Meta begins manufacturing its custom Iris AI chip at TSMC’s 2nm node in September 2026, aiming to double AI compute capacity while reducing reliance on Nvidia GPUs.
Posted inMarkets
Steel Partners bids $16.75 a share for InMode, topping CEO’s own buyout offer
Steel Partners offered $16.75 per share to acquire InMode on July 9, topping CEO Mizrahy’s own $16.20 buyout bid and demanding his removal for alleged governance failures.
Posted inEconomy
Taiwan posts third-highest monthly export total on record as AI server demand surges 40%
Taiwan’s June exports rose 40.3% to $74.83 billion, the third-highest monthly total on record, as US demand for AI servers and semiconductors drove 32 straight months of year-on-year growth.
Posted inGeopolitics
EU’s 21st Russia sanctions round targets drone suppliers, banks, and shadow fleet before July 15 deadline
EU foreign ministers are set to adopt on July 13 Russia’s 21st sanctions package, targeting drone suppliers, banks, and shadow fleet vessels, with a July 15 legal deadline.
Posted inWorld
Fire kills 28 at Jinjiang shoe factory after blocked stairwells trap workers
A fire at the Huiteng shoe factory in Jinjiang, China’s shoe capital, killed 28 workers on July 9 after goods piled in stairwells hampered their escape.
Posted inTech
Google delays Gemini 3.5 Pro to July 17 for a ground-up architectural rebuild
Google DeepMind abandoned the Gemini 2.5 Pro base architecture and pushed the 3.5 Pro launch to July 17, opting for a complete rebuild to close performance gaps in mathematical reasoning and SVG generation before competing releases from OpenAI and Anthropic.
Posted inMarkets
Brent crude tops $78 on fresh US strikes as Trump weighs targeting Kharg Island
Brent crude settled above $78 a barrel on Wednesday, up more than 5%, after the US launched a second day of strikes on Iran, the US Treasury revoked Tehran’s oil sanctions waiver, and Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz.
Posted inEconomy
IMF holds global growth at 3% as war shock and AI investment pull in opposite directions
The IMF’s July update kept its 2026 global growth forecast at 3% but raised headline inflation to 4.7%, citing opposing pressures from energy disruptions in the Middle East and AI-driven demand in technology-integrated economies.
Posted inGeopolitics
Trump declares the Iran ceasefire over as US launches a second day of strikes
President Trump declared the three-week memorandum of understanding with Iran ‘over’ on July 8 after US forces struck more than 80 Iranian targets and Tehran fired missiles at US military bases in Kuwait and Bahrain.
Posted inWorld
Australia and Fiji seal the Ocean of Peace Alliance in Pacific security push
Australia and Fiji signed a mutual defense pact and a A$1 billion economic treaty on July 6, the same day China test-fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile in the Pacific.