Power

• 议员们同意延长 45 天，但共和党和民主党的批评人士敦促对监视计划进行改革 • 美国国会已通过了一项法律的 45 天延期，该法律授予美国情报机构无需授权的监视权力 • 国会共和党内部围绕 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act 第 702 条的激烈内斗，已多次挫败了保守派领导人将这一备受争议的监视法律续期数年的计划

数十人获授 life peerages，这显然是一种让步，使其得以重返 red benches。 由于 Keir Starmer 寻求加速 House of Lords 的变革，数十名席位已被废除的 hereditary peers 已恢复了立法权。据了解，15 名 Conservative hereditary peers、2 名 Labour 和 9 名 crossbenchers 被授予了 life peerages，使其得以重返 red benches。继续阅读...

• 一个包括 University of Wisconsin–Madison 研究人员在内的国际团队测量了从 Cygnus 系统黑洞中喷射出的粒子喷流的力量。 • 这一首创的测量证实了 UW-Madison 天文学家在十年前做出的预测。 • 该发现验证了关于黑洞喷流力学的长期理论，增进了对天体物理学的理解。

加密货币 ATM 也面临禁令，此前一项公众调查发现加拿大缺乏反洗钱策略。 加拿大将建立一个新的强力执法机构来调查金融犯罪，这与美国形成了鲜明对比：在美国，职能被削弱的联邦调查人员难以追捕诈骗者，而白宫赦免了被定罪的洗钱者。 建立 Financial Crimes Agency (FCA) 的法案本周已在议会完成一读。该立法由执政的 Liberals 提出，凭借其议会多数席位，该党可能会推动该法案在两级政府程序中快速获批。 继续阅读...

• 2026年4月29日，数百人聚集在 U.S. Supreme Court，参加有关 Haitians 和 Syrians 的 Temporary Protected Status (TPS) 的辩论，大法官们对 Trump 总统终止该计划的权力进行了审查。 • 据听证会报告，法官席似乎对撤销驱逐豁免的广泛行政权力持怀疑态度。 • 裁决可能会影响数千名面临驱逐的人，并在中期选举前测试移民行政行动的界限。

• 该裁决赋予 Republican 州的地图绘制者将选区拆分并使选票稀释至化为乌有的权力 • Voting Rights Act 是一份用 John Lewis 的鲜血写成的政治和平契约。 • US supreme court 的 Callais v Landry 裁决搁置了 Voting Rights Act 的 section 2 的大部分内容，从历史上抹去了那些鲜血，以及千千万万名为争取政治平等而在午餐柜台、大巴站和法院与种族隔离主义白人至上主义者斗争的其他美国人的鲜血。继续阅读...

• 在 New York City Council 竞选中，由于现任者在低民调和选民基础分裂的困境中挣扎，Zohran Mamdani 的背书面临质疑。 • 尽管民调数据不佳，这位立场强硬的候选人仍拒绝为中间派挑战者让步。 • 这场地方竞选预示着城市政治中 Democratic 动态的转变，具有全国性影响。

• Sevii 于 2026 年 4 月 28 日宣布推出其自主网络集群防御 (Cyber Swarm Defense, CSD) 能力，旨在以机器速度和规模应对高流量的 AI 驱动网络攻击。 • 该 ADR 平台部署了 Agentic AI Cyber Warrior 代理，可在 15 分钟内检测、遏制并修复威胁，通过固定资产定价模型消除 AI 令牌成本，从而减轻 95% 的分析师工作量。 • 诚如 Synergem Technologies 首席执行官 Frank Holt 所言，CSD 模式采用了 Myrmidon Defense Technology (MDT) 实现高效的微编排，使组织无需额外招聘或外包即可实现可预测的预算管理。

• SkyfireAI Inc., a US-based autonomous drone startup, raised $11 million in new funding to advance dual-use technology. • The investment targets AI autonomy for public safety, defense, and commercial drone applications. • This funding accelerates development amid rising demand for intelligent unmanned systems in critical sectors.

