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Nation
Nation
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt Announces Resignation -- Administration's Lead Spokesperson Stepping Down; Iran and U.S. Make Competing Claims Over Who Controls the Strait of Hormuz as Naval Blockade Continues
Karoline Leavitt announced Thursday she is stepping down as White House press secretary; separately, the U.S. and Iran made contradictory public claims over whether Washington or Tehran controls the Strait of Hormuz as the naval standoff drags into its second month.
Sources: Al Jazeera · CNN · AP
CIA Had "Low Confidence" in Israeli Claim That Iran Planned to Shoot Down Air Force One -- New Intelligence Assessment Raises Questions About the NATO Summit Threat That Triggered Trump's Secret Plane Swap
A CIA assessment expressed only low confidence in the Israeli intelligence that prompted Trump's covert aircraft switch at the NATO summit in Ankara, casting doubt on the reported Iranian plot to down Air Force One with a shoulder-fired missile.
Sources: Democracy Now! · New York Times · Reuters
Silver Lake in Talks to Acquire Workday for ~$43 Billion -- Would Rank Among Largest Software Buyouts in History; Workday Shares Surge 20% and Halted Twice on Circuit Breakers; PPI Data Released Thursday Morning
Private equity firm Silver Lake is in early discussions to acquire HR and finance software giant Workday in a deal that would value the company at roughly $43 billion; Workday shares surged nearly 20% and were halted twice for volatility after Reuters broke the story Thursday afternoon.
Sources: Reuters · Bloomberg · Yahoo Finance
World
U.S. Sailors Attempt to Jump Overboard as Lengthy Middle East Carrier Deployment Grinds On -- Multiple Incidents Reported as Mental Health Toll Mounts; Families Evacuated From U.S. Bases Months Ago Still Waiting to Hear About Their Futures
Multiple U.S. sailors attempted to jump overboard from an aircraft carrier as an extended deployment in support of Middle East operations continues with no firm end date; families evacuated from regional bases months ago report ongoing uncertainty about when and whether they will return.
Sources: Democracy Now! · NPR · AP
Ukraine Update: Russian Drone Strikes Continue Causing Power Outages and Fuel Shortages in Crimea -- Kyiv's Hold on the Peninsula Increasingly Challenged; Congressman Ro Khanna Calls for U.S. Economic Realignment as Ukraine Aid Debate Continues
Ukrainian drone strikes are inflicting sustained disruptions across Russian-held Crimea, cutting power and fuel supplies and undermining Moscow's grip on the peninsula it has held since 2014; the broader war aid debate continues in Washington as U.S. negotiations with Kyiv remain active.
Sources: NPR · Reuters · Financial Times
Nick Reiner Indicted on Murder Charges in Killings of Parents Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner -- Grand Jury Adds Lying-in-Wait Allegation; Spain Celebrates First Total Solar Eclipse Over Mainland Europe Since 1999
A grand jury indicted Nick Reiner on murder charges in the killings of his parents, filmmaker Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, adding a lying-in-wait allegation; separately, Spain completed its first total solar eclipse over mainland Europe in more than 25 years Wednesday, drawing massive crowds.
Sources: NPR · CBS News · AP
Technology
Anthropic in Early Talks to Acquire Israeli AI Startup Decart AI for ~$6 Billion -- Decart Specializes in Real-Time Generative Video, World Models, and GPU Optimization; Deal Would Mark One of Anthropic's Largest Acquisitions Ahead of Potential IPO
Anthropic is negotiating to buy Decart AI, an Israeli startup backed by Nvidia that specializes in generative video and GPU efficiency technology, in a deal valued around $6 billion; the acquisition could strengthen Anthropic's inference operations as compute costs and demand surge.
Sources: Bloomberg · TechStartups
SpaceXAI Releases Grok 4.6 -- New Flagship Model Matches GPT-5.6 Sol on Intelligence Index; Optimized for Long-Running Agents, Coding, and Multi-Step Tasks; Priced at $2/Million Input Tokens; Available on Cursor, Grok Build, and OpenRouter
SpaceXAI launched Grok 4.6, a frontier model benchmarking alongside GPT-5.6 Sol with strong gains in coding and agentic tasks; starting at $2 per million input tokens, it expands affordable high-capability AI options for developers beyond OpenAI and Anthropic.
Sources: SiliconANGLE · TechStartups
Vantage Data Centers Weighs $100 Billion IPO -- Backed by Silver Lake and DigitalBridge; Would Rank Among Largest Pure-Play Data Center Listings Ever; Connected to OpenAI-Oracle Stargate Wisconsin Campus; Raised $11B Since Late 2023
Hyperscale operator Vantage Data Centers is exploring a potential IPO that could value the company at roughly $100 billion, reflecting the extraordinary capital flowing into AI infrastructure as demand for compute, power, and cooling accelerates across the industry.
