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Bing Ventures Supports TON Ecosystem

Bing Ventures Limited

Bing Ventures, a pioneering venture capital firm backing early-stage projects and outstanding fund managers in Web3 and crypto, has announced comprehensive support for The Open Network (TON) ecosystem across its capabilities and network, including investment, resource sharing, project advisories, and more. TON is a Layer 1 network originally designed by Telegram and continued by the open-source community. With its integration with Telegram, one of the world’s leading messengers, TON offers speed, scalability, unique features, and versatility for a wide range of applications. Bruce Lan, General Partner of Bing Ventures, said that the team believed that TON would lead the charge in achieving mass adoption for Web3. As part of the initiative, Bing Ventures will invest in innovative teams and projects that leverage TON’s unique advantages to unite the Web2 and Web3 worlds and provide fundraising assistance, including referrals to potential investors, to projects coming out of TON’s acceleration programs. Leveraging its strong research and data analytics capabilities, the firm will also contribute to TON accelerators in terms of research-based mentorships, training, and project advisories. Additionally, embodying Bing’s vision of fostering disruption and innovation for greater adoption, Bing Ventures will also curate meaningful and educational events worldwide to inform, inspire, and support founders and entrepreneurs in TON ecosystem and the broader crypto world. The initiative will also include BingX, one of the leading centralized crypto exchanges, supporting TON ecosystem projects through token listing, liquidity provision, custom integration, and awareness campaigns to enhance their accessibility. Bing Ventures is the latest firm that joins a list of institutional investors and organizations, including Animoca Brands and Pantera Capital, to voice support for the blockchain. As of the press release, TON’s Total Value Locked surpassed $500 million, representing a growth rate of over 2,000% from the $22.9 million recorded in March 2024. About Bing Ventures: Bing Ventures is a pioneering venture capital and research firm affiliated with crypto exchange BingX. Founded in 2021, it aims to support transformative blockchain and crypto ventures and outstanding fund managers driving the next wave of innovations. With a sector-agnostic, value-investing approach, it has a portfolio of more than 50 companies spanning infrastructure, DeFi, GameFi, Web3, and more, including, among others, Avail, Berachain, Manta Network, Pixelmon, Unisat, and Solv Protocol. Bing Ventures is also a Limited Partner (LP) of several leading crypto funds, including those managed by Hack VC, Bankless Ventures, Maven 11 Capital, IOSG Ventures, and Figment Capital. For more information, visit Bing Ventures' Official Website | LinkedIn | Twitter. Contact Details Bing Ventures Jenny Liu +86 159 2140 1005 jenny@bing-ventures.com Company Website https://www.bing-ventures.com/

June 18, 2024 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Hoffman Financial Group Joins Forces with AmeriLife’s Brookstone Capital Management

