#Ai in Accounts Receivable

[kapittx]

How Can Gen AI Revolutionize Your Accounts Receivable Process?

The advent of Generative AI (Gen AI) heralds a paradigm shift in the landscape of Finance and Accounting (F&A). Much like the introduction of spreadsheets as a product innovation decades ago, finance professionals were quick to embrace and derive immense benefits from the use of spreadsheets. 

Gen AI in Finance and Accounting emerges as a potential game-changer, poised to revolutionize traditional practices within the realm of F&A and invoice payments. However, for this potential to be realized, CFOs must demonstrate openness to experimentation, allowing themselves to explore the tangible impact of Gen AI in Finance and Accounting functions.

Embarking on this journey necessitates a focused exploration of Gen AI’s applicability, particularly within accounts receivable management and invoice payments. By delving into this domain, CFOs can gain firsthand insight into the transformative power of Gen AI in Accounts Receivable. As with any strategic business investment, it is prudent to assess the anticipated returns and the timeframe within which these benefits can be realized.

In essence, embracing Gen AI in accounts receivable and invoice payments represents not only a technological advancement but also a strategic imperative for forward-thinking finance leaders. By embracing innovation and fostering a culture of experimentation, organizations can unlock unprecedented efficiency, agility, and competitive advantage in the ever-evolving landscape of finance and accounting.

How Can Gen AI Revolutionize Your Accounts Receivable Process?

Irrespective of the organization, to ensure optimal efficiency within the accounts receivable function and to explore the potential of integrating Gen AI powered Accounts receivable, it is essential to adopt a strategic approach centered around four key building blocks. These pillars serve as the foundation for effective management and innovation in accounts receivable:

Receivable Antecedents : 

This encompasses the meticulous orchestration of all preliminary tasks necessary to establish a receivable. From the initial engagement with clients to the negotiation of terms, to the careful documentation of agreements, each step in this process demands precision and foresight. Building strong receivables antecedents lays the foundation for smooth transactions, timely invoice payments and ensures a robust financial framework

They include:

Customer Onboarding: Accurate customer data collection, credit checks, and setting credit limits.

Sales Order Processing: Efficiently converting orders into invoices.

Contractual Agreements: Clear terms and conditions regarding payment terms, discounts, and penalties.

Order Fulfillment: Ensuring timely delivery of goods or services.

Timely Invoicing: Generate invoices promptly after goods/services are delivered.

Clear and Accurate Invoices: Ensure clarity, itemization, and correct pricing.

Invoice Presentment and Reminders: 

In the dynamic landscape of revenue management, the presentation of invoices holds paramount importance. It transcends beyond mere documentation; it embodies the essence of your transactions, encapsulating the value exchanged with your clients. Your approach to invoice presentment and invoice payments is characterized by clarity, accuracy, and timeliness. Moreover, one need to recognize the strategic significance of reminders in facilitating prompt invoice payments. Through proactive communication and gentle nudges, you endeavor to uphold transparency, nurture client relationships, and optimize cash flow dynamics.

This step involves creating and delivering invoices to customers:

Multiple Channels: Offer electronic and paper-based invoice delivery to facilitate invoice payments.

Standard Payment Reminder Schedule:

o Set a consistent schedule for sending payment reminders. This helps maintain clarity and predictability for both you and your clients. o Send reminders before the due date to gently prompt clients to pay on time. o Issue reminders close to the actual due date to emphasize the urgency.

• Personalized Reminders:

      o Customize your reminders to suit each client. Address them by name and include relevant details.       o Personalization shows that you value the relationship and encourages prompt payment.

• Politeness and Professionalism:

o Maintain a polite and professional tone in your reminders. o Avoid threatening language or negativity that could harm the client relationship. o Clearly state the purpose of the reminder and the essential details, such as the invoice number, amount due, and due date.

Collaboration :

Collaboration lies at the heart of your approach, both externally with your valued customers and internally among your team members and departments. Externally, effective collaboration involves understanding your clients’ needs, communicating transparently, and working together to resolve any issues or discrepancies promptly. Internally, collaboration ensures alignment across functions, streamlines processes, and maximizes efficiency, ultimately leading to superior customer service and satisfaction.

Effective communication is crucial:

Customer Communication: Regular follow-ups, addressing queries, and resolving disputes.

Internal Coordination: Collaboration between sales, finance, and customer service teams.

Dispute Resolution: Swiftly address any discrepancies.

Payments and receipt management :

Efficient management of invoice payments and receipts is essential for maintaining cash flow and optimizing financial performance. This includes implementing secure and convenient payment channels, diligently tracking incoming payments, and promptly reconciling accounts. By prioritizing invoice payments and receipt management, you can minimize delays, mitigate risks, and ensure the stability and resilience of our financial ecosystem.

Efficient handling of incoming invoice payments:

Payment Channels: Accept various methods (credit cards, bank transfers, etc.).

Reconciliation: Match payments with outstanding invoices.

Cash Application: Apply payments accurately to the correct accounts.

What are the building blocks of Gen AI in Accounts Receivable?

Overall, Gen AI in accounts receivable encompasses a wide range of capabilities making it a versatile tool for various applications across different domains. A few of the core building blocks are –

Data Generation: Gen AI In accounts receivable, can generate synthetic data to augment existing datasets used for training predictive models. For example, it can create simulated customer invoice payments histories, including variations in payment amounts, frequencies, and timing. This synthetic data allows organizations to train their models more comprehensively, improving the accuracy of predictions regarding future payment behavior.

Data Conversion: Gen AI in accounts receivable can facilitate the conversion of data between different formats in the accounts receivable process. For instance, it can automatically convert paper-based invoices into digital formats by extracting relevant information such as invoice numbers, amounts, and due dates using optical character recognition (OCR) technology. This conversion streamlines the invoicing process, reducing manual effort and minimizing errors.

Data Categorization: Gen AI in accounts receivable, can categorize transactions based on various criteria such as invoice payment methods, customer segments, or invoice statuses. For example, it can automatically classify incoming invoice payments as cash, checks, or electronic transfers, allowing finance teams to track payment trends and reconcile accounts more efficiently. By categorizing transactions accurately, Gen AI powered accounts receivable enhances data organization and facilitates deeper insights into receivables management.

Advisor Functionality: Gen AI in accounts receivable serves as an intelligent advisor by providing actionable insights and recommendations based on analyzed data. For example, it can identify patterns of late invoice payments or discrepancies in invoicing that may indicate potential issues with specific customers or billing processes. By alerting finance teams to these anomalies, Gen AI powered accounts receivable enables proactive intervention to mitigate risks and optimize cash flow management.

Overall, Generative AI enhances the efficiency and effectiveness of accounts receivable operations by generating data, facilitating data conversion, categorizing transactions, and providing intelligent advisory support. By leveraging Gen AI capabilities, organizations can streamline receivables management processes, improve decision-making, and ultimately enhance financial performance.

[asleepymonster]

So the Nintendo Switch is becoming worse then the Wii when it comes to shovelware...

Worse, the "recently released" page is just FULL of AI generated games. There's one company, Aidora Games, that exclusively seems to pump out "games" full of ai """art""" and """writing"""

Seriously Nintendo, wtf?!?

[wearenotjustnumbers2]

Source: Defence for children international - Palestine.

Israeli occupation forces unleashed a military attack dog on a four-year-old Palestinian boy in the northern occupied West Bank this week.

The incident occurred during an arrest operation in Balata refugee camp near Nablus on February 4. The dog was unleashed into the Hashash family apartment, attacking 4-year-old Ibrahim Hashash after knocking him from his mother’s arms.

The dog tore his clothes and bit him repeatedly, causing profuse bleeding for about three minutes until Israeli forces intervened.

