn more, visit: unqork.com.

SOURCE Unqork

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LONDON, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Allegra RMS, the resource management system built by AirportLabs, has been named an honoree in the user experience category of Fast Company's 2026 Innovation by Design Awards.

Fast Company is a US business publication covering innovation, technology, leadership, and design. Its Innovation by Design Awards are among the few international programmes that judge a product on the thinking behind it rather than its finish, with categories spanning transportation, workplace, health, packaging, and artificial intelligence. The user experience category, in Fast Company's own description, honours projects that consider a user's journey from beginning to end, whether in an app, a physical product, or a brick-and-mortar experience.

The honorees in that category this year include companies like Adobe, Google, and Framer. For a company that builds software for airport control rooms, that is an unusual company to keep, and welcome.

Being honoured specifically for user experience is a testament to the design philosophy behind the product. AirportLabs treats design as part of how operational software is built rather than a finish applied to it, and this recognition says that approach reads clearly well beyond aviation. This is the second recognition Allegra RMS has received this year, reinforcing both the product's market position and the value it delivers to the airports running it.

Allegra RMS is the decision layer for airport resources. Stands, gates, baggage belts, check-in counters, allocated by AI against a single live data layer and each airport's own business rules, and re-optimised continuously as the day moves rather than fixed once and patched by hand.

It works by breaking the silos. Allegra RMS draws schedules, movements, resource status and demand forecasts from the systems already in place and resolves them into one source of operational data, so resources that were planned in separate tools by separate teams are now planned together, on the same data, under the same rules. A change to a stand is understood by check-in. A delay is understood by the belts. On top of that data layer, demand analysis compares scheduled against predicted flights before a peak arrives, scenario planning tests a day against capacity before it runs, and utilisation is reported in real time, so optimisation is measured rather than assumed.

And the intelligence stays accountable. The system proposes; the operator decides. Every allocation is visible, traceable and open to manual intervention, which is the part that earned the design recognition in the first place.

"Airport operations software is rarely judged on how it feels to use, and that is exactly what we set out to change with Allegra RMS," said Ligiu Uiorean, Director of AirportLabs. "Being honoured for user experience, by this company, tells us that the design thinking behind the product carries well beyond our own industry. It is a recognition the whole team has earned."

Allegra RMS is live at Chicago O'Hare, one of the most complex airport operations in the world, and at more than 20 airports worldwide.

For more information about Allegra RMS, visit our product page.

For all media and marketing-related questions regarding AirportLabs, please contact the marketing team at [email protected].

Website - https://www.airportlabs.com/

LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/company/airportlabs

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/AirportLabs 

About AirportLabs

A global leader in aviation technology, AirportLabs delivers integrated, cloud-native tools that make airport operations simple. With over a decade of proven results and deployments at 100+ airports, including some of the world's busiest international hubs, AirportLabs helps operational teams work as one, with shared, real-time insight. By connecting critical systems and simplifying complex data instead of adding complexity, AirportLabs enables airports, airlines, and ground handlers to increase efficiency, strengthen resilience, and deliver a smoother passenger experience.

About Fast Company

Fast Company is a business media brand covering technology, leadership, design and the businesses shaping the future. Its Innovation by Design Awards recognise design work across a wide range of disciplines, from consumer products and digital experiences to transportation, workplace, and social good. Entries are assessed by a jury of designers, executives and Fast Company editors, with this year's honorees being published in September 2026.

SOURCE AirportLabs Limited

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Yiren Digital Appoints Na Mei as Acting Chief Executive Officer

BEIJING, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Yiren Digital Ltd. (NYSE: YRD) ("Yiren Digital" or the "Company"), a leading company specializing in financial technology and artificial intelligence innovation across multiple industries in China and global markets, today announced that the Company's board of directors (the "Board") has appointed Ms. Na Mei as Acting Chief Executive Officer, effective October 13, 2026.

The appointment follows the Company's announcement on October 12, 2026 regarding its Chief Executive Officer and is intended to support continuity in the Company's management and operations. Ms. Mei will oversee the Company's day-to-day operations and work with the existing management team under the oversight of the Board.

Ms. Mei previously served as the Company's Chief Financial Officer from September 2020 to August 2024. Prior to joining the Company, she worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers for more than a decade. Ms. Mei has extensive experience in financial management, auditing, taxation, internal controls and consulting for companies listed on stock exchanges in China and overseas. Ms. Mei holds a bachelor's degree from Capital University of Economics and Business and is a certified public accountant.

About Yiren Digital

Yiren Digital Ltd. is a leading company specializing in financial technology and artificial intelligence innovation across multiple industries in China and global markets. The Company leverages advanced artificial intelligence and emerging technologies to enhance customer experience, optimize capital efficiency, and expand financial inclusion. Following the regulatory filing of its in-house developed Large Language Model Zhiyu, and the significant enhancement of its MagiCube Agent platform, Yiren Digital is establishing a new growth engine to accelerate its evolution into an AI-native, multi-industry operating platform extending beyond traditional financial services. For more information, please visit https://ir.yiren.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "aim," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "hope," "going forward," "intend," "ought to," "plan," "project," "potential," "seek," "may," "might," "can," "could," "will," "would," "shall," "should," "is likely to" and the negative form of these words and other similar expressions. This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "target," "confident," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations, assumptions, and assessments of current market and operating conditions. These statements involve inherent risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are outside the control of the Company, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors and other risks described in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company undertakes no, and expressly disclaims any, obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required under applicable law.

SOURCE Yiren Digital Ltd.

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