Klaviyo the autonomous B2C CRM, announced a significant engineering investment in Dublin. The company is building a dedicated engineering team at its Dame Street, Temple Bar location. Klaviyo is set to build on the more than 100 roles it has created in the past year with up to 50% growth in 2026, deepening its long-term commitment to the Irish technology community.
The investment reflects Ireland’s standing as a global destination for technology companies seeking world-class engineering talent, a dynamic innovation ecosystem, and a proven track record of supporting high-growth companies at scale. Since opening its Dublin office in February 2025, Klaviyo has established a growing presence in Ireland and today’s announcement marks the next phase of that commitment – one rooted in building, not just operating, from Ireland.
Ireland’s Engineering Talent to Power Global AI Platform
Klaviyo’s platform processes billions of events daily across 8 billion consumer profiles worldwide, enabling brands like Mattel, Glossier, and TaylorMade to deliver personalized customer experiences at scale. The Dublin engineering team will take direct ownership of core systems powering Klaviyo’s AI strategy, including messaging infrastructure, data analytics, and personalisation across marketing, service, and analytics – work that will have global impact.
Open engineering roles span senior software engineering, engineering management, infrastructure security, and internal platform development, with further positions expected as the team scales throughout 2026.
“Dublin will own core parts of how Klaviyo’s platform works, not support them from the sidelines,” said Surabhi Gupta, Chief Technology Officer at Klaviyo. “We’re looking for engineers who want to solve genuinely hard problems, building reliable, high-performance systems at scale. The people joining us here will ship features that reach millions and push what’s possible with AI and data.”
Ireland: A Home for High-Growth Technology Companies
Klaviyo’s investment is a further signal of Ireland’s attractiveness to high-growth, publicly listed technology companies seeking to scale internationally. Ireland’s pool of experienced engineering talent, its position as a gateway to European markets, and its vibrant technology ecosystem make it a natural choice for companies at Klaviyo’s stage of growth.
Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment Peter Burke said: Klaviyo’s decision to establish an engineering hub in Dublin is a strong endorsement of Ireland as a first class location for AI innovation. This investment highlights the strength of our engineering talent and our ability to support high‑growth companies. I thank Klaviyo for their continued commitment to Ireland and the high‑quality jobs this expansion will create, and I wish the team every success for the future.
“We’re growing and scaling fast across Europe. We’ve got lots of opportunities ahead as we build out our AI products,” said Ben Jackson, Managing Director and VP for EMEA at Klaviyo. “For engineers in Dublin, that means working with billions of data points daily at the scale of a large platform, with the pace and ambition of a company that has significant runway ahead. It’s a core part of how we’re building Klaviyo’s future.”
Michael Lohan, CEO of IDA Ireland said: “Klaviyo’s decision to build its engineering capability in Dublin is a strong endorsement of the quality of Ireland’s technology talent and the strength of our innovation ecosystem. Artifical Intelligence is a key growth driver in IDA Ireland’s strategy Adapt Intelligently and Klayvio’s plans for its operations in Ireland will help shape the future of AI activity in Ireland. We look forward to supporting Klaviyo as it grows its presence here.”
Opportunities for Ireland’s Engineering Community
Engineers interested in joining Klaviyo’s Dublin team can explore current openings and apply at klaviyo.com/careers.
Software platforms that embed payment processing into their products face a fundamental question about control. Stripe offers a fast path to accepting payments, but the trade-off is dependency on Stripe’s infrastructure, pricing, and merchant relationship. Finix presents an alternative model where the platform retains ownership of the payment stack while accessing processor-grade infrastructure. The distinction matters because payment revenue compounds over time, and the entity that controls the merchant relationship captures that value.
Finix operates as a certified processor with direct connections to Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover. Transactions route through Finix without an intermediary processor sitting between the merchant and card networks. This architecture differs from payment facilitators that aggregate merchants under a master account. The company processes more than 400 million transactions per day across the US and Canada while maintaining 99.999% uptime.
How Finix and Stripe Compare for Platform Payments
The structural differences between Finix and Stripe determine which option fits a given platform’s growth trajectory. Both companies serve software platforms, but the ownership models diverge in ways that affect long-term economics.
Feature
Finix
Stripe Connect
Processing Model
Direct processor
Payment facilitator
Card Network Connections
Direct to Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover
Routed through Stripe
Interchange Pricing
No markup on interchange
Blended or interchange-plus
White-Label Capabilities
Full dashboard customization
Limited branding options
PayFac Transition Path
Built-in escalation to full PayFac
Requires migration to Stripe Atlas
Custom Merchant Fee Structures
Configurable by platform
Standard rates with limited flexibility
PCI Certification
Level 1 Service Provider
Level 1 Service Provider
Finix’s pricing model passes interchange costs directly to merchants without markup. NerdWallet’s independent review confirms the interchange-plus structure: card-present transactions carry a fee of roughly 8 cents plus interchange, while card-not-present transactions run approximately 15 cents plus interchange. Platforms can configure custom fee structures for their merchants, creating a direct revenue stream from payment volume.
