Category: 3. Business

An 18-story office tower near Manhattan’s Hudson Yards sold at a significant discount to its 2018 purchase price, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Property investor David Werner bought 440 Ninth Ave. for slightly more than $100 million in cash — less than half the last price of $269 million, the person said, asking not to be identified discussing private details.

SANTA CLARA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Intel Corporation today announced that company executives will participate in the following investor events to discuss Intel’s business and strategy:

• On Aug. 28 at 8:45 a.m. PDT, David Zinsner, executive vice president and chief financial officer, will participate in a fireside chat at Deutsche Bank’s 2025 Technology Conference.

• On Sept. 4 at 9:50 a.m. PDT, Zinsner will participate in a fireside chat at Citi’s 2025 Global TMT Conference.

• On Sept. 8 at 3:45 p.m. PDT, John Pitzer, corporate vice president, Corporate Planning and Investor Relations, will participate in a fireside chat at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology conference.

Live webcasts and replays can be accessed publicly on Intel’s Investor Relations website at intc.com.

Intel’s participation, speakers and schedule are subject to change.

About Intel

Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) is an industry leader, creating world-changing technology that enables global progress and enriches lives. Inspired by Moore’s Law, we continuously work to advance the design and manufacturing of semiconductors to help address our customers’ greatest challenges. By embedding intelligence in the cloud, network, edge and every kind of computing device, we unleash the potential of data to transform business and society for the better. To learn more about Intel’s innovations, go to newsroom.intel.com and intel.com.

© Intel Corporation. Intel, the Intel logo, and other Intel marks are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250821986427/en/

Investor Relations

investor.relations@intel.com

Sophie Metzger

Media Relations

sophie.metzger@intel.com

Source: Intel Corporation

Released Aug 21, 2025 • 4:30 PM EDT

LAAM has collaborated with Neem to introduce a new system of payments and a wallet for an organization to its marketplace. The collaboration gives sellers instant access to their earnings through LAAM-branded wallets powered by the Neem wallet system. The integration streamlines payouts, collections, refunds, and reconciliations across LAAM operations.

LAAM will credit seller balances directly into LAAM-branded wallets. Sellers will access funds immediately and will be able to withdraw to any bank account. Instant access removes cash flow friction for small designers and growing brands. The arrangement makes payouts predictable and fast. LAAM will also issue instant refunds to buyers into the same branded wallets. This change strengthens post-purchase service and supports customer retention.

Buyer payments will flow through Neem Payment Button. The Payment Button accepts cards, bank transfers, mobile wallets, and Raast. Payments will reconcile in real time in the Neem business dashboard. Real-time reconciliation will reduce errors and trapped liquidity for LAAM. The system will give LAAM clear visibility of collections and settlements.

Neem will provide a full-stack solution that includes wallet ledger reconciliation and a business portal. The solution will let LAAM manage vendor payments, payroll disbursements, and seller settlements on one platform. The unified ledger will provide a single source of truth for money movement inside the marketplace. This approach reduces operational complexity and cuts reconciliation time.

LAAM serves more than one million monthly users and supports hundreds of designers and brands. The partnership will allow LAAM to increase payment volumes safely as the volume of transactions expands. As a result, AAM will be capable of expanding the payment options and launching new financial services based on the Neem wallet.

Neem has proven experience across sectors. The company already supports insurance logistics and courier platforms with embedded wallets and payment infrastructure. Neem will bring the same technical controls, security, and compliance to LAAM. The task of fraud controls and regulatory requirements will remain with Neem, whereas LAAM will be dealing with the merchant experience and product development side.

Sellers and buyers will notice faster settlements, clearer account statements, and simpler refund flows. Market operations will benefit from fewer failed reconciliations and lower operational costs. LAAM will gain the flexibility to pilot additional financial services for sellers, such as instant working capital and branded loyalty wallets.

The companies will roll out the integration in stages and will track metrics in the areas of payout speed, reconciliation accuracy, and customer satisfaction. The partners will optimize flows using performance statistics as well as merchant feedback. The rollout will involve onboarding guides, training, and support to make sure merchants go with the new wallet features without interference.

The alliance will leave LAAM in a position to enhance seller liquidity and consumer-level experience, as well as decrease the back-office burden. The Neem wallet system will serve as the payment backbone of LAAM as the network expands to the region.

CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS – JUNE 29: People walk through the gate on Harvard Yard at the Harvard University campus on June 29, 2023 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that race-conscious admission policies used by Harvard and the University of North Carolina violate the Constitution, bringing an end to affirmative action in higher education. (Photo by Scott Eisen/Getty Images)

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When 92% of university students report using AI tools but only 36% receive any formal institutional training, we’re witnessing a disconnect that could define the next generation of work. Students are experimenting with generative AI at unprecedented rates, but often without the frameworks, feedback, or professional application they’ll need in their careers.

This creates what an AI preparedness paradox. Students are learning to use tools like ChatGPT for quick answers but not necessarily to evaluate sources, check outputs, or apply AI responsibly in professional settings. According to a survey from the Digital Education Council, 58% of students reported they do not feel they have sufficient AI knowledge and skills, and 48% said they do not feel adequately prepared for an AI‑enabled workplace.

The cost of this gap is already measurable. According to PwC, 40% of the workforce will require reskilling within three years. Workers with AI skills now earn up to 56% more than their peers. This same report shows that job postings on LinkedIn requiring AI skills have increased by 7.5% year-over-year, even as total job postings decline by double digits.

Given the introduction of agents in the workforce, AI is no longer just a tool waiting for prompts; it is evolving into a complex series of specialized workflows. This shift is already visible in industry, where companies are embedding role-based AI systems into everyday workflows. The risk is that students who only learn AI as a shortcut, rather than as a collaborative partner, will graduate unprepared for workplaces where agentic systems are the norm.

Two announcements this month, however, suggest potential solutions that may close this gap. The first announcement was Grammarly’s launch of nine student-focused AI agents. The second is the University of Hawaii’s partnership with Google Cloud to build an AI-powered career pathways platform. These initiatives show how education and technology companies can collaborate to build AI literacy while strengthening workforce pipelines.

Grammarly’s Agents: Teaching Skills Employers Value

Grammarly’s student-specific AI agents, which debuted August 18, introduces context-aware partners that reinforce both academic integrity and professional readiness in educational settings. “We believe students deserve AI tools that meet them where they are academically while preparing them for where they need to go professionally,” according to Jenny Maxwell, Head of Education at Grammarly. Here are the agents that the company has introduced:

• Critical Thinking: The Citation Finder and Expert Review agents teach students to evaluate evidence and seek subject-matter expertise. Through this agent, students learn to identify gaps and strengthen arguments; skills central to professions from consulting to law.
• Communication: The Reader Reactions and Proofreader agents emphasize clarity and audience awareness. A marketing student, for instance, can test whether a case analysis reads differently to a professor versus a peer group. This mirrors the type of data analysis that real-world marketers are required to do.
• Ethics: The AI Detector and Plagiarism Checker reinforce originality and responsible use. Rather than blocking AI outright, these tools teach students to integrate it transparently and appropriately, an increasingly vital competency as employers wrestle with the ethics of AI adoption.

Where early AI tools functioned as passive assistants—waiting for users to craft the right prompts—agentic systems like these are now taking on defined roles. In education, this means AI is no longer just correcting grammar or crunching data; it is stepping into structured, domain-specific functions that mirror the professional tasks students will encounter in the workplace.

For institutions, this is both an opportunity and a warning. The same shift is unfolding in industry, where companies are deploying specialized agents for HR screening, compliance, marketing analysis, and customer engagement. Students who learn to collaborate with these agents in school will be far better prepared to thrive in workplaces where agentification is fast becoming the norm.

Hawaii’s Brain Drain Meets An AI-Powered Solution

If Grammarly addresses the micro-level of student skill-building, the University of Hawaii System is working at the macro level to retain talent in a state that has long struggled with “brain drain.”

More than half of Hawaii’s bachelor’s degree holders leave the state for mainland opportunities, according to UH data, with the number climbing to nearly two-thirds among graduate degree holders. The causes are complex, but a lack of accessible career pathways is a major driver.

The new Hawaii Career Pathways platform, developed with Google Cloud, uses Vertex AI and BigQuery to analyze student skills, prior coursework, and career interests. The system then matches students with local job opportunities and provides personalized guidance through Gemini AI.

“Universities have a crucial opportunity to lead in both the adoption of AI and ensuring our students are prepared to join the workforce of the future, today,” according to Garret T. Yoshimi, VPIT & CIO, University of Hawaii.

This approach serves multiple goals simultaneously. The platform demonstrates how students can apply their academic learning connects directly to real opportunities in Hawaii. In addition, employers gain visibility into emerging talent pools. Finally, the state gains a tool to strengthen its workforce pipeline, reduce outmigration, and preserve cultural and economic vitality.

