Category: South Africa

Vicki Worden, CAE, led GBI to achieve tremendous growth during her 11-year tenure; The Honorable Stephen T. Ayers, FAIA, appointed as GBI Interim CEO

PORTLAND, Ore., May 12, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Green Building Initiative (GBI) is announcing the planned departure of its CEO, Vicki Worden. Worden is leaving to take a new CEO role after serving as GBI’s chief executive since 2015. GBI is an international nonprofit organization and ANSI accredited standards developer that operates virtually with a 30-member staff.

“Vicki Worden’s tenure has been defined by an unwavering commitment to expanding GBI’s mission impact,” stated Sumayyah Theron, Chair of GBI’s Board of Directors and CEO and Founder of Avant-garde Sustainable Solutions. “Under Vicki’s leadership, GBI evolved from a U.S.-focused organization into a truly global presence, now serving members in more than 20 countries. Her vision and dedication helped GBI’s green building standards reach more than one billion square feet of certified commercial and multifamily space worldwide and positioned GBI as a leading certifier across multifamily housing, health care facilities, data centers, and beyond. We are deeply grateful for everything Vicki has brought to this organization and wish her great success as she continues to advance mission-driven leadership.”

GBI’s mission is to improve the built environment’s impact on climate and society. Its community of 15,000 is united by a vision of sustainable, healthy, and resilient buildings for all.

Prior to her leadership at GBI, Worden’s experience included interim CEO roles and senior executive roles in the Washington, D.C., association community as well as more than ten years running her own strategic management consulting firm based in Maryland and Maine. She has been a significant force in sustainability and built environment spaces for more than 30 years.

“I am deeply grateful for the partnership of GBI’s Board members over my eleven years and for our joint commitment to meaningful growth,” stated Worden. “GBI is known for its culture of service, collaboration, transparency, and teamwork, and it is a culture we built intentionally to support our vision and mission. It has been an honor to serve alongside GBI’s highly passionate members, assessors, clients, and staff. I know I’m leaving GBI in great hands as it continues to advance and increase its positive impact in its next evolution.”

Worden’s departure is slated for late June 2026, and a consulting firm will be engaged to manage the search for Worden’s permanent replacement.

For the transition period, GBI’s Board has appointed The Honorable Stephen T. Ayers, FAIA, as GBI’s Interim CEO. Ayers is a nationally recognized leader in architecture, public service, and organizational transformation, with a distinguished career spanning government, nonprofit, and private sector roles. He most recently has served in multiple interim chief executive roles, including Interim CEO of the National Institute of Building Sciences (twice, in 2022 and 2024) and Interim CEO of the American Institute of Architects in 2025, where he provided steady leadership during pivotal transition periods and helped position each organization for long-term success. Mr. Ayers previously served as the 11th Architect of the Capitol, appointed by Barack Obama and unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate.

About GBI

GBI, Inc. is an international nonprofit organization and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Accredited Standards Developer whose mission is to improve the built environment’s impact on climate and society. Founded in 2004, the organization is the global provider of the Green Globes®, Journey to Net Zero, Guiding Principles Compliance, and Ascent Building Certification programs, and it is the parent company of GB Initiative Canada. GBI also issues professional credentials, including the Green Globes Professional (GGP) and Guiding Principles Compliance Professional (GPCP). To learn more about opportunities to become involved with GBI, contact [email protected] or visit the GBI website at www.thegbi.org.

MEDIA CONTACT
Joe Kurle, Director of Marketing & Communications, GBI [email protected]

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 9718366

Analysis of 9.5 million AI citations shows real-world expertise is driving visibility in AI search

SAN FRANCISCO, May 12, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Meltwater, the global leader in actionable intelligence for PR, Communications and Marketing teams, today released new research showing LinkedIn is the #2 most cited source by AI models, second only to YouTube. An analysis of 9.5 million AI citations across 16 B2B categories using Meltwater’s GenAI Lens reveals the content that AI platforms prioritize, and why authentic, expert-driven content is emerging as a critical driver of B2B brand visibility.

How AI is changing the way information is found

AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude and Microsoft Copilot are fundamentally changing how people search for and consume information. When people turn to AI assistants for recommendations, research, or decision-making, the brands and products highlighted – or omitted – directly influence awareness, reputation, and buying behavior. In fact, research from 6sense shows that 94% of B2B buyers use LLMs during their buying process.

