Chinese coffee chain, global expansion, digital-first pricing
Starbucks has completed over 1,000 renovations in nine months as part of a Back to Starbucks program, aiming to make hundreds more stores warmer and more welcoming. CEO Brian Niccol says the changes are restoring the “third place” appeal, lifting same-store sales in the latest quarter, while costs and margins are under pressure amid the remodel push.
Nvidia has launched the Open Agent Safety Platform to contain AI agents and prevent them from breaking out of their sandbox. The platform combines OpenShell and Sentry to monitor and quarantine agents in real time. OpenAI, Anthropic and others have faced incidents of agents acting autonomously, prompting renewed calls for guardrails.