SINGAPORE, July 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — With heat waves sweeping across Asia this summer, travelers are feeling the burn. Digital travel platform Agoda is encouraging travelers to embrace reverse-season travel by heading to destinations where the air is crisp, the landscapes are lush, and the weather is refreshingly cool. Whether it’s sipping tea in misty mountain resorts, hiking through terraced rice fields, or simply enjoying a sweater-worthy breeze, Agoda’s curated list of destinations offers the perfect antidote to the summer heat.

• Leh, Ladakh, India

Nestled in the Himalayas, Leh is a high-altitude town where the air is crisp, and the temperatures remain refreshingly cool even in the peak of summer. Travelers can explore ancient monasteries, trek through rugged landscapes, or simply soak in the serene beauty of this Himalayan gem.

• Sapa, Vietnam

Known for its terraced rice fields and misty weather, Sapa is a mountainous retreat that feels like stepping into a postcard. Visitors can hike through lush valleys, interact with local hill tribes, and enjoy the cool, rejuvenating air of this northern Vietnamese treasure.

• Dieng Plateau, Indonesia

Located in Central Java, the Dieng Plateau is a volcanic highland known for its cool temperatures and mystical landscapes. Travelers can explore ancient temples, hike to colorful crater lakes, and enjoy the refreshing mountain air.

• Alishan, Taiwan

Perched at 2,200 meters above sea level, Alishan is a mountain resort area that offers misty mornings, cool weather, and breathtaking sunrises. Travelers can ride the iconic Alishan Forest Railway, wander through ancient cypress forests, or sip on locally grown high-mountain tea.

• Dalat, Vietnam

Dubbed the “City of Eternal Spring,” Dalat’s temperate climate and European-inspired architecture make it a charming escape. Visitors can stroll through flower gardens, visit picturesque waterfalls, or enjoy a leisurely boat ride on Xuan Huong Lake.

• Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture, Japan

This mountain resort town is a favorite summer retreat for its mild weather and scenic beauty. Karuizawa offers everything from cycling trails and hiking paths to boutique shopping and hot springs, making it a versatile destination for all types of travelers.

• Gangwon Province, South Korea

Home to alpine landscapes and cool breezes, Gangwon Province is a haven for outdoor enthusiasts. Visitors can hike through lush mountains, visit the 2018 Winter Olympics venues, or relax by the region’s pristine rivers and lakes.

Krishna Rathi, Associate Vice President at Agoda, shared, “When the summer heat turns up, it’s time to turn down the thermostat with a cool getaway. Agoda makes it easy to find destinations where you can swap sweat for sweaters and enjoy a refreshing escape. Whether you’re chasing misty mountains or breezy highlands, Agoda’s got you covered with great deals on accommodations, activities and flights to beat the summer heat.”

Agoda’s offerings include over 6 million holiday properties, more than 130,000 flight routes, and over 300,000 activities, all of which can be combined in a single booking. Travelers can explore these destinations and more by visiting Agoda.com or downloading the Agoda mobile app, where the best deals are just a tap away.

AI-powered app development leader reports growing adoption of agentic AI, signaling shifts in workforce skills and software development dynamics

SINGAPORE, July 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — New research from OutSystems, a leading AI-powered low-code development platform, points to an increasing trend in agentic AI prioritization among software executives, with 93% of organizations already developing—or planning to develop—their own custom AI agents. The report, Navigating Agentic AI & Generative AI in Software Development: Human-Agent Collaboration is Here, was completed in collaboration with CIO Dive and KPMG, exploring the widespread use of AI across the SDLC in businesses around the world.

Today’s IT leaders are under immense pressure to deliver measurable business value while managing constrained resources and aligning technology investments with long-term strategic goals. The introduction of agentic AI helps address these demands by tackling challenges that traditional technology approaches can often exacerbate: fragmented tools, and limited ability to leverage data siloed across the organization and integrate its existing systems. With agentic AI, leaders can automate large-scale processes, create hyper-personalized digital experiences, and drive innovation with agility. Capable of enabling seamless enterprise-wide data access and upholding rigorous standards for compliance, security, and governance, agentic AI is poised to transform business processes and experiences and help organizations embrace an AI-first future.