Sources: Reuters · TechStartups
DeepMind's Demis Hassabis Proposes Independent AI Oversight Body -- Has Discussed Concept With OpenAI, Meta, and U.S. Officials Including Treasury Secretary Bessent; Compared Conceptually to the IAEA; Intended to Codify Safety Practices Around Advanced AI
Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis is advocating for an independent industry body to establish shared AI safety practices as labs approach more capable systems; he has raised the idea with top AI executives and White House officials seeking a layer between self-regulation and government mandates.
Sources: Wall Street Journal · TechStartups
Business & Markets
S&P 500 Surpasses 7,800 for First Time Ever Thursday -- Index Up 0.65% to Record Close of 7,798.99; Nasdaq Gains 0.81% to 26,803; Dow Adds 0.13%; Soft PPI and Falling Oil Prices Drive Sentiment; Rate Hike Bets Drop Sharply
The S&P 500 set a new all-time intraday and closing record Thursday after softer-than-expected PPI data and falling oil prices cooled rate-hike fears; money markets cut the odds of a September Fed hike from roughly 50% to 35% on the day.
Sources: CNBC · Bloomberg · Investing.com
Workday Shares Surge ~20% After Silver Lake Buyout Report -- Stock Halted Twice on Circuit Breakers; $43 Billion Deal Would Rank Among Largest Software Buyouts in History; Workday Now Positive for 2026 After Earlier Year-to-Date Losses
Workday shares jumped roughly 20% Thursday, adding about $8.6 billion in market value after Reuters reported Silver Lake is in talks to acquire the HR software company; the stock erased its entire 2026 loss and is now up modestly year-to-date after the surge.
Sources: Reuters · Yahoo Finance · Bloomberg
Lenovo Posts Record $26.9 Billion Quarter -- Revenue Up 43% Year-Over-Year; AI-Related Revenue Jumps 60%; AI Now Accounts for ~35% of Total Revenue; All Major Business Segments Hit First-Quarter Records for Revenue and Operating Profit
Lenovo's June-quarter results were its strongest ever, with AI-linked products and services growing 60% and now representing more than a third of total revenue, demonstrating that the AI spending cycle is spreading well beyond GPU makers into enterprise hardware.
Sources: Lenovo Investor Relations · TechStartups
Science & Health
Pentagon Report Confirms 153 Civilians Killed and 243 Injured in U.S. Yemen Airstrike Campaign -- Operation Rough Rider Report Delivered to Senate Armed Services Committee; Three Strike Operations "More Likely Than Not" Caused Civilian Harm
A long-awaited Pentagon report confirmed that U.S. airstrikes in last year's Yemen campaign against Houthi targets killed 153 civilians and injured 243 more, with three operations assessed as "more likely than not" to have caused civilian casualties.
Sources: The Hill · ABC News · Democracy Now!
Perseid Meteor Shower Peaks This Weekend -- NASA Calls It the Best Annual Stargazing Event of the Year; Up to 100 Meteors Per Hour at Peak; Darkest Skies Expected Late Friday Through Pre-Dawn Sunday; Best Viewing Away From City Lights
The Perseid meteor shower reaches its annual peak this weekend, with NASA projecting up to 100 meteors per hour under dark skies; the best viewing window runs from late Friday night through pre-dawn Sunday, favoring areas away from light pollution.
Sources: NASA · CBS News · AP
Spain's Total Solar Eclipse Wednesday Drew Massive Crowds -- First Totality Over Mainland Europe Since 1999; ESA Streamed Live From Javalambre Observatory in Teruel; Partial Eclipse Visible Across Northern U.S.; Scientists Gathered Data on Solar Corona
Wednesday's total solar eclipse crossed Greenland, Iceland, and northern Spain in a path not seen over mainland Europe in more than 25 years; the ESA streamed coverage from a mountaintop observatory and scientists used the window to collect data on the solar corona.
Sources: CBS News · ESA · NASA · AP
Sports
NFL Preseason Week 1 Opens Tonight -- 16 Games Across All 32 Teams From Thursday Through Saturday; Thursday Features Green Bay at Pittsburgh and Tennessee at San Francisco on NFL Network; Arizona at Las Vegas on ESPN App; Detroit at Cincinnati, Indianapolis at New England, and L.A. Chargers at Houston Locally
The first full preseason slate of 2026 gets underway Thursday with six games, headlined by Packers at Steelers and Titans at 49ers on NFL Network; the full 16-game Week 1 schedule runs through Saturday with Cowboys at Seahawks and Rams at Chiefs among the nationally televised Saturday matchups.
Sources: NFL · Fox Sports · Yahoo Sports
MLB Field of Dreams Game Tonight: Philadelphia Phillies vs. Minnesota Twins -- First Field of Dreams Game in Four Years; 7:30 PM ET Exclusively on Netflix; Kevin Costner on Hand; Aaron Nola Starting for Phils; Game Has Playoff Implications as Twins Trail White Sox by 3.5 Games in AL Central
MLB's iconic Field of Dreams game returns tonight in Dyersville, Iowa -- the first since 2022 -- with the Phillies facing the Twins at 7:30 PM ET exclusively on Netflix; Kevin Costner headlines Netflix's coverage alongside CC Sabathia and Hunter Pence, with real playoff stakes on the line for both clubs.
