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British PM Rishi Sunak secures ‘landmark’ deal on AI testing

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

BLETCHLEY, England — The British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday said that under a new agreement “like-minded governments” would be able to test eight leading tech companies’ AI models before they are released.Closing out the two-day artificial intelligence summit in Bletchley Park on Thursday, Sunak announced the agreement signed by Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Singapore, the U.S. and the U.K. to test leading companies’ AI models. “Until now the only people testing the safety of new AI models have been the very companies developing it. That must change,” said Sunak to a room full of journalists. “Like-minded governments and AI companies have today reached a landmark agreement. We will work together on testing the safety of new AI models before they are released… it’s made possible by the decision I have taken along with Vice President Kamala Harris for the British and American governments to establish world lead...

US intelligence currently assesses Iran and its proxies are seeking to avoid a wider war with Israel

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

(CNN) — The US intelligence community believes – for now – that Iran and its proxies are calibrating their response to Israel’s military intervention in Gaza to avoid direct conflict with Israel or the US while still exacting costs on its adversaries.But the US is also keenly aware that Iran does not maintain perfect control of its umbrella of proxies – in particular over Lebanese Hezbollah, the largest and most capable of the various groups. Hezbollah is an ally of Hamas, the group that attacked Israel on October 7, and has long positioned itself as fighting against Israel. US officials are deeply concerned that the group’s internal politics may cause Hezbollah to escalate simmering tensions.The US also does not always have perfect visibility into the communications between Iran and its various proxies, according to sources familiar with US intelligence in the region.“The problem is the proxies are not all equally deferential to Tehran – lumping them together is a mistake,” sa...

Buy boomers, sell millennials is Bank of America’s way to play this market

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

Alexandra Semenova, Carmen Reinicke | Bloomberg News (TNS)Baby boomers are flush, with high interest rates fattening their savings accounts. Young Americans, they’re struggling with debts, sky-high rents and mortgage rates that are putting home ownership further out of reach.That’s driving a new trade recommendation from Bank of America Corp., one aimed at exploiting the widening generational wealth gap: Go long on old-people stocks. Avoid those whose fortunes ride on cash-strapped millennials.That means American Express Co. and cruise-ship lines are in. Out is Revolve Group Inc., a self-styled “next-generation fashion retailer” for the twenty-somethings.“Millennials are really feeling the impact of the hiking cycle. Boomers, not so much,” BofA quantitative strategist Ohsung Kwon, himself a millennial, said in an interview. “We’re starting to see a big diversion between the two.”That fault line is growing beneath an economy that’s on the surface remained surprisingly strong, largely...

Roquan Smith has changed Ravens for the better with ‘infectious’ mindset in year since trade

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

Each day at Ravens practice, Roquan Smith sprints out of the team’s sprawling “Castle” and onto whichever of the three fields the defense is using that afternoon in Owings Mills, a routine the inside linebacker has maintained every afternoon since he landed with Baltimore after being traded from the Chicago Bears 12 months ago. The only exceptions are walk-throughs, because he doesn’t get a chance to warm up.Most coaches and teammates haven’t noticed Smith’s daily sprint, but they aren’t surprised by it.“It’s his statement,” coach John Harbaugh said. “Everybody has their way of doing it, and I think it’s one of his things. He brings energy. Maybe it’s his way of saying, ‘When I step on the field, I’m 100 miles an hour. I’m full speed beginning to end, sideline to sideline, wall to wall.’ That’s the way he practices. It’s the way he plays. As a coach, of course you love t...

Format of public comment meetings for Dakota Access oil pipeline upsets opponents

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Opponents of the Dakota Access oil pipeline are taking issue with the format of private oral testimony in meetings for public comment on a draft environmental review of the controversial pipeline.The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is in the midst of two public comment meetings in Bismarck, North Dakota, the first held Wednesday, the second set for Thursday. People wishing to give testimony may do so orally in a curtained area with a stenographer, or do so in writing at tables.The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has long opposed the pipeline due to the risk of an oil spill contaminating the tribe’s drinking water supply. The four-state pipeline crosses under the Missouri River just upstream of the tribe’s reservation.The long-awaited draft environmental review, released in September, outlines five options for the pipeline’s fate. Those include denying the easement for the controversial crossing and removing or abandoning a 7,500-foot (2,286-meter) segm...

