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Global Energy Leader Chevron Shipping joins NAMEPA, Demonstrating its Dedication to Save Our Seas.

North American Marine Environment Protection Association

Carleen Lyden Walker, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the North American Marine Environment Protection Association (NAMEPA), announced that Chevron Shipping has joined NAMEPA as its newest corporate member. NAMEPA is proud to be partnering with Chevron Shipping in making strides to Save Our Seas and towards a cleaner future. “We are delighted that our discussions with Chevron Shipping have resulted in their decision to join NAMEPA’s efforts towards sustainability,” stated Ms. Walker. NAMEPA’s mission of preserving the marine environment and promoting sustainable marine industry best practices is aligned with Chevron Shipping’s goals. “Protecting people and the environment has always been a core value of Chevron Shipping. We are pleased to join NAMEPA and its likeminded members striving for a safer, ever-cleaner environment and marine industry,” said Mark Ross, President of Chevron Shipping. NAMEPA proudly welcomes Chevron Shipping to its global and diverse network of individuals and companies in a new partnership that will help progress towards a greener future. About Chevron Shipping: Chevron Shipping Company LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chevron U.S.A. Inc. (NYSE: CVX). Chevron’s fleet has provided a vital link between our operations and the marketplace for more than 125 years. Today, Chevron Shipping Company is an industry leader in safely and reliably transporting crude oil, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and refined products that power the world. Learn more. The North American Marine Environment Protection Association (NAMEPA) is a marine industry-led organization of environmental stewards preserving the marine environment by promoting sustainable marine industry best practices and educating seafarers, students and the public about the need and strategies for protecting global ocean, lake and river resources. Visit us at: www.namepa.net Contact Details NAMEPA Carleen Lyden Walker +1 203-255-4686 executivedirector@namepa.net Company Website https://namepa.net/

October 13, 2021 10:26 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Provana Welcomes Chief Revenue Officer

Provana

Provana, the leading provider of business and technology platforms for the credit and collections industry, today announced it has named Mike Keister as Senior Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer. As CRO, Mike will oversee the company’s sales and business development strategy and execution, with a focus on customer success. “Mike has a proven track record of building sales organizations to support both enterprise and SMB market segments,” said Sandeep Bhargava, Provana’s Co-Founder and CEO. “His authentic leadership style, drive for continuous improvement and passion for helping clients derive full value from their investment make him an excellent fit to lead our team.” Mike joins Provana from Zapproved, a legal tech company. With nearly 20 years of sales leadership experience in SaaS solutions, Mike excels at scaling sales organizations to support rapid growth. He is passionate about combining this approach with a keen attention to customer success and delivering on client expectations. “I’m thrilled to join the company at this critical time in the ARM industry, when many firms are in need of a partner in digital transformation and compliance,” said Mike. “With our long history of supporting clients throughout the entire lifecycle of accounts receivable management, Provana is uniquely positioned to deliver value that supports the latest industry standards and staffing challenges.” Based on the West Coast in Portland, Oregon, Mike enjoys hiking, golfing and attending his daughters’ sporting events. About Provana Provana is a SaaS platform that gives leaders control over process-intensive operations. We serve law firms, insurance companies, accounts receivable agencies and networked enterprises in the US market that are tightly regulated by the CFPB and other authorities. Provana is built on decades of experience in machine learning and natural language processing and helps customers manage sensitive interactions, analyze unstructured data, process personal information and ensure compliance. Provana is backed by a NYC-based Fintech PE, most recently raising funds in November 2020. Learn more at www.provana.com. Contact Details Britney Schaeffer +1 469-774-2409 britney.schaeffer@provana.com Company Website https://www.provana.com/

October 12, 2021 07:08 AM Central Daylight Time

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Yoodli, A Startup Backed by Madrona Venture Group and the Allen Institute for AI (AI2), Applies AI to Life's Biggest Stress: Public Speaking