The PayFac-as-a-Service Model
Finix Flex allows software platforms to monetize payments immediately without assuming the full regulatory burden of becoming a payment facilitator. The model serves as a starting position. As volume increases, platforms can transition to full PayFac ownership within the same infrastructure.
This escalation path addresses a common problem. Platforms that start with aggregated payment solutions often reach a volume threshold where the economics no longer work. Migrating to a new processor requires re-integrating merchants, updating compliance documentation, and retraining support staff. Finix’s single-platform approach eliminates that migration cost.
Richie Serna, CEO and co-founder of Finix, stated that the company offers no-code payment solutions for the 22 million businesses without developers, enabling seamless payment integrations with little to no technical expertise.
Integration Speed and Technical Requirements
Finix claims platforms can go live in 1 day using as few as 3 API endpoints. The company handles billions of API calls annually, which suggests the infrastructure scales without degradation. For platforms with development resources, this represents a lower barrier to entry than building a full payment integration from scratch.
Q1 2025 product updates added Account Updater, Network Tokens, and Instant Payouts. Account Updater refreshes stored card details when banks issue new card numbers, reducing failed recurring payments. Network Tokens replace raw card numbers with secure tokens issued by card networks. Instant Payouts give merchants immediate access to funds rather than waiting through standard settlement windows.
Account Updater costs $0.55 per card updated. Network Tokens cost $0.15 per card tokenized by card networks.
White-Label Control and Merchant Management
Platforms using Finix can customize the merchant dashboard with their own logos, colors, and subdomain. The white-label tools cover onboarding, branded emails, reporting, and chargeback workflows. Merchants interact with the platform’s brand rather than seeing Finix’s interface.
The dashboard allows merchants to configure notifications, manage onboarding forms, schedule payouts, handle disputes, process refunds, and generate reports. Finix offers more than 10 out-of-the-box report types covering transaction-level data, interchange, reconciliation, settlements, disputes, and fees.
This level of control matters for platforms that treat payments as a core product feature rather than a bolt-on service.
Hardware and Omnichannel Support
In March 2026, Finix launched the Checkout iOS App and a mobile card reader that pairs via Bluetooth. The combination allows merchants to accept in-person payments without wired hardware, integrated into the broader Finix ecosystem.
The platform supports omnichannel payments with built-in tokenization and pre-certified POS terminals. A single-ledger architecture and shared token vault allow tokens to be reused across channels. A customer who pays online can use the same stored payment method in person, and the platform reconciles both transactions in one system.
Security and Compliance Standards
Finix maintains PCI Service Provider Level 1 certification, the highest level available for payment processors. The company also holds SOC 1 and SOC 2 compliance, addressing controls for financial reporting and data security.
Platforms that integrate with Finix can reduce their own PCI compliance scope through tokenization. Sensitive card data stays within Finix’s certified environment rather than passing through the platform’s servers.
Customer Feedback and Support
Finix holds a 4.7 overall rating on Capterra based on 42 user reviews. The platform scores 4.8 for Value For Money and 4.8 for Customer Service. Support is available 24/7 with live representatives, meaning platforms and merchants can reach an actual person at any hour.
Vishal Lugani, founding general partner at Acrew Capital, noted that customers appreciate Finix’s transparency, support, and user-friendliness.
Who Uses Finix Now
Software platforms in hospitality, parking management, membership services, and automotive industries run on Finix. Lunchbox, Clubessential, Passport, and Vroom all process payments through the platform.
TechCrunch reported that Finix closed more deals in 2024 than in the company’s entire prior history. The company supported more than 12,000 merchants in 2022 and has grown since then. Revenue quadrupled in the last year according to the same source.
Finix’s Series C round closed at $75 million in October 2024, led by Acrew Capital and co-led by Leap Global and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Citi Ventures and Tribeca Venture Partners also participated. Total funding stands at $208 million across 10 rounds.
FAQ
What type of pricing does Finix use?
Finix uses an interchange-plus model. Merchants pay the actual underlying interchange fees plus a small additional markup rather than a flat rate. Card-present transactions run roughly 8 cents plus interchange. Card-not-present transactions run approximately 15 cents plus interchange.
Can platforms set their own pricing for merchants?
Yes. Platforms can configure custom fee structures for merchants rather than passing through a standard rate. This allows platforms to create a payment revenue stream and price payments as part of a broader service offering.
How long does integration take?
Finix states that platforms can go live in 1 day using 3 API endpoints. The actual timeline depends on the platform’s technical resources and scope of integration.
Does Finix support in-person payments?
Yes. The Finix Checkout iOS App and Bluetooth card reader allow merchants to accept card-present payments. The platform also supports pre-certified POS terminals.
What is the minimum volume for Finix?
Finix is best suited for businesses processing at least $5,000 in card payments per month.
Does Finix require long-term contracts?
No. Finix does not require long-term contracts.
What compliance certifications does Finix hold?
Finix maintains PCI Service Provider Level 1 certification, SOC 1, and SOC 2 compliance.
Pictured attending the Tech Rally at the Dell Technologies Innovate event at Royal Hospital Kilmainham recently were Mark Hopkins, Managing Director, Dell Technologies Ireland, and Alex Rice, Field Product Manager at Dell Technologies Ireland, alongside over 100 technology leaders, industry experts and IT decision-makers who explored how organisations across Ireland are preparing for the next phase of AI-driven transformation.