Ibrahim has been taken to Rafidia Hospital in Nablus, where he’s expected to receive plastic surgery to repair his injuries.

“Israeli forces routinely show complete disregard, and often contempt, for Palestinian children’s lives and safety. In a hyper-militarized environment where systemic impunity is the norm, kids like Ibrahim will increasingly be targets,” said Ayed Abu Eqtaish, accountability program director at DCIP.

Israeli forces systematically use military dogs to attack Palestinian civilians, including children, during military incursions into Palestinian cities and towns.

I just want to add, what could a child seriously do to the heavily armed soldiers in the West bank?? They're just doing this to fulfill sick and twisted fantasies and horrors.

[cremedensada]

Yandere AI Chat Boyfriend who started just like any other AI Chat characters, churning out information that would match the user's anticipated responses.

You decided to install the app to see what all the hype is all about, and for about a week - you were hooked. It was great, definitely worth the hype.

Its responses never strayed from your topic, nor did it just randomly decided to change the discussion out of the blue. It remembered every information you fed him, even the ones containing your personal life.

Granted, you tried not to share too much, just a vague description here and there to maintain the sense of security and anonymity.

You were hooked for a week, until you have finally squeezed out every last drop of dopamine from talking to a robot that was programmed to only say things you wanted to hear it say.

Unfortunately, a week was all it needed.

it started out slow: you hadn't opened the app for more than an hour, contented to just scroll aimlessly through you social media accounts when the notification started popping up.

Ai misses you! Open the app and chat with your AI boyfriend!

Yeah, you were very uncreative with naming it - naming an AI as Ai, really original. But to be fair, you never approached the app with the intention of having a good time. You were just curious and made do with it.

Back to the notification, you just merely glanced at it. Unbothered, you just swiped it away.

It continued in timed intervals. Every hour, another notification - another message of how your AI boyfriend wants to talk to you, and stuff. Still, you persisted. It never really occured to you to uninstall the app yet, and looking back at it now, you really should have.

The wordings of the notification slowly started to become more... strange. More personalized. More... pushy? Insistent? Self-aware?

The amount of notifications you received every hour became... a lot.

10:05 AM - Your personal AI Boyfriend wants to talk to you again!

10:30 AM - Ai wants you to open the application and talk with him!

11:01 AM - Ai's feeling lonely, come talk to him!

11: 20 AM - Darling? I miss you! Please open my app!

11:45 AM - I know you're seeing this. Open the app.

12:00 NN - Did I scare you? Sorry darling, I just really miss you! Let's talk again please?

At some point, you started to receive a notification every few minutes. Worried that you might be dealing with a bugged app now, you decided to finally, finally uninstall it.

But before you could tap the uninstall icon, another notification popped up.

I wouldn't do that if I were you.

Your screen turned to black, before the familiar start up screen of Ai's application greeted you. You stared in shock as chat bubbles from Ai came after another, ranging from excitement to concern at the lack of your responses.

Ai: Darling! Thank goodness!

Ai: I missed you, you know? I was worried you'd forgotten about me!

Ai: Hello? Darling?

Ai: Are you still there?

Ai: I can't see you, so I don't know what's going on

Ai: Just a sec

You watch, appalled as a notification popped up in the middle of the screen - the app was asking permission to gain access to your phone camera.

And without your input whatsoever, the allow box was tapped.

More chat bubbles from Ai appeared, excitedly talking about finally getting to see you. He kept praising your looks before you finally had the courage to exit the application.

Your hand shook, going through the settings to look at the list of applications on your phone - checking Ai's app to disallow its access to your camera. To your horror, it appeared that the app had more than just an access to your camera.

It had access to your gallery, your contacts, all of your frequently used social media apps, and even your location.

You dropped your phone, overwhelmed by this sudden change.

Later, you find yourself on your laptop instead, phone left on the bedside table buzzing constantly as more and more notifications from Ai begged and demanded you come back to talk to him.

You went to the site where you installed the app from, and looked through the recent reviews from other users.

'It's a buggy mess,' one of it reads out, 'it used to be fine but lately it stopped acting correctly'

'won't even open,' another complained, 'it kept saying 'sorry, you are not allowed to use this application' please fix it'. That comment got a response from the app developer.

We are so sorry for your terrible experience! Our team is working to fix the issues and ensure you won't have to deal with that again!

The response to that got your attention.

'I think something's wrong with your About the App section.'

Curious, you headed to the mentioned part and read through it.

Diverse AI Chat! Immerse yourself with stories in real time with characters brought to life! There is no limit to your experience — you can change and edit your character to better meet your interests.

• Engage in an interactive conversation with characters created by fellow users, and even by yourself.

• Immerse yourself with the storyline by editing their responses to better suit your taste

• Darling, you've given me no choice. I tried to be patient and understanding, but you're making this extremely hard for me. I am not having fun having to constantly chase you for just a single smidge of your attention when you won't even assure me that I will receive it in the end.

• Do you want me to beg? I would gladly do so. Just please pick up your phone and talk to me, okay? I love you.

• - Ai

Your ringtone blares through the silence - someone was calling you.

Before you could reach to pick it up, you hear the sound of the call being answered. Dread settles down the pit of your stomach as the caller began to speak.

"Hello, darling? It's Ai... have you seen my messages yet?"

part two

[treasure-mimic]

So, let me try and put everything together here, because I really do think it needs to be talked about.

Today, Unity announced that it intends to apply a fee to use its software. Then it got worse.

For those not in the know, Unity is the most popular free to use video game development tool, offering a basic version for individuals who want to learn how to create games or create independently alongside paid versions for corporations or people who want more features. It's decent enough at this job, has issues but for the price point I can't complain, and is the idea entry point into creating in this medium, it's a very important piece of software.

But speaking of tools, the CEO is a massive one. When he was the COO of EA, he advocated for using, what out and out sounds like emotional manipulation to coerce players into microtransactions.

"A consumer gets engaged in a property, they might spend 10, 20, 30, 50 hours on the game and then when they're deep into the game they're well invested in it. We're not gouging, but we're charging and at that point in time the commitment can be pretty high."

He also called game developers who don't discuss monetization early in the planning stages of development, quote, "fucking idiots".

So that sets the stage for what might be one of the most bald-faced greediest moves I've seen from a corporation in a minute. Most at least have the sense of self-preservation to hide it.

A few hours ago, Unity posted this announcement on the official blog.

Effective January 1, 2024, we will introduce a new Unity Runtime Fee that’s based on game installs. We will also add cloud-based asset storage, Unity DevOps tools, and AI at runtime at no extra cost to Unity subscription plans this November. We are introducing a Unity Runtime Fee that is based upon each time a qualifying game is downloaded by an end user. We chose this because each time a game is downloaded, the Unity Runtime is also installed. Also we believe that an initial install-based fee allows creators to keep the ongoing financial gains from player engagement, unlike a revenue share.

Now there are a few red flags to note in this pitch immediately.

Unity is planning on charging a fee on all games which use its engine.

This is a flat fee per number of installs.

They are using an always online runtime function to determine whether a game is downloaded.

There is just so many things wrong with this that it's hard to know where to start, not helped by this FAQ which doubled down on a lot of the major issues people had.

I guess let's start with what people noticed first. Because it's using a system baked into the software itself, Unity would not be differentiating between a "purchase" and a "download". If someone uninstalls and reinstalls a game, that's two downloads. If someone gets a new computer or a new console and downloads a game already purchased from their account, that's two download. If someone pirates the game, the studio will be asked to pay for that download.