Yoodli

Yoodli, a startup leveraging AI to help people develop the necessary soft skills to present and communicate confidently, opened early access to their beta product at www.yoodli.ai. The founding team of Varun Puri, Esha Joshi, and Dr. Ehsan Hoque, alumni from GoogleX, Apple and the MIT Media Lab, brings a passion to a challenge that most people experience every day. The Company is also announcing it has already raised $1M in pre-seed funding from the Allen Institute for AI and Madrona Venture Group. “Many of us have struggled with public speaking and have been on the receiving end of poorly delivered presentations,” said Varun Puri, co-founder of Yoodli. “During my time in Silicon Valley, I met countless colleagues, often fellow immigrants, who didn’t receive the recognition they deserved because they struggled to communicate effectively. Our platform will be an incredible leveler enabling people to practice and get real time feedback based on science as well as from friends and coaches.” According to the National Institute of Mental Health, the fear of public speaking affects 73% of people. However, we all need to speak in group settings — remember the awkward wedding toasts, dull classroom presentations, and never-ending team meetings? Numerous studies have suggested that oral communication is the number one skill that college students find useful post-graduation and yet is not taught in a direct way while in school. “As a female engineer in a male dominated industry, I felt like I had to try even harder for people to take me seriously,” said Esha Joshi, co-founder and CTO of Yoodli. “The nerves and doubts before a presentation can be crushing, and the feeling of successfully expressing yourself in front of an audience is a huge confidence booster. Our platform takes you from the nerves to the confident persona you need to achieve your goals.” Puri previously ran special projects for the President of Alphabet and then led Africa operations for a GoogleX initiative that is expanding internet connectivity using invisible lasers. Joshi brings her expertise as an Apple engineering lead as well as her experience speaking at large gatherings such as the Grace Hopper Conference to the mission of Yoodli. Dr. Hoque, the co-lead of the Rochester Human Computing Interaction group and MIT 35 Innovators Under 35 awardee, adds decades of research experience building AI interfaces to upskill the workforce. His work has helped people with autism practice communication skills, doctors prepare for end-of-life conversations with patients, and Parkinson’s patients detect their condition directly from their computer screens. “We see a tremendous opportunity to use AI as a way to improve human social and cognitive skills,” said Matt Mcllwain, Managing Director of Madrona. “We like to back exciting teams from Day One and this team has the passion, technical and industry experience that inspires us to come to work every day. And give presentations!” Yoodli is hiring for applied AI engineers, fullstack developers and a Head of Growth. Reach out at info@yoodli.ai if you are interested and sign up at www.yoodli.ai to join the product waitlist. About Madrona Venture Group Madrona ( www.madrona.com ) is a venture capital firm based in Seattle, WA. With more than 25 years of investing in early stage technology companies, the firm has worked with founders from Day One to help build their company for the long run. Madrona invests predominantly in seed and Series A rounds across the information technology spectrum, and in 2018 raised the first fund dedicated to initial investments in acceleration stage (Series B and C stages) companies. Madrona manages over $2 billion and was an early investor in companies such as Amazon, Smartsheet, Isilon, Redfin, and Snowflake. About the Allen Institute for AI (AI2) AI2 was founded in 2014 with the singular focus of conducting high-impact research and engineering in the field of artificial intelligence, all for the common good. AI2 is the creation of Paul Allen, Microsoft co-founder, and is led by Dr. Oren Etzioni, a leading researcher in the field of AI. AI2 employs more than 100 top-notch researchers and engineers from across the globe. AI2 prides itself on the diversity and collaboration of our team and takes a results-oriented approach to complex challenges in AI. Learn more at allenai.org. Contact Details Yoodli Forrest Carman +1 206-859-3118 forrestc@owenmedia.com Company Website https://www.yoodli.ai/

October 07, 2021 09:01 AM Pacific Daylight Time

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Zesty.ai’s Z-FIRE™ Wildfire Model Adopted for Rating by Carriers in Six US States