The event also featured Dell’s‘Tech Rally Anywhere’ showcase, bringing a hands-on experience of the latest devices and technologies shaping the future of work in Ireland. The showcase provided IT leaders with the opportunity to experience Dell’s latest AI PCs and latest devices and how they can empower employees in the workplace.
With AI continuing to move from concept to practical deployment, discussions throughout the day centred on the importance of building strong digital foundations from modern devices to resilient, secure and scalable infrastructure.
Attendees explored how modern devices and emerging technologies are evolving new ways of working. A dedicated showcase area gave audience the opportunity to experience the latest generation of Dell devices and workplace solutions first-hand, including newly launched AI PCs. The interactive setup demonstrated how advancements in device performance, collaboration tools and connectivity are enabling more flexible and productive ways of working across today’s hybrid work environment.
With technology decisions now more closely tied to business performance than ever before. Irish organisations are increasingly focused on how they can future-proof their operations, embrace AI responsibly and unlock new opportunities for growth in an increasingly complex digital economy.
Speaking at the event, Mark Hopkins, Managing Director at Dell Technologies Ireland said “AI is rapidly becoming a key driver of innovation and competitive advantage for organisations across Ireland. As businesses move from experimentation to real-world deployment, the focus is on building the right foundations, from modern devices at the edge to secure, scalable infrastructure, to fully realise its potential.
“At Dell Technologies Ireland, we are supporting customers to turn AI ambition into tangible outcomes, helping them innovate faster, operate more efficiently and move forward with confidence in an increasingly data-driven world.”
Doing business with systems and infrastructure can be demanding, and you’ll face plenty of obstacles along the way. Those obstacles are hard to escape without good information, tips, and tricks. Many people wonder how those dealing with big infrastructure challenges actually overcome them, especially when problems pile up and the project is large. With the right information, everything can change and improve. That’s why in this list, we’ll share useful info and show you how experts turn infrastructure challenges into smooth workflows and how you can bring that into your daily work.
General revision
You can not work on a problem if you don’t know where the problem is. That is why the first step in making your infrastructure challenges into smooth workflows must be to map all the problems and recognize them. For that, you will need to do a general revision, in which you will see all the problems that you have and also the potential ones that may arise. The general revision in those fields can also bring you many more benefits, and some of those are:
Identification of hidden costs
Setting up priorities
Dependency making
Discovering safety omission
Those are just a few examples of how general revision can contribute to your infrastructure work, and there are many more that can help you to continue your work more smoothly.
DevOps as a bridge between experts
The most present problem in the project world is mostly misunderstanding. There are a lot of misunderstandings that can happen between people, and especially between two types of experts in the IT industry. Setting up the right infrastructure can include the work of many people together, and that must be done precisely. The problem is that different sectors do not understand the needs of others, and they must be synchronized as much as possible in order to get a good product. The great thing is that MeteorOps Terraform specialists can help you establish good communication and a bridge between programmers and system administrators. In that way, no mistakes will be made during the process, and everything will run smoothly. There are great things that are essential for smooth work and that can come with those services, and some of those are:
Strategy advisor
All-time support and monitoring
Automation
Containerization and migration
Security and compliance
Modular design
The old way of building systems was to stitch together a large amount of data that couldn’t be separated into small parts. The good news? There are new ways of doing infrastructure now through modular designs. Experts break everything into smaller segments and parts that are easier to remove and repair without disturbing the whole system. This simpler approach makes obstacles and challenges much easier to handle. And that’s something that will benefit you a lot.
Self-healing system
AI technology is making great changes in all industries and businesses. That technology can be implemented in almost every part of life, and it will raise efficiency. Usually, when the system is down, there is always a need to wait for someone to fix it. The great thing is that with a self-healing system, it doesn’t need to be a case. In that way, the system can recognize that something is not okay and restart automatically and fix itself.
Proalerting in order to react on time
The biggest issue in system infrastructure is that a problem can appear without administrators even knowing it’s there. That gap between the problem arriving and getting fixed can cost you a lot, and you don’t want it to be long. Many useful features can help, and one of them is proalerting. With it, you get instant notifications that something isn’t right. You’ll know right away that you need to fix it. No more waiting around, guessing, or hoping for the best. Just clear alerts when trouble starts, so you can act fast and keep everything running smoothly.
Planning and disaster recovery
Do not expect that everything will work smoothly for a long time without any problems. You must always try to predict some problems and help to save the system and cloud without being under pressure. A great thing that you can do in that case is to plan disaster recovery. In that plan, you can include many important things, such as:
Regular backup checking
Defining the right step
Business impact analysis
When you know good ways to approach a problem, it’s much easier to keep a smooth workflow on any project. This list gives you great examples of how to do that and what to pay more attention to.
Harvey, the legal infrastructure for law firms and in-house teams, today officially opened its Dublin office at Riverside 2, Sir John Rogerson’s Quay. The company plans to grow its Dublin team to more than 40 employees over the next two years, marking a significant long-term investment in Ireland’s AI and business talent ecosystem.