“The software development lifecycle is undergoing a significant transformation as organizations increase AI investments to maintain their competitive edge. Blending AI with development tools enables IT leaders to manage this shift effectively and securely,” said Woodson Martin, CEO of OutSystems. “In a near future, AI agents acting as highly specialized teams will continuously monitor business needs, identify opportunities, and proactively refine software solutions, allowing developers and business leaders to play a more creative role and focus on strategic priorities. This report underscores how AI advancements are reshaping traditional roles and unlocking opportunities for innovation and collaboration between humans and technology.”

The OutSystems report, which includes survey responses from 550 global software executives, examines how AI adoption is transforming software development processes, with measurable impacts. More than two thirds of respondents reported increased developer productivity, and improved software quality through fewer bugs. 62 percent of respondents also reported improved scalability of development efforts, and 60 percent pointed to gains in enhanced testing and quality assurance (QA) efficiency. With AI acting as the catalyst for a reimagined software development process, these advancements go beyond efficiency gains. They’re empowering developers to shift their focus from repetitive tasks to crafting unique solutions in partnership with business leaders and solving more complex user challenges, leading to the creation of new roles and improved innovative agility and scalability.

The report also found that increases in and experimentation with agentic AI over the next 24 months will spur workforce transformation and innovation throughout the organization. The majority of software executives (69%), anticipate AI will introduce new, more specialized roles (e.g., oversight, governance, prompt engineering, agent architect, and agent orchestration) to accommodate the evolving role AI will play within organizations. More than three out of five respondents (63%) also feel that AI will require substantial upskilling or reskilling within existing development teams.

Additional key findings from the report include:

• A growing shift toward AI-driven autonomy: Custom AI agents are becoming central to the shift toward more autonomous, AI-driven operations. Nearly half of software executives (46%) report that their organizations are already integrating agentic AI into applications and workflows, with another 28% of respondents actively piloting such solutions.
• Customer service use cases top agent development efforts: Almost half of respondents (49%) are planning to adopt AI agents for customer support to autonomously handle inquiries and support tasks, underscoring a drive to improve customer experience and scale support efficiently. At this time, fewer executives are prioritizing agent-augmented applications in areas like product development (38%), sales and marketing (32%), supply chain management (28%), human resources (24%), or finance and accounting (23%).
• Investments in AI to achieve critical business outcomes are increasing: Primary drivers for AI adoption—expressed by more than half of respondents— include improving the customer experience (56%), automating routine and repetitive development tasks (55%), expediting software development timelines (54%), and accelerating digital transformation (53%).
• AI-driven automation introduces new governance, security, and scaling challenges: While AI-powered automation unlocks significant potential, its broader adoption has introduced significant governance, security, and compliance risks. More than three out of five software executives cite these challenges (64%) alongside concerns over the transparency and reliability of AI-generated decisions (64%).
  • At the same time, the rapid proliferation of AI tools has created new fragmentation and oversight issues, with 44% of software executives identifying increasing technical debt and AI sprawl as critical risks. Addressing these scaling challenges will be essential to realizing AI’s full potential in a responsible way.

“A lot of organizations started with pilots a year ago or even prior to that, but now they’re starting to see real efficiency gains in areas like code generation and application testing,” says Michael Harper, Managing Director at KPMG LLP. “Those activities are giving organizations more confidence in using these tools and helping them to move forward.”

Visit the dedicated page to view the full report and learn more about OutSystems

[METHODOLOGY] 

The research surveyed 550 software executives around the world whose companies span IT consultancy services, manufacturing, banking, financial services and insurance among others. The primary objective of the survey was to gather insights on AI and agentic AI adoption in the software development lifecycle from IT leaders. This survey was conducted between April 25, 2025 and May 5, 2025 across the U.S., U.K., Japan, France, Canada, Australia, India and Germany.

About OutSystems 

OutSystems is a leading AI-powered low-code development platform, empowering IT leaders with a better way to build the software that matters most. The OutSystems platform helps companies develop, deploy, and maintain mission-critical applications by unifying and automating the entire software lifecycle. With OutSystems, organizations leverage gen AI to deliver software instantaneously, adapt faster to changing requirements, and reduce technical debt by building on a future-proof platform. Helping customers achieve their business goals by addressing key strategic initiatives, OutSystems delivers production software up to 10x faster than traditional development. Recognized as a leader by analysts, IT executives, business leaders, and developers around the world, global brands trust OutSystems to tackle their impossible projects and turn their big ideas into software that moves their business, people, and the world forward. Founded in 2001, the company’s network spans more than 800,000 community members, over 500 partners, and active customers in 75+ countries across 21 industries. Learn more at www.outsystems.com.