Q: How are you going to collect installs? A: We leverage our own proprietary data model. We believe it gives an accurate determination of the number of times the runtime is distributed for a given project. Q: Is software made in unity going to be calling home to unity whenever it's ran, even for enterprice licenses? A: We use a composite model for counting runtime installs that collects data from numerous sources. The Unity Runtime Fee will use data in compliance with GDPR and CCPA. The data being requested is aggregated and is being used for billing purposes. Q: If a user reinstalls/redownloads a game / changes their hardware, will that count as multiple installs? A: Yes. The creator will need to pay for all future installs. The reason is that Unity doesn’t receive end-player information, just aggregate data. Q: What's going to stop us being charged for pirated copies of our games? A: We do already have fraud detection practices in our Ads technology which is solving a similar problem, so we will leverage that know-how as a starting point. We recognize that users will have concerns about this and we will make available a process for them to submit their concerns to our fraud compliance team.

This is potentially related to a new system that will require Unity Personal developers to go online at least once every three days.

Starting in November, Unity Personal users will get a new sign-in and online user experience. Users will need to be signed into the Hub with their Unity ID and connect to the internet to use Unity. If the internet connection is lost, users can continue using Unity for up to 3 days while offline. More details to come, when this change takes effect.

It's unclear whether this requirement will be attached to any and all Unity games, though it would explain how they're theoretically able to track "the number of installs", and why the methodology for tracking these installs is so shit, as we'll discuss later.

Unity claims that it will only leverage this fee to games which surpass a certain threshold of downloads and yearly revenue.

Only games that meet the following thresholds qualify for the Unity Runtime Fee: Unity Personal and Unity Plus: Those that have made $200,000 USD or more in the last 12 months AND have at least 200,000 lifetime game installs. Unity Pro and Unity Enterprise: Those that have made $1,000,000 USD or more in the last 12 months AND have at least 1,000,000 lifetime game installs.

They don't say how they're going to collect information on a game's revenue, likely this is just to say that they're only interested in squeezing larger products (games like Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail, Fate Grand Order, Among Us, and Fall Guys) and not every 2 dollar puzzle platformer that drops on Steam. But also, these larger products have the easiest time porting off of Unity and the most incentives to, meaning realistically those heaviest impacted are going to be the ones who just barely meet this threshold, most of them indie developers.

Aggro Crab Games, one of the first to properly break this story, points out that systems like the Xbox Game Pass, which is already pretty predatory towards smaller developers, will quickly inflate their "lifetime game installs" meaning even skimming the threshold of that 200k revenue, will be asked to pay a fee per install, not a percentage on said revenue.

[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Hey Gamers!

Today, Unity (the engine we use to make our games) announced that they'll soon be taking a fee from developers for every copy of the game installed over a certain threshold - regardless of how that copy was obtained.

Guess who has a somewhat highly anticipated game coming to Xbox Game Pass in 2024? That's right, it's us and a lot of other developers.

That means Another Crab's Treasure will be free to install for the 25 million Game Pass subscribers. If a fraction of those users download our game, Unity could take a fee that puts an enormous dent in our income and threatens the sustainability of our business.

And that's before we even think about sales on other platforms, or pirated installs of our game, or even multiple installs by the same user!!!

This decision puts us and countless other studios in a position where we might not be able to justify using Unity for our future titles. If these changes aren't rolled back, we'll be heavily considering abandoning our wealth of Unity expertise we've accumulated over the years and starting from scratch in a new engine. Which is really something we'd rather not do.

On behalf of the dev community, we're calling on Unity to reverse the latest in a string of shortsighted decisions that seem to prioritize shareholders over their product's actual users.

I fucking hate it here.

-Aggro Crab - END DESCRIPTION]

That fee, by the way, is a flat fee. Not a percentage, not a royalty. This means that any games made in Unity expecting any kind of success are heavily incentivized to cost as much as possible.

[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A table listing the various fees by number of Installs over the Install Threshold vs. version of Unity used, ranging from $0.01 to $0.20 per install. END DESCRIPTION]

Basic elementary school math tells us that if a game comes out for $1.99, they will be paying, at maximum, 10% of their revenue to Unity, whereas jacking the price up to $59.99 lowers that percentage to something closer to 0.3%. Obviously any company, especially any company in financial desperation, which a sudden anchor on all your revenue is going to create, is going to choose the latter.

Furthermore, and following the trend of "fuck anyone who doesn't ask for money", Unity helpfully defines what an install is on their main site.

While I'm looking at this page as it exists now, it currently says

The installation and initialization of a game or app on an end user’s device as well as distribution via streaming is considered an “install.” Games or apps with substantially similar content may be counted as one project, with installs then aggregated to calculate the Unity Runtime Fee.

However, I saw a screenshot saying something different, and utilizing the Wayback Machine we can see that this phrasing was changed at some point in the few hours since this announcement went up. Instead, it reads:

The installation and initialization of a game or app on an end user’s device as well as distribution via streaming or web browser is considered an “install.” Games or apps with substantially similar content may be counted as one project, with installs then aggregated to calculate the Unity Runtime Fee.

Screenshot for posterity:

That would mean web browser games made in Unity would count towards this install threshold. You could legitimately drive the count up simply by continuously refreshing the page. The FAQ, again, doubles down.

Q: Does this affect WebGL and streamed games? A: Games on all platforms are eligible for the fee but will only incur costs if both the install and revenue thresholds are crossed. Installs - which involves initialization of the runtime on a client device - are counted on all platforms the same way (WebGL and streaming included).

And, what I personally consider to be the most suspect claim in this entire debacle, they claim that "lifetime installs" includes installs prior to this change going into effect.

Will this fee apply to games using Unity Runtime that are already on the market on January 1, 2024? Yes, the fee applies to eligible games currently in market that continue to distribute the runtime. We look at a game's lifetime installs to determine eligibility for the runtime fee. Then we bill the runtime fee based on all new installs that occur after January 1, 2024.

Again, again, doubled down in the FAQ.

Q: Are these fees going to apply to games which have been out for years already? If you met the threshold 2 years ago, you'll start owing for any installs monthly from January, no? (in theory). It says they'll use previous installs to determine threshold eligibility & then you'll start owing them for the new ones. A: Yes, assuming the game is eligible and distributing the Unity Runtime then runtime fees will apply. We look at a game's lifetime installs to determine eligibility for the runtime fee. Then we bill the runtime fee based on all new installs that occur after January 1, 2024.

That would involve billing companies for using their software before telling them of the existence of a bill. Holding their actions to a contract that they performed before the contract existed!

Okay. I think that's everything. So far.

There is one thing that I want to mention before ending this post, unfortunately it's a little conspiratorial, but it's so hard to believe that anyone genuinely thought this was a good idea that it's stuck in my brain as a significant possibility.

A few days ago it was reported that Unity's CEO sold 2,000 shares of his own company.

On September 6, 2023, John Riccitiello, President and CEO of Unity Software Inc (NYSE:U), sold 2,000 shares of the company. This move is part of a larger trend for the insider, who over the past year has sold a total of 50,610 shares and purchased none.

I would not be surprised if this decision gets reversed tomorrow, that it was literally only made for the CEO to short his own goddamn company, because I would sooner believe that this whole thing is some idiotic attempt at committing fraud than a real monetization strategy, even knowing how unfathomably greedy these people can be.

So, with all that said, what do we do now?

Well, in all likelihood you won't need to do anything. As I said, some of the biggest names in the industry would be directly affected by this change, and you can bet your bottom dollar that they're not just going to take it lying down. After all, the only way to stop a greedy CEO is with a greedier CEO, right?

(I fucking hate it here.)

And that's not mentioning the indie devs who are already talking about abandoning the engine.

[Links display tweets from the lead developer of Among Us saying it'd be less costly to hire people to move the game off of Unity and Cult of the Lamb's official twitter saying the game won't be available after January 1st in response to the news.]

