Widening

Finding would explain why type of stroke affecting about 35,000 a year in UK is not as responsive to some medicationThe cause of a type of stroke that affects about 35,000 people across the UK each year has been uncovered by researchers and may explain why some medications are ineffective as treatment.Lacunar strokes, which account for a quarter of all strokes in the UK, had been linked to the blockage of arteries in the brain by fatty deposits. However, a study published on Wednesday suggests they are not caused by blocked arteries but by the enlargement and widening of arteries in the brain. Continue reading...

• Ecosystem Roundup from e27.co reports that the AI pay gap in Southeast Asia's startup industry has emerged and is accelerating, with AI-skilled workers commanding significantly higher salaries than non-AI peers as of May 5, 2026. • Key details highlight disparities where AI engineers in Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia earn 30-50% more than general software developers, driven by demand from firms like Sea Limited and Grab. • This matters as it risks exacerbating talent shortages and inequality across ASEAN tech hubs, potentially slowing non-AI startup growth while fueling AI dominance in Vietnam and Thailand.

President is expected to offer a timeline for end of the war, and speak about his threat to withdraw the US from Nato as he faces falling poll numbers and global energy crisisTrump says he is ‘absolutely’ considering withdrawing US from Nato Israel hits Iran with waves of attacks and says it killed top Hezbollah commanderWelcome to our continuing coverage of the crisis in the Middle East, as Donald Trump prepares to address America for the first time since the US-Israel war on Iran was launched.The president will deliver the prime-time speech at 9pm ET from the White House.Iran has rejected Donald Trump’s claim that its leadership asked for a ceasefire, calling the US president’s statement “false” and “baseless”. Trump made the claim in a post on Truth Social, which said: “Iran’s New Regime President, much less Radicalized and far more intelligent than his predecessors, has just asked the United States of America for a CEASEFIRE! We will consider when Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear. Until then, we are blasting Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages!!!”Trump also said he is “absolutely” considering withdrawing the US from Nato, warning that the matter was “beyond reconsideration” after the refusal of US allies to join the US-Israeli war against Iran. The president’s threats, his most determined to date, have left the alliance facing its worst crisis in its 77-year history, a former US ambassador has said. Here’s our story.Meanwhile, in an open letter to the American people, Iran’s president Masoud Pezeshkian said relations between Washington and Tehran were “misunderstood” and that Iran was not an aggressor. The Iranian “harbor no enmity toward other nations, including the people of America, Europe, or neighbouring countries,” he said, adding that portrayals of Iran as a security threat were inaccurate, and Tehran was acting in self-defence – not aggression.In Tehran, Kamal Kharazi, a top foreign policy official and former Iranian foreign minister, has been severely injured in an airstrike on his home in the Iranian capital. His wife was reportedly killed in the attack. Kharazi, considered a moderate politician and veteran policy expert, also served as an adviser to the assassinated former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Reports suggest his targeting is being viewed as an attempt to derail diplomacy. Continue reading...

Spain’s defence minister confirms move and describes US-Israel war on Iran as ‘profoundly illegal and unjust’US-Israel war on Iran – live updatesSpain has ramped up its opposition to the US-Israel war on Iran by closing its airspace to US aircraft involved in attacks, underlining its position as Europe’s leading critic of the conflict.The move, first reported by El País newspaper and confirmed by the defence minister on Monday, comes after Madrid said the US could not use jointly operated military bases in the southern European country for operations related to the war. Continue reading...

CEO of asset manager says only a few firms and investors may reap rewards from growth in the technologyThe boom in artificial intelligence risks widening inequality, with only a handful of companies and investors likely to reap its financial rewards, the BlackRock chief executive, Larry Fink, has warned.The boss of the $14tn (£10.4tn) asset manager used his annual letter to investors on Monday to highlight potential hazards around the exponential growth in AI, which has attracted rapid investment and become “central to strategic competition” between global powers such as the US and China. Continue reading...