Startek® Generative AI wins 2025 Excellence in Customer Service Award for Technology of the Year
Designed to empower agents and enhance real-time interactions, Startek Generative AI delivers intelligent automation and predictive insights that improve resolution speed, increase personalization and elevate customer satisfaction. The award-winning technology was recognized for solving complex CX challenges through AI-driven agent assist, contextual knowledge surfacing and proactive customer engagement—creating measurable value for global clients across industries.
"We are honored to be recognized by the Business Intelligence Group for our innovation in customer service," said Abhinandan Jain , Chief Growth Officer at Startek . "At Startek, we see AI as an enabler of better customer experiences. Our Generative AI platform helps teams work smarter, respond faster and deliver more personalized support. This award highlights our focus on using technology to improve CX while keeping people at the heart of every interaction."
The Excellence in Customer Service Awards celebrate individuals, teams and organizations that are reimagining how companies connect with customers. Winners are selected by a panel of business leaders based on innovation, service impact and measurable results.
About Business Intelligence Group
The Business Intelligence Group was founded with the mission of recognizing true talent and superior performance in the business world. Unlike other industry award programs, these programs are judged by business executives with relevant experience and insight. The organization's proprietary scoring system uniquely measures performance across multiple business domains and rewards those companies whose achievements stand above their peers.
About Startek
Startek® is a global leader in customer experience management, delivering comprehensive digital transformation and CX solutions. With over 35 years of expertise, Startek empowers businesses across diverse industries to create memorable, personalized customer interactions. Operating in 12 countries with a team of 38,000 associates, Startek is committed to connecting brands with their customers through innovation, empathy, and operational excellence. To learn more, visit www.startek.com and follow us on LinkedIn@Startek.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Globe and Mail
14 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
Nvidia, Microsoft, or Alphabet: Which AI Stock Giant Holds the Highest Upside? Analysts Weigh In
Generative AI exploded onto the scene at the end of 2022, and forever changed our perception – and use – of AI technology. From a predictive model, based on classification and automation, AI shifted to a more creative mode, capable of closely mimicking human expressions. The boom in generative AI has brought diffusion models and large language models (LLMs) into our consciousness, and pushed chip makers, data centers, and data analytics into the limelight. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Make smarter investment decisions with TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks, delivered to your inbox every week. Given this rapid evolution, it's no surprise that the market for generative AI is expanding at a breakneck pace. According to Markets and Markets, the spend on genAI is estimated at $71.36 billion this year, with projections reaching as high as $890 billion by 2032, implying a staggering CAGR of 43.4%. Yet, while the growth story is compelling, it's important to recognize that many AI stocks have already soared, meaning much of the 'easy' upside has likely been captured. For investors eyeing the sector today, the challenge isn't simply finding exposure, but rather identifying which opportunities – if any – still offer some room for gains, rather than piling into names that have already run up sharply. This brings the focus to three tech titans that have dominated both the AI conversation and investor interest. Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) – each a Magnificent 7 megacap and a recognized leader in AI – provide distinct avenues for those hoping to ride the next leg of the generative AI wave. But with valuations stretched for many top performers, which of these giants presents the most attractive upside from here? Let's find out. Nvidia First up is Nvidia, a tech company that is a giant in all ways. Nvidia is a leader in the semiconductor field, and its GPU chips, originally designed for high-end computer gaming, have been essential in the enabling hardware for AI and its related applications. The company has been singularly successful in recent years, and its top-end AI-capable chipsets are in high demand. Strong sales have pushed Nvidia to the top of the heap, not just as the largest chip maker on Wall Street, but as the largest company of any sort: Nvidia currently boasts a market cap of $3.97 trillion, having recently been the first company to ever cross the $4 trillion threshold. That is not to say that Nvidia hasn't faced challenges and headwinds on its rise to the top. President Trump's trade and tariff policies have put a crimp on technology exports to China, and on collaborations with Chinese companies – and Nvidia, as the world's leading semiconductor maker, was deeply exposed to the Chinese market. Trade talks between the US and China are ongoing, but that did not change the fact that Nvidia was told by Uncle