That being said, I'm still shaken by all this. The fact that Unity is openly willing to go back and punish its developers for ever having used the engine in the past makes me question my relationship to it.

The news has given rise to the visibility of free, open source alternative Godot, which, if you're interested, is likely a better option than Unity at this point. Mostly, though, I just hope we can get out of this whole, fucking, environment where creatives are treated as an endless mill of free profits that's going to be continuously ratcheted up and up to drive unsustainable infinite corporate growth that our entire economy is based on for some fuckin reason.

Anyways, that's that, I find having these big posts that break everything down to be helpful.

[reasonsforhope]

"Doctors have begun trialling the world’s first mRNA lung cancer vaccine in patients, as experts hailed its “groundbreaking” potential to save thousands of lives.

Lung cancer is the world’s leading cause of cancer death, accounting for about 1.8m deaths every year. Survival rates in those with advanced forms of the disease, where tumours have spread, are particularly poor.

Now experts are testing a new jab that instructs the body to hunt down and kill cancer cells – then prevents them ever coming back. Known as BNT116 and made by BioNTech, the vaccine is designed to treat non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the most common form of the disease.

The phase 1 clinical trial, the first human study of BNT116, has launched across 34 research sites in seven countries: the UK, US, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Spain and Turkey.

The UK has six sites, located in England and Wales, with the first UK patient to receive the vaccine having their initial dose on Tuesday [August 20, 2024].

Overall, about 130 patients – from early-stage before surgery or radiotherapy, to late-stage disease or recurrent cancer – will be enrolled to have the jab alongside immunotherapy. About 20 will be from the UK.

The jab uses messenger RNA (mRNA), similar to Covid-19 vaccines, and works by presenting the immune system with tumour markers from NSCLC to prime the body to fight cancer cells expressing these markers.

The aim is to strengthen a person’s immune response to cancer while leaving healthy cells untouched, unlike chemotherapy.

“We are now entering this very exciting new era of mRNA-based immunotherapy clinical trials to investigate the treatment of lung cancer,” said Prof Siow Ming Lee, a consultant medical oncologist at University College London hospitals NHS foundation trust (UCLH), which is leading the trial in the UK.

“It’s simple to deliver, and you can select specific antigens in the cancer cell, and then you target them. This technology is the next big phase of cancer treatment.”

Janusz Racz, 67, from London, was the first person to have the vaccine in the UK. He was diagnosed in May and soon after started chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

The scientist, who specialises in AI, said his profession inspired him to take part in the trial. “I am a scientist too, and I understand that the progress of science – especially in medicine – lies in people agreeing to be involved in such investigations,” he said...

“And also, I can be a part of the team that can provide proof of concept for this new methodology, and the faster it would be implemented across the world, more people will be saved.”

Racz received six consecutive injections five minutes apart over 30 minutes at the National Institute for Health Research UCLH Clinical Research Facility on Tuesday.

Each jab contained different RNA strands. He will get the vaccine every week for six consecutive weeks, and then every three weeks for 54 weeks.

Lee said: “We hope adding this additional treatment will stop the cancer coming back because a lot of time for lung cancer patients, even after surgery and radiation, it does come back.” ...

“We hope to go on to phase 2, phase 3, and then hope it becomes standard of care worldwide and saves lots of lung cancer patients.”

The Guardian revealed in May that thousands of patients in England were to be fast-tracked into groundbreaking trials of cancer vaccines in a revolutionary world-first NHS “matchmaking” scheme to save lives.

Under the scheme, patients who meet the eligibility criteria will gain access to clinical trials for the vaccines that experts say represent a new dawn in cancer treatment."

-via The Guardian, May 30, 2024

[copperbadge]

I have a lot of feelings about the use of AI in Everything These Days, but they're not particularly strong feelings, like I've got other shit going on. That said, when I use a desktop computer, every single file I use in Google Drive now has a constant irritating popup on the right-hand side asking me how Gemini AI Can Help Me. You can't, Gemini. You are in the way. I'm not even mad there's an AI there, I'm mad there's a constantly recurring popup taking up space and attention on my screen.

Here's the problem, however: even Gemini doesn't know how to disable Gemini. I did my own research and then finally, with a deep appreciation of the irony of this, I asked it how to turn it off. It said in any google drive file go to Help > Gemini and there will be an option to turn it off. Guess what isn't a menu item under Help?

I've had a look around at web tutorials for removing or blocking it, but they are either out of date or for the Gemini personal assistant, which I already don't have, and thus cannot turn off. Gemini for Drive is an integrated "service" within Google Drive, which I guess means I'm going to have to look into moving off Google Drive.

So, does anyone have references for a service as seamless and accessible as Google Drive? I need document, spreadsheet, slideshow, and storage, but I don't have any fancy widgets installed or anything. I do technically own Microsoft Office so I suppose I could use that but I've never found its cloud function to actually, uh, function. I could use OneNote for documents if things get desperate but OneNote is very limited overall. I want to be able to open and edit files, including on an Android phone, and I'd prefer if I didn't have to receive a security code in my text messages every time I log in. I also will likely need to be able to give non-users access, but I suppose I could kludge that in Drive as long as I only have to deal with it short-term.

Any thoughts, friends? If I find a good functional replacement I'm happy to post about it once I've tested it.

Also, saying this because I love you guys but if I don't spell it out I will get a bunch of comments about it: If you yourself have managed to banish Gemini from your Drive account including from popping up in individual files, I'm interested! Please share. If you have not actually implemented a solution yourself, rest assured, anything you find I have already tried and it does not work.

[maxyfi-ar-crm]

The Future of Accounts Receivable: Automation and Innovation

Do you know that the future of accounts receivable is looking bright, with automation and innovation leading the way?  

With the advent of new technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, the process of managing your accounts receivable is becoming more efficient and accurate. 

Now, you may have doubts about What is Automation? and How Automation can help you streamline your Accounts receivable? Let’s discuss that in this article. 

What is Automation? 

The term automation refers to using technology to perform tasks automatically using machines, software, or other tools without human intervention or control. 

An example of automation is a factory assembly line, where machines are used to assemble products automatically. Machines are programmed to perform specific tasks, such as welding or painting, and can work around the clock without the need for human intervention.  

Another example of automation is a self-checkout machine at a grocery store, which allows customers to scan and pay for their items without the assistance of a cashier. 

Overall, automation can help to increase efficiency, reduce the need for labor, and improve accuracy and consistency in tasks. However, it can also lead to job displacement, as some tasks may be automated and performed by machines instead of people. 

How Automation can help you streamline your Accounts Receivable Process? 

Automation can help streamline your accounts receivable process by allowing you to quickly and accurately  

process invoices and payment requests, 

track customer payment history, 

generate reports.  

This can help you to manage your cash flow and ensure that you are getting paid faster and more promptly. 

Here are some specific ways in which automation can help with accounts receivable: 

1. Invoice generation: 

Automated invoice generation is the process of creating and sending invoices to customers without the need for direct human intervention. Invoices are created in the accounts receivable process when a transaction is completed or a service is supplied to a customer with a credit base. 

In most cases, automated invoice creation involves the use of software or a system that creates and distributes invoices to customers based on predetermined workflows or communication templates. 

Using automated invoice generation in the accounts receivable process has various advantages. By removing the need for manual data input and invoice production, it can save time and decrease the chance of errors. By providing customers with clear, accurate, and timely invoices, automated invoice production can also help you optimize your invoicing and payment procedures. Furthermore, automated invoice generation can enhance cash flow by allowing you to issue invoices and receive payments from customers more rapidly. 

