Author profile

Karen Joy Bacudo

Finance Editor

Karen wears two hats at TechDay, balancing her role as an editor while assisting with finance tasks. She bridges writing content and reconciling numbers to support the team, with the same level of accuracy and precision.

Email Call LinkedIn Team

Global Stories

Virtualisation

Arrcus triples bookings & unveils AI inference fabric

Arrcus triples 2025 bookings as it launches an AI inference network fabric to cut latency and speed traffic across distributed sites.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Tue, 24th Feb 2026

Gaming

Mobile app installs & sessions keep climbing in 2025

Global mobile app installs jumped 10% in 2025 as sessions rose 7%, fuelled by surging finance and eCommerce usage in APAC and beyond.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Tue, 24th Feb 2026

Human Capital Management

New Zealand bosses plan pay rises as confidence grows

New Zealand employers plan pay rises and richer perks as economic optimism grows, with 84% expecting the outlook to lift staff salaries.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Tue, 24th Feb 2026

Digital Transformation

People skills hold key to digital finance adoption

Finance teams' digital tools sit idle as gaps in confidence, skills and internal networks stall automation and AI across organisations.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Mon, 23rd Feb 2026

Data Protection

Chartered accountants call for urgent practical AI training

Chartered accountants warn of widening AI skills gap as vast majority seek urgent, hands-on training to use new tools safely and effectively.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Mon, 23rd Feb 2026

Manufacturing

Finance AI stuck in risky mid-maturity 'AI middle'

Finance leaders warn of a risky 'AI middle' as many firms stall between pilots and governed, audit-ready use of automation in core workflows.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Fri, 20th Feb 2026

Firewalls

AlgoSec posts record 2025 growth on hybrid cloud demand

AlgoSec posts record 2025 as hybrid cloud surge drives 37% new business growth, strong ARR gains and rapid uptake of its Horizon platform.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Fri, 20th Feb 2026

DevOps

Selector raises USD $32m to boost AI observability push

Selector raises USD $32m at a USD $375m valuation to expand its AI-driven observability platform and accelerate global enterprise growth.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Fri, 20th Feb 2026

Software-as-a-Service

Emergent debuts mobile app after USD $100m run rate

Emergent launches mobile app for its AI software builder after hitting USD $100m annual run rate and doubling revenue in just one month.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 3 min read • Fri, 20th Feb 2026

Disaster Recovery

Volt gains NPP status to expand Australian PayTo reach

Volt secures Identified Institution status on Australia's NPP, unlocking direct PayTo and PayID services for merchants via a single API.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Thu, 19th Feb 2026

Encryption

Unicity Labs raises USD $3m to build agentic AI rails

Unicity Labs raises USD $3m seed round to build peer-to-peer protocol powering high-throughput autonomous agentic AI marketplaces.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 5 min read • Thu, 19th Feb 2026

Risk & Compliance

Unhedged FX losses push corporates back to hedging

Unhedged FX hits UK firms for GBP £6.71m and US peers for USD $9.85m on average, spurring a renewed shift towards defensive hedging.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 3 min read • Thu, 19th Feb 2026

Data Analytics

Internal auditors fear AI fraud but lack readiness

Internal auditors warn AI-driven fraud is surging, but most concede they lack the tools, skills and time needed to spot it effectively.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Thu, 19th Feb 2026

Digital Transformation

Audit firms embed AI while tightening validation controls

Audit firms embed AI in core workflows as new research shows rising adoption is matched by stricter validation, governance and training controls.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Thu, 19th Feb 2026

Software-as-a-Service

Palo Alto warns on earnings as guidance disappoints

Palo Alto Networks beat quarterly estimates but flagged weaker next-quarter earnings, unsettling investors despite stronger revenue and contract growth.

By Karen Joy Bacudo • 4 min read • Wed, 18th Feb 2026