Latest news with #Confluence
Techday NZ
2 days ago
- Business
- Techday NZ
Slack unveils all-in-one AI tools & enterprise search upgrade
Slack has released a series of new artificial intelligence (AI) and search capabilities designed to streamline workflows and improve productivity for teams. The updates consist of features that integrate AI deeply across the Slack platform, aimed at reducing the time users spend searching for information, switching between applications, or rewriting content. AI features in Slack Among the latest features are AI writing assistance integrated directly into Slack canvas, allowing users to draft briefs, generate action items, and refine content using natural language prompts. This is intended to support the creation and management of documents within Slack, avoiding the need to move between different tools. Users can also expect AI-powered message explanations, which allow team members to hover over any message and receive instant, contextual explanations of unfamiliar terms or technical concepts. This is aimed at reducing interruptions and improving understanding in cross-functional conversations. Additional features include AI action items, which help users prioritise tasks by automatically identifying key action points from discussions and only sending notifications when meaningful updates occur. AI profile summaries provide a quick overview of a user's role and recent contributions, intended to help teams align more quickly and reduce unnecessary communication. Enterprise search and integrations Slack has announced the general availability of enterprise search, which enables users to surface information across connected applications, data sources, and Slack conversations from a single search bar. Supported integrations include Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, Google Drive, Confluence, Box, and others, allowing the Slack search bar to act as a unified interface for accessing both structured and unstructured organisational data. Translation capabilities have also been introduced. Users encountering messages in different languages will be presented with a button to translate them into their preferred language, facilitating collaboration across borders. The enterprise search function has been designed to help teams retrieve necessary data from systems of record, content repositories, developer tools, and project management platforms. According to Slack, this approach is aimed at turning fragmented information into actionable insights without requiring users to leave the platform. "AI is supposed to simplify work, but too often it just creates friction. With Slack, we're building AI that actually makes users more productive by embedding it directly into the platform they already know and love - right in their flow of work. Combined with the power of digital labor with AI agents, Slack's work operating system becomes more intuitive, intelligent, and ready for whatever teams need next." - Shalini Agarwal, VP of Slack Product, Salesforce Paul Kagoo, General Manager of Enterprises & B2B at reMarkable, commented on Slack's enterprise search: "As our company scaled, institutional knowledge was not easily accessible, and spread out across multiple sources. Slack's enterprise search has now become a go-to place for me to learn about our business. By asking questions in a conversational form, Slack is able to create useful context in addition to providing credible responses to the questions I have." Writing assistance and automation The platform also introduces AI writing assistance in canvas, which enables summarisation of Slack threads, drafting of project briefs, generation of action items, and refinement of raw meeting notes. The AI can rewrite content in varying tones and restructure information to fit different formats, aiming to minimise the manual handling of meeting output and documentation. For meetings that take place in Slack huddles, AI-generated meeting notes are available, capturing decisions, next steps, and providing a transcript. This is intended to allow teams to focus on discussion rather than note-taking, while keeping everyone aligned afterwards. Automated insights and prioritisation New capabilities such as AI-generated channel recaps and thread summaries aim to help users catch up on conversation highlights quickly. The ability to hover for contextual explanations and receive AI-generated action items in the activity view is expected to allow users to focus on tasks of highest priority and navigate unfamiliar topics more efficiently. AI profile summaries will provide context about colleagues, including roles and recent work, facilitating smoother collaborations, especially for new team members or cross-functional projects. Mark Riskowitz, Vice President of Operations at Caraway, described the experience as follows: "Our employees didn't need to become AI experts to benefit. The difference with Slack is that AI shows up when you need it, doing exactly what makes sense in context. It doesn't ask more of us - it just helps us move faster." User experience and interface The updates also include a simplified interface, with features such as a unified files view that consolidates canvases, lists, and documents. This centralisation is expected to help teams keep content organised and accessible, supporting larger-scale collaboration as organisations grow. Security and compliance Slack has emphasised a commitment to security and compliance in the development of its AI features. The company stated that customer data is not used to train generative AI models, AI features only surface data a user is authorised to access, and all functions comply with enterprise-grade security standards. The AI operates within Slack's secured infrastructure and incorporates support for measures such as FedRAMP, encryption key management, international data residency, and data loss prevention, alongside the Einstein Trust Layer. Slack's AI features are included in all paid plans. The Pro plan introduces summarisation features, the Business+ plan offers a broader range including recaps, translations, workflow generation, and AI-powered search, and the Enterprise+ plan provides access to the full suite, including enterprise search and advanced security controls.
