July 15, 2026 - US Business News

His & Hers Prenatal Vitamins and Rethinking Fertility Supplements for Couples

US Business News Staff on July 15, 2026

In the growing market of his-and-hers prenatal vitamins, one message is becoming harder to ignore. Fertility is not solely a woman’s health issue. Male factor fertility contributes to nearly half of conception challenges, yet most supplement routines still focus only on women.

That gap is exactly what companies like FIG Wellness are working to address, shifting the focus toward shared preconception health.

Why Male Fertility Supplements Matter

For couples trying to conceive, the question often becomes practical. What are the best fertility supplements for couples, and where should they start?

The answer increasingly includes men.

As awareness of male fertility factors grows, some brands are reframing prenatal support as a shared routine rather than a women-only category. For couples, this can make preconception planning feel less fragmented, with both partners taking part in the same process from the outset.

Despite the data, the market for prenatal vitamins for men remains limited, and even fewer options are developed by preconception specialists. Many couples searching for male prenatal vitamins quickly realize how little guidance exists for men in this space. This lack of guidance and knowledge leaves a gap.

FIG’s male fertility multivitamin is formulated from clinical experience, shaped by work with real couples. For those researching how to make sperm stronger for pregnancy, this reflects a more targeted, experience-led approach.

A Clinically Guided Approach

Behind the formulations is Dr. Natalie Underberg, who continues to work with patients daily. That ongoing clinical practice informs how products are developed.

Rather than relying on generic blends, the supplements reflect patterns seen in real-world preconception care. This includes a growing emphasis on fertility vitamins for men, which are often overlooked despite their importance.

Both partners are considered equally, reframing fertility supplements for men and women as part of a shared plan.

A Complete His and Hers Fertility System

The concept of his-and-hers fertility supplements is not new, but FIG’s approach is notably comprehensive.

The Ultimate His & Hers Fertility Foundations Bundle includes:

• Women’s prenatal multivitamin

• Men’s multivitamin

• Super Omega (2x dose)

• NAC

Together, these form a complete fertility multivitamin system designed to support both partners. It is positioned as a doctor-formulated bundle built around the needs of both him and her.

For couples comparing prenatal vitamins for men and women, the appeal is simplicity and structure. Instead of piecing together multiple products, many turn to solutions marketed as the best fertility supplements for couples.

FIG offers these his and hers fertility supplements as a single combined bundle for those who prefer one coordinated system.

A Focus on Clinically Meaningful Nutrients

One key differentiator is the inclusion of 900mg of choline in FIG’s prenatal, a notably high dose, alongside methylated folate.

Choline plays an important role in fetal development but is often underrepresented in standard prenatals. For couples evaluating fertility supplements for couples, this level of detail can influence decision-making.

A Faith-Based Perspective

FIG Wellness also identifies as a faith-based company, a core part of its brand identity. This resonates with couples who prioritize shared values alongside wellness.

The founder’s personal experience with chronic illness, including PCOS and metabolic challenges, helped shape the company’s focus on preconception care. Combined with ongoing clinical work, this perspective informs both product development and brand direction.

A More Balanced Approach to Fertility

The conversation around fertility is shifting. More couples now see preconception as a shared responsibility.

Products like FIG’s bundle reflect that change, encouraging both partners to take an active role. Interest in men’s fertility vitamins continues to grow as awareness increases around male contribution to conception.

For those exploring male prenatal vitamins or a complete couples solution, the focus is no longer one-sided. It is about preparing for pregnancy together.

Disclaimer: This article is intended for general informational and editorial purposes only. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or fertility recommendations, and it should not be relied upon as a substitute for guidance from a qualified healthcare professional. Any discussion of prenatal vitamins, fertility supplements, male fertility, sperm health, PCOS, metabolic health, pregnancy preparation, or related wellness products is provided for general context only. Supplements are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, and individual results may vary. Couples trying to conceive, pregnant individuals, or anyone with an existing medical condition should consult a licensed healthcare provider before starting any supplement routine. References to FIG Wellness, its founder, products, formulations, and brand information are based on provided or publicly available information and should be independently reviewed by readers.

