Kennedy falsely argues that vaccines did little to lower childhood deaths.

The tech giant is positioning autonomous, long-running agents as the next defining shift in enterprise AI.

India’s app market is booming in downloads and usage, but much of the money still flows to global platforms rather than local developers. The post India’s App Boom Has a Revenue Problem appeared first on TechRepublic.

Susie Wiles serves as President Donald Trump's White House chief of staff, one of several high-ranking women in his administration. BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images President Donald Trump appointed a number of women to high-ranking roles in his administration. One-third of Trump's original Cabinet and Cabinet-level appointments — eight out of 24 — were women. Trump appointed Susie Wiles as the first-ever female White House chief of staff. In an appearance on "The View" ahead of the 2024 election, Mark Cuban said that President Donald Trump "doesn't like to be challenged" by "strong, intelligent women." Susie Wiles, Trump's 2024 campaign manager who went on to become his White House chief of staff, had something to say about that. "I'm told @mcuban needs help identifying the strong and intelligent women surrounding Pres. Trump," she wrote in a rare social media post on X in October 2024. "Well, here we are! I've been proud to lead this campaign." (Cuban later apologized for his wording, but added that "I stand by my opinion that he does not like being challenged publicly.") Trump's history with women is complex, with a record of inflammatory comments, lawsuits, and contentious political actions such as laying the groundwork to overturn Roe v. Wade. However, Trump has also made notable gains with women voters. In 2024, 45% of women voted for Trump compared to 55% of men — a narrower gender gap than in 2016 and 2020, according to the Center for American Women and Politics. During his second non-consecutive term, Trump has named women to several historic appointments in his administration, including the first female White House chief of staff and the youngest-ever press secretary. According to the Center for American Women and Politics, one-third of Trump's original Cabinet and Cabinet-level appointments — eight out of 24 — were women. However, three of the most powerful women in Trump's administration have recently lost their roles. In April, the president fired Attorney General Pam Bondi, weeks after firing another, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer also resigned on Monday following investigations into alleged misconduct. When reached for comment in March 2025, the White House referred Business Insider to the president's comments from a 2025 White House event for Women's History Month in which he praised the women in his Cabinet and said he was "thrilled to say that we have more women in our Cabinet than any Republican president in the history of our country." Meet the most powerful women in the Trump administration. Susie Wiles, White House chief of staff White House chief of staff Susie Wiles looks on as US President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House after announcing reciprocal tariffs, in Washington, DC, on February 13, 2025. Trump announced that he would impose "reciprocal tariffs" on trading partners, opening new fronts in his trade war. The move would match US tariff rates on imports to the levels that other countries impose on US goods. ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images At his 2024 election victory party, Trump said that Susie Wiles "likes to stay in the background," but she has emerged as a key figure in Trump's political operation. Wiles is the first woman in US history to serve as a president's chief of staff. A longtime member of Trump's inner circle, she ran his Florida campaigns in 2016 and 2020 and acted as his campaign manager in 2024. "Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected," Trump wrote on Truth Social when announcing Wiles as his White House chief of staff. "Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again." In a March 2025 interview on Lara Trump's "My View" show on Fox News, Wiles described herself as "quietly competitive." "I see my job as just sort of keeping the trains on the tracks and running on time here, so that the subject matter experts, and particularly the president and the vice president, can do what they need to do to fix the country," she said. In a series of interviews with Vanity Fair published in December, Wiles described Trump as having an "alcoholic's personality," Vice President JD Vance as a "conspiracy theorist," and said she was "aghast" at Elon Musk's dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development. Wiles called the Vanity Fair article a "disingenuously framed hit piece" in a post on X, but did not dispute any of the magazine's reporting. The Trump administration stood behind her, with Karoline Leavitt telling Business Insider that "President Trump has no greater or more loyal advisor than Susie," adding, "The entire Administration is grateful for her steady leadership and united fully behind her." In March, Trump announced on Truth Social that Wiles had been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer and that she would remain in her role at the White House during treatment. "Her Strength and her Commitment to continue doing the job she loves, and does so well, while undergoing treatment, tells you everything you need to know about her," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "Susie, as one of my closest and most important advisors, is tough and deeply committed to serving the American People. She will soon be better than ever!" Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 28: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt holds her first news conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on January 28, 2025 in Washington, DC. At 27 years old, Leavitt is the youngest White House press secretary in U.S. history. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images At 28, Karoline Leavitt is the youngest-ever White House press secretary. During Trump's first presidency, she interned at the White House as a college student and worked with then-press secretary Kayleigh McEnany after graduating. After running for Congress in New Hampshire in 2022, she joined Trump's 2024 presidential campaign as his national press secretary. "He doesn't care if you're a man or a woman, with kids or no kids," Leavitt said of working for Trump in an interview with The Conservateur. "He just wants the hardest worker and the best person for the job. And that's what makes him a great boss." As press secretary, Leavitt continues to shape the narrative of the Trump administration, establishing a "new media seat" in the White House briefing room and restricting the access of outlets that don't follow Trump's executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Leavitt has spoken about navigating motherhood as a high-powered member of Trump's presidential campaign, telling The Conservateur that going back to work after having her baby was "incredibly challenging emotionally, physically, spiritually." She took just four days off after giving birth in July, returning to work after Trump survived an assassination attempt at a rally on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania. She is expecting her second child with husband Nicholas Riccio in May, making her the first-ever pregnant White House press secretary. Tulsi Gabbard, director of national