Archives May 2026

Business Wire India

Marquee Brands, the premier global brand management company and leading brand accelerator, today announced a definitive agreement for a majority interest in Roberto Cavalli, through a strategic partnership with DAMAC Group, the leading Dubai-based global conglomerate and luxury real estate developer. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026, after which DAMAC Group will remain a significant shareholder. Founded in Florence in 1970, Roberto Cavalli the iconic luxury house celebrated for its avant-garde design and distinct Italian craftsmanship joins Marquee Brands’ portfolio of timeless global brands, including Martha Stewart, Laura Ashley, Sur La Table, BCBGMAXAZRIA and Stance. The addition of Roberto Cavalli further strengthens Marquee Brands’ position as a leader in the luxury and lifestyle sectors, bringing total portfolio-wide retail sales to approximately US$5 billion.

 

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260520070705/en/

 

 

 

“Roberto Cavalli stands as one of luxury’s defining Italian houses, with a bold creative identity and enduring brand ethos,” said Heath Golden, CEO, Marquee Brands. “We see extraordinary potential to build on that foundation through thoughtful brand stewardship and strategic expansion. In partnership with DAMAC, a leader in luxury real estate, we will continue to elevate the Roberto Cavalli experience worldwide.”

 

Hussain Sajwani, Founder of DAMAC Group, said: “Roberto Cavalli is one of the most distinctive luxury brands in the world. After several years of solidifying the brand’s foundation, we set out to find a strategic partner with the skillset to take the brand to the next level. We are confident Marquee Brands is the right partner to do so. Given our love for the brand and meaningful ongoing shareholdings, we look forward to supporting Marquee Brands’ efforts, by among other things, continuing to expand the Roberto Cavalli lifestyle through branded residences and hospitality projects in premier global destinations, an area that remains fully owned and operated by DAMAC. This collaboration marks an exciting new era for the brand. We look forward to its significant future expansion.”

 

 

Marquee Brands, owned by funds managed by Neuberger, a global investment management firm, continues to scale its global platform by acquiring heritage brands with deep consumer resonance. Roberto Cavalli marks the twenty-second brand in Marquee Brands’ portfolio.

 

 

“Marquee Brands has established a proven, capital‑efficient business model for driving growth through disciplined brand management, strategic partnerships and a long-term investment horizon,” said Zachary Sigel, Managing Director at Neuberger and Co-Founder of Marquee Brands. “The acquisition of Roberto Cavalli reinforces Neuberger’s confidence in the platform and its ability to continue to create value for investors.”

 

 

The partnership between Marquee Brands and DAMAC expands the global reach of the Roberto Cavalli brand, bringing together their complementary strengths and shared commitment to elevating the legendary Italian maison. Marquee Brands will accelerate Roberto Cavalli’s growth by introducing new categories, services and experiential touchpoints across Europe, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Latin America.

 

 

DAMAC will continue to scale the brand’s presence through Roberto Cavalli-branded residences and hospitality projects across key global markets, reinforcing the brand’s luxury position and desirability. The partnership creates a powerful platform that unites Marquee Brands’ expertise in global brand development with DAMAC’s leadership in luxury real estate and hospitality, unlocking significant new opportunities for the future of Roberto Cavalli.

 

 

As part of the transaction, Marquee Brands announces Milan-based partner The Level Group (TLG) as its core operating partner. TLG will lead the development, manufacturing and distribution of the brand’s women’s and men’s collections, ensuring a unified and elevated product vision across key markets. In addition, TLG will assume responsibility for retail and e‑commerce operations and wholesale distribution in Europe and the United States, strengthening Roberto Cavalli’s direct-to-consumer presence and global retail strategy.

 

 

RBC Capital Markets served as financial advisor and Greenberg Traurig acted as legal advisor to Marquee Brands. BDA Partners served as financial advisor to DAMAC Properties.