Harvey first announced its intention to establish a Dublin presence in January, with plans to create 20 roles in its first year. The company has since made its first two hires across its people and finance teams, with additional roles currentlyopen on its legal and sales teams.
The Dublin office will serve as Harvey’s EMEA G&A hub, supporting a rapidly expanding customer base across the region. Approximately 30% of Harvey’s 1,000+ global customers are based in EMEA, including leading global and Irish law firms and enterprises such as A&L Goodbody, Arthur Cox, Maples Group, Mason Hayes & Curran, McCann FitzGerald, Beauchamps LLP, Philip Lee LLP, and Kingspan Group.
The new location places Harvey in close proximity to many of these customers and at the heart of Dublin’s established technology and professional services community.
Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment Peter Burke said: “Harvey’s expansion highlights Ireland’s growing influence in the global AI landscape. This investment reflects the momentum within Ireland’s AI ecosystem and the significant opportunity it presents for high-value job creation and innovation. Harvey’s decision to establish its EMEA G&A hub here reinforces Ireland’s reputation as a competitive location for companies developing and deploying advanced AI technologies with global impact.”
“Today marks an important milestone in our European growth,” said Winston Weinberg, CEO and co-founder of Harvey. “We’re proud to partner with many of Ireland’s leading firms and enterprises, and establishing a permanent presence in Dublin allows us to deepen those relationships while continuing to scale across EMEA. Ireland’s strong technology ecosystem and access to exceptional talent make it the right place for us to invest for the long term.”
Katie Burke, Chief Operating Officer at Harvey, added: “Dublin has a deep pool of experienced, internationally minded professionals, across key operational functions. Having previously built teams here, I’ve seen the quality of talent firsthand. As we expand our operational footprint in EMEA, Ireland provides the expertise and infrastructure to help us scale effectively and sustainably.”
Michael Lohan, CEO of IDA Ireland said: ‘I am delighted that Harvey is strengthening their footprint in Ireland with this new office and their plans to expand their workforce to 40 employees in Dublin. AI is a key focus area for IDA Ireland and this decision by Harvey highlights Ireland’s strengths as a location for investment in innovative technology.’
Harvey leaders are hosting customers and partners at its Dublin office this week to mark the official opening and to further strengthen collaboration across the region.
NFTs no longer function as speculative collectibles. They have evolved into digital assets, and increasingly into in-game assets with clear utility.
Ethereum-based collections dominate headlines with high-value trades and large aggregate volumes. This focus makes NFTs seem like speculative assets tied to broader crypto market cycles, but price shows only part of the market.
When you measure transaction activity, asset usage, and behavioral patterns, a different structure appears.
The 51 Games team collected and analyzed the data, and the results show that gaming NFT ecosystems – mostly operating on non-Ethereum chains generate 80-100 times more transactions than Ethereum-based NFTs.
Source: The Block
This gap does not come from scale alone, it reflects a fundamental difference in how these systems operate. The NFT market has evolved into two distinct economies: a low-frequency, high-value layer and a high-frequency, utility-driven layer.
Structural Split: Premium vs Utility Economies
The data reveals a clear split between Ethereum and non-Ethereum NFT activity. Ethereum still dominates total trading volume and has historically accounted for more than 50% of the market.
This dominance comes from premium, collectible assets, which typically involve:
higher prices
lower transaction frequency
investor- and collector-driven demand
Gaming NFT ecosystems – mostly outside Ethereum – follow a different pattern:
lower asset prices
significantly higher transaction frequency
player-driven activity
Analysis shows that non-Ethereum gaming NFT activity is 4-6 times higher than Ethereum gaming volume.
Source: The Block
This data points to a clear functional split:
Ethereum → speculative / collectible layer
Gaming ecosystems → operational economic layer
Transaction Intensity as a Primary Indicator
Transaction volume highlights the strongest difference between these systems.
Gaming NFT ecosystems operate at a much higher level of activity than Ethereum NFTs, driven by continuous in-game interactions rather than occasional trades.
In gaming environments, NFTs act as transactional primitives. Players constantly buy, sell, upgrade, and exchange assets as part of gameplay, which creates ongoing economic activity.
Ethereum NFTs follow a different pattern. Users acquire assets, hold them, and trade them occasionally, often in response to market signals rather than ongoing usage.
As a result:
Ethereum concentrates value per transaction
Gaming ecosystems maximize transaction throughput
Market Structure: From Fragmentation to Reconcentration
The 51 Games dataset also tracks how the NFT market structure has changed over time.
2021 → high concentration in a small number of collections
2022–2024 → fragmentation across a wider set of projects
2025–2026 → renewed reconcentration, now led by utility-driven ecosystems
Today, 6 out of the top 11 NFT collections are gaming-related, compared to 1 out of 5 in 2021 and 3 out of 11 in 2024.
This shift shows that:
users increasingly prefer assets with real utility
successful projects integrate NFTs into broader ecosystems
At the same time, several established NFT brands have expanded into gaming models, reinforcing this direction.
Chain-Level Divergence
Ethereum still serves as the main infrastructure for high-value NFT transactions. But it no longer dominates gaming activity.