intelligence Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images Tulsi Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman and presidential candidate who supported Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 campaign, made a hard-right pivot after dropping out of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary. She became a Fox News contributor, campaigned with GOP candidates, and joined Trump's 2024 transition team along with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. As director of national intelligence, Gabbard leads 17 organizations in the US Intelligence Community. She did not have prior intelligence experience beyond serving on House committees during her time in Congress. "As a former Candidate for the Democratic Presidential Nomination, she has broad support in both Parties - She is now a proud Republican! I know Tulsi will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our Intelligence Community, championing our Constitutional Rights, and securing Peace through Strength," Trump wrote on Truth Social in his announcement of her nomination. Gabbard was one of the Trump officials added to a Signal group chat created by then-National Security Advisor Mike Waltz discussing attack plans against Houthi militants in Yemen, which also inadvertently included The Atlantic editor Jeffery Goldberg. Testifying before the House Intelligence Committee in March 2025, Gabbard called Goldberg's inclusion in the chat a "mistake," but maintained that "no classified information was shared." Jake Lahut, citing "two sources familiar with the discussions," reported in Sherwood News in April that the White House has told Gabbard to leave her post by the midterm elections. Alexa Henning, Gabbard's acting chief of staff, called the report "false" in a post on X. Linda McMahon, secretary of education Win McNamee/Getty Images When nominating Linda McMahon for education secretary, Trump wrote on Truth Social that "We will send Education BACK TO THE STATES, and Linda will spearhead that effort." McMahon, the former CEO of WWE, served as the head of the Small Business Administration during Trump's first term before stepping down to chair the pro-Trump super PAC America First Action. She also served on the Connecticut Board of Education for one year. In March 2025, Trump signed an executive order directing McMahon to begin dismantling the Department of Education. In a radio interview with WABC 770 AM's "Cats & Cosby," McMahon said Trump was "dead serious about the fact that he wants me to fire myself." Alina Habba, senior advisor to the Attorney General Attorney Alina Habba is joined by Former President Donald Trump as she speaks during a news conference, Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024, in New York. AP Photo/Mary Altaffer Alina Habba rose to prominence as Trump's personal attorney during a series of high-profile lawsuits, including his civil fraud trial and defamation trial in which the verdict awarded columnist E. Jean Carroll $83 million. Trump initially appointed Habba as counselor to the president. In March 2025, Trump withdrew her nomination and appointed her as interim US attorney for the District of New Jersey. A US appeals court ruled that Habba's appointment was unlawful, and she resigned in December. Habba wrote on X that she resigned "to protect the stability and integrity of the office which I love," adding, "do not mistake compliance for surrender." She now serves as senior advisor to the attorney general for US attorneys, where she worked with Pam Bondi at the Justice Department before Bondi's firing in April. Kelly Loeffler, administrator of the Small Business Administration US Administrator of the Small Business Administration Kelly Loeffler, speaks at Vantage Plastics in Bay City, Michigan, March 14, 2025. JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images Kelly Loeffler, a millionaire businesswoman and former CEO of the bitcoin company Bakkt, previously served as a senator from Georgia. "Kelly will bring her experience in business and Washington to reduce red tape, and unleash opportunity for our Small Businesses to grow, innovate, and thrive," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "She will focus on ensuring that SBA is accountable to Taxpayers by cracking down on waste, fraud, and regulatory overreach." As head of the Small Business Administration, Loeffler has visited Los Angeles to assess post-wildfire recovery efforts for small businesses and announced that the SBA would move six of its offices out of "sanctuary cities" that refuse ICE detention requests and relocate them to "municipalities who share this Administration's commitment to secure borders and safe communities." Brooke Rollins, secretary of agriculture WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 08: U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins delivers remarks during a roundtable discussion with farmers hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump Cabinet Room of the White House on December 08, 2025 in Washington, DC. President Trump is expected to announce a $12 billion farm aid package, which includes one-time payments to those affected by the administration's trade policies. Alex Wong/Getty Images In Trump's first White House administration, Brooke Rollins served as director of the Domestic Policy Council, assistant to the president for strategic initiatives, and director of the Office of American Innovation. She went on to serve as the president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a conservative think tank. "Brooke's commitment to support the American Farmer, defense of American Food Self-Sufficiency, and the restoration of Agriculture-dependent American Small Towns is second to none," Trump said in a statement announcing her nomination. Upon taking office, Rollins' main focus as agriculture secretary was lowering the price of eggs, which rose 237% from January 2021 to January 2025. She has since worked with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to introduce new dietary guidelines emphasizing the consumption of meat, full fats, and whole foods. Casey Means, nominee for surgeon general UNITED STATES - FEBRUARY 25: Dr. Casey Means, nominee to be surgeon general, testifies during her confirmation Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen building on Wednesday, February 25, 2026. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Casey Means graduated from the Stanford School of Medicine, but did not complete her residency program at Oregon Health & Science University and does not hold an active medical license. She opened a functional medicine practice in Portland before pivoting to a career as an entrepreneur and wellness influencer. She founded Levels, a diet and exercise tracking app, and wrote a memoir titled "Good Energy." She has also promoted various wellness items through sponsorships on her social media. Means and her brother served as advisors to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s 2024 presidential campaign. In a Truth Social post announcing her nomination as surgeon general, Trump wrote that Means has "impeccable 'MAHA' credentials," citing her connection to Kennedy Jr. Means has not yet been confirmed by the Senate. Trump previously nominated physician and former Fox News contributor Janette Nesheiwat to the role, but withdrew her nomination in May 2025. Editor's note: This list was first published in March 2025 and has been updated to reflect recent developments. Read the original article on Business Insider

