BRISTOL, England & BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb 12, 2025--
Immersive Labs, the leader in people-centric cyber resilience, today announced its official name change to “Immersive,” along with its new “Be Ready” tagline. The company has also rebranded its platform as “Immersive One,” a unified platform that is relevant and impactful for every employee. This rebrand reflects the company’s broader mission of helping organizations prepare for the future of cyber threats. Central to this evolution is Immersive’s pioneering approach to cyber drills—dynamic, realistic exercises designed to continuously prove and improve organizational cyber resilience across all teams and functions.
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To better understand how organizations address cyber-readiness, Immersive commissioned an independent study with Sapio Research.* The findings reveal that 94% of organizations have either implemented or plan to implement cyber drills in the next three years, highlighting their growing recognition as a critical tool for preparing for, and mitigating, cyber threats.
Why the Change to Immersive
The new brand evokes the company’s evolution from a single training platform to a full cyber resilience and readiness solution spanning the entire workforce and specific to roles (e.g., developers, cloud engineers, and others), and comprising cybersecurity training, exercises, ranges, and cyber drills to upskill both technical and non-technical teams. The new identity also highlights the company’s vision in which every organization is ready for threats and able to prove it to their leadership and other key stakeholders.
“The change to Immersive reflects the evolution of our brand from lab-based training to a comprehensive approach to cyber resilience and readiness,” said James Hadley, CEO and Founder of Immersive. “Cyber drills exemplify this new focus, ensuring organizations can continuously prove and improve their readiness. I envision a future where cyber drills are as routine as fire drills, helping businesses worldwide maintain resilience in the face of evolving threats. Immersive is already leading the charge to make this vision a reality.”
Inclusive of the rebrand, Immersive has changed the name of its platform to Immersive One, evoking one, unified platform offering market-leading depth and breadth of hands-on labs, simulations, and interactive exercises that cater to diverse roles and skill levels. The new branding marks a new era for Immersive, showcasing the company’s commitment to innovation and dedication to providing customers with the most effective tools and resources to combat ever-growing cyber threats.
Immersive’s Comprehensive Approach to Cyber-Readiness
Since its founding, Immersive has led the way in empowering organizations to strengthen critical cyber capabilities at all levels and across all functions. Initially launching with a series of cybersecurity labs in 2017, Immersive now offers a range of cyber skills development solutions that help organizations achieve the following business outcomes:
Industry Research Underscores the Importance of Cyber-Readiness
Amidst ever evolving threats that overwhelmingly involve the human element and cost global organizations an estimated $4.88M annually, the importance of being ready for anything has never been so evident.
Immersive’s latest research conducted by Sapio Research found:
“Our new brand identity signifies what we can offer that other more traditional cyber training models can’t — a truly immersive approach to proving and improving cyber skills," said Will Bloor, Vice President of Brand at Immersive. "The new branding, particularly our logo, indicates the connection between knowledge and people, and the state of perfect learning, where you’re completely immersed in real-world scenarios. With our enterprise-ready approach, we’re shaping a future where organizations are better equipped to face evolving cyber threats and manage organizational risks."
To learn more about the company’s new brand identity, please visit our blog HERE.
Survey Methodology*
The survey commissioned by Immersive was conducted by Sapio Research among 400 IT security decision makers, managers and above, working in organizations with 250+ employees across the UK and US. The interviews were conducted online by Sapio Research in December 2024 using an email invitation and an online survey.
About Immersive
Immersive, the leader in people-centric cyber resilience, helps your organization continuously prove and improve its ability to prevent and respond to cyber threats. Tailored to individual roles, our approach ensures your organization is always ready for an ever-evolving threat landscape, including the opportunities and challenges posed by AI. With a relentless focus on evidence, Immersive provides unmatched visibility into your cyber resilience. Through a single enterprise platform for individuals, teams, and the entire workforce, we empower your organization to Be Ready for what’s next.
Immersive Labs is trusted by the world’s largest organizations and governments, including Citi, Pfizer, Humana, HSBC, the UK Ministry of Defence, and the UK National Health Service. We are backed by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Summit Partners, Insight Partners, Citi Ventures, Ten Eleven Ventures, and Menlo Ventures.
Immersive unveils its new brand, empowering organizations to Be Ready for what's next. (Graphic: Business Wire)
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — World Cup fans in a growing number of U.S. cities won't have an issue finding a well-poured pint to go with their late-night match.
State leaders across the U.S. are signing off on extending bar and restaurant hours during the world’s most-watched sporting event. They want to help businesses and improve fan experiences, particularly for those who may have been priced out of tickets. Others see the move as a last-ditch effort to boost sales as expectations for a World Cup economic boon have dampened.