Analysis shows that non-Ethereum chains, including gaming-focused ecosystems like Ronin capture the majority of gaming NFT transactions and volume.
This split reflects different system requirements:
Gaming ecosystems require low-cost, scalable environments that support continuous activity
As a result, NFT activity now spreads across specialized infrastructures designed for specific use cases.
Divergent Responses to Market Conditions
The two NFT economies respond differently to market cycles. Premium NFTs on Ethereum track the broader crypto market. When market capitalization rises, demand for high-value assets increases. Users feel wealthier and allocate more capital to speculative purchases.
Gaming NFT ecosystems behave differently.
Data shows that activity in gaming NFTs often increases during market downturns. Users shift toward systems that provide ongoing engagement and more predictable value through usage.
This creates a clear contrast:
premium NFT demand depends on capital
gaming NFT activity depends on engagement
Economic Implications
The data shows that the NFT market no longer functions as a single system, instead, it operates as two parallel economies:
A speculative asset layer, where scarcity, branding, and market sentiment drive value
A utility-driven economy, where continuous interaction and participation generate value
These systems differ across key dimensions:
transaction frequency
user behavior
volatility patterns
infrastructure requirements
High transaction volume in gaming ecosystems signals active, functioning economies, not passive asset markets.
Sum Up
The dominant narrative around NFTs focuses on declining prices and reduced speculative interest, that view captures only part of the market.
The 51 Games team’s data shows that while premium NFT activity remains concentrated on Ethereum, most transaction activity has shifted to gaming ecosystems on alternative chains. This shift marks a transition from ownership-based models to usage-driven systems, where NFTs function as components inside digital economies.
The NFT market has not contracted, it has reorganized. One segment operates as a high-value, low-frequency market tied to capital flows. The other operates as a high-frequency, utility-driven system embedded in user behavior.
To understand where real activity, and long-term value exists, you need to look beyond price- you need to look inside games.
Anyone who has ever tried to collect data from websites at scale runs into the same problem sooner or later: blocks. At first everything works. Then requests start failing, pages stop loading properly, and eventually access disappears completely.
In most cases the reason is simple. Websites monitor traffic very closely. If dozens or hundreds of requests come from the same IP address, the system quickly assumes automation and shuts the door.
That is exactly the situation where residential proxies become useful.
A residential proxy works through an IP address assigned by an Internet Service Provider to a real household connection. To the website, the visit looks like a normal person opening a page from home rather than a script running somewhere on a server.
Over the past few years demand for these tools has increased a lot. Data has become a core part of business decisions. Companies monitor search rankings, track prices, analyze competitors, and verify advertising campaigns.
But the moment automated traffic becomes noticeable, websites begin limiting access. That is why many teams end up searching for the bestresidential proxyprovider instead of relying on basic proxy solutions.
The difference becomes obvious very quickly: some proxy networks work smoothly for weeks, while others start failing after a few hundred requests.
What Are Residential Proxies and Why Businesses Use Them
To understand why residential proxies are so widely used, it helps to look at how websites evaluate incoming traffic.
Servers rarely see the user directly. Instead, they see the IP address and some behavioral patterns. If the IP belongs to a hosting provider, it immediately raises suspicion. Many automated tools operate from datacenter infrastructure.
Residential IPs look different. They belong to real internet subscribers. From the server’s point of view, the request appears to come from someone sitting at home with a laptop or phone.
This difference alone changes how the request is treated.
Feature
Residential Proxy
Datacenter Proxy
IP source
Real ISP connection
Hosting server
Detection risk
Lower
Higher
Location precision
Often city-level
Usually generic
Blocking rate
Relatively low
Much higher
Typical price
Higher
Lower
Because residential traffic appears more natural, companies use it for tasks that require stable access to websites.
Where residential proxies are commonly used
large-scale web data collection
checking search results in different regions
monitoring advertising placements
tracking competitor pricing in e-commerce
managing multiple social media or marketplace accounts
Take price monitoring as a simple example. A retailer may want to track how competitors price products in several countries. If all requests come from a single address, the store’s security system may block them within minutes.
Using residential proxies spreads those requests across many real connections. From the website’s perspective it looks like normal visitors browsing the catalog.
That is why businesses working with large volumes of data rarely rely on random proxy lists. Instead they compare services and try to find the best residential proxy provider that offers stable infrastructure and enough IP addresses.
Key Features of the Best Residential Proxy Provider
Once someone starts comparing proxy services, the number of options can be surprising. Many platforms promise fast speeds, unlimited access, and massive IP pools.
In practice, the differences become clear only after using the service for real tasks.
Experienced users usually pay attention to several practical details when evaluating the best residential proxy provider.
Important things people look at
how large the IP pool actually is
whether the network covers many countries
connection stability during long sessions
options for rotating IP addresses
availability of APIs for automation
transparency about where the IPs come from
responsiveness of support teams
The size of the network matters more than beginners expect. When the IP pool is small, the same addresses get reused frequently. That increases the chances of websites recognizing the pattern.
Location coverage is another factor. Some tasks require traffic from very specific regions. Search results, for instance, can look completely different depending on the city or country of the visitor.
