Negotiations to divest TikTok’s US operations have been halted following China’s indication that it would not approve the deal. The development came after President Donald Trump announced increased tariffs on Chinese imports.
The proposed arrangement involved creating a new US-based company to manage TikTok’s American operations, with US investors holding a majority stake and ByteDance retaining less than 20%. This plan had received approvals from existing and new investors, ByteDance, and the US government.
In response to the stalled negotiations, President Trump extended the deadline for ByteDance to sell TikTok’s US assets by 75 days, aiming to allow more time for securing necessary approvals.
He emphasised the desire to continue collaborating with TikTok and China to finalise the deal, expressing a preference to avoid shutting the app in the US.
The future of TikTok in the US remains unpredictable as geopolitical tensions and trade disputes continue to influence the negotiations.
On one side, such a reaction from the Chinese government could have been expected in exchange for the increase of US tariffs on Chinese products; on the other side, by extending the deadline, Trump would be able to maintain his protectionist policy while collecting sympathies from 170 million US citizens using the app, which now is a victim in their eyes as it faces potential banning if the US-China trade war doesn’t calm down and a resolution is not reached within the extended timeframe.
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UFC President Dana White has announced a groundbreaking partnership with Meta, following his recent appointment to the tech giant’s board.
The collaboration marks a significant moment for both organisations, with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, a well-known MMA enthusiast and practitioner, praising White’s ability to elevate global sports brands.
The deal aims to revolutionise fan engagement through cutting-edge technologies. According to White, plans are already underway to redesign the UFC’s ranking system, with hopes of delivering more compelling matchups.
While details remain under wraps, he hinted that AI could be central to the project, potentially transforming how fights are scored and analysed in real time.
Zuckerberg expressed excitement about the future of UFC fan experiences, suggesting Meta’s tech resources could introduce innovative ways for audiences to connect with the sport.
Enhanced data analysis may also support fighters in training and strategy, leading to higher-quality contests and fewer controversial decisions.
The full impact of the partnership will unfold in the coming years, with fans and athletes alike anticipating significant change.
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Sam Altman sparked interest among Indian users on X after praising the country’s rapid AI adoption and sharing an AI-generated image of himself playing cricket. In his 2 April post, the OpenAI CEO called India’s AI creativity an ‘explosion,’ claiming the country was outpacing the world in adoption rates.
Users questioned why Altman singled out India, with some turning to AI chatbots like Perplexity and Grok for verification. His comments followed a February visit to India, where he met IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and highlighted India as OpenAI’s second-largest market.
Altman’s remarks also came shortly after OpenAI’s GPT-4o update, which enhanced AI-generated images and illustrations. To showcase this, he shared an anime-style image of himself as a cricket player, sporting a Team India jersey.
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AI may seem like a modern marvel, but its foundations stretch back to early 20th-century philosophical thought—particularly to the Lwów–Warsaw School of Philosophy. In a recent blog by Jovan Kurbalija, Executive Director of Diplo, he highlights how this influential movement, established by Kazimierz Twardowski and active between the world wars, made groundbreaking contributions to logic, semantics, and analytical philosophy—fields that underpin today’s AI systems.
Despite being overshadowed by more famous contemporaries like the Vienna Circle, the Lwów–Warsaw School cultivated thinkers whose work continues to shape how machines process language and make decisions. Among the most influential figures was Alfred Tarski, whose formal definition of truth laid the groundwork for natural language processing (NLP), enabling AI to understand and generate human language.
Another key contributor, Jan Łukasiewicz, developed many-valued logic—a system that goes beyond simple true/false decisions and allows machines to reason through uncertainty, essential in complex tasks like autonomous driving or medical diagnostics. The school’s importance isn’t just technical.
Its strong emphasis on analytical rigour also offers tools for navigating AI’s growing ethical concerns—ranging from fairness in algorithmic decisions to broader questions about consciousness and societal impact. Though these philosophical aspects are less often discussed, they’re crucial for ensuring AI development remains responsible and aligned with human values.
The intellectual legacy is rarely acknowledged in mainstream AI history. Yet, as Kurbalija emphasises, AI’s roots are deeper and more diverse than we often realise. Revisiting the Lwów–Warsaw School highlights how past ideas can still guide us in shaping the technologies of tomorrow.
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Physicists at CERN believe they’ve found evidence of quantum entanglement in sheep, potentially explaining the near-instantaneous coordination seen in flocks.
The study, by HERD collaboration, used tracking devices and quantum modelling to suggest that sheep may be mentally linked across distances.
Researchers discovered what they call ‘moutons’, fluffy leptons in the brain that may be behind this bizarre quantum connection.
Though the statistical result reached 4 sigma, it falls short of full scientific confirmation and further testing is required.
The team stresses the findings are serious science, despite the sheep-related puns. If verified, the results could open an entirely new frontier at the intersection of quantum physics and biology and perhaps even explain why some researchers feel inexplicably sleepy near the flock.
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Researchers at Caltech have developed a groundbreaking silicon device that could help quantum computers communicate over long distances.
