Caracal Daily | August 19

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Happy Monday.

Here’s today’s Caracal Daily:

*** Globalization + Geopolitics ***

Kremlin response to Kursk incursion shows how Putin freezes in a crisis: WP reports when Russian President Vladimir Putin’s authority is tested, his response often lacks quick, decisive action that lives up to his bellicose rhetoric.

‘People are horrified’: Moscow turns to reluctant conscripts to defend Kursk FT

Russia’s double-punch back against Ukraine’s shock raid: It is bombing Ukrainians in Kursk and advancing in Pokrovsk. Economist

Ukraine blows up bridges to consolidate its positions in Russia: FT reports Moscow fails to push back Kyiv’s forces from Kursk region.

Ukrainian forces claim to hold many Russian soldiers captured in the Kursk region: Le Monde reports Moscow has reportedly contacted Kyiv to initiate talks about a prisoner exchange. Eleven days after the start of its offensive on Russian territory, Ukraine continues to apply pressure on the Kremlin.

The young PoWs captured in Russia: ‘Don’t shoot, we’re conscripts’: The Times reports in a Ukrainian prison, captives recount the moment of Zelensky’s incursion. Fearing torture, one 22-year-old tried to blow himself up  — but woke to find the enemy treating his wounds.

Ukraine is invading with British tanks. What does it mean for us? The Kremlin spits ‘fire and brimstone’ — but fears of nuclear escalation are overblown, defense sources say. Tim Shipman

Ukraine updates — Belarus sends extra troops to border: DW reports Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko says Minsk has deployed nearly a third of its armed forces along the Ukraine border. Kyiv's forces say they are shoring up their positions in Russia's Kursk region.

Middle East updates: Blinken in Israel for Gaza deal talks: DW reports US top diplomat Antony Blinken is once again in the Middle East as pressure to close a deal to secure the release of hostages held in Gaza and end fighting in the territory grows.

Bloomberg: Israel, Hamas accuse each other of imperiling a cease-fire deal

+ Netanyahu vows not to ‘give and give’ in Gaza war talks

+ Blinken arrives in Israel for meetings before heading to Egypt

Macron to convene party leaders next week to discuss new government: Le Monde reports weeks after legislative elections which produced no clear majority in Parliament, France still does not have a new prime minister.

People leaving Sweden will exceed immigrants in 2024: DW reports according to demographic projections, people leaving Sweden are set to outnumber immigrants this year. The government says this is thanks to its restrictive migration policies.

Today: Japan-India 2+2: Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Minister of Defense Kihara Minoru hold talks with their Indian counterparts S. Jaishankar and Rajnath Singh.

Thailand elects 37-year-old Paetongtarn Shinawatra as new PM.

Singapore PM Wong calls for 'major reset' with R&D push, regulatory review: US stance toward China 'hardening' no matter who wins presidential election. Nikkei

Singapore PM warns of regional fallout from US-China tensions: Lawrence Wong says ‘intensifying rivalry’ between Beijing and Washington is his nation’s biggest concern. FT

Why Indonesia moved its capital to a jungle hundreds of miles away WP

Wednesday: Taiwan security forum: Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosts the Ketagalan security forum -- the first edition since President Lai Ching-te took office in May.

Today: New Vietnam leader visits China: Vietnam's freshly anointed Communist Party chief To Lam is due in China at the invitation of his counterpart Xi Jinping.

Vietnam's President To Lam arrives in China for state visit: DW reports President To Lam's visit to China will include a meeting with President Xi Jinping and will confirm the close trade ties between the neighbors despite disputes over the South China Sea.

China’s rulers are surprised by Kamala Harris and Tim Walz: One has never been to China, the other has visited 30 times. Economist

TikTok told a federal appeals court on Thursday that the US Department of Justice has misstated the social media app's ties to China, urging the court to overturn a law requiring China-based ByteDance to sell TikTok's US assets or face a ban.

China is becoming a money pit for foreign automakers: WSJ reports Volkswagen, General Motors, and other big brands are losing their grip on a once-lucrative market as Chinese consumers embrace homegrown electric vehicles.

South Korea’s plan for AI textbooks hit by backlash from parents: Government says new digital education tools are ‘pivotal’ to overhaul of school system. FT

Harry and Meghan’s Colombia visit brings ‘prestige’ to former cartel city: The Times reports the Duke and Duchess of Sussex visit city once notorious for the ‘Gentlemen of Cali’ cocaine barons.

