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Intelligence for the New World Economy
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Business
With SpaceX circling, Verizon figures out succession
Inside the company, executives worry about a potential sale.
Trump’s rift with Thune drives a wedge into the Republican Party
The president is heaping demands on his Senate leader that, to many of their colleagues, feel unachievable.
Trump’s rift with Thune drives a wedge into the Republican Party
The president is heaping demands on his Senate leader that, to many of their colleagues, feel unachievable.
View / How Congress entrenched its own unpopularity by trying to rein in stock trading
View / Big Oil’s risky profit spike
The World at a Glance
Updated 7:13pm EDT
1
The US Fed said it will leave interest rates unchanged, a reprieve for President Trump that undercuts his new chair’s hawkish rhetoric.
2The US-Iran war will likely drag on for months, analysts predicted, as new strikes disrupted a tenuous pause and the conflict widened.
3US oil inventories have fallen to precariously low levels as local refiners ramp up activity to capitalize on soaring fuel prices.
4OpenAI’s Sam Altman said he supports legislation to slow AI development during his visit to Washington, as debate swirls over safety risks.
5China is closing the satellite gap with the US, as Beijing strives to supplant Washington as the world’s leading space power.
6France and Italy, which rarely employ foreign coaches, named their new men’s national soccer team managers — a Frenchman and an Italian.
Crypto, and its cash, gets snarled in the Senate
The industry is pushing for a key vote to help spend its midterm war chest against its enemies. Until then, it may not know who they are.
Republican urges Trump administration to ban Chinese AI for contractors
Tom Cotton sent a letter Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick raising concerns about Chinese AI models.
Iran complicates Iraq’s charm offensive in Washington
Washington wants to pull Baghdad closer, but Iraq remains on the front lines of a widening confrontation with Iran.
Democrats miss mark on accountability, poll shows
But Republicans don’t get high marks on fighting corruption, either.
Midterm election fears run high, poll finds
Nearly seven in 10 US adults worry about politicians pressuring election officials to change results, according to Gallup.
A divided Fed votes to hold rates steady
The decision against a hike is a win for Trump — but a contrast with Warsh’s hawkish rhetoric.
Iran war could drag on for months, possibly into 2027
The hostilities could oscillate between “hot and cold war indefinitely,” one security expert said, warning that the US needs to contain the spread.
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Politics
Midterm election fears run high, poll finds
Nearly seven in 10 US adults worry about politicians pressuring election officials to change results, according to Gallup.
Eduardo Munoz/Reuters
Democrats miss mark on accountability, poll shows
But Republicans don’t get high marks on fighting corruption, either.
Annabelle Gordon/Reuters
Iran complicates Iraq’s charm offensive in Washington
Washington wants to pull Baghdad closer, but Iraq remains on the front lines of a widening confrontation with Iran.
Evan Vucci/Reuters
Republican urges Trump administration to ban Chinese AI for contractors
Tom Cotton sent a letter Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick raising concerns about Chinese AI models.
Trump’s rift with Thune drives a wedge into the Republican Party
The president is heaping demands on his Senate leader that, to many of their colleagues, feel unachievable.
Crypto, and its cash, gets snarled in the Senate
The industry is pushing for a key vote to help spend its midterm war chest against its enemies. Until then, it may not know who they are.
Saudi defense minister visits Washington to lobby for F-35s
Both the jet sale and wider security cooperation were on the agenda, people familiar with the plans told Semafor.
A divided Fed votes to hold rates steady
The decision against a hike is a win for Trump — but a contrast with Warsh’s hawkish rhetoric.
How Congress entrenched its own unpopularity by trying to rein in stock trading
The STOCK Act, by forcing transparency, has created a perception of an unfixable institution.
US reinstates global vaccine program after freezing funding last year
US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a longstanding vaccine skeptic.
Sudan sanctions may catch ride on defense bill
Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, filed the PEACE in Sudan Act as an amendment to the annual defense policy bill moving through the chamber.
Business
With SpaceX circling, Verizon figures out succession
Inside the company, executives worry about a potential sale.
Annabelle Gordon/Semafor
Londoners are leaving in droves
The capital has been plagued by a cost of living crisis, slower pay growth, and higher levels of unemployment than other parts of the country.
US-China space race intensifies
China is closing the satellite gap with the US, as Beijing battles Washington to become the world’s leading space power.
Altman says he supports AI regulation
OpenAI’s Sam Altman said he supports legislation to slow AI development during his visit to Capitol Hill, as debate swirls in Washington and Silicon Valley over safety risks posed by frontier models.
Iran war could drag on for months
The hostilities could oscillate between “hot and cold war indefinitely,” one security expert said, warning that the US needs to contain the spread.
Technology
Altman says he supports AI regulation
OpenAI’s Sam Altman said he supports legislation to slow AI development during his visit to Capitol Hill, as debate swirls in Washington and Silicon Valley over safety risks posed by frontier models.
Nathan Howard/Reuters
Nvidia’s frothy bet on Safe Superintelligence
The AI lab doesn’t have a product yet — it says it has an AI breakthrough, but hasn’t shared any details publicly.
Nathan Howard/Reuters
US looks to allies to prepare for 6G
No one knows exactly what 6G will look like, but the US appears eager to avoid the pitfalls of the 5G era.
FCC ban on new Chinese robots poses challenges for US firms
American robot makers may have to move quickly to onshore their supply chains, as many still rely on Chinese components or do some assembly overseas.
Chip firms lead tech stocks rout despite blockbuster earnings
Some investors are concerned that tech giants’ enormous AI spending is unsustainable.
AI leaders back calls for US to pace tech development
OpenAI and Anthropic both backed a petition signed by 1,224 AI workers calling for regulation to “pace the frontier” of development.
