World, US, Culture, Market, and Sci-Tech News Aggregation from MSM and Independent News
Weapons of Mass Automation: AI can make war more lethal than nuclear weapons. How US, Russia, China, India and others are preparing – WION– news.google.com
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EXCERPT:
Weapons of Mass Automation: AI can make war more lethal than nuclear weapons. How US, Russia, China, India and others are preparing WION
Oil Tankers Rush to The US For American Oil As Negotiations Fail to Open the Strait of Hormuz– townhall.com
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EXCERPT:
As the remnants of the Iranian regime continue to block the Strait of Hormuz, countries around the world are reportedly turning to the United States for oil, as tankers flood the Gulf of America to purchase American oil.
This is the Gulf of America, packed with supertankers racing to load up on US oil.
Record exports.
Global energy demand is shifting directly to 🇺🇸
Economic boom incoming.
Paying attention… pic.twitter.com/yjCwoJI8Wd
— Dan Gambardello (@dangambardello) April 12, 2026
🚨 DONALD TRUMP JUST STUNNED THE WORLD
Suddenly, oil and gas tankers want to RUSH to the US to fill up on energy. Look at the Gulf of America!
It’s almost like 47 had a plan this entire time 🔥
“Boats are sailing up, heading to OUR country, big, beautiful tankers — we’re… pic.twitter.com/xRFt22LuOi
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) April 12, 2026
🚨 HOLY CRAP! President Trump just stunned everybody, saying the world is USING AMERICA to fill up on oil because of what Iran did to the Strait
“At 10 o’clock tomorrow we have a blockade going into effect…other nations are working so that Iran will not be able to sell oil and… pic.twitter.com/O7DEvBqPSt
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) April 13, 2026
Judge Dismisses Trump’s Lawsuit Against the Wall Street Journal, Rupert Murdoch Over Epstein Reporting – TheWrap
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The U.K. is “not supporting” the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday, insisting that the country would not get “dragged in” to the Iran war.
It came as President Emmanuel Macron confirmed France and the U.K. would, in the coming days, co-host a conference aimed at restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
Vessels avoiding damage from the Iran war are turning to a small island nation in Africa Business Insider Africa
from news.google.com
Scientists recover 90% of lithium from old batteries — here’s why it matters Yahoo Tech
from news.google.com
Oil prices may soon be coming down after this move by U.S. Forces.
U.S. CENTCOM on Saturday announced the USS Frank E. Peterson and USS Michael Murphy will patrol the Strait of Hormuz to clear it from mines that were placed by the Iranian regime.
The move by U.S. CENTCOM come as JD Vance and top Iranian officials are in Pakistan discussing a peace agreement that would bring an end to U.S. military operations in Iran.
If you’re following AI news, you’re probably getting whiplash. AI is a gold rush. AI is a bubble. AI is taking your job. AI can’t even read a clock. The 2026 AI Index from Stanford University’s Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, AI’s annual report card, comes out today and cuts through some of that noise.
Despite predictions that AI development may hit a wall, the report says that the top models just keep getting better. People are adopting AI faster than they picked up the personal computer or the internet. AI companies are generating revenue faster than companies in any previous technology boom, but they’re also spending hundreds of billions of dollars on data centers and chips. The benchmarks designed to measure AI, the policies meant to govern it, and the job market are struggling to keep up. AI is sprinting, and the rest of us are trying to find our shoes.
All that speed comes at a cost. AI data centers around the world can now draw 29.6 gigawatts of power, enough to run the entire state of New York at peak demand. Annual water use from running OpenAI’s GPT-4o alone may exceed the drinking water needs of 12 million people. At the same time, the supply chain for chips is alarmingly fragile. The US hosts most of the world’s AI data centers, and one company in Taiwan, TSMC, fabricates almost every leading AI chip.
The AI build-out is powering global goods trade Financial Times
from news.google.com
HONG KONG — China is poised to benefit from the Iran war as global energy disruptions accelerate a shift away from fossil fuels and toward clean technologies and renewable power, industries that China dominates.
Most of the oil and gas from the now mostly shut Strait of Hormuz was Asia-bound. Asian nations are scrambling to conserve energy and bolster dwindling reserves. As a temporary ceasefire teeters, gasoline prices in the U.S. and Europe are spiking.
