Leading U.S. health and wealth distribution company excels in employee satisfaction and workplace culture
CLEARWATER, FLA. / ACCESS Newswire / July 7, 2025 / AmeriLife Group, LLC (“AmeriLife”), a national organization that develops, markets, and distributes life and health insurance, annuities, and retirement planning solutions, is proud to announce its certification as a Great Place to Work®. This prestigious recognition is based entirely on the feedback of current employees, with 83% of AmeriLife team members reporting that it is a great place to work, 26 points higher than the average employee satisfaction at U.S. companies.
“We are thrilled to be recognized as a Great Place to Work-Certified™ company,” said Scott R. Perry, chairman and CEO of AmeriLife. “At AmeriLife, we believe that our dedicated and talented team drives our success. We are committed to fostering a culture of trust, respect, and innovation, and this recognition is a testament to our ongoing efforts.”
“At AmeriLife, we are deeply committed to making our company an employer of choice by continually evolving our benefits and focusing on strengthening our company culture,” added Kiersten Burstiner, Chief Human Resources Officer of AmeriLife. “Our approach is centered around ensuring that every team member feels supported, valued, and connected to an environment where collaboration and growth are at the forefront of each interaction.”
According to Great Place To Work research, job seekers are 4.5 times more likely to find a great boss at a Certified Great Workplace. Additionally, employees at Certified workplaces are 93% more likely to look forward to coming to work. They are twice as likely to be paid fairly, earn a fair share of the company’s profits, and have a fair chance of promotion.
“Great Place To Work Certification is a highly coveted achievement that requires consistent and intentional dedication to the overall employee experience,” says Sarah Lewis-Kulin, Vice President of Global Recognition at Great Place To Work. “By successfully earning this recognition, it is evident that AmeriLife stands out as one of the top companies to work for, providing a great workplace environment for its employees.”
Great Place To Work® is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention, and increased innovation.
About AmeriLife AmeriLife’s strength lies in its mission: to provide insurance and retirement solutions that help people live longer, healthier lives. AmeriLife develops, markets, and distributes life and health insurance, annuities, and retirement planning solutions to enhance the lives of pre-retirees and retirees across the United States. For over 50 years, AmeriLife has partnered with top insurance carriers to provide value and quality to customers through a national distribution network of over 300,000 agents, financial professionals, and more than 160 marketing organizations and insurance agencies. For more information, visit AmeriLife.com and follow AmeriLife on Facebook and LinkedIn.
About Great Place to Work Certification™ Great Place To Work® Certification™ is the most definitive “employer-of-choice” recognition that companies aspire to achieve. It is the only recognition based entirely on what employees report about their workplace experience, specifically, how consistently they experience a high-trust workplace. Great Place To Work Certification is recognized worldwide by employees and employers alike and is the global benchmark for identifying and recognizing outstanding employee experience. Every year, more than 10,000 companies across 60 countries apply to get Great Place To Work-Certified.
About Great Place To Work® As the global authority on workplace culture, Great Place To Work® brings 30 years of groundbreaking research and data to help every place become a great place to work for all. Their proprietary platform and For All™ Model help companies evaluate the experience of every employee, with exemplary workplaces becoming Great Place To Work Certified™ or receiving recognition on a coveted Best Workplaces™ List. Learn more at greatplacetowork.com and follow Great Place To Work on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
GoodData AI capabilities, including AI Assistant and Smart Search, now available for self-hosted deployment. Keep your data private, compliant, and AI-fuelled.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA / ACCESS Newswire / July 7, 2025 / GoodData, the AI-native analytics platform, today announced GoodData AI is now available for self-hosted deployment. Enterprises can now run GoodData AI, including AI Assistant and Smart Search, entirely within their own infrastructure – on-premises or in a private cloud – with zero third-party data exposure.
With this launch, GoodData delivers the full promise of AI-driven analytics while honoring the strict privacy, compliance, and control requirements of modern enterprises. Self-hosting gives organizations total ownership of their analytics workflows, from natural language queries to insight generation, all within their secure perimeter.
“Enterprises shouldn’t have to choose between innovation and control. With self-hosted GoodData AI, we’re giving our customers the best of both worlds – cutting-edge generative analytics, deployed entirely on their terms. This is a major step toward making AI not just powerful, but practical and secure for every organization.”
Roman Stanek, Founder and CEO, GoodData
Enterprise-Grade AI, Fully Private
Self-hosted GoodData AI brings a new level of confidence to enterprises that demand the highest in data security. Key benefits include:
Enterprise Data Privacy: All interactions with AI, including queries, search, and generated insights, remain entirely within your environment. No external processing. No vendor lock-in.
Deployment Flexibility: Choose how and where to run your AI-powered analytics. GoodData supports deployment on-premises or in your private cloud, seamlessly integrating with your existing tools and infrastructure.
Compliance & Control: Align easily with regulatory standards such as GDPR, HIPAA, and others. Organizations maintain complete control over updates, access policies, and model tuning.
AI That Works Where You Work
Self-hosted GoodData AI isn’t just secure – it’s smart, scalable, and built to fit into any modern data ecosystem. From business users to developers, every part of the platform is engineered for seamless, intelligent interaction:
AI Anywhere: Add natural language analytics anywhere – UI, embedded apps, or workflows – with full white-label support for branded experiences.
Intelligent Semantic Layer and Ontology: AI that understands your business using governed, domain-aware semantic models that deliver contextually accurate answers.
Natural Language Insights: Get conversational access to precise answers, visualizations, and next steps, all aligned with your data model.
AI-Ready Analytics Lake: Built on a unified, high-quality data foundation that supports scalable, real-time AI interactions across all analytics layers.
Model Context Protocol (MCP) Support: Enables real-time, cross-system context that makes AI relevant. GoodData’s new MCP Server Beta program is now available!
Developer Tools and APIs: API-first architecture enables developers to embed, automate, and integrate AI into any enterprise workflow or application.
This architecture enables enterprises to bring AI directly into decision-making processes – quickly, intelligently, and securely.
“With the release of GoodData AI for self-hosted deployment, we’re making enterprise analytics more intelligent, accessible, and scalable than ever. These capabilities empower developers and business users alike to interact with governed data through natural language and intuitive search.”
Jan Franek, Senior Product Manager, GoodData
“We’re excited to bring GoodData into our ecosystem of partners, helping us deliver secure, self-hosted AI capabilities for public safety. By enabling agencies to ask questions in plain language and instantly turn data into actionable insights, we’re helping officers work more efficiently, accelerate investigations, and enhance community safety-all within a compliant, cloud environment that ensures full data privacy and control.”
Wendy Gilbert, SVP of Product, Mark43
AI, On Your Terms
With self-hosted GoodData AI, organizations can finally combine the flexibility of open architecture with the intelligence of next-gen analytics, while complying with the strictest security protocols.It’s the latest step in GoodData’s vision to bring trusted, explainable AI to every analytics interaction.
GoodData is the AI-native analytics platform built for speed, scale, and trust, helping companies deliver real-time insights – embedded, branded, and everywhere your users need them.
Founded in 2007, and with offices in both the U.S. and Europe, GoodData serves over 140,000 of the world’s top companies and 3.6 million users, helping them drive meaningful change and maximize the value of their data.
TORONTO, ON / ACCESS Newswire / July 7, 2025 / The Western Investment Company of Canada Limited (TSXV:WI) (“Western“) today announced the appointment of Pablo Dancuart as Chief Financial Officer effective August 7, 2025.
Mr. Dancuart brings over fifteen years of experience in the property and casualty insurance sector and a strong track record of leading finance organizations through transformative changes, including the full implementation of IFRS 17. Prior to joining Western, Mr. Dancuart served as Vice President of Finance and Procurement at Gore Mutual Insurance Company, where he was part of the team responsible for a successful transformation of this highly respected insurer, with contributions spanning all major areas of change including the implementation of modern technology platforms, reinvention of outdated operating models, the enhancement of people strategies and the execution of high-growth, value-added initiatives.
“We are very excited to have Pablo join our team with his expertise implementing significant transformational change, including with respect to IFRS 17” said Paul Rivett, Western’s Chief Executive Officer. “We believe Pablo will be a dedicated team member and culture builder as we start Western’s new chapter as an insurance and investment holding company.”
