The US Has a Chance to Rival China in Rush for Longer-Lasting Batteries
Accelerating demand for long‑duration energy storage is opening a competitive window for U.S. and European clean‑tech firms against China’s dominant battery industry. BloombergNEF projects installations of long‑duration systems to nearly quadruple this year after a record 2025, with the United States now the second‑largest market, accounting for about 28% of global capacity. While China controls roughly 72% of cumulative long‑duration storage, U.S. players such as Form Energy and Hydrostor are leveraging diverse technologies—from iron‑air to compressed‑air—to capture domestic projects, especially in data‑center power and California’s large‑scale compressed‑air plant. Government policies in the U.S., UK and Italy are further encouraging deployment, positioning the U.S. to rival China in this emerging segment.
ByteDance’s Global E-Commerce Push Lifts Revenue as AI Costs Mount
ByteDance’s overseas revenue surged nearly 50% in 2025, outpacing its domestic growth of about 20%. The boost came largely from TikTok Shop, whose gross merchandise value jumped roughly 70% year‑on‑year and approached $100 billion, pushing the overseas share of total revenue...
How the Depo-Provera Brain Tumor Lawsuit Works
The Depo‑Provera brain tumor lawsuit alleges that the contraceptive shot’s manufacturer failed to warn users of an increased risk of meningiomas, a type of brain or spinal‑cord tumor. Plaintiffs must demonstrate a causal link through medical records, expert testimony, and...
Preventive Healthcare Startup CENT Opens Flagship Clinic in Bengaluru
Preventive healthcare startup CENT, founded by Practo’s Shashank ND, opened its first 7,000‑sq‑ft flagship prevention centre in Bengaluru. The centre offers a single‑purpose AI‑driven screening protocol—CCNM—combining whole‑body MRI, ultra‑low‑dose cardiac CT, DEXA, ECG and over 120 biomarker tests, delivering a...
CSconnected Supporting £436m for Welsh Economy and 3140 Jobs
The CSconnected compound semiconductor cluster in South Wales generated about $554 million in gross value‑added (GVA) and supported 3,140 jobs in 2025, a 19% and 14% year‑on‑year rise respectively. Direct employment reached 1,914 with an additional 1,226 indirect positions, while exports...
Khatron Ke Khiladi 15: Jasmine Bhasin, Mr Faisu, Karan Wahi Approached for Rohit Shetty’s Show
Rohit Shetty’s stunt‑based reality series Khatron Ke Khiladi returns for its 15th season after a year‑long hiatus, with filming slated for late May. The upcoming season will feature 14‑15 participants, blending four former contestants—Nia Sharma, Jasmine Bhasin, Mr Faisu and Karan Wahi—with a slate...
Neverness to Everness Adds Persona 5 Music in New Collaboration
Hotta Studio announced that its upcoming open‑world gacha title Neverness to Everness will launch with a curated collection of Persona 5 music. Players can stream the tracks via the game’s in‑car radio or Walkman feature, with titles like "Colors Flying High"...
Higher Fertiliser Costs Risk Lower-Protein Wheat
Higher fertilizer prices, spurred by volatile crude oil after the US‑Israel‑Iran conflict, are adding roughly $13 per tonne to UK wheat and $25 per tonne to rapeseed costs. Brent crude is about $20 above pre‑war levels, pushing fertilizer and energy...
Xiaomi Boosts EV Business with New Hires, Including First CTO Appointment
Xiaomi announced the creation of a chief technology officer role for its automotive division, appointing veteran engineer Hu Zhengnan as vice president and CTO, while naming former Tesla executive Song Gang as vice president and chief of staff. The moves...
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Rejects Talks Amid US Threats
Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf dismissed prospects for a second US‑Iran round of talks in Islamabad, insisting Tehran will not negotiate under threat. The two‑week cease‑fire, brokered on 7 April, expires on 22 April without a deal after a 21‑hour first...
HKEX Appoints Head of Debt Market Development
Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) has named Lawrence Lau as managing director and head of debt market development. Lau most recently served as managing director and head of debt capital markets at Bank of China International. The move is part...
