Author: James Wilson
The U.S. has added Alibaba, Baidu, and BYD to a Pentagon list of Chinese companies tied to Beijing’s military. The update also names several chip, biotech, robotics, and telecom firms operating in the United States. The Pentagon added Alibaba, Baidu, BYD, CXMT, YMTC, WuXi AppTec, RoboSense, and Unitree to its updated list. The list does not impose direct sanctions, but it affects Defense Department contracting rules. China’s embassy criticized the move, while WuXi AppTec called its inclusion a mistake. The list does not impose direct sanctions, but it affects Defense Department contracting rules. The move comes weeks after President Donald…
Zcash price has recovered roughly 50% from last week’s lows after a proposal for a new network upgrade sought to address concerns raised by a recently disclosed vulnerability that could have allowed the creation of counterfeit tokens. Summary ZEC price rebounded after Zooko Wilcox proposed the Ironwood upgrade to verify Zcash’s circulating supply. Ironwood follows a patched vulnerability that could have enabled unlimited counterfeit ZEC creation. Developers previously deployed emergency network upgrades, including the NU6.2 hard fork, to fix the flaw. According to Zcash founder Zooko Wilcox, the proposed Ironwood upgrade would give users a way to verify the cryptocurrency’s…
Nvidia has announced new South Korean partnerships with SK Hynix, Naver, SK Telecom, Doosan Group, LG Group, and Hyundai Motor Group. The agreements came during CEO Jensen Huang’s visit to South Korea, where he met several corporate leaders. Nvidia announced South Korean AI partnerships with SK Hynix, Naver, SK Telecom, Doosan, LG, and Hyundai. SK Hynix signed a multi-year memory partnership to support Nvidia’s global AI data center plans. South Korea’s Kospi fell 8.3%, while Samsung and SK Hynix shares dropped after a strong tech rally. The companies did not disclose the financial value of the deals. Nvidia said the…
Meta has announced a $115 million training program for data center technician jobs as it expands AI infrastructure. The company said America’s Workforce Academy will offer cost-free training and guaranteed job offers to graduates. Summary Meta announced a $115 million program to train workers for data center technician roles. America’s Workforce Academy will offer cost-free training and job offers to graduates. Meta’s data center projects create large construction workforces but fewer permanent operational jobs. The program comes as Meta builds more data centers to support its AI systems. It also forms part of the company’s larger U.S. infrastructure and jobs…
Aave founder Stani Kulechov has defended the decentralized lending protocol after an $8.45 billion withdrawal wave followed a major DeFi exploit earlier this year. Summary Stani Kulechov defended Aave after an $8.45 billion deposit run followed the April KelpDAO bridge exploit. Aave DAO and Kulechov provided 30,000 ETH in emergency support as the protocol faced liquidity pressure. Aave Labs is developing V4 risk controls while expanding regulated operations through FCA and MiCA approvals. Speaking at the Proof of Talk conference in Paris last week, Kulechov argued that Aave remained operational through one of the most severe stress events in decentralized…
A federal judge has blocked President Donald Trump’s order imposing a $100,000 fee on H-1B visa applications. The ruling gives relief to U.S. technology companies that rely on skilled foreign workers. Summary A federal judge blocked Trump’s $100,000 H-1B visa fee after a state-led lawsuit. Judge Leo T. Sorokin ruled the fee acted as an unlawful tax without congressional approval. The decision gives relief to technology firms that depend on skilled foreign workers. U.S. District Judge Leo T. Sorokin said the charge functioned as an unlawful tax. The decision came in a lawsuit filed by 20 Democratic state attorneys general.…
Strategy has approved a plan to pay STRC dividends twice a month, introducing a new payout schedule while the preferred stock continues to trade below its $100 par value. Summary Strategy shareholders approved semi-monthly STRC dividend payments, with distributions scheduled on the 15th and last day of each month. STRC traded around $96.65, below its $100 par value, while carrying an annual dividend rate of 11.50%. Strategy resumed Bitcoin purchases with a $101.3 million acquisition of 1,550 BTC as debate continues over its dividend funding model. Based on preliminary voting results from the company’s 2026 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, Strategy…
The U.S. House has moved closer to approving a $70 billion immigration funding package after Senate passage last week. Lawmakers could hold a final vote as early as Tuesday and send the measure to President Donald Trump. Summary The House could vote on the $70 billion immigration funding package as soon as Tuesday. The bill would fund ICE and CBP through the end of President Trump’s term. Republicans used budget reconciliation after immigration funding talks stalled in Congress. The legislation would fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection through the end of Trump’s term. House leaders are…
MetaMask has launched an early access version of Agent Wallet, a new non-custodial product that allows AI agents to execute crypto transactions under user-defined controls across Ethereum-compatible networks and Hyperliquid. Summary MetaMask has launched Agent Wallet, allowing AI agents to execute trades, swaps, and other on-chain transactions under user-defined controls. Every transaction is simulated and screened by Blockaid, with risky activity requiring additional user approval before execution. According to a press release shared with crypto.news, the wallet is designed for autonomous agents that can carry out tasks such as token swaps, perpetual futures trading, liquidity provisioning, and prediction market activity…
Ethereum researcher Luca Zanolini has explained why the network separates continuous block production from final settlement, arguing that this structure lets Ethereum keep operating through software faults, outages and falling validator participation. Summary Ethereum separates block production from finality so transactions continue during validator failures and network disruptions. Automatic inactivity penalties reduce offline stake until active validators regain enough weight to restore finality. Client diversity limits correlated software failures as Ethereum researchers pursue faster and more flexible settlement. His account connects Ethereum’s decade-long block production record with current work on faster finality and a cleaner consensus design. Meanwhile, Ethereum uses…