Business Wire
02-07-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Confluence Launches Style Analytics Fixed Income, Bringing Transparency to a Traditionally Opaque Asset Class
PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Confluence Technologies, a global leader in data-driven investment analytics and regulatory reporting solutions, today announced the launch of Style Analytics Fixed Income, extending its trusted equity analytics capabilities into the fixed income universe. Built with the same holdings-based philosophy that has earned the trust of asset managers and fund selectors across equity markets, Style Analytics Fixed Income provides transparency across credit risk, interest rate risk, yield, and derivative exposures, enabling institutions to analyze and communicate fixed income strategies more effectively. 'In equity markets, transparency has long been expected. But fixed income has remained a blind spot—opaque exposures, incomplete holdings files, derivative complexity, and a lack of standardized insights have all posed challenges,' said Chris Smith-Hill, VP of Product at Confluence. 'Style Analytics Fixed Income was built to resolve these issues. It gives investors transparency into their managers' behaviors and offers visual tools designed to help asset managers more clearly communicate portfolio strategies to clients.' The platform's value lies in its ease of interpretation. It is designed to communicate effectively with sophisticated experts and non-industry stakeholders alike through standardized metrics that support meaningful fund comparison. Style Analytics Fixed Income offers holdings-based analysis, expansive OTC derivative coverage, and intuitive visual storytelling tools such as the 'Fixed Income Skyline,' which highlight the tilts and risk concentrations of a portfolio. This streamlines portfolio analysis and supports client confidence by enabling independent validation of strategies and exposures, especially during due diligence conversations and peer comparisons. 'Institutional investors and wealth platforms are under mounting pressure to demonstrate transparency, consistency, and performance. Style Analytics Fixed Income meets this challenge,' said Kathleen Keenan, Chief Product Officer at Confluence. 'By putting powerful, standardized fixed income analytics into the hands of fund selectors and risk teams, supporting more informed and timely decision-making.' Confluence's solution responds to changing market conditions and regulatory scrutiny by offering a centralized view of security-level exposures, portfolio compositions, and derivative impacts. Firms are now better equipped to manage risk and articulate their value to clients. Style Analytics Fixed Income is now available globally. To learn more or request a demo, visit .
Business Wire
30-06-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
First Trust Announces Completion of First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund Reorganization into FT Confluence BDC & Specialty Finance Income ETF
WHEATON, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--First Trust Advisors L.P. ('FTA') announced today that the reorganization of First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE: FGB), a closed-end management investment company, managed by FTA and sub-advised by Confluence Investment Management LLC ('Confluence'), into FT Confluence BDC & Specialty Finance Income ETF (NYSE: FBDC), an actively managed exchange-traded fund ('ETF') managed by FTA and sub-advised by Confluence, was completed prior to the open of the NYSE on June 30, 2025. As previously announced, the shareholders of FGB approved FGB's reorganization into FBDC at a Special Meeting of Shareholders on May 5, 2025. The reorganization was approved by the Board of Trustees of each of FGB and FBDC on September 8-9, 2024. In the reorganization, the assets of FGB were transferred to, and the liabilities of FGB were assumed by, FBDC. The shareholders of FGB received shares of FBDC with a value equal to the aggregate net asset value of the shares of FGB held by them. FBDC is an actively managed ETF that seeks to provide a high level of current income, with a secondary objective of attractive total return. FBDC pursues these investment objectives by investing in BDCs and other specialty finance companies that Confluence believes offer attractive opportunities for income and capital appreciation. FTA is a federally registered investment advisor and serves as the Fund's investment advisor. FTA and its affiliate First Trust Portfolios L.P. ('FTP'), a FINRA registered broker-dealer, are privately-held companies that provide a variety of investment services. FTA has collective assets under management or supervision of approximately $268 billion as of May 31, 2025 through unit investment trusts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, mutual funds and separate managed accounts. FTA is the supervisor of the First Trust unit investment trusts, while FTP is the sponsor. FTP is also a distributor of mutual fund shares and exchange-traded fund creation units. FTA and FTP are based in Wheaton, Illinois. Confluence Investment Management LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor, serves as the investment sub-advisor to FGB and the new ETF. The Confluence team has more than 600 years of combined financial experience and 400 years of portfolio management/research experience, maintaining a track record that dates back to 1994. As of March 31, 2025, Confluence had $12.7 billion in assets under management and advisement (assets under management = $7.2 billion; assets under advisement = $5.5 billion). This press release is not intended to, and shall not, constitute an offer to purchase or sell shares of FBDC. An investor should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of FBDC before investing. The prospectus for FBDC contains this and other important information and is available free of charge by calling First Trust Portfolios L.P. at 1-800-621-1675 or visiting The prospectus should be read carefully before investing.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mizuho Trims Atlassian (TEAM) Price Target, Maintains Buy Rating
Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAM) is one of 10 AI stocks that will skyrocket. Mizuho has lowered its price target on Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAM) to $325 from $355, while maintaining an Outperform rating following the company's recent user conference. The adjustment reflects what the firm describes as a 'meaningful recent contraction' in comparable valuation multiples, driven by broader market concerns and an increased likelihood of a recession. In a research note to investors, Mizuho emphasized that while macroeconomic uncertainty has impacted near-term sentiment and sector valuations, it continues to view Atlassian's long-term fundamentals positively. The firm said the company's growth trajectory remains underappreciated and believes Atlassian is well-positioned to outperform peers over a multi-year horizon. Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAM), known for its collaborative software tools including Jira, Confluence, and Trello, has seen consistent demand from both large enterprises and smaller development teams. Mizuho pointed to the company's ongoing investments in cloud migration, product innovation, and AI-enhanced features as drivers of future revenue and customer expansion. Despite the revised price target, the Outperform rating signals confidence in Atlassian's ability to navigate macro challenges while continuing to grow its user base and improve profitability. Mizuho maintains that Atlassian's combination of product breadth, customer loyalty, and long-term margin potential sets it apart from many competitors in the enterprise software space. While we acknowledge the potential of TEAM to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than TEAM and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: 10 Best Small Cap Tech Stocks With Biggest Upside Potential and 7 Most Popular AI Penny Stocks Under $5 To Avoid. Disclosure: None. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Calgary Herald
21-06-2025
- Climate
- Calgary Herald
Walk for Reconciliation draws hundreds of Calgarians despite stormy weather
Article content Almost 200 Calgarians braved the stormy weather this morning to walk in support of National Indigenous People's Day. Article content The Confluence Historic Site & Parkland held its 16th annual Walk of Reconciliation Saturday, leading the cold, wet trek from the Harry Hays building on 4th Avenue S.E. to Fort Calgary. Article content Article content Despite the strong winds and pouring rain, participants were more than happy to don their ponchos and support the cause. With folks hesitant to stop for a breather, the walk was far more brisk than previous years — taking less than half an hour. Article content Article content 'I really enjoyed the walk. I'm soaking wet and I'm cold, but I really enjoyed it and I would do it again,' said walker Nadia Hussein. 'And when I think of the purpose of why we were there, it was really motivating to get out today and motivating to see the community as well.' Article content Article content 'Last year we had almost 500 people come out [on a Friday], so we were really excited to see how many people would come out on a Saturday when people weren't having to go to work,' said Rebekah Jarvis, director of community engagement at the Confluence. 'We were still really impressed with the turnout. People chose to come out, and chose to make the walk, even though it was really uncomfortable.' Article content Article content The Confluence welcomed participants out of the rain and into the upper barracks to hear a variety of speakers as well as drumming and dancing ceremonies. A livestream event was held at the Burnswest Theatre to accommodate those who couldn't make it to the barracks. Article content Indigenous speakers included Charlotte McLeod, Audrey Weasel Traveller and Dr. Maurice Manyfingers. Article content 'One of the great things about the speakers today is that they're not just speakers — they're walkers. They're people who walk the walk, and talk the talk,' said Keestin O'Dell, Indigenous student engagement strategist at Bow Valley College's Iniikokaan Centre.