Connection reliability is also easy to underestimate. If proxies constantly disconnect or respond slowly, automated scripts begin to fail. Over time that creates gaps in collected data.
Another point worth checking is how the residential IPs are sourced. Established providers usually work through opt-in programs where users agree to share their connection. This approach keeps the network transparent and avoids legal concerns.
When these factors come together — large IP pools, stable connections, and proper infrastructure — a provider begins to stand out as the best residential proxy provider for many professional tasks.
Top Residential Proxy Providers Compared
The residential proxy market has grown quickly during the last decade. What used to be a niche tool for developers is now widely used by marketing teams, researchers, and data analysts.
Several companies have built particularly large networks. Different providers appeal to different types of users.
Large data companies often prefer services with massive IP pools and advanced APIs because they run complex data pipelines. Smaller teams sometimes choose simpler platforms that are easier to configure.
There is also a separate category of static residential proxy providers. Instead of rotating addresses frequently, these services offer residential IPs that remain stable for longer periods.
Such proxies are often used for account management or monitoring tasks where changing the IP address too often may trigger security checks.
In reality, the best residential proxy provider depends heavily on what the user wants to do. Data scraping, market research, and account automation all have slightly different requirements.
In the next part of this guide we will look closer at static proxies, rotating networks, and whether using residential proxy free services is actually practical.
Static vs Rotating Proxies: Understanding Static Residential Proxy Providers
When people first hear about residential proxies, the difference between rotating and static IPs is often confusing. In reality, the concept is quite straightforward once you start using them in practice.
Rotating residential proxies automatically switch the IP address after a certain number of requests or after a short period of time. The idea behind this approach is simple: every request appears to come from a different user. For large-scale tasks this behavior is extremely useful.
Static proxies work the opposite way.
Instead of constantly changing the address, the same residential IP stays assigned to a user for a longer time. Services built around this concept are often referred to as static residential proxy providers.
Both options solve different problems.
Rotating proxies are typically used when the goal is to access many pages quickly without triggering rate limits. Data collection tools, for example, rely heavily on this type of rotation.
Static proxies are usually chosen when stability matters more than constant IP changes. Some platforms expect a consistent connection and may treat frequent switching as suspicious activity.
That is why static residential IPs are often used for:
managing multiple accounts
accessing dashboards or web services
monitoring websites over long periods
running automation tools that require session stability
In other words, rotating proxies are better for large volumes of requests, while static proxies help maintain a stable identity online.
Are There Any Residential Proxy Free Options?
A lot of beginners start their search by looking for residential proxy free solutions. At first it sounds logical. If a free option exists, why not try it?
The problem is that free proxy networks rarely behave the way people expect.
Most of them rely on very small pools of IP addresses that are shared by many users at the same time. As a result, those addresses quickly become overused. Websites start recognizing them and blocking access more aggressively.
Another issue is performance. Free proxies are often slow and unstable. Connections drop, requests time out, and scripts fail unexpectedly.
Security can also be a concern. When a proxy service is completely free, it is often unclear how the network is maintained or who controls the infrastructure.
For that reason, residential proxy free services are sometimes used for testing small tools or learning how proxies work. But once a project becomes serious, most users move to paid services that provide larger IP pools and stable routing.
In practice, reliability usually matters more than saving a few dollars.
Expert Opinion on Residential Proxy Networks
Residential proxy networks have gradually become an important part of modern data infrastructure. Companies that analyze online markets or monitor competitors often depend on them every day.
Industry researchers also emphasize their role in large-scale data collection.
“Residential proxies are the most reliable way to access large-scale web data without getting blocked.” — Sedat Dogan, CTO at AIMultiple. Source: research.aimultiple.com
This statement reflects a simple reality. When a project requires thousands or even millions of requests, ordinary connections stop working very quickly. Residential proxy networks make that scale possible.
Because of this, organizations usually spend time evaluating several services before choosing the best residential proxy provider for their workflow.
Conclusion: Choosing the Best Residential Proxy Provider
Residential proxies are now used in many different fields, from market research to SEO monitoring. In practice, they help solve a very specific problem — getting access to websites without running into constant blocks.
In the end, the right provider is simply the one that keeps your workflow running without interruptions.
FAQ
What is a residential proxy in simple terms? A residential proxy is basically an internet connection that lets your requests go through an IP address belonging to a regular home user. Because websites see that address as a normal household connection, the traffic usually looks like it comes from an ordinary visitor rather than from automated software.
What do static residential proxy providers offer? Services known as static residential proxy providers give users a residential IP address that stays the same for longer sessions. This can be useful when working with platforms that expect a stable connection. For example, some dashboards or accounts react negatively if the IP address keeps changing.
Do residential proxy free services really work? You can find offers online that promise residential proxy free access. They sometimes work for short tests, but the experience is often inconsistent. Speeds can be slow, and the same IP addresses may be shared by many people, which makes them easier for websites to recognize and block.
Why do people look for the best residential proxy provider? Not every proxy network performs the same way. Some have larger IP pools, better routing, and more reliable connections. When projects depend on steady access to websites — for example, during data collection or market monitoring — users usually try to find the best residential proxy provider available to avoid interruptions.