Getty Images; Tyler Le/BI Brands need to be careful when "clipping." Viral short-form clips are the latest content marketing tool. There's an FTC-shaped question looming overhead, though. Hey, brands, let's get one thing out of the way before you go all in on "clipping." If it's an ad, it needs a disclosure. Clipping, where creators edit longer videos (like podcasts or livestreams) into short-form snippets and flood social media platforms, has become the marketing hack du jour. The music industry has already tapped in — splicing up content from concert performances (like Coachella), interviews, or music videos to promote artists and their records. It's grown into a cottage industry in the creator economy, too, with clippers raking in hundreds to thousands of dollars per campaign promoting podcasters and livestreamers. All those viral podcast clips aren't likely to — and haven't — prompted a Federal Trade Commission crackdown, legal experts said. Brands, however, face higher risks. Promoting media or "expressive works" is a different ballgame than promoting "commercial messages" with the intent to ultimately sell something, said Amanda Schreyer, a lawyer who works closely with brands. Some brands, like AI companies, are already running clipping campaigns promoting the content created on their platforms. Other brands want to see their logos in clips. And it's not hard to imagine a brand seeking out clippers to promote videos featuring its products. While the rules are clear that clipped ads need disclosures, the FTC hasn't started cracking down yet on rule-breakers. It's a matter of "when and not if" the FTC starts enforcing clipping disclosures, attorney Philip Racusin said. "Fundamentally, what is it when you are putting up a clip?" Racusin added. "It's actually an advertisement. It's an endorsement." The FTC started cracking down on undisclosed social media advertisements nearly a decade ago, and since then, influencers (as well as brands and social media platforms) have gotten accustomed to including the infamous #ad or other obvious indications that the content in front of you is a paid endorsement. If anyone, including influencers, is signing up for a paid clipping campaign for a brand, there's a "necessity to disclose to the public," Schreyer said. Will the FTC take action against clipping? "There's potential exposure, in terms of risk, of contravening FTC guidelines and potentially having the FTC take a look at these practices or investigate a clipping operation or whoever's paying for it," said Robert Freund, a lawyer who specializes in the creator economy and e-commerce. However, the FTC has not given much public indication that it cares about this form of advertising — yet. "Right now, the stakes are not that high," Freund said. "There have been no enforcement actions about it." Regardless, three lawyers who spoke with Business Insider said that anyone getting into the business of clipping should take the FTC's previous crackdowns on deceptive advertising seriously and be proactive. "The FTC not doing anything about it to date is not any sort of indication that they won't do so in the future," Freund said. Brands are boarding the clipping train Marketers are already getting in on the trend. There's a growing crop of clipping agencies that brands are turning to, while others (as well as podcasters or creators themselves) are managing clipping campaigns on platforms like Discord or Whop. Clipping agency Clip Tech's cofounder, Max Peterson, said that brands like Sony, Fox, and the NFL are tapping into the format. Peterson added that his agency has a network of 45,000 clippers and that brands are paying those creators rates up to $5 per 1,000 views. Higgsfield AI, for instance, listed a recent campaign on Clipping.net and is offering $100 per every 100,000 views. Brands like Higgsfield are already considering FTC compliance. "Our creator agreements require creators to abide by FTC influencer disclosure rules and any similar social platform-specific rules," said Matt Stratton, Higgsfield's general counsel. Read the original article on Business Insider

The White House says China-linked actors are using industrial-scale distillation to extract American AI breakthroughs, with US action planned. The post White House Says China-Linked Actors Tried to ‘Steal American AI’ appeared first on TechRepublic.

