ITK Daily | March 13
Shipbuilding, Ken Buck, Telegram, Hiroshima, Premier League, plus 1,000 more actionable insights.
ITK Daily is geopolitical business news + intelligence for comms pros.
Always Be Communicating.
Happy Wednesday.
Here’s today’s ITK Daily:
*** Globalization + Geopolitics ***
WSJ: US dominates foreign weapons market as Russian exports plummet
+ France has overtaken Russia as the world’s No. 2 arms exporter
Don’t fear AI in war, fear autonomous weapons: It’s not the algorithmic intelligence in our weapons and nukes but automaticity that poses an existential risk. Andreas Kluth
White House warns Israel against ‘smashing into Rafah’: FT reports US sees no ‘credible plan’ to protect civilians in southern Gazan city, says Jake Sullivan.
Biden’s national security adviser navigates a world of chaos: From weighing resigning over Afghanistan to helping save Kyiv, Jake Sullivan now faces his toughest test over Gaza. WSJ
AI gives Russia, China new tools to sow division in the US, undermine America's image, intel agencies say: NBC News reports Beijing is "moving closer to Moscow's playbook," said the intelligence community's annual threat assessment, and may attempt to influence the 2024 election.
Top US general sees changing nuclear threat from North Korea: WSJ reports head of American forces in South Korea says ‘readiness is perishable,’ as joint exercises double in scale.
Reuters: US aims to be 'economic partner of choice' for Indo-Pacific- Raimondo
Shipbuilding: The new battleground in the US-China trade war: Labour unions are urging the Biden administration to investigate China’s dominance of naval engineering, potentially inflaming Sino-American tensions. FT
When the fish died he couldn’t be a fisherman. He became Italy's finance minister instead. Quiet man Giancarlo Giorgetti is one of Italian politics' great survivors. And now he wants to lend Giorgia Meloni's govenment some credibility. Politico
How did Norway become the electric car superpower? Oil money, civil disobedience – and Morten from a-ha Guardian
Politico: Macron announces aid in dying bill under strict conditions
Brussels’ spy problem is the tip of the iceberg, says Belgian justice minister Paul Van Tigchelt: Politico reports that Qatargate isn’t the only threat his country’s security services face.
Bloomberg: Poland’s Duda warns Putin will attack others if Russia wins in Ukraine
+ Polish president met with Biden, Speaker Johnson in Washington
+ Visit comes as Ukraine’s allies scramble to provide more aid
A study found YouTube excessively pushed far-right, anti-immigration videos during Finland’s presidential election earlier this year.
Can Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak mend their shattered relationship? Allies say the prime minister’s predecessor is a true Tory and dreams of a glorious return for the general election campaign after relations hit rock bottom. Guardian
Boris Johnson won’t help Sunak win back the Red Wall Patrick O’Flynn
The royals tried to control their image online. The internet had other ideas. Prince William and Princess Catherine, along with Prince Harry, initially embraced social media as a way to bypass the tabloid press. NYT
International AI rights treaty hangs by a thread: Council of Europe talks risk collapsing as Washington seeks to exempt companies from new rules on AI and human rights. Politico
China's vague hopes for tech to reboot its economy Bloomberg
The future of ‘communist capitalism’ in China: The question of whether Xi-ism is killing Deng-ism is growing. Martin Wolf
China begins testing AI chatbot for brain surgeons in hospitals: Bloomberg reports China is testing an AI assistant for neurosurgeons at seven hospitals in Beijing and other cities in coming months, one of many initiatives the government is backing to try and harness the technology.
CNN: US will contribute $300 million to Haiti’s multinational security mission
Haiti races to form new government as gang leader threatens ‘revolution’: WP reports following Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s resignation, political leaders were given 24 hours to provide names for a transitional council to lead the country.
Kenya hits pause on police deployment to Haiti: CNN reports the African nation said it would not send a force until Haiti forms a new government after the Haitian prime minister announced his intention to resign.
Finding an immediate stop to Haiti's fall into the abyss: Abandoned by the international community, Haiti is descending into chaos. Yanick Lahens
US spearheads first UN resolution on artificial intelligence — aimed at ensuring equal access: AP reports the United States is spearheading the first United Nations resolution on artificial intelligence, aimed at ensuring the new technology is “safe, secure and trustworthy” and that all countries, especially those in the developing world, have equal access.