Sam that it will require a license to export its H20 chip products to China. This was no mean issue; Nvidia was forced to record a $4.5 billion charge during its fiscal 1Q26 related to diminished H20 sales. The China headwind hasn't stopped Nvidia from profiting elsewhere on the global scene. In June, the company announced that its Grace Hopper platform was instrumental to the operation of the JUPITER supercomputer, the fastest such computer in Europe. JUPITER is capable of providing faster simulation and training for the largest AI models, of the type used in such fields as quantum research, structural biology, and computational engineering, and is quickly becoming a leading force behind European business and scientific innovation. Also in June, Nvidia announced that it is building the world's first industrial AI cloud system, to support European manufacturers. The project revolved around a German-based AI factory that will feature up to 10,000 GPUs, with Nvidia's DGX B200 and RTS PRO Servers heavily featured. The industrial AI cloud will allow Europe's manufacturing leaders to accelerate all of their applications, from design to engineering to simulations to robotics. Turning to the financial side, we find that Nvidia's fiscal 1Q26 report, its last released, showed a top line of $44.1 billion, for a 69% year-over-year gain and beating the forecast by $813 million. The revenue gain was led by Nvidia's data center business, which is directly tied to AI applications; this segment was up 73% year-over-year and reached $39.1 billion. At the bottom line, Nvidia started fiscal 2026 with non-GAAP quarterly earnings of 81 cents per share, beating the forecast by 6 cents per share. Wedbush's Matt Bryson, an analyst who ranks amongst the top 2% of Wall Street stock pros, covers Nvidia, and he notes both the headwinds and the high potential that are tugging the company in opposite directions. The 5-star analyst writes of the chipmaker, 'NVDA executed well despite the loss of H20 representing a greater headwind than we (or investors) had anticipated. With metrics (GMs and revenue) expected to trend positively in CQ2 (despite the China headwind) and seemingly more certain demand growth through CY2026 given the increase in sovereign projects (now captured in our improved estimates for FY2027), we see no reason to shift our constructive opinion on NVDA.' That constructive opinion includes an Outperform (i.e., Buy) rating, and a $175 price target that points toward an upside of 6.5% on the one-year horizon. (To watch Bryson's track record, click here) Nvidia holds a Strong Buy consensus rating from the Street's analysts, based on 42 reviews that include 37 to Buy, 4 to Hold, and 1 to Sell. The stock is priced at $164.10 and its $175.76 average price target implies a one-year upside potential of 7%. (See NVDA stock forecast) Microsoft Next up, Microsoft, is arguably the world's leading software company. Microsoft has built itself up by dominating the market in operating systems and office software, and with its market cap of $3.74 trillion, it is currently Wall Street's second-largest publicly traded company. In recent years, Microsoft has been moving heavily into AI and cloud computing, recognizing these fields as the future high tech – but more importantly, recognizing that AI is closely intertwined with the cloud. This is clear from the platforms that Microsoft has released, and from the use it makes of AI and cloud systems. Microsoft's cloud computing platform, Azure, offers customers a wide array of tools and applications, and the company has been actively integrating AI into the platform, to enhance those tools and to develop new ones. In addition, Microsoft is also using AI and cloud technologies to enhance its other consumer software products. AI, the cloud, and software are not separate entities; they are intertwined, and each can provide benefits for the others. A few examples will show the extent of the changes that AI is bringing, and the financial savings that companies can realize. Microsoft has been using its AI technology to bring customer contact tools into its call center, streamlining the contact process. In addition, the company's sales personnel are making use of Copilot, Microsoft's autonomous AI assistant, to locate leads and close deals. Finally, the company also uses AI in its development process; AI-powered tools have been instrumental on the software side, producing as much as 35% of the code for the company's new products. In all, Microsoft estimates that smart use of AI in-house resulted in savings of at least $500 million last year in the call center alone. In its fiscal 3Q25 report, the last quarter results to be released, Microsoft showed a year-over-year revenue gain of 13.2%, with the top line hitting $70.1 billion and beating the estimates by $1.62 billion. The company's EPS came in at $3.46, or 24 cents per share better than had been anticipated. We should note that Microsoft's cloud and AI work contributed heavily to this success. Total cloud revenue was up 20% y/y and hit $42.4 billion. This total included the Intelligent Cloud – the segment of which Azure is a part – which showed a 21% y/y increase and reached a total of $26.8 billion. This stock falls into the coverage universe of Keith Weiss, 5-star analyst with Morgan Stanley. Weiss notes that Microsoft's AI initiatives are providing solid returns, and says of the company, 