Pending refresh? RAM shortage? AI agents? There are many possible explanations.

I've come up with nutritious lunch recipes that my 10-year-old will actually eat at school. Lauren Manaker As a dietitian, I focus on making nutritious school lunches for my 10-year-old daughter. I stock up on Costco items like deli meat and peanut butter for easy-to-prepare meals. I prioritize foods with short ingredient lists that fit well in her lunch box. Mornings are a whirlwind in my house. Between getting my 10-year-old daughter ready for the day and grabbing myself a much-needed coffee, preparing a nutritious school lunch can feel overwhelming. As a dietitian and mom, I care about feeding her nutritious foods that give her energy and help her focus. However, I don't always have the time or, if I'm being honest, the patience to put together elaborate, photo-worthy lunches. So, I rely on strategic grocery shopping to make lunch prep quick, easy, and nutritious. When I keep my Costco staples stocked, I need less than five minutes to pull together a balanced lunch that my daughter will actually eat. I use organic white bread from Dave's Killer Bread to make my daughter sandwiches. I make sandwiches using this white bread. Lauren Manaker Despite my best efforts to introduce hearty whole grains into my daughter's diet, she has a strong preference for white bread. So, I compromise by buying this organic white bread. I love that it has nutrient-dense ingredients like quinoa, spelt, rye, millet, and barley (but no artificial bleached flours). With a soft texture that holds up perfectly for sandwiches, it's one of the best-tasting white breads I've found on grocery-store shelves. Cooper Farms deli meat tastes delicious fresh out of the package or thawed from the freezer. I freeze some of the meats to preserve them for longer. Lauren Manaker Deli meat is a lunch-box staple, and the variety pack from Cooper Farms is high-quality and typically reasonably priced at Costco. It has oven-roasted turkey breast, applewood-smoked uncured ham, and honey-roasted turkey breast. Since we usually don't get through all three packs before they spoil, I keep one in the fridge and freeze the other two. They still taste great when I thaw them, and I often use them as a protein source in sandwiches or meat-and-cheese roll-ups. I like that Kirkland Signature organic peanut butter has a short ingredient list and offers plenty of plant-based protein. Peanut butter packs a lot of protein into each serving. Lauren Manaker Kirkland Signature organic creamy peanut butter is a fixture in my pantry. I appreciate that the brand doesn't add oils or sugars to the nut butter, using only organic peanuts and sea salt. I rely on it, as a peanut butter sandwich is my ultimate fallback plan on rushed mornings. It has plant-based protein and healthy fats, so it keeps my daughter full and focused until the afternoon bell rings. Purely Elizabeth granola makes my daughter's parfaits taste like dessert. The cookie granola flavor is my daughter's favorite. Lauren Manaker I use Purely Elizabeth chocolate-chip-cookie granola as our go-to topping for yogurt parfaits. It's sweet, but not overly so, and adds the perfect amount of crunch and flavor to Greek yogurt. The granola feels like a treat to her, and I appreciate that Purely Elizabeth uses quality ingredients like oats and chia seeds in its recipe. Activia yogurt is a gut-friendly option for kids, and the cups are easy for my daughter to open on her own. My daughter can open these yogurts on her own. Lauren Manaker The single-serve cups of Activia yogurt fit perfectly in my daughter's lunch box, and the packaging is kid-friendly (a small but important detail since I'm not in the cafeteria to help her open it). My daughter enjoys the yogurt's creamy texture and mild flavors, and I love that she's getting a protein boost and gut-health benefits from its live and active probiotics. The variety pack at Costco comes with 24 single-serving cups, with eight in each of the three flavors. The one I grabbed on this trip had strawberry, black cherry, and peach. Biena crispy roasted edamame are a crunchy, high-protein lunch swap for potato chips. These edamame snacks are a great alternative for chips. Lauren Manaker On days when my daughter's lunch box calls for some crunch, I pack my daughter Biena crispy roasted edamame with Himalayan pink salt. Behind the satisfying crunch, each 30-gram serving has 12 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber. The salty seasoning makes this snack extra palatable for kids — and it doesn't get stale in her lunch box. Every time I send my daughter to school with raspberries, she eats them all. My daughter loves opening her lunch box and finding raspberries. Lauren Manaker Fresh raspberries are one of my favorite fruits to pack in school lunches because of their high fiber content. So, I often buy them in bulk at Costco. I love that I don't have to chop, peel, or prep raspberries. After a quick rinse, they're ready to be tossed into my daughter's lunch box. Pure Flavor Farms Poco Bites are the perfect kid-sized lunch side. These little cucumbers are the perfect size for my 10 year old. Lauren Manaker These cocktail cucumbers fit neatly in my daughter's lunch box, meaning there's no slicing required on my end. They maintain their crisp texture through lunchtime, and they're mild enough that my daughter happily munches on them as a finger food. I can throw Peelz Mandarin oranges directly into her lunch box without worrying about a mess. Oranges are easy to pack. Lauren Manaker Mandarin oranges are always in my house. They come in their own protective packaging (no mess!), offer a solid dose of vitamin C, and are easy for my daughter to peel on her own. They're one lunch-box item I can guarantee she'll always eat, so I buy them in bulk at Costco. Amara yogurt smoothie melts are my go-to substitute for fresh fruit. These snacks have a long shelf life. Lauren Manaker When I'm running low on fruit and need an extra item to fill a lunch-box compartment, I reach for smoothie snacks from Amara. They're made with organic fruits and vegetables and, unlike many fruit-based snacks, don't have added sugar. These plant-based melts dissolve easily, and Amara makes them using simple ingredients, like mango, carrots, and lemon juice. I love that I don't have to refrigerate the snacks and can store them in my pantry. They don't spoil quickly, so I can rely on them when I want to add a bit more nutrition to meals without adding prep time. Keep reading our Costco Diaries to see what others buy at the popular chain. Read the original article on Business Insider