AmeriLife

Brookstone Capital Management (“Brookstone”), a leading, SEC-Registered Investment Advisory (RIA) firm and affiliate of AmeriLife Group, LLC (“AmeriLife”), announced today that it has partnered with Hoffman Financial Group, a nationally recognized financial planning firm based in Atlanta. Per the agreement, terms of the deal were not disclosed. “We’re excited to partner with the Hoffman team. This collaboration will only strengthen both organizations and continue to provide best-in-class solutions for them and all the clients they serve,” said Dean Zayed, CEO of Brookstone Capital Management. “Additionally, this partnership underscores Brookstone’s ongoing investment and commitment to our advisors and our goal to be the leader at the intersection of insurance and securities.” “Hoffman Financial Group is a premier financial services firm – Chris and his team have created something special that we are excited to be a part of,” added Darryl Ronconi, president of Brookstone Capital Management. “With a broader relationship with Brookstone and AmeriLife, our goal is to help continue to accelerate their significant growth by providing them with even more resources and support.” Founded in 2011, Hoffman Financial Group is a comprehensive financial and retirement planning firm with one goal in mind: to be the go-to financial advisor for individuals wanting to retire. The firm offers a completely hands-on approach to retirement planning and a full suite of wealth management offerings, including investment management, 401(k) and IRA rollovers, tax planning, and more through its eight investment advisor representatives. Hoffman Financial Group has applied this high-touch approach to unique offerings such as Her Wealth Her Way ®, designed specifically to help women retire with comfort, confidence, and class. Hoffman Financial Group is also incredibly active in the media, bringing its expertise on money management to viewers of The Financial Edge on Atlanta’s CBS 46 and ABC’s Good Morning America Weekend every Sunday morning, and to listeners of Money Unleashed on Atlanta’s 95.5 WSB every Sunday afternoon. Additionally, the firm is an Official Partner of the University of Georgia Bulldogs ® and, most recently, was named Official Financial Advisor of former Bulldog and NFL player Brock Bowers, partnerships that have cemented Hoffman Financial Group as a leading financial services company alongside two distinguished names in collegiate sports. “I couldn’t be more excited to partner and expand our relationship with Brookstone,” said Chris Hoffman, founder of Hoffman Financial Group. “They are the best partner to take us to the next level. The entire team is thrilled about the opportunity of aligning Hoffman Financial Group with the extensive resources and talent that they offer.” Now, as part of the AmeriLife family of companies, Hoffman Financial Group will enjoy broad access to best-in-class platforms, tools, resources, and an expansive product portfolio to move quickly into new markets, accelerate production, and drive the firm’s growth for years to come. “Chris Hoffman has built a powerhouse brand and business that is reshaping retirement planning for America’s retirees,” said Mike Vietri, Chief Distribution Officer for AmeriLife Wealth Group. “We’re incredibly excited for Hoffman Financial Group to join forces with Brookstone as part of AmeriLife Wealth Group, and look forward to integrating their unique approach, expertise, and leadership into our fast-growing distribution platform.” ### About Hoffman Financial Group Hoffman Financial Group is a leading financial planning firm based in Atlanta, Ga. With a personalized approach coupled with highest standards of financial advisory services, the firm specializes in principal protection, income planning, wealth accumulation, legacy planning, and more. For more information, visit HoffmanCorporation.com. About Brookstone Capital Management Founded in 2006, Brookstone Capital Management (BCM) is an SEC-Registered Investment Advisory firm with over $9.5B in Assets Under Management (AUM), providing fee-based investment management services through its network of more than 750 financial advisors and firms. Brookstone is an innovator and industry leader and empowers independent financial advisors of all sizes to scale their business by providing access to a Turnkey Asset Management Platform (TAMP) along with a dedicated team to support every aspect of an advisor’s practice. Visit BrookstoneCM.com for more information. About AmeriLife AmeriLife’s strength is its mission: to provide insurance and retirement solutions to help people live longer, healthier lives. In doing so, AmeriLife has become recognized as a leader in developing, marketing, and distributing life and health insurance, annuities and retirement planning solutions to enhance the lives of pre-retirees and retirees across the United States. For more than 50 years, AmeriLife has partnered with top insurance carriers to provide value and quality to customers served through a distribution network of over 300,000 insurance agents and advisors and 120 marketing organizations and insurance agency locations nationwide. For more information, visit AmeriLife.com, and follow AmeriLife on Facebook and LinkedIn. Contact Details Media Jeff Maldonado media@amerilife.com Partnership Inquiries Patrick Nichols corporatedevelopment@amerilife.com Company Website https://amerilife.com/

June 17, 2024 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Teads Unveils Next Generation Contextual and Identity Graph Built for the Premium Open Internet and CTV