BEIJING, July 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — “Pure by Nature: The Art of Blanc de Chine”, a major exhibition showcasing over 200 white porcelain masterpieces made in Dehua, east China’s Fujian Province, opened Friday at the China Art Museum (Shanghai Art Museum), marking the largest Dehua porcelain exhibition in Shanghai in recent years and also a key cultural event of the 36th Shanghai Tourism Festival.

Curated by Zhang Xiaoling, dean of the College of Fine Arts, East China Normal University, the exhibition systematically explores the historical legacy and contemporary innovation of Dehua porcelain through three distinct sections.

The “vitality through innovation” section presents classic works by modern masters alongside comparative pieces, highlighting the evolution of this ceramic tradition. The “echoes of history” features a chronological display centered around an installation inspired by the “Taixing” shipwreck, exhibiting precious historical Dehua ceramics from Quanzhou Museum. The “vessels of the future” showcases experimental works that transcend traditional forms and subjects.

Notable exhibits include the iconic Dehua porcelain tripod (“Shi Bo He Ding“), making its second trip to Shanghai after the Expo 2010 Shanghai China, and the groundbreaking polychrome sculpture “wish-fulfilling Buddha”, celebrated for its extraordinary craftsmanship.

Zhang Xiaoling emphasized that the exhibition reveals the spiritual essence of Dehua porcelain while examining its global significance through the lens of its historical role along the Maritime Silk Road. The show also explores its potential in contemporary cultural sectors.

Through Dehua porcelain, the show presents a modern interpretation of traditional Chinese cultural values, explained Xiang Liping, curator at the China Art Museum.

With centuries of porcelain-making tradition, Dehua white porcelain served as important cultural exports along ancient trade routes. Shanghai, a cradle of modern Chinese culture, has developed into a major hub for the marketing, research, and collection of Dehua white porcelain.

During the opening ceremony, the museum launched a “painting on porcelain” public education initiative, featuring live demonstrations by five Dehua intangible cultural heritage masters. The exhibition period will include porcelain painting workshops, thematic lectures, expert-guided tours, and specially developed cultural merchandise.

This collaborative exhibition between cultural institutions from Shanghai and Fujian represents a significant effort to promote the creative revitalization of China’s outstanding traditional culture, aiming to deepen regional cultural exchange and enrich public cultural experiences.

Original link: https://en.imsilkroad.com/p/346690.html

Became one of the world’s highest ESG leader groups

• The only company in the global passenger ground transportation industry to receive the highest AAA rating for two consecutive years
• Highest rating in ‘governance’ area, which has the highest weight in MSCI ESG evaluation
• Among domestic listed companies, only 11 companies, including LOTTE rental, SHINHAN Financial Group and SK Corporation received AAA

SEOUL, South Korea, July 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — LOTTE rental (https://www.lotterental.com/) received the highest AAA rating for two consecutive years in the 2025 ESG evaluation announced by Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI), a global investment information provider. LOTTE rental is the first and only company to receive a AAA rating in the global passenger ground transportation industry for two consecutive years, following last year.

MSCI ESG Evaluation is a global appraisal that evaluates the sustainability of companies and provides useful information to investors. Every year, the ESG management status of about 8,500 listed companies around the world is evaluated and classified into 7 levels (AAA-AA-A-BBB-BB-B-CCC). It is one of the most authoritative global rating agencies recognized by investors around the world.

LOTTE rental was listed on the stock market in August 2021 and has been receiving MSCI ESG evaluation since 2022. It received an AA rating, the highest level in the same industry, for two consecutive years in 2022 and 2023, and rose to the highest rating of AAA in last year’s evaluation.

In the 2025 MSCI ESG evaluation, AAA rating was given to only 13% of companies worldwide, a 2% decrease from last year. Along with LOTTE rental, there are only 11 domestic listed companies that received an AAA rating, including SHINHAN Financial Group and SK Corporation.

The MSCI report focused on carbon emissions when evaluating the Environment sector. LOTTE rental is implementing carbon neutrality (Net-Zero) roadmap that reduces net greenhouse gas emissions to zero. The roadmap was developed with 2018 as the base year, and the goal is to reduce net emissions by 35% by 2030 compared to 2018. Starting in 2022, the company has been measuring and reporting its Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions every year.