Why “Member-Owned” Might Be an Underrated Phrase in Canadian Banking

US Business News Staff on July 15, 2026

By: Kate Sarmiento

Most people can remember the last time they felt frustrated with a financial institution: an unexpected monthly fee, a phone call that bounced between departments, or the sense that loyalty didn’t count for much. Money is personal, yet banking often feels surprisingly impersonal.

That disconnect has prompted more Canadians to ask a question that rarely came up a decade ago. Who actually benefits when a financial institution performs well?

Innovation Federal Credit Union (Innovation) believes the answer should include the people who trust it with their money. Innovation was built around a member-owned cooperative model, meaning the people who use its services are also the people it exists to serve, focusing on straightforward products, community investment, and everyday finances made simpler, rather than outside investors.

For many Canadians, that raises another question: what exactly is a credit union, and why does being member-owned matter?

Every financial institution makes decisions about where profits go, which products to prioritize, and how success is measured, and those decisions shape everything from account fees to service quality. Canadians continue to place a strong value on organizations they believe will act in their best interest when it matters most (Source: Abacus Data, 2024), which helps explain why cooperative financial institutions continue to attract attention worldwide. The World Council of Credit Unions estimates that more than 411 million people belong to credit unions in over 100 countries, making cooperative banking one of the largest member-owned financial movements anywhere (Source: World Council of Credit Unions, 2024).

What “Member-Owned” Actually Looks Like After You Open an Account

The phrase gets used often but is rarely explained. It’s actually simple: when someone joins a credit union, they become a member rather than a customer, and membership comes with a voice. Instead of ownership resting with shareholders who may never set foot inside an advice center, every member gets an equal vote in governance, regardless of how much money they have on deposit.

That principle, often summarized as “one member, one vote,” has shaped credit unions for generations, and the difference shows up in real products fairly quickly (Source: Canadian Credit Union Association, 2021). Take everyday banking. Many Canadians have accepted monthly fees as a normal cost of managing money, but Innovation’s No-Fee Chequing Account gives members unlimited banking without them, a practical example of what happens when an organization is built around removing friction instead of creating another revenue stream.

The same thinking extends to the First Home Savings Account (FHSA), which Canadians hoping to buy their first home have been paying close attention to, since it combines tax advantages with the ability to save specifically for a down payment. Statistics Canada continues to report that home affordability remains a major challenge for younger Canadians entering the market for the first time (Source: Statistics Canada, 2026), and Innovation’s FHSA gives prospective homeowners a structured, manageable way to build toward that goal instead of treating it as a distant one.

The member-first mindset becomes most visible after the financial year ends. Since 2007, Innovation has shared profits directly with members through quarterly profit sharing and reinvested substantially in the communities it serves, committing at least two percent of pre-tax profits through its Responsible Banking™ philosophy. That approach reflects a choice about where success gets shared, and consumers increasingly expect exactly that kind of community impact alongside financial performance.

Why This Banking Model Feels More Relevant Than Ever

It’s easy to assume member ownership belongs to another era, since people now open accounts on their phones and expect advice without stepping into a branch. In many ways, though, technology has made the model more meaningful, not less. Canadians are embracing digital banking at a remarkable pace, yet they continue to rank security, clear communication, and confidence in their institution among their highest priorities, which is exactly where a modern credit union can stand out (Source: Payments Canada, 2025).

Innovation has expanded beyond its Saskatchewan roots by pairing digital-first banking with cooperative values. Canadians outside Quebec can open accounts online and manage money digitally while still banking with an institution built to benefit its members, a distinction that matters most at major financial milestones: a first-time buyer navigating a confusing process, a family wanting straight answers on a mortgage refinance, or a recent graduate watching every dollar of monthly fees. These moments are ordinary, but they shape financial confidence for years.

Recognition tends to follow organizations that earn that kind of trust. Innovation was ranked 11th among Canadian financial institutions in Forbes’ World’s Best Banks 2026 rankings, based on evaluations across trust, service, digital offerings, and overall satisfaction (Source: Forbes, 2026). The biggest misconception about credit unions is that choosing one means giving something up, whether fewer digital tools or a smaller product range. Innovation’s approach argues otherwise: technology supports the cooperative principles that define the organization rather than replacing them.

