Artificial Intelligence

New York -- Ron Johnson is reportedly stepping back into the public arena. The former J.C. Penney chief (and, before that, Apple retail head) is about to launch a “high-end, on-demand delivery service” for electronic devices, according to The Information. The report described the service as "Best Buy's Geek Squad meets Apple's Genius Bar."

Walmart already offers a prepaid debit card, credit card, check cashing and money transfers, but it’s expanding its financial services to include an exclusive checking account called GoBank, with Green Dot Corp., a prepaid-cards specialist.

The checking account is linked to MasterCard debit cards. GoBank, which will be available nationwide by the end of October, doesn’t charge overdraft fees or minimum balance fees and waives the monthly membership cost of $8.95 with qualifying direct deposits of $500 a month.

Neuhausen, Switzerland - Tyco Retail Solutions has integrated its traffic intelligence solution with RetailNext, a provider of Big Data solutions enabling retailers to monitor, analyze, and act upon shopper behavior within the store environment. This combination, which leverages Tyco's multi-sensor portfolio of traffic devices and RetailNext's in-store analytics platform, enables retailers to capture and interpret key metrics to optimize their store operations and drive sales.

PayPal is further expanding its relationship with payment service provider BitPay, which specializes in e-commerce, B2B and enterprise solutions for the bitcoin digital currency. The first joint project is an integration with PayPal’s Payments Hub, which is PayPal’s alternative payment platform for digital goods.
 

McLean, Va. - Digital identity solution provider ID.me has unveiled its new retail rewards marketplace, which helps retailers hyper-target influencers and consumer segments with exclusive offers that are protected from fraud. The new product extends ID.me’s coverage from niche affinity groups like the military and students to all consumers.

As part of its recent Fall Expo Event, Plug and Play, a Silicon Valley-based global investor and technology accelerator that specializes in growing tech startups, held a startup pitch competition with 19 companies that are part of its Brand and Retail Accelerator program.

Shopzilla wanted to highlight its recent transformation from comparison shopping to technology driven marketing solutions. To that end, it has changed its name to Connexity.

According to the company, its new solutions enable retailers and brands to understand their consumers better, acquire new customers at a lower cost and increase sales based on retail signals that it provides.

San Diego -- Following the successful launch of 3D print in six markets across the country, The UPS Store announced it is is expanding 3D printing services to meet the growing demands of its small business customers to nearly 100 additional locations nationwide.