The initiative also prioritizes inclusion. By using Google Translate, the platform supports Pacific Islander students in their native languages—a recognition that equity in AI readiness is critical for regions with diverse demographics.

Hawaii’s initiative is part of a growing recognition that talent retention is a competitive asset in the AI economy. States like Michigan and Colorado are already investing in retention bonuses and career alignment programs. UH’s use of AI to directly link students to employers could provide a model for other regions facing similar outmigration challenges.

A Blueprint For Workforce-Ready Education

What unites Grammarly’s and UH’s initiatives is a response to a deeper shift: the agentification of work. Across industries, AI is taking on defined roles, from “grader” to “career counselor” to “market analyst.” The real challenge for higher education is ensuring that students learn to collaborate with these systems rather than graduate unprepared into workplaces already transformed by them.

At the individual level, Grammarly’s agents demonstrate how role-based AI can become a learning partner, teaching critical thinking, communication, and ethical reasoning—the same competencies employers now expect students to apply in professional contexts.

At the institutional level, the University of Hawaii’s pathways platform shows how agentic systems can close the last mile between academic achievement and workforce demand, continuously matching skills with opportunities and reducing talent flight.

At the system level, the blueprint extends even further. Institutions need to build their own agentic capabilities—AI systems that track labor market trends, monitor graduate outcomes, and adjust curricula in real time. Rather than reacting to disruption, universities can become proactive engines of workforce readiness.

To thrive in an agentified economy, institutions must embed role-based AI into the student experience and build institutional agents that align education with evolving market realities. Those who move first will not only graduate AI-fluent students but also strengthen their regions with talent that is resilient, adaptable, and prepared for a future of continuous change.

In other words, the next frontier isn’t only teaching students to use agents; it’s empowering institutions themselves to act agentically—deploying AI systems that integrate workforce analytics, curriculum design, and career services into a living feedback loop. Institutions that take this step will be able to move from reactive to proactive, ensuring their graduates stay employable at the point of graduation and that institutions stay resilient as the future of work evolves.

By Isabel Wang

The Fed chair’s annual speech could trigger a significant repricing in bond yields and risk assets in the U.S. financial market

All eyes will be on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell when he speaks in Jackson Hole, Wyo., on Friday.

Friday brings what’s become an annual rite of summer for U.S. financial markets, in the form of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s address to monetary-policy mavens in Jackson Hole, Wyo.

Investors have their eyes fixed on the annual economic symposium hosted by the Kansas City Fed, as the central bank charts the future direction of its monetary policy in what could be a defining moment for the market’s summer story.

Powell speaks at 10 a.m. Eastern time Friday. This year, investors are hoping for confirmation that the Federal Reserve will resume cutting interest rates in September – a move largely priced into markets. Yet analysts warn that Powell could fail to do so, leaving the stock rally hanging by a thread or even sending markets into turmoil. The potential hang-up is that a number of policymakers appear worried that inflation from President Donald Trump’s tariffs is just around the corner.

“If Powell uses his Jackson Hole speech to draw a line in the sand – refusing to precommit to cuts or hinting that the market’s pricing has run ahead of reality – it could trigger a significant repricing in bond yields BX:TMUBMUSD02Y BX:TMUBMUSD10Y and risk assets,” said Daniela Sabin Hathorn, senior market analyst at Capital.com.

“Investors should tread carefully because what’s expected to be a calm, consensus-driven event could instead become the Fed’s rebuttal to market exuberance in months,” she told MarketWatch in emailed commentary.

See: Will Powell use Jackson Hole speech to push back on hopes for September rate cut?

Stocks have wobbled in the run-up to the speech, with a violent rotation out of high-flying megacap tech names sending the Nasdaq Composite COMP down 2.4% so far this week. The S&P 500 SPX has pulled back 1.2%, with both indexes remaining not far below record closes set last week. The less tech-centric Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA is off just 0.4% this week.

Fed-funds futures traders on Thursday were pricing in a 73.5% probability of a quarter-point interest-rate cut at the central bank’s Sept. 16-17 meeting, with at least another 25-basis-point reduction expected by year-end, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

Those expectations have helped fuel the stock-market rally over the past month, propelling the three major indexes to or near record territory after economic data showed consumer prices have only risen slightly due to tariffs and the labor market may be losing steam at a quicker pace than previously thought – factors that appear to support the case for a Fed rate cut.

But the probability of a September cut priced into the market has faded from around 90% a week ago, reflecting that the economic picture is far from one-sided. The cost of wholesale goods and services – where rising inflation tends to show up first – posted the biggest increase in July in three years, possibly pointing to a sizable acceleration in price hikes tied to U.S. tariffs. The unemployment rate was still hovering at a historically low level – offering little justification for a Fed easing anytime soon.