Banking Should Feel Like Someone Is Actually on Your Side

Choosing where to keep your money quietly shapes everyday life. It influences how much you pay in fees, how supported you feel at major milestones, and whether your institution shares your definition of success, which is exactly why the member-owned model is worth understanding. Innovation has made the case for what that model looks like today: modern, member-first, and built around products that simplify everyday finances.

For Canadians looking for straightforward banking, whether that means a no-fee chequing account, a First Home Savings Account, or mortgage options, it’s worth a closer look at how a member-owned credit union works. Once the model makes sense, many people discover they’ve been asking the wrong question all along, wondering less about where to bank and more about who their financial institution is really working for.

To learn more about Innovation Federal Credit Union’s member-first approach, Canadians can explore its no-fee everyday banking, First Home Savings Account, mortgage solutions, and digital banking services on the credit union’s website.

Disclaimer: This article is intended for general informational and editorial purposes only. It does not provide financial, banking, tax, investment, mortgage, or legal advice, and it should not be relied upon as a substitute for guidance from a qualified professional. Banking products, account features, eligibility, fees, rates, profit-sharing programs, mortgage options, tax benefits, and digital banking availability can vary by institution, province, member status, and individual circumstances. Readers should independently review product terms, disclosures, eligibility requirements, and applicable rules before opening an account or making financial decisions. References to Innovation Federal Credit Union, its services, rankings, profit-sharing practices, sources, and related information are based on provided or publicly available materials and should be independently verified by readers.

How Y Scouts Helps Construction and Manufacturing Companies Look Beyond Resumes for the Right Executive Hire

US Business News Staff on July 15, 2026

By One Word Publishing

Industrial companies operate on a different kind of trust. In construction, a wrong hire at the VP level shows up quickly: project timelines shift, subcontractor relationships strain, and crews pick up on the change before the C-suite does.

In manufacturing, the effect is just as direct. A plant leader who doesn’t fit the culture can lose floor supervisors and key operators within a year, draining the company of a wealth of institutional knowledge.

The executives who succeed in these environments tend to share something beyond technical depth. They’re aligned with how their organizations operate, what they value, and where they’re headed. Finding those leaders requires a search process that goes well beyond a list of qualifications.

Y Scouts is a purpose-based executive search recruiter built around exactly this premise. Founded in 2012, the firm has developed a strong reputation for prioritizing alignment alongside skills and experience. The result is C-suite and senior leaders who excel operationally while reflecting the company’s culture and values every step of the way.

The Preparation Before the Search

Y Scouts knows that too many companies try to fill a role before they fully understand what they want for that role. Leaders on the same team may carry very different expectations. When those expectations go unresolved, executive hires miss the mark, costing the company time, focus, and the price of restarting a process that can total up to $1 million per hire.

To avoid this costly mistake, Y Scouts gets to work before the firm approaches a single candidate, running its proprietary Role Visioning and Success Outcome Design process.

“Most hiring problems start before resumes are collected or interviews start,” said Max Hansen, Co-Founder and CEO of Y Scouts. “Role Visioning solves that by bringing all stakeholders, from the CEO to department heads, to full agreement on what the next leader actually needs to accomplish.”

As part of this process, Y Scouts dives deep into a company’s culture.

“Companies aren’t inanimate. They have a soul and a personality,” said Hansen. “The wrong candidate can clash with the company culture, and everyone will feel it. It’s not that the candidate is bad or unqualified. It’s just that they don’t align with the ethos of the company. And if they can’t meet the company where it is, they won’t be able to take it where it needs to go.”

You could say that Hansen wrote the book on this, and you wouldn’t be wrong. In his groundbreaking book Hiring on Purpose, he lays out the ideas that take executive search from a broken process that usually misses the mark to one that creates full alignment as a precondition for every search, not something to address after a hire is made.

Reaching the Right Candidates in Construction

In addition to its focus on alignment, Y Scouts offers broad access to the best candidates through its Covert Discovery Process. This is important because the best leaders for construction companies are rarely on the market. They’re running active projects and holding together teams at their current firms, and they have little reason to broadcast their availability. Reaching them requires a confidential, direct approach built on established relationships and trust.