“We would like to thank our current Chief Financial Officer, Stacey Cross, for her dedication to Western over the years and for working tirelessly to get us through our recapitalization last year. Ms. Cross will support Mr. Dancuart through this transition.” said Mr. Rivett.
As part of Mr. Dancuart’s compensation, Western has agreed to grant 1,666,666 restricted share units (RSUs) priced at $0.60 per share. Fifty percent of these RSUs will cliff vest after five years, with the balance cliff vesting after 10 years. The grant of these RSUs is subject to approval by the TSXV. It is Western’s expectation that the shares necessary to support these RSUs will be purchased in the open market and will not be issued from treasury.
About The Western Investment Company of Canada Limited
Western is an insurance and investment holding company focused on decentralized ownership of insurance businesses and centralized investment management. Western’s shares are traded on the Toronto Venture Exchange under the symbol WI.
For more information on Western, please visit its website at www.westerninvest.ca.
To add yourself to Western’s email news alert subscription please visit this link.
This news release may contain certain forward-looking information and statements, including without limitation statements pertaining to future results and plans for Western and its associated companies, acquisitions, financings and returns. Statements containing the words: ‘believes’, ‘intends’, ‘expects’, ‘plans’, ‘seeks’ and ‘anticipates’ and any other words of similar meaning are forward-looking. All statements included herein involve various risks and uncertainties because they relate to future events and circumstances beyond Western’s control.
The forward-looking statements are based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by Western, including expectations and assumptions concerning the ability of Western to successfully implement its strategic plans and initiatives.
Although Western believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements made by Western are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because no assurance can be provided that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks. These include, but are not limited to, risks relating to regulatory compliance, risks relating to demand for the products and services provided by Fortress Insurance and other portfolio companies, risks relating to future growth prospects and business opportunities, risks that management is not able to execute its business strategy, and the impact of general economic conditions in Canada and the United States. A description of additional assumptions used to develop such forward-looking information and a description of risk factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking information can be found in Western’s disclosure documents on the SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.com.
The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and Western undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.
This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in the United States, nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.
“Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulatory Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.“
SOURCE: The Western Investment Company of Canada Limited
Clear Start Tax Supports IRS Push to Educate Filers and Preparers on Growing Identity Theft Dangers
IRVINE, CA / ACCESS Newswire / July 7, 2025 / With identity theft scams continuing to evolve, the IRS and its Security Summit partners have launched the 2025 “Protect Your Clients; Protect Yourself” campaign – a nationwide effort to educate tax professionals and taxpayers on the latest threats. Clear Start Tax is backing the initiative, warning that tax-related identity theft can impact not only refunds and IRS accounts but also long-term financial stability.
“This isn’t just a tax issue – it’s a security crisis,” said the Head of Client Solutions at Clear Start Tax. “When personal or business data is compromised, it’s often months before victims realize what’s happened. By then, fake returns are filed, refunds are gone, and the IRS account may be locked or flagged.”
What the IRS Identity Theft Campaign Covers
The IRS campaign, which launched July 1 to coincide with the start of the 2025 Nationwide Tax Forums, will release weekly guidance on how to detect, prevent, and respond to identity theft. The topics include:
Recognizing red flags of client data breaches
Using multi-factor authentication and secure portals
Protecting cloud-based software from phishing and ransomware
Reporting suspected fraud to the IRS Identity Protection unit
Clear Start Tax emphasizes that even individual filers who aren’t tax professionals should pay attention. Many scams target W-2 earners, gig workers, and small business owners, not just large firms.
How Identity Theft Impacts Everyday Taxpayers
Even if you’re not a tax professional, identity theft can cause serious problems when it comes to your IRS records. Clear Start Tax outlines what’s at stake:
Blocked or delayed refunds
IRS notices about returns the taxpayer never filed
False income reporting and audit triggers
Frozen or flagged IRS accounts
“Even one fraudulent return can take months to unwind,” said the Head of Client Solutions at Clear Start Tax. “And if the fraud overlaps with unpaid taxes or unfiled returns, the IRS can still pursue the real taxpayer for answers.”
How to Stay Ahead of Tax Identity Theft in 2025
Clear Start Tax urges both clients and tax professionals to take the following actions immediately:
Monitor IRS accounts for unfamiliar activity
Secure tax documents with encryption and password protection
Use IRS IP PINs (Identity Protection PINs) where available
Never click on suspicious emails or open unknown attachments
Report suspected identity theft to the IRS using Form 14039
If a client’s identity is compromised, Clear Start Tax helps restore IRS compliance by filing corrected documentation, resolving false balances, and working directly with the IRS.
Resolve Identity and Tax Issues – Before Enforcement Begins
In many cases, victims of identity theft also face back taxes or missing filings. Clear Start Tax helps clients get back into compliance – and may even qualify them for the IRS Fresh Start Program.
By answering a few simple questions, taxpayers can find out if they’re eligible for the IRS Fresh Start Program and take the first step toward resolving their tax debt.
About Clear Start Tax
Clear Start Tax is a full-service tax liability resolution firm that serves taxpayers throughout the United States. The company specializes in assisting individuals and businesses with a wide range of IRS and state tax issues, including back taxes, wage garnishment relief, IRS appeals, and offers in compromise. Clear Start Tax helps taxpayers apply for the IRS Fresh Start Program, providing expert guidance in tax resolution. Fully accredited and A+ rated by the Better Business Bureau, the firm’s unique approach and commitment to long-term client success distinguish it as a leader in the tax resolution industry.
The SPAC Market Trends & Sentiment Survey, recently conducted by DealFlow Events at The SPAC Conference
NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / July 7, 2025 / A new survey of SPAC market professionals released today reveals a cautiously optimistic outlook for the sector, with expectations for increased IPO activity and improved de-SPAC performance over the next year. The SPAC Market Trends & Sentiment Survey, conducted by DealFlow Events in June 2025 at The SPAC Conference, gathered insights from investment bankers, attorneys, SPAC sponsors, and investors actively involved in the SPAC ecosystem.
“This survey reflects a shift in tone from skepticism to optimism,” said Steven Dresner, Founder of DealFlow Events. “While challenges remain, the SPAC market appears to be regaining its footing with a clearer path forward.”
Key findings of the survey:
Cautious Optimism About Market Health
A majority of respondents described the current state of the SPAC market as “Somewhat Healthy,” indicating a stabilizing environment following a period of volatility. That positive sentiment rises to 84% when “Very Healthy” responses are included.
IPO Activity Poised to Rebound
Over 95% of respondents expect a moderate to significant increase in SPAC IPO activity over the next 12 months, suggesting improving sentiment among market participants.
Biggest Obstacles Still Persistent
Respondents cited public market performance, negative media sentiment, and difficulty securing PIPE financing as the top challenges facing SPACs today.
Performance Expectations Trending Upward
Most survey participants (61%) predict a significant improvement in the performance of de-SPAC transactions compared to the previous year.
High-Conviction Sectors for SPAC Deals
The most attractive sectors identified in the survey were Technology, Healthcare/Life Sciences, AI/Robotics, Energy, and Fintech – highlighting investor appetite for innovation-driven growth.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA / ACCESS Newswire / July 7, 2025 / Mawson Finland Limited (“Mawson” or the “Company“) (TSX-V:MFL)(FRANKFURT:PM6) is pleased to announce results from remaining drillholes from the 2025 drilling season at the Company’s wholly-owned Rajapalot gold-cobalt project in Finland (see Figure 1, Table 1, Table 2, and Table 3).
Highlights:
Significant 200 m down-plunge step-out at Raja (Raja Deeps) (Figure 1, and Figure 2), including:
PAL0388b – 0.7 m @ 18.0 g/t gold (cobalt TBA)
PAL0388 – 7.9 m @ 2.29 g/t gold and 868 ppm cobalt, including:
1 m @ 8.64 g/t gold and 725 ppm cobalt
80 m strike-extension of South Palokas (South Palokas Deeps), and a 46 m down-plunge step-out at New Lens, located in the footwall-zone of the South Palokas mineralised system. Significant intercepts include:
4.2 m @ 2.46 g/t Au and 371 ppm Co (from 340.2 m), and
2.6 m @ 3.94 g/t Au and 463 ppm Co (from 399.4 m) in PAL0195.