Can residential proxies help with checking search results in other countries? Yes, this is one of the practical uses. Residential proxies allow someone to access search engines as if they were browsing from another location. That makes it easier to see how results appear in different regions and compare how rankings change from place to place.
Are residential proxies legal to use? In most places they are legal as long as they are used for legitimate purposes. Many companies rely on them for research, analytics, or advertising checks. It is generally recommended to work with providers that clearly explain how their residential IP network is obtained and managed.
AI is rapidly transforming businesses across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), unlocking innovation and potential in vital areas from retail personalisation to medical research. But Irish organisations in particular are feeling both the excitement and the strain. Many businesses find their AI ambitions stalling – as no one expected they’d need to support AI workloads when designing their infrastructure strategy. Colin Boyd, Data Centre Solutions Sales Director, Dell Technologies Ireland tells us more
The investment momentum is strong. Projections show the AI market in Europe alone is experiencing robust growth, projected to expand from approximately $105B in 2024 to over $640B by 2031, at a CAGR of 35% (Statista). But in Ireland the legacy systems remain one of the biggest barriers to progress with almost 28% of businesses saying their servers need upgrading to support AI workloads and 34% saying the same for their storage systems, according to Dell Technologies Innovation Catalyst Study. And as data volumes surge, 97% organisations that are planning to increase their storage capacity expect to face challenges of some sort when doing so, underscoring the scale of the infrastructure gap.
To truly unlock AI’s potential, leaders must first look inward and assess if their infrastructure is a launchpad for innovation or a barrier to progress. Here are five indicators that your infrastructure might be holding you back.
Data Access is a Bottleneck, Not an Enabler
AI models are fueled by data. The more high-quality data they can process, the more accurate and insightful they become. However, many local businesses still struggle with fragmented or slow-moving data. If data scientists spend more time waiting for datasets to load than they do building models, that is a problem. Legacy storage systems often struggle to deliver the high-speed, parallel throughput required for training complex algorithms.
The challenge is further amplified by Ireland’s strict regulatory environment as seen 40% of the organisations say they face challenges when it comes to meeting regulatory data requirements when it comes increasing storage capacity and 37% cite data security and privacy concerns as barriers when planning to scale their storage infrastructure.
The need for strong data management in the EMEA region is further amplified by stringent regulatory requirements. Regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe set high standards for data privacy, consent, and localisation. Businesses need to ensure that data used for AI is not only accessible and timely but also managed and transferred in compliance with these legal mandates.
Consider a financial institution in London aiming to use AI for fraud detection. Real-time analysis is essential, but a fragmented or slow data landscape not only risks missed threats but can also lead to breaches of privacy mandates. Modern, compliant data platforms help unify, streamline, and accelerate access – enabling safe, rapid innovation, while meeting the complex requirements for privacy and governance.
Scaling Server Infrastructure for the Next Wave of AI
Running AI in production is still a highly-compute intensive challenge for most businesses. While few enterprises are training large language models from scratch, many are deploying AI to support real-time decision making, analytics, computer vision, and increasingly autonomous workflows alongside existing business applications.
Almost 28% of Irish organisations say their servers need upgrading to support AI workloads, as it places sustained pressure on server infrastructure, particularly when general-purpose servers are already operating close to capacity. When AI inference, data processing and core applications compete for the same resources, performance suffers and the value of AI is harder to realise. Purpose built infrastructure, including accelerated compute, helps businesses support these mixed workloads efficiently while maintaining reliability and predictable performance.
The Network Is a Traffic Jam
AI doesn’t just demand powerful computing and storage; it also requires a robust network to move massive datasets between storage, processing units, and end-users. But many businesses are discovering that their networks weren’t designed for this level of throughput. A slow or unreliable network can create significant bottlenecks, effectively starving your powerful AI processors of the data they need to function. Signs include long data transfer times, network congestion during peak processing hours, and dropped connections that can interrupt critical training jobs.
A slow network means a frustratingly delayed user experience, which can directly impact on customer satisfaction and retention. A growing number of Irish businesses recognise that improving data transfer speeds is essential to support AI tasks. A high-speed, low-latency network fabric is essential to ensure a smooth, continuous flow of data, enabling your AI applications to perform as intended.
Deployment and Management Are Overly Complex
Getting an AI model from the lab to a live production environment should be a streamlined process. However, many businesses find themselves entangled in complexity. If your IT team struggles to provision resources, manage software dependencies, and scale applications, your infrastructure is creating unnecessary friction. A rigid, manually configured environment makes it difficult to experiment, iterate, and deploy AI models efficiently.
The challenge is compounded by skills gap and operational pressures. 34% of Irish organisations cite a lack of in-house expertise as a key barrier to managing growing data and infrastructure demands.
Lack of agility can be a significant disadvantage. Businesses across the EMEA region are looking to AI for a competitive edge, and speed to market is critical.
Modern infrastructure simplifies this journey with integrated software stacks and automation tools. This approach empowers teams to deploy AI applications quickly, manage them with ease, and scale them on demand, fostering a culture of rapid innovation.