Y Scouts is one of the few construction executive search firms operating a fully retained model alongside its proprietary Covert Discovery Process. This private outreach method allows the firm to contact passive candidates without exposing them or the hiring company before the right fit is confirmed. Candidates engage openly because their current position isn’t put at risk. Hiring companies get access to leaders who would never appear in a standard talent pool.

For construction companies navigating leadership transitions, this confidential approach also protects operations during the search. There are no premature announcements, no disruptions to client relationships, and no internal uncertainty before a decision has been made.

Better Hiring for Manufacturing

The leadership talent challenge in manufacturing carries pressures similar to those in the construction industry. Strong plant-level leaders tend to be deeply embedded in their current organizations, valued for hard-earned institutional knowledge. Reaching these leaders, even for a genuinely better opportunity, requires recruiting built around relationship and discretion rather than volume and speed.

As executive manufacturing recruiters, Y Scouts applies the same retained, confidential model that it uses in the construction industry. The firm works exclusively on each engagement until the search is complete. It focuses on leaders who learn continuously, develop those around them, and drive consistent results. In manufacturing environments, those qualities count from the plant floor to the boardroom.

A Track Record That Speaks for Itself

When Hansen started working in recruiting nearly 25 years ago, he discovered an industry desperate for reinvention. “Companies were depending on resumes and the same old interview questions to find the perfect executive, and it was backfiring,” said Hansen. “There was very little thought given to leadership style, goals, values, and cultural fit. We have transformed the process, and the result is leaders who stay and who take their companies to new heights.”

The firm’s process shows in its results. Y Scouts has built a strong track record of placements that last, typically identifying strong candidates early in the search and concluding most engagements within a few months. The firm stands behind its work, with a replacement provision if a placement does not work out within the first six months.

Forbes named Y Scouts to its list of America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms for 2025, and Business Insider recognized the firm among America’s Top Recruiting Firms for 2026. Construction and manufacturing companies ready to approach their next leadership search differently can learn more at www.Yscouts.com.

How Ernie Ross Developed a Framework for an Experience Many Struggle to Define

US Business News Staff on July 15, 2026

By: Cesarino Montana

Ernie Ross grew up in Guyana in the 1970s, a depressing period in that country’s history by his own account, and he arrived in Trinidad carrying a creative intelligence and an instinct for human connection that would eventually produce a distinctive methodology in the field of brand strategy. Intangience is the book that traces that journey from its origins to its current form, and it is considerably more than a business book. It is the autobiography of an idea, told by the person who spent a lifetime living inside it before he fully understood what he had.

Reading this book feels like being given access to a framework that has been quietly operating underneath every successful communication you have ever encountered, and every failed one too, because Ross is describing something real and universal rather than something invented for the purposes of a methodology. The intangible values that drive human connection, the emotional architecture underneath every decision, every loyalty, every conviction, were always there. What Ross has done is develop the language and the structure to make them visible, and once you have that language, you cannot stop seeing what it describes everywhere you look.

The three frameworks at the heart of the Intangience methodology, the Pillars of Purpose, the Currency of Conversation, and the Science of Human Connection, are introduced and illustrated with enough real-world specificity that they feel like tools rather than concepts. Ross understands that a framework is only useful if it survives contact with actual problems in actual contexts, and the stories he tells throughout the book, the gang leaders reached through basketball, the brewery saved through the reactivation of national pride, the political campaigns that made history across the Caribbean, are his proof of concept, offered not with hubris but with the quiet confidence of someone who has watched the methodology work too many times in too many different conditions to have any remaining doubt about its validity.

What strikes readers who encounter Ross’s writing for the first time is the quality of his humility. For a man whose campaigns have earned more than five hundred industry awards, who helped elevate the first female heads of government across multiple nations, and who developed a methodology certified by a United Nations-established institution, there is a remarkable absence of ego in the way he tells his story. He writes about his experiences in a matter-of-fact way that makes the extraordinary feel accessible rather than intimidating, which is itself a demonstration of the principles he is teaching.

