UnitedHealth’s CEO said the company is still investigating a security failure behind a massive cyberattack.Testifying before the Senate Finance Committee Wednesday (May 1), Andrew Witty said the company has not yet determined why its computer systems were left open to a ransomware gang that crippled the U.S. healthcare system earlier this year.According to a report by Bloomberg News, senators spent two hours questioning Witty about UnitedHealth’s defenses, which were breached when intruders accessed a serve ...

Mastercard said in its most recent earnings report on Wednesday (May 1) that the shift to digital payments from cash is gaining strength, and contactless and tokenized transactions are proving to be strong tailwinds.Worldwide gross dollar volume (GDV) increased by 10% year over year to $2.3 trillion. In the U.S., GDV increased by 6% to $712 billion with credit growth of 6% with credit growth of 12% and debit growth of 13%. Overall, cross-border volume increased 18% globally.CEO Michael Miebach said that in ...

Yum Brands, the company behind Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell, reported mixed results in its Q1 earnings announcement Wednesday (May 1) with challenges evident in its traditional sales channels, but a significant milestone in its digital growth strategy.Despite a 3% decline in same-store sales worldwide, Yum Brands’ digital efforts reached new heights. The company reported that for the first time, digital transactions accounted for over 50% of its total sales, nearing $8 billion. The overall sales figures ref ...

As luminaries from academia, government and business prepare to gather in South Korea May 21-22 for the second AI Safety Summit, one tech giant’s absence is raising eyebrows: Google.The search company’s research arm’s decision to skip the event, which will explore artificial intelligence’s limitations and commercial impact, underscores the intricate dynamics shaping the global conversation around the technology. Some see the summit as a crucial forum for addressing AI’s risks and challenges, while others ex ...

Marriott International saw its revenue per available room (RevPAR) increase 4.2% year-over-year during the first quarter, driven largely by growth in international markets.The hotel chain saw its RevPAR grow 1.5% in the United States and Canada and 11.1% in international markets, according to a Wednesday (May 1) earnings release.“While overall industry RevPAR growth is normalizing post-COVID, we continue to gain RevPAR index across our portfolio and increase our market share of global hotels,” Marriott Pres ...

Consumer confidence in the United States is mixed, with many shoppers looking for deals when it comes to chocolate, biscuits and baked snacks.That finding contrasts with consumer confidence in Europe, which is stable, and in emerging markets, where it is strong, consumer packaged goods (CPG) company Mondelez International said in a presentation released Tuesday (April 30) in conjunction with the firm’s quarterly earnings call.Mondelez, whose brands include Cadbury chocolate, Oreo cookies and CLIF baked snac ...

Starbucks’s artificial intelligence (AI)-powered personalized rewards efforts, aimed at increasing customer frequency and spending, appear to be facing challenges. Following the announcement of “disappointing” second-quarter 2024 results on Tuesday (April. 30), Starbucks shares plummeted by about 8%. This decline was attributed to various factors including a challenging macroeconomic environment, slower-than-expected growth in China (its largest market outside the U.S.), severe weather, and ongoing cautious ...

Although it was closely watched for the manner in which it handled its artificial intelligence (AI) investments, Amazon dropped a stunner of a Q1 earnings report Tuesday (April 30), driven by a big spike in its North American operations. Its overall, global operating income grew from $4.8 billion in Q1 2023 to $15.3 billion in 2024.By the numbers, Amazon reported a net sales increase of 13% to $143.3 billion, up from $127.4 billion in the same quarter the previous year. This growth remained steady at 13% af ...

Google is transitioning its Fitbit Pay contactless payments to Google Wallet in most countries.“Google Wallet is now available for all Fitbit devices that support contactless payments,” a message on the Fitbit Pay web page said. “Fitbit Pay will no longer be available starting July 29, 2024.”There is an exception to that in three countries; Fitbit devices will continue to will continue to use Fitbit Pay beyond July 29 in Saudi Arabia, Japan and Taiwan, according to a Google support page.The support page sai ...

Eight newspapers owned by Alden Global Capital’s MediaNews Group are reportedly suing Microsoft and OpenAI, alleging that the tech companies used the newspapers’ content to train artificial intelligence (AI) models. The newspapers, which include the New York Daily News and Chicago Tribune, filed their suit in New York federal court on Tuesday (April 30), Reuters reported Tuesday. They allege that the two tech companies copied millions of their articles to train Microsoft’s Copilot and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, addi ...