'While investors continue to debate the 'Return on Investment' of rising capital expenditures, we see the yields on Microsoft's investments in Generative AI becoming increasingly apparent, both in terms of direct monetization and driving further IT wallet share gains for the broader portfolio. This prime position for the upcoming GenAI innovation cycle matched with solid execution is driving an acceleration in the Azure business, while best-in-class expense discipline supports our forecast of a mid-teens EPS CAGR.' Weiss, who also ranks amongst the top 2% of Street stock experts, goes on to rate MSFT as Overweight (i.e., Buy), and he complements that rating with a $530 price target, suggesting a one-year gain of 6% for the shares. (To watch Weiss's track record, click here) Microsoft's 35 recent analyst reviews include 32 Buys and 3 Holds, for a Strong Buy consensus rating. The average price target here is $534.48, implying a gain for the year ahead of 6.5% from the current trading price of $501.48. (See MSFT stock forecast) Alphabet The third AI tech giant we'll look at today is Alphabet, the parent company of the internet's leading search engine, Google, and its leading video platform, YouTube. Through these platforms, Alphabet has become the clear leader in online search, and uses that lead to support its primary revenue-generating activity of digital advertising. Like Microsoft above, Alphabet has in recent years also become a major player in AI and cloud technologies, providing a large array of applications and related tools for subscription users. Google Cloud, the company's cloud computing platform, is a leader in the field and a chief competitor of Azure and AWS. On the AI side, Alphabet has already built a strong position. The company actively uses AI tech to enhance its Google search engine – the new 'AI overview' presented in response to search queries, along with the actual search results, is the clearest example of this. In addition, Google makes use of generative AI to respond to user search requests that are presented as direct questions in natural language. The result is a search engine that is more flexible, able to better understand and answer user queries – and to present those answers in clear, readable text, with the list of search results given as a supplement. While Alphabet has been remarkably successful at growing its revenue and earnings (see more on its latest quarterly results below), the company is facing a serious headwind in the form of ongoing antitrust lawsuits in the US and European courts. Google, Alphabet's premier subsidiary, accounts for nearly 80% of the web's search traffic, which has caught the attention of antitrust and regulatory authorities. Last year, in August, Google lost a landmark ruling, in which the US District Court for DC decided in favor of the Department of Justice argument that Google was acting as a monopoly and had violated the Sherman Act. Google is already appealing the ruling, on the argument that its dominance comes from providing a superior product. More recent suits allege that Google's AI Overviews, which generate the search summaries that appear at the top of the results, will further damage smaller companies – Google's users will rely on the summaries, rather than clicking through to the search results. We don't know how the court cases will pan out, but we do know that Alphabet reported solid results in its 1Q25 earnings release. The company's total revenue came to $90.2 billion, $1.08 billion better than had been anticipated and up 12% year-over-year. The revenue total included $77.3 billion from Google Services, and $12.3 billion from Google Cloud, which also includes generative AI solutions and AI infrastructure. The Google Cloud segment was up 28% year-over-year. At the bottom line, Alphabet's $2.81 EPS was up 92 cents from the prior-year quarter, and was 80 cents per share better than the forecasts. Like the tech giants above, Alphabet has caught the eye of a 5-star analyst. Rohit Kulkarni, of Roth, says of the company, 'Google is a 'show me' story with two monkeys on its back, AI Search and Monopoly lawsuits. We have a positive bias toward GOOGL's AI search progress and believe AI Cloud growth supports potential upside at current reasonable valuation. We expect significant headline hits as OpenAI and Perplexity likely jump into deeper ad monetization in 2H25, while all three major lawsuits progress. We believe fundamentals likely remain unchanged, thus making GOOGL a sentiment recovery play in 2H25. #1 Mega Cap for 2H25.' The analyst's positive bias leads to a Buy rating for the shares, with a $205 price target indicating potential for a one-year appreciation of 15.5%. (To watch Kulkarni's track record, click here) For the Street as a whole, GOOGL shares are Strong Buy, based on 38 reviews with a breakdown of 29 Buys and 9 Holds. The stock is selling for $177.62 and its $201.85 average price target suggests that it will gain 13.5% over the next 12 months. (See GOOGL stock forecast) With the facts in, it's clear that all three of these mega-cap AI stocks are looking up – but also that Alphabet has the clear path towards higher upside than its peers. To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks' Best Stocks to Buy, a tool that unites all of TipRanks' equity insights.
Globe and Mail
2 days ago
- Globe and Mail
Could This Key Development Drive Palantir Stock to New Heights?