 

 

ABOUT ROBERTO CAVALLI

 

 

Founded in 1970, Roberto Cavalli is a leading Italian brand in fashion, accessories and luxury lifestyle. Defined by a glamorous contemporary aesthetic, the brand is the quintessential expression of Italian excellence, craftsmanship and its Mediterranean origins. The Roberto Cavalli portfolio is positioned within the luxury segment and includes the Home, Junior, Eyewear, Perfumes, Watches and Just Cavalli collections. www.robertocavalli.com

 

 

ABOUT MARQUEE BRANDS

 

 

Marquee Brands is the premier accelerator of timeless brands, unlocking value and building global influence. With a focus on driving growth and building sustainable brand equity, we partner with best-in-class manufacturers, operators, retailers, and distributors to scale brands across markets and channels. Marquee Brands’ global portfolio spans three distinct platforms: Home & Culinary, Fashion & Lifestyle, Luxury and Active & Outdoor. The portfolio of brands includes Martha Stewart, Laura Ashley, Sur La Table, Emeril Lagasse, America’s Test Kitchen, BCBGMAXAZRIA, BCBG, Ben Sherman, Bruno Magli, Anti Social Social Club, Totes, Isotoner, Destination Maternity, Motherhood, A Pea in the Pod, Stance, Dakine and Body Glove. For more information visit, www.marqueebrands.com.

 

 

ABOUT NEUBERGER PRIVATE MARKETS

 

 

Neuberger Private Markets is a division of Neuberger and has been an active and successful private markets investor since 1987. Neuberger Private Markets invests across strategies, asset classes, and geographies for a large number of sophisticated and renowned institutions and individuals globally. As of December 31, 2025, Neuberger Private Markets manages over $155 billion of investor commitments across primaries, co-investments, secondaries, private credit, and specialty strategies. Neuberger Private Markets has an experienced and diverse team of over 500 professionals with a global presence in 17 offices globally.

 

 

ABOUT DAMAC GROUP

 

 

DAMAC Group is a global private business conglomerate founded by Hussain Sajwani in 1982. Starting in catering and logistics, it has expanded into diverse industries, including real estate, hospitality, data centers, fashion, and capital markets. DAMAC Properties is the largest private real estate developer in the UAE and the Middle East, and has been at the forefront of the Middle East’s luxury real estate market since 2002, delivering award-winning residential, commercial and leisure properties across the region and internationally, including in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, the Maldives, Canada, the United States, as well as the United Kingdom. Since then, DAMAC has delivered more than 50,000 homes with over 55,000 more in diverse planning and development phases, joining forces with some of the world’s most eminent fashion and lifestyle brands to create tremendous living experiences, such as Roberto Cavalli and de GRISOGONO. With a consistent vision and momentum, DAMAC is building the next generation of luxury living across the globe. The Group also owns hotel assets under brands such as Radisson, Paramount, and Rotana, with an expanding hospitality portfolio. Beyond real estate, DAMAC is a leader in the data center industry through DAMAC Digital and has acquired luxury brands Roberto Cavalli and de GRISOGONO. Through DAMAC Capital, it invests in future-focused industries like tech, finance, and life sciences. Committed to social impact, the Hussain Sajwani – DAMAC Foundation supports education, innovation, and community-driven initiatives. For more information visit, www.damacgroup.com

 

 

 

 

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260520070705/en/

 

Business Wire India

Variational, a protocol for on-chain derivatives trading, has announced a ~$50M Series A raise led by Dragonfly with support from Bain Capital Crypto, Coinbase Ventures, and other strategic investors. The funding coincides with the launch of the protocol’s first Real-World Asset (RWA) markets. This initial rollout allows traders to access perpetuals on select commodities alongside their crypto portfolio, laying the groundwork for Variational to route liquidity directly from traditional markets in the coming months.

 

While the broader crypto industry is attempting to bootstrap RWA liquidity from scratch on isolated Central Limit Order Books (CLOBs), Variational introduces a fundamentally different architecture. Instead of starting new order books from scratch for each new market, Variational aggregates and routes liquidity from both existing traditional and on-chain markets.

 

 

By solving this “cold start” problem, Variational will allow traders to access a massive menu of global assets, from indices and single-name stocks to FX and crypto, all from a single account.

 

 

In January 2025, Variational was released into an invite-only private beta. Since then, the trading platform has processed $200+ billion in trading volume across 50k+ accounts, accumulated over $750 million in open interest, and shared over $7 million in rewards with traders.

 

 

“You can’t rebuild forty years of traditional market depth from scratch on a crypto order book,” said Lucas Schuermann, CEO of Variational. “Traditional finance solved this problem with the brokerage model–we’re bringing that model on-chain, aggregating RWA liquidity from where it already exists rather than waiting for it to migrate.”

