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Intelligence for the New World Economy
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The World at a Glance
Updated 12:35pm EDT
1
The global tech stock rout spread globally, following a dramatic dip on Wall Street on Monday.
2Iran will “administer” the Strait of Hormuz, according to Tehran’s chef negotiator, in what would be a major diplomatic win.
3Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum vowed to resume oil exports to Cuba, risking a potential confrontation with Donald Trump.
4President Donald Trump signed executive orders to accelerate the development of quantum computing.
5China is rapidly catching up with the US in biotech capabilities, a survey found, a trend that has alarmed Washington.
6SK Hynix topped Samsung as Korea’s most valuable company, propelled by the AI-powered chip boom.
New top US solar lobbyist sees a ‘golden age’ under Trump
In an exclusive interview, Tim Pawlenty said many fellow Republicans have an “outdated understanding” of how solar power really works.
Nathan Frandino/ReutersMaryland primary showcases candidates with African roots
Three candidates with Africa ties are running in a crowded primary for the state’s 5th Congressional District.
“Governor Moore welcomes Legislators on the House and Senate Floors” by Maryland GovPics, CC BY 4.0; Screenshot/YouTube/Wala Blegay; Screenshot/YouTube/Quincy For CongressGreenspan’s legacy tested by AI jitters
The “Greenspan put” — the easy-money policies that time and again protected stockholders from their worst mistakes — may be tested in the months ahead.
Yuri Gripas/ReutersMamdani makes a big bet on Democratic socialism
The mayor is staking his clout on three congressional challengers.
Eduardo Munoz/ReutersHow a data center backlash is twisting Utah’s primary
Rep. Blake Moore is facing a tough reelection bid from a conservative challenger.
Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters; Screenshot/Military Installation Development Authority German robotics aren’t sweating China
The CEO of leading German startup Neura Robotics told Semafor he is confident his customers will “think twice of where the technologies come from.”
Co-Founder and CEO of RobCo Roman Hölzl. Fariha Farooqui/ReutersPrivate equity pushes insurance to get risky
Anant Bhalla warned on Semafor’s Compound Interest podcast that private equity’s pressure is “high-octane fuel” pushing what should be the safest asset people own into dangerous investment territory.
Semafor/YouTube
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Politics“Governor Moore welcomes Legislators on the House and Senate Floors” by Maryland GovPics, CC BY 4.0; Screenshot/YouTube/Wala Blegay; Screenshot/YouTube/Quincy For Congress 
REUTERS/Cheney OrrEduardo Munoz/Reuters
Maryland primary showcases candidates with African roots
Three candidates with Africa ties are running in a crowded primary for the state’s 5th Congressional District.
“Governor Moore welcomes Legislators on the House and Senate Floors” by Maryland GovPics, CC BY 4.0; Screenshot/YouTube/Wala Blegay; Screenshot/YouTube/Quincy For CongressDaily Wire, under pressure, seeks strategic investors, targets IPO
The Daily Wire is in talks to take on at least $100 million in investment, with an eye on an initial public offering in a few years’ time.
REUTERS/Cheney OrrMamdani makes a big bet on Democratic socialism
The mayor is staking his clout on three congressional challengers.
Eduardo Munoz/ReutersWhy Rand Paul subpoenaed Fauci
Paul said he’d reached his breaking point after the former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director agreed to appear before Paul’s panel this month and then backed out.
How a data center backlash is twisting Utah’s primary
Rep. Blake Moore is facing a tough reelection bid from a conservative challenger.
Republican senators start to question Trump’s audit immunity deal
Some are the same critics who helped thwart his $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund.
US eases oil sanctions on Iran
Washington insisted the Islamic Republic had agreed to resume UN nuclear inspections, though Tehran said it made “no new commitments.”
What if it’s not l’économie, stupid?
Éric Zemmour’s diagnosis is not the standard analysis of why centrist leaders everywhere have grown so profoundly unpopular.