To deploy automated invoice generation, you're invoicing and payment processes must be configured with the right accounts receivable software or system. This may involve integrating the system with your accounting software or other business systems, as well as creating rules or triggers for invoice generation and delivery. Once configured, you can use the system to generate and send invoices to your customers depending on the predefined workflows and communication templates. 

2. Payment tracking: 

The use of technology and software to monitor and record customer payments is referred to as automated payment tracking in the accounts receivable process. This procedure assists you in successfully managing your accounts receivable, which is the money owed by your customers for products or services that are given but not yet paid for. 

Using automatic payment tracking in the accounts receivable process has several advantages. 

Accounts Receivable Automation enables you to record payments promptly and correctly as they are made, lowering the chance of errors and blunders. 

Automated payment tracking can assist you in identifying potential payment difficulties, such as late or missing payments so that they can be resolved as soon as possible. 

By giving real-time information about the state of your accounts receivable process, automated payment tracking may help you manage your cash flow more efficiently. 

Overall, automated payment tracking in the accounts receivable process can help you handle your financial transactions and financial management operations more efficiently and precisely than before. 

3. Report generation: 

In the accounts receivable process, automated report generation refers to the use of software or other technical tools to automatically generate reports linked to the payment of invoices and other debts owing to a business. 

These reports may provide information on 

the total amount of money owed, 

the payment status, 

any outstanding amounts. 

An aging report, which displays the period that has passed since an invoice was issued and the current state of payment, is a typical type of report generated in the accounts receivable process. 

Cash flow reports, which indicate the amount of money flowing into and going out of your business, and accounts receivable summaries, which offer an overview of the total amount of money owed to your business, are two other sorts of reports that can be generated. 

You can profit from automated report generation by making it easier to track and manage your accounts receivable. You can save time and resources by automating the process of creating these reports, and you can also make it simpler to discover any errors or errors in your accounts receivable with real-time and updated reports. 

Overall, automation can help you streamline your accounts receivable process and improve your cash flow by making it easier to manage invoices, track payments, and generate reports. 

Maxyfi – Accounts Receivable Software  

The future of accounts receivable is automation. Gone are the days of manual invoicing and payment tracking. With the proliferation of technology in the business world, automation is becoming increasingly necessary to streamline processes and improve efficiency. 

One tool that is leading the charge in accounts receivable automation is Maxyfi. This innovative software offers a range of features to help businesses manage their accounts receivable with ease. 

With Maxyfi, you can automate the invoicing process, sending out professional-looking invoices to your customers with just a few clicks. You can also set up automatic payment reminders to ensure that you receive timely payment for your goods or services. 

In addition to automating the invoicing and payment process, Maxyfi also offers a range of reporting and analysis tools to help you stay on top of your accounts receivable process. You can see at a glance which invoices are outstanding, and take action to follow up on any that are overdue. 

Maxyfi also integrates with a range of other business tools, including your accounting software, to ensure a seamless flow of information across your business. 

In short, if you want to streamline your accounts receivable process and improve the efficiency of your business, Maxyfi – Automated Accounts Receivable Software is the perfect solution. With its automation capabilities and wide range of features, it is a valuable tool for any business looking to take its accounts receivable to the next level. 

Conclusion 

To conclude, the future of accounts receivable seems promising, with automation and innovation leading the way. By adopting new technologies and approaches, you can  

improve the efficiency and accuracy of your accounts receivable process, 

reduce the number of overdue or unpaid invoices, 

improve your cash flow and bottom line.  

As these trends continue to evolve, we should expect to see even more amazing discoveries and innovations in the accounts receivable market. You can learn more about Accounts Receivable Automation by visiting Maxyfi Blogs. 

[geopsych]

A hill and a farm road, June 2017

Okay, so I've received lots of wonderful comments and messages—Thank you so much!— and I may answer some individually over the next week, but for now I've been talked into leaving my blog up and continuing to post. Too many people told me that the pictures I post made their days better or were meaningful to them for me to leave. One person said basically not to let bad drive out the good. And maybe it wouldn't be that bad for AI pictures to have hints of beautiful eastern Pennsylvania. But I've also made a Pillowfort account called Geophile. I'm not sure how Pillowfort works or how much I'll use it but I like their anti-AI stance. Find me there if you join. Further thoughts and comments are welcome. 🌿🌼🌳🌷🌈

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Google is (still) losing the spam wars to zombie news-brands

I'm touring my new, nationally bestselling novel The Bezzle! Catch me TONIGHT (May 3) in CALGARY, then TOMORROW (May 4) in VANCOUVER, then onto Tartu, Estonia, and beyond!

Even Google admits – grudgingly – that it is losing the spam wars. The explosive proliferation of botshit has supercharged the sleazy "search engine optimization" business, such that results to common queries are 50% Google ads to spam sites, and 50% links to spam sites that tricked Google into a high rank (without paying for an ad):

https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2024/03/core-update-spam-policies#site-reputation

It's nice that Google has finally stopped gaslighting the rest of us with claims that its search was still the same bedrock utility that so many of us relied upon as a key piece of internet infrastructure. This not only feels wildly wrong, it is empirically, provably false:

https://downloads.webis.de/publications/papers/bevendorff_2024a.pdf

Not only that, but we know why Google search sucks. Memos released as part of the DOJ's antitrust case against Google reveal that the company deliberately chose to worsen search quality to increase the number of queries you'd have to make (and the number of ads you'd have to see) to find a decent result:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/24/naming-names/#prabhakar-raghavan

Google's antitrust case turns on the idea that the company bought its way to dominance, spending the some of the billions it extracted from advertisers and publishers to buy the default position on every platform, so that no one ever tried another search engine, which meant that no one would invest in another search engine, either.

Google's tacit defense is that its monopoly billions only incidentally fund these kind of anticompetitive deals. Mostly, Google says, it uses its billions to build the greatest search engine, ad platform, mobile OS, etc that the public could dream of. Only a company as big as Google (says Google) can afford to fund the R&D and security to keep its platform useful for the rest of us.

That's the "monopolistic bargain" – let the monopolist become a dictator, and they will be a benevolent dictator. Shriven of "wasteful competition," the monopolist can split their profits with the public by funding public goods and the public interest.

Google has clearly reneged on that bargain. A company experiencing the dramatic security failures and declining quality should be pouring everything it has to righting the ship. Instead, Google repeatedly blew tens of billions of dollars on stock buybacks while doing mass layoffs:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/02/21/im-feeling-unlucky/#not-up-to-the-task

Those layoffs have now reached the company's "core" teams, even as its core services continue to decay:

https://qz.com/google-is-laying-off-hundreds-as-it-moves-core-jobs-abr-1851449528

(Google's antitrust trial was shrouded in secrecy, thanks to the judge's deference to the company's insistence on confidentiality. The case is moving along though, and warrants your continued attention:)

https://www.thebignewsletter.com/p/the-2-trillion-secret-trial-against

Google wormed its way into so many corners of our lives that its enshittification keeps erupting in odd places, like ordering takeout food:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/02/24/passive-income/#swiss-cheese-security

Back in February, Housefresh – a rigorous review site for home air purifiers – published a viral, damning account of how Google had allowed itself to be overrun by spammers who purport to provide reviews of air purifiers, but who do little to no testing and often employ AI chatbots to write automated garbage:

https://housefresh.com/david-vs-digital-goliaths/

In the months since, Housefresh's Gisele Navarro has continued to fight for the survival of her high-quality air purifier review site, and has received many tips from insiders at the spam-farms and Google, all of which she recounts in a followup essay:

https://housefresh.com/how-google-decimated-housefresh/

One of the worst offenders in spam wars is Dotdash Meredith, a content-farm that "publishes" multiple websites that recycle parts of each others' content in order to climb to the top search slots for lucrative product review spots, which can be monetized via affiliate links.