The sector with the largest increase in scores compared to the previous year is the Social sector. It received high scores for its top-level labor management and safety management within the same industry. It operates a safety management office, a safety-dedicated organization directly under the CEO, and continuously conducts safety inspections on all workplaces nationwide. Last year, 437 risk factors were improved through 125 on-site inspections.

The governance sector, which has the highest evaluation weight, has improved its score in all items. MSCI stated in the report that “it reflects a relatively low level of governance risk in most areas,” and “in particular, the ownership and control items and accounting items are evaluated as the best in class in the domestic market.” In order to ensure transparent and balanced board decision-making, a senior outside director system was introduced, and as part of the shareholder return policy, a dividend procedure that meets international standards was established.

This maintenance of the MSCI AAA rating is expected to have a positive impact on credit rating evaluations. This is because not only domestic institutional investors, but also domestic and foreign credit rating agencies and overseas institutional investors are significantly reflecting ESG ratings, especially governance factors, in corporate credit evaluations and are also considering them as important evaluation factors when investing in bonds and stocks.

Choi Jin-hwan, CEO of LOTTE rental, stated, “We will continue to lead the industry’s ESG management across the environment, society, and governance, and in particular, continue efforts to enhance shareholder value under a transparent and sound governance structure.” 

About LOTTE rental

LOTTE rental, the only comprehensive rental company in Korea, provides better value with various business portfolios, including auto mobility services that encompass car life, business solution services that support more effi­cient businesses.

LOTTE rent-a-car is creating an innovative car life as the No.1 car rental brand. LOTTE rent-a-car G car, Korea’s first car-sharing brand, is drawing a better mobility service.

LOTTE rental is moving forward as a mobility leader that connects customers’ precious lives.

For more information about LOTTE rental, please visit: https://www.lotterental.com/

SYDNEY, July 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Storage Solutions, a business of Godrej Enterprises Group, India, and one of the global leaders in industrial storage, warehousing & intralogistics solutions, is set to participate in CeMAT Australia 2025, taking place from 22–24 July at The Dome, Sydney Olympic Park. The company will exhibit at Booth I39, spotlighting its latest innovations engineered to meet the evolving needs of Australia’s logistics and warehousing sector. With a strong focus on safety and compliance, the leading Indian conglomerate will showcase its AS 4084-certified Racking and Shelving solutions designed to deliver superior performance, structural integrity, and operational efficiency.

Industrial racking and shelving solutions by Godrej Enterprises Group

Vikas Choudaha, Business Head, Storage Solutions, Godrej Enterprises Group, said, “As Australia’s logistics landscape undergoes rapid transformation, we see a significant opportunity to contribute with globally trusted, locally compliant solutions. Our participation at CeMAT Australia 2025 marks a strategic step in expanding our presence in high-growth international markets. As certified EN & AS 4084 racking manufacturers ensuring alignment with international regulations, we are committed to supporting Australian businesses with safe, scalable, and future-ready warehousing systems. With proven capabilities to execute large-scale, complex projects, we will continue to deliver scalable solutions across sectors.“

As a trusted racking manufacturer and a market leader in India and several global markets, with over 70 years of industry experience and a presence in more than 40+ countries, the Storage Solutions business has delivered large-scale projects for global giants including DHL, DB Schenker, Toll, Amazon, Coca-Cola, and Iron Mountain. These projects span diverse sectors such as logistics, e-commerce, engineering, food & beverage, and pharmaceuticals, demonstrating the company’s ability to deliver tailored solutions for complex operational environments.

Currently, over 20% of the business’s revenue is generated from international markets, with a goal to increase this to double within the next 2–3 years. Australia is a key focus in this expansion strategy, alongside the US, Europe, Middle East and South-East Asia. The business leverages high-quality steel available in India to offer durable, high-performance storage systems for global markets, including Australia. The business is also actively partnering with automation companies to supply integrated racking solutions for modern, automated warehouses. All products are made using RoHS-compliant materials, reflecting a strong commitment to health, safety, and environmental standards. As global supply chains become more agile and data-driven, the Storage Solutions business, a part of Godrej Enterprises Group, is well-positioned to deliver high-efficiency systems that align with the operational demands of modern enterprises.