 

 

Variational’s initial “Phase 1” RWA release includes gold, silver, copper, and WTI Crude. This initial rollout is intended to stress-test the protocol’s cross-margin engine and on-chain settlement using aggregated crypto-native liquidity. Once the infrastructure is validated, “Phase 2” will begin routing liquidity directly from TradFi sources, aiming to bring over 100+ new markets on-chain this summer.

 

 

“Order books are fine when you have the liquidity to anchor them. But for the massive universe of RWAs, more often it’s a mistake. Everyone else is trying to suck liquidity through a straw, spending millions on incentives just to end up with thin books and volatile pricing,” said Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly. “Variational’s model sidesteps that entirely, mainlining liquidity from traditional markets directly on-chain. It’s what ‘perps on everything’ requires to work at scale.”

 

 

Variational’s roadmap for 2026 includes listing more RWA markets, further deepening RWA liquidity with additional partnerships, and releasing a trading API. Progress can be followed on Variational’s X Account.

 

 

About Variational

 

 

Variational is a peer-to-peer trading protocol for perpetuals and generalized derivatives that has processed $200B+ in trading volume. Variational powers Omni, a zero-fee trading platform that aggregates liquidity from both on-chain and traditional markets.

 

 

Variational is built by a veteran team with decades of experience from firms like Google, Meta, Virtu, IMC, and Jane Street, and backed by leading investors including Dragonfly, Bain Capital Crypto, and Coinbase Ventures.

 

 

For more information, visit https://variational.io.

 

 

About Dragonfly

 

 

Dragonfly is a $4B crypto-focused global investment firm. Since 2017, Dragonfly has been at the forefront of blockchain and crypto innovation with a long-term oriented, technical, and research-driven approach, having been early backers of some of the most influential protocols and companies in the industry.

 

 

 

 

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260520402312/en/

 

Business Wire India

TestMu AI (formerly LambdaTest), the world’s first full-stack Agentic AI Quality Engineering platform, today announced two major enhancements to its Real Device Cloud: expanded support for Playwright automation across multiple programming languages and the introduction of Audio Injection and Live Audio Input capabilities for real iOS devices.

 

These updates address a growing need for testing modern applications that are not only cross-platform but also increasingly multimodal, involving voice, audio, and real-time user interactions.

 

 

With the latest release, TestMu AI now supports running Playwright tests on real devices using Java, Python, and C# in addition to existing capabilities. This allows enterprise teams to adopt Playwright within their preferred language ecosystems without being restricted to JavaScript-based workflows.

 

 

As Playwright adoption continues to grow across engineering teams, this enhancement enables seamless integration of real device testing into existing automation pipelines, improving coverage and reliability across mobile environments.

 

 

In addition, TestMu AI has also introduced Audio Injection and Live Audio Input for real android and iOS devices, enabling teams to simulate and validate microphone-based interactions directly during test execution. This capability allows testers to inject pre-recorded audio or stream live input into devices, making it possible to automate testing for use cases such as KYC voice verification, speech-to-text, in-app audio recording, conferencing workflows, and audio-driven user journeys.

 

 

“Applications today are no longer just visual; they are interactive, voice-enabled, and context-driven,” said Mudit Singh, Co-Founder and Head of Growth at TestMu AI. “Testing these experiences requires infrastructure that can replicate real-world conditions. With multi-language Playwright support and audio testing on real iOS devices, we’re enabling teams to validate more realistic user scenarios without relying on manual intervention.”

 

 

Key enhancements include the ability to run Playwright automation on real devices across Java, Python, and C#, allowing teams to integrate testing seamlessly into diverse technology stacks. Tests are executed on actual mobile devices, ensuring accurate validation of real-world scenarios and behavior. The platform also introduces audio injection for iOS devices, enabling the use of pre-recorded inputs for consistent, repeatable test scenarios, alongside live audio streaming for dynamic, real-time validation. Together, these capabilities extend testing coverage to voice-driven experiences such as speech-to-text systems, authentication workflows, virtual assistants, and other audio-based interactions.

 

 

These enhancements further strengthen TestMu AI’s Real Device Cloud by enabling teams to move beyond traditional UI validation and test increasingly complex, real-world user experiences at scale.

 

 

About TestMu AI (Formerly LambdaTest)

 

 

TestMu AI is the world’s first Agentic AI-native Quality Engineering platform, designed to enable organizations to automate and scale testing with intelligence at its core. By combining autonomous capabilities with seamless integration across modern development workflows, TestMu AI empowers teams to deliver faster, more reliable, and secure software in an AI-first world.

