Latest news with #ChrisHelgren
The Star
21-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
RBC sets up new AI team for capital markets unit
FILE PHOTO: The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) logo is seen on a building in Toronto, Ontario, Canada June 1, 2021. REUTERS/Chris Helgren/File Photo TORONTO (Reuters) -Royal Bank of Canada's capital markets wing has established a new artificial intelligence and digital innovation team as it bets on AI to boost future growth, the Canadian lender told Reuters on Wednesday. The team, with hubs in New York, Toronto and London, will report to newly appointed Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer Lindsay Patrick. RBC also appointed Bobby Grubert as head of AI and Digital Innovation, reporting to Patrick. Grubert worked on Aiden, RBC's first generative AI solution, and RBC Elements, its data-powered research capability. The new team will be formed by appointing talent from across RBC's global market business, the lender said. RBC in March said it expects to earn up to about C$1 billion ($722.02 million) from its AI investments, emphasizing the pivotal role the technology will play in the largest Canadian bank's next growth phase. CEO Dave McKay told investors in March that the bank's technology has received positive responses from the likes of chipmaker Nvidia's CEO, Jensen Huang, and that the lender is betting on AI to speed up training, streamline processes and more. RBC's capital markets head, Derek Neldner, noted that the unit has been scaling and leveraging Aiden, RBC's GenAI solution developed in partnership with research institute Borealis, for electronic trading, automation of front-to-back operations and data-driven research and insights. AI is becoming a key tool for banks globally, which are using it to streamline customer communications, process documents, spot fraudulent activity and automate other mundane tasks. Rival Bank of Montreal also named a chief AI and data officer, while other banks have said they are making investments to boost their capabilities. ($1 = 1.3850 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Nivedita Balu in TorontoEditing by Matthew Lewis)
The Star
15-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Exclusive-Amazon trims jobs in devices and services unit
FILE PHOTO: Amazon's Kindle e-book app is seen on an iPhone in an illustration taken April 11, 2023. REUTERS/Chris Helgren/Illustration/File Photo SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) -Amazon on Wednesday cut about 100 jobs in its devices and services unit, the group overseeing development of such diverse products as the Kindle, Echo speakers, Alexa voice assistant and Zoox self-driving cars. Amazon confirmed the cuts following an inquiry from Reuters on Wednesday. The company said the jobs represented a small number of the total for the unit and were part of its regular business review. A spokesperson declined to provide additional details about which divisions within devices and services were impacted. 'As part of our ongoing work to make our teams and programs operate more efficiently, and to better align with our product roadmap, we've made the difficult decision to eliminate a small number of roles," said the spokesperson. Amazon trimmed some Alexa-related jobs in 2023 and has been conducting small cuts to various groups in recent months, including its Wondery podcast, stores and communications units. The Seattle retailer added about 4,000 jobs from last year's fourth quarter to this year's first, according to its earnings release earlier this month. The cost-saving action comes nearly three months after Amazon introduced its first major overhaul of Alexa in a decade, infusing it with generative artificial intelligence software so that it can act more conversationally and take actions for users, among other features. CEO Andy Jassy is trying to reduce what he described as excessive bureaucracy at the company, including a plan to reduce the number of managers. Amazon shares closed the day down less than 1% to $210.25. (Reporting by Greg Bensinger; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
The Star
13-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Citi to sell wealth alternatives unit to fintech firm iCapital
The Citigroup Inc (Citi) logo is seen at the SIBOS banking and financial conference in Toronto, Ontario, Canada October 19, 2017. Picture taken October 19, 2017. REUTERS/Chris Helgren (Reuters) -Wall Street heavyweight Citigroup has agreed to sell its wealth alternatives unit to fintech firm iCapital, the companies announced on Tuesday, as the bank pursues simplifying its business. The unit, Citi Global Alternatives, represents more than 180 funds distributed by the bank across asset classes including private equity, infrastructure, hedge funds, and private credit. New York-based iCapital will manage and operate the platform, while Citi will remain the distributor for the funds and offer guidance to clients on the role of alternative investments. "We are excited to partner with Citi Wealth to drive growth for their alternatives business globally. iCapital's technology platform will streamline the operations and management of their current and future alternative investment funds platform," iCapital CEO Lawrence Calcano said. The firm will also assist Citi Wealth's global sales capabilities with a dedicated team to support the growth of the bank's alternatives platform. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Citi recently revamped its wealth management arm - a key step in CEO Jane Fraser's growth strategy - as part of its broader overhaul to simplify the bank's sprawling structure. (Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)
Wall Street Journal
08-05-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Siemens Energy Expects Limited Hit From U.S. Tariffs
Photo: chris helgren/Reuters Siemens Energy ENR -2.66%decrease; red down pointing triangle said it expects a limited direct impact from U.S. tariffs on its fiscal second half, and reported a surge in profit for the last quarter. The German maker of energy equipment last month raised its outlook for the year to September, citing a strong performance in its fiscal second quarter. The company confirmed on Thursday both its annual guidance and preliminary results for the March quarter that showed higher orders, revenue and earnings.
