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Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Krishna Motukuri, CEO & cofounder of Zippin , a leading provider of checkout-free technology for retailers. Many of the biggest technology headlines in 2022 were about artificial intelligence (AI). Commercial and enterprise applications of generative AI such as ChatGPT are already making a big splash in 2023, but what about the retail industry? Here, the impact of AI is likely to widen and deepen this year. AI in particular may have an outsized impact on physical stores. It can be easy to forget that, amidst all the talk about e-commerce, most people still do the vast majority of their shopping in bricks and mortar stores. In 2022, physical stores still accounted for 87% of total retail sales in the U.S. Online retail continues to grow, but the bump in adoption caused by the pandemic has fallen back significantly and growth has slowed. This is especially true in food retail, where it has been estimated … [Read more...] about Why AI And Checkout-Free Technology Will Grow In 2023

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Landing a new job or returning to work after a lengthy absence can trigger many questions and even bring on feelings of apprehension. While employers have made great strides in granting candidate requests to address the ever-evolving employment landscape, employees still wonder: What can I expect? Will my employer create an environment that allows me to have balance yet flourish? Can I ask for what I need to be successful? Findings from research organizations suggest that prospective employees have more latitude today than in recent years – particularly during the Great Resignation when millions of workers left their jobs to seek higher pay and better work environments. A new Pew Research Center survey finds that the majority of American workers who quit a job in 2021 cited low pay (63%), a lack of opportunities for advancement (63%) and feeling disrespected (57%) as their top reasons. The survey also reports that those … [Read more...] about Starting A Job After A Lengthy Absence? Here’s What You Need To Know

Artificial intelligence is making headlines again, with Google releasing a rival to OpenAI’s ChatGPT called "Bard" to early testers. The company's new conversational AI service will be released to the public “in the coming weeks” after being tested by trusted testers for feedback, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said in a blog post . The technology aims to generate detailed answers when given simple prompts. Pichai also said Google plans to add AI-powered features to its search engine that synthesize information to answer complex queries like whether a guitar or the piano is easier to learn to play. Separately, Microsoft plans to hold an event today at its headquarters. The company didn’t disclose the content of the event, but speculation has centered on the company’s bets on artificial intelligence, including adding OpenAI’s ChatGPT bot into its Bing search engine. Bing currently has about a 9% share of the global search market. Last month, Microsoft said it was making a … [Read more...] about Alphabet and Microsoft Push New AI Features

What Is a Mega Backdoor Roth 401(k) Conversion? A mega backdoor Roth 401(k) conversion is a tax-shelter strategy available to employees whose employer-sponsored 401(k) retirement plans allow them to make substantial after-tax contributions in addition to their pretax deferrals and to transfer their contributions to an employer-designated Roth 401(k). The Build Back Better Act, H.R. 5376, passed by the House of Representatives on Nov. 19, 2021, contains provisions that, if enacted, would limit the ability of high-income taxpayers to accumulate extremely high-value balances in Roth 401(k)s and would eliminate backdoor Roth conversions for high-income taxpayers after Dec. 31, 2031. As of spring 2022, the Build Back Better Act remains stalled in the Senate, and these provisions may not come to pass, at least not in their current form. But mega backdoor Roth conversions remain an important issue—and a notable route to wealth for higher-income taxpayers. Key Takeaways H.R. … [Read more...] about Mega Backdoor Roth 401(k) Conversion: Overview and FAQ

Budget 2023 proposes to sharply increase the tax collected at source rate on money sent overseas under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme to 20 percent from 5 percent. To understand how this will impact you, let us first understand the concept of LRS and TCS. The Reserve Bank of India introduced the LRS in February 2004 to allow Indians to send money outside the country easily. The maximum amount that can be remitted under the scheme has been revised periodically, based on the prevailing macro- and microeconomic conditions: Under the scheme, currently, one can remit up to $250,000 per family member (including minors) in each financial year. So a family of four can remit up to $1 million in a financial year. Money can be remitted overseas for expenses such as: Travel for tourism, business, or employment Education Medical treatment Maintenance of a relative Gifts or donations Remittances are also allowed for capital account transactions like: Opening … [Read more...] about Tax collected at source on foreign remittances: One step forward, two steps back