Discovery of a new gold-only occurrence of mineralisation situated approximately 300 m west of Raja in drillhole PAL0387, assaying 0.5 m @ 14.4 g/t gold, contained within a wider 9.8 m interval lower-grade zone.
Extensive Bottom-of-till drill programme nearing completion with a total of 830 holes drilled from a planned 900 holes
Mine permitting including environmental impact assessment and zoning approvals ongoing.
Ms. Noora Ahola, Mawson Finland CEO, comments: “Our 2025 winter drilling campaign has delivered exceptional results, with significant discoveries and extensions validating Rajapalot’s exceptional growth potential across multiple zones.
The standout achievement is our 200-metre down-plunge extension at Raja Deeps, which has substantially expanded the mineralised footprint with outstanding higher-grade intercepts of 0.7 metres at 18.0 g/t gold and 7.9 metres at 2.3 g/t gold with 868 ppm cobalt – highlighted by a 1-metre interval grading 8.6 g/t gold.
We’ve also achieved an 80-metre strike extension at South Palokas Deeps and a 46-metre down-plunge step-out at New Lens in the footwall zone, with significant intercepts of 4.2 metres at 2.5 g/t gold and 371 ppm cobalt, plus 2.6 metres at 3.9 g/t gold and 463 ppm cobalt in drillhole PAL0195.
Perhaps most exciting, is our discovery of entirely new mineralisation 300 metres west of Raja, where drillhole PAL0387 intersected 0.5 metres at 14.4 g/t gold within a broader 9.8-metre mineralised zone. This breakthrough demonstrates significant exploration upside within our existing footprint.
Gold-Cobalt mineralisation has now been drilled to approximately 650 metres below surface at South Palokas and approximately 680 metres below surface at the Raja, with the mineralising system remaining open at depth across the entire project. Our comprehensive 830-hole base-of-till program is nearing completion, while we continue advancing critical mine permitting processes including environmental impact assessment and zoning approvals.”
Technical Discussion
During the 2025 winter drilling programme at Rajapalot a total of 33 drillholes of NQ diamond core, 11,397 m was drilled. To date, gold-assay results (and partial cobalt analysis) have been received for all drillholes completed in this drilling season and presented in Table 1, 2 and 3, and summarised in Figure 1.
Raja Deeps: Target-test drilling (drillhole PAL0388) of a conductive anomaly defined through DHEM geophysics, located in the down-plunge/down-dip position of the Raja projected mineralised zone (see news release dated February 11, 2025) has intercepted 7.9 m @ 2.29 g/t Au and 868 ppm cobalt from 668.3 m downhole (including a rare occurrence on visible gold as reported April 24, 2025, grading 1 m @ 8.64 g/t Au and 725 ppm Co).
Three additional ‘navi’ wedge holes were drilled from PAL0388 in order to follow up this intercept (collared between 420 and 462 m downhole), where PAL0388b returned an intercept of 0.7 m @ 18 g/t Au (cobalt TBA). Drillholes PAL0388a and PAL0388c also intercepted the mineralised horizon but returning lower-grade intercepts (refer to Table 2 and Table 3, and Figure 1 and Figure 2). Overall, these drilling intercepts represent a significant down-plunge step-out of the Raja zone, extending the known mineralised envelope of Raja by over 200 m from the previously deepest recorded intercept (refer to Figure 2).
Raja West: Target-test drilling in an area approximately 300 metres west of the Raja zone intercepted a very-shallow and broad 9.8 m thick interval of disseminated iron-sulphides, returning a gold-rich intercept of 1.5 m @ 5.47 g/t Au, including 0.5 m @ 14.4 g/t Au from only 29 m downhole (refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2). While geological interpretation of this important new intercept is still underway, this mineralised occurrence at Raja West is hosted in the immediate footwall of a north-west dipping, severely hydrothermally altered shear-zone, conforming to the geological setting of all other mineralised gold-cobalt occurrences in the Rajapalot area. As such, further exploration drilling will take place at Raja West in the upcoming 2026 drilling season, where down-dip step-out to this new mineralised zone will be tested.
New Lens/South Palokas: A total of 8 drillholes were drilled into the New Lens zone of South Palokas, of which 4 drillholes were tails/extensions drilled off existing diamond drillholes that previously ended immediately below the South Palokas zone of gold-cobalt mineralisation; some 80 to 100 m short of where New Lens lies. Of these 8 drillholes, 2 intercepted significant intercepts in New Lens; PAL0016 and PAL0195.
Drillhole PAL0195 was extended to test the down-plunge extension and continuation of the New Lens zone, where it successfully intersected multiple significant intercepts approximately 80 m down-plunge of the next nearest drillhole PAL0335. Significant intercepts recorded from PAL0195 include 4.23 m @ 2.46 g/t Au and 371 ppm Co (from 340.2 m), and 2.6 m @ 3.94 g/t Au and 463 ppm Co (from 399.35 m); refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4.
Drillhole PAL0016 was extended in order to test for lateral, northwards extension from drillhole PAL0364, where it intercepted significant mineralisation of 13.9 m @ 1.03 g/t Au and 666 ppm Co (from 291.6 m), increasing the gold-cobalt mineralised envelope of New Lens to the north by around 43 m.
Drillholes PAL0379, PAL0383, PAL0389 and PAL0393 did not intercept significant mineralisation in the New Lens zone, however, all did intercept gold-cobalt mineralisation as they passed through the South Palokas zone on their intended journey towards the New Lens target depth. PAL0383 intercepted 5.2 m @ 2.61 g/t Au and 1170 ppm Co (from 127.6 m), and 3.7 m @ 1.04 g/t Au and 758 ppm Co, from (137.45 m), representing a 18 m of mineralised step-out to the south in the upper region of the South Palokas zone. PAL0393 recorded up to 1.55 m @ 1.76 g/t Au and 168 ppm Co and 5.85 m @ 0.52 g/t Au and 224 ppm Co as it passed through the already inferred area of mineralisation in the upper-most portions of South Palokas zone supporting both grade and geological continuity as it has been modelled here.
Palokas: Drilling at deep Palokas consisted of 5 holes in total, all targeting down-dip extensions of the Palokas gold-cobalt system. Drillholes PAL0380 and PAL0386 intercepted significant mineralisation, where PAL0380 recorded multiple significant intercepts (recording a best of 6 m @ 1.03 g/t gold; as reported in previous release dated February 11, 2025), and PAL0386 intercepted a single, thinner interval of 1.05 m @ 2.26 g/t Au (cobalt results not yet received).
Drillholes PAL0377, PAL0382, PAL0386 and PAL0396 all intercepted the targeted sulfide-bearing shear structure however, the intercepted sulfidic-rich zones are not gold-bearing in these drillholes due to the interaction of the host-structure with a change in host-recks to the unfavourable dolostone rock units. Location of these Palokas drill-intercepts are illustrated in Figure 3.
Technical Background, Data Verification and Quality Assurance and Quality Control
Four diamond drill rigs from MK Core Drilling Oy, Comadev Oy and Arctic Drilling Company Oy, all with water recirculation and drill cuttings collection systems, were used in this drill program. Core diameter is NQ2 (50.7 mm). Core recoveries are excellent and average close to 100% in fresh rock. After photographing and logging in Mawson’s Rovaniemi facilities, core intervals of between 0.4 to 2 m are taken, then half-sawn by independent contractors the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) in Rovaniemi, Palsatech Oy in Kemi and Geopool Oy in Sodankylä. The remaining half core is retained for verification and reference purposes. Analytical samples are transported by commercial transport from site to the independent contractor CRS Minlab Oy (“CRS“) facility in Kempele, Finland. Samples were prepared and analyzed for gold using the PAL1000 technique which involves grinding the sample in steel pots with abrasive media in the presence of cyanide, followed by measuring the gold in solution with flame AAS equipment. Samples for multi-element analysis (including cobalt) are pulped at CRS, then transported by air to MSALABS in Vancouver, Canada and analyzed using four acid digest ICP-MS methods. All the foregoing laboratories are independent of the Company. The quality assurance and quality control program of Mawson consists of the systematic insertion of certified standards of known gold content, duplicate samples by quartering the core, and blanks placed within sample runs in interpreted mineralized rock. In addition, CRS inserts blanks and standards into the analytical process. In addition to the sample preparation and security measures described above, data verification procedures are well integrated into the Company’s quality assurance and quality control program. Routine ongoing checking of all data is undertaken prior to being uploaded to the database. This will be followed by independent data verification audits at exploration milestones throughout the Rajapalot project’s development. Dr. Fromhold (see “Qualified Person” below) has also reviewed the qualifications and analytical procedures of the above-mentioned laboratories, photographs of drill cores, and the PEA in connection with verifying the exploration information presented herein.
