438 articles from 29 sources → 42 stories

Americas: TikTok signs a deal to sell its US entity to Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX, ending years of legal uncertainty. The Trump administration proposes blocking gender-affirming care for minors and signs an executive order to reclassify marijuana. Brazil's Lula vows to veto a bill that would slash Bolsonaro's 27-year sentence. Bangladesh erupts in violent protests after a youth leader's death in Singapore.

Europe: EU leaders agreed on a €90 billion loan for Ukraine after failing to reach consensus on using frozen Russian assets. Russia deployed its Oreshnik nuclear-capable missile to Belarus. The EU-Mercosur trade deal signing was delayed to January amid farmer protests in Brussels. Bank of Japan is set to raise rates to a 30-year high.

Asia-Pacific: China is boosting AI chip output by retrofitting older ASML machines, exposing cracks in US export controls. Chinese scientists unveiled an optical AI chip 100x faster than Nvidia's. Thailand and Cambodia told China's Wang Yi they are willing to cease fire. Brown University shooting suspect was found dead.

Middle East & Africa: A UN report found over 1,000 civilians were killed in Sudan's Darfur camp attack in April. Israel launched intense airstrikes in Lebanon as the Hezbollah disarmament deadline looms. Trump's Gaza peace plan stumbles over Hamas refusing to disarm. US imposes sanctions on two more ICC judges.

Tech: OpenAI released GPT-5.2 Codex. A supply-chain attack compromised X, Vercel, Cursor and Discord through Mintlify. ACM announces all publications will be open access starting January 2026. Google released T5Gemma 2 and FunctionGemma. AI-generated code reportedly produces 1.7x more bugs.

Must Know

TikTok signs deal to sell US unit to American investors

TikTok has signed a binding agreement to sell its US business to Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX, ending years of legal uncertainty. CEO Shou Zi Chew informed employees that ByteDance will divest its US entity, allowing the app to continue operating in America.

Why it matters: This resolves the divest-or-ban law that threatened to shut down TikTok in the US, affecting 170 million American users and reshaping the social media landscape.

Financial Times (center-right)

EU agrees €90 billion loan for Ukraine as Russian asset plan stalls

European Union leaders struck a deal to provide Ukraine a €90 billion loan to address budget shortfalls, but failed to agree on using frozen Russian assets to back it. The money will be borrowed against the bloc's budget instead.

Why it matters: The compromise keeps Ukraine funded but leaves €300 billion in frozen Russian assets untapped, punting a politically explosive decision while Kyiv faces a difficult winter.

Financial Times (center-right)

China boosts AI chip output by upgrading older ASML machines

Chinese chipmakers are retrofitting restricted ASML lithography machines to produce advanced AI chips, exposing cracks in US-led export controls. The workaround allows production of chips that were supposed to be blocked by sanctions.

Why it matters: This suggests US export controls are less effective than intended, potentially accelerating China's AI capabilities despite Washington's containment efforts.

Financial Times (center-right)

Bank of Japan set to raise interest rates to 30-year high

The Bank of Japan is poised to raise interest rates in a move that would mark its highest level in three decades, as the yen struggles to exit the "danger zone" against the dollar.

Why it matters: A BOJ rate hike could trigger significant capital flows globally, as Japan's ultra-low rates have funded carry trades worldwide for years.

Reuters (center)

Brown University shooting suspect found dead

The suspect in last weekend's Brown University mass shooting that killed two students and wounded nine has been found dead. Authorities are investigating a possible link to the killing of an MIT professor.

Why it matters: The unusual week-long manhunt raised questions about US campus security, and investigators now probe whether a single attacker was behind multiple academic killings.

Globe and Mail (center)

Should Know

Russia deploys Oreshnik nuclear-capable missile to Belarus

Belarus's President Lukashenko announced that Russia has deployed its latest nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile system to Belarus. The move comes as US-Russia talks on Ukraine are set for Miami this weekend.

Why it matters: Nuclear-capable missiles in Belarus bring them closer to NATO territory, raising the stakes as diplomacy intensifies over Ukraine's future.

SCMP World (center)

Trump administration proposes blocking gender-affirming care for minors

The US Department of Health and Human Services unveiled regulatory actions to block access to gender-affirming care for minors, including prohibiting Medicaid funds for puberty blockers, hormone treatments and surgical procedures.

Why it matters: The proposal contradicts recommendations from major US medical societies and could affect thousands of transgender youth.

The Guardian (center-left)

UN report: Over 1,000 killed in Sudan's Darfur camp attack

A UN report found that over 1,000 civilians were killed when Sudan's RSF paramilitary took over a famine-stricken displacement camp in Darfur in April. About a third were summarily executed.

Why it matters: Sudan remains the world's worst humanitarian crisis for the third consecutive year, with Western aid cuts compounding the suffering.

NYT World (center-left)

OpenAI releases GPT-5.2 Codex

OpenAI announced GPT-5.2 Codex, its latest code-generation model, amid intensifying competition with Google in the AI space.

Why it matters: The release signals ongoing rapid advancement in AI coding assistants that could reshape software development.

Hacker News (center)

Bangladesh erupts in protests after youth leader's death

Bangladesh saw violent protests in several cities after youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi died in Singapore. Protesters attacked media offices including Prothom Alo newspaper. Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus urged peace.

Why it matters: The unrest raises concerns about Bangladesh's stability ahead of national elections, following last year's uprising that ousted Sheikh Hasina.