Prince Harry urges caution on AI at start of trip to Colombia: Reuters reports Britain's Prince Harry urged caution over artificial intelligence and talked of social media as divisive during a panel in Colombia's capital Bogota alongside his wife Meghan and the Andean country's Vice President Francia Marquez.

Argentina’s Milei finds it hard to decouple from China: WSJ reports the South American country’s president is keeping close economic ties with Beijing to help restore growth, while also cozying up to the US.

Argentina's lithium mining boom threatens Indigenous towns DW

The CIA sent him deep undercover to spy on Islamic radicals. It cost him everything: A deep-cover CIA officer spent years underground trying to infiltrate Al Qaeda. But an investigation into his life, work, and death reveals mystery, moral quagmires, and the secret toll of the War on Terror. Rolling Stone

***  US Politics + Elections ***

Joe Biden’s interrupted presidency: He sought the office nearly all his life. When he finally got there, it brought out his best — and eventually his worst. NYT

Harris was hamstrung by caution. Now she’s the Democrats’ driving force. WSJ reports a deferential approach to Biden, and early missteps gave way to sharper skills and business ties. A turning point came with the abortion fight.

Optimistic once again, the Democratic Party prepares to celebrate the advent of Kamala Harris: Le Monde reports the Democratic National Convention, which opens in Chicago on August 19, will offer the vice president an opportunity to consolidate the momentum she has generated in record time since Joe Biden's withdrawal from the US presidential race.

Harris leads Trump overall but not on handling of the economy: Poll: ABC News reports among all adults, the Harris ticket leads the Trump ticket by 50%-45%.

Bloomberg: Harris urges supporters to ‘fight’ as Trump accelerates campaign

+ Vice president travels Pennsylvania by bus ahead of convention

+ Trump plans blitz of rallies and border trip to counter Harris

Trump campaign reset goes awry in Pennsylvania as he attacks Harris: Guardian reports the ex-president quickly broke away from prepared speech to accuse vice-president of being a communist and a fascist.

Pennsylvania is slipping from Donald Trump’s grasp: Kamala Harris gains ground with crucial Hispanic voters in swing state that could decide 2024 US election. Edward Luce

America’s No 1 pollster Nate Silver on his US election bets: If anyone can predict whether it will be Kamala Harris or Donald Trump, it’s Nate Silver. Josh Glancy meets the poker player and ‘data dork’ with a remarkable winning streak. The Times

As DNC hits Chicago, Microsoft warns of deepfake artificial-intelligence attacks: CST reports President Joe Biden became a target of satirical, manipulated videos before he dropped his reelection bid. And a deepfake photo after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump was altered to make it appear Secret Service agents smiled as they encircled him — apparently an effort to make the shooting appear to be a hoax.

OpenAI said on Friday it had taken down accounts of an Iranian group for using its ChatGPT chatbot to generate content meant for influencing the US presidential election and other issues.

California trims AI safety bill amid fears of tech exodus: And as Anthropic boss reckons there's 'a good chance ... we'll be able to get models that are better than most humans at most things.' The Register

California bill to regulate AI advances over tech opposition with some tweaks: SB 1047 would regulate large-scale AI models, protect whistleblowers. SJMN

This controversial California AI bill was amended to quell Silicon Valley fears. Here’s what changed LAT

California AI bill is amended; Vote is expected by end of August: Silicon Valley companies still worry that state lawmakers are jumping the gun on regulating a still-unproven technology. NYT

Nancy Pelosi criticizes California AI bill as ‘ill-informed’ TC

Pelosi Statement in opposition to California Senate Bill 1047 Press Release

Senator Wiener responds to Speaker Emerita Pelosi's opposition to SB 1047 Press Release 

Bloomberg: Traders need Fed go sign in Jackson Hole to keep stocks rallying

+ Powell tone, more than words, is key to maintaining sentiment

+ Options market is pricing over 1% swing in S&P 500 on Friday

*** Disruption + Innovation ***

Re “Many people fear AI. They shouldn’t,” by David Brooks: Alligators are heartless and have little interest in arts or music; that doesn’t stop them from biting your arm off if you stick it in a swamp. Instead of assuring the public that AI will be good for humanity, Mr. Brooks should help us think through what kinds of policies will allow us to use AI safely. Jason Green-Lowe NYT-LTE

AI discovers new drugs that could save millions of lives — and Big Pharma’s time: The Times reports while many industries are having second thoughts about artificial intelligence transforming the way they operate, it is proving revolutionary in drug discovery.