8 Ways To Increase Commercial Property Revenue Without Raising Rents
Commercial property owners can lift net operating income without raising rents by tapping untapped revenue streams and tightening expense recovery. The article outlines eight tactics, from auditing common‑area‑maintenance (CAM) reconciliations to leasing rooftop antenna space, optimizing parking pricing, adding lobby...
Hyundai Glovis Expands US Logistics Footprint with New Hubs
Hyundai Glovis, the logistics arm of Hyundai Motor, opened two new U.S. facilities—a 12,000‑square‑metre multimodal hub near Los Angeles and a 69,000‑square‑metre integrated warehouse in Savannah. The LA centre sits 25 minutes from the port and airport, enabling rapid air‑sea...
Oceaneering Pilots ROV on Brazilian Offshore Drilling Rig From Land
Oceaneering successfully piloted a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) on a Petrobras drilling rig offshore Brazil from its on‑shore Remote Operations Centre (OROC) in Macaé. The test marks the first land‑based control of an offshore ROV in the region, building on...
Nissan Advances Solid-State EV Battery Towards 2028 Production
Nissan announced that its prototype all‑solid‑state battery pack has met key performance goals, featuring a 23‑layer cell stack and targeting mass production in fiscal 2028. The new pack promises roughly twice the energy density of conventional lithium‑ion cells, which could...
Quality of Supply Is an Important Aspect of the Procurement Process
The article emphasizes that supply quality in municipal procurement extends beyond product specs to include reliable, financially stable vendors and timely delivery. It advises municipalities to assess a supplier’s financial health, past performance, and ability to integrate new technology with...
EV Tax Change to Save Drivers £425 on Mid-Range Models
UK drivers of mid‑range electric vehicles will save £425 ($531) annually after the government raised the luxury‑car tax threshold from £40,000 to £50,000. Dick Lovett analysis shows 475,836 registrations since April 2025 now fall below the new limit, delivering a five‑year saving...
ESG Beyond Compliance: How Sunwoda’s Long-Termism Is Reshaping the Battery Industry
Sunwoda, the world’s leading smartphone battery pack shipper, is expanding into power batteries, storage, recycling and energy services while embedding ESG into every business layer. The company launched a Battery Passport platform in 2025, earning two spots in the Global...
Government Promises to 'Break the Link' Between Gas and Power Prices
The government announced a plan to break the link between gas and electricity prices, aiming to shield power tariffs from volatile gas markets. The initiative is part of a broader clean‑energy package that includes reforms to the renewables subsidy regime....
Japan Loosens Arms Export Rules in Break From Post-WW2 Pacifism
Japan announced a sweeping revision of its arms‑export rules, ending a decades‑long restriction to five non‑lethal categories. The new policy permits the sale of lethal weapons to the 17 countries with which Tokyo has defence agreements, including the United States...
Neverness to Everness Is PS5 Pro Optimized: All Enhancements Explained
Neverness to Everness (NTE) will launch on PC, PS5 and mobile on April 29, 2026, with a native PS5 build that includes console‑exclusive features. The base PS5 version runs at native 4K resolution and offers seamless map loading for uninterrupted...
Federal Agency Approves Concept for Trump’s Plan for a Triumphal Arch in Washington
The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts gave its first approval to President Donald Trump’s concept for a 250‑foot Triumphal Arch on Columbia Island, alongside a proposed paint job for the Eisenhower Executive Office Building and an underground visitor‑screening center. The...
AI Hiring Boom: How Cognitive Technologies Are Redefining E-Commerce Recruitment
E‑commerce retailers are moving from isolated AI tools to unified cognitive AI platforms that combine natural language understanding, vision, knowledge graphs, and real‑time inference. These platforms power conversational interfaces that can remember context, ask clarifying questions, and execute actions such...
American Airlines Will Start Scoring Flight Attendants, And It Won’t End Well
American Airlines is rolling out a new Me@Work program that will assign performance scores to flight attendants based on data from the past year. The metrics include passenger net promoter scores, operational contributions, and delays attributed to flight attendants. While...
AAFA Guide Introduces ‘Practical’ Steps for Workplace Heat Safety
The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) released the AAFA Guide to Protecting Workers from Heat Stress, offering practical recommendations for factories across global supply chains. The guide urges temperature caps, schedule adjustments, water provision, training, and buyer‑supplier collaboration to...
