Category: 4-FrequentNewsStreams

Following yet another deadly shooting by ICE agents in Minnesota, more than 60 CEOs there have now signed a letter calling on federal, state, and local officials to de-escalate. Some smaller businesses across the state have temporarily closed or reduced hours as employees and customers worry about being stopped or profiled by ICE. Also: Surging precious metal prices hint at investor anxieties, and we look at the economic impact of the 2026 Winter Olympics.

From the BBC World Service: A group of European countries has signed a clean energy pact, committing to build an offshore wind power grid in the North Sea. The agreement is in contrast to the U.S. and President Donald Trump's strong opposition to wind power. Then, gold hit another high. Plus, Peru’s Chinese-funded “mega port” has ambitious plans to become a local and regional hub for Latin America, but is it delivering?

Billions of dollars has been poured into the AI economy in recent years. As part of a new series about what the AI economy means for you, Marketplace Tech is looking at the infrastructure build-out behind the AI boom, starting with a visit to an Amazon Web Service lab in Cupertino, California, where AWS developers are squeezing as much networking efficiency out of their servers as possible for their AI ambitions.

A framework for a deal, or an off-ramp? President Trump backs down after his aggressive efforts to acquire Greenland enraged and insulted allies. What's in the agreement, and how much damage to America's most important relationships has already been done? Compass Points moderator Nick Schifrin discusses that with Carla Sands, Sherri Goodman, Eric Edelman and Matthias Matthijs. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

In our news wrap Friday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called President Trump's comments about NATO troops serving in Afghanistan "insulting" and "appalling," the FBI arrested a former Olympic snowboarder and alleged drug kingpin Ryan Wedding and the city of Philadelphia is suing the Trump administration over the removal of a slavery exhibit at the Independence National Historical Park. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

President Trump announced a deal to keep TikTok available in the U.S. The agreement caps a six-year legal and geopolitical fight after Congress passed a law requiring TikTok to divest from its Chinese parent company or face a ban. The administration says the deal protects American users from Chinese influence, but many national security experts argue it falls short. Nick Schifrin reports. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

The FDIC has approved proposals by GM and Ford to launch their own banking units. That means the automakers will be able to provide their own auto loans to customers. In this episode, a confluence of market conditions drove Ford and GM into banking. Plus: The Super Bowl of livestock shows highlights high cattle prices, changes to online search behavior affects digital ad revenue, and “Marketplace” host Amy Scott talks to Jordyn Holman at the New York Times and David Gura at Bloomberg about the week’s economic headlines.

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Tech companies are pouring billions into developing the infrastructure necessary to meet the demand for artificial intelligence. But what does that infrastructure look like on the ground? Marketplace Tech’s Meghan McCarty Carino joins Kimberly to share her takeaways after visiting a variety of data centers and reporting on the surge in AI investment. Plus, we’ll weigh in on microdramas and AI slop during a round of Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• "Inside the relentless race for AI capacity" Financial Times
• "Redwood Materials built record grid storage project using old EV batteries" Canary Media
• "Just how big is the AI investment wave?" from Reuters
• "YouTube says battling ‘AI slop’ is a top priority" from The L.A. Times
• "TikTok-like microdramas are going to make billions this year, even though they kind of suck" from Tech Crunch
• "Apple to Revamp Siri as a Built-In iPhone, Mac Chatbot to Fend Off OpenAI" from Bloomberg 
• "Ads Are Coming to ChatGPT. Here’s How They’ll Work" from Wired

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Why did Chicago just agree to ban some hemp products? Who is falling behind in the race to replace Sen. Dick Durbin? And did a Chicago landlord tip off ICE? In the Loop breaks down those stories and more in the Weekly News Recap with Tahman Bradley, WGN political editor, Bob Herguth, Chicago Sun-Times investigative reporter, and Mack Liederman, Block Club Chicago reporter. For a full archive of In the Loop interviews, head over to wbez.org/intheloop.

TikTok says it has formed a joint venture for U.S. operations with majority American ownership. The deal is intended to address national security concerns that led to a law that would have banned the app. Then, the world is now holding more gold than U.S. bonds. Is this a sign of changing times? And later, we discuss Americans’ savings rate and the impact of the upcoming cold snap on spending.