Daily Maverick (center-left)

EU-Mercosur trade deal delayed to January amid farmer protests

The EU delayed signing its trade deal with South America's Mercosur bloc until January after Italian PM Meloni pleaded for more time. Belgian farmers clashed with police in Brussels during protests against the pact.

Why it matters: The 25-year-in-the-making deal faces growing opposition from European farmers who fear cheap South American imports.

Financial Times (center-right)

Supply-chain attack compromises X, Vercel, Cursor and Discord

Security researchers disclosed a supply-chain attack through Mintlify that compromised multiple major tech platforms including X, Vercel, Cursor and Discord.

Why it matters: The attack highlights ongoing vulnerabilities in the software supply chain that can cascade to affect millions of users.

Hacker News (center)

Carney says US-Canada trade deal unlikely soon

Canadian PM Mark Carney said a US-Canada trade deal is unlikely in the near future, with issues to be discussed as part of the USMCA review scheduled for July 1.

Why it matters: The statement signals Canada is preparing for prolonged trade uncertainty with its largest trading partner.

Globe and Mail (center)

Quick Signals

Trump signs order reclassifying marijuana as less dangerous, moving it away from Schedule I alongside heroin — Straits Times

ACM announces all publications will be open access starting January 2026 — Hacker News

Kennedy Center board votes to rename venue Trump-Kennedy Center; Kennedy family objects — Financial Times

US sanctions two more ICC judges over Israeli war crime probe rulings — Al Jazeera

Trump urges 2028 moon landing, orders lunar outpost with nuclear reactors — Ars Technica

China's Hainan launches separate customs regime allowing tariff-free imports — SCMP China

Chinese optical AI chip reportedly 100x faster than Nvidia's market leader — SCMP China

Firefox will have option to disable all AI features — Hacker News

Trump Media to merge with nuclear fusion company TAE in $6 billion deal — AP News

US inflation unexpectedly slowed to 2.7% in November but data quality questioned — Financial Times

Bank of England cuts rates after tight vote, signals caution on further cuts — Reuters

India parliament clears 100% foreign ownership in insurance sector — Financial Times

AI code produces 1.7x more bugs while shipping faster, study finds — Hacker News

Democrats release more Epstein photos including Bill Gates and Sergey Brin — Financial Times

French anaesthetist sentenced to life for poisoning 30 patients, killing 12 — NYT World

Former refugee Barham Salih of Iraq to lead UN refugee agency — NYT World

Below the Fold

Americas

Brazil's Lula vows to veto bill that would slash Bolsonaro's 27-year prison sentence — SCMP World

Trump signs $1 trillion annual defense bill without fanfare — Reuters

Nike shares fall sharply as weak China sales dent turnaround hopes — Financial Times

Former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and 6 family members killed in North Carolina plane crash — The Guardian

US admits liability in fatal Black Hawk and American Airlines jet crash — SCMP World

Pope Leo XIV appoints fellow Chicagoan Ronald Hicks as archbishop of New York — AP News

Argentine unions march against Milei's labor reform — Straits Times

Europe

UK appoints career diplomat Christian Turner as ambassador to US — Straits Times

French police raid home of Culture Minister Rachida Dati in corruption probe — Le Monde

Germany launches €30 billion fund to mobilize private investment — Reuters

EU targets 41 additional vessels in Russia's shadow fleet — Reuters

Thousands rally in Bulgaria against corruption, call for judicial reform — Straits Times

Russia sentences British man who fought for Ukraine to 13 years — Straits Times

Asia-Pacific

Thailand and Cambodia tell China's Wang Yi they're willing to cease fire — SCMP China

Japan PM Takaichi's government readies record budget, alarming markets — Nikkei Asia

Sony to acquire majority stake in Peanuts Holdings for $460 million — Nikkei Asia

Chinese visitor growth to Japan slows to 3% after Beijing warning — Nikkei Asia

China's youth unemployment rate eases to 16.9% as graduates settle for less — SCMP China

Rural protests rising in China over land grabs as city plans evaporate — The Guardian

IndiGo faces India antitrust scrutiny after mass flight cancellations — Reuters

Middle East & Africa

Israel launches intense airstrikes in Lebanon as Hezbollah disarmament deadline looms — The Hindu

Trump's Gaza peace plan stumbles over Hamas refusing to disarm — WSJ World

Israel and Germany sign $3.1 billion Arrow air defense expansion — Straits Times

US imposes sanctions on 29 "shadow fleet" tankers carrying Iranian oil — Straits Times

Saudi-backed forces gather on Yemen border as separatists face pressure — The Guardian

Iran's president says he can't make "miracles" to solve country's woes — NYT World

Outages in Sudan after drone attack hits power plant — The Hindu

Tech

Google releases T5Gemma 2 encoder-decoder models and FunctionGemma — Hacker News

LG forced Copilot web app onto TVs, will now let users delete it — The Verge

OpenAI and Anthropic to start predicting when users are underage — The Verge

1.5 TB of VRAM achieved on Mac Studio via RDMA over Thunderbolt 5 — Hacker News

ProPublica launches Rx Inspector tool showing where generic drugs are made — ProPublica

School security AI flagged clarinet as gun; exec says it wasn't an error — Ars Technica

Facebook tests charging users to share links — The Guardian

SpaceX loses contact with Starlink satellite after anomaly creates debris — Straits Times