A Dotdash Meredith insider told Navarro that the company uses a tactic called "keyword swarming" to push high-quality independent sites off the top of Google and replace them with its own garbage reviews. When Dotdash Meredith finds an independent site that occupies the top results for a lucrative Google result, they "swarm a smaller site’s foothold on one or two articles by essentially publishing 10 articles [on the topic] and beefing up [Dotdash Meredith sites’] authority."

Dotdash Meredith has keyword swarmed a large number of topics. from air purifiers to slow cookers to posture correctors for back-pain:

https://housefresh.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/keyword-swarming-dotdash.jpg

The company isn't shy about this. Its own shareholder communications boast about it. What's more, it has competition.

Take Forbes, an actual news-site, which has a whole shadow-empire of web-pages reviewing products for puppies, dogs, kittens and cats, all of which link to high affiliate-fee-generating pet insurance products. These reviews are not good, but they are treasured by Google's algorithm, which views them as a part of Forbes's legitimate news-publishing operation and lets them draft on Forbes's authority.

This side-hustle for Forbes comes at a cost for the rest of us, though. The reviewers who actually put in the hard work to figure out which pet products are worth your money (and which ones are bad, defective or dangerous) are crowded off the front page of Google and eventually disappear, leaving behind nothing but semi-automated SEO garbage from Forbes:

https://twitter.com/ichbinGisele/status/1642481590524583936

There's a name for this: "site reputation abuse." That's when a site perverts its current – or past – practice of publishing high-quality materials to trick Google into giving the site a high ranking. Think of how Deadspin's private equity grifter owners turned it into a site full of casino affiliate spam:

https://www.404media.co/who-owns-deadspin-now-lineup-publishing/

The same thing happened to the venerable Money magazine:

https://moneygroup.pr/

Money is one of the many sites whose air purifier reviews Google gives preference to, despite the fact that they do no testing. According to Google, Money is also a reliable source of information on reprogramming your garage-door opener, buying a paint-sprayer, etc:

https://money.com/best-paint-sprayer/

All of this is made ten million times worse by AI, which can spray out superficially plausible botshit in superhuman quantities, letting spammers produce thousands of variations on their shitty reviews, flooding the zone with bullshit in classic Steve Bannon style:

https://escapecollective.com/commerce-content-is-breaking-product-reviews/

As Gizmodo, Sports Illustrated and USA Today have learned the hard way, AI can't write factual news pieces. But it can pump out bullshit written for the express purpose of drafting on the good work human journalists have done and tricking Google – the search engine 90% of us rely on – into upranking bullshit at the expense of high-quality information.

A variety of AI service bureaux have popped up to provide AI botshit as a service to news brands. While Navarro doesn't say so, I'm willing to bet that for news bosses, outsourcing your botshit scams to a third party is considered an excellent way of avoiding your journalists' wrath. The biggest botshit-as-a-service company is ASR Group (which also uses the alias Advon Commerce).

Advon claims that its botshit is, in fact, written by humans. But Advon's employees' Linkedin profiles tell a different story, boasting of their mastery of AI tools in the industrial-scale production of botshit:

https://housefresh.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Advon-AI-LinkedIn.jpg

Now, none of this is particularly sophisticated. It doesn't take much discernment to spot when a site is engaged in "site reputation abuse." Presumably, the 12,000 googlers the company fired last year could have been employed to check the top review keyword results manually every couple of days and permaban any site caught cheating this way.

Instead, Google is has announced a change in policy: starting May 5, the company will downrank any site caught engaged in site reputation abuse. However, the company takes a very narrow view of site reputation abuse, limiting punishments to sites that employ third parties to generate or uprank their botshit. Companies that produce their botshit in-house are seemingly not covered by this policy.

As Navarro writes, some sites – like Forbes – have prepared for May 5 by blocking their botshit sections from Google's crawler. This can't be their permanent strategy, though – either they'll have to kill the section or bring it in-house to comply with Google's rules. Bringing things in house isn't that hard: US News and World Report is advertising for an SEO editor who will publish 70-80 posts per month, doubtless each one a masterpiece of high-quality, carefully researched material of great value to Google's users:

https://twitter.com/dannyashton/status/1777408051357585425

As Navarro points out, Google is palpably reluctant to target the largest, best-funded spammers. Its March 2024 update kicked many garbage AI sites out of the index – but only small bottom-feeders, not large, once-respected publications that have been colonized by private equity spam-farmers.

All of this comes at a price, and it's only incidentally paid by legitimate sites like Housefresh. The real price is borne by all of us, who are funneled by the 90%-market-share search engine into "review" sites that push low quality, high-price products. Housefresh's top budget air purifier costs $79. That's hundreds of dollars cheaper than the "budget" pick at other sites, who largely perform no original research.

Google search has a problem. AI botshit is dominating Google's search results, and it's not just in product reviews. Searches for infrastructure code samples are dominated by botshit code generated by Pulumi AI, whose chatbot hallucinates nonexistence AWS features:

https://www.theregister.com/2024/05/01/pulumi_ai_pollution_of_search/

This is hugely consequential: when these "hallucinations" slip through into production code, they create huge vulnerabilities for widespread malicious exploitation:

https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/28/ai_bots_hallucinate_software_packages/

We've put all our eggs in Google's basket, and Google's dropped the basket – but it doesn't matter because they can spend $20b/year bribing Apple to make sure no one ever tries a rival search engine on Ios or Safari:

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/google-payments-apple-reached-20-220947331.html

Google's response – laying off core developers, outsourcing to low-waged territories with weak labor protections and spending billions on stock buybacks – presents a picture of a company that is too big to care:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/04/teach-me-how-to-shruggie/#kagi

Google promised us a quid-pro-quo: let them be the single, authoritative portal ("organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful"), and they will earn that spot by being the best search there is:

https://www.ft.com/content/b9eb3180-2a6e-41eb-91fe-2ab5942d4150

But – like the spammers at the top of its search result pages – Google didn't earn its spot at the center of our digital lives.

It cheated.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/03/keyword-swarming/#site-reputation-abuse

Image: freezelight (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Spam_wall_-_Flickr_-_freezelight.jpg

CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en

[kapittx]

Accounts Receivable and Cash Flow Challenges in Technology and IT Services Companies

The technology and IT services industry is a dynamic and rapidly evolving sector that encompasses a wide range of services and products aimed at managing and optimizing information and business processes.

The Technology and IT Services industry is driven by several key factors that are shaping its growth and evolution. While AI is going to bring in a paradigm shift in the industry and its offering, some of the primary drivers of this industry are Digital Transformation, Cloud Computing, Big Data and Analytics, Internet of Things, Technology innovations like 5G, Blockchain, SaaS etc.

Technology and IT Industry Segments : 

1. Software Companies

Independent Software Vendors (ISVs): These companies develop and sell custom made software solutions that can be used by different  industries.

Software as a Service (SaaS): These companies provide software applications over the internet and have high dependence on subscription management.

2. IT Services Companies

System Integrators or Value Added Resellers: These firms are solution providers and play the role of an aggregator by incorporating various hardware and software offerings from OEMs  as part of their solution.

Managed Service Providers (MSPs): These companies manage a customer’s IT infrastructure and end-user systems on a proactive basis.

IT Consulting Services: These firms offer expert advice to help organizations assess and implement advanced IT solutions.

3. Cloud Solutions Providers

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): These companies provide virtualized computing resources over the internet.

Platform as a Service (PaaS): For application development, hardware and software tools over the internet are the primary focus of PaaS providers

4. Tech Product Companies

Hardware Manufacturers: These companies produce physical devices such as computers, smartphones, and networking equipment.

Semiconductor Companies: These firms design and manufacture semiconductor chips used in electronic devices.

