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Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump administration’s ’lawfare’ fund after Jan. 6 prosecutor files lawsuit.

VP Vance says US and Iran are very close to a deal but key differences remain. Trump has not yet decided whether to sign.

Anthropic Reaches $965B Valuation After Raising $65 Billion AI safety research company Anthropic has reached a valuation of $965 billion in its latest funding round, raising $65 billion in what stands as the largest single financing event in artificial intelligence history. According to Reuters, the round was led by multiple Wall Street institutions, reflecting sustained investor enthusiasm for AI infrastructure. Anthropic’s Claude large language model has been rapidly expanding in the enterprise market, positioning itself as OpenAI’s most formidable competitor. ...

UK Intelligence Estimates Nearly 500,000 Russian Military Deaths in Ukraine British military intelligence has issued a new assessment estimating that nearly 500,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. This figure represents the highest official casualty assessment published by any Western government to date. According to BBC reporting, the assessment synthesizes satellite imagery, signals intelligence, social media data, and captured Russian military documents. The 500,000 death toll does not include soldiers wounded and rendered unfit for combat, meaning total casualties could be significantly higher. ...

Trump Circulates Draft Iran Peace Deal to Israel and Key Allies According to The Washington Post, US President Trump has shared a draft Iran peace agreement with Israel and other Middle Eastern allies, signaling a potential major turning point in the months-long Iran crisis. The specific terms of the draft have not been made public, but sources indicate the framework involves restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program, reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and a gradual lifting of US sanctions on Iran. In return, Iran would be required to accept international inspections and commit to halting nuclear weapons development. ...

FalconX Confidentially Files for US Stock Market Listing Cryptocurrency trading firm FalconX has confidentially filed for an initial public offering with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), hiring investment bankers to advance the listing process. This makes it another major crypto trading platform seeking to go public on US exchanges, following in the footsteps of Coinbase and Kraken. According to CoinDesk, FalconX primarily serves institutional investors, providing crypto market-making, lending, and over-the-counter trading services. The company has experienced rapid business growth in recent years, benefiting from the massive influx of institutional capital into the cryptocurrency market. ...

CVS Restores Coverage for Eli Lilly’s Weight-Loss Drug Zepbound CVS Health, one of America’s largest pharmacy benefit managers, announced it will once again cover Eli Lilly’s weight-loss medication Zepbound (tirzepatide), marking a significant shift in obesity treatment insurance policy in the United States. Zepbound, a GLP-1/GIP dual receptor agonist, has demonstrated remarkable weight-loss results in clinical trials, with patients averaging over 15% body weight reduction within a year. Some participants achieved weight loss exceeding 20%. The drug was initially approved by the FDA for obesity treatment in 2023. ...

EU Fines Temu €200M Over Illegal Product Sales The European Commission has imposed a €200 million (approximately $232 million) fine on Chinese e-commerce platform Temu, citing failures to prevent illegal and unsafe products from being sold on its marketplace. The penalty is one of the largest levied against a Chinese cross-border e-commerce company in the EU. EU consumer protection authorities identified widespread issues including uncertified electronics, hazardous toys, and products potentially containing harmful substances. Under the Digital Services Act (DSA), large online platforms operating in the EU are legally required to conduct due diligence on goods sold through their marketplaces. ...

Fed’s First Inflation Report Under Chair Warsh Shows Prices Near 3-Year High The Federal Reserve’s first inflation report under new Chair Kevin Warsh reveals U.S. consumer price growth approaching its highest level in nearly three years, prompting market reassessment of monetary policy direction. Core personal consumption expenditure (PCE) prices rose 3.1% year-over-year, up 0.3 percentage points from the prior month — the fastest pace since September 2023. Energy price volatility was a primary driver, with international oil prices surging over recent months due to ongoing Middle East geopolitical tensions, pushing up transportation and manufacturing costs. ...

King’s College Team Wins Access to Google’s Cutting-Edge Quantum Chip A research team at King’s College London has been granted access to Google’s most advanced quantum processor, marking a significant step for European quantum computing research. The team will be among the first academic institutions to remotely operate Google’s latest-generation quantum chip. Google’s quantum computing division has made notable progress in quantum processor development in recent years. The latest-generation chip uses superconducting qubit architecture with significantly improved qubit counts and coherence times, providing a more powerful hardware platform for complex quantum algorithm experimentation. ...