Taco Bell, best known for Mexican-inspired grub like nachos and chalupas, is expanding its beverage offerings. The move, which seeks to cater to Gen Z’s insatiable thirst for both energy drinks and mocktails, includes the addition of six new bubbly creations to the summer menu, with three drinks sticking around permanently.
Were seeing today that people, especially younger consumers, are reaching for refreshing drinks as part of their lifestyle, whether its for energy or a sweet treat throughout the day, Liz Matthews, Taco Bells Global chief food innovation officer, said in a release announcing the drinks. So, were making big investments to become the ultimate beverage stop where our fans can expect to see the same bold, unexpected creativity in their cups as they do on their plates,” Matthews added.The new nationwide lineup includes three fruit-flavored Refrescas, two energy drinks, and one frozen offering. The brand’s Refrescas are available in Strawberry Passionfruit, Dragonfruit Berry, and Mango Peach, and are set to remain on the menu post-summer. The energy drinks, which have 200 mg. of caffeine, come in Pineapple Lime or Tropical Punch Rockstar Energy Refresca. The frozen drink, the brand’s Refresca Freeze, a “frozen take on the Refresca line-up, featuring real freeze-dried fruit pieces,” is available in Strawberry Lime flavor.Drink menus that go beyond the typical cola options are certainly becoming a hot (cold) commodity. Major beverage chains like Starbucks and Dunkin’, who already served their own version of refreshers, both added energy drinks to their menus last year. And brands like Chick-fil-A, Wendy’s, and McDonald’s have expanded beverage offerings, too. Now, Taco Bell is going “all in” on the buzzy beverage trend. According to the latest announcement, Taco Bell says it’s aiming to reach $5 billion in beverage sales alone in the next five years.The brand, which has managed to remain competitive even as fast food chains have struggled in recent years, is no stranger to evolution. It has also reimagined its in-store experience with the introduction of its Live Más Café, a barista-style concept it tested in Chula Vista, California that proved successful. Per the announcement, the brand will expand the concept to 30 more Taco Bell locations across Southern California and Texas by year’s end.“This is just the beginning of a multi-year beverage transformation, and Taco Bell is making one thing clear: bold refreshment is officially on the menu,” the announcement said.
Welcome to Crypto Week: No, contrary to what it sounds like, thats not a period coined by some crypto bro investor. Instead, it’s the name members of the U.S. House of Representatives have given to the week that kicked off yesterday, on July 14. Heres what you need to know about Crypto Week and how its events could change the future of the cryptocurrency industry.
What is Crypto Week?
Crypto Week is the term given to the week of July 14, 2025.
The term was coined by the U.S. House of Representatives House Leadership, as well as the House Committee on Financial Services Chairman French Hill, and the House Committee on Agriculture Chairman GT Thompson.
Crypto Week is so designated because during this week, the House will vote on three bills that could significantly impact the future of cryptocurrencies in the United States. The bills, according to the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services, feature heavily in Congress efforts to make America the crypto capital of the world.
The House Committee on Financial Services originally announced Crypto Week at the beginning of this month.
We are taking historic steps to ensure the United States remains the worlds leader in innovation and I look forward to Crypto Week in the House, Chairman French Hill said. After years of dedicated work in Congress on digital assets, we are advancing landmark legislation to establish a clear regulatory framework for digital assets that safeguards consumers and investors, provides rules for the issuance and operation of dollar-backed payment stablecoins, and permanently blocks the creation of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) to safeguard Americans financial privacy.
The legislation Hill referenced includes three different bills coming before the House this week:
The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025
The Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act
The GENIUS Act of 2025
Heres a rundown of what each bill entails.
The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025
As noted by CNBC, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025, also known as the CLARITY Act, looks to regulate cryptocurrencies by establishing roles for the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to do so.
As noted by the bills summary, the CLARITY Act establishes a regulatory framework for digital commodities, which the bill defines as digital assets that rely upon a blockchain for their valuein other words, cryptocurrency.
Generally, industries dont like regulation. However, as Coinbase notes, the passage of the CLARITY Act, which would give regulators more oversight over digital tokens, is viewed as beneficial for the crypto industry as a whole, as it would further legitimize the industry in the eyes of investors.
The increased legitimacy of cryptocurrencies, along with enhanced regulatory protections, could lead to more investors opting to invest in crypto, thereby boosting its