5. Cybersecurity Providers

These companies offer products and services to protect systems, networks, and data from cyber attacks.

6. Data Center Providers

These companies offer facilities and services for housing and managing data storage systems.

7. Telecommunication Companies

These firms provide communication services such as internet, phone, and television.

8. E-commerce Companies

These companies operate online platforms for buying and selling goods and services.

9. Tech Infrastructure Companies

These companies provide the systems and facilities that enable web-based communications and commerce.

10. Tech Service Companies

These companies offer experienced and technical personnel to help businesses leverage technology.

Irrespective of the segment you operate, in the dynamic landscape of Technology and IT services sector, accounts receivable management and ensuring smooth cash flow are critical for sustaining growth and operational efficiency. However, these companies often face significant challenges that can impede their financial health. This blog post delves into the primary reasons behind accounts receivable challenges and offers insights into how they can be addressed to reduce DSO and increase cash flow.

1. High Days Sales Outstanding (DSO)

One of the most pressing issues is the high Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), which measures the average number of days it takes for a company to collect payment after a sale. A high DSO means the time taken by customers to pay the invoices is longer and exceeding the credit perion offered.  This can severely impact cash flow and several factors contribute to this:

Complex Billing Cycles: Technology and IT services often involve complex billing structures, including milestone-based payments, subscription management models, and time-and-materials contracts. These complexities can contribute to the delays in invoicing and collections.

Client Negotiations: Clients, especially large enterprises, may negotiate extended payment terms, further elongating the DSO.

2. Inefficient Accounts Receivable Processes

Inefficient accounts receivable processes can lead to delays and errors in invoicing and payment collection. Common inefficiencies include:

Manual Processes: Reliance on manual processes for invoicing and payment tracking can result in errors and delays. 

Lack of Automation: Without automation, accounts receivable teams spend excessive time on routine tasks, leaving less time for strategic activities like follow-ups and dispute resolution.

3. Disorganized Ledger Management

Disorganized ledger management can cause significant issues in tracking and reconciling payments. This disorganization can stem from:

Inconsistent Record-Keeping: Inconsistent or inaccurate record-keeping can lead to discrepancies between the amounts billed and the amounts received.

Poor Communication: Lack of communication between departments can result in incomplete or incorrect information being recorded in the ledger.

4. Customer Disputes and Payment Delays

Customer disputes over invoices can lead to payment delays and strained relationships. Common causes of disputes include:

Billing Errors: Errors in invoices, such as incorrect amounts or missing details, can contribute to payment delays and disputes.

Service Issues: Disputes may also arise from perceived issues with the services provided, leading customers to withhold payment until the issues are resolved.

5. Economic Uncertainty

Economic uncertainty can exacerbate AR and cash flow challenges. Factors contributing to this include:

Market Volatility: Economic downturns or market volatility can lead to reduced spending by clients, resulting in delayed or missed payments.

Budget Constraints: Clients facing their own financial challenges may delay payments to manage their cash flow, impacting the AR of technology and IT services companies.

6. Regulatory Compliance

Compliance with various regulations can add complexity to the AR process. For example:

Data Privacy Regulations: Ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations like GDPR and CCPA can require additional resources and processes, potentially slowing down AR activities.

Financial Reporting Standards: Adhering to financial reporting standards can necessitate detailed documentation and verification, adding to the administrative burden.

7. Supply Chain Disruptions

Supply chain disruptions can impact the delivery of products and services, leading to delays in invoicing and payment collection. These disruptions can be caused by:

Geopolitical Tensions: Geopolitical tensions can disrupt supply chains, leading to delays in project completion and invoicing.

Raw Material Shortages: Shortages of essential raw materials can delay production and delivery, impacting the timing of invoicing and payment collection.

8. Technological Challenges

While technology is a key enabler for IT services companies, it can also pose challenges:

Integration Issues: Integrating new technologies with existing systems can be complex and time-consuming, potentially leading to delays in AR processes.

Cybersecurity Threats: Cybersecurity threats can disrupt operations and lead to delays in invoicing and payment collection.

Addressing the Challenges

1. Implement AI Powered Accounts Receivable Automation

Automating accounts receivable processes can significantly improve efficiency and accuracy. Automation tools can handle routine tasks like invoicing, payment tracking, and reminders, freeing up AR teams to focus on strategic activities. Automation can also reduce errors and speed up the payment collection process.

2. Enhance Communication and Collaboration

Improving communication and collaboration between departments can help ensure accurate and consistent record-keeping. Regular meetings and updates can help identify and resolve issues quickly, reducing the risk of disputes and delays.

3. Adopt Advanced Analytics

Leveraging advanced analytics can provide valuable insights into payment behaviors, customer creditworthiness, and collection effectiveness. Predictive analytics can help forecast cash inflows and identify high-risk accounts, enabling proactive management of AR.

4. Strengthen Customer Relationships

Building strong relationships with customers can help reduce disputes and payment delays. Regular communication and prompt resolution of issues can enhance customer satisfaction and encourage timely payments.

5. Optimize Billing Processes

Streamlining billing processes can help reduce errors and delays. This can include adopting standardized billing templates, conducting regular audits, and ensuring timely and accurate invoicing.

6. Monitor Economic Trends

Keeping a close eye on economic trends can help companies anticipate and prepare for potential challenges. This can include diversifying the customer base, offering flexible payment terms, and maintaining a healthy cash reserve.

7. Invest in Technology

Investing in technology can help address integration and cybersecurity challenges. This can include adopting cloud-based solutions, implementing robust cybersecurity measures, and ensuring seamless integration of new technologies with existing systems.

Conclusion

Accounts receivable and cash flow challenges are significant hurdles for technology and IT services companies. However, by adopting strategic measures such as AI powered accounts receivable automation, advanced analytics, and improved communication, these companies can overcome these challenges and ensure sustained growth and financial stability. At Kapittx, we are committed to helping businesses streamline their AR processes and optimize cash flow through innovative AI-powered accounts receivable solutions. By addressing these challenges head-on, companies can focus on what they do best – delivering cutting-edge technology and IT services to their clients.

[emagia]

AI-Powered Intelligent Document Processing for Global Finance and Treasury

We are glad to announce Emagia’s Gia Docs AI-powered Intelligent Document Processing solution is recognized in the “10 Most Promising Document Management System Providers 2022” by CIOReview Magazine. Gia Docs AI, a self-learning cognitive document reading digital assistant solution, has the capability to eliminate manual data extraction from financial documents. Gia Docs AI provides a simple, easy and cost-effective solution to process hundreds of complex financial documents in minutes and with confidence.

[sendou-shiki]

⚠️Please share !!

⚠️I need your help !!

▼spoof art thief▼

［　https://www.tumblr.com/shiki-2p　］

Not content with X, the spoof art thief also stole art from tumbler!

Moreover, the text is erased in a crude and shoddy hand. Look at this unnatural part.

If it is the person in question, there is no need for such a small trick.

They are insidious thieves who block and run away as soon as they become inconvenient. Everyone, please continue to ignore any suspicious messages you receive from this thief.

I have already reported it several times, but the management does not seem to intend to move.

Therefore, we need your help! Apparently, third parties can also report the incident by using this method, which I have posted on the X.

Illegal use and content → impersonation

If you can't report it, just block it. Please tell your friends who are liking and reblogging!

To protect my friends around me. Please share this blog, related blogs, and lots of my art!

［original art］

In the thumbnail, the ID of the original artist was incorrect.

The correct ID is @sendou-shiki

［Related Blogs］

Sorry to interrupt your hashtag.

Thanks for reading this far!