While most of Asia is hit hard, China will likely benefit from the fossil fuel disruptions despite being the biggest purchaser of Iranian oil. China leads the world in battery, solar and electric vehicle exports, and its industries are forecast to face a rise in demand for renewable products.
Before the start of the Iran war in late February, China’s lead in clean technologies was lengthening. The U.S. under President Donald Trump scaled back on renewable energy and leaned on its vast oil and gas resources, promoting energy exports to achieve what Trump described as “energy dominance.”
Donald Trump has said he doesn’t care if Iran comes back to negotiations with the US after the weekend talks in Pakistan ended without a deal. “I don’t care if they come back or not,” Trump told reporters in Maryland on Sunday. “If they don’t come back, I’m fine.”
Trump said earlier that the US Navy would start blockading the Hormuz strait and also prohibit every vessel in international waters that had paid a toll to Iran. US Central Command said later it would begin a blockade of all Iranian Gulf ports and coastal areas on Monday at 10am ET (5.30pm in Iran and 1400 GMT), effectively seizing control of maritime traffic in the strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned that “approaching military vessels to the strait of Hormuz is considered a violation of the ceasefire”.
Oil prices rose in early market trading after Trump’s blockade announcement. The price of US crude oil rose 8% to $104.24 a barrel and Brent crude oil – the international standard – rose 7% to $102.29. Australia’s share market dropped sharply on Monday morning.
Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf taunted Trump on X, saying in a post: “Enjoy the current pump figures. With the so-called ‘blockade’, Soon you’ll be nostalgic for $4–$5 gas.” Earlier he said Trump’s new threats would have no effect on the Iranian nation: “If you fight, we will fight … We will not bow to any threats.”
Trump and his advisers are looking at resuming limited military strikes in Iran in addition to the US blockade of the Hormuz strait, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing officials and people familiar with the situation.
Oil prices have rocketed in early market trading after the US announced it would blockade Iranian ports.
The US military has confirmed it will halt all maritime traffic entering and leaving Iranian ports, with the measure taking effect at 10am ET (2pm GMT) today.
US crude oil prices surged eight per cent to $104.24 a barrel in early trading, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, climbed seven per cent to $102.29.
China’s energy strategy pays off as Mideast war cramps supplies, analysts say The Japan Times
from news.google.com
“If the Taiwan Strait or the surrounding area of Taiwan will be blockaded, it is almost a 100% of the blockade of the regional energy supply,” Sawyer Mars, Taiwan’s deputy interior minister, said in an interview with Bloomberg News earlier this month. “It’s not only Taiwan’s problem, it’s the whole area’s problem.”
from financialpost.com
Apple is finally stepping into the smart glasses space. For this, the company is asking an important question: Would you actually wear these outside? This is the most important thing, because this is where most smart glasses have historically fallen apart. Rather than locking itself into a single, safe design, Apple is reportedly exploring multiple frame styles for its first pair of AI glasses. And not minor tweaks either — we’re talking distinctly different silhouettes.
There’s a bold, chunky rectangular option that leans into classic sunglasses territory. Then a slimmer, more understated rectangular design that feels a bit more executive-core. On the other end, Apple is also experimenting with rounded frames, both oversized and more refined — clearly trying to cover as many style preferences as possible. In short, Apple is designing a small collection, and that’s a smart move. Because what works for one face can look wildly off on another.
Disney To Axe Nearly 1,000 Jobs Under New CEO Josh D’Amaro: Report Yahoo Finance
from news.google.com
Donald Trump hasn’t done interviews with neutral journalists who could challenge him in years. Trump’s venues of choice are either cell phone interviews that last a minute or two or conservative media like Fox News and Newsmax.
The Fox News interviews are heavily manufactured, usually pretaped, and edited before they air.
It takes a special level of incompetence to go on a network that is propagandistic and supportive and botch a softball question in such a friendly and managed environment.
The issue that is driving the special election results that Democrats have been dominating, and the Democratic Party’s midterm generic ballot lead that has been growing, is the economy. Inflation and rising prices are driving voter outrage directed at this president and his administration.
