JUNE 10, 2024
Keith Gill’s GameStop Trades Pose Conundrum for Market Cops: Legal experts argue that the available evidence makes it unlikely the SEC will be able to build a successful market manipulation case against Keith Gill, the influential “Roaring Kitty” figure, despite his substantial GameStop investment and social media presence fueling the stock’s meteoric rise. While Gill’s actions were transparent and the market response was driven by a large community of retail investors, the debate continues around the role of social media in influencing stock prices and the regulatory implications for such individual investor behavior.
Gene therapy restores hearing to children with inherited deafness: A groundbreaking gene therapy trial at Fudan University in Shanghai has successfully restored hearing in both ears for five children born deaf due to inherited genetic mutations affecting the OTOF gene, which is crucial for auditory signaling. The therapy, which involves injecting a harmless virus carrying a functional copy of the OTOF gene into the inner ear, has enabled the children to recognize speech, locate sounds, and participate in conversations, marking a significant advancement in treating genetic forms of deafness.
The Sins of the Educated Class: The educated elite class in the United States is criticized for being hypocritical, engaging in symbolic gestures over substantive change, creating ideological conformity, and being disconnected from the realities of the working class, despite their claims of fighting against privilege. This cognitive dissonance and lack of ideological diversity within elite institutions like top universities and foundations has led to further radicalization of the educated elite to the left in an attempt to prove their anti-establishment credentials.
European Central Bank Cuts Interest Rate to 3.75%: The European Central Bank (ECB) has cut its main interest rate from a record high of 4% to 3.75%, marking the first rate reduction in nearly five years. This move by the ECB, which follows similar actions by other major central banks like the Bank of Canada, is aimed at stimulating economic activity and providing relief to borrowers across the eurozone amid persistent inflation concerns.
New Texas Stock Exchange Takes Aim at New York’s Dominance: A group backed by Wall Street heavyweights BlackRock and Citadel Securities is planning to start a new national stock exchange in Texas called the Texas Stock Exchange (TXSE), aiming to take on what they see as onerous regulation at the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq. The TXSE has raised approximately $120 million from individuals and large investment firms and plans to file registration documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission later this year, with the goal of beginning trades in 2025 and hosting its first listing in 2026.
The War for AI Talent is Heating Up: The demand for AI talent is intensifying as tech giants scramble to recruit top-tier researchers, with Silicon Valley companies engaged in a high-stakes game of talent poaching, offering million-dollar compensation packages and accelerated stock-vesting schedules. However, the supply of qualified AI talent remains limited, creating a critical bottleneck that threatens to stifle progress, as companies must compete for the best minds in the field by offering opportunities to work on cutting-edge projects, access to state-of-the-art computing resources, and fostering a strong research culture that prioritizes ethical AI practices.
FTC Opens Antitrust Probe of Microsoft AI Deal: The Federal Trade Commission has opened an antitrust investigation into Microsoft’s $650 million deal with AI startup Inflection AI, examining whether the tech giant structured the transaction to avoid a government antitrust review. FTC Chair Lina Khan has expressed concerns about tech giants potentially acquiring or controlling the most promising AI applications, giving them an outsized influence over the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
Siri is Reborn in iOS 18 — Everything Apple’s Voice Assistant Will Be Able to Do: Apple has unveiled a major overhaul of its Siri virtual assistant in iOS 18, powered by the company’s new Apple Intelligence AI platform. Siri will gain significant improvements in speech recognition, contextual understanding, and task completion capabilities, allowing it to better fetch relevant information, schedule appointments, and control various device functions through natural language interactions.