Zesty.ai

Zesty.ai, the leader in property risk analytics powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI), today announced that its Z-FIRE™ model that provides wildfire risk scores for all properties in the 48 contiguous US states has already been implemented in six states, making it the most widely adopted AI-powered wildfire risk model in the industry. Z-FIRE™ has gained regulatory approval in filings by leading carriers in four states, including California, New Mexico, Oregon and Utah with active filings pending approval in Montana and Nevada, as well as current underwriting use in Wyoming, Idaho, Arizona, Washington, Texas, and Colorado where rating use is expected to follow suit in 2022. Integrating multiple satellite and aerial imagery sources, as well as other data inputs, such as building permits and weather data that can be analyzed at scale with artificial intelligence, Z-FIRE™ has quickly become the leader in offering precise, property-specific wildfire risk analysis at 97+% coverage. It considers property-level features that influence risk, such as topography, historical climate data, and critically, factors impacting frequency and severity extracted from high-resolution imagery like, building materials and surrounding vegetation in multiple defensible spaces. This gives carriers precise risk metrics that take mitigation efforts into account, such as clearing vegetation, and in turn expands opportunities for coverage for residences located in certain high wildfire-risk areas. As mitigation efforts become a priority for regulators and government organizations, as evidenced by a recent report on the topic from the Legislative Analyst's Office, which referenced Zesty.ai and IBHS’s joint efforts to measure the impact of mitigation, there will be an increased regulatory focus on how mitigation efforts impact underwriting and rating decisions. Over the course of 2021, Zesty.ai has experienced rapid growth driven by several factors including the California Department of Insurance’s (CDI) approval of multiple filings that use Z-FIRE™ model for both underwriting and rating. Several other states have followed suit in granting approval of filings that implement Z-FIRE™. With these approvals, carriers including Farmers, MetDirect, Berkshire Hathaway, Amica, and The Cincinnati Insurance Companies, as well as the California FAIR Plan Association (FAIR Plan), among others, are confidently using Z-FIRE™ to better understand and price wildfire risk at the individual property level. “Wildfire is a problem that affects property owners, insurance carriers, regulators, and government policy. With the increase in losses from secondary perils, such as wildfires, next generation risk models like Z-FIRE™ that accurately assess risk at the individual property level have become invaluable to the insurance ecosystem,” said Attila Toth, Founder & CEO of Zesty.ai. “Feedback from customers is that the deep insights not only allow pricing commensurate with risk, but also enable data-driven conversations with property owners, agents and regulators for a transparent insurance experience.” At the recent APCIA 2021 Virtual Western Region General Counsel Conference, Ken Allen, Deputy Commissioner, Rate Regulation Branch at California Department of Insurance, was asked if the approval process for new filings would accelerate after an AI model like Z-FIRE™ had already undergone an extensive review. He confirmed, "That is the case [and] that is the expectation. If another insurer came in with that same model, same version, same everything, we wouldn't reinvent the wheel and redo everything. We would focus more on the insurer's use of that model and that would curtail such a review and it would go much quicker". For more information on Zesty.ai and its products please visit www.zesty.ai. About Zesty.ai Increasingly frequent natural disasters have impacted communities and drove $2.2 Trillion in economic losses over the past decade. Zesty.ai uses 200Bn data points, including aerial imagery, and artificial intelligence to assess the impact of climate change one building at a time. Zesty.ai has partnered with leading insurance companies and property owners to help them protect homes, businesses and support thriving communities. Zesty.ai was named Top 100 Most Innovative AI Company in the world by CB Insights in2020, and Gartner Cool Vendor in Insurance by Gartner Research in 2019. For more information visit: https://www.zesty.ai/. Contact Details Zesty.ai Abby Rieflin +1 216-870-1835 abby@clarity.pr Company Website https://www.zesty.ai

October 05, 2021 08:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time

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AFSA Welcomes Chopra Confirmation

