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Google I/O Highlights: AI Agents, Ask Photos, AI Teammate, & More

The event was full of news and announcements, but most centered on Gemini and its expanding capabilities.

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Google held its I/O event aimed at developers yesterday. Plenty of news and product announcements were expected at the showcase, and we weren’t disappointed.

AI Search Overview

The first major reveal was that Google would add AI overviews to search results. The company hopes that AI will be able to take numerous sources of information and make a small, digestible overview for users.

Ask Photos

Next up was news on Google Photos, which is getting a powerful new AI tool called Ask Photos. Google said the feature can effectively search through images and answer questions such as: “What is my car’s license plate number?” or “What date did my child learn to swim?”.

AI Agents

A new tool called AI agents (AI personal assistants) was also debuted at I/O. CEO Sundar Pichai said AI Agents is in its early days, but in the future, it will be able to undertake complex tasks, including scanning through emails, filling out forms, and setting up appointments.

Gemini 1.5 Pro

Google announced new versions of its AI model at the I/O event, known as Gemini 1.5 Pro and Flash. According to the CEO of Google DeepMind, Demis Hassabis, “Flash is a lighter-weight model compared to Pro, and is designed to be fast and cost-efficient to serve at scale while still featuring multi-model reasoning capabilities and breakthrough long context”.

Google added that the technology would soon include features such as video searching, planning (such as travel itineraries), and contextual search.

AI Teammate

AI Teammate is a new AI chatbot that will function as a virtual co-worker. The tool can serve as an office hub, allowing teams to work together more effectively.

Nano

Although a minor announcement, Nano, Google’s smallest AI model, is interesting due to its ability to run entirely on mobile devices. The tool can efficiently intercept and intelligently block annoying spam calls.

Veo

Finally, Google debuted a new video generator named Veo. The product is similar to OpenAI’s Sora and can create “high-quality 1080p videos from text images and video prompts”.

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Paymob Extends Series B Funding To $72M Amid Continued Growth

The financial services provider has secured an extra $22 million after strong performance in its core market of Egypt.

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paymob extends series b funding to $72 million amid continued growth

Leading financial services provider Paymob has secured an additional $22 million in a funding extension, bringing its Series B total to $72 million.

The funding was spearheaded by EBRD Venture Capital, with support from Endeavor Catalyst. Existing backers such as PayPal Ventures, BII, FMO, A15, Nclude, and Helios Digital Ventures also participated, reaffirming their confidence in Paymob’s business model and potential in the regional fintech industry.

This extension comes on the back of Paymob’s strong performance in its core market of Egypt, where it has experienced 6x revenue growth since the initial Series B in Q2 2022. With the Series B extension and continued profitability in Egypt, Paymob is well-positioned to further its expansion strategy across the MENA region.

Islam Shawky, Co-founder and CEO of Paymob, commented: “We are very excited by our strong prospects in Egypt – where we hold a market-leading position – and the significant traction experienced in the UAE since launching operations there. This funding will help Paymob fully capitalize on the momentum in our established markets, as we accelerate our GCC roll-out. We remain committed to creating cutting-edge infrastructure enabling SMEs across the region to thrive in the digital economy and are proud of our continued impact”.

Also Read: Zoho Expands Qatar Operations & Releases New Survey Data

The expansion into GCC markets has been driven by Paymob’s initial Series B funding of $50 million, raised in 2022 and led by Kora Capital, PayPal Ventures, and Clay Point. The investment fueled Paymob’s growth, allowing it to launch its mobile app in 2023 and grow its merchant base by 3.5 times, now serving nearly 350,000 merchants across MENA.

Paymob has also expanded its payment acceptance suite to offer 50 payment methods through its gateway, POS terminals, and the Paymob app, providing the region’s most comprehensive fintech solution. The company recently introduced embedded checkout services for Shopify and WooCommerce, further demonstrating its commitment to empowering small and medium businesses across the region.

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