Firstup AI Search Named "Overall AI Search Platform of the Year" in 2026 AI Breakthrough Awards Program

Ninth Annual Program Honors the AI Innovators Shaping the Next Era of Global Innovation

SAN FRANCISCO, June 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Firstup, the pioneer of intelligent communication and engagement platforms for the workforce, today announced that Firstup AI Search has been selected as winner of the "Overall AI Search Platform of the Year" award in the 9^th annual AI Breakthrough Awards program conducted by AI Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence organization that recognizes the top companies, technologies, and products in the global Artificial Intelligence (AI) market today.

Firstup AI is a suite of AI capabilities built into the Firstup workforce communications platform. It includes AI Search, AI Content Creator, AI Audience Builder, AI Insights, and AI Actions. Every capability is grounded in a company's verified content and operates within existing enterprise permission and security boundaries. All five capabilities have been built to serve every employee, in every role.

The breakthrough Firstup AI Search solution gives employees direct answers in natural language by searching across Firstup as well as enterprise systems like Workday, ServiceNow, SharePoint, and ADP. Responses are personalized based on each employee's role, location, and permissions, while maintaining conversational context across follow-up questions.

Whether an employee is looking up a PTO balance,  safety protocol, or HR policy, Firstup AI delivers instant answers grounded in approved company content without requiring employees to navigate multiple systems or applications.

"Most conversations about workplace AI focus on knowledge workers, but the reality is that large organizations are made up of people in every kind of role — from corporate teams to nurses, manufacturing workers, customer-facing associates, and field employees," said Bill Schuh, CEO of Firstup. "Our research shows employees spend multiple hours each week searching for information, and 64% of frontline workers don't have any access to AI tools through their employer. Firstup AI Search closes that gap by delivering trusted answers in seconds, directly in the flow of work, which our customers find to be a significant productivity driver."

Firstup AI Search is built on top of Firstup's platform that runs the employee experience for 17 million workers around the globe, allowing it to understand each employee: their role, location, permissions, the systems they work in, and the information most relevant to them.

For nearly a decade, the AI Breakthrough Awards have researched, analyzed, and recognized the most important advances in artificial intelligence, and this year's field is the strongest yet. Thousands of nominations from over 20 countries poured in across categories, including Agentic AI, Generative AI, Computer Vision, AIOps, Robotics, Natural Language Processing, and industry-specific AI applications – underscoring the explosive global growth of AI and its importance as the defining technology of our time.

"Firstup helps organizations deploy AI where the need is highest - frontline and hourly workers," said Steve Johansson, managing director, AI Breakthrough. "Firstup AI Search changes the game. Firstup AI understands natural language, searches across multiple enterprise systems simultaneously, and respects each employee's role and permissions. No standalone search tool can deliver that level of personalization, because no standalone tool was built inside the platform that already knows your workforce."

About Firstup

Firstup is the leading platform for intelligent communication and engagement that powers meaningful business outcomes. As a true "mission control" for workforce communications, Firstup is built for organizations with critically important frontline employees, delivering the right message to the right person at the right time. The platform enables hyper-personalized, data-driven journeys across channels (email, mobile, intranet, digital signage and more), bringing alignment, clarity and engagement to every level of the organization.

With integrations to core HR, IT and business systems, Firstup reduces digital noise, surfaces actionable insights, strengthens employee experience and helps clients maximize productivity and retention. Trusted by large enterprises worldwide, Firstup transforms internal communication into measurable impact. Learn more at www.firstup.io.

About AI Breakthrough

Part of Tech Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence and recognition platform for global technology innovation and leadership, the AI Breakthrough Awards program is devoted to honoring excellence in Artificial Intelligence technologies, services, companies and products. The AI Breakthrough Awards provide public recognition for the achievements of AI companies and products in categories including Agentic AI, Machine Learning, Generative AI, Robotics, AI Hardware, Computer Vision and more. For more information visit AIBreakthroughAwards.com.

Tech Breakthrough LLC does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in our recognition programs, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with award designations. Tech Breakthrough LLC recognition consists of the opinions of the Tech Breakthrough LLC organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Tech Breakthrough LLC disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this recognition program, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

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SOURCE Firstup