Intangience gives readers a new way to think about the conversations, campaigns, and everyday interactions that shape how people connect. For anyone whose work involves moving people toward a decision, a belief, a brand, or an idea, it offers a practical and thoughtful framework worth engaging with.

If you are ready to stop communicating with people and start connecting with them in ways that create real and lasting value, Intangience by Ernie Ross is waiting for you on Amazon. Pick up your copy and step inside a methodology that has changed political campaigns, rescued brands, and shifted how thousands of leaders around the world think about human connection.

Royston G King Reviews the Future of Trust in a Synthetic Media Age

US Business News Staff on July 15, 2026

As media becomes increasingly synthetic, produced or shaped by artificial intelligence, the future of trust becomes an urgent question, and his pieces engage with it directly. The entrepreneur offers a reading of where trust is heading that is neither alarmist nor naive, arguing that trust will survive but attach to different things than before. When Royston G. King reviews the future of trust in a synthetic media age, he tends to reach a conclusion that runs counter to much of online marketing.

The synthetic media age poses a genuine challenge. When text, images, and analysis can all be generated convincingly by machines, the traditional relationship between a piece of media and the human effort behind it breaks down. Audiences can no longer assume that polished content reflects genuine expertise, because polish is now cheap. That breakdown is real, and King does not minimize it.

His argument, visible across many of his pieces, is that trust does not disappear in this environment but relocates. It moves away from the surface features that machines can imitate, toward the deeper signals that they cannot: consistency over time, verifiability, and evidence of the human judgement that decides what is worth producing. Trust survives by anchoring to what remains costly to fake. Much of the interest lies in how Royston G King reviews the future of trust in a synthetic media age rather than in the verdict itself.

This reading avoids two errors. It avoids the naive view that nothing has changed, that trust can continue to rest on the old signals as though AI had not undermined them. And it avoids the alarmist view that trust is now impossible, that the synthetic flood makes credibility unattainable. King’s position is that trust is harder but not lost, and that it requires updating what one looks for.

His own credentials are framed in keeping with this future. His public profile notes recognition on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list and, according to his profile, he studied at the University of Southern California and Columbia University. He tends to present these as verifiable anchors rather than as claims to be taken on faith, which is consistent with someone positioning for a future where trust rests on what can be checked.

Readers of his pieces often find that this forward-looking framing is steadying. The synthetic media age can feel like the end of reliable trust, but King’s analysis suggests it is more of a migration, one that rewards those who understand where trust is going and position themselves accordingly. That is a more actionable picture than either denial or despair.

There is a responsibility embedded in the analysis. If trust is migrating toward verifiable, consistent, judgment-backed signals, then building those signals honestly becomes both a competitive strategy and a contribution to a healthier information environment. King’s framing treats the cultivation of trustworthy signals as something with value beyond the individual who builds them.

The shift also plays out differently for institutions than for individuals. Established institutions have long relied on their names as shorthand for trust, but synthetic media erodes that shorthand by making it easy to imitate institutional polish. His pieces sometimes touch on this, since the relocation of trust toward verifiable signals affects large organizations and individual founders alike, forcing both to demonstrate rather than assume credibility. For individuals, this is arguably an opportunity, because the verifiable signals that now matter, consistency, checkable claims, and demonstrated judgement, are within reach of anyone willing to build them, not just those with institutional weight behind them. The synthetic media age levels the field somewhat, rewarding demonstrated trustworthiness over inherited authority.

Taken together, these are the terms in which Royston G King reviews the future of trust in a synthetic media age, and they point toward where durable trust is heading. For anyone thinking about credibility in the years ahead, the reading is worth holding. Synthetic media does not end trust, but it changes what trust attaches to, shifting it toward signals that machines cannot cheaply reproduce. Positioning for that future means investing now in consistency, verifiability, and judgement. That measured view of the future of trust in a synthetic-media age is among the more valuable perspectives his pieces consistently offer.

To learn more about Royston G. King, visit his official website. You can also follow him on Instagram, connect with him on LinkedIn, and watch his content on YouTube.