 

 

For more information, visit https://www.testmuai.com/

 

 

 

 

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260520627664/en/

 

Dr. Krishna Mohan Yarlagadda is a distinguished Robotic, Laparoscopic, Bariatric, and GI Surgeon with over 28 years of clinical practice in Hyderabad

Obesity is no longer viewed merely as a cosmetic issue. It is now recognized as a chronic medical condition closely linked to several serious diseases, including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, sleep apnea, fatty liver disease, joint disorders, infertility, hormonal imbalance, and reduced mobility. Beyond physical health, obesity often impacts emotional well-being, confidence, social participation, and overall quality of life.

Dr Krishnamohan Yarlagadda – Chief Director and Senior Consultant Robotic, Laparoscopic, Bariatric, and GI Surgeon at Amor Hospital, Hyderabad states that, “The rising burden of obesity in India is becoming a major public health concern, with increasing links to diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and reduced quality of life. Bariatric surgery has emerged as an effective and scientifically proven solution for individuals struggling with severe obesity, particularly when conventional weight-loss methods fail. With advancements in minimally invasive techniques and comprehensive post-operative care, patients today are experiencing safer procedures, faster recovery, and significant long-term health improvements.”

“In my clinical practice, I have obsevered many individuals struggling with obesity often spend years attempting weight loss through diets, exercise routines, medications, and lifestyle modifications, only to experience temporary or unsustainable results. Unfortunately, social stigma, misinformation, and the misconception that obesity is solely a matter of self-control frequently delay timely medical intervention,” he adds. Some people even trying medications without having proper understanding. One  must get tested for pancreatitis, thyroid status and visual health issues before taking these Weightloss drugs. They do have side effects and these drugs can be effective for  Weightloss maximum 15 kg usually in chosen few people under medical supervision and whenever they stop medication, there is possibility of getting back all the lost weight. A 150 kg person with or without comorbidities by losing 15 or 20 kg is not achieving the optimal weight with those medications. Bariatric Surgery, for sure, helps those people to loss weight efficiently and scientifically.

 As obesity-related disorders continue to rise, there is growing awareness regarding scientifically supported treatment approaches that focus not only on weight reduction but also on improving long-term metabolic health. Over the years, bariatric surgery has evolved considerably with advancements in minimally invasive laparoscopic techniques, surgical technologies, anaesthesia, and post-operative care.

Modern bariatric procedures such as sleeve gastrectomy and gastric bypass are designed to support sustainable weight loss while improving metabolic functioning. These procedures help reduce stomach capacity, regulate hunger-related hormones, and improve obesity-associated medical conditions. Importantly, bariatric surgery today is increasingly focused on enhancing overall quality of life, mobility, energy levels, and long-term health outcomes.

Advancements in laparoscopic and minimally invasive surgery have significantly improved patient safety and recovery. Reduced surgical trauma, shorter hospital stays, lower post-operative discomfort, and faster return to daily activities are among the key benefits seen with modern bariatric care. Additionally, structured nutritional counselling, lifestyle guidance, psychological support, and long-term follow-up programs are playing a vital role in ensuring successful outcomes after surgery.

One of the most remarkable transformations observed after bariatric surgery is the improvement in obesity-related health conditions. Many patients experience better diabetes control, improved blood pressure, relief from joint pain, improved sleep quality, enhanced mobility, and greater confidence following significant weight loss.

Health experts emphasize that delaying treatment for severe obesity may increase the risk of long-term complications and irreversible health damage. Early medical evaluation and timely intervention can help improve both physical and emotional well-being while reducing the growing burden of obesity-related diseases in India.

At the same time, maintaining balanced nutrition, regular physical activity, and healthy lifestyle habits continues to remain essential for long-term metabolic health. Understanding obesity as a medical condition rather than a personal failure is crucial in encouraging individuals to seek timely support and appropriate treatment.

With continuous advancements in bariatric care, modern weight-loss surgery is helping many patients move beyond obesity-related complications and regain healthier, more active, and confident lives.

Business Wire India

Twilio (NYSE: TWLO), the infrastructure for customer engagement in the AI era, today announced it has been recognized as a Leader in the 2026 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS) for the fourth consecutive year.¹ Twilio also received the highest placement in Ability to Execute.²

 

Twilio delivers trusted communications and data-driven engagement for hundreds of thousands of customer accounts worldwide. Companies such as Best Buy, Netflix, All Nippon Airways (ANA), and CLEAR rely on Twilio to build personalized, scalable experiences for their customers. To us, this recognition reflects Twilio’s continued investment in unifying communications, real-time data, and AI into a single, developer-friendly platform – built to power the contextual customer experiences that today’s businesses demand.

 

 

Twilio believes this recognition builds on Twilio’s broader positioning as the infrastructure layer at the center of the CPaaS, CCaaS, CDP, and AI convergence. In late 2025, Gartner also named Twilio the company to beat for AI CPaaS.³ Together, we believe these recognitions affirm Twilio’s place as the platform that enterprises and developers turn to as AI reshapes how businesses engage with their customers.

 

 

This recognition comes as Twilio continues to expand its platform, with recent innovations including:

 

 

• Voice AI and Conversation Relay: Enables developers to build sophisticated, natural-language voice agents using their preferred LLM, with real-time streaming, PCI-compliant voice workflows, native integration of real-time speech-to-text models, and programmatic access to latency and quality analytics.
• Agentic Platform Capabilities: Twilio’s Agent Connect, Conversation Orchestrator, and Conversation Memory capabilities enable businesses to connect their existing AI agents to Twilio’s Voice and Messaging channels and deploy them across customer touchpoints- ensuring every conversation is persistent, contextual, and actionable. Conversation Intelligence extends this further with generative AI language operators that turn live conversations into actionable, real-time intelligence that enhances human agents and triggers immediate actions like automated workflows across voice and messaging channels.
• Twilio Console: A completely redesigned console serves as a centralized command center for customers, featuring Twilio Workbench for developer productivity and an integrated AI assistant, making it easier to explore and manage Twilio products in one place.

 

 

“Twilio believes it created the CPaaS category, and four consecutive years as a Leader reflects how much we’ve continued to shape it. What started as APIs for SMS and voice has evolved into a full platform for continuous, contextual customer engagement,” said Kathryn Murphy, SVP of Product at Twilio. “As we enter the agentic era, we’re doing what we’ve always done: building the infrastructure businesses need to have real conversations with their customers, whether those conversations are powered by humans or AI.”

 

The 2026 Gartner Magic Quadrant for CPaaS is available as a complimentary download, here.

 

 

Gartner Disclaimer

 

 

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

 

 

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner and Magic Quadrant is a registered trademark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

 

 

Source: Gartner®, Magic QuadrantTM for Communications Platform as a Service, Lisa Unden-Farboud, Pankil Sheth, Ajit Patankar, May 18, 2026

 

 

Forward-Looking Statements

 

 

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Twilio’s commitment to building infrastructure for the agentic era; expectations regarding our platform and solutions; and future investment in and availability of new products.

 

 

You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events, the outcome of which are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements, including those more fully described in our most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

 

Forward-looking statements represent our beliefs and assumptions only as of the date such statements are made and we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

 

 

About Twilio

 

 

Twilio (NYSE: TWLO) is the infrastructure for customer engagement in the AI era. By combining global communications, memory, and AI orchestration with identity, governance, and observability, Twilio enables businesses to deliver continuous, contextual, personal, and secure conversations across every channel and participant – human or AI.

 

 

Across 180+ countries, hundreds of thousands of the most innovative companies – from the Fortune 500 to startups – and millions of developers, rely on Twilio’s global platform across messaging, voice, email, and beyond, to power trusted customer experiences that drive real results. For more information about Twilio visit www.twilio.com.

 

 

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1 Gartner®, Magic QuadrantTM for Communications Platform as a Service, Lisa Unden-Farboud, Ajit Patankar, Brian Doherty, Daniel O’Connell, September 18, 2023 Gartner®, Magic QuadrantTM for Communications Platform as a Service, Lisa Unden-Farboud, Ajit Patankar, Pankil Sheth, Brian Doherty, June 24, 2024   Gartner®, Magic QuadrantTM for Communications Platform as a Service, Lisa Unden-Farboud, Manoj Bhatia, Pankil Sheth, Ajit Patankar, July 21, 2025   2 Gartner®, Magic QuadrantTM for Communications Platform as a Service, Lisa Unden-Farboud, Pankil Sheth, Ajit Patankar, May 18, 2026   3 Gartner®, AI Vendor Race: Twilio Is the Company to Beat for CPaaS AI, Ajit Patankar, Lisa Unden-Farboud, December 8, 2025

 

 

 

 

 

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260520338345/en/