Of the 33 drillholes drilled, 3 holes were abandoned due to excessive and unexpected deviation leaving 30 drillholes drilled to target/completion. Additionally, a further 5 drillholes were tails/continuations of existing and older drillholes, while 3 drillholes were ‘navi’ or directional holes collared beneath the surface from an existing deep drillhole.
All maps have been created within the KKJ3/Finland Uniform Coordinate System (EPSG:2393). Tables 1-3 provide collar and assay data. Due to the typically low angles of drill intercepts, the true thickness of the mineralized intervals are interpreted to be approximately 80-90% of the drilled thickness. Table 3 gives detailed individual assay data of all intervals reported in this press release. Intersections are reported with a lower cut of 0.3 g/t Au over 1 m sampled intervals, with composite data (Table 2) containing no more than 2 m of consecutively sampled waste-rock (i.e., 2 m @ <0>
Deposit Model
At Rajapalot, mineralization is regarded as orogenic in nature. All examples of gold-cobalt mineralisation are consistently located within highly-sheared and foliated wall-rocks adjacent to strongly hydrothermally altered, northwest to north dipping shear-zones. Mineralisation is typically encountered as disseminated to semi-massive sulfide lenses (predominantly pyrrhotite and lesser pyrite ± cobaltite), hosted within strongly deformed and altered, mafic volcanic and volcaniclasitic stratigraphy of the upper portions of the Paleoproterozoic-aged Kivalo Group of the Peräpohja Greenstone Belt. Prospects with high-grade gold and cobalt mineralisation at Rajapalot occur across a 3 km (east-west) by 2 km (north-south) area within the larger Rajapalot project area measuring 4 km by 4 km with multiple mineralized boulders, base-of-till (BOT). Gold-Cobalt mineralization at Rajapalot has been drilled to approximately 650 metres below surface at both South Palokas and Raja prospects, with mineralisation remaining open at depth across the project.
Rajapalot Mineral Resource
An Inferred Mineral Resource (“MRE”) has been calculated for the Rajaplot project (effective date August 26, 2021), and is based on an ‘underground only’ mining scenario containing 9.8 million tonnes @ 2.8 g/t gold (“Au”) and 441 ppm Co, equating to 867 thousand ounces (“koz”) gold and 4,311 tonnes of cobalt.
Zone
Cut-off
(AuEq¹)
Tonnes
(kt)
Au
(g/t)
Co
(ppm)
Au
(koz)
Co
(tonnes)
Palokas
1.1
5,612
2.8
475
501
2,664
Raja
1.1
2,702
3.1
385
271
1,040
East Joki
1.1
299
4.5
363
43
109
Hut
1.1
831
1.3
428
36
355
Rumajärvi
1.1
336
1.4
424
15
142
Total Inferred Resources
9,780
2.8
441
867
4,311
Rajapalot Inferred Mineral Resource Effective August 26, 2021
The independent geologist and Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101 for the mineral resource estimates is Mr. Ove Klavér (EurGeol). The effective date of the MRE remains unchanged to the Previous MRE (August 26, 2021, available on SEDAR as filed by the previous owner, Mawson), and will be restated in the PEA technical report when it is filed.
The mineral estimate is reported for a potential underground only scenario. Inferred resources were reported at a cut-off grade of 1.1 g/t (AuEq1 Au g/t + Co ppm /1005) with a depth of 20 meters below the base of solid rock regarded as the near-surface limit of potential mining.
Wireframe models were generated using gold and cobalt shells separately. Forty-eight separate gold and cobalt wireframes were constructed in Leapfrog Geo and grade distributions independently estimated using Ordinary Kriging in Leapfrog Edge. A gold top cut of 50 g/t Au was used for the gold domains. A cobalt top cut was not applied.
A parent block size of 12 m x 12 m x 4 m (>20% of the drillhole spacing) was determined as suitable. Sub-blocking down to 4 m x 4 m x 0.5 m was used for geologic control on volumes, thinner and moderately dipping wireframes.
Rounding of grades and tonnes may introduce apparent errors in averages and contained metals.
Drilling results to 20 June 2021.
Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.
Qualified Person
The technical and scientific information in this news release was reviewed, verified and approved by Dr. Thomas Fromhold, an employee of Fromhold Geoconsult AB, and Member of The Australian Institute of Geosciences (MAIG, Membership No. 8838). Dr. Fromhold is a “qualified person” as defined under NI 43-101. Dr. Fromhold is not considered independent of the Company under NI 43-101 as he is a consultant of the Company.
About Mawson Finland Limited
Mawson Finland Limited is an exploration stage mining development company engaged in the acquisition and exploration of precious and base metal properties in Finland. The Company is primarily focused on gold and cobalt. The Corporation currently holds a 100% interest in the Rajapalot Gold-Cobalt Project located in Finland. The Rajapalot Project represents approximately 5% of the 100-square kilometres Rompas-Rajapalot Property, which is wholly owned by Mawson and consists of 13 granted exploration permits for 11,262 hectares. In Finland, all operations are carried out through the Company’s fully owned subsidiary, Mawson Oy. Mawson maintains an active local presence of Finnish staff with close ties to the communities of Rajapalot.
Additional disclosure including the Company’s financial statements, technical reports, news releases and other information can be obtained at mawsonfinland.com or on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
Media and Investor Relations Inquiries
Please contact: Neil MacRae Executive Chairman at neil@mawsonfinland.com or +1 (778) 999-4653, or Noora Ahola Chief Executive Officer at nahola@mawson.fi or +358 (505) 213-515.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. No securities regulatory authority has reviewed or approved of the contents of this news release.
Forward-looking Information
This news release includes certain “forward-looking information” and “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, “forward-looking information”) which are not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking information includes, without limitation, estimates and statements that describe the Company’s future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking information may be identified by such terms as “believes”, “anticipates”, “expects”, “estimates”, “aims”, “may”, “could”, “would”, “will”, “must” or “plan”. Since forward-looking information is based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Although these statements are based on information currently available to the Company, and management of the Company believes them to be reasonable based upon, among other information, the contents of the PEA and the exploration information disclosed in this news release, the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet management’s expectations. Risks, uncertainties and other factors involved with forward-looking information could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward-looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, the Company’s objectives, goals or future plans, any expected receipt of additional assay results or other exploration results and the impact upon the Company thereof, any expected milestone independent data verification, the continuance of the Company’s quality assurance and quality control program, potential mineralization whether peripheral to the existing Rajapalot resource or elsewhere, any anticipated disclosure of assay or other exploration results and the timing thereof, the estimation of mineral resources, exploration and mine development plans, including drilling, soil sampling, geophysical and geochemical work, any expected search for additional exploration targets and any results of such searches, potential acquisition by the Company of any property, the growth potential of the Rajapalot resource, all values, estimates and expectations drawn from or based upon the PEA, and estimates of market conditions. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information include, but are not limited to: any change in industry or wider economic conditions which could cause the Company to adjust or cancel entirely its exploration plans, failure to identify mineral resources or any additional exploration targets, failure to convert estimated mineral resources to reserves, any failure to receive the results of completed assays or other exploration work, poor exploration results, the inability to complete a feasibility study which recommends a production decision, the preliminary and uncertain nature of the PEA, the preliminary nature of metallurgical test results, delays in obtaining or failures to obtain required governmental, environmental or other project approvals, political risks, uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future, changes in equity markets, inflation, changes in exchange rates, fluctuations in commodity prices, delays in the development of projects, capital and operating costs varying significantly from estimates and the other risks involved in the mineral exploration and development industry, and those risks set out in the Company’s public documents filed on SEDAR+. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.