Sources: MLB · Philadelphia Inquirer · KTTC
MLB Wednesday Recap: Rays Extended Win Streak to Nine Games; Padres Edged Brewers 4--3; Twins Beat Orioles 7--5 at Target Field; Rockies Defeating Diamondbacks in Arizona; Full 15-Game Thursday Slate Continues With Field of Dreams Highlight
Tampa Bay continued its dominant stretch with another victory Wednesday, extending their win streak to nine games; the Padres edged Milwaukee 4--3 and the Twins topped Baltimore 7--5 at Target Field ahead of tonight's Field of Dreams showdown with Philadelphia.
Sources: ESPN · MLB.com · Yahoo Sports
Entertainment
Summer Box Office Officially Crosses $4 Billion -- First Time Since 2023; Spider-Man: Brand New Day Crosses $700M Domestic and $1B Global; End of Oak Street Opens This Weekend as Biggest New Release; PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie Counter-Programs for Families
The 2026 summer domestic box office officially crossed the $4 billion mark this week -- only the second post-pandemic summer to do so -- powered by Spider-Man: Brand New Day, The Odyssey, Backrooms, and a string of other breakouts; this weekend's top newcomer is Warner Bros.' The End of Oak Street.
Sources: Variety · Deadline · Hollywood Reporter
Spider-Man: Brand New Day Is Now Just the Fourth MCU Film to Cross $700 Million Domestic -- Joining Endgame, No Way Home, and Black Panther; Also Second-Fastest Film to Cross $1 Billion Globally After Avengers: Endgame; On Track for Third Straight Weekend at No. 1
Marvel and Sony's Spider-Man: Brand New Day has crossed both $700 million domestic and $1 billion global, becoming only the second film in history to hit the global milestone faster than Avengers: Endgame, and is tracking to hold the No. 1 spot for a third consecutive weekend.
Sources: Deadline · Gold Derby · Hollywood Reporter
2026 Box Office Comeback Called "The Real Thing" -- 115--120 Wide Releases This Year vs. 94 in 2024; Amazon MGM Returns to Theatrical With 13 Releases; Theater Owners Now Watching Paramount-WBD Merger Antitrust Trial Closely -- Fear of Reduced Studio Output Is Industry's Next Big Risk
Hollywood's 2026 release volume has returned to near-2019 levels, with Amazon MGM back in theaters and multiple studios expanding output; theater owners, however, are watching the Paramount-WBD merger antitrust trial closely, fearing a post-merger reduction in studio output could reverse the box office recovery.
Sources: Variety · Hollywood Reporter · Deadline
Weather
National Outlook: Dangerous Heat Dominates South, Plains, and Gulf States Thursday -- Triple-Digit Heat Index Continues From Florida Through Tennessee; Afternoon and Evening Storms Develop Along Eastern Seaboard and Into the Ohio Valley; West Texas Sees Triple-Digit Highs With Afternoon Thunderstorm Threat
Dangerous heat blankets the South and Plains Thursday with heat index values reaching 105--110°F in Middle Tennessee and topping 110°F near the Palm Beaches; afternoon and evening storms are possible along the East Coast and into the Ohio Valley while West Texas faces triple-digit highs with an afternoon storm risk.
Sources: NWS Weather Prediction Center · NewsChannel 5 Nashville · FOX29 West Palm Beach
Weekend Heat Warning: Saturday and Sunday Forecast to Be the Hottest Days of the Event -- Middle Tennessee Could Touch 99--100°F; Heat Alerts Extended Through Sunday Evening; Midwest May See Isolated Severe Storms Friday and Saturday With Damaging Wind Threat
The peak of the heat event arrives Saturday and Sunday, with actual temperatures potentially reaching 100°F in the Nashville area and heat advisories in place through Sunday evening; an elevated risk of severe storms with damaging winds is also possible Friday and Saturday across parts of the Midwest.
Sources: NewsChannel 5 Nashville · NWS · WeatherTalk Blog
Coming Up
Friday--Weekend: NFL Preseason Week 1 Continues Friday and Saturday -- Buccaneers-Jets on NFL Network Friday; Cowboys-Seahawks and Rams-Chiefs on NFL Network Saturday; Perseid Meteor Shower Peaks; Workday-Silver Lake Deal Watch; Middle Tennessee Heat Expected to Peak at 99--100°F Saturday--Sunday
The NFL preseason rolls on through Saturday with nine more games including primetime matchups on NFL Network; the Perseid meteor shower peaks this weekend, the dangerous heat dome over the South intensifies into the weekend, and all eyes remain on the Workday-Silver Lake acquisition talks.
Sources: Daily Tech Reader