"They’re putting operational systems up within orbit reach of our high-value satellites."

A Navy destroyer fires its 5-inch deck gun, one of the weapons that could be used to engage small Iranian attack boats. US Navy photo President Trump has ordered the US Navy to destroy small boats laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz. The directive adds a new element and fresh risks to the Navy's mine-clearing operations. The US has destroyers in the region that are capable of engaging Iran's fast-attack craft. President Donald Trump said Thursday that he ordered the US Navy to "shoot and kill" any boat, including Iran's small, fast-attack boats, laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz. The directive adds a new combat element to Navy mine-clearing operations, which began earlier this month. Iranian fast-attack craft have been spotted in the waterway in recent days, with some gunboats firing at merchant vessels. Iran's conventional navy has been sunk. "There is to be no hesitation," Trump said in a social media post. He said Navy minesweepers are clearing the Strait, adding that he ordered the activity to continue "at a tripled up level." In the weeks of fighting ahead of the recent ceasefire, the US military engaged Iranian fast boats and mine-laying craft with a mix of capabilities, including the A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft, known simply as the "Warthog." US forces destroyed more than 95% of Iran's naval mines during the Operation Epic Fury bombing campaign, but Tehran likely placed some in or near the Strait during the conflict, a defense official told Business Insider this week. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss US military developments, said American forces are actively addressing the mines using a mix of crewed and uncrewed capabilities to ensure that ships can safely transit the Strait. The US military previously said underwater drones would be part of these efforts. Trump said he ordered the Navy to destroy any small boat laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz. US Central Command It's unclear whether Iran has laid additional mines in the Strait since the US announced a ceasefire with Tehran on April 7, but Iranian fast-attack craft have been active in the region in the two weeks since. Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) gunboats have opened fire on multiple vessels, according to the British military. Navy warships and American aircraft have a range of capabilities to track and interdict small craft such as Iranian attack boats, Bradley Martin, a retired Navy surface warfare captain, told Business Insider. This includes advanced shipboard radars and other systems, large- and small-caliber guns, and the ability to direct crewed aircraft and drones, said Martin, a senior policy researcher at the RAND Corporation think tank. The Navy's Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, among the first vessels to sail into the mine-clearing operation, are equipped with surface search radars, Mk45 deck guns like USS Spruance used on Sunday to disable a blockade-running Iranian-flagged cargo ship, and autocannons and heavy machine guns. These well-armed naval vessels also sail with embarked helicopters that can be armed with crew-served machine guns and missiles and engage at stand-off ranges. During the Houthi conflict, in late 2023, US helicopters opened fire on and sank several boats carrying Iran-backed rebels attacking a vessel in the Red Sea. This tactic could be replicated in the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian fast-attack boats during a 2020 naval exercise. ZUMA Press Wire via Reuters Connect The strait is a confined battlespace; however, the combination of capabilities aboard fully equipped destroyers enables them to counter traditional fast-boat employment, which involves swarming tactics and harassment, through early detection and layered fires. They are also well-suited for isolated engagements against a single vessel attempting to place naval mines. Beyond the destroyers, the Navy has numerous other assets in the broader area that could target Iranian vessels. It is unclear what impact any such engagements might have on the fragile ceasefire that was recently extended. American and Iranian leadership have offered conflicting statements on who controls the Strait. Tehran said that it seized two cargo vessels in the waterway on Wednesday; on Thursday, Trump said the US has "total control" over it. The ongoing de-mining operation comes as the Navy also participates in the US blockade of maritime traffic entering or leaving Iranian ports. US Central Command, which oversees American military operations in the Middle East, said on Wednesday that more than 30 vessels have been directed to turn around or return to port since the blockade went into effect on April 13. CENTCOM said more than 17 warships are involved in enforcing the blockade — including an aircraft carrier, amphibious assault ship, and destroyers — and more than 100 fighter, rotary wing, and surveillance planes. Read the original article on Business Insider