Figure 1: Locality Plan view map illustrating collar positions and drill-hole traces from Mawson’s 2025 winter drilling campaign as drilled to time of writing; inset box illustrates location of Figure 2, while green lines represent section lines of Figure 3 and Figure 4.
Figure 2: Plan view illustration of the Raja system displaying intercepts from 2025, as highlighted with drillhole numbers in bold. Red arrows indicate the direction where gold-cobalt mineralisation remains untested and open.
Figure 3: Long-section illustration of the Palokas and South Palokas zones (left) and New Lens zone as located in the footwall of South Palokas (right) as projected onto the same panel. Intercepts from 2025 are highlighted with drillhole numbers in bold. Red dashed line represents the projection of the South Palokas cross-section as presented in Figure 4 (location of section lines illustrated in Figure 1; A and A’). Red arrows indicate the direction where gold-cobalt mineralisation remains untested and open.
Figure 4: Cross-section of the South Palokas and New Lens (South Palokas footwall) zones of mineralisation. Drillholes from 2025 are presented as black bold lines, and results in bold red text. The location and projection of this cross-section is illustrated on the long section in Figure 3 with a dashed red-line (location of section line illustrated in Figure 1; B and B’).
Table 1: Drillhole collar locations presented within (finish KKJ grid), with corresponding hole orientations (azimuth and dip measured in degrees), total depth, and prospect target. Results from drillholes in regular text are presented within, holes in italics have previously been published.
Hole ID
Easting KKJ
Northing KKJ
Elevation (mRL)
Azimuth
Dip
Total Depth
Prospect
PAL0016ext
3408333.32
7373665.92
173.81
113.2
-58.1
329.5 (260.5)
South Palokas
PAL0122ext
3408353.99
7373580.12
175.04
117.2
-60.0
299.2 (209.6)
South Palokas
PAL0180ext
3408127.24
7372705.59
174.00
41.0
-61.4
812 (778.65)
Raja
PAL0195ext
3408354.19
7373579.82
175.05
62.6
-78.0
447.6 (254.6)
South Palokas
PAL0204ext
3408521.78
7373603.97
173.39
234.8
-85.0
287.8 (149.2)
South Palokas
PAL0373
3407806.74
7374005.83
171.99
127.6
-61.2
1004.0
South Palokas
PAL0374
3408899.96
7372383.28
172.44
69.1
-75.2
300.0
Raja
PAL0375
3409137.40
7374399.43
176.69
186.1
-44.8
400.8
Hirvimaa
PAL0376
3408941.23
7372298.28
173.19
148.0
-63.2
167.6
Raja
PAL0377
3408276.44
7374025.77
174.28
84.8
-65.1
551.5
Palokas
PAL0378
3408816.57
7372713.16
174.45
183.1
-61.0
376.4
Raja
PAL0379
3408499.30
7373520.30
174.18
130.1
-50.2
191.2
South Palokas
PAL0380
3408275.85
7374025.30
174.20
101.1
-69.0
568.2
Palokas
PAL0381
3408816.79
7372713.47
174.39
170.0
-67.0
380.0
Raja
PAL0382
3408335.65
7373897.76
173.97
100.1
63.1
484.5
Palokas
PAL0383
3408347.47
7373503.87
173.69
75.2
-73.0
404.0
South Palokas
PAL0384
3408065.71
7373970.95
172.17
126.1
-79.9
809.6
South Palokas
PAL0385
3409025.94
7372287.86
170.06
290.0
-73.0
209.1
Raja
PAL0386
3408275.45
7374025.31
174.13
100.0
-77.3
638.3
Palokas
PAL0387
3408552.29
7372181.02
173.68
154.7
-45.1
73.0
Raja
PAL0388
3408237.23
7372831.33
182.18
50.6
-73.3
743.2
Raja
PAL0388A
3408237.23
7372831.33
182.18
50.6
-75.3
722.5
Raja
PAL0388B
3408237.23
7372831.33
182.18
50.6
-75.3
703.5
Raja
PAL0388C
3408237.23
7372831.33
182.18
50.6
-75.3
716.1
Raja
PAL0389
3408402.41
7373549.59
174.54
137.0
-45.1
217.7
South Palokas
PAL0390
3408086.94
7373644.48
172.81
45.0
-79.5
230.5
Hole Abandoned
PAL0391
3408238.79
7372832.20
181.87
56.0
-73.1
31.4
Hole Abandoned
PAL0392
3408274.84
7374024.71
174.05
114.0
-70.3
589.8
Palokas
PAL0393
3408402.75
7373550.19
174.34
124.9
-53.1
265.7
South Palokas
PAL0394
3408086.84
7373644.42
172.81
45.0
-83.0
84.7
Hole Abandoned
PAL0395
3408086.10
7373643.95
172.74
35.0
-83.0
680.6
South Palokas
PAL0396
3407872.38
7373234.12
173.36
129.8
-66.0
368.9
Hut
PAL0397
3407526.02
7372693.61
174.16
184.9
-44.9
260.0
Rumajarvi
Table 2: Composited gold and cobalt concentrations from the drillholes reported in this news release. Individual assay values are listed in Table 3 hereinbelow.
Hole ID
From
To
Thickness (m)1
Gold (g/t)
Gold (gram-m)
Cobalt ppm
PAL0016ext
291.60
305.50
13.90
1.03
14.32
666.1
PAL0195ext
340.20
344.43
4.23
2.46
10.39
370.5
PAL0195ext
347.50
348.25
0.75
0.45
0.33
340.4
PAL0195ext
357.35
358.15
0.80
0.42
0.34
579.4
PAL0195ext
362.00
363.00
1.00
0.30
0.30
673.3
PAL0195ext
391.10
393.25
2.15
0.34
0.74
719.1
PAL0195ext
399.35
401.95
2.60
3.94
10.25
462.8
PAL0379
5.60
11.80
6.20
1.17
7.23
268.3
PAL0381
202.20
203.00
0.80
0.42
0.34
TBA
PAL0381
210.60
212.35
1.75
0.92
1.61
TBA
PAL0383
83.85
84.85
1.00
0.90
0.90
116.6
PAL0383
90.75
91.75
1.00
0.69
0.69
76.4
PAL0383
105.00
111.60
5.00
0.49
3.21
227.8
PAL0383
127.60
132.80
5.20
2.61
13.60
1169.7
PAL0383
138.05
141.15
3.10
1.19
3.69
877.7
PAL0383
148.70
152.65
3.95
0.40
1.57
116.0
PAL0384
588.00
588.85
0.85
0.41
0.35
TBA
PAL0386
462.00
463.05
1.05
2.26
2.37
TBA
PAL0387
29.50
31.00
1.50
5.47
8.20
30.9
PAL0388
42.60
43.60
1.00
1.45
1.45
269.5
PAL0388
668.30
676.20
7.90
2.29
18.05
868.6
PAL0388
684.10
689.10
5.00
0.90
4.52
232.5
PAL0388A
690.90
692.30
1.40
0.96
1.34
1169.6
PAL0388B
688.20
688.90
0.70
18.00
12.60
TBA
PAL0388C
683.00
686.35
3.35
0.64
2.14
TBA
PAL0388C
694.45
696.65
2.20
0.72
1.57
TBA
PAL0388C
698.63
701.00
2.37
0.49
1.15
TBA
PAL0389
60.50
62.05
1.55
1.36
2.10
TBA
PAL0389
66.70
68.55
1.85
0.90
1.67
TBA
PAL0389
82.30
82.95
0.65
0.54
0.35
TBA
PAL0393
66.90
68.45
1.55
1.76
2.72
167.9
PAL0393
94.15
100.00
5.85
0.52
3.07
224.1
PAL0395
523.75
529.20
5.45
1.53
8.32
TBA
PAL0395
541.35
542.90
1.55
0.83
1.28
TBA
PAL0395
549.70
555.55
5.85
1.40
8.20
TBA
PAL0395
610.75
611.50
0.75
0.72
0.54
TBA
1True-thickness of the mineralized intervals are interpreted to be approximately 80-90% of the Drilled Thickness. True-thickness is not precisely known at this time.