Key Points The U.S. Army is expanding its relationship with Palantir. The service is also planning to introduce a new artificial intelligence (AI)-centric job field for soldiers. Palantir isn't cheap, but offers a compelling opportunity for those with a long investing time horizon. 10 stocks we like better than Palantir Technologies › Artificial intelligence (AI) has been around in some form or fashion for over 50 years, but recent developments in the field of generative AI have attracted the attention of Wall Street and Main Street alike. These new AI systems have the ability to refine and distill massive amounts of data, create original content, and streamline processes -- thereby increasing productivity. Potential applications abound, and individuals, businesses, and governments are all looking for ways to cash in on AI. One of the undeniable beneficiaries of this trend is Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ: PLTR). The company has risen from near obscurity to be one of Wall Street's hottest properties. The stock is up 85% so far this year and boasts gains of 1,760% since the dawn of generative AI in late 2022. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More » While some investors fear Palantir's growth will eventually fade, recent developments help illustrate the long runway ahead and why the stock might still be a buy, despite its astronomical valuation. Expanding relationships Investors may recall that in May 2024, Palantir was awarded a $480 million, five-year contract by the U.S. Army for its Maven Smart System. The system integrates data from satellites, drones, and other intelligence sources, using AI and computer vision to scan the battlefield and identify enemy targets. The cutting-edge system also helps prioritize and track the movement of enemy systems, as well as identifying friendly forces in the area. By providing real-time data, Maven gives analysts actionable intelligence. Military leaders were so impressed with the system that in September, they added a $99.8 million addendum to the contract, expanding access to the Maven system across all branches of the U.S. military, including the Army, Air Force, Space Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. The expanded access improves the interaction and operational capabilities between different branches of the service. There's more. By May 2025, Pentagon leaders boosted the contract value by an additional $792 million over four years, bringing the total value of the project to more than $1.3 billion through 2029. A defense official cited the "growing demand" for the system as the catalyst for the increasing contract size. This contract is only one of many, but it helps to illustrate one of Palantir's secret weapons: that of "increasing demand." When users -- military or enterprise -- get their hands on Palantir's systems and actually use them, they begin to understand the myriad ways the system can be deployed. This leads to new users and additional use cases, and ultimately leads to Palantir expanding its relationships with existing customers. Finally, word broke this week that the U.S. Army is "laying the groundwork for a sweeping expansion of its AI capabilities," according to The service is developing a military occupational specialty (MOS) focused on AI. The career field, designated 49B, will be focused on AI and machine learning, which shows that the U.S. military is increasingly betting on AI as the future of modern warfare. As a leading provider of AI tools to the U.S. Army, Palantir will likely benefit from this development. Proof of concept Palantir introduced its Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP) in April 2023, which helps businesses "leverage the power of large language models (LLMs) on their own privately held datasets." The company then adopted a strategy that has proven wildly successful since its introduction. To capitalize on the unprecedented demand for AIP, the company began hosting boot camps, "immersive, hands-on-keyboard sessions" that pair customers with Palantir engineers, which allows them to "go from zero to use case in just one to five days." Because users experience the platform firsthand, they quickly understand the value AIP can bring to their organization and its ability to solve company-specific business challenges. Furthermore, once these AI systems are established within an organization, chances are good that the company will ultimately expand its relationship with Palantir. Don't take my word for it. In the first quarter, Palantir's revenue of $884 million grew 39% year over year and 7% quarter over quarter -- but that only tells part of the story. U.S. commercial revenue, which includes AIP, grew 71% year over year and 19% quarter over quarter, and now accounts for 41% of Palantir's total sales -- not bad for a product that's only been around for about two years. There's more good news: Palantir's so-called " Rule of 40" score, which evaluates the company's revenue growth in relation to its profits, clocks in at 83%, showing a healthy balance of growth and profitability. That's up from just 38% less than two years ago and illustrates the quality of Palantir's earnings. To close out the quarter, Palantir's remaining performance obligation (RPO), or contractually obligated sales that haven't been recognized as revenue, jumped 46% to a record $1.9 billion, while the remaining deal value (RDV) of its U.S. commercial segment soared 127% to $2.32 billion. This gives investors visibility into Palantir's future and helps illustrate that its growth streak still has room to run. There's no such thing as a free lunch Palantir's track record of success and the unprecedented demand for its services come with a hefty price tag. The stock currently sells for a lofty 82 times forward sales and 234 times forward earnings. This is enough to make some investors