Caracal Daily | July 15
Zelenskyy, Trump, AI Boosters, 100, Paris Olympics, plus 1,000 more actionable insights.
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Happy Monday.
Here’s today’s Caracal Daily:
*** Globalization + Geopolitics ***
AP: Zelenskyy says to win the war, US needs to lift limits on striking military targets inside Russia
A better path for Ukraine and NATO: What Kyiv could do now for a place in the alliance. ME Sarotte
Bloomberg: South Korea’s ability to arm Ukraine elevates its role at NATO summit
Canada is a NATO scofflaw: The Trudeau government free rides on everyone else’s defense dollars, even as threats in the Arctic grow. WSJ - Editorial
AP: NATO allies call China a ‘decisive enabler’ of Russia’s war in Ukraine
At NATO summit, a question of what the alliance wants from the Pacific: Defense News reports for the third straight year, a group of countries with ties to the alliance, called the Indo-Pacific Four, have sent officials to attend the summit in person. Members of NATO say this is a sign that the two regions increasingly see their security as shared.
China is aiming to launch its first asteroid impact mission before 2030.
The Hong Kong government is making its own version of ChatGPT, after OpenAI restricted access to the popular chatbot.
India antitrust probe finds Apple abused position in apps market: An investigation by India's antitrust body has found that Apple exploited its dominant position in the market for app stores on its iOS operating system, engaging "in abusive conduct and practices", a confidential report seen by Reuters showed.
Russia accused Australia of inciting "anti-Russian paranoia" for charging a Russian-born couple with espionage, prompting Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to tell Moscow to "back off."
‘I am happy to see how my baby is bouncing’: The AI transforming pregnancy scans in Africa: While ultrasound services are normal practice in many countries, software being tested in Uganda will allow a scan without the need for specialists, providing an incentive for pregnant women to visit health services early on. Guardian
Spain's tourism minister condemned the actions of a small group of protesters who sprayed visitors to Barcelona with water pistols, saying they did not represent the country's culture of hospitality.
Starmer plans to introduce AI bill in King’s Speech: Plan for tech regulation will be one of 35 bills to be set out by new Labour government. FT
Robots and other smart machinery will comprise up to one-third of the US military in the next 10 to 15 years, retired Army Gen. Mark Milley, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at an Axios event.
+ The Senate Armed Services Committee's version of the annual defense policy bill features an array of provisions focused on AI and emerging tech.
*** US Politics + Elections ***
WSJ: Trump survives assassination attempt
WP: FBI: Gunman at Trump rally appears to have acted alone
The Times: Secret Service accused of ‘epic failure’ over assassination attempt
FT: Trump calls for unity as new details emerge of assassination attempt
A shot rings out, and a warning to America: In the wake of a shocking crime, can we hope for any improvement in our political culture? Any amelioration of the bile? Peggy Noonan
America is staring into the abyss: After the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, an already existential election is now even more fraught. Edward Luce
Today: The Republican National Convention starts.
DFP: Biden delivers impassioned speech at Detroit rally
+ "I'm not going anywhere": President Joe Biden used a campaign rally in Detroit to reiterate that he doesn't intend to drop out as the Democratic candidate to face former President Donald Trump.
Bloomberg: Biden opens two-front fight in bid to save 2024 campaign
+ Biden allies say focus should be on threat of Trump agenda
+ New defections highlight how press event failed to calm nerves
Kamala Harris could be President. Democrats should get on board. The casting about for an alternative to President Biden when his vice president is more than qualified is unseemly. Patricia Lopez
*** Disruption + Innovation ***
What are AI agents? The next big thing is AI tools that can do more complex tasks. Here’s how they will work. Melissa Heikkilä
What if the AI boosters are wrong? A skeptical paper by Daron Acemoglu, a labor economist at MIT, has triggered a heated debate over whether artificial intelligence will supercharge productivity. NYT
Fortune: 70,000 students are already using AI textbooks
OpenAI working on new reasoning technology under code name ‘Strawberry’ Reuters
OpenAI promised to make its AI safe. Employees say it ‘failed’ its first test. The previously unreported incident showcases the limits of President Biden’s strategy for thwarting AI harms. WP
OpenAI illegally barred staff from airing safety risks, whistleblowers say: In a letter exclusively obtained by The Washington Post, whistleblowers asked the SEC to probe company’s allegedly restrictive non-disclosure agreements. WP
AT&T says data from 109 million US customer accounts illegally downloaded: Reuters reports AT&T said on Friday the company suffered a massive hacking incident as data from about 109 million customer accounts containing records of calls and texts from 2022 was illegally downloaded in April.
Bloomberg: AT&T data hack prompts FCC probe, raises broad security concerns
+ Records downloaded from Snowflake cloud platform, AT&T says
+ Data includes records of customer calls, texts over 6 months
Google near deal to buy startup Wiz for $23 billion: WSJ reports the deal for the cybersecurity company would be the tech giant’s largest acquisition ever.
AI brings soaring emissions for Google and Microsoft, a major contributor to climate change: NPR reports as AI gets more sophisticated, it needs more energy. In the US, a majority of that energy comes from burning fossil fuels like coal and gas which are primary drivers of climate change.
AI's insatiable appetite for energy: NYT reports the soaring electricity demands of data centers and AI are straining the grid in some areas, pushing up emissions and slowing the energy transition.
AI’s bizarro world: Fortune reports we’re marching towards AGI while carbon emissions soar
Reuters: SpaceX Falcon 9 suffers rare failure in space, imperiling Starlink mission
+ This is the company's first rocket failure in more than seven years.
Reuters: Southwest Airlines, Archer Aviation to develop operational plans for flying air taxis in California
VinFast is delaying the launch of its planned $4 billion factory in North Carolina to 2028 and cutting its delivery forecast for this year by 20,000 units amid uncertainties in the global EV market.
Bloomberg: New Yorkers see 58% rise in food-delivery fees
+ Uber Eats, DoorDash increased fees due to NYC minimum-pay law
+ Delivery workers saw overall pay increase; tips went down
Rich Americans flex-working on French Riviera fuel property boom: Bloomberg home prices on the Cote d’Azur have outperformed London on demand from affluent remote workers seeking a second home.
*** Culture ***
Dog vision is a trendy topic, but what can we really know about how they see? Aeon Videos
Think you will live to 100? These scientists think you’re wrong: How long we might live is more hotly debated than ever. WSJ
*** Sport ***
Faster, higher — cheaper? Paris's budget effort to reboot the Olympics: The IOC is looking to escape decades of over spending and scandal as the French capital prepares to host the 2024 games. Bloomberg
The cost of building the perfect wave: The growing business of surf pools wants to bring the ocean experience inland. But with many planned for areas facing water scarcity, who bears the cost? Eileen Guo
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
Marc A. Ross | Chief Communications Strategist @ Caracal
Caracal Daily | July 15