Elon Musk’s xAI faces lawsuit over Mississippi power plant tied to AI data centers The Times of India
from news.google.com
An advisory firm that counsels the largest institutional investors on how to vote at shareholder meetings is recommending investors support Warner Bros. Discovery’s $77.7 billion acquisition by Paramount Skydance but is against a golden-parachute proposal that would see executives collect a total of $1.35 billion after the deal goes through.
In a report issued on Wednesday, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) said support for the “extraordinary golden parachute” proposal, which it valued at $886.8 million in payments for Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav and $466.2 million for the other executives, wasn’t warranted. ISS took issue with an “excise tax grossup” estimate of $335 million for Zaslav and hundreds of millions he stands to collect just because the deal between the two companies is happening.
It’s unclear if Zaslav will have a future role at the combined entity or with one of its affiliates or if he will continue on in a senior role. When Warner Bros. was weighing rival offers from David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance and Netflix last year, Ellison and his father, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, dangled a compensation package worth “several hundred million dollars” to Zaslav, according to the deal disclosures. David Ellison also floated Zaslav becoming chairman of the combined company’s board, and then upped it to a co-CEO and co-chairman title.
Germany’s fiscal problems are no longer confined to Berlin — they are now most visible in the country’s towns and cities, where local governments have recorded their worst deficit since reunification.
According to a DeStatis press release on Tuesday, municipal finances deteriorated sharply in 2025, with the deficit climbing to €31.9 billion, up from €24.8 billion the previous year. While revenues rose to €391.4 billion, an increase of 4.1 percent, spending grew even faster to €423.3 billion, widening the gap between income and expenditure to unprecedented levels.
As the United States-Israel war on Iran — paused for two weeks on Wednesday amid fresh diplomatic talks — has roiled the global economy for more than a month, Iran and China have seized the opportunity to address a shared gripe about the global financial system.
Their common cause: ending the hegemony of the US dollar.
US President Donald Trump wants to see the Strait of Hormuz open up for oil tankers and other traffic without any limitations, including tolls, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday.
from www.news24.com
The Trump administration is eliminating Obama-era off-cycle credits that incentivized automakers to install automatic start-stop technology in vehicles, effectively killing what many drivers consider one of the most annoying features of newer models.
Modern electronics power everything from smartphones to satellites, but they all share a major limitation. Heat. Once temperatures climb above roughly 200 degrees Celsius, most devices begin to break down. For decades, this thermal barrier has been one of the toughest challenges in engineering.
Researchers at the University of Southern California now believe they have found a way past that limit.
The Wall Street Journal, which famously floats trial balloons for corporate behemoths, is carrying water for the poor AI companies who are so, so disliked:
OpenAI this week published a populist wish list of policy proposals that zero in on worries like job replacement and wealth concentration, floating such ideas as a four-day workweek and an AI-invested public-wealth fund distributed to citizens.
Those proposals come as its rival Anthropic has been signing partnerships and building tools for such sectors as consulting and software, where share prices have been whacked by investor worries that they will be replaced by AI. Anthropic’s efforts have helped push back up shares of tech companies including LegalZoom.com LZ 3.84%increase; green up pointing triangle.
Anthropic and OpenAI are each pursuing ventures to help private equity, a big owner of companies in sectors ripe for disruption, with AI transformation. (Those efforts could also yield lucrative new business customers.)
We evolved for a linear world. If you walk for an hour, you cover a certain distance. Walk for two hours and you cover double that distance. This intuition served us well on the savannah. But it catastrophically fails when confronting AI and the core exponential trends at its heart.
From the time I began work on AI in 2010 to now, the amount of training data that goes into frontier AI models has grown by a staggering 1 trillion times—from roughly 10¹⁴ flops (floating-point operations‚ the core unit of computation) for early systems to over 10²⁶ flops for today’s largest models. This is an explosion. Everything else in AI follows from this fact.
Shippers looking to revive the passage of tankers through the Strait of Hormuz were seeking clarity on the logistics on Wednesday, while refiners inquired about new crude loadings, in response to a ceasefire deal between the U.S. and Iran.
Most stranded oil and gas tankers remained inside the Gulf, LSEG shipping data showed, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the two-week ceasefire and said the U.S. would help with the traffic build-up.