American Financial Services Association

Today the U.S. Senate confirmed Rohit Chopra as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The following statement should be attributed to Bill Himpler, President and CEO of the American Financial Services Association (AFSA), the nation’s oldest and largest national trade association singularly focused on the consumer credit industry: “Over the years, AFSA and its members have had the opportunity to work with Rohit Chopra both during his time as a Commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission and his prior stint as a senior leader at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In engaging with our industry, Mr. Chopra has always been gracious with his time and in considering the views of the consumer credit industry. We congratulate Mr. Chopra on his CFPB Senate confirmation and look forward to working constructively with him on pro-consumer policies that ensure access to credit.” About AFSA Based in Washington, D.C., the American Financial Services Association (AFSA) is the national trade association for consumer credit, committed to protecting access to credit and consumer choice. Its 450 members include traditional installment lenders, vehicle finance companies, consumer and commercial finance companies, mortgage lenders and servicers, payment card issuers, industrial banks, and industry suppliers. For more information, visit www.afsaonline.org. Contact Details Dan Bucherer +1 301-503-6061 dbucherer@afsamail.org Ed McFadden +1 703-402-5036 emcfadden@afsamail.org Company Website https://www.afsaonline.org

September 30, 2021 04:56 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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NHRA Los Angeles Names Mattel CPO Its 2021 Executive of the Year

IMA Financial

The National Human Resources Association Los Angeles Chapter (NHRA-LA) is proud to announce Mattel Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer Amy Thompson as its 2021 Executive of the Year. Thompson was recognized for her outstanding work in transforming Mattel’s culture. Working with the leadership team, she championed the company’s mission and values and ensured optimal collaboration across the global organization operating in 35 countries. “With all the challenges and shifts in the workplace in the last couple of years, recognizing HR professionals for their remarkable work is more important than ever,” said NHRA-LA Co-President and Bolton Executive Vice President Andrew Agress. NHRA-LA Co-President and Sodexo Benefits and Rewards Service Director Patti Traglio added, “Amy is a shining example of how HR executives can lead change within their organizations in a way that positively impacts the lives of its associates every day.” As Chief People Officer at Mattel, Thompson oversees all global human resources functions for its 30,000+ associates, including compensation and benefits, diversity and inclusion, employee culture and engagement, leadership development, organizational design and development, and talent management. With more than 20 years of experience in human resources roles for standout companies like Ticketmaster, Starbucks, and TOMS, Thompson has a proven track record of being a purpose-driven leader and implementing programs to increase employee engagement and improve organizational design and accountability. “I share this honor with my whole team,” said Thompson. “At Mattel, the wellbeing and happiness of our employees is a top priority. Throughout the last turbulent 18 months, my team has rallied through personal tough times and created opportunities for everyone to be able to thrive at work.” Thompson was honored at the LA-NHRA Executive of the Year Gala. She was joined by Executive of the Year finalists: Roxane Lucas, VP of HR and talent management at Scopely; Verónica García, VP of HR and talent management at Skid Row Housing Trust; Vina Leite chief people officer of The Trade Desk; and Christi Karandikar, executive vice president – HR for Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. About the NHRA Established in 1951, the NHRA is focused on advancing the development and leadership of human resource professionals. Through professional programs and services offered across the country, the organization strives to support human resource professionals throughout their career life cycle - from intern to executive - as Human Resources leads the way for change in today's businesses. Contact Details NHRA-LA Andrew Agress aagress@boltonco.com Center Reach Communications Jessica Poulalier +1 720-989-3530 jessica@centerreachcommunication.com

September 30, 2021 08:37 AM Pacific Daylight Time

Agile Therapeutics Partners with Carli Lloyd, U.S. Women’s Soccer Star and Four-Time Olympian, to Bring Awareness to Women’s Health Topics