Policymakers last month “generally expected inflation to increase in the near term,” minutes of the Fed’s July meeting showed on Wednesday. While they disagreed on whether that would be a short-term increase in price pressure, they thought higher costs will eventually hit U.S. businesses and companies would have to pass through the costs to consumers.

See: Fed officials see inflation just around the corner – and think consumers will bear the burden, minutes show

That’s why Callie Cox, chief market strategist at Ritholtz Wealth Management, said Powell could throw cold water on investors’ near-certainty of a September rate cut.

“I would expect him to weigh in on today’s market environment – I can’t imagine with inflation and jobs data at where they were [in July] that he will be able to confirm how sure markets are about getting a rate cut in September,” Cox told MarketWatch in a phone interview.

But stock-market investors are not only expecting a September cut, they’re also yearning for reassurance that more Fed easing lies ahead, said Shannon Saccocia, chief investment officer of wealth at Neuberger Berman.

“Last year at this time, this was the speech that Powell really set the stage for Fed action, so there’s a lot riding on his comments on Friday, particularly given what was deemed to be a disappointingly hawkish tone out of the last Fed meeting from him in the press conference,” Saccocia told MarketWatch via phone on Wednesday.

That’s why Powell’s words could provide crucial clarity on whether these market expectations are well founded. But for a stock market that has enjoyed a seemingly relentless rally marked by unusually low volatility for most of the summer, choppy waters may finally lie ahead – and there’s little room for disappointment if Powell hints at policymakers requiring more data before resuming the easing cycle that has been put on hold ever since December, according to market analysts.

See: Stocks often rise the week of the Fed’s big Jackson Hole gathering. Don’t count on it this year.

To be sure, investors have reason to be cautious. Back in 2022, Powell’s keynote speech at Jackson Hole stopped a torrid bear-market rally when he insisted that the central bank remained committed to bringing down inflation by raising interest rates forcefully, even if this approach resulted in some pain for American consumers and businesses.

“Jackson Hole has become increasingly important over the last couple of year – but this year, the potential for rate cuts coming in about a month, along with the political pressure that the Fed and the chair in particular are under, make Powell’s comments more market-moving than we expected,” Saccocia said.

Powell’s speech comes amid intensifying pressure on the Fed from President Trump and his allies.

Trump has repeatedly slammed and insulted the Fed chair for not quickly resuming rate cuts, and called for his resignation while stopping short of attempting to fire Powell. On Wednesday, the president called on Lisa Cook, a Fed governor, to resign after Bill Pulte, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, alleged on social media that she had submitted what he described as fraudulent information on a pair of mortgage applications. Cook said she had no intention to resign and was gathering information to respond to questions.

U.S. stocks DJIA SPX COMP finished lower on Thursday after economic data showed first-time jobless claims rose more than expected last week, adding to concerns the labor market is losing steam.

-Isabel Wang

This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

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  08-21-25 1618ET
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An attack on a Colombian National Police helicopter Thursday killed at least eight people and injured several others, according to President Gustavo Petro.

It’s still unclear who is behind the attack in the Antioquia department.

In his most recent comments Thursday, Petro attributed it to the 36th Front of the Estado Mayor Central (EMC), dissidents of the former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a leftist guerrilla group.

However, earlier, he suggested the powerful criminal syndicate Gulf Clan might be involved, noting the attack came after the seizure of 1.5 tons of cocaine in the Urabá region of Antioquia.

“We have the unfortunate news of eight police officers dead and eight injured in the helicopter whose mission was to transport personnel to eradicate coca leaf crops in Amalfi,” Petro wrote on his X account.

National Police Director Carlos Fernando Triana Beltrán described the incident as a “terrorist act” and said police units are in the area treating the wounded.

The helicopter was supporting the manual eradication of illicit crops when it was allegedly attacked by a drone, Antioquia Gov. Andrés Julián Rendón said, adding two uniformed officers were injured.

The governor posted a video that appears to show the helicopter crashing into a hill.

Rendón warned that both the Gulf Clan and dissidents of FARC operate in the area, and noted the national government has been unable to agree on who is responsible for the attack.

“(We) have always known that these are FARC dissidents in charge of Calarcá: that’s their modus operandi, allied with the ELN,” he said, referring to the leftist guerrilla group National Liberation Army. “Coordination within the national government is urgent. This is a matter of life and death.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.