November 9: Nvidia Investigation and Paraguay’s Bank Collapse
In tech and security Nvidia says it is opening an independent investigation into reporting that CEO Jensen Huang was targeted by foreign intelligence. The New York Times reported in October that Donald Trump had been briefed the previous year on intelligence alleging Huang had a close relationship with a Chinese businesswoman who passed information to Beijing. A study in Scientific Reports found that seven AI models sometimes accepted false claims repeated 50 times in a conversation. Error rates ranged from 0.08 percent to 12.3 percent. Most models corrected their errors in fresh conversations. The tested models have largely been replaced, and providers’ different default settings meant testing conditions were not identical. In immigration enforcement A Honduran mother lost her pregnancy days after Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested her husband in Austin, Texas. The agents allegedly struck her during the arrest. In U.S.-Canada trade Politico reports that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney ordered negotiators to leave U.S. trade talks two hours before an August 22 deadline. Washington responded that night with a 50 percent tariff on $20 billion worth of Canadian goods. According to Politico, Carney’s government viewed the approaching U.S. midterm elections as a possible source of bargaining power. In Paraguay Paraguay’s president was removed from office and detained after Ueno, the country’s largest digital bank, collapsed, leaving half the population unable to access their funds. The failure came amid allegations of insider lending and close ties to the longtime ruling party. In U.S. elections Democrats won every congressional district along the U.S.-Mexico border in Tuesday’s midterm elections, NewsNation reports. They flipped three Republican-held seats, including two in Texas. On Ukraine peace talks U.S., Russian and Ukrainian officials are expected to meet this week in Abu Dhabi for their first direct negotiations in nine months. Envoy Steve Witkoff says the agenda includes security guarantees for Ukraine, Europe’s postwar security arrangements and reconstruction opportunities. Experts caution that a major breakthrough is unlikely. In the Middle East Israel’s president has chosen Gadi Eisenkot to try to form the next government, opening negotiations that could end Benjamin Netanyahu’s tenure. Separately, Trump said further U.S. strikes on Iran were “highly unlikely.” Iran said negotiations were paused following what it called the “shock” U.S. election result. Houthi fighters attacked Riyadh’s financial district with drones and missiles Sunday, damaging the Saudi Aramco tower. Near-daily attacks on the Saudi capital have disrupted daily life and forced the cancellation of a major economic conference.