TikTok is building a second data center in Finland as part of its Project Clover push to keep European user data stored within Europe. The post TikTok Invests $1.16 Billion in New Finland Facility to Localize European Data appeared first on TechRepublic.

The max size is now 2MB and max resolution is 4000 x 4000.

If a worker's years of service at Microsoft plus their age equals 70 or more, they will be eligible for a voluntary retirement buyout.

Signal “very happy” Apple fixed bug storing private chats after app was deleted.

Maria Colacurcio is CEO of software company Syndio as well as an elite athlete who competes in world championships of Hyrox, a popular fitness race. Courtesy of Maria Colacurcio/Syndio A 49-year-old CEO and busy mom said shorter workouts helped her improve her fitness and longevity. After winning at Hyrox, a popular fitness race, she started overtraining and felt burned out. She broke through the fitness plateau by focusing on shorter, intense sprint sessions. Maria Colacurcio is used to people asking how she does it all: leading a tech company, parenting seven children, and working out hard enough to compete in elite races. Colacurcio, 49, is the CEO of Syndio, a software company helping to leverage AI for pay equity. Since 2022, she's been competing in Hyrox, a fitness race that combines running with tests of strength and endurance like rowing, lunges, burpees, and sled pushes. Colacurcio told Business Insider that "doing it all" is a bit of a myth, particularly for women: you can't effortlessly juggle career, family, and health without making some sacrifices. "We all have priorities, and we set those priorities with intention," she said. Each day is a delicate balance of early-morning workouts in the garage gym, finding quality time with her kids, her husband (and Hyrox doubles partner), Brandon, and making sure the family gets fed, on top of her demanding job. About a year ago, Colacurcio said she was hit hard by burnout and stopped seeing progress with her fitness despite long hours of working out. With the help of an elite coach, she switched to shorter workouts and added sprints to her routine. Quick bursts of high-intensity effort are an evidence-backed way to get fit fast — and boost longevity at the same time. Fighting a fitness plateau Colacurcio knew she was burned out when she stopped looking forward to racing and began fixating on her finish times instead. "The number one indicator that I was burned out and overtraining was my mind," she said. "Mentally, I'd gotten to a place where I no longer loved the process. I was so focused on the outcome." Colacurcio said she thinks of participating in Hyrox as a privilege. The races, which take place all over the world, have skyrocketed in popularity in recent years thanks to a vibe that feels as much like a festival as a fitness event. "It's almost like a Taylor Swift concert. You have to get online and get your registration in the queue, or else you can't make it into these races," Colacurcio said. The format of Hyrox, combining multiple rounds of running with other exercises, makes it accessible for even beginner athletes to try an event. For serious competitors, the challenge is training stamina as well as strength. Hyrox events combine intense athletic competition with a party atmosphere at races around the world. Amaury PAUL / AFP via Getty Images That was the struggle for Colacurcio, who said she burned out trying to train like a pro athlete on top of her full-time job and busy life. "I just wasn't improving. I was fully plateauing because I was overtraining," she said. "I was doing the classic mistake of burying myself, just doing more, more, more." Working out smarter, not harder Counterintuitively, Colacurcio said doing less improved her gains. She worked with a coach who specializes in training elite athletes, like NFL players, UFC fighters, and US Special Forces members. He cut her training time by about a third, but increased the intensity. Rather than longer runs, she focused on short intervals: 30 seconds of sprinting, followed by 30 seconds of rest, repeated over and over (for up to an hour total). She also focused on doing more reps to build endurance, while easing up on max-effort lifts so she had more energy. Her workout schedule is still intense — Colacurcio starts her day at 4:45 a.m. — but she got faster, was less fatigued, and felt more powerful after every session. "I have a really, really good mix of strength training, conditioning, easy run days mixed with hard days," she said. Why sprinting can help boost longevity Even if you never aim to get a Hyrox win or sign up for a race, the training style is a great template to boost overall health and longevity, according to Colacurcio (and science backs this up). The events tap into fitness metrics that are linked to a longer life, and teach you not to focus too much on one aspect of fitness and ignore the rest, she said. You can't just run fast or lift heavy, but you need balance, core stability, a good VO2 max, and explosive power to compete in Hyrox exercises like burpee broad jumps and the farmer carry. As strength training gets more popular, it's important not to forget cardio for heart health. If you're working up to all-out sprints, everyday efforts like taking the stairs can help too, studies suggest. "It just balances the things you need to move into longevity," Colacurcio said. "Don't give up occasional sprinting and working your heart just because you're on the lifting train." Read the original article on Business Insider

The planned outlay comes after the tech giant recently made significant AI investments in Asia.

Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman. Bloomberg/Getty Images Private credit concerns have been roiling the industry after a $20 billion redemption rush. Blackstone's leaders say this has been driven by an "intensely negative campaign" against the sector. Even as some retail investors exit, it saw $37 billion in private credit inflows in the first quarter. In the time since private credit became Blackstone's largest business, the sector has gone from star to a thorn in the industry's side. A wave of nearly $20 billion in redemptions from corporate-lending funds for wealthy individuals has left the industry on the defensive. And on Blackstone's first-quarter earnings call, its leaders blamed "external assertions" from the press, social media, and other commentators for slowing investor demand and driving concerns of systemic risk and potential investor losses. Steve Schwarzman, the firm's founder and CEO, said that the firm is "navigating an intensely negative campaign against the private credit sector," and that we should "separate the fact from the fiction." While retail investors have been withdrawing money, Blackstone says institutional clients are still pouring in, suggesting the sentiment is driven by perception rather than performance. "What's been more challenging is that some of the social media and press reporting is so different than the facts that we see," Gray said. Private credit accounted for more than half of the $68.5 billion in inflows across the firm, and the troubled direct-lending sector accounted for a quarter of the firm's total inflows. "This success in fundraising is in sharp contrast to what one reads regularly in the press about weak institutional demand for private market strategies," Gray said, citing the firm's oversubscribed, $10 billion opportunistic credit fund, "one of the largest institutional credit fundraises in our history." The "striking" difference between institutional and insurance clients and retail investor sentiment is "as sharp of a contrast as I've ever seen," Gray said. Schwarzman also sought to tamp down fears that private credit could pose a systemic threat, citing comments from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Federal Reserve and Securities and Exchange Commission leaders, and finance executives, who he said do not view the asset class as a systemic risk. "The key question is whether private credit is a good product for investors and can it continue to deliver a premium to liquid credit over time?" Schwarzman said. As you might expect, Schwarzman's answer is yes. He cited 9.4% net returns on non-investment grade private credit since inception nearly 20 years ago, "roughly double the return of the leveraged loan market." Returns, however, were lower over the last twelve months in private credit, at 5.7% net of fees, and actually flat, net of fees, in the first quarter. The past 20 years have had many macroeconomic bumps, and the Iran War and rising defaults could present their own challenges, but Schwarzman said that low fund leverage, meaningful capital reserves, and current income generation will help drive "a premium return to liquid markets over time." As for redemptions, Gray said that a "smaller number of large investors who are double the size" of the average Blackstone Private Credit Fund investor were driving them. "It's sort of the bigger boulders as opposed to the pebbles where you get more movement in terms of redemptions," Gray said. The problem, Blackstone president Jon Gray said, isn't their relationship with "obviously sophisticated" financial advisors who sell these products and have a high view of the firm. Nor is it a lack of transparency about liquidity constraints. "If you look at BCRED on the cover page, there are six bold highlighted lines talking about the liquidity limitations in the product," Gray said. He pointed to BREIT, which is finally seeing net positive inflows after its own redemption challenges. The "number of competitors" has diminished for BREIT after the shakeout, and Gray says there's a likelihood of the same for BCRED. "I do think we could see a changing of the guard or a winnowing a little bit through this process," Gray said. Read the original article on Business Insider

A practical pipeline for classifying messy free-text data into meaningful categories using a locally hosted LLM, no labeled training data required. The post Using a Local LLM as a Zero-Shot Classifier appeared first on Towards Data Science.

Spy satellite hardware has been repurposed to scan the Universe in the infrared.