Retailers Are Wasting £6.25 Billion a Year of Staff Time – New Report Warns
The ‘Future Ready Retail’ report from Rethink Productivity finds UK retailers waste the equivalent of one full working day per employee each week, amounting to roughly $7.8 billion of staff time annually. This represents 14 % of untapped optimisation costs at a...
Fraudsters May Target AI Mandates as Agentic Commerce Takes Off
AI‑driven agents are set to handle consumer transactions, a trend dubbed agentic commerce. McKinsey projects up to $1 trillion in U.S. B2C revenue by 2030, with a global market potential of $3‑5 trillion. Visa’s security unit observed a 450% surge in dark‑web...
11 U.S. Nuclear & Aerospace Scientists Dead or Missing – Are America’s Top Minds Becoming Targets Like Iran’s?
Eleven U.S. scientists tied to nuclear, aerospace and advanced‑materials research have been killed or vanished since 2022, prompting a White House‑ordered FBI probe. The investigation involves the Department of Energy, the National Nuclear Security Administration and the House Oversight Committee....
CASE CTL and SSL Updates Focus on Safety and Decreased Cycle Times
CASE Construction Equipment announced a suite of upgrades for its B Series skid‑steer loaders and compact‑track loaders, targeting operator safety and faster cycle times. New rear object detection combines radar and camera alerts on select SSL models, while bi‑directional self‑levelling...
Saudi Arabia's AlUla Giga-Project Advances with New Hotel Development
AlUla Development Company has broken ground on the Numaj hotel, a 250‑room property slated to open in 2027. The hotel will be managed by Marriott International under its Autograph Collection brand and designed by Giò Forma to echo the region’s...
Eli Lilly Doubles Down on in Vivo with $7bn Kelonia Buyout
Eli Lilly announced a deal to acquire Kelonia Therapeutics for up to $7 bn, securing its lentiviral‑based in vivo gene‑therapy platform iGPS and an early‑stage multiple‑myeloma asset, KLN‑1010. The transaction includes a $3.25 bn cash payment upfront and up to $3.75 bn in milestone payments...
Alamar Lists on Nasdaq, Giving Qiming Its Fifth IPO in 2026
Alamar Biosciences, a proteomics company founded in 2018, debuted on Nasdaq, delivering Qiming Venture Partners its fifth IPO in 2026. The firm’s Nulisa technology provides femtogram‑level sensitivity and a 12‑log dynamic range, while its Argo HT instrument has installed over 100...
Does Chick-Fil-A Actually Brew Its Own Tea?
Chick‑fil‑A confirms that its iced tea is brewed in‑house each day using large industrial brewers and bulk Tetley tea bags. Sweet tea is sweetened with a pre‑measured pitcher while still hot, ensuring consistent flavor. The chain also prepares its lemonade...
South Africa’s Pipeline of Advanced Wind Projects Stands at 17 GW – GWEC
The Global Wind Energy Council’s 2026 report shows South Africa’s advanced wind pipeline at roughly 17 GW, enough to start construction within five years. The country already operates over 4 GW of wind capacity, has 2.8 GW under construction, and a total pipeline...
European Electricity Prices Increase Despite Falling Gas Prices
AleaSoft Energy Forecasting reported that the weekly average electricity price topped €95 ($112)/MWh in most major European markets last week, except France, Portugal and Spain where prices hovered around €50‑€71 ($59‑$84)/MWh. Italy recorded the highest average at €123.19/MWh ($145), while...
Data Security Becomes a Core Skill in Modern Legal Recruitment
Law firms are increasingly recognizing data security as a core competency, driven by the sensitive nature of client information, intellectual property, and legal strategies. Cyber threats targeting these assets are rising, prompting firms to adopt encryption, multi‑factor authentication, and regular...
JAMA’s Seven Key Priorities for the Japanese Automotive Industry
Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) released an updated seven‑point priority agenda aimed at bolstering Japan’s automotive sector amid supply‑chain strains, decarbonisation pressures, and rapid tech adoption. The plan calls for secure sourcing of critical components, a multi‑pathway route to carbon...