Commerce Signals New U.S. AI and Semiconductor Rules

US Business News Staff 2 on July 15, 2026

The Commerce Department is preparing further regulatory action covering artificial intelligence and semiconductors, Under Secretary Jeffery Kessler told lawmakers on July 14, 2026. The remarks matter to chipmakers, cloud providers, and exporters because they signal another change in U.S. export control policy, although the department has not disclosed the rules’ scope or timing.

Key Takeaways

Commerce Department official Jeffery Kessler confirmed that further regulatory action involving AI and semiconductors is under development.
Commerce does not plan to issue a direct replacement for the rescinded Biden-era AI Diffusion Rule.
No proposed rule, implementation timeline, or detailed compliance framework was released at the hearing.
Semiconductor companies, cloud providers, exporters, and AI infrastructure businesses may need to review future Commerce Department guidance.

The Commerce Department is developing a new regulatory approach for artificial intelligence and semiconductor exports, according to remarks made before Congress by Jeffery Kessler, the under secretary of commerce for industry and security.

“There will be future regulatory action in the area of chips and AI,” Kessler told members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on July 14. He did not identify when the measures would be released or which products, countries, or transactions they might cover. ement gives businesses an early indication that additional U.S. AI and semiconductor regulations are coming. It does not, however, change current export requirements or establish new compliance obligations on its own.

Commerce Prepares a Different AI Export Framework

Kessler’s remarks clarify that the administration does not plan to directly replace the Biden-era Framework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion.

The Commerce Department announced in May 2025 that it was rescinding that rule before its compliance requirements took effect. The Bureau of Industry and Security, commonly known as BIS, also instructed enforcement officials not to enforce it. ime, BIS said it intended to formalize the rescission and issue a replacement rule. Kessler’s July 2026 testimony indicates that the department has since moved away from a direct replacement while continuing to develop other measures covering AI and advanced chips. inction matters because the withdrawn diffusion framework would have created broad international controls on certain advanced computing chips and AI model weights. It would also have imposed different access levels based on countries and approved end users.

Commerce has not disclosed whether its next approach will use similar country classifications, establish new licensing thresholds, or focus more narrowly on specific chips, customers, or end uses.

The AI Diffusion Rule Remains Rescinded

The original AI Diffusion Rule was issued in January 2025 and was scheduled to introduce compliance requirements beginning May 15, 2025.

Commerce announced its rescission on May 13, 2025. The department said the framework could have restricted access to U.S. technology in partner countries while creating extensive new requirements for companies.

The rescission did not represent a broad withdrawal from AI chip export oversight. BIS simultaneously issued guidance addressing Chinese advanced computing chips, AI model training, and efforts to prevent restricted semiconductors from being diverted through third countries or intermediary businesses. s latest statement suggests that federal officials are continuing to evaluate how export controls should apply to AI computing hardware without recreating the withdrawn framework in its previous form.

Semiconductor Controls Remain Under Congressional Scrutiny

Kessler made the announcement during a hearing examining the Bureau of Industry and Security’s fiscal year 2026 budget, export controls, and competition over artificial intelligence technology.

Lawmakers also questioned the department’s handling of advanced chip exports to China. The hearing addressed licensing decisions involving Nvidia H200 processors, enforcement against restricted Chinese companies, and the risk that controlled chips could reach unauthorized users through subsidiaries or other channels. estions reflect the growing overlap between national security policy and commercial semiconductor markets. Advanced processors support AI model training, cloud services, scientific computing, and data center operations.

They are also connected to domestic production planning and broader U.S. chip manufacturing efforts. Changes to export policy can affect how manufacturers allocate capacity, structure supply agreements, and evaluate international customers.

The hearing did not resolve how Commerce will balance restrictions on sensitive technologies with the commercial interests of U.S. chip designers and infrastructure providers.

U.S. AI and Semiconductor Regulations Could Affect Several Sectors

The forthcoming measures could affect more than companies that manufacture physical processors.

Chip designers, contract manufacturers, distributors, data center operators, cloud computing providers, and developers of large AI systems may all need to examine the final scope of any rule. Businesses that supply technical services or facilitate cross-border technology transfers could also face additional review requirements.