Teads

Teads, the global media platform, today released the Teads Omnichannel Graph (OG), a proprietary tool extending contextual and audience-targeting capabilities into the CTV environment. Teads OG is built on the company’s understanding of what consumers read in editorial web environments and what consumers watch on connected TV. Using Teads OG, advertisers can plan, activate and measure cross-screen video campaigns to drive efficient reach on target, incrementality to linear TV and contextually aligned campaigns. Key capabilities of Teads OG include: Global Household & User-level Graph: Curated household and user graph enabling precision targeting and optimization across screens. The graph is based on a precise sample composed of over 50 Million CTV devices and over 100 Million users in 25 countries. Incremental Reach Planning & Measurement: Enabling TV buyers to efficiently extend their audience reach across screens. In addition to Teads’ content consumption data, Teads OG utilizes Automatic Content Recognition (ACR) data to target unexposed audiences. Granular CTV Contextual Signals: Deep contextual targeting capabilities based on standardized and enriched show-level information. Advanced contextual taxonomy is symmetrical to the Teads web contextual taxonomy for seamless omnichannel activation. Teads has a deep history of building unique capabilities to analyze contextual content consumption data on the open internet through direct integrations with premium publishers. Combining this contextual data with device and consumer behavior signals has served as a high-fidelity proxy for audience targeting through AI-based inference. These capabilities enable advertisers to activate media and reach audiences seamlessly with or without user identification with deep contextual targeting within editorial environments. “With Teads OG, we’re extending our knowledge of what people read into what content they watch and making that data actionable at scale across screens to drive better results,” said Jeremy Arditi, co-CEO of Teads. Teads expanded into omnichannel more than two years ago and has been delivering superior results for brands since launch. Since the beginning of 2024, Teads has delivered over 50 campaigns targeting and measuring incremental reach. In a campaign with Yokohama, Teads delivered brand lift using incremental reach planning and measurement. By leveraging cookieless strategies for the online video portion of the campaign and optimizing ad performance across multiple screens, the campaign achieved significant results, including a 27% cost savings, a 5.5-point increase in brand familiarity, and a 7-point lift in perception. "We wanted to create a stronger audience-centric approach for our campaign by expanding our understanding of individual performance impact. By utilizing Teads' innovative solutions, we unlocked exceptional outcomes that far exceeded our initial expectations," said Riley Mackey of Yokohama’s Agency, Charts + Darts. About Teads Teads operates a leading, cloud-based, omnichannel platform that enables programmatic digital advertising across a global ecosystem of quality digital media. As an end-to-end solution, Teads’ modular platform allows partners to leverage buy-side, sell-side, creative, data and AI optimization technologies. For advertisers and their agencies, Teads offers a single access point to buy the inventory of many of the world’s best publishers and content providers. Through exclusive global media partnerships, Teads enables advertisers and agencies to reach billions of unique monthly users in brand safe, responsible advertising environments, while improving the effectiveness and efficiency of digital ad transactions. Teads partners with the leading marketers, agencies and publishers through a team of 1,200+ people in 50 offices across more than 30 countries. Contact Details Kite Hill PR for Teads Alexandra Morrison teads@kitehillpr.com Company Website https://www.teads.com/

June 14, 2024 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

News Direct Digest of Content Published on AffiliateAvenue June 1 -12

News Direct

The following content was published on AffiliateAvenue from June 1 – 12: Here's how much Americans have saved up in their retirement accounts by age — are you ahead or way behind? (Moneywise) Can You Guess How many Americans Successfully Retire with $1 Million Saved? The Percentage May Shock You. (Benzinga) The Best Bird Houses of 2024 (Amobeez) The Best Face Moisturizer with SPF of 2024 (Amobeez) The Best Lion's Mane Mushrooms of 2024 (Amobeez) 7 Best Plug-in Air Fresheners of 2024 (Amobeez) Best Hydration Mist Face Sprays of 2024 (Amobeez) Best Mini Blenders of 2024 (Amobeez) About Affiliate Avenue Affiliate Avenue is the newswire industry’s first and only affiliate marketing product that leverages the significant domain authority and traffic volume enjoyed by newsdirect.com to enable content marketing professionals and agencies to monetize content from in-demand market segments and categories. About News Direct News Direct is a technology-driven content distribution and amplification platform for PR, IR, corporate communications and marketing professionals. Our automated platform delivers a completely reimagined, modernized user experience for newswire users that has reshaped the industry landscape. Additionally, the company has expanded its offerings to include an array of technology-enhanced message amplification tools ranging from sponsored content to podcasting products, all from a single online destination. Contact Details News Direct Sales at News Direct +1 917-698-4131 sales@newsdirect.com Company Website http://www.newsdirect.com

June 13, 2024 01:45 PM Eastern Daylight Time

Roberts & Ryan Inc. expands its internship program in partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Harlem.

Roberts & Ryan, Inc.