NHS ‘at Risk of Collapse’ without More Focus on Diversity
A joint study by UCL and the University of Leicester warns that the NHS could collapse without a focused strategy to retain ethnically diverse staff, especially international workers. Surveys from 2021‑2024 show staff turnover intentions rising from 30% to 47%,...
Nigerian Banks Will Now Verify Fraud-Linked Mobile Numbers Under New CBN–NCC Agreement
Nigeria’s Central Bank and the Nigerian Communications Commission signed a memorandum of understanding that gives banks real‑time access to telecom data through the Telecom Identity Risk Management System (TIRMS). The system lets financial institutions verify whether a mobile number linked...
Liberty Star Acquires 13 New Arizona Mining Permits
Liberty Star Minerals announced the acquisition of 13 new mineral exploration permits in Arizona’s Tombstone Mining District, expanding its holdings to roughly 45 square miles. The latest permits add about 11 square miles and incorporate the Earp Ridge and Red...
ANALYSIS: Big Tech Sets AI to Catch AI
Advanced AI is reshaping cyber‑security as both a weapon and a shield. Hackers leveraged over 1,000 AI prompts to breach Mexico’s tax authority, exposing 195 million records and prompting one of the largest government data leaks. At the same time, Anthropic’s...
The West Is Still Getting Russia Wrong
Four years after Russia’s full‑scale invasion of Ukraine, Western analysts still misinterpret the Kremlin’s strategic intent. While President Vladimir Putin portrays Russia as a great‑power counterweight to Western liberalism, the article argues he lacks a coherent plan to reshape the...
AI Is The New Ad Space
Debra Aho Williamson, founder of Sonata Insights, argues that AI tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Google AI Overviews, and retail assistants constitute a new media environment rather than just efficiency enhancers. She calls this “AI media,” where users can...
AI Is The New Ad Space
Debra Aho Williamson, founder of Sonata Insights, will keynote AdExchanger’s Programmatic AI conference in Las Vegas (May 18‑20). She argues that AI tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, and retail assistants constitute a new media environment—“AI media”—that can guide consumers from query to...
Does Walmart Price Match? What to Know About Online and In-Store Price Matching Policies
Walmart’s price‑matching rules differ sharply between its brick‑and‑mortar stores and its website. In‑store shoppers can receive a match to the identical item’s price on Walmart.com, subject to manager approval and several exclusions. Online purchases, however, are largely excluded from any...
Exergy3 Raises £10m to Shake up the Clean Heat Market
Exergy3, a University of Edinburgh spin‑out, has closed a £10 million (≈$12.7 million) seed round to commercialise its ultra‑high‑temperature thermal‑energy storage platform. The technology converts surplus renewable electricity, such as curtailed wind power, into high‑temperature heat for industrial processes that are hard...
Nestle India Q4 Results: Cons Profit Jumps 27% YoY to Rs 1,111 Crore; Rs 5/Sh Dividend Declared
Nestle India posted a 27% YoY rise in consolidated net profit to ₹1,111 crore (≈$134 million) for Q4 FY 2025‑26, while revenue jumped 23% to ₹6,748 crore (≈$813 million). The company announced a final dividend of Rs 5 per share and recorded its highest‑ever domestic sales...
Matheny Discusses ATSC 3.0-based BPS Developments
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has placed Sam Matheny in an executive‑vice‑president role to drive the Broadcast Positioning System (BPS), an ATSC 3.0‑based backup for GPS timing and location. A $744,000 Department of Transportation contract funds field trials with Dominion...
Introducing Realtor.com Land Price Estimates: Market for Land Still Under the Weather From Pandemic
Realtor.com’s new land‑price dashboard shows a stark imbalance: land listings have contracted 23.6% since 2019 while median prices per acre surged 76.6% to $62,365 in Q1 2026. The pandemic‑era buying frenzy lifted raw‑land values the most, with an 86.5% price jump,...
Pandemic ‘Permanently Transformed’ Land Market, New Study Says
Realtor.com’s new land‑market study finds U.S. buildable lot inventory has dropped 23.6% since early 2019, while median price per acre surged 76.6% to $62,365. The pandemic‑driven construction boom converted many parcels into homes, permanently shrinking the supply of developable land....