As AI becomes a primary source of information, optimizing for visibility inside AI-generated answers is no longer optional. For B2B brands who want to stay top of mind for buyers, Meltwater’s research underscores why LinkedIn is critical to a brand being discoverable in AI search.

What content AI models prioritize and cite

This research breaks down the specific signals and content types on LinkedIn that influence what AI models choose to cite. Several key patterns emerged, including:

• Individual voices drive the majority of visibility. Approximately 75% of LinkedIn citations came from individual member profiles and 25% come from Company Pages. While individual member content tends to get cited more often, balancing individual and corporate content remains important.
• Structured content performs best. The most frequently cited LinkedIn content, including articles and posts, consistently feature clear formatting (bullet points, numbered lists), strong headings, named entities, and quantitative data.
• AI rewards relevance over reach. More than half of citations (51%) came from members with less than 10k followers, showing that AI models prioritize clarity, expertise, and usefulness over popularity alone.
• LinkedIn dominates Tech, Professional Services, FinTech and Marketing. The platform performs especially well where questions are professional, technical, or decision-driven, ranking LinkedIn in the top 5 in citations for B2B searches across key industries, including Technology & SaaS, Consulting & Professional Services, Financial Services & FinTech, Marketing & Advertising, and HR & Talent.
• Third-party and user-generated content have an edge. Platforms like LinkedIn, Reddit, and YouTube account for 47.5% of AI citations, compared to 15% from peer review sites and 18.7% from company websites.

“For the last twenty years, the job of a brand was to be discoverable. In an AI-first world, the job is to be the answer. LLMs are now the first stop for decisions that used to take hours of research – and if your brand isn’t being cited, you’re not in the consideration set,” said Chris Hackney, Chief Product Officer at Meltwater. “What this data makes clear is that AI models aren’t looking for the loudest voice in the room – they’re looking for the most credible voice. Organizations that are discoverable in reputable earned media, credible with structured, factual content, and consistent with the channels they engage on, are the ones that will show up when decisions are being made.”

“Product and brand discovery doesn’t happen in stages anymore – it starts with a question and ends with an AI assistant’s answer,” said Davang Shah, Vice President of Marketing at LinkedIn. “If your brand isn’t showing up in LLMs, you’re not just missing awareness, you’re missing the moment of decision. That’s why being discoverable, credible and consistently cited isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s what defines your buyability and determines whether your products or solutions get considered and ultimately get bought.”

To read the full report, visit: https://www.meltwater.com/en/resources/linkedin-gen-ai-visibility-report

For more information, please contact:
Kelly Costello
Corporate Communications Director
[email protected]

About Meltwater
Meltwater is the global leader in actionable intelligence for PR, Communications, and Marketing teams. By analyzing 1.3 billion pieces of content daily, Meltwater transforms media, social, and AI signals into intelligence that leaders rely on to make faster, more confident decisions. With 27,000 customers worldwide, Meltwater is the intelligence platform global brands trust to stay ahead. Meltwater: Intelligence you can act on.
Learn more at meltwater.com.

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 9718190

Mavenir Chosen as Strategic Small Cell Partner Following Successful Trial

RICHARDSON, Texas, May 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Mavenir, the cloud-native software company building AI-by-design mobile networks, today announces that it has been selected as the strategic small cell technology partner by MagtiCom, the largest telecommunications provider in Georgia, for a nationwide small cell deployment project. Mavenir will be supplying its full range of 4G and 5G small cell technology, spanning hardware, software, management, and orchestration solutions.

MagtiCom confirmed Mavenir as its preferred small cell technology partner following a successful trial earlier this year. The countrywide deployment is expected to commence during Q2 2026, starting with beta testing for priority residential, small office and enterprise customers ahead of full roll-out later this year.

MagtiCom offers a comprehensive range of services including mobile telephony, fiber-optic internet, IPTV, and VoIP to more than 3 million customers, consistently maintaining a leading position in the market. The company delivers high-performance connectivity, ranking 6th globally for 5G mobile internet speeds in Ookla’s connectivity tests.¹

Vasil Melikidze, Chief Technology Officer for MagtiCom commented: “As the country’s largest telecom operator, MagtiCom is synonymous with world-class connectivity. Reliable and high-quality mobile internet is now integral to daily life, so we are committed to delivering the best possible experience wherever our subscribers live, work and travel. Partnering with Mavenir as the trusted technology provider for our small cell roll-out significantly strengthens that mission – enabling us to expertly extend capacity, boost indoor coverage, and support the growing demand for high-speed mobile data. This strategic collaboration will enhance the digital experience for our customers and reinforces MagtiCom’s role in driving Georgia’s next chapter of mobile innovation.”

