Author: arthursheikin@gmail.com

[ad_1] CNN  —  The Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday sent Media Matters for America a letter demanding communications between the progressive media watchdog and advertising entities as the commission probes whether the watchdog colluded with advertisers to pull funding from Elon Musk’s X. Media Matters was notified in a letter dated May 20 from the FTC that it is being investigated, a source familiar with the letter told CNN. The letter, which CNN has viewed, directs Media Matters to turn over all documents, materials and communications with a range of ad entities and related organizations — including the World Federation…

[ad_1] Hong Kong CNN  —  A surprise truce in a spiraling tariff war between the US and China last week was hailed by Chinese pundits as a success for the country. But Beijing is gearing up for a rocky path in relations, and negotiations, ahead. Already, in the days immediately following the May 12 agreement between American and Chinese negotiators in Geneva, Beijing has been lashing out at Washington. On Monday, China’s Commerce Ministry accused the US of “undermining” the Geneva talks after the Trump administration warned companies against using AI chips made by national tech champion Huawei. Two days…

[ad_1] New York CNN  —  Hours before President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs were set to take effect last month, he said, “These countries are calling us up, kissing my a**. They are dying to make a deal. ‘Please, please, sir, make a deal. I’ll do anything, I’ll do anything, sir.” But the reality was that deals were not free-flowing. Instead, financial markets tanked after the tariffs took effect as impacted nations readied up retaliation plans, deepening the already steep losses markets experienced after Trump unveiled the rates on April 2. Even some of Trump’s biggest supporters begged him to back…

[ad_1] Hong Kong CNN  —  Chinese consumer electronics giant Xiaomi has launched a new electric SUV and debuted a self-designed smartphone chip, in a push to expand beyond its roots in budget devices. The company’s CEO and founder Lei Jun introduced the YU7, Xiaomi’s first SUV, and the Xring O1, a 3-nanometer mobile chip meant to rival those powering Apple and Qualcomm’s top-tier smartphones, at a livestreamed event in Beijing on Thursday. The launch event, which also introduced other products like a tablet, came as Xiaomi marks its 15th anniversary and signals a reinvention of its image. The event also…

[ad_1] New York CNN  —  Minutes after Louisiana State Police got word on Friday morning that 10 inmates had escaped a New Orleans jail, two of them were spotted on facial recognition cameras in the city’s French Quarter. Police arrested one of the escapees shortly after; the other, days later. The cameras were part of a network of around 5,000 operated around the city by the non-profit Project NOLA, 200 of which are outfitted with facial recognition technology. State police had shared information about the jailbreak with the organization. The incident marks a win for the organization, whose camera network…

[ad_1] New York CNN  —  America’s highest-profile retail chains are walking a difficult tightrope — trying to blunt the financial hit from tariffs by raising prices for consumers without angering them or President Donald Trump. Walmart, Target and Home Depot are recent examples of how companies are struggling to navigate raising prices because of Trump’s tariffs. Companies say the trade levies will increase their costs. But Corporate America has to learn to speak a new language — one that informs shareholders and customers about the effects from tariffs while avoiding reaction from Trump on social media or a threat from…

[ad_1] With a shaky IPO market, tariff uncertainty, and stock market jitters, these are not easy times to be the chief financial officer of a late-stage tech company.Against that precarious backdrop, I sat down last week with the CFOs of Mercury, Vercel, and Cribl at the San Francisco office of CRV, one of Silicon Valley’s oldest venture firms and an early investor in all three startups.”I’m expecting a lot more uncertainty,” said Daniel Kang, CFO of Mercury, a fintech banking startup that recently doubled its valuation to $3.5 billion after raising $300 million in its latest funding round. “There’s a…

[ad_1] Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the worldThe Trump family media company plans to raise $3bn to buy cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, in a bet on the kind of digital assets that have been championed by the US president’s administration.Trump Media & Technology Group, which is behind the Truth Social app and controlled by the president’s family, aims to raise $2bn in fresh equity and another $1bn via a convertible bond, according to six people briefed on the matter. TMTG’s capital raising could be announced ahead…

[ad_1] CNN  —  The Trump administration is giving businesses a free pass from a wide variety of enforcement actions. Boeing, Capital One, Southwest Airlines and Coinbase all faced legal action from the Biden administration, which accused the companies of cheating their customers, the government or otherwise acting improperly. But multiple federal agencies under President Donald Trump have dropped those suits. Consumer advocates say the dropping of those legal actions removes protections that consumers can’t replace on their own – giving businesses the green light to take advantage of customers without fear of penalty. “They’re basically trying to take consumer financial…

[ad_1] The biggest chunk of Google cofounder Sergey Brin’s recent gift of Alphabet stock worth almost $700 million went to his nonprofit called Catalyst4, Bloomberg reported.The transfer of just over 4 million Alphabet shares was revealed in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing last week that did not disclose the recipients.A spokesperson for Brin’s family office, Bayshore Global, said the shares were given to three philanthropic organizations, Bloomberg reported on Saturday.Bayshore Global didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.Brin gave 3.2 million shares to his own nonprofit called Catalyst4, per the report. The organization, which he…