New book depicts how Trump hobbled his presidency
‘Regime Change’ reminds readers what’s to come from the narrator-in-chief, who at one point tells aides: “We need plot twists.”
Can the US waive sanctions on Iranian oil?
The Trump administration may not have legal standing to again waive US sanctions.
‘The president seems to revel in chaos’: Cornyn goes his own way
The Trump-ousted Texas Republican senator sat down with Semafor to talk about how he’s using leverage and the colleagues he’s helping.
Business
Instagram
Everything old, even TV, is new again
Instagram’s push onto larger (notably, horizontal) screens signals a shift.
InstagramDaily Wire, under pressure, seeks strategic investors, targets IPO
The Daily Wire is in talks to take on at least $100 million in investment, with an eye on an initial public offering in a few years’ time.
Greenspan’s legacy tested by AI jitters
The “Greenspan put” — the easy-money policies that time and again protected stockholders from their worst mistakes — may be tested in the months ahead.
AI, Veblen goods, and M&A fees
If good-enough investment-banking advice becomes cheap and ubiquitous through AI, the premium on the prestige alternative goes up, not down.
Global tech rout hits Asia
South Korean stocks took the biggest hit, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix each plunging by more than 12%.
Technology
Denis Balibouse/Reuters
Florence Lo/Reuters
DeepMind Chief Demis Hassabis says Google’s still winning AI talent
Despite the departure of two top AI leaders that sent the company’s stock price down, Hassabis says Google is still on top.
Denis Balibouse/ReutersSK Hynix becomes South Korea’s most valuable company
SK Hynix topped Samsung as South Korea’s most valuable company, propelled by the AI-powered chip boom.
Florence Lo/ReutersSpaceX, Alphabet lead US tech rout
Tech stocks fell Monday even as the US projected optimism about ongoing peace talks with Iran.
Apple vulnerable in Tata cyber breach
India’s largest conglomerate, Tata is one of Apple’s most important manufacturing partners outside of China.
Challengers gain ground as chip market heats up
Rising demand is boosting secondary players in the increasingly competitive semiconductor industry.
JPMorgan restricts Anthropic in Hong Kong
The White House, citing national security concerns, has blocked all foreign nationals from using Anthropic’s most advanced models.
Energy
David Gray/Reuters
Guglielmo Mangiapane/Reuters
Vantor/Handout via Reuters
China’s green energy exports to US grow
China’s customs data showed strong gains in exports of green energy and battery products to the US last month.
David Gray/ReutersEurope bakes in a punishing heatwave
A heatwave across Europe prompted a partial alcohol ban in France and the cancellation of public World Cup watch parties in Spain.
Guglielmo Mangiapane/ReutersUkraine attacks trigger Russian fuel shortages
Ukraine is hammering Russia’s oil infrastructure, triggering fuel shortages and increasing gas prices.
Vantor/Handout via ReutersGulf
Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters
Dubai’s MAF plans $3.1B New Cairo development
Dubai’s Majid Al Futtaim signed a deal with Egypt’s MIDAR to build around 6,000 residential units, hotels, and commercial spaces.
Mohamed Abd El Ghany/ReutersGulf markets lifted by US-Iran negotiations
Last week, Dubai’s DFM and Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index hit their highest levels since the war broke out.
Abu Dhabi’s MGX secures $50B for AI investments
The announcement makes MGX one of the biggest global funds dedicated to the technology.
TCW sees Gulf funds ramping up deals
Wall Street firms need to be close to Gulf sovereign funds as “integral” parts of the global economy, TCW’s top executive said.
AI energy firm born out of ADNOC and G42 eyes US
AIQ has nearly 300 use cases for the oil and gas industry and is now looking to export from Abu Dhabi.
ChinaCo-Founder and CEO of RobCo Roman Hölzl. Fariha Farooqui/Reuters
Stringer/ReutersDavid Gray/Reuters
German robotics aren’t sweating China
The CEO of leading German startup Neura Robotics told Semafor he is confident his customers will “think twice of where the technologies come from.”