Sachin Karkala, Executive Vice President & General Manager IMS & RAN for Mavenir said: “This national small cell roll-out for MagtiCom really underscores Mavenir’s ability to transform the mobile user experience at scale. From residential to enterprise and rural applications, our small cell solutions deliver the capacity, coverage, and energy efficiency operators need in a uniquely accessible form factor– easy to deploy, fully automated, highly scalable, and adaptable. We are proud to partner with MagtiCom to support its innovation agenda, and to help expand high performance mobile connectivity and a superior digital experience for customers across Georgia.”

Mavenir’s small cell portfolio comprises fully cloud-native solutions that delivers 4G and 5G coverage across indoor, outdoor, enterprise, rural and private network environments. Mavenir’s range of software-upgradable small cells is designed to boost capacity and coverage while supporting advanced use cases in sectors including Industry 4.0, healthcare, retail, aviation, maritime and first responder communications.

^{1. According to data from the first two quarters of 2025, Magti’s mobile network was ranked 6th in the world for internet speed –  1 Year with Magti 5G: New Opportunities, Digital Experience, and International Recognition.} 

About Mavenir
Mavenir is enabling intelligent, automated, programmable networks through the development of telco-first, cloud-native, AI-by-design software solutions for mobile operators. The company’s deep telco domain expertise has been proven through deployments with 300+ operators globally in over 120 countries, which together serve more than 50% of the world’s subscribers. Mavenir combines its deep telco experience with the cloud and IT expertise and data science skillsets essential to solving real customer challenges. Its proven software solutions are AI by design, delivering the AI-native future and operators’ evolution to TechCos. ​For more information, please visit www.mavenir.com

Media Contacts

Mavenir PR Contacts:
Emmanuela Spiteri
[email protected]

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 9717333

CGTN published an article examining why the world is closely watching the upcoming China-US summit. Against a backdrop of prolonged geopolitical tensions and fragile global recovery, the article highlights how head-of-state diplomacy serves as the “anchor” of China-US relations. It also explores how the summit could inject greater certainty into an increasingly volatile world.

BEIJING, May 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, US President Donald Trump will pay a state visit to China from May 13 to 15, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced on Monday.

At a time of prolonged geopolitical tensions and fragile global recovery, the world is closely watching whether the two leaders can further stabilize China-US relations and inject much-needed certainty into the international landscape.

Keeping China-US relations on the right course

For many observers, the summit reflects one core hope: stability in bilateral ties.

Interviews conducted by CGTN show a common view among experts that head-of-state diplomacy has long served as the “anchor” of that stability.

As Wu Xinbo, dean of the Institute of International Studies at Fudan University, put it, such head-of-state diplomacy “sets the tone and defines the direction” of bilateral ties.

Christopher Newport University’s Associate Professor Sun Taiyi similarly noted that direct leader-to-leader communication helps reduce uncertainty, prevent miscalculation and signal that stability remains the overriding priority.

Over the past year, the two leaders have maintained communication through phone calls and a face-to-face meeting in Busan, the Republic of Korea (ROK), helping prevent major miscalculations and keeping the overall relationship stable.

As Xi told Trump in Busan, “In the face of winds, waves and challenges, we should stay the right course, navigate through the complex landscape, and ensure the steady sailing forward of the giant ship of China-US relations.”

That metaphor of “steering the ship” has been reflected in concrete progress.

Since 2025, under the strategic consensus reached by the two heads of state, economic teams from both sides have held multiple rounds of talks, while large-scale tariff escalation has been paused. A new round of consultations is set to take place in the ROK from May 12 to 13, just ahead of the Beijing summit.

People-to-people exchanges have also regained momentum. In April, Beijing hosted events marking the 55th anniversary of China-US “Ping-Pong Diplomacy,” with hundreds of young Chinese and Americans taking part in sports and cultural exchanges. More US youth groups have also traveled to China for exchange and study programs.

Bringing certainty to a changing world

As the world’s two largest economies, and with China-US relations standing as one of the most important bilateral ties globally, outcomes of head-of-state diplomacy between the two countries not only help stabilize bilateral relations, but also have a broader impact on global development and governance.