So far, Kansas, Missouri, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Washington — states either hosting World Cup matches or adjacent to the activity — have all approved various measures to extend hours for alcohol sales during the tournament. Similar proposals are being considered in New York and Massachusetts.
The changes mean that closing time won’t come until 4 a.m. in Philadelphia during the World Cup and America 250 celebrations. In Kansas City, some bars can stay open as late as 5 a.m.
Many of these changes are dependent on municipality approval, and no business would be required to extend business hours. But for the hospitality industry, already struggling under waning sales and inflation, the option to stay open later is welcomed.
Mark Prinzinger, owner of Lion Sports Bar in Philadelphia, described watching soccer with fans from all over the world as a “magical experience." Now that he has the option to keep his bar open two hours longer, he’s hired extra staff, streamlined the menus and planned late-night programming.
“People want to have a beer with other soccer fans and the great thing about the World Cup is that it brings people together from all over the world into one place to watch a sport that everybody loves,” he said.
Prinzinger and other bar, restaurant and nightlife venues in Pennsylvania will be allowed to move their closing times from 2 a.m. until 4 a.m. during the World Cup and the America 250 anniversary celebrations, between June 11 and July 20. Gov. Josh Shapiro approved the legislation by releasing a video showing him cracking open a beer, signing off the social media post with a cheeky warning to the City of Brotherly Love's reputation for getting rowdy: “Celebrate responsibly, Philly.”
With more hours available to drink, some critics have raised concerns about public safety and potential strain on law enforcement even as the effort has received bipartisan support from lawmakers.
In Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas initially stated that his city “doesn't need bars operating 23 hours” during the World Cup and joked, “Worry not, if you want to drink a ton, bars can open quite early.”
Yet bar owners bristle under such opposition, saying that most businesses prioritize training staff to prevent patrons from being overserved.
“Just because people are hanging out at the bar watching a soccer game doesn’t mean they’re getting blitzed,” Prinzinger said. “In fact, I would say it’s completely the opposite. I think people want to watch the game. People want to be engaged.”
Rhode Island Rep. Teresa Tanzi agreed.
“Not everybody that’s going to walk into a place is going to be chugging drinks and getting loaded,” Tanzi, a Democrat, said earlier this month on the House floor. “There are going to be families who are going to want a cheeseburger, an American cheeseburger, and a Coca-Cola."
Rhode Island, which is closer than Boston is to World Cup matches host Gillette Stadium, is weighing whether to extend alcohol sales to 3 a.m. and closing times to 4 a.m. Currently, last call in the smallest U.S. state is 1 a.m., with some exceptions for its capital city of Providence.
Even Lucas relented, eventually submitting a plan allowing Kansas City restaurants and bars to remain open until 3 a.m., and certain establishments to remain open until 5 a.m. if they submit a security plan to the police department. Currently, alcohol sales can generally be made between 6 a.m. through 1:30 a.m.
The extended hours aren't entirely a U.S. trend. Pubs in England and Wales will be able to stay open as late as 2 a.m. if the English or Scottish teams are playing in the knockout stages after the U.K. government relaxed its licensing rules.
In Scotland, which has its own semiautonomous government, local authorities can allow pubs to stay open until 30 minutes after matches end.
According to the World Cup schedule, a majority of games will be held from early afternoon through early evening. But a handful start later, with four games starting at midnight and eight games starting at 10 p.m. for those watching in the Eastern time zone.
Just how big of a demand there will be for late-night bites and drinks is somewhat unknown. In the U.S., consumer habits have shifted drastically ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, with more people choosing to go out earlier in the day and spending less overall, said David Henkes, senior principal at Technomic, a firm that monitors restaurant and food industry trends.
“It’s so hard to stay open late night or overnight just because it’s hard to find labor,” Henkes said. “I applaud the effort to give restaurants an opportunity to earn more revenue, but I’m not sure that there’s going to be significant enough demand for it to make sense for a lot of operators to do so.”
Associated Press writer Brian Melley contributed from London.
AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup
Lion Sports Bar owner Mark Prinzinger poses behind the bar as fans watch a Champion league soccer match between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Tassanee Vejpongsa)
Fans arrive to watch a Champion league soccer match between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain at the Lion Sports Bar, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Tassanee Vejpongsa)
Fans watch a Champion league soccer match between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain at the Lion Sports Bar, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Tassanee Vejpongsa)
Fans watch a Champion league soccer match between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain at the Lion Sports Bar, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Tassanee Vejpongsa)
Fans watch a Champion league soccer match between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain at the Lion Sports Bar, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Tassanee Vejpongsa)