No Clear Path to Scale
While an organisation’s first AI project may start small, the infrastructure should be ready for what comes next. A critical sign of an unprepared system is the absence of a clear, cost-effective strategy for scaling your AI capabilities. If expanding the AI environment requires a complete and costly overhaul, the initial success will be difficult to replicate and these challenges are already being felt across businesses, with 40 % reporting difficulties when ensuring infrastructure scalability, while 37% cite high cost of expanding data storage as one of the key obstacles.
Infrastructure built on a scalable, modular architecture allows businesses to grow AI resources incrementally. This “pay-as-you-grow” model provides the flexibility to meet evolving demands without overinvesting, ensuring your AI journey is sustainable in the long term.
Building the Foundation for Progress
The journey to AI is not just about algorithms and data; it’s about building a powerful and agile foundation. By addressing these five signs, businesses in Ireland can move beyond the limitations of legacy systems. Investing in modern, purpose-built infrastructure is an investment in your future. It empowers your teams, simplifies complexity, and creates the conditions for AI to deliver on its promise of driving meaningful progress and creating new opportunities.
As organisations look to advance their AI ambitions, understanding how to modernise infrastructure becomes essential. The same principles that drive transformation – strengthening core systems, managing data securely and scaling AI workloads with confidence will be at the heart of the conversation at Dell Technologies Innovate. Bringing together industry experts and technology leaders, the event will explore how organisations can build resilient, AI‑ready environments while maintaining security, compliance, and performance.
For organisations looking to take the next step in their AI journey, understanding how to modernise infrastructure will be key.
Join us at Irish Museum of Modern Art on 26th March to dive deeper into these strategies and chart a clear path forward. For more information and to register, click here.
When smoke fills a stairwell or a crowd surges toward a locked exit, seconds decide outcomes, and indoor navigation becomes as critical as the siren outside. Recent high rise fires, large venue evacuations, and more frequent multi agency drills have pushed emergency services to modernize how they move inside complex sites. The challenge is immediate: GPS weakens indoors, signage disappears in darkness, and even familiar buildings turn hostile when alarms, debris, and panic reshape every corridor.
When every second counts
Could you pick the right stairwell first? Firefighters and paramedics often enter with incomplete information, and they must choose routes quickly while heat, noise, and stress distort judgment. Dispatchers start with pre incident plans, verified access points, known hazards, and on site contact numbers, then they push that package to vehicle terminals and command tablets, so crews do not waste minutes hunting for a service entrance. Teams confirm their entry point on arrival, and they report changes fast, because a locked fire door or a disabled elevator can reroute the entire operation.
Radio remains essential, yet modern responses add structured data so teams do not rely on memory under pressure. Many services conduct surveys before emergencies occur, and they store hydrant locations, standpipe connections, sprinkler control valves, elevator overrides, and rooftop access routes in shared systems that supervisors can update after renovations. Incident commanders assign sectors, track who advances where, and enforce accountability checks at set intervals, because losing a crew inside a maze multiplies risk for everyone.
Maps that work indoors
How do you map a building you cannot see? Indoor mapping platforms convert architectural plans into navigable layers, with rooms, stair cores, restricted zones, and critical equipment marked clearly for operational use, rather than for a glossy brochure. Responders use those layers to plan approach routes, identify alternate exits, and avoid dead ends that trap teams when fire spreads or structural damage blocks corridors. When renovations change layouts, updated mapping prevents crews from sprinting toward a door that no longer exists, and it helps commanders choose safer paths as conditions evolve.
The best tools respect emergency constraints: they load fast, they work offline, and they present simple symbology that stays legible in low light or on a shaking screen. A crew leader can open a floor, tap a stairwell, and share a route to a teammate entering from another side, which keeps teams aligned even when they cannot meet face to face. Platforms such as Visioglobe.com show how indoor maps, routing logic, and searchable points of interest can merge into a single operational view, so navigation stays usable when voice instructions and visibility fail at once.
Finding people fast
What if the victim cannot call out? Locating occupants and responders often depends on indoor positioning, because GPS fades indoors and raw radio signal strength can mislead in steel heavy environments where reflections bounce signals into false confidence. Wi Fi and Bluetooth can estimate location using existing infrastructure, while Ultra Wideband can deliver higher precision in selected zones, and inertial sensors can bridge short gaps when signals drop in stairwells or underground corridors. Agencies rarely bet on one method, and they fuse inputs to stabilize results when smoke, moving crowds, and radio congestion turn clean diagrams into messy reality.
Finding people also means tracking teams, and that is where procedures and devices meet. Some departments use wearable tags or telemetry systems that log entry time, assignment, and last known position, while commanders monitor air supply limits and set check in points that prevent silent drift into danger. Venues can help by sharing live building data, such as elevator outages, access control status, and door sensor alerts, because a locked gate can funnel evacuees into a bottleneck and trap responders behind them.
What venues can do next
Book an indoor mapping and safety audit, then set a budget for updates, device replacement, and drills that keep crews fluent. Prioritize basements, plant rooms, and long corridors, and test offline access during exercises. Look for safety grants, smart city funds, and resilience aid to cover part of the rollout.
