AI Business & Industry

Today's Stories

1. 1

   CrowdStrike: Frontier AI Requires Cyber's 'Greatest Mobilization'

   CrowdStrike Chief Business Officer Daniel Bernard said the industry's response to threats from frontier AI models like Anthropic's Claude Mythos represents 'the greatest mobilization in cyber that there may have ever really been.' He spoke on the latest episode of CRN's Security or Else! podcast. Bernard argues the arrival of ultra-powerful AI models for vulnerability discovery and exploitation has created new urgency. He says the only reasonable answer is for vendors and partners to come together to proactively stop, limit, and fix risk, rather than uniting around fear.

   CrowdStrike launched its frontier AI security initiative, Project QuiltWorks, in April, just weeks after Anthropic disclosed details about Claude Mythos. Earlier this month, the company announced the initiative is now open to a broad set of MSPs and other partners.

2. 2

   Lockheed Martin Tests AI Airspace Service, Expands Firefly Rocket Deal

   Lockheed Martin ran a live trial of its NetSense AI-enabled Airspace Awareness-as-a-Service, using commercial 5G networks to track unmanned aircraft in real time. It also expanded its work with Firefly Aerospace into a multi-year block of dedicated rocket launches, including rapid-response sea-based launch concepts. The trial and launch deal support Lockheed Martin's focus on next-generation technologies and homeland defense as growth drivers alongside platforms like the F-35 and PAC-3. They also position the company in competitive segments such as counter-UAS and space, which are highlighted as risk areas.

   The key test is whether planned NetSense pilot deployments in late 2026 and early 2027 convert into wider subscription contracts with city, state, federal, and critical infrastructure customers. For Firefly, watch how many of the up to 25 planned Alpha Block II missions through 2031 are assigned to national security work tied to Lockheed Martin payloads.

3. 3

   Disney patents AI memory tech for robot characters

   Disney and ETH Zürich were granted patent US 12,718,481 B2 on August 25, 2026, for AI virtual characters with a working memory. The system pulls from stored memories before generating responses to reduce hallucinations. Current chatbot-style characters can say things that don't match their personality or backstory. This patent describes a memory bank that ranks memories by relevance, recency, and importance, plus a formula for forgetting—characters could hold onto conversation details instead of resetting each time.

   The patent covers chatbots, virtual world characters, and interactive robots in real-world settings like theme parks, stores, and homes. Disney has already introduced interactive walk-around Olaf at Disneyland Paris and Star Wars BDX droids at several parks, suggesting where this tech could be applied next.

4. 4

   Western Digital vs Teradata: AI Data Stock Showdown

   Western Digital reported fiscal Q4 revenue of $3.75 billion, up 44% year over year, with full-year revenue reaching $12.92 billion. Teradata reported Q2 revenue of $410 million, with recurring revenue up 3% and free cash flow of $127 million. Western Digital benefits from AI-driven storage demand with improving margins and strong cash generation, while Teradata is positioning for enterprise AI with its Autonomous Knowledge Platform and agentic AI capabilities. The article concludes WDC is the stronger AI data stock for investors prioritizing fundamental momentum and direct exposure to the AI infrastructure cycle.

   WDC carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and TDC has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). WDC's forward P/E is 19.92, lower than TDC's 14.44, but WDC has delivered a 446.2% gain over the past year versus TDC's 33.9%.

5. 5

   S&P Global embeds data in Microsoft 365 Copilot, stock up 6.1%

   In August 2026, S&P Global expanded its collaboration with Microsoft to integrate its AI-ready data, insights, and analytics into Microsoft 365 Copilot, including Excel connectors and agentic plugins via the Kensho AI Data Portal. The stock rose 6.1% following the announcement. This move embeds S&P's proprietary intelligence into everyday productivity tools, potentially making its data more essential to customers' research and financial analysis. However, higher AI and product spending could pressure margins if customer uptake or pricing does not keep pace, a risk investors should weigh.

   S&P's July 2026 launch of Adaptive Retrieval through the AI Data Portal complements the Deterministic Retrieval used in this integration. The company projects $17.2 billion revenue and $6.0 billion earnings by 2029, implying 2.9% yearly revenue growth and a $1.2 billion earnings increase from $4.8 billion today.

6. 6

   Arista Networks shares drop 6.8% despite strong AI demand

   Arista Networks shares fell 6.8% after the company reported its first quarter above US$3 billion in revenue, raised full-year 2026 guidance, and disclosed that multiyear purchase commitments had grown to US$9.70 billion from US$3.60 billion a year earlier. The surge in multiyear purchase commitments, supported by strong AI infrastructure demand and the Arista 2.0 platform strategy, highlights how central high-performance networking has become to AI data centers. However, this concentration of demand from a few hyperscale and AI customers also magnifies the risk if a large customer pulls back.

   A narrative projects US$21.3 billion revenue and US$8.2 billion earnings by 2029, yielding a fair value of US$241.82 per share, a 29% upside to the current price. Some cautious analysts assume revenue would reach about US$16.3 billion by 2029 with margin compression, showing a wide range of opinions.