AI could actually change the gaming industry: The technology is expected to slash the fat budgets that have been required to develop every new game. FT

AI is helping to launch new businesses (and not just AI businesses): Entrepreneurs say use of artificial intelligence for a variety of tasks is accelerating the path to hiring and, ideally, profitability. NYT

Biggest US companies warn of growing AI risk: Study finds more than half of Fortune 500 groups cited new technology as a potential hazard in their latest annual reports. FT

Noxious images spread after Elon Musk launches AI tool with few guardrails: WP reports by using his platform to favor Donald Trump and launch a loosely-controlled AI chatbot, Grok, Musk has dragged the company into uncharted territory ahead of a contentious election.

Why does AI art look like that? Every tech company wants its image generator to be the best. But they all produce oddly similar work. Caroline Mimbs Nyce

Reuters:  South Korean AI chip makers Rebellions and Sapeon agree to merge 

Samsung bets on CXL memory to become next AI darling: Nikkei reports the technology can boost server memory capacity 10-fold over current products.

US tech groups’ water consumption soars in ‘data centre alley’: FT reports usage has increased by almost two-thirds since 2019 in the world’s largest concentration of computing infrastructure.

Reuters:  X says it is closing operations in Brazil due to judge's content orders 

Inside Worldcoin’s orb factory, audacious and absurd defender of humanity: The startup, co-founded by Sam Altman, is determined to verify every human on Earth, one iris at a time. Bloomberg

Sam Altman’s Worldcoin is battling with governments over your eyes: WSJ reports the OpenAI chief’s Worldcoin project involves an attempt to scan the irises of every person on Earth and pay them with his own cryptocurrency. Authorities aren’t buying it.

Bitcoin rises 5.17% to $59,609.

The unraveling of a crypto dream: Brock Pierce arrived in Puerto Rico seven years ago, promising to use crypto magic to revitalize the local economy. Now he’s mired in legal disputes and fighting with his business partners. NYT

AP: No-car Games: Los Angeles Olympic venues will only be accessible by public transportation

New breed of EV promises 700 miles per charge (just add gas): It runs on batteries 95% of the time, but a gasoline engine can recharge them for longer hauls, easing range anxiety. Bloomberg

Singapore's wooden building of the future has a mold problem: Timber construction promises a greener future, but the technology must be adapted to various climates. Bloomberg

The hotelification of offices, with signature scents and saltwater spas: Hoping to lure workers back to their desks, companies are designing “work resorts,” luxe spaces meant to compete with the comforts and versatility of their living room. NYT

*** Culture ***

Burning Man has sold out since 2011. Why not this year? The desert arts festival returns this month after two consecutive years of challenging weather, including mud that stranded attendees, and a COVID-19 hiatus. NYT

Alain Delon, smoldering French film star, dies at 88: The César-winning actor was an international favorite in the 1960s and ’70s, often sought after by the era’s great auteurs. NYT

Alain Delon, enduring star of French cinema, has died: The embodiment of the actor par excellence and a personality as much as an artist, Alain Delon lived his art with an unparalled intensity. He died at the age of 88. Le Monde

*** Sport ***

Niewiadoma wins Women's Tour de France by just four seconds: Le Monde reports the Polish cyclist won her first women's Tour de France as she dug in during the race's grueling final Alpine ascent.

Munichs by David Peace —Manchester United’s 1958 tragedy and the aftermath: The Damned United author’s compelling fictionalisation of the plane crash that killed eight players succeeds as an elegy for society’s lost innocence. FT

Bloomberg: Ballmer’s $2 billion domed arena opens as LA takes Olympic torch

+ Intuit Dome will be home of NBA’s Clippers, host Olympic hoops

+ Former Microsoft CEO built the venue without public funding

The oldest Olympians might hold the key to slowing aging: Some athletes continue to compete well past their 60s. Scientists are studying them on the cellular level for clues. FC Flam

The NFL kept its most advanced data hidden for years. Now it’s finally on sale. The launch of NFL Pro for the new season will allow access to the type of sophisticated, granular metrics that other leagues have long made available to fans. WSJ

Why some NFL players are wearing Guardian Caps in preseason games: WP reports the NFL requires players at certain positions to wear the pillowy, padded shells on the outside of their helmets during many practices. Some players have taken it a step further, wearing the caps during preseason games.


Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.

-Marc 

Marc A. Ross | Chief Communications Strategist @ Caracal