Agile Therapeutics

Agile Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: AGRX ), a women's healthcare company, announced today a partnership with U.S. Women’s Soccer legend, Carli Lloyd. The partnership with Agile will focus on bringing awareness to women’s health topics, and Agile’s commitment to elevating women’s healthcare. Lloyd, who will play her final game for the U.S. Women’s National Team on October 26 th against South Korea, was attracted to the company’s mission of addressing the healthcare needs of today’s women. “I’m excited to be partnering with a company solely dedicated to women’s health,” said Lloyd. “I aim to work with organizations that focus on things I care about, and staying healthy has been a priority for my career on the field and will continue to be so as I look ahead to my next chapter. Agile’s focus on bringing women options and knowledge when it comes to their healthcare decisions is a mission I’m proud to be part of. And the fact that I’m a Jersey girl, representing a New Jersey company makes it even better.” Agile has built its brand around a commitment to addressing women’s health needs. It received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in February 2020 for its first product, Twirla ® (levonorgestrel and ethinyl estradiol) transdermal system, a weekly contraceptive patch. It currently has four additional contraceptive products in its pipeline. “Carli’s ‘ always believe and never quit ’ attitude fits what Agile Therapeutics believes as a company,” said Al Altomari, CEO of Agile Therapeutics. “We’ve been selective about aligning with the right partners at the right time, and Carli is someone who seamlessly fits our corporate culture, aligns with our values, and understands the importance of empowering women, especially young women, to reach beyond their limits, believe in themselves, and never compromise, especially with their healthcare.” As a growing company, Agile sees this partnership as an opportunity to help further develop its culture and corporate brand by partnering with leaders who share the company’s values and mission.. “Our short-term goal is to establish Twirla in the contraceptive market, and our long-term mission remains the same: Build a robust women’s health franchise, and Carli is a critical piece of that puzzle,” said Altomari. “She’s been a vocal advocate for women, and her voice is an important one in the national conversation about women’s health and healthcare needs. We want to be sure we communicate our message and commitment to women’s health in an authentic and relatable way. This is a mission we share with Carli, and we are proud to welcome her to our team.” About Agile Therapeutics, Inc. Agile Therapeutics is a women's healthcare company dedicated to fulfilling the unmet health needs of today’s women. Our product and product candidates are designed to provide women with contraceptive options that offer freedom from taking a daily pill, without committing to a longer-acting method. Our initial product, Twirla®, (levonorgestrel and ethinyl estradiol), a transdermal system, is a non-daily prescription contraceptive. Twirla is based on our proprietary transdermal patch technology, called Skinfusion®, which is designed to allow drug delivery through the skin. For more information, please visit the company website at www.agiletherapeutics.com. The Company may occasionally disseminate material, nonpublic information on the Company’s website. About Twirla® Twirla (levonorgestrel and ethinyl estradiol) transdermal system is a once-weekly combined hormonal contraceptive (CHC) patch that contains the active ingredients levonorgestrel (LNG), a type of progestin, and ethinyl estradiol (EE), a type of estrogen. Twirla is indicated for use as a method of contraception by women of reproductive potential with a body mass index (BMI) < 30 kg/m2 for whom a combined hormonal contraceptive is appropriate. Healthcare providers (HCPs) are encouraged to consider Twirla’s reduced efficacy in women with a BMI ≥ 25 to <30 kg/m2 before prescribing. Twirla is contraindicated in women with a BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2. Twirla is contraindicated in women over 35 years old who smoke. Cigarette smoking increases the risk of serious cardiovascular events from CHC use. Twirla is designed to be applied once weekly for three weeks, followed by a week without a patch. Contact Details Matt Riley, Head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications mriley@agiletherapeutics.com Company Website https://agiletherapeutics.com

September 28, 2021 02:52 PM Eastern Daylight Time

Minuteman Press Bethesda Partners with In America Flags to Remember COVID-19 Victims