Though solar was initially blamed for loss of power, renewables have helped to insulate Spain from gas price rises caused by war in Middle EastOne year ago today, all of Spain, and much of Portugal, suffered through a blackout of unprecedented scale and duration. In mere seconds, a cascading sequence of events burst through the grid and created Europe’s first “system black” event in recent memory.Traffic signals failed, mobile networks stopped working entirely, petrol stations could not pump fuel and supermarkets couldn’t process payments. Madrid’s metro came to a halt and people had to be pulled out of carriages. “People were stunned because this had never happened in Spain,” Carlos Condori, a 19-year-old construction sector worker, told AFP at the time. “There’s no [phone] coverage, I can’t call my family, my parents, nothing: I can’t even go to work.” Continue reading...

Audias Flores, known as ‘El Jardinero’, of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, captured in western state of NayaritMexican special forces have arrested one of the top commanders of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel in the western state of Nayarit.Audias Flores, known as “El Jardinero”, is a regional commander in control of swathes of CJNG territory along Mexico’s Pacific coast. He was considered a potential successor to Nemesio Oseguera, alias “El Mencho”, who ran the cartel and was killed in a security operation in February. Continue reading...

Coordinated attack by JNIM and the Tuareg minority inflicted significant casualties on government forces and Russian auxiliariesWhen al-Qaida-affiliated Islamic militants launched a series of attacks on military bases and raids into major towns in Mali and neighbouring Burkina Faso last summer, observers suggested they had been inspired by their counterparts in Syria, who had overthrown the regime of Bashar al-Assad and taken power six months or so earlier.Despite the tactical successes that earned them the fearful title of the “Ghost Army”, seizing swathes of territory and denying cities and the military of fuel and other essentials, the chances of Jama’at Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) definitively defeating Mali’s military regime and the thousand or so Russian mercenaries hired to defend it looked poor. Continue reading...

Sarah Mullally hails Leo for addressing the ‘many injustices in our world’ after private meeting with pope in RomeThe archbishop of Canterbury praised Pope Leo on Monday for speaking “powerfully about the many injustices” in the world, in an apparent reference to the pontiff becoming more outspoken in recent weeks, particularly in his criticism of the US-Israeli war on Iran.Sarah Mullally, who in March became the first woman to lead the Anglican church, arrived in Rome on Saturday for a visit aimed at reinforcing relations with the Vatican. Mullally had a private meeting with Leo, the first US-born leader of the Catholic church, at the Apostolic Palace, the pope’s official residence. Continue reading...

Top aide says SNP leader will seek approval to press for independence even if he fails to win majority on 7 MayJohn Swinney will call a vote seeking independence powers on the first day of the next Scottish parliament even if he fails to win an overall majority, his aides have said.The Scottish National Party leader’s senior adviser indicated that if necessary, he would rely on support from the pro-independence Scottish Greens to win that vote in order to demand the UK government gives Holyrood the legal powers to hold a second referendum. Continue reading...

Russian backing for the ruling junta has not stopped rebel fighters striking significant blows in recent daysWhen Assimi Goïta, the leader of Mali’s military junta, sat down with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, in the Kremlin last summer, it symbolised Moscow’s commanding sway over Mali at the expense of the west.As the two men spoke, roughly 3,500 miles to the south, about 2,000 Russian troops were propping up the regime in the landlocked desert country, as part of Moscow’s broader push for influence across the Sahel region. Continue reading...

Health secretary’s ‘power grab’ to override Nice comes amid growing concern move may be illegal and benefit big pharmaDozens of MPs are opposing Wes Streeting’s decision to award himself power to dictate what the NHS pays for drugs amid growing concern the move may be illegal.Thirty-one MPs have signed a House of Commons motion voicing their disapproval of the health secretary being handed the power to override the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (Nice) judgment on how much the NHS should spend on individual medicines. Continue reading...

• Apple unveiled iOS 20 on April 25, 2026, featuring Apple Intelligence enhancements for on-device AI processing in Siri and Photos apps, rolling out first to US users. • Key additions include real-time language translation supporting 15 languages and AI-generated summaries for Safari, trained on 3 trillion parameters without cloud dependency. • The update addresses privacy concerns post-EU DMA rulings, boosting Apple's 45% US smartphone market share amid AI race with Google Pixel.