Roberts & Ryan, Inc., America’s first Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned (SDVO) broker-dealer, announced the expansion of its summer internship program, which recently accepted 13 candidates from a diverse pool of students from a variety of schools and backgrounds. The expansion reflects the company’s commitment to supporting veterans and underprivileged youth. “At Roberts & Ryan, we believe that supporting future generations of financial professionals is important to the long-term success of our industry. This year’s internship class was bolstered by our relationship with the Boys & Girls Club of Harlem, who recommended two exceptional candidates, creating more opportunities for diverse talent in the financial services industry,” said Brian Rathjen, President of Roberts & Ryan. Seven interns completed Roberts & Ryan's internship program in 2023, a number the firm nearly doubled in 2024 due to increased student demand. Roberts & Ryan runs two internship cohorts per year to provide students from a variety of backgrounds with real-world experience in the financial services industry. Interns collaborate with experienced professionals on projects that demonstrate a range of services provided by Roberts & Ryan, from secondary equity and fixed income trading to debt and equity capital markets, business development, compliance, and marketing. Roberts & Ryan was recently approved for membership by the New York Stock Exchange, and summer interns have access to its iconic trading floor. "Breaking into the financial services industry can be a challenge, as most entry-level positions require either previous work experience or a professional connection with someone in the industry. We believe that our program provides our interns with both,” said Edward D’Alessandro, Chief Executive Officer of Roberts & Ryan. Roberts & Ryan is committed to increasing access to opportunities in the financial sector by finding high-quality candidates for their internship program. Through the program, interns gain valuable experience, make important connections, and build a talent stack for a successful career in finance. For current undergraduate and graduate students interested in participating in next year’s internship program, please email your resume to info@roberts-ryan.com. About Roberts and Ryan, Inc. Roberts & Ryan, Inc. is a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned (SDVO) broker-dealer with execution capabilities in the capital markets, equities, and fixed-income trading. The firm was founded in 1987 by a United States Marine Corps Vietnam combat veteran and Purple Heart recipient. With over $2 million in committed donations, Roberts & Ryan is active in donating to charitable foundations that make significant positive impacts in the lives of Veterans and their families, primarily focusing on general wellness, mental health, and career transition. To learn more about Roberts & Ryan, please visit www.roberts-ryan.com. Contact Details Michael C. Del Priore +1 646-859-4061 mdelpriore@roberts-ryan.com Company Website https://www.roberts-ryan.com

June 13, 2024 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Stupid Cancer Announces CancerCon Live 2024 in Austin, Texas

Stupid Cancer

Stupid Cancer, the leading nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering everyone affected by adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer, is thrilled to announce that CancerCon Live 2024 will take place in Austin, Texas for the first time ever. This landmark event, scheduled for August 15 - 18, 2024 at the Hyatt Regency Austin, promises to bring together hundreds of young adult cancer patients, survivors, caregivers, and advocates from across the country to share their experiences, gain valuable insights/resources, and build lasting connections. “We look forward to creating an unforgettable experience that empowers young adults affected by cancer and helps them connect with others who truly understand their journey.” says Alison Silberman, CEO of Stupid Cancer. CancerCon Live is the premier annual gathering for the AYA cancer community, offering a unique blend of education, support, and empowerment. This year's event in Austin will feature: Keynote Speakers: Hear from leading voices in the AYA cancer community, including survivors, healthcare professionals, and advocates, sharing their stories and insights on topics ranging from advancements in cancer treatment to survivorship challenges. Workshops and Panels: Participate in interactive sessions on a wide range of topics tailored to the unique needs of AYA cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers, covering mental health, fertility preservation, advocacy, career development, and more. Meet the AYA Community: Dedicated time for attendees to connect with peers, build lasting friendships, and expand their support networks in a supportive and inclusive environment. Exhibit Hall: Explore resources, products, and services from leading organizations committed to supporting the AYA cancer community as well as a few local small businesses. Social Events: Enjoy fun and engaging social activities designed to foster connections and create memorable experiences with some local Austin flavor. Local excursions: Attendees will have the opportunity to explore the city’s unique attractions, including Bat Watching under Congress Bridge and unlimited Skee-Ball at Full Circle Bar, to name a few, all while engaging in meaningful activities that support their personal and collective growth. “Austin’s dynamic and inclusive culture aligns perfectly with our mission to build a strong, supportive community for AYA cancer patients and survivors. We look forward to welcoming everyone to what promises to be our most impactful CancerCon yet,” says Eddie Mouradian, Director of Development. For over a decade, Stupid Cancer has brought together hundreds of patients, survivors, caregivers, advocates, and health professionals at the largest gathering of the AYA community - CancerCon (R). Now gathering both online and off, every CancerCon event is an immersive experience, led by transformative connection and education. The majority of conference attendees are AYA (age 15-39) cancer patients and survivors, but caregivers and health professionals of all ages are also welcome. CancerCon Live is hosted in a different US city each year as we seek to make the event always be within reach of our community at all times. Registration for CancerCon Live 2024 is now open. To register or learn more about the event, please visit cancercon.org. About Stupid Cancer Stupid Cancer’s mission is to help empower everyone affected by adolescent and young adult cancer by ending isolation and building community. Through innovative programming and strategic communications, the organization aims to provide support, resources, education, and a sense of community both online and in-person. For more information, please visit stupidcancer.org. For media inquires, contact: media@stupidcancer.org About Stupid Cancer:Stupid Cancer's mission is to help empower everyone in the adolescent and young adult (AYA) community by ending isolation and building community. Contact Details Alison Silberman +1 646-868-0087 media@stupidcancer.org Company Website https://stupidcancer.org/