Table 3: All gold sample intervals with their corresponding gold and cobalt concentrations (where available), that are contained within above composited intervals, that meet the lower-cut criteria of 1 m intervals at greater than 0.3 g/t gold, containing no more than 2 m of internal waste (i.e., 2 consecutive m intervals containing samples grading <0>
New and Unprecedented Survival, Respiratory, and Biomarker Data Prove that NurOwn Helps People with ALS Live Longer and Live Stronger
BREMERTON, WA / ACCESS Newswire / July 7, 2025 / On July 4, 1939, Lou Gehrig delivered his iconic “luckiest man” speech, announcing his retirement from the New York Yankees. On that day, ALS ended his Hall of Fame career. Less than two years later, ALS ended his life at just 37 years old.
In the last 86 years, the lethal outcome has not changed. ALS is a cruel, paralyzing and 100% fatal disease. But today, the ALS community has hope. A coalition of ALS patients and family members has filed a Citizens’ Petition with the FDA, requesting the approval of NurOwn, a neurotrophically-enhanced stem cell therapy.
Backed by a decade of real-world data from the NurOwn trials and Expanded Access Program (EAP), the 309-page Citizens’ Petition details the unprecedented survival, respiratory, and biomarker data for the FDA’s consideration. The new evidence is supported by testimony from top ALS neurologists who were the trial’s principal investigators, and the “totality of the evidence” from the Phase 3 trial. And, it aligns with real-world evidence where trial participants (now-unblinded) and their treating neurologists have proclaimed that NurOwn improves how people with ALS “feel, function and survive.”
NurOwn: A Revolutionary Approach to ALS Treatment
Developed by BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics, NurOwn combines the restorative potential of autologous mesenchymal stem cells with the regenerative power of neurotrophic factors, which are like “Miracle-Gro” for dying motor neurons. NurOwn uses a patient’s own stem cells that work like a FedEx truck, delivering nano-packages of neurotrophic factors and immunomodulatory cytokines directly to damaged motor neurons.
The results are profound. Within days, trial participants reported halting of symptoms like fasciculations, cramping and clonus; and some improvements in function. With additional doses, the EAP data confirm NurOwn’s ability to slow lethal ALS progression, improve function, restore breathing, and extend survival – offering a lifeline to those battling this 100% fatal and paralyzing disease.
Unprecedented Survival and Respiratory Data
Survival data have long been the gold standard for FDA approvals; and as Commissioner Makary has emphasized: “gold standard science and common sense” will guide this FDA’s decisions. To that end, Petitioners have submitted survival data derived from their own real-world evidence over the past decade. These survival data are unprecedented in ALS clinical trial history.
Five-Year Survival: 100% in NurOwn EAP vs. 20% in ALS natural history. All EAP participants (n=10) achieved five-year survival without tracheostomies.
Extended Tracheostomy-Free Survival (TFS): 7-year median tracheostomy-free survival (range from 5 to 8.5 years), far surpassing the 2.5- to 3-year median in ALS natural history data.
Progression-Free Survival (PFS): When patients received NurOwn, they experienced PFS ranging from a few months up to 17 months.
(See Petition’s Emergent Fact section C at pg 19-33).
At the FDA Advisory Committee meeting for NurOwn in 2023, Dr. Anthony Windebank of Mayo presented the clinical trial data and shared his expert opinion about the progression-free survival that he and other experienced trial investigators had witnessed – unprecedented in their prolific 40+ year neurology practices:
“I think this data is compelling & it should be approved…. While not everyone responds to the treatment, there are clearly a significant number who do. I have clearly seen some people stabilize in a way that I have never seen in any other trial. In fact, in the small number of people who participated in EAP and received 6-9 treatments, there were people who stabilized while on NurOwn in the trial. In the interval before they were in the EAP – which was over a year or more in some cases – these participants deteriorated, then again stabilized in the additional [EAP] treatment period. There were some who IMPROVED their score. Other investigators who have been working ‘hands on’ with the participants in the trial have seen similar responses….”
Dr. Windebank’s testimony underscores the unprecedented impact of NurOwn on people with ALS. And the NurOwn survival data is buttressed by other compelling efficacy data also detailed in the Citizen’s Petition:
Long-term Preservation of Respiratory Function: A 5- to 8-year delay in the need for non-invasive ventilation (NIV) over a 15-month natural history; and significant stabilization or improvement in Forced Vital Capacity (FVC), both key predictors of ALS survival. (See Emergent Fact section D at pg 34-44).
Long-term Slowing of ALS Progression: Up to an 85% slowing in ALS progression rate, from a trial qualification of a minimum loss of 1 point per month to 0.15 points per month after receiving NurOwn. (See Emergent Fact section F at pg 44-46).
Biomarker Evidence: 23 CSF biomarkers demonstrate statistically significant changes and NurOwn’s target engagement across pathways of neuroprotection, neuroinflammation, and neurodegeneration. (See Fact section M at pgs 156-166).
Real-World Evidence and Patient Experiences
Our Citizens’ Petition also leverages real-world evidence (RWE) and real-world data (RWD) from the EAP and Right to Try – consistent with the Congressional intent of the 21st Century Cures Act. Multiple trial participants testified, submitted Public Comments and shared their RWE, which aligns with the type of efficacy evidence specified in the ALS Guidance Document and 21st Century Cures.
At the time of the advisory committee meeting in 2023, many trial participants reported tangible improvements in how they felt and functioned, and hence, an improved quality of life. (See sections H & I, pgs. 91-127). Their testimony was supported by video evidence documenting those improvements and by the opinions from multiple treating neurologists outside the clinical trial. For example, neuromuscular specialist Dr. Danielle Geraldi-Samara submitted a Public Comment to the FDA about what she observed in many of her patients participating in the NurOwn Phase 3 trial and EAP:
“The real world evidence could not be more striking. I have known patients nearly immobile who gained some functionality in their gait, patients with severe dysarthria become intelligible, patients who could not manage the fine motor skill needed to button or zipper, finally able to dress independently. I have patients with solid plateaus [in ALSFRS-R scores] over the course of a year.”
Her clinical observations of progression-free survival after the NurOwn trial mirror those of Dr. Windebank and the other investigators during the trial and EAP. Now that the Phase 3 trial has been unblinded, multiple trial participants have confirmation that NurOwn halted their lethal progression and helped some people regain function. Our lived patient experiences now have both validation and vindication. When people are becoming paralyzed, it’s common sense that we know when a therapy helps us function. Our lived patient experiences aren’t anecdotal hyperbole; they are evidence.
And as Commissioner Makary recently said at the Gene and Cell Therapy Forum, there is value in learning from “n of 1” cases. Combined, the EAP “n of 10” and the right to try “n of 1” illustrate compelling and consistent, dose-dependent evidence of efficacy.
Reinforcing the efficacy data, Navy pilot Matt Bellina shared the RWE and RWD contained in his VA medical records in hisblog and onsocial media. Matt too experienced unprecedented clinically meaningful improvements after receiving 7 doses of NurOwn via Right to Try. Although he was a slow progressor, diagnosed in 2011, Matt’s ALS had progressed significantly. He was choking on food, using NIV to breathe at night; had little use of his hands; and could not stand without assistance. His data are informative, supporting evidence of efficacy because he is the only person in the US who received 6 consecutive doses; because he was the only “slow progressor” to receive NurOwn; and because his baseline score was 21/48 on the ALS Functional rating scale.
Matt’s large magnitude, dose-dependent improvement in function was immediate and obvious. (See section J at pgs 128-133). Matt has video documenting him standing out of a wheelchair unassisted – the first time in two years. He stopped choking on food. He improved his functional score by 6 points. His FVC stabilized and he stopped using NIV to breathe for more than 4 years. NurOwn interrupted Matt’s lethal trajectory to death.
Totality of Evidence Methodology for Rare Diseases
To determine if a therapy can meet the approval threshold of “substantial evidence,” the FDA asks if a therapy improves how people “feel, function or survive.” Regulators look principally at the trial’s primary endpoint at one fixed point in time at the end of the trial. But in heterogeneous rare diseases with small populations and short placebo-controlled trials, efficacy signals can be missed. Hence, it’s much more likely to result in a Type II statistical error: delaying or denying approval of a drug that does work. In a terminal disease like ALS, Type II errors cause ongoing paralysis and death.