Statue – one of city’s most popular tourist attractions – on steps of Philadelphia Museum of Art key plank of new showA statue of Sylvester Stallone’s fictional boxer Rocky Balboa is the focal point of an examination of the power of monuments opening at the Philadelphia Museum of Art this weekend that marks two millennia of boxing and celebrity.The statue, placed on the “Rocky Steps” of the museum in 1982, six years after the the 1976 film Rocky made Stallone a star, is one of Philadelphia’s most popular tourist attractions, visited by an estimated 4 million people annually. Continue reading...

Diplomats poke fun at Donald Trump while Madonna loses her corset off the back of a golf buggyThe one upside to a rolling international crisis is that it can give backroom people a rare chance to shine. Witness, this week, the breakout stars of the Iranian diplomatic corps, who from two different diplomatic missoverions managed to poke fun at Donald Trump while maintaining the base-level decorum that so eludes the American president. Continue reading...

• Power Solutions International reduced its debt-to-equity ratio from 2,140% to 54.6% over five years, signaling substantial improvement in financial health. • The company achieved 64.5% earnings growth last year, outpacing the electrical industry average of 21.4%. • Despite recent share price volatility, the company's financial restructuring and strong earnings demonstrate improved operational performance.

Budget outlines funding for autonomous drone warfare program as experts say military unprepared for risksThe Pentagon is aiming to increase funding more than a hundredfold for an autonomous drone warfare program, according to budget documents released this week, signalling a major pivot towards AI-powered war.In its 2027 budget, the Pentagon has asked for over $54bn to fund the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group, a 24,000% increase on last year. Continue reading...

• Nashville SC rose in ESPN's MLS Power Rankings after a strong week, solidifying their position as East leaders. • The team continues its impressive form, positioning them as one of the league's strongest sides. • This ascent signals Nashville's title contention potential amid ongoing MLS action.

PM says in Commons statement he has ordered inquiry into any security concerns relating to Mandelson’s tenure in USUK politics live – latest updatesThe Foreign Office has been stripped of its powers to overrule vetting decisions after the Peter Mandelson scandal, Keir Starmer has told MPs, as he sought to set out his side of events in a politically crucial statement in parliament.Saying to jeers that he accepted it appeared “incredible” he and other ministers were not told Mandelson was initially refused security vetting, Starmer also said he had ordered an investigation into any security concerns related to Mandelson’s tenure as ambassador to Washington. Continue reading...

People in affected areas urged to evacuate as quake registering 7.5 magniture occurred off the coast of SanrikuThe strength of the earthquake has been revised up to 7.5 and the biggest waves due to the tsunami are expected in Iwate, Aomori and Hokkaido prefectures, authorities said.Reuters reported that prime minister Sanae Takaichi said the government had set up an emergency task force and urged citizens in the affected areas to evacuate to safety. Continue reading...

• President Donald Trump signed a series of emergency executive orders from the Oval Office, with the White House describing them as the 'World's Most Powerful Reset,' reportedly granting the administration vast new powers over the U.S. economy and financial system. • The orders are grounded in national security protocols and reportedly address economic stability and foreign threats, with details remaining tightly controlled by the White House. • The executive action has triggered fierce debate over presidential constitutional authority and sparked volatile political reactions from both Democrats and Republicans across the political spectrum.

• Wealth.com, an AI platform modernizing estate and tax planning for wealth management firms, closed an oversubscribed $65M Series B funding round. • The funding will accelerate product enhancements and expand adoption among high-net-worth advisors handling complex client portfolios. • This raise highlights surging investor interest in AI tools automating legacy financial planning processes amid rising wealth transfer demands.

• IBM launched IBM Autonomous Security on April 17, 2026, a multi-agent AI service automating detection, policy enforcement, and remediation against frontier AI-driven attacks in hybrid environments. • The solution addresses emerging 'agentic attacks' where adversaries use advanced AI models, with nearly 80% of global IT leaders citing AI as a major security risk. • IBM also released an enterprise cybersecurity assessment tool focused on threats from large language models and generative AI.