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Swiss photojournalist Gregor Sommer has been denied entry to Georgia, OC Media reported on October 1, saying he had to fly back from Tbilisi after refusing to pay two fines totaling GEL 10,000 (about USD 3,700) for what officials said was blocking the road during protests.
His denial of entry to Georgia on Sunday, September 28, appears to be the latest case in a broader pattern of refusals targeting journalists, activists and human rights defenders.
“I had to book my flight back. After that, they took my phone. I tried to get my phone back, but they didn’t, and I asked for a phone call, but they insisted it wasn’t possible, and they kept my phone,” Sommer told OC Media, adding he was denied clarification about the fines or access to a lawyer.
Sommer has previously visited Georgia “at least six or seven times” since the disputed October 2024 parliamentary elections. He has published photos from protest rallies that followed the Georgian Dream government’s suspension of the country’s EU accession process in November 2024.
OC Media also reported that another journalist from Germany, who remained anonymous, was held at the border for six hours and allowed into the country only after paying a GEL 5,000 (about USD 1,800) fine for road blockage.
Dozens of journalists, activists, and human rights defenders have been denied entry to Georgia over the past year, often for work deemed contrary to the interests of the ruling Georgian Dream party, with some cases linked to protests in Tbilisi. The latest case, however, involving pro-Kremlin blogger Patrick Lancaster, who was denied entry at the land border with Russia, is an exception in that regard.
In May, EU diplomat Simon Vanderbroucke was denied entry, the first reported case involving a diplomat. Authorities later blamed a technical issue and allowed him to resume his mission.
Later in May, the Polish and French embassies in Tbilisi issued advisories warning their citizens of potential entry risks tied to protest participation and social media activity.
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REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
As hype around generative AI continues to rattle the software sector, more specialized software companies may be among the most resilient players and the most underappreciated.
RBC Capital Markets wrote on Wednesday that vertical software — tools specifically designed for industries such as healthcare, insurance, and industrial design — could weather AI disruption in the near term and benefit from it in the long run.
These software vendors benefit from deep domain expertise, regulatory knowledge, and workflows that are difficult to replicate, the analysts wrote in a note to investors.
“Vertical software is one pocket of software that is likely to be viewed as ‘AI-proof’ (for now),” the RBC analysts, led by Rishi Jaluria, wrote.
Vertical software often supports critical functions and is typically seen as “need-to-have,” not just “nice-to-have,” the report explained.
With high customer retention, it could take years for these companies to be threatened by AI startups, even in a best-case scenario, the analysts argued.
One such company, Clearwater Analytics, boasts gross revenue retention (GRR) rates of 98% to 99%, demonstrating the loyalty of its customers to the product. Gross revenue retention is a common metric for subscription-based businesses and software companies, measuring how effectively they maintain their existing revenue base.
Additionally, many of the industries these companies serve are still in the early stages of modernizing their technology. That makes customers less likely to adopt AI-driven replacements in the near future.
Over the longer term, RBC sees vertical software vendors playing a key role in shaping the next phase of AI adoption. Rather than merely supplying data, they can provide context to train and fine-tune AI models, leading to industry-specific AI tools that drive real productivity gains.
At a recent Goldman Sachs tech conference last month, I asked Kash Rangan, the firm’s software analyst, about which companies could survive the AI challenge.
He highlighted ServiceNow, praising CEO Bill McDermott’s battle-tested leadership. He also pointed to Intuit for creating value for its existing products by subtly adding AI into them.
Salesforce got a more reserved assessment. Rangan said while CEO Marc Benioff is “in the fight,” the company still needs to prove that its new Agentforce AI product is gaining traction with customers and that they’re willing to pay for it.
In an industry dominated by flashy AI bets, RBC highlights a quieter reality: while vertical software may not be immune to threats by AI companies, its combination of industry entrenchment and domain-specific potential makes it a rare, AI-proof niche. For now, anyway.
Here are the vertical software companies that RBC recommended on Wednesday. RBC rates these all “Outperform,” citing their defensibility and their ability to innovate around AI:
Sign up for BI’s Tech Memo newsletter here. Reach out to me via email at abarr@businessinsider.com.
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