June 12, 2024 02:39 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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Teads Unveils Creative Consortium Built to Incubate Innovation to Bolster Results for Advertisers

Teads

Teads, the global media platform, today announced the formation of a Creative Consortium, a suite of new omnichannel partnerships to further enhance exceptional creative services and maximize campaign results for advertisers. The new offerings extend Teads’ ability to deliver personalized and engaging ad experiences for advertisers by implementing top-tier creative solutions and cutting-edge technology by collaborating with best-in-class partners such including Perfect Corp, Aryel, Threedium, Atelar, Geneee, Vyde, Stats Perform, SmartCommerce, and Audiostack. As part of the strategic launch, Teads Studio, the company’s in-house creative team, has integrated advanced creative solutions to optimize and repurpose ad content across various digital platforms for its partners, including: AI-Driven Audio Production: Powered by its partnership with AudioStack, Teads is unlocking addressable, high-quality video at scale and utilizing AI-driven audio production - across CTV video or native - to create dynamic, personalized and contextually relevant audio-visual experiences tailored to different languages, locations and audience segments. Real-Time Sports Data Integration: Embedding live sports statistics into ad creatives to enhance engagement among sports fans in partnership with StatsPerform. AR For The Open Web: Introducing immersive AR experiences such as Virtual Try-On (VTO), which significantly enhance consumer engagement and conversion rates in partnership with Perfect Corp, Aryel, Threedium, Atelar and Geneee. Interactive Shopping Solutions: Development of advanced shopping formats, including visualizations, 3D models, dynamic ads, and shoppable scenarios. Conversation Units: Revolutionizes shopper engagement with innovative in-ad chat units optimized for shoppable moments, allowing consumers to interact through a decision tree and select products based on their needs in partnership with Stats Perform. Omnichannel Integrations: Bridging online and offline experiences, enhancing direct response capabilities. Innovative 3D Models: Captivating audiences with engaging 3D ad formats, improving brand recall and interaction rates. Teads’ enhanced creative capabilities have already empowered brands like Nissan, McDonald’s, Pepsi, and Lenovo to expand the delivery of personalized ads across multiple touchpoints, enhance customer interaction, and drive business results. Teads’ cutting-edge campaign with Nissan integrated CTV, OTT, and Mixed Reality (XR) elements to promote the Nissan Qashqai. QR code integration amplified engagement and boosted brand favorability, reaching an impressive 41% of the UK population at least once, with an average frequency of 4.1. "We were thrilled to partner with Teads Studio to craft a cross-screen experience that effectively reached households on the big screen through OTT and integrated a unique VR experience,” said Niels Van Der Burg, Nissan’s director of marketing operations, Europe. “This innovative approach allowed us to showcase the e-POWER technology and the features of the Nissan X-Trail and Qashqai in a truly engaging and immersive manner." Other notable brands leveraging Teads’ enhanced creative offerings via its Creative Consortium include: Both McDonald’s and PepsiCo - McDonald’s and Lays (a part of PepsiCo) are partnering with Teads independently for UEFA Euro 2024, utilizing Stats Perform technology to integrate live stats based on match scores directly into their advertising creative. Lenovo - Lenovo was the first tech brand to launch the Teads Conversational Unit in the US, achieving remarkable results. The Lenovo Conversational Unit recorded a 0.25% interaction rate, representing a 66% increase compared to the benchmark. It also achieved a 28.09% active attention rate, marking a 180% increase over the benchmark, and a 0.18% click-through rate (CTR). “At Teads, we’re laser-focused on helping our partners succeed in today’s landscape by boosting engagement, increasing relevance and maximizing impact across all screens,” said Jonathan Lewis, global head of studio at Teads. “The Creative Consortium directly supports the company’s ongoing mission to be ‘best in glass,’ by partnering with innovative industry-leading creative technology and data vendors empowering us to provide the biggest brands in the world with exceptional creative solutions optimized for omnichannel environments.” About Teads Teads operates a leading, cloud-based, omnichannel platform that enables programmatic digital advertising across a global ecosystem of quality digital media. As an end-to-end solution, Teads’ modular platform allows partners to leverage buy-side, sell-side, creative, data and AI optimization technologies. For advertisers and their agencies, Teads offers a single access point to buy the inventory of many of the world’s best publishers and content providers. Through exclusive global media partnerships, Teads enables advertisers and agencies to reach billions of unique monthly users in brand safe, responsible advertising environments, while improving the effectiveness and efficiency of digital ad transactions.Teads partners with the leading marketers, agencies and publishers through a team of 1,200+ people in 50 offices across more than 30 countries. Contact Details Kite Hill PR for Teads Alexandra Morrison teads@kitehillpr.com Company Website https://www.teads.com/