Geopolitics in the C-suite: More than ever, US foreign policy depends on corporations—and vice versa Jami Miscik, Peter Orszag + Theodore Bunzel
*** US Politics + Elections ***
WP: Rep. Ken Buck says he will not serve out rest of term, narrowing GOP majority
House GOP pushes ahead on TikTok vote despite Trump opposition: Politico reports the chamber is expected to vote Wednesday on a bill that would push the app’s parent company to divest or face a ban from app stores.
TikTok bill, racing toward House passage, faces a minefield in the Senate: WP reports the legislation, which could lead to the forced sale or nationwide ban of TikTok, is widely expected to pass the House but faces an uncertain path in the Senate.
Time for TikTok to cut its ties to China: To stay on Western screens, the video app needs new owners. Economist
The TikTok ban is a bad idea WP - Editorial
How TikTok was blindsided by US bill that could ban it: Executives of the app thought they had fended off attacks. Behind the scenes, lawmakers and Biden officials were working to force its ban or sale. WSJ
TikTok plans full legal fight if US divestment bill becomes law Bloomberg
Aaron Rodgers and Jesse Ventura top RFK Jr.’s list for running mate: NYT reports Kennedy said he had been speaking with the Jets quarterback “pretty continuously” for the past month.
Trump asked Elon Musk if he wanted to buy Truth Social: WP reports the idea went nowhere, but the former president and the billionaire X owner have continued to communicate more than was previously known.
Bloomberg: Murdoch’s News Corp. eyes joint Telegraph bid with rivals
Sprouts of hope in a gloomy media landscape: A handful of digital start-ups are finding success — so far, at least — by learning lessons from their troubled predecessors. NYT
The Pulitzer Prizes now require journalism entrants to disclose their AI usage. Five of this year's 45 finalists reported using AI in their submissions.
*** Disruption + Innovation ***
Can Big Tech take over industry the way it dominated the consumer internet? ‘It’s not clear the digital giants will win’ this time. Fortune
Here's why AI could collapse the world economy, according to an expert Yahoo
Gold-medalist coders build an AI that can do their job for them: A new startup called Cognition AI can turn a user’s prompt into a website or video game. Bloomberg
Dimon hails ‘unbelievable’ AI, says central to conversations Bloomberg
YouGov data from 17 countries shows workers in Asia are embracing generative AI tools for productivity to far greater degrees than Western workers — with Americans among the least positive about AI's workplace uses.
+ Indians are the most likely (67%) to say that AI has improved overall productivity in their workplace over the last year
+ Indonesia (65%) and UAE (62%) closely follow
+ At the bottom of the list are Sweden (14%), the US (17%), and the UK (18%)
AI will transform one of corporate tech’s biggest cost areas—actual savings TBD: Companies spend a lot on IT contractors that set up and integrate new software. AI will make the job more efficient, but whether it will cost less remains to be seen. WSJ
Amazon Web Services has more than 10,000 organizations using his Bedrock service to build their AI applications.
Telegram: Social media giant or the new ‘dark web’? As the messaging platform gears up for a potential stock market flotation, it is under pressure to curtail use by criminals. FT
Bloomberg: Uber Freight eyes tenfold boost in European market by 2028
+ Freight arm of Uber uses tech, data to manage supply chains
+ After entering Europe in 2019 as broker, its strategy shifted
Nikkei: Nissan and Honda to cut China production as EV race heats up
The New York Times tries to fend off Wordle look-alikes with copyright takedown notices: NYT reports hundreds of copycats have emerged since Wordle skyrocketed to internet fame less than three years ago.
*** Culture ***
Hiroshima grapples with 'Oppenheimer' Oscars success: TJT reports: "Is this really a movie that people in Hiroshima can bear to watch?" says Kyoko Heya, president of the Japanese city's international film festival, on Monday after the blockbuster won seven Academy Awards including best picture.
Blame Prince William, not Kate, for the royal photo blunder Gareth Roberts
*** Sport ***
Walk: According to a London School of Economics study, walking 5,000 steps three times a week could add three years to one's life.
Japan-North Korea World Cup game to stay in Pyongyang, says JFA: TJT reports the move came after the JFA had asked Asian officials to shift the game away from Pyongyang over a lack of operational transparency and a scarcity of flights, among other issues.
+ The JFA said it had been informed that the men's game on March 26 would be played as scheduled at the 50,000-capacity Kim Il Sung Stadium.
The Premier League braces for the most open title race in years: After another tumultuous weekend, the top three teams in the standings—Arsenal, Liverpool, and Manchester City—are separated by just one point. WSJ
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
ITK Daily | March 13