Minitopia's largest site is in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. Samira Kafala for BI Single older women are turning to tiny home villages after getting divorced. One US village said roughly a third of its residents are older divorced women. There's a major financial reason this group is "tremendously overrepresented," said one expert. Margot Hollander got divorced at 62. Among the many decisions she faced in 2023 as she navigated life after marriage was the practical question of where she would live. "After the divorce, I had to settle somewhere," Margot Hollander said, sitting at the small dining table in her modern tiny home, her miniature dog at her feet. At the time, she was living in Eindhoven. It would have been a long wait for social housing. As a retired dance teacher in her 60s with no steady income, she had little chance of securing a mortgage and struggled to compete on the private rental market with high-earning couples. Left with about 145,000 euros ($170,407) from the sale of her marital home, Hollander, now 64, knew a house in the city was out of her budget. "Your choice is limited," Hollander told Business Insider. Business Insider's Joshua Nelken-Zitser spent several nights in Minitopia, a tiny home village in the Netherlands. This story is part of his series exploring how living in the villages has affected residents' careers, lives, and finances. Then, while browsing online, Hollander came across Minitopia, a tiny home village in her hometown of Eindhoven, in the south of the Netherlands. A prebuilt tiny house was listed for sale. She bought it in January 2024 in cash for about 143,000 euros, marking a new phase in her post-divorce life. There were a considerable number of offers on the property, she said, but "I was the lucky one." Margot Hollander, 64, lives in a tiny home with her dog. Samira Kafala for BI Tiny home villages are attracting divorced women The Minitopia Foundation works with local governments to turn derelict land into tiny house communities. More than 150 plots are spread across five sites in the southern Netherlands. Of the nearly 2,000 people on Minitopia's waiting list, across all five sites, one key demographic stands out, Rolf van Boxmeer, its cofounder, told Business Insider. "A big part of it is divorced people," van Boxmeer said, estimating that around 30% of those on the waiting list were single women, many of them older and divorced. "We've attracted a lot of these people," he added. "They need a home, fast, that they like. They are a bit older and don't usually have waiting-list priority on social housing." Minitopia in Eindhoven, where Hollander lives, is the largest of the foundation's sites, with room for 100 tiny houses. Like Hollander, some buy their tiny homes secondhand, while others apply for a plot to build from scratch for as little as €5,000, though more typically closer to €75,000. Residents then pay ground rent to the foundation, usually a few hundred euros a month, depending on the size of their plot. It's an affordable way onto the property ladder, and the model has proved popular. Divorced women often buy tiny homes with cash Sidra Gifford, 54, who lives alone in a tiny home at another Minitopia site in Valkenswaard, said there are at least two divorcees in the 13-home community. In her view, the move into tiny-home villages is often driven by necessity, particularly the difficulty of finding a rental after a breakup. Tiny homes can offer an alternative for people who have cash after a divorce but lower ongoing incomes, making it harder to secure a rental or a mortgage, said Mariska van de Velde, a real estate agent helping Gifford sell her home. Tiny homes are usually more affordable than traditional houses. Samira Kafala for BI Because of their size, they are typically more affordable than traditional properties. But the homes are usually bought in cash, because in the Netherlands, they generally do not qualify for mortgages, as the land itself is not owned. "For people who are recently divorced, most of the time, they've got a house that's going to be sold, so they've got the cash," van de Velde said. "So they're able to buy a tiny house to live in." It's not just a Dutch trend For Minitopia, older divorced women make up a sizable chunk of would-be residents. There are similar examples outside the Netherlands of divorcees turning to tiny homes. In Oregon, one woman built her own tiny-home village after struggling financially following a divorce. In Texas, another set up a community primarily for older single women. Escape Tampa Bay Village, a tiny-home community with 33 residents in Florida, told Business Insider it has also attracted a significant number of older divorced women. "Roughly one-third of our residents fall into the category of older and/or divorced women, many of whom seek a simpler, more manageable lifestyle," a spokesperson said. Alice Elizabeth Wilson, a lecturer in sustainability at Manchester Metropolitan University, whose Ph.D. focused on women's usage of tiny homes, told Business Insider that it's increasingly common in capitalist economies for older, divorced women to turn to tiny housing. "Older single women, especially older divorced women who have historically been in heterosexual relationships, are tremendously overrepresented in the tiny-house space," she said. Many of these women have spent much of their lives in unpaid roles, such as raising children, Wilson added, making them less likely to have significant financial resources of their own. "They are left in a position where they don't have savings, they don't have access to assets, they don't have a big pension pot," Wilson said. "Tiny houses are really one of the only potential solutions that these women can actually afford." Tiny homes offer more than a practical solution The trend is often shaped by a perfect storm of factors, namely housing supply, affordability, and household composition, said Clara H. Mulder, professor of demography at the University of Groningen. "Divorce often creates urgency to find housing, and women, in particular, often experience negative income consequences from divorce," Mulder said. "I would also expect older divorced women to often live alone." Minitopia is one of several tiny-house initiatives around the world. Samira Kafala for BI Mulder added, "Taken together, those factors may make tiny homes a practical and welcome housing solution for divorced women in later life." For Hollander, moving to Minitopia has become more than just a practical decision after her divorce. Over the past two years, she said, she has come to love her tiny home and community. "I hope this will be my last home," she said. "Though I hope I've got plenty of years left in it yet." Read the original article on Business Insider