Thus, the Citizens’ Petition reasserts the propriety of the FDA’s use of the “totality of evidence” statistical methodology to assess NurOwn’s efficacy. This approach – widely accepted in oncology for evaluating therapies in heterogeneous, rare populations – strengthens the case for NurOwn’s approval by highlighting the consistent benefits in the subgroup of ALS patients earlier in ALS progression (akin to a drug working on stage I and II cancer patients).
When including the trial population with the most advanced ALS (akin to stage III/IV cancer), the trial did not meet its endpoints. But when looking at the patients earlier in ALS progression, NurOwn met statistical significance. Using the “totality of the evidence” methodology, renowned biostatistician and Wilkes Award winner, Dr. Lee-Jen Wei of Harvard / Dana Farber analyzed the multiple trial endpoints, across multiple functional scale domains, at multiple time points throughout the 28-week trial. He testified at the Advisory Committee meeting that these p-values were: 0.045, 0.021, 0.007 and 0.005; thus providing more supporting evidence of NurOwn’s efficacy.
Meeting FDA Approval Thresholds
The Citizens’ Petition asserts that NurOwn achieves the statutory thresholds for multiple FDA approval pathways:
1. Traditional Approval NurOwn’s survival data, including the five-year survival, TFS, PFS and OS, meet the “substantial evidence” threshold of one well-controlled trial plus supporting evidence. This conclusion aligns with the FDA’s recognition that survival data are the gold standard in FDA approvals. Thus the diversity and magnitude of NurOwn’s survival outcomes fulfills both the “quality” and “quantity” requirements of “substantial evidence.” (See Emergent Fact section C, pgs. 19-33).
2. Accelerated Approval NurOwn meets the “reasonable likelihood” threshold for accelerated approval. The survival data from the “n of 10” EAP are “reasonably likely to predict” a favorable impact on irreversible mortality of the 32,000 people with ALS. This survival data far surpasses survival data supporting the accelerated approval of many cancer therapies. (See comparison at Memorandum section I, pgs. 191-209 and Exs. A & B).
NurOwn’s respiratory data, including delays in time-to-tracheostomy, time-to-NIV, and improved FVC, are also reasonably likely to predict a favorable impact on mortality. (See Emergent Fact section D, pgs. 34-43 and Memorandum II.C pgs. 219-222).
NurOwn’s CSF biomarker data are also reasonably likely to predict a “clinically meaningful” effect. NurOwn caused statistically significant changes in first-in-class CSF biomarkers – regardless of disease severity and only in the NurOwn treatment arm. Of the 45 pre-specified biomarkers tested, 23 had statistically significant changes and 15/23 had p-values ≤0.001. These CSF biomarkers provide objective biological evidence of target engagement across pathways of neuroinflammation, neurodegeneration, and neuroprotection. (See Petition Facts section M, pgs. 156-166 and Memorandum section II.C pgs. 219-222).
Additionally, Brainstorm Cell has shared neurofilament light biomarker data in a poster presentation at the 2024 NEALS conference. As the FDA has acknowledged, as ALS progression advances, harmful NfL increases, reflecting more diseased and dying motor neurons. At the end of the Phase 3 trial, there was a 9.4% delta between the NurOwn and placebo arm (p=.037).
But in those 10 from EAP who were earlier in progression at the start of the Phase 3 trial, the delta between the NurOwn and placebo arms was more apparent. At the end of Phase 3, the 4/10 on placebo had a 37% increase in harmful NfL whereas the 6/10 on NurOwn had a 4% decrease in NfL. With the additional dosing in EAP, the 4/10 in the placebo-crossover group finally experienced a 5% decline in harmful NfL, whereas people on NurOwn maintained a 36% decrease from baseline. Not surprisingly, those who received the most doses of NurOwn and received it earliest in ALS progression had the largest magnitude functional changes and as well as the largest decrease in NfL levels – with two people who received 9 total doses having a decrease of ≥60% in harmful NfL levels. (See table in section II.C.2.a on page 222).
As such, the changes in CSF biomarkers are reasonably likely to predict a clinically meaningful benefit, and thus, the third way that NurOwn can meet the threshold for accelerated approval.
3. Conditional Approval NurOwn aligns with Commissioner Makary’s proposed “plausible mechanism of action” threshold for conditional approval. Both stem cell technology and neurotrophic factors are plausible mechanisms of action in ALS; and NurOwn’s CSF biomarker data confirms biological plausibility. (See Petition Fact section N, pgs. 173-176 and Memorandum section II.G at pgs. 234-241).
A Call for De Novo Review and Expedited Action
The Citizens’ Petition requests a de novo review by the FDA. The Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) has not ever considered the EAP survival, respiratory, or biomarker data, nor has it considered the Right to Try data from Navy pilot Matt Bellina, nor the unblinded and now corroborated RWE/RWD from people who have benefitted from NurOwn since 2011. The Petitioners also request that CBER use the Commissioner’s new Priority Voucher to expedite review. The Citizens’ Petition also proposes that FDA consider the far-reaching benefits of a Phase 4 post-marketing study, including a biorepository and natural history/exposome database, which aligns with the FDA Priorities outlined by Doctors Makary and Prasad.
A Historic Moment for the ALS Community
At the recent 2025 Gene and Cell Therapy Forum, Secretary Kennedy shared that the FDA will do everything it can to “accelerate approvals for rare diseases.” And in their Joint OpEd for JAMA Viewpoints, Commissioner Makary and Director Prasad said the FDA is committed to “rapidly usher to market new products with transformational potential.” In furtherance of that commitment, Director Prasad told the rare disease community that the FDA will:
“approve anything that is an incremental advancement”
accelerate therapies by “taking action at the first sign of promise for rare diseases” and at the “earliest sign of statistical evidence”
monitor people post-market to “ensure people live longer, stronger.”
The Citizens’ Petition argues that NurOwn has more than transformational potential. Rather, the survival and respiratory data, along with 8 years of RWE, demonstrate its already transformational impact on people living with ALS. Thus, the ALS community calls on the FDA to approve NurOwn, honoring its commitment to marry “gold standard science and common sense.”
ALS is stealing decades from our lifespans. Just as the FDA acts with urgency for people with terminal cancer, the Citizens’ Petition asks the FDA to act with the same urgency as ALS is killing our motor neurons. Please don’t let another generation of people with ALS die waiting when we know a stem cell therapy can help us live.
About ALS ALS is a 100% fatal, heterogeneous, rare neurodegenerative disease. As motor neurons die, the brain can no longer communicate with the voluntary muscles, which slowly become paralyzed. For reasons researchers don’t fully understand, ALS impacts only the motor neurons, not the sensory neurons. Thus, people with ALS still feel cramping, sensations, fasciculations and pain, but they can’t move to respond to them. Ultimately, people lose the ability to walk, talk, move, eat, drink, swallow, and eventually, breathe.
About the Petitioners
The Petitioners are a coalition of people who received NurOwn and others with ALS who could not. We are committed to advancing research, treatment access, and policy changes for ALS.
With Australian investor activity on the rise, Liberty offers investment home loans to help borrowers realise their property potential.
MELBOURNE, AU / ACCESS Newswire / July 6, 2025 / New data from PropTrack reveals a steady increase in new loans for investors across Australia over the past 18 months.
As investor activity grows, leading lender Liberty says flexible investment home loans could help borrowers capitalise on current market opportunities.
Communications Manager, Bernadine Pantarotto, says those looking to start or grow their property portfolio could benefit from the non-bank’s free-thinking solutions.
“For borrowers on their property journey, an investment home loan could be a smart move to help enter the market, build equity and generate rental income,” says Ms Pantarotto. Liberty offers flexible property investment solutions to support a variety of customers, including those new to the lending process.
“From first-time buyers to seasoned investors, our investment home loans are designed to help borrowers achieve their property goals,” says Ms Pantarotto.
With a proud history of supporting customers to access free-thinking home loan options, Liberty strives to provide solutions tailored to the needs of each individual customer.
Unlike traditional lenders, Liberty takes a holistic approach to lending, combining risk-based assessment with personalised service to support more customers.