Co-Founder and CEO of RobCo Roman Hölzl. Fariha Farooqui/ReutersEurope is debating the terms of its industrial surrender
Western politicians complain that China achieved its rise through “forced technology transfer,” but the handover was mostly voluntary.
Stringer/ReutersChina’s green energy exports to US grow
China’s customs data showed strong gains in exports of green energy and battery products to the US last month.
David Gray/ReutersAfrica
The Cape Town Marathon 2026. @capetownmarathon/Instagram. 
Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama lays a wreath at Osu Castle, a former slave post. Francis Kokoroko/Reuters.
South African holds world’s oldest ultramarathon
The nearly 55-mile race was held soon after Cape Town was designated a World Marathon Major.
The Cape Town Marathon 2026. @capetownmarathon/Instagram. West African push for slavery reparations
The call comes on the heels of a recent UN declaration that the slave trade was a crime against humanity.
Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama lays a wreath at Osu Castle, a former slave post. Francis Kokoroko/Reuters.Botswana secures $100M for solar plant
Investors are betting that rising electricity demand will offer lucrative returns on surplus power.
Zimbabwe lithium miners seek processing extension
Africa’s top lithium producer has pressed miners operating in the country to process more of the battery metal locally.
Ethiopian PM Abiy’s party wins parliamentary elections
The party extended its comfortable majority, securing 90% of contested seats in this month’s general election.
South Africa to raise health funding cuts at UN meeting
The meeting comes after the US said it plans to cut HIV/AIDS funding for the country, where rates are the highest in the world.
Security
Nathan Howard/Reuters
Peter Macdiarmid/Pool via Reuters
Abelardo de la Espriella. Cesar Quiroz/Reuters
US eases oil sanctions on Iran
Washington insisted the Islamic Republic had agreed to resume UN nuclear inspections, though Tehran said it made “no new commitments.”
Nathan Howard/ReutersUK Prime Minister Keir Starmer under pressure to resign
Starmer is said to be weighing “political realities” as Labour members back challenger Andy Burnham.
Peter Macdiarmid/Pool via ReutersColombia elects Trump-endorsed businessman in presidential runoff
The polarized nation headed to the polls amid its worst security crisis in decades.
Abelardo de la Espriella. Cesar Quiroz/ReutersMediaREUTERS/Cheney Orr
Daily Wire, under pressure, seeks strategic investors, targets IPO
The Daily Wire is in talks to take on at least $100 million in investment, with an eye on an initial public offering in a few years’ time.
REUTERS/Cheney OrrOpenAI’s $100 billion ad bet
The tech giant rolled out new tools for creatives.
The Atlantic beefs up its video podcasts
One of America’s oldest magazines is investing in video after seeing notable growth in its audience.
David Droga on AI and the end of ‘mediocre’ human-made ads
As he sees it, the advertising industry is in the throes of a profound technological shift.
Conservatives make the case for right-wing ads at Cannes Lions
The Daily Wire and others are offering an overtly partisan alternative to advertising gatherings that often stay far away from politics.
CEO Signal
Sarah Meyssonnier/Reuters 
Courtesy of Cigna/Graph Massara/Semafor
Courtesy of Honeywell/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
Former IEA chief says world faces a ‘third oil shock’ despite US-Iran deal
Nobuo Tanaka says the Hormuz crisis has accelerated a seismic shift in the global energy order, but business leaders can learn from it.
Sarah Meyssonnier/Reuters How a marathon-running CEO set the pace for Cigna
David Cordani says the insurer had to “actively listen” to rebuild trust with its customers.
Courtesy of Cigna/Graph Massara/SemaforHoneywell’s CEO on ‘the brutal truth’ about breaking up an industrial giant
Vimal Kapur says delegation and momentum are the keys to splitting a conglomerate.
Courtesy of Honeywell/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforAD