AEON

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck a mall in southern Japan, followed by an explosion that caused partial collapse and casualties. The mall operator Aeon is investigating a possible gas leak, and rescue operations are underway with 170 soldiers deployed. The mall had recently reopened after being damaged in a 2016 earthquake and highlighted seismic safety improvements.

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck southern Japan, killing at least 13 people and causing infrastructure damage. Rescuers pulled eight survivors from a partially collapsed Aeon Mall in Kumamoto, where three died and four workers remain missing. Authorities investigate a possible gas explosion at the mall as part of recovery efforts involving over 4,500 soldiers.

A magnitude 7.1 earthquake in Japan's Kyushu region may pressure stocks of companies including Aeon and Nippon Paper. The quake killed at least five people and could impact operations on the southwestern island.

AEON has raised $8 million in funding led by YZi Labs to build a settlement layer for AI agents, aiming to support interactions between them. This new layer is designed to facilitate agent-to-agent interactions. The funding will be used to develop this technology.

BMW Group is integrating humanoid robots into its EV production lines in Germany and South Carolina, partnering with Hexagon Robotics to test AI-powered AEON robots in real production environments. These robots use Physical AI to adapt to dynamic factory settings, aiming to enhance efficiency without replacing human workers.