“We understand no two borrowers are the same, which is why we look beyond just the numbers to assess a customer’s financial circumstances,” says Ms Pantarotto.
“Whether a borrower is self-employed or working with a smaller deposit, we have flexible solutions to help keep their investment property plans moving forward,” says Ms Pantarotto.
Liberty offers free-thinking options including low doc and low deposit investment home loans to support borrowers to unlock their property potential.
Beyond investment loans, Liberty has solutions across owner-occupied home loans, as well as personal, car, business, commercial and SMSF loans.
With close to 30 years of experience, Liberty continues to help more people say ‘yes’ to their plans.
“We have proudly supported over 900,000 customers with our free-thinking solutions and remain committed to helping more people get and stay financial,” says Ms Pantarotto.
About Liberty As one of Australia’s leading non-bank lenders, Liberty offers innovative solutions to support customers with greater choice. Over more than 27 years, this free-thinking approach to loan solutions has seen more than 900,000 customers across a wide range of home, car, business and personal loans, as well as SMSF lending and insurance. Liberty remains the only non-bank lender with an investment-grade credit rating offering custom and prime solutions to help more people get financial.
Approved applicants only. Lending criteria apply. Fees and charges are payable. Liberty Financial Pty Ltd ACN 077 248 983 and Secure Funding Pty Ltd ABN 25 081 982 872 Australian Credit Licence 388133, together trading as Liberty Financial.
Will Scott, AI SEO expert and Co-Founder and CEO of Search Influence, took the stage at SMX Advanced Boston to share expert insights on one of the most significant shifts in digital marketing: generative engine optimization. His session, “5 Key Insights for Mastering Generative Engine Optimization,” was held on Friday, June 13, from 1:45 to 2:15 PM ET.
As AI-powered search continues to reshape how users discover content, marketers are facing a new set of challenges — and opportunities. In this fast-paced, tactical session, Scott addressed how AI SEO is changing the rules of search, with platforms like Google AI Overviews, Bing Copilot, Perplexity, and ChatGPT Search fundamentally altering how visibility is earned. The session was designed to help marketers adapt their strategies to meet the demands of these evolving AI-driven search environments.
The emergence of AI SEO has prompted a dramatic shift away from traditional keyword-matching techniques toward systems that prioritize structured data, entity recognition, and conversational relevance. As Scott explained, visibility in this new search landscape depends on a marketer’s ability to align content with recognized entities, reinforce credibility through trusted sources, and optimize for summarization engines rather than just search engine results pages.
During his talk, Scott outlined five practical strategies that SEO professionals can use to remain competitive in the age of generative AI. From structuring content for AI summarization to evaluating performance through AI SEO tracking tools, attendees gained actionable steps they can implement immediately. His presentation offered not only clarity on the technical aspects of generative engine optimization but also real-world examples to guide content and search strategies moving forward.
“AI-driven search is redefining SEO, and marketers must evolve to thrive in this new environment,” said Scott. “The great news is that good SEOs are already one step ahead. With a focus on entities, the knowledge graph, and building authority, AI SEO expertise is an extension of tools and tactics we already know.”
Scott brings more than 20 years of experience in the digital marketing industry and has long been recognized for helping businesses navigate the ever-changing world of search. In 2006, he co-founded Search Influence, a New Orleans-based digital marketing agency, alongside his wife, Angie. Under his leadership, the agency has helped thousands of clients grow through effective SEO and paid digital advertising strategies. Scott is also credited with coining the term “barnacle SEO” in 2008, a tactic still widely referenced and practiced by SEO professionals today.
This wasn’t Scott’s first deep dive into the future of AI and SEO. Earlier this spring, he led a two-day Generative Engine Optimization Master Class through SMX, offering marketers in-depth training on entity-based content, technical structure, and performance evaluation for AI-generated search. He also recently shared streamlined strategies for local SEO in an AI-driven landscape at LocalU Global.
In addition to leading Search Influence, Scott remains an active voice in the SEO community. He regularly contributes to digital marketing publications and is a frequent speaker at industry events such as Pubcon, where he explores the intersections of technology, strategy, and visibility in search.
Scott’s latest session at SMX Advanced Boston offered marketers a rare opportunity to gain tactical knowledge from one of the field’s most experienced professionals. With generative engine optimization quickly becoming an essential part of the SEO toolkit, this session was a must-attend for anyone looking to maintain relevance in AI-generated search results.
For more information about Scott’s work with AI and SEO, call (504) 208-3900, visit https://www.searchinfluence.com/, or send inquiries to:
Search Influence
1423 Pine Street
New Orleans, LA 70118
About Search Influence:
Search Influence is a woman-owned, ROI-focused digital marketing agency that helps drive prospects into and through the marketing funnel with analytics-backed search engine optimization and paid digital advertising. Founded in 2006, Search Influence’s core purpose is to optimize potential. The agency collaborates with well-regarded brands and institutions both nationally and locally in New Orleans. Clients include the Tulane School of Professional Advancement, Tufts University College, Associated Hearing Professionals, New Orleans & Company, and Audubon Nature Institute.
Jul. 1, 2025 / PRZen / LA VERNE, Calif. — Adaptive Computation LLC Assessed “Awardable” for DARPA[JR1] ERIS Marketplace – Adaptive Computation LLC, a leading provider of bio-inspired AI technology aiming to tackle detecting and tracking elusive objects of interest across air, land, and space domains today announced that it has achieved “Awardable” status through DARPA Expedited Research Implementation Series (ERIS) Marketplace.
The ERIS Marketplace is The DARPA Expedited Research Implementation Series (ERIS) Marketplace is a transformative digital platform designed to accelerate acquisition velocity and advance national security innovation. All 7-minute awardable solutions housed in the repository have been assessed through comprehensive scoring rubrics and competitive procedures and are readily available for selection, negotiation, and award by Government customers with a Marketplace account.
Adaptive Computation solutions are designed as one of our company’s primary offerings. They can be used by a wide range of businesses, including Fortune 500 companies, small businesses, and government agencies.
“Adaptive Computation LLC is delighted to be selected Awardable by the DARPA ERIS Marketplace!” said Dr. Tuan A Duong, CEO of Adaptive Computation LLC. “Brain-like architecture and bio-inspired processing style in high floating-point machine are recognized as capable of tackling the elusive objects of interest in the dynamic real-world environments.”
Adaptive Computation LLC video, On-line and Adaptive Image-based Search Engine in The Loop (OAISEE), accessible only by government customers on the DARPA ERIS Marketplace, presents an actual use case in which the company technology is based on bio-inspired object features that are extracted through saccadic eye movements emulator and visual pathways interpretation for sufficiency with less training sampling data, namely Extended Visual Pathways (EViP).
This bio-inspired technology is dynamic, fast and adaptable and has less data requirements. Adaptive Computation LLC was recognized among a competitive field of applicants to the ERIS Marketplace whose solutions demonstrated innovation and potential impact on DoD missions. Government customers interested in viewing the video solution can create an ERIS Marketplace account at www.darpaconnect.us/eris.
About Adaptive Computation LLC: Our passion is to develop and deploy transformative perception and cognition tools, helping to create truly intelligent machines that serve society. ADC’s inspiration is to become a leader in machines intelligence, perception, and cognition, spanning two domains: software and hardware. For more information or media requests, contact: Dr. Tuan A Duong, email: taduong@adaptivecomputation.com.
About the ERIS Marketplace: The DARPA Expedited Research Implementation Series (ERIS) Marketplace is a transformative digital platform designed to accelerate acquisition velocity and advance national security innovation. All 7-minute awardable solutions housed in the repository have been assessed through complex scoring rubrics and competitive procedures and are readily available for selection, negotiation, and award by Government customers with a Marketplace account. By streamlining the procurement process, the ERIS Marketplace empowers DoD organizations to rapidly acquire disruptive technologies that address the evolving challenges of defense and security. Industry and academia are encouraged to showcase their innovative solutions, connecting directly with DARPA and other government customers seeking revolutionary research and technology. Learn more at: www.darpaconnect.com/eris. For media requests, please contact outreach@darpa.mil; for all other requests related to the ERIS Marketplace, please contact.
