Principal Security Engineer

Auros has launched AI Relationship Quality (ARQ), a new benchmark for measuring how people relate to conversational and agentic AI systems. The assessment, delivered by Auros' Professional Services team, evaluates five key elements: understanding, trust, control, outcome, and affinity. ARQ complements traditional AI evaluations, which focus on accuracy and technical performance, by assessing human factors that drive adoption. The benchmark produces an overall score plus individual scores across each element, paired with video feedback from participants. Jason Giles, vice president of customer intelligence at Auros, said the benchmark addresses the gap between technical capability and user trust. The repeatable methodology allows companies to track progress over time and compare against competitors. ARQ is available now through Auros Professional Services. The Bellevue, Washington-based company operates a network of 7.6 million verified people.

Stablecoin Yield platform TownSquare secures $16.25 million from WLFI, OKX. TownSquare has raised $16.25 million from WLFI, OKX, Aptos, and Auros to expand its stablecoin yield and RWA infra platform amid CLARITY debate. Published by 1 hour ago Key Highlights * TownSquare secured $16.25M in funding from WLFI, OKX, Aptos, Auros, angels from a16z among other investors. * The platform helps users earn yield on stablecoins and tokenized RWAs across chains. * The raise comes amid growing U.S. debate around stablecoin yield regulation under the CLARITY Act. Stablecoin Yield:- In a major funding round amid growing debate around CLARITY Act, World Liberty Financial (WLFI), OKX, Auros, Aptos, and several crypto investors have backed a new stablecoin yield platform TownSquare. The investors porvided $16.25 million in fresh funding last week. The raise comes at a time when yield-bearing stablecoins remain at the center of the ongoing CLARITY Act debate. Lawmakers are still discussing how crypto-based yield products should be regulated. gtown world Today Coingape is excited to announce the completion of its Pre-A funding round, bringing its total funding to $16.25M, on a mission to accelerate institution-backed yield to everyone, with USD1 and RWAs pic.twitter.com/qxeENLkzES - townsquare | (mainnet arc) (@TownSquarexyz) May 21, 2026 What is townsquare, the stablecoin yield platform. According to the company, institution-backed on-chain assets have now grown to roughly $36 billion in early 2026. There are some institutional yield strategies generating returns above 8%. This is quite higher than the typical 3%-5% yield offered by traditional U.S. Treasury bills. TownSquare's platform work as an infrastructure for stablecoin finance and RWAs. It helps users generate yield on assets like USD1, USDC, tokenized Treasuries, tokenized gold, and other RWAs across multiple blockchains. It allows users to deposit crypto assets ("Supply"), earn yield/APY, and later withdraw funds. The protocol then uses those supplied assets for lending, liquidity provisioning, leverage loops, institutional yield strategies, or DeFi vault strategies. Instead of a user manually lending on Aave or farming on another protocol, TownSquare does the routing and infrastructure part itself. So for a normal user, the experience is essentially Deposit stablecoins and earn yield. As of writing, Townsquare's TVL has reached $46.4M. The platform currently supports EVM ecosystems including Monad and BNB Chain, with initial yield vaults expected to include USD1, USDC, cbBTC, tokenized gold, and other RWAs through partner integrations. The funding follows after its announced plans last week with WLFI for a $100 million UhSD1 pipeline. With that, WLFI alongwith Townsquare aims at scaling institutional and on-chain yield products for its USD1 stablecoin. Amid CLARITY Act debate. As mentioned, the funding becomes particularly notable as stablecoin yield products remain at the center of the ongoing CLARITY Act debate in the United States. The proposed legislation has faced months of delays. These are over disagreements tied to stablecoin rewards, DeFi protections. For months, lawmakers have been examining questions around whether crypto platforms should be allowed to offer yield products lest they ruin traditional banks. However, last week, the Senate Banking Committee advanced the bill in a 15-9 bipartisan vote. This was after lawmakers introduced a compromise proposal around stablecoin yield provisions. Also, Senator Synthia recently revealed timeline for CLARITY Act. The revised language reportedly restricts passive yield generated simply from holding stablecoins. It is still allowing rewards tied to on-chain activity and platform participation. Despite this, CLARITY Act's passage percentage has dropped below 50% on prediciton market platforms. As platforms like TownSquare expand institutional stablecoin yield and RWA-backed products, the outcome of the CLARITY Act could play a major role in shaping how such crypto yield infrastructure operates in the U.S. market. Why trust CoinGape: CoinGape has covered the cryptocurrency industry since 2017, aiming to provide informative insights to its readers. Its journalists and analysts bring years of experience in market analysis and blockchain technology to ensure factual accuracy and balanced reporting. By following its Editorial Policy , its writers verify every source, fact-check each story, rely on reputable sources, and attribute quotes and media correctly. Coingape also follow a rigorous Review Methodology when evaluating exchanges and tools. From emerging blockchain projects and coin launches to industry events and technical developments, Coingape cover all facets of the digital asset space with unwavering commitment to timely, relevant information. Investment disclaimer: The content reflects the author's personal views and current market conditions. Please conduct your own research before investing in cryptocurrencies, as neither the author nor the publication is responsible for any financial losses. Ad Disclosure: This site may feature sponsored content and affiliate links. All advertisements are clearly labeled, and ad partners have no influence over its editorial content. Something big to share? Your crypto brief. Delivered every week. * Insights that move markets * Trusted by top investors and builders * Stay ahead every week. Want Coingape to cover your story? Sneha Agrawal With over four years of experience in covering and tracking the financial markets, Sneha Agrawal is a dedicated Crypto Journalist and Editor with passion for researching and writing the crypto pieces. She is currently leading the Block of Fame, here at CoinGape. She likes to keep track of political, legal and financial happenings all around the world - without which she deems her day incomplete. Apart from her Journalistic endeavours, she is a solo traveler, museum goer, and a keen reader of books.