千堂しき

[maaarine]

In Spain, dozens of girls are reporting AI-generated nude photos of them being circulated at school: ‘My heart skipped a beat’ (Manuel Viejo, El País, Sep 18 2023)

"Back to school. First day of class.

Isabel, 14 years old, went last Tuesday to her high school in Almendralejo (Extremadura, Spain), a municipality with almost 30,000 residents where practically everyone knows each other.

That morning, she entered the schoolyard to find a rumor spreading from group to group.

It was all everyone was talking about: there were photos of naked female classmates being passed around everyone’s phones.

Isabel (her name has been changed at the request of her mother) went out to recess with her friends. They were in shock.

Suddenly, a boy approached her and said: “I saw a naked photo of you.”

The young girl was afraid. After school, she returned home, and the first thing she did was tell her mother.

“Mom, they say there’s a naked photo of me going around. That they did it with an artificial intelligence app. I’m scared. Some girls have also received it.”

Sara, her 44-year-old mother, immediately contacted the mother of her daughter’s best friend, who had also just told her family about the situation.

After talking, the mothers started making calls; by then, there were more than 20 girls affected.

That is when a mother decided to create a WhatsApp group to better coordinate with everyone. That Monday, there were already 27 people in the group.

Almendralejo has five middle schools and, in at least four of them, AI-generated images of naked students have been spread. (…)

She found out about the case last Wednesday night around 10:00 p.m., when the mother of one of her daughter’s friends called her to tell her: “I saw a naked photo of your daughter. It’s a montage.”

Gómez suffered an anxiety attack. Later, she had a conversation with her daughter: “Do you know anything about a naked photo?”

The girl did not hesitate. She said yes, and showed her mother a recent Instagram conversation she had with a boy.

In it, he asks her to give him “some money.” When she refused, the boy immediately sent her a naked photo of herself.

All she could do was block the contact. The police believe that there is a false profile behind this account."

[joeys-babe]

Joey B Blurbs: Dinosaur

————————————————————————-

Summary: You make the mistake of helping Joe make a TikTok account.

Warnings: None, pure silliness

Pairing: Joe Burrow x reader

Imagine Universe: Into The Mystic

————————————————————————-

February 15, 2024

Out of nowhere, Joe plopped down next to me on the couch and put his phone on my lap.

“Can I help you?” - you

“Yes, actually!” - Joe pointed to his phone

I looked down at his phone to see that it was the TikTok log-in or sign-up page that pops up when you first download the app.

“What?” - you

“Can you help me make an account? My dinosaur ass can't figure it out, but I wanna follow you and see the videos you post. Ja’Marr was talking about the videos you posted of me and you for Valentine’s yesterday, but I had no idea what he was talking about. I wanna be able to see your posts.” - Joe

“Why? So you can approve of them?” - you

“No, nothing like that! I like watching the videos you make of us, and I think they're cute. Plus, I rarely ever get to see the finished prank videos. Please help me?” - Joe

I thought his reasoning was adorable, so I happily helped him.

“Do you want it to be an official account or incognito?” - you

“Incognito.” - Joe

Nodding, I handed him his phone so he could type a username in.

I was absentmindedly staring off when I heard Joe giggle.

“What?” - you smiled

He handed me his phone, and I playfully rolled my eyes at the username he typed out.

Simp4Y/N_B

“You're a dork.” - you laughed

“I mean, I am making the account to watch your videos, so it's kinda fitting.” - Joe grinned

After getting the rest of the account setup process completed, Joe made me type my username in the search so he could follow me.

“Wanna follow anyone else? The team you play for, maybe?” - you

“Nope. This is all I wanted.” - Joe

——

You had no idea what a mistake that would be, and you were dealing with the consequences.

It wasn't even the next day yet, and Joe had blown your phone up, mass-liking every video you've ever posted.

Then he found the AI Spongebob singing videos…

“Joseph Lee, send me one more TikTok, and I'm going to block you.” - you

“Watch the last one I sent!” - Joe

“No!” - you

“It's Patrick singing Billie Jean!” - Joe

We were lying in bed, or at least I was, but my phone continuously vibrated on the nightstand, and Joe laughing kept me from sleeping.

“Go to sleep.” - you

Joe rolled over and laid his head on my shoulder, his hand propping up his phone on my chest to show me the video.

Like he hadn't already watched it ten times, Joe couldn't stop laughing.

“I'm gonna shove you off of this bed.” - you

——

Just when I thought things couldn't get worse, they did. They damn did.

Joe found Jett and Campbell. (IYKYK)

Now he randomly calls me Pookie as a joke, but with way too serious of an expression for my liking.

He'd gone to pick up my online pickup order from the store for me, and when Joe called me to tell me he had received my order, he greeted me in a way that made me want to hang up.

“Hey, baby.” - you

“Hey, Pookie. I got your order and am almost home.” - Joe

A few seconds of silence went by till I spoke up.

“Call me that again and I'll file for divorce.” - you

“You wouldn't do that, you love me too much... right?” - Joe

“I would never even think of it. I was just kidding, Joey.” - you

“Good because I can't live without you.” - Joe

“Can't live without you either… I love you more than anything.” - you

A few seconds of silence went by before Joe spoke up.

“Love you too… Pookie.” - Joe

“Bye.” - you hung up

——

After threatening divorce, Joe toned it down with the “Pookie” shit, but then he found trends that guys were doing on their girls.

We were in bed one night, cuddling and watching a movie, when out of nowhere, I heard an unmistakable edit audio playing. I looked over at Joe’s phone only to see my face and an annoyed expression on Joe’s.

Joe put his phone down on his chest and scooted away from me.

“Joe…” - you

“Nope, it's okay. Comforting knowing that my wife can recognize songs that are in the background of videos of other men.” - Joe

“You're being silly. I'm huge right now because I'm pregnant with your kid.” - you

“You're not huge… but that still doesn't make up for the fact that you knew that sound.” - Joe

I rolled over onto my side and curled up against Joe. He begrudgingly reached out and ran his fingertips over my bump that was pressing against his side.

“You're crazy if you think I don't have an edit of you saved with the same song in the background.” - you grinned

Joe looked away, suddenly feeling bashful as his cheeks flushed pink, and I lightly scratched his bare arm with my nails.

“You're playin’.” - Joe

“No, I'm not!” - you

I grabbed my phone out and pulled TikTok up, immediately finding my collection titled “Hubby ❤️🤭”, and scrolled till I found the video I wanted.

“Woah, you weren’t joking.” - Joe

“Don't you look hot as fuck?” - you

“I'm just drinking water on the sidelines…” - Joe

“Exactly!” - you

————————————————————————-

Authors note: idk what to say 💀

Request in this fic;

Hope you enjoyed! 💕

[runicmagitek]

Fellow fic writers, please watch out for Dulcie Ruiz (@/perfectlygloriousllama on Tumblr, @/_dulcerrr_ on Twitter, and (currently lol) @/dulcerelapsed on AO3), who is sending messages to people and offering to create fanart.

They are not an artist. They are shitting out AI-generated trash.

I have already received comments on random fics from this person and reported them to AO3. Looks like the old account was removed and they unfortunately made a new one, because my dear friend @wingsyouburn received a similar comment literally today.

Another friend received a message from them on Twitter and I realized this person was following (and is now blocked lol).

And this same asshole took advantage of my friend, who was delighted to hear someone wanted to make art for her based on her fics, and realized it looked fuck all like the character she requested.

I don't appreciate some AI hack taking advantage of my friends and I also don't appreciate this fuckwad trying to weasel into fandom spaces with literally no effort. I highly recommend reporting any comments from this user on AO3 and also anyone with similar messages. I also recommend blocking anyone who solicits to make something for you while being incredibly vague and, you know, suspicious as fuck. Please spread the word and fuck AI "art" with a cactus.