RIF’s €2 Million Fast Track Innovation Programme: A Boost for Cypriot Businesses

by News Editor

March 10, 2025

The Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF) has unveiled an exciting opportunity for Cypriot businesses. Their Fast Track Innovation programme promises to be a catalyst for local companies looking to accelerate their growth and global presence. With a significant budget of €2 million, the initiative is set to fuel the development and commercialization of groundbreaking products and services.

Who Can Benefit?

This programme is open to innovative enterprises in Cyprus across various sectors, aiming for swift growth and international exposure. Eligible businesses must already be operational with a minimum annual turnover of €200,000, employ at least four people, and have products or services at the pilot stage.

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Funding and Timelines

Each project may receive up to €200,000 in funding, designed to be executed within 9 months. Applications are due by April 30, 2025, at 13:00. This timeline is stringent owing to additional resources from the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP), concluding by June 2026.

Additional Support And Information

An informative online seminar will be conducted on March 14, 2025, at 11:00 am. Participants can submit their proposals via the IRIS Portal. For more details, contact RIF‘s support team by email or phone.

Explore the transformative power of innovation with RIF’s latest initiative and potentially position your business among Cyprus’s success stories. Could your enterprise be the next big thing?

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Zendesk Acquires Forethought To Strengthen AI Customer Support Tools

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

March 12, 2026

Zendesk, a company known for customer support software, has announced the acquisition of artificial intelligence startup Forethought. The deal is expected to close by the end of March and represents another step in the growing use of AI to automate customer service operations.

Strategic Innovation In Customer Service

Forethought has been developing AI tools for customer support automation for several years. The company first gained industry recognition after winning the TechCrunch Battlefield competition in 2018, well before the widespread adoption of generative AI tools.

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Since then, Forethought has expanded its customer base to include companies such as Grammarly, Airtable, Upwork and Datadog. By 2025, the platform was processing more than one billion customer interactions each month, highlighting the growing role of automation in support operations.

Pioneering Leadership And Industry Recognition

Deon Nicholas, Forethought’s co-founder and chairman, hailed the acquisition as a milestone in a recent LinkedIn post. According to Nicholas, advances in AI over the past several years have accelerated adoption across multiple industries, particularly in areas that rely heavily on customer communication and service management.

Enhancing Zendesk’s Product Portfolio

The integration of Forethought’s technology is expected to expand Zendesk’s AI capabilities across its product suite. Company executives said the acquisition could accelerate development of several planned features by more than a year. These capabilities include specialized AI agents, systems that improve automatically through usage data and more advanced voice-based customer support tools. Zendesk has previously expanded its platform through acquisitions, including companies such as Zopim and BIME Analytics, which added messaging and analytics functionality to its products.

Implications For The Future

The acquisition reflects a broader shift in the software industry toward AI-driven automation of customer service tasks. Companies are increasingly using AI systems to handle routine inquiries while human agents focus on more complex cases. Zendesk’s move highlights how enterprise software providers are investing in AI technologies to improve efficiency and scale customer support operations as demand for digital service channels continues to grow.

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