Current export compliance programs often include product classification, customer screening, end-use reviews, recordkeeping, and license assessments. Companies may need to update those procedures if Commerce changes the products, destinations, or transactions covered by federal controls.

The impact will depend on whether the department introduces a formal rule, new enforcement guidance, revised licensing policies, or a combination of measures.

Businesses are also directing substantial resources toward corporate AI infrastructure spending. Changes affecting access to advanced chips could influence data center construction, hardware procurement, cloud capacity, and the timing of AI deployment projects.

For now, companies remain subject to the export control framework already administered by BIS.

Formal Details Have Not Yet Been Released

Commerce has not published proposed text explaining what the new regulatory action will contain.

Kessler did not announce a release date, public comment period, transition schedule, or compliance deadline during the hearing. The department also did not specify whether the measures would apply globally or focus on transactions connected to particular countries and entities.

The lack of detail limits what businesses can do immediately. Companies cannot determine whether they will need new licenses or revised internal controls until BIS publishes formal documents.

Legal, compliance, supply chain, and government affairs teams can still review their exposure to advanced computing exports. Relevant considerations include customer locations, distributors, overseas subsidiaries, chip specifications, data center projects, and the intended use of exported technology.

Businesses should also distinguish between a public statement about future policy and an enforceable regulation. Kessler’s remarks signal the department’s direction, but they do not create a new legal requirement.

Companies Await the Next Commerce Department Filing

The next significant development is likely to come through a proposed or final rule, a Federal Register notice, updated licensing policy, or new BIS guidance.

Those documents would clarify whether the government plans to control additional semiconductor models, adjust country-based restrictions, strengthen diversion safeguards, or impose new requirements on AI-related transactions.

The July 14 announcement confirms that advanced computing exports remain a policy priority. It also shows that the administration is developing an approach separate from the rescinded AI Diffusion Rule.

Until formal U.S. AI and semiconductor regulations are published, companies must continue following existing requirements while monitoring Commerce Department announcements for changes that could affect international sales, customer reviews, and technology transfers.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Did the Commerce Department Announce?

Commerce Department official Jeffery Kessler said that future regulatory action involving artificial intelligence and semiconductors is being prepared. He did not release the scope, timing, or text of the planned measures.

Who Is Jeffery Kessler?

Jeffery Kessler is the under secretary of commerce for industry and security. He oversees the Bureau of Industry and Security, the Commerce Department agency responsible for administering many U.S. export controls.

Is the Biden-Era AI Diffusion Rule Still in Effect?

No. The Commerce Department announced the rule’s rescission in May 2025 and instructed enforcement officials not to enforce it. Kessler’s July 2026 remarks indicate that the administration does not intend to issue a direct replacement.

Have the New Regulations Taken Effect?

No. The Commerce Department has only confirmed that additional regulatory action is forthcoming. No proposed rule, final rule, or implementation date was announced during the July 14 hearing.

Which Businesses Could Be Affected?

Future U.S. AI and semiconductor regulations could affect chip designers, manufacturers, exporters, cloud providers, data center operators, and AI developers. The actual impact will remain uncertain until Commerce releases formal details.

Amanda Hall and the Expansion of Picture Book Illustration into Surface Design and Licensing Markets

US Business News Staff on July 15, 2026

The relationship between children’s publishing and product licensing has developed over time since the latter part of the twentieth century. This is particularly evident as illustrated content increasingly transcends the printed page and enters the realm of product licensing. Picture books, once exclusive to the realm of literature and education, now increasingly represent a source of intellectual property that can be developed into interior and apparel products. In this context, the work of British illustrator and author Amanda Hall can be seen as a source of interest regarding the extension of an existing practice of illustration.

Hall’s entry into this area is closely linked to The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau, published in 2012 by Eerdmans Books for Young Readers. While initially produced as a picture book, the imagery from this title later became the basis for a range of licensed applications. From around 2012 onward, the work generated ongoing professional inquiries related to reproduction rights and design adaptation. This pattern reflects a common trajectory in children’s publishing, where visually distinctive books attract interest beyond their original format, particularly when the imagery can be translated into repeatable or decorative forms.