RNZ News
28-04-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Vancouver man charged with murder for attack on Filipino festival
By Chris Helgren and Allison Lampert , Reuters Vancouver police investigate a crime scene after a man drove into pedestrians at the annual Lapu Lapu festival celebrating Filipino culture. Photo: AFP / DON MACKINNON Canadian prosecutors have charged a 30-year-old Vancouver resident with murder for killing at least 11 people aged between 5 and 65 and injuring dozens after he rammed an SUV through a crowd at a Filipino community festival in the western Canadian city. The man, Kai-Ji Adam Lo, was charged with eight counts of second-degree murder by prosecutors in British Columbia and "further charges are anticipated," according to a post on X by the Vancouver Police. Lo appeared in court on Sunday (local time), hours after police arrested him at the scene of the incident on Saturday evening. Court documents seen by Reuters did not show a plea. Authorities described Lo as having had a "significant history" of interactions with authorities involving mental health. They said there was no evidence of terrorism. "This is the darkest day in our city's history," Vancouver Interim Chief Constable Steve Rai told reporters at a Sunday press conference. Police said two dozen people were injured, some critically, and warned that the death toll could rise in coming days and weeks. As of Sunday afternoon, Rai said he did not believe there were any ongoing threats to the community. More than 100 police officers joined the investigation, as local officials worked with provincial and federal authorities to provide support services. Messages of condolence and support came from across the globe. "The community will feel this for a long time," RJ Aquino, chair of the community advocacy group Filipino BC, told reporters. "We want to tell everybody that we're grieving. We want to tell everybody that we see and hear the support from around the world at this point." The attack on Saturday evening took place two days before Canada's federal election on Monday. A spokesperson for Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he would be traveling to Vancouver on Sunday. Carney's campaign movements were delayed on Sunday morning but he resumed campaigning after making a statement in which he expressed his condolences to the country's Filipino community. "Last night, families lost a sister, a brother, a mother, a father, a son or a daughter. Those families are living every family's nightmare," he told reporters in Hamilton, Ontario. "I join all Canadians in mourning with you. I know that Canadians are united with you," he said. British Columbia Premier David Eby said at a press conference near the site of the attack on Sunday afternoon that it was hard not to feel rage towards the man who "murdered innocent people" for reasons that were not yet known. "I want to turn the rage that I feel into ensuring that we stand with the Filipino community, that we deliver what they need, that we stand with those families who have lost loved ones," he told reporters. "I know it's hard to believe it in this moment, but I know we will come back stronger." More than 12 hours after the incident, police still did not have a motive for the attack at the festival, which took place without a dedicated police presence or heavy vehicle barriers. "There were no known threats to the event or to the Filipino community," Rai said. The suspect was initially chased down and held by festival-goers until police arrived, witnesses said. The injured were taken to multiple hospitals, police said. The incident happened shortly after 8pm (3pm New Zealand time) in Vancouver's Sunset neighbourhood, an area known for its large Asian population, where the Lapu-Lapu Day Block Party, celebrating a Philippine national hero, was taking place. One witness told CTV News he saw a black vehicle driving erratically in the area of the festival just before the crowd was struck. A photo of the aftermath posted online showed a dark Audi SUV with both front fenders crumpled and the hood pushed up toward the vehicle's windshield. While mass casualty attacks are far less common in Canada than in the United States, such incidents have occurred with some regularity north of the border. At least two of those attacks involved motor vehicles. In 2021, a man killed four members of a Muslim family by running them over with a pickup truck. In 2018, a man drove a rented van into a lunch-hour crowd in Toronto, killing 10 people and injuring 15 along a sidewalk thronged with pedestrians. Online images from the scene in Vancouver showed the bodies of victims on the pavement alongside a row of colourful food trucks as others attended to them on a roadway littered with debris including what appeared to be a motorized scooter. A witness who did not wish to be identified said he had seen about 15 people lying on the ground after the SUV plowed into the crowd. The witness said the driver tried to run but was chased down and held against a fence for about 10 minutes until police arrived. "I didn't get to see the driver, all I heard was an engine rev," Yoseb Vardeh, co-owner of food truck Bao Buns, said in an interview with Postmedia. "I got outside my food truck, I looked down the road and there's just bodies everywhere," said Vardeh, his voice breaking with emotion. "He went through the whole block, he went straight down the middle." The attack came at the end of the festival, following a concert headlined by Filipino-American rapper of the Black Eyed Peas, according to Mable Elmore, a member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly, who attended the event. "Everybody was happy and getting ready to go. And that's when, that's when the incident happened," Elmore told reporters through tears. "We are in incredible pain," she said. "We will come together out of this catastrophe through the support and the love from the broad community." The festival, celebrated especially in the central Philippines, honours Datu Lapu-Lapu, a Filipino chieftain who defeated Spanish forces led by Ferdinand Magellan in the Battle of Mactan in 1521. The government of British Columbia officially recognised 27 April as Lapu-Lapu Day in 2023, acknowledging the cultural contributions of the Filipino-Canadian community, one of the largest immigrant groups in the province. The centerpiece of the festival is a multi-block street party featuring Filipino food and traditions, live performances and cultural displays. - Reuters
