SME Policy & Digital Services: Azerbaijan’s KOBIA says entrepreneurship support will shift toward phased privatization of services for micro, small and medium firms, exporters and investors, with a push to optimize and digitalize what government delivers. AI Skills for Hiring: A UVA program (AI4VA) pairs students with Virginia businesses and nonprofits to build practical AI use, reflecting demand for AI literacy in smaller organizations. Local Business Support via Tourism: Visit Savannah’s “Opportunity Summit” drew 200+ entrepreneurs with marketing playbooks and free resources to turn major events into local sales. SMB Cybersecurity: CHON’s “Nothing to Steal” identity approach keeps personal data on users’ phones and verifies directly between devices, aiming to reduce breach risk. AI in Everyday Work: A survey of US small-business hiring decision-makers finds many are rejecting candidates over weak AI skills, showing “AI fluency” is becoming a practical hiring filter. Community Banking & Stablecoins: Coinbase and Moov plan to embed regulated stablecoin infrastructure into payment systems used by 1,000+ community banks and credit unions. Defense Procurement Access: Wales’ DSRC event connected 1,000+ delegates and focused on helping SMEs break into defense, security and resilience supply chains. Startup Funding Competition: North Carolina’s Small Business Center Network Startup Showdown opens voting for finalists, with cash prizes for winners. Tech for SMB Operations: TechDigital Labs launched enhanced technical SEO services aimed at fixing crawl and indexing issues for growing ecommerce and SaaS sites. Infrastructure for Growth: Coventry, Connecticut, received $2M for a water tower tied to boosting water pressure for commercial fire suppression and supporting workforce and housing plans.