Minuteman Press International Inc

In America: Remember is a public art exhibition being held at the National Mall that displays 660,000 white flags to honor the people in America who have been lost due to COVID-19. Minuteman Press in Bethesda, Maryland, is a partner for the exhibition, providing printed message cards from people all over the country who are paying tribute to loved ones through the In America website. “We are glad to be able to do our part to help this art exhibition,” says Leslie Klein, owner, Minuteman Press, Bethesda. “Every day, we receive all of the messages that were submitted through the In America website and we print them 8 up on 11 x 17 sheets to create 4.25 x 5.5 cards. Every night, I drop off the finished cards to one of the volunteers, and then they are transcribed onto the flags by another group of volunteers.” Leslie adds, “This is a total team effort and we are proud to be partners in such an important and moving exhibition. Our hearts go out to those who have been lost and their families.” The In America: Remember exhibition was designed by artist Suzanne Brennan Firstenberg. The exhibition is open for public participation now through October 3 rd, 2021. Hours are Weekdays from 10 AM – Sunset and Weekends from 9 AM – Sunset. For more information, visit https://www.inamericaflags.org. Minuteman Press in Bethesda is located at 8210 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda, MD 20814. For more information, call 301-656-1188 or visit their website: https://minuteman.com/us/locations/md/bethesda Learn more about Minuteman Press products and services at https://minuteman.com Contact Details Minuteman Press International Chris Biscuiti +1 631-249-1370 cbiscuiti@mpihq.com Company Website https://minutemanpressfranchise.com

September 28, 2021 10:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Velocity Global launches next-gen technology to power its global work platform

Velocity Global

Platform eliminates friction to manage any talent anywhere, anytime in a single click Proprietary technology delivers a seamless cloud experience for clients and talent Velocity Global scales its leading global work platform with the launch of its next-generation technology. Built on proprietary code and best-in-breed cloud solutions, the latest version streamlines the client and talent experience to deliver real-time insights to compliantly manage distributed teams. Velocity Global unveiled the technology experience at the HR Technology Conference and Exhibition in Las Vegas. “Our global work platform delivers compliance, accuracy, flexibility, and customization, which inspired our next-generation technology for a seamless client and talent experience,” said Dave Martelon, Velocity Global chief technology officer. Velocity Global’s next-generation technology introduces several features including: Streamlined Supported Employee Onboarding: New team members are guided through a seamless step-by-step experience customized to their country of employment. Interactive Global Dashboard: Clients can view all of their supported employees and their employment status across the globe at a glance, and drill down into details at the country level. Simple Time Off Management: Clients view and approve time off requests for all supported employees in one place. Flexible Payroll Requests: Clients generate, view, and manage recurring and one-time payment requests based on their custom payroll schedule with ease. Consolidated Invoicing and Payments: The platform generates consolidated invoices so clients can pay their talent with a single click of a button. 3rd Party Integrations: The platform is built to reduce the overhead of manual data entry through integrations with clients’ internal systems. “Our team makes the complex simple,” said Martelon. “We built a proprietary infrastructure that connects with leading talent management systems and removes friction for clients and HR departments. The underlying infrastructure is flexible and enables the future of work.” Velocity Global’s work platform combines the company’s proprietary cloud-based workforce management technology, personalized expertise, and unmatched global scale to build globally distributed teams. More than 1,000 clients rely on Velocity Global’s platform without the need to set up their own legal entities in other countries or other states. Velocity Global is exhibiting at HR Technology Conference and Exposition at booth #5514. About Velocity Global Velocity Global accelerates the future of work beyond borders. Its global work platform simplifies the employer and employee experience to employ any talent anywhere with just a click through its proprietary cloud-based workforce management technology, backed by personalized expertise and unmatched global scale. As the largest global Employer of Record (also known as International PEO) in 185 countries and all 50 United States, more than 1,000 brands rely on Velocity Global to build global teams without the cost or complexity of setting up foreign legal entities or state registrations. The company offers additional services including Independent Contractor Compliance to assess a workforce, and Agent of Record (AoR) to streamline payments to contractors. Velocity Global was named a “Leader” in Global Employer of Record services by prominent analyst firm NelsonHall. Founded in 2014, the company has hundreds of employees across six continents. For more information visit velocityglobal.com. Contact Details Velocity Global Eli Rice +1 720-650-4348 news@velocityglobal.com Company Website https://velocityglobal.com/

September 28, 2021 06:01 AM Pacific Daylight Time

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