June 12, 2024 12:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time

Yandex develops and open-sources an LLM training tool that saves up to 20% of GPU resources

Yandex

Yandex introduces YaFSDP, a method for faster and more efficient large language model (LLM) training. Potentially saving users hundreds of thousands of dollars per month. Available free. Yandex, a global tech company, recently introduced YaFSDP, an open-source method for training large language models (LLMs). YaFSDP is currently the most effective publicly available tool for enhancing GPU communication and reducing memory usage in LLM training, offering a speedup of up to 26% compared to FSDP, depending on the architecture and number of parameters. Reducing the training time for LLMs through the use of YaFSDP can result in savings of up to 20% in GPU resources. “Currently, we're actively experimenting with various model architectures and parameter sizes to expand YaFSDP’s versatility,” noted Mikhail Khruschev, a senior developer at Yandex and part of the team behind YaFSDP. “We are thrilled to share our developments in LLM training with the global ML community, contributing to increased accessibility and efficiency for researchers and developers worldwide.” The case for YaFSDP LLM training is a time-consuming and resource-intensive process. Machine learning engineers and companies that develop their own LLMs invest significant time and GPU resources — which equals money — in training these models. The larger the model, the greater the time and expenses associated with its training. Yandex’s YaFSDP works by eliminating GPU communication inefficiencies, ensuring that training requires only necessary processor memory and making GPU interactions uninterrupted. YaFSDP optimizes learning speed and performance, enabling AI developers worldwide to use less computing power and GPU resources when training their models. For instance, in a pre-training scenario involving a model with 70 billion parameters, using YaFSDP can save the resources of approximately 150 GPUs, which translates to roughly $0.5 to $1.5 million (depending on the virtual GPU provider or platform) in potential monthly savings. YaFSDP’s training efficiency YaFSDP, an enhanced version of FSDP, outperforms the FSDP method in the most communication-heavy stages of LLM training like pre-training, alignment, and fine-tuning. The final speedup shown by YaFSDP on Llama 2 and Llama 3 demonstrates significant improvements in training speed, reaching 21% and 26% on Llama 2 70B and Llama 3 70B respectively. “YaFSDP has shown impressive results on models ranging from 13 to 70 billion parameters, with particularly strong performance in the 30 to 70 billion range,” said Mikhail Khruschev. “Currently, YaFSDP is best suited for widely-used open-source models based on the LLaMA architecture.” YaFSDP isn’t Yandex’s first open-source tool. The company has previously shared several other tools that have become popular with the ML community, including: CatBoost, a high-performance library for gradient boosting on decision trees. YTsaurus, a big data platform for distributed storage and processing. AQLM, one of the most advanced quantization algorithms for extreme compression of large language models, developed jointly by Yandex Research, HSE University, IST Austria, and NeuralMagic. Petals, a library designed to simplify the process of training and fine-tuning LLMs, developed in a collaboration involving Yandex Research, HSE University, University of Washington, Hugging Face, ENS Paris-Saclay, and Yandex School of Data Analysis. Accessing YaFSDP YaFSDP is freely available on Github. – – – – – For Reference During large language model (LLM) training, developers have to efficiently manage three primary resources: computing power, processor memory, and processor communications. YaFSDP conserves the first two, which helps to accelerate the LLM training process. LLM training relies on numerous GPUs organized into clusters — arrays of interconnected graphics processors that can perform the vast number of calculations necessary to train models with billions of parameters. Distributing computations among processors within a cluster requires constant communication, which often becomes a "bottleneck", slowing the training process and resulting in inefficient use of computing power. To overcome this bottleneck, Yandex developers created YaFSDP, a method that improves GPU communication and optimizes learning speed and performance. When combined with Yandex’s other performance-enhancing solutions, the method accelerated the training process by up to 45% for some of its models. YaFSDP works by eliminating GPU communication inefficiencies, which leads to optimized network usage and reduced memory load. It ensures that training requires only necessary processor memory and makes GPU interactions uninterrupted, facilitating further optimizations like minimizing processor communication time. This leads to a significant enhancement in both performance and memory efficiency. The YaFSDP method can be used effectively in transformer-based text generative models with multiple layers (multilayer perceptrons), mostly represented by LLaMA-like models. In a pre-training scenario involving a model with 70 billion parameters, using YaFSDP can save the resources of approximately 150 GPUs. When compared to FSDP, the final speedup shown by YaFSDP on Llama 2 and Llama 3 demonstrates significant improvements in training efficiency. About Yandex Yandex is a global technology company that builds intelligent products and services powered by machine learning. The company’s goal is to help consumers and businesses better navigate the online and offline world. Since 1997, Yandex has been delivering world-class, locally relevant search and information services and has also developed market-leading on-demand transportation services, navigation products, and other mobile applications for millions of consumers across the globe. Contact Details NettResults Media Team media@nettresults.com

