Venture Funding & Payments: Velocity extended its Series A to $48M at a $200M valuation, with Visa, Circle and Ripple backing a stablecoin payments infrastructure push. AI for Social Impact: Bill Gates pledged at least $1B over two years to widen access to AI in education, healthcare and agriculture, warning it could either equalize opportunity or deepen inequality. SME-Friendly Policy & Regulation: The UK is moving toward binding AI rules as MPs call for a single regulator with enforcement powers, while OpenAI says it will back the approach for frontier AI. Health Tech for Small Providers: FemPulse will present new clinical data on its non-invasive vaginal neuromodulation Ring at the ICS meeting in Maastricht on Oct. 9. Defense & Dual-Use Capital: Canada’s BDC will deploy $1B under its Defence Platform, including $500M for defence/dual-use tech funds and a $200M boost to StrongNorth. Energy Innovation: The UAE launched an energy-tech accelerator with Schneider Electric to mentor startups and connect them to customers and networks. Business Growth via Tech: Patterson Veterinary launched Atlas, an AI assistant inside its NaVetor software to turn practice data into recommendations and automate daily workflows. Expansion & Franchising: Friendly Fire opened new locations in Croatia, Austria and Cyprus, while Empower Brands scored four franchise brands on the Inc. 5000 list. Real Estate & Reconciliation: Indigenous groups are expanding West Coast commercial real estate, including a major Winnipeg redevelopment adding affordable housing and space for Indigenous entrepreneurs.