run for cover, but the most commonly used valuation metrics tend to struggle with high-growth stocks. Because of its high multiples, Palantir stock is prone to wild swings of volatility and, as such, won't be a good fit for every investor. However, as my colleague Adia Cimino points out, valuations don't provide a complete picture, and "If you refused to buy these companies because of their high valuations, you might have missed out on owning some of the world's most successful technology stocks." There's little question that the adoption of AI is just getting started. Given Palantir's industry-leading government and enterprise-level AI solutions and its track record of expanding relationships, I would posit that these recent developments could help drive the stock to new heights. Those concerned about its valuation should consider buying just a small stake to start, or dollar-cost averaging into a position over time. Should you invest $1,000 in Palantir Technologies right now? Before you buy stock in Palantir Technologies, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Palantir Technologies wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $694,758!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $998,376!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor 's total average return is1,058% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to180%for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 7, 2025
Winnipeg Free Press
2 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
RRC getting real with artificial intelligence
Red River College Polytechnic is offering crash courses in generative artificial intelligence to help classroom teachers get more comfortable with the technology. Foundations of Generative AI in Education, a microcredential that takes 15 hours to complete, gives participants guidance to explore AI tools and encourage ethical and effective use of them in schools. Tyler Steiner was tasked with creating the program in 2023, shortly after the release of ChatGPT — a chatbot that generates human-like replies to prompts within seconds — and numerous copycat programs that have come online since. MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS Lauren Phillips, a RRC Polytech associate dean, said it's important students know when they can use AI. 'There's no putting that genie back in the bottle,' said Steiner, a curriculum developer at the post-secondary institute in Winnipeg. While noting teachers can 'lock and block' via pen-and-paper tests and essays, the reality is students are using GenAI outside school and authentic experiential learning should reflect the real world, he said. Steiner's advice? Introduce it with the caveat students should withhold personal information from prompts to protect their privacy, analyze answers for bias and 'hallucinations' (false or misleading information) and be wary of over-reliance on technology. RRC Polytech piloted its first GenAI microcredential little more than a year ago. A total of 109 completion badges have been issued to date. The majority of early participants in the training program are faculty members at RRC Polytech. The Winnipeg School Division has also covered the tab for about 20 teachers who've expressed interest in upskilling. 'There was a lot of fear when GenAI first launched, but we also saw that it had a ton of power and possibility in education,' said Lauren Phillips, associate dean of RRC Polytech's school of education, arts and sciences. Phillips called a microcredential 'the perfect tool' to familiarize teachers with GenAI in short order, as it is already rapidly changing the kindergarten to Grade 12 and post-secondary education sectors. Manitoba teachers have told the Free Press they are using chatbots to plan lessons and brainstorm report card comments, among other tasks. Students are using them to help with everything from breaking down a complex math equation to creating schedules to manage their time. Others have been caught cutting corners. Submitted assignments should always disclose when an author has used ChatGPT, Copilot or another tool 'as a partner,' Phillips said. She and Steiner said in separate interviews the key to success is providing students with clear instructions about when they can and cannot use this type of technology. Business administration instructor Nora Sobel plans to spend much of the summer refreshing course content to incorporate their tips; Sobel recently completed all three GenAI microcredentials available on her campus. Two new ones — Application of Generative AI in Education and Integration of Generative AI in Education — were added to the roster this spring. Sobel said it is 'overwhelming' to navigate this transformative technology, but it's important to do so because employers will expect graduates to have the know-how to use them properly. It's often obvious when a student has used GenAI because their answers are abstract and generic, she said, adding her goal is to release rubrics in 2025-26 with explicit direction surrounding the active rather than passive use of these tools. Wednesdays Sent weekly from the heart of Turtle Island, an exploration of Indigenous voices, perspectives and experiences. 'The main idea is not to use the AI tool alone, standalone. You want to complement it with AI literacy training,' the instructor said. She noted her favourite programs are conversational AI assistant Microsoft Copilot, Perplexity AI (an AI-powered search engine that generates answers with links to references) and Google NotebookLM. Whereas Copilot and Perplexity AI primarily draw from external sources, Google NotebookLM can analyze trends in original items uploaded by a user. Registration for RRC Polytech's next introductory microcredential, running Oct. 6 through Nov. 2, is open. Tuition is $313 per student. Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
