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Cyber Security Bulletin: Major Hedge Funds Targeted in Wave of Attempted Cyberattacks (Bloomberg)
Hackers launched a wave of sophisticated attacks on Wall Street firms in recent days, targeting information systems at major money managers, according to people familiar with the matter.
Point72 Asset Management informed investors on Wednesday that it had been attacked, though the hedge fund’s initial indications were that no client information was stolen, according to one of the people, asking not to be identified discussing non-public information. The firm told investors it was still reviewing the incident, the person said.
Attackers also attempted to infiltrate the information systems at other major hedge funds including Millennium Management, Two Sigma Investments and Citadel as well as several private equity firms as part of the assault, the people said.
What's Driving Growth? The AI Boom Is Transforming the American Economy Beyond Recognition (Wall Street Journal)
Tech companies are spending hundreds of billions of dollars to meet AI computing needs and issuing billions of dollars of debt to help make those purchases.
The rapid data-center build-out in the US is powering construction spending, hiring and municipal revenues. Meanwhile, a stock-market rally fueled by the rise in shares of chipmakers and other companies benefiting from the AI boom has led to a massive increase in household wealth. That is helping to bolster consumer spending.
Combined, those factors are likely responsible for roughly one-third of the nation’s recent economic growth, according to Michael Pearce, an economist at Oxford Economics.
The AI Blueprint: Governor Hochul Announces Empire AI Beta Fully Online as Federal Government Takes Inspiration From New York (NY.gov)
Governor Kathy Hochul announced that Empire AI Beta is officially online, giving researchers at New York’s leading public and private universities access to the most powerful academic research computer in the country and marking a major milestone in New York’s effort to lead the nation in responsible artificial intelligence for the public good.
As the federal National Science Foundation has announced a major investment to support regional AI infrastructure and shared research capacity through their new State and Regional AI Infrastructure Hubs initiative, Empire AI is already powering world-class research and serving academics, students and communities across the state.
Empire AI Board Chairman Tom Secunda said, “Empire AI is showing the nation what dedicated partners across government, research institutions, and philanthropy can build together: a scientific asset no institution could create on its own, advancing the public good."
Top Minds Exit: Google AI Veterans Depart During Seismic Leadership Shift (Bloomberg)
Alphabet’s Google is losing some of its most prominent artificial intelligence veterans in a seismic overhaul that is casting doubt over leadership of a critical area of growth right as competition intensifies. Alphabet shares fell as much as 5.5% on the news.
Lunar Impact: Stray Piece of SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Slams Into the Moon (Bloomberg)
A leftover piece of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket likely slammed into the surface of the moon early Wednesday, about 18 months after being sent into orbit.
The component, the upper portion of the Falcon 9, has drifted in space since Jan. 15, 2025, when it was used to launch spacecraft to the moon for the companies Firefly Aerospace and ispace. Since then, the piece has been circling the Earth, sometimes coming near the moon, before its path finally intersected with the lunar surface.
Consumers Left Behind: Trump Administration Refunds $100B in ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs (Financial Times)
The Trump administration is sending back about $100 billion in tariff revenue after the Supreme Court knocked down its use of emergency powers, but the relief stops well short of the people who paid the price.
Consumers and small businesses absorbed the “liberation day” tariffs through higher prices, yet the refunds are flowing mainly to the large importers that wrote the original checks.
About 60 percent of the $165 billion collected is now being returned, even as households and smaller firms remain stuck with the damage.
Record-Breaking Swing: New Spider-Man Movie Tops $1.1B Worldwide, Smashes Box Office Records (The Hollywood Reporter)
Spider-Man: Brand New Day has swung past $1.1 billion worldwide, becoming the year’s highest-grossing movie and the second-fastest film ever to join the billion-dollar club—behind only Avatar. The Tom Holland-led blockbuster also spun another record with a massive $42 million Tuesday, the biggest ever at the domestic box office.
FLOTUS Encore? New Melania Trump TV Series Launching After Amazon’s Big Movie Losses (Newsweek)
Amazon is launching a new Melania Trump docuseries this fall, just months after releasing the Melania documentary film, for which it paid $40 million—the highest price ever paid for a documentary. It's available on Amazon Prime video.
The new series promises a “completely different look” at the first lady’s world, despite the film grossing only $16.6 million worldwide against an estimated $75 million in production and marketing costs.
Lights, Camera, Agents: Hollywood Is Quietly Entering Its AI Era (The Economist)
Behind the scenes, AI is quietly playing a growing role in every aspect of film-making, from script development and production planning to shot generation and editing. In March, Netflix acquired InterPositive, an AI production company led by Ben Affleck, for almost $600m.
So far there is little evidence that AI is about to replace humans on the red carpet—though the much-publicized arrival last year of Tilly Norwood, an AI-generated actor, did cause a fleeting moment of panic.
“It takes great artists to make something great, and AI is not changing that,” argued Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s co-chief, in July. Instead, the technology “will give creators better tools to bring their visions to life.” Consumers will be all the better for it.
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