June 12, 2024 08:55 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Saint Paul Public Housing Agency and Comcast Announce Technology Partnership

Comcast Twin Cities

The Saint Paul Public Housing Agency (PHA) and Comcast today announced they have partnered to provide a WiFi connection to Xfinity's advanced network in all 16 of PHA’s buildings in Saint Paul. The partnership is Comcast’s first collaboration with a Minnesota-based housing agency to provide pre-installed, already on connectivity to the Xfinity network for their residents. More than 2,500 units will be equipped with Xfinity’s fast and reliable network and wall-to-wall WiFi coverage. With Xfinity’s network readily available, residents will not need to schedule a technician to set up services, wait for their modem to arrive or go to an Xfinity Store to collect their equipment. To activate service, residents will only need to call or use the Xfinity App. “Internet access provides connectivity to 21st century infrastructure, equipping our residents with the tools vital to enhancing opportunities for education, employment, and quality of life," said Saint Paul Mayor Melvin Carter. "The collaboration between Saint Paul Public Housing Agency and Comcast empowers our neighbors to realize a brighter future.” Current residents and new residents moving into WiFi ready units can connect to the Internet within five minutes of collecting their keys—making it that much easier to get all their devices up and running. “Access to WiFi isn’t just about connecting devices; for us it’s about connecting PHA residents to opportunity,” said PHA Board Chair Missy Staples Thompson. “Making PHA-owned high-rises WiFi-ready can help residents cross the digital divide and open doors to education, employment, and empowerment. We appreciate this partnership with Comcast that will benefit residents and their communities.” The Xfinity network will be installed in phases. Completion of the first two buildings just occurred, and 14 additional buildings will have WiFi ready units residents can connect to by the end of 2024. About Comcast Corporation Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company. From the connectivity and platforms we provide, to the content and experiences we create, our businesses reach hundreds of millions of customers, viewers, and guests worldwide. We deliver world-class broadband, wireless, and video through Xfinity, Comcast Business, and Sky; produce, distribute, and stream leading entertainment, sports, and news through brands including NBC, Telemundo, Universal, Peacock, and Sky; and bring incredible theme parks and attractions to life through Universal Destinations & Experiences. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information. About the Saint Paul Public Housing Agency (PHA) The PHA administers federal rent subsidies that provide safe, affordable housing to more than 22,000 Saint Paul residents. Almost half of those residents live in the 4,273 affordable homes and apartments that the PHA owns and manages. The PHA also administers the federal rent subsidy program called “Housing Choice Vouchers”, previously known as Section 8. The rental vouchers help 5,243 households pay affordable rents in privately-owned apartments and rental homes. Contact Details Jill Hornbacher +1 651-425-1695 Jill_Hornbacher@comcast.com Company Website https://midwest.comcast.com

June 11, 2024 01:00 PM Central Daylight Time

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