However, adapting book imagery for merchandise may also entail changing how the images are structured. While this is often the case, some of Hall’s images, such as her endpaper design from The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau and other illustrations from that and other books, have been used unedited as stand-alone images for large-scale wall art. In general, images created for merchandise may need to function independently of a sequence, but Hall’s detailed, well-defined style allows elements like foliage, animals, and figures to retain continuity with the original illustrations even when rearranged or repurposed.

By 2016, this development led to the first successful licensing agreement in the United Kingdom based on imagery from The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau. In 2017, Hall was approached by Dussmann das KulturKaufhaus GmbH in Berlin to feature selected illustrations from the same work as large-scale decorative wall panels within its English-language children’s book section at Friedrichstraße 90. The installation was agreed for promotional purposes and reflects the use of her imagery in a high-profile retail setting.

This was followed by an international licensing agreement in 2023, indicating the broader geographic reach of her adapted designs, including applications within the Chinese market for sportswear and apparel products. In such agreements, Hall retains full copyright of her images, granting the licensee a limited license to use the imagery for specified products, within defined territories, and for a set period. This framework allows her work to be applied commercially while maintaining control over intellectual property, demonstrating how illustrated content can extend beyond the book format.

Hall’s increased presence in the licensing business was evident in the coverage given in License Global in October 2025. This article was related to the Brand Licensing Europe exhibition, which took place in London. This exhibition brings together publishers, designers, and manufacturers in a series of negotiations over licenses for intellectual property use. These exhibitions are a key part of the business, as they bring creative producers together with businesspeople.

Hall’s approach to applied design has developed alongside her work in merchandising and licensing, but it differs from the methods used in her picture book illustrations. Her earlier works, including The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau, were created primarily by hand as single, unified pieces that were scanned in their entirety. Digital layering may be added later in Photoshop, but the original spreads remain cohesive artworks. When these images are adapted for merchandise, they are either used in their entirety, as in large-scale prints or wall art, or individual elements are separated by designers for specific applications, such as apparel or other products. Recent repeat designs have been created with separate layers to facilitate commercial use, but this method is distinct from her traditional book illustration practice.

The expansion into licensing also reflects Hall’s long-standing relationships with publishers in the United Kingdom and the United States. In the UK, she has worked with Lion Children’s Books, Frances Lincoln, Dorling Kindersley, Barefoot Books, Pavilion Books, and Templar Publishing, and in the US with Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, Wisdom Tales, and Balzer and Bray. Earlier in her career, her UK publishers originally held both publishing and merchandising rights for the works she illustrated.

Over time, Hall invested considerable effort to have most of these rights reverted to her, allowing her to make independent use of her images for commercial purposes, although some rights remain with publishers, including two in-print titles with Barefoot Books. Through decades of experience, she has come to understand the importance of retaining merchandising rights from the outset, a point of relevance for contemporary illustrators negotiating contracts in the children’s publishing industry.

The transition from a collaborative agreement to a formal publishing agreement affects the licensing rights. In a collaborative agreement, the rights and ownership of the work are usually negotiated in a working agreement between the creative parties while the submission is being developed. In a formal publishing agreement, each illustrator and author signs a contract individually, in which the rights of reproduction, adaptation, and merchandising are clearly specified. Hall has worked in both collaborative and commissioned contexts. Her work has thus been developed through several frameworks before it is licensed, reflecting the different ways in which creative control and commercial use are defined at each stage.

The overall context for this development is a publishing industry where cross-platform potential is becoming increasingly important. Industry reports indicate that global licensing revenue across all sectors exceeded 300 billion US dollars in recent years. Character and entertainment properties were a significant portion of this revenue. While children’s books account for a relatively minor portion of this market, they are a steady source of visual content with potential for adaptation for commercial use. Hall’s work represents an example of how an individual illustrator’s work might be represented within this process with appropriate rights management and industry connections.

The involvement of Amanda Hall in surface design and licensing illustrates a significant shift in how illustration operates within contemporary publishing. It shows how illustrations designed for a narrative purpose can be adapted for applied design, thereby expanding their scope beyond the book form, and the significance of contractual structures, publisher relationships, and platforms in facilitating this process.