The innovation, created by a team led by Professor Mohammad Mirhosseini, successfully converts microwave photons into optical photons, overcoming a major challenge in quantum networking. Their findings were recently published in Nature Nanotechnology.
Quantum computers rely on microwave photons to store and process information, but these particles require near-zero temperatures and lose data when travelling through standard internet cables.
Optical photons, however, can move efficiently over long distances at room temperature. The new device acts as a bridge between the two, using a vibrating silicon beam to convert microwave signals into optical ones with remarkable efficiency.
Built from silicon to minimise noise, the transducer outperforms older systems by 100 times while maintaining the same level of signal clarity.
The breakthrough brings the concept of a quantum internet closer to reality, offering a scalable way to link quantum computers across vast networks in the future.
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Japan’s national nuclear research agency has unveiled what it claims is the world’s first uranium-based rechargeable battery — a breakthrough that could open up new uses for vast stockpiles of depleted uranium. The battery, developed by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency, successfully demonstrated charging and discharging capabilities using uranium as the core material to generate electricity.
The prototype, about the size of a small cup, uses a uranium-based electrolyte on the negative side and iron on the positive. With a 1.3V voltage comparable to that of a standard alkaline battery, the device maintained its performance over ten charge cycles, suggesting it is relatively stable in its current form.
That innovation could give a new purpose to the approximately 16,000 tons of depleted uranium stored in Japan and the estimated 1.6 million tons worldwide, which are currently unusable in regular nuclear reactors. Researchers also believe the battery could help store surplus electricity from renewable energy sources.
While promising, the uranium battery’s practical use will likely remain restricted to radiation-controlled zones like nuclear facility sites. The agency plans to work on scaling up the technology by developing a redox flow version starting in fiscal 2025.
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Quantum computing firm PsiQuantum is reportedly raising at least $750 million in a new funding round led by BlackRock, pushing the startup’s pre-money valuation to $6 billion.
The round remains ongoing, but it signals strong investor confidence in PsiQuantum’s ambitious timeline to deliver a fully functional quantum computer by 2029, or sooner.
The US, California-based company uses photonics and semiconductor techniques to produce quantum chips in partnership with GlobalFoundries at a facility in New York.
It has also secured collaborations with the governments of Australia and the US to build quantum computers in Brisbane and Chicago.
The Chicago project will anchor the new Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park, marking a major milestone in the commercialisation of quantum technologies.
PsiQuantum faces stiff competition from tech giants like Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Nvidia, all of whom are making significant strides in quantum research.
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A well-known Washington, D.C. bar popular among Republican staffers is closing down, creating a new social space – a cryptocurrency bar. Hill Country, a Texas-style barbecue restaurant and nightlife spot near power lobbying firms is shutting its doors after 14 years.
It will reportedly be replaced by a D.C. outpost of Pubkey, a New York-based bitcoin-themed bar known for its casual vibe and crypto payments. Pubkey first opened in 2022 in Manhattan and quickly became a gathering spot for crypto enthusiasts.
The bar gained national attention when Donald Trump visited during his 2024 campaign and used nearly $1,000 worth of bitcoin to buy food for patrons, making him the first US president to complete a bitcoin transaction. Pubkey owner Thomas Pacchia confirmed that a Washington location is in the works and that it aims to welcome a bipartisan crowd.
The shift reflects a broader cultural and political trend as cryptocurrency gains more influence in American politics. Once viewed with scepticism, the crypto world now has strong ties to Trump’s circle, with figures like Elon Musk and David Sacks pushing the agenda. Trump has further embraced the space, launching a memecoin, appointing a ‘crypto czar,’ and proposing a national cryptocurrency reserve.
While PubKey proudly accepts Bitcoin as a form of payment, cash and credit payments options are also available.
Why does it matter?
The arrival of Pubkey in D.C. is symbolic of crypto’s growing presence in national discourse—both politically and socially. While Hill Country offered smoked brisket and karaoke nights for Capitol Hill insiders, its crypto-centric replacement signals a new kind of power player is stepping onto the scene.
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The Abu Dhabi Government has signed a landmark agreement with tech giant Microsoft and Core42, a subsidiary of AI powerhouse G42, to fast-track the adoption of AI across its public services.
The partnership will focus on merging Microsoft’s advanced cloud technology with G42’s AI capabilities to drive innovation and efficiency.
As part of its digital transformation strategy, Abu Dhabi aims to process more than 11 million digital interactions daily, making public services more innovative and responsive. Officials say this collaboration marks a pivotal step toward redefining how the government engages with citizens through technology.
With a dedicated budget of around $3.54 billion (Dh13 billion), Abu Dhabi has set its sights on becoming the world’s first fully AI-powered government by 2027. The initiative signals the emirate’s ambition to lead globally in AI-driven governance and digital innovation.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella called the agreement a new benchmark for public sector AI use, emphasising that Abu Dhabi is setting the pace for governments worldwide in embracing transformative technologies.
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