The final ‘Yellowstone’ episodes delayed until until late 2024 due to Hollywood strikes

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

The long-awaited final installment of “Yellowstone” — featuring Kevin Costner ’s final episodes — has been delayed until November 2024, the Paramount Network announced Thursday.Originally scheduled to return this month, Paramount says production was delayed by this year’s strikes by actors and screenwriters. The first half of the fifth season debuted in November 2022.Paramount also announced two spin-offs, a prequel tentatively called “1944” and a sequel to the current series, called “2024.” There’s no word yet on any casting for either series.“Yellowstone” has been a phenomenon for Paramount Network. The premiere episode of season five was watched by 12.1 million people, more than for any other scripted series airing at the time.CBS also began airing “Yellowstone” from the beginning this fall to help fill out its primetime schedule due to the strikes, and 21.6 million people tuned in to season one. It’s now begun airing season two.“Yellowstone” is a contemporary Western...

House GOP pushes ahead with $14.5 billion in assistance for Israel without humanitarian aid for Gaza

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House is pushing ahead Thursday toward passage of $14.5 billion in military aid for Israel, a muscular U.S. response to the war with Hamas but also a partisan approach by new Speaker Mike Johnson that poses a direct challenge to Democrats and President Joe Biden.In a departure from norms, Johnson’s package is requiring that the emergency aid be offset with cuts in government spending elsewhere. That tack establishes the House GOP’s conservative leadership, but it also turns what would typically be a bipartisan vote into one dividing Democrats and Republicans. Biden has said he would veto the bill.Johnson, R-La., said the Republican package would provide Israel with the assistance needed to defend itself, free hostages held by Hamas and eradicate the militant Palestinian group, accomplishing “all of this while we also work to ensure responsible spending and reduce the size of the federal government.”Democrats said that approach would only delay...

‘What Happens Later’ co-stars Meg Ryan and David Duchovny talk about rom-coms, fame and Nora

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

The words “For Nora” end Meg Ryan’s new film “What Happens Later.”It was a no brainer to dedicate it to the late Nora Ephron, though it did require an extra layer of approval from the Directors Guild. Ephron and Ryan were responsible for some of the culture’s most enduring and beloved modern romantic comedies from “When Harry Met Sally,” which Ephron wrote, to “Sleepless in Seattle” and “You’ve Got Mail.”And this film was not just a romantic comedy, but one that Ryan co-wrote and directed too. She co-stars with David Duchovny in a kind of fairy tale about two exes stuck in an airport together for 24 hours during a snowstorm. Though it might sound slightly gimmicky on paper, the result is anything but — it’s smart, charming, a little whimsical and a very welcome return for Ryan, who hasn’t been in a film for eight years. It opens in theaters Friday.“It’s hopefully a movie that just unzips you a little bit like in terms of your heart,” Ryan said. “It’s not a cynical movie ...

Pakistan’s parliament elections delayed till early February as political and economic crises deepen

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s election oversight body on Thursday postponed the country’s upcoming parliament elections for the second time, saying the vote — originally expected in November and then scheduled for the last week of January — will instead take place in February. The Election Commission of Pakistan said the balloting would be held on Feb. 8, a date chosen following consultations with the country’s President Arif Alvi that were requested by the country’s Supreme Court. It did not elaborate. Earlier, the commission had sought more time to prepare the vote and redraw constituencies on the electoral map to reflect the latest census. Pakistan’s imprisoned former premier and top opposition leader Imran Khan, whose Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party is a strong contender in the race, had voiced fears the vote could be delayed indefinitely. Khan himself is not eligible to run because of his corruption sentence. He also faces scores of legal cases on myriad charges,...

Colombia’s government says ELN guerrillas kidnapped the father of Liverpool striker Luis Díaz

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:10:20 GMT

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombia’s government said Thursday that the guerrilla group National Liberation Army, known as ELN, was responsible for the weekend kidnapping of the father of Liverpool and Colombian national soccer team striker Luis Díaz.The peace delegation of the government, which is currently in negotiations with ELN, said in a statement it was “officially aware” that the kidnapping had been “perpetrated by a unit that belongs to ELN.”“We demand that the ELN releases immediately Mr. Luis Manuel Díaz and we say as of now that they are entirely responsible to secure his life and integrity,” said Otty Patiño, who leads the peace delegation.Both parents of Liverpool’s Díaz were kidnapped by armed men on motorcycles on Saturday at a gas station in the small town of Barrancas. The footballer’s mother, Cilenis Marulanda, was rescued within hours by police who set up roadblocks around the town of 40,000 people, which is near Colombia’s border with Venezuela.Dí...