Energy
US crude stockpiles are depleting rapidly
Analysts warned the massive drawdown could jeopardize the US’ role as the global supplier of last resort.
Shahrzad Rasekh/Reuters
Oil falls to lowest point in a week on US-Iran lull
Doubts about US-Iran negotiations also grew, with Washington saying “good talks” were underway, while Tehran denied they were even taking place.
Stringer/File Photo/Reuters
Big Oil’s risky profit spike
This week’s earnings reports will likely reinvigorate outrage from US President Donald Trump, members of Congress, and their peers in Europe.
Yves Herman/Reuters
Gulf
US crude stockpiles are depleting rapidly
Analysts warned the massive drawdown could jeopardize the US’ role as the global supplier of last resort.
Shahrzad Rasekh/Reuters
Iran war could drag on for months
The hostilities could oscillate between “hot and cold war indefinitely,” one security expert said, warning that the US needs to contain the spread.
Extreme heat casts doubt on viability of MidEast tree planting project
If the water runs out due to extreme heat, it won’t be much good having billions more trees, a climate expert argued.
Saudi bread ritual outgrows the riyal
Bakers spent years holding the symbolic one-riyal line for ‘tamees’, but rising costs have finally outrun them.
The UAE cautiously engages with Iran as strikes decline
Whether by carrot or stick — and there’s still no definitive reporting on which — the animosity between Iran and the UAE has been easing.
China
US-China space race intensifies
China is closing the satellite gap with the US, as Beijing battles Washington to become the world’s leading space power.
China Daily via Reuters
FCC ban on new Chinese robots poses challenges for US firms
American robot makers may have to move quickly to onshore their supply chains, as many still rely on Chinese components or do some assembly overseas.
Maxim Shemetov/Reuters
Censorship in Chinese AI models can be undone, new research shows
Models distilled from Chinese AI don’t adhere to the same guardrails; research undercuts US concerns about Chinese influence on users of its open-source models.
Florence Lo/Illustration/Reuters
Africa
Zimbabwe gets its first lithium processing plant
The development of the plant is part of efforts by African governments to capture more of the added value in mining industries.
Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters
S&P Global to acquire Nigerian ratings agency
The move expands S&P’s ground presence in Africa amidst a growing clamor for better assessments of the continent’s realities.
Akintunde Akinleye/Reuters
Economic concerns in focus as Zambia heads to the polls
The southern African nation is seeking to rebuild after defaulting on its debt in 2020 and as it faces severe power shortages.
Sudan sanctions may catch ride on defense bill
Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, filed the PEACE in Sudan Act as an amendment to the annual defense policy bill moving through the chamber.
US-backed DRC miner strikes deal to cut debt
The Trump-backed firm still needs up to $260 million to complete projects in copper and cobalt mining as White House seeks to rival China in supply chains.
South Africa targets political allies to chair Africa’s biggest fund
Following a governance crisis, Pretoria is weighing whether policy-aligned leadership or market distance is best for Africa’s largest investor.
Security
Russia’s war narrative falters
Russia is suffering from “narrative collapse” in its war against Ukraine, a journalist said, as Kyiv turns the tide in the conflict — on the front lines and in American right-wing media.
Eduardo Munoz/Reuters
Iran and Ukraine wars merge in the Caspian Sea
The Ukraine and Iran wars collided over the weekend, as Kyiv attacked an Iranian commercial ship in the Caspian Sea.
The foreign ministers of Iran and Russia on July 24. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via Reuters
Ukraine appears to change tactics in Russia attacks
Kyiv is letting up on its strikes on Russian oil refineries — easing Moscow’s fuel crunch and pushing gas prices back down — and is instead hitting ships.
Social Media via Reuters
Media
Senate Democrat’s new bills would restrict AI-powered ads and paid influencers
California Sen. Adam Schiff plans to introduce two new bills that would attempt to illuminate who is paying influencers for political speech online and restrict AI-generated likenesses of politicians.
Evan Vucci/Reuters
Former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on loneliness and why he’s more worried about your phone than your body
Former US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy joins Mixed Signals to make the case that America’s loneliness crisis is a public health emergency.
Steve Hilton on the Murdochs, David Ellison, and conservative media’s California
Steve Hilton has lived many lives: a key strategist to former British Prime Minister David Cameron, a populist Fox News host, and — after renouncing his UK citizenship — the Republican nominee in California’s gubernatorial race.
Katie Nolan on the sports gambling takeover, covering politics, and the slow return of the boys’ club
Sports media host and “Casuals” podcast creator Katie Nolan joined Mixed Signals live at Cannes to talk about navigating two decades of upheaval in sports media.
Reddit CEO Steve Huffman on LLMs, fighting the bots, and why it’s good that you can’t get famous on Reddit
Reddit co-founder and CEO Steve Huffman joins Mixed Signals during the platform’s 21st birthday to talk about what it means to be the internet’s anti-social media hub.
CEO Signal
How Bruce Van Saun united Citizens against America’s biggest banks
The superregional lender’s CEO has made a virtue of its place in “the middle of the river.”
Courtesy of Citizens Financial Group/Jake Angelo/Semafor
The German founders bringing a Silicon Valley ethos to America’s Greyhound buses
Flix’s André Schwämmlein and Daniel Krauss say Europeans can’t blame their governments for a shortage of startups with global reach.
Courtesy of Flix/Graph Massara/Semafor
Why Coherent’s CEO believes in giving people room to fail
Jim Anderson says the $60 billion photonics group had to take more risk to meet surging data center demand.
Courtesy of Coherent/Jake Angelo/Semafor
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