Budget 2023 has proposed to make the new income tax regime as the default one In a major boost to the new income-tax regime, the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1 proposed to make the new income-tax regime as the default system. A major shift in the way income tax has been provisioned at the salary-payment stage and the return-filing stage has been proposed under the Union Budget 2023 -24. The Government has proposed to make the new income tax regime as the default tax regime. The new tax regime – first introduced in Union Budget 2020 – would now have five slabs instead of six slabs, with the lowest tax rate being 5% and the highest tax rate being reduced to 39% from 42.74%. Catch all live updates on Budget 2023 here Read More So far, the existing tax regime, with higher tax rates and 78-plus tax deductions was the default tax regime considered unless an individual opted for the new tax regime via a special form to be filled before … [Read more...] about Taxpayers note — New income-tax regime will be default tax regime now

Use tax planning to achieve your financial goals The gradual move towards a new, simplified tax system has been on the horizon of the government since the new tax regime was first introduced under the Union Budget 2020. After all the new tax regime is about low deductions and lower taxes. Yet, a complete tilt was still hanging. On Wednesday, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman finally announced the government’s seriousness in marking this shift. The FM said the government proposes to make the new tax regime as the default setting for all income tax returns from April 1, 2023. What forced the government’s hand? The answer may lie in a series of specific complaints by taxpayers. Tax processing centres and the tax department itself received complaints from individual assesses that a higher rate of tax was deducted even though they didn’t have any tax-saving or home loan. Read More “Since their taxes were deducted at a higher rate and they were clueless, there … [Read more...] about What may have forced the government to make new tax regime the default

My gun collection has grown large. With my sixth grandkid on the way, I wanted to buy another safe to lock away weapons and valuables. Then, when Joe Biden said we need not worry about the security of his classified documents, it occurred to me: I have a perfectly good two-car garage, too. Thanks for the security tip, Joe! When asked by a reporter who inadvertently practiced vigilant journalism about his cache of classified documents, Joe Biden said, “There is no there there.” This was a prickish, Democrat politician way to say, “Do not cover this story; I am totally guilty.”  It turns out documents were there, there, there and just about everywhere. Mike Pence just upped the ante on the classified documents gambit. He said he also had such top-secret documents in his home. This prompted our ever-vigilant federal government to ask all ex-presidents, “Hey guys, any of you cats have any of dem classified documents?” We will see what Obama and Dubya say, but Jimmy Carter … [Read more...] about HART: Classified Documents Here, There, Everywhere!

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin M icrosoft fired the opening salvo of Big Tech’s generative AI arms race Tuesday with an announcement that it’s applying the technology to its search engine and web browser. “It’s a new day in search,” CEO Satya Nadella said at an event at the company’s Redmond, Washington headquarters. “The race starts today… We’re going to move fast.” In a keynote presentation featuring remarks from both Nadella and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Microsoft said it had collaborated with OpenAI to set up Bing on a new large language model it claims is even more powerful than ChatGPT. The refreshed Bing provides a box with annotated AI answers to the right side of traditional search results. Users can also click on a new “Chat” tab which will replace the webpage with a chat interface similar to ChatGPT. The tech giant demoed example use cases, like generating customized meal plans and an itinerary of travel recommendations. Altman said Bing’s … [Read more...] about The New AI Wars Begin As Microsoft Announces ChatGPT Integration With Bing And Edge

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Popular Bloomberg News columnist Matt Levine likes to make a comical point in his popular Moneystuff column for Bloomberg that from the SEC’s perspective nearly everything a company does (or its executives) that violates the law can be construed as securities fraud. The Federal Trade Commission under Lina Khan has embraced a similarly omnivorous jurisdictional appetite by declaring that a wide array of heretofore commonly accepted business practice could potentially be construed as a violation of antitrust laws. Abandoning the notion that the FTC should be concerned first and foremost with consumer welfare and prices has given Khan the freedom to pursue an overtly political agenda, which a cursory exam of the industries in her crosshairs makes abundantly clear. Two issues in particular illustrate the extent to which the current FTC is pursuing a narrow ideological agenda rather than attempting to improve consumer welfare. … [Read more...] about The FTC’s Fight Against Non-Monopolies Won’t Help Consumers