As Peterson Institute Senior Fellow Chad Bown noted, “virtually everyone has a stake in the outcome.” Cornell University economist Eswar Prasad went further, suggesting the meeting could carry implications for global trade, geopolitics and even the “rules-based order.”

CGTN interviews with experts highlight the similar points.

Zhang Tengjun, associate research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, said deeper cooperation could inject momentum into global recovery and stabilize industrial and supply chains, stressing that the trajectory of bilateral ties is closely tied to the world’s future.

On this point, scholar Sun said that stable relations reduce risks of supply chain disruption, financial volatility and geopolitical fragmentation.

Dean Wu noted that as the world’s two major technological powers, China and the United States have the capacity to generate “win-win outcomes” through practical cooperation, supporting broader global growth and scientific progress.

Likewise, Cui Fan, vice dean of the University of International Business and Economics, emphasized that both countries share responsibility for the stability of global governance.

Xi underlined this responsibility in Busan as well: “The world today is confronted with many tough problems. China and the United States can jointly shoulder our responsibility as major countries, and work together to accomplish more great and concrete things for the good of our two countries and the whole world.”

This year provides a window for that responsibility to be tested, with China hosting APEC and the United States hosting the G20 Leaders’ Summit – two platforms that could open space for coordination on global recovery, food and energy security, debt risks, and governance reform.

In a February phone call with Trump, Xi set out a pragmatic path forward: “If the two sides work in the same direction in the spirit of equality, respect and mutual benefit, we can surely find ways to address each other’s concerns.”

The world will watch the upcoming summit to see how Beijing and Washington can translate into action Xi’s call to “make progress step by step to build mutual trust, find the right way to get along, and make 2026 a year where the two major countries advance toward mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation.”

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2026-05-11/Why-is-the-world-watching-the-upcoming-China-US-summit–1N3u9OWFqdq/p.html

Contact:
CGTN Digital
[email protected]

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 9717302

LONDON, May 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Emerging Markets Global Advisory LLP (EMGA), announces that it has completed their first transaction for EVF General Finance Joint Stock Company (EVF) in Vietnam by securing US$ 25M from the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID).

Commenting on the transaction, EVF’s Head of Capital Markets, Dinh Ngoc Bao said: “We are pleased to have partnered with EMGA to secure this facility from the OPEC Fund. This transaction represents a significant milestone in EVF’s strategy to expand access to financing for Vietnam’s SME sector, a key driver of the country’s economic growth and innovation.

“We share a strong alignment with the OPEC Fund in supporting entrepreneurship and promoting sustainable private sector development. We believe this partnership establishes a solid platform for broader future collaboration, enabling us to further strengthen support for businesses, accelerate economic development, and create long-term opportunities in the international capital market.”

EMGA’s Head of Investment Banking and Managing Director Sajeev Chakkalakal said, “We are pleased to close this first transaction and ensure EVF’s continued vision to supporting the SME sector, as well as climate action in Vietnam. It was also a very positive experience working with our long-term partner OFID as they looked to expand their exposure in the Vietnamese financial sector.”

EMGA’s Head of Operations and Managing Director Jeremy Dobson added, “This funding line adds to our existing track record in Vietnam and is the first time that we have worked with a non-banking financial institution (NBFI) in the country. We believe that this debt financing will help diversify EVF’s funding base and look forward to further cooperation soon.”

EVF General Finance Joint Stock Company (EVF) is one of Vietnam’s leading non-bank financial institutions, established in 2008 and headquartered in Hanoi. The company provides a broad range of financial services, including corporate financing, treasury, capital mobilization, and lending solutions for institutional and retail clients. Listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange under the ticker “EVF,” the company has developed strong partnerships with domestic and international financial institutions while supporting the growth of Vietnam’s private sector and SME economy.

Emerging Markets Global Advisory LLP (EMGA), with offices in London and New York, helps financial institutions and corporates seeking new debt or equity capital. EMGA’s multi-national team combines the decades of experience necessary to complete transactions on behalf of their clients within the world’s emerging markets and frontier economies, including Vietnam which remains a key market. With a proven track record in capital formation and strategic advisory throughout diverse economic cycles, EMGA continues expanding its geographic reach and service offering, solidifying its place in the market as one of the industry’s pre-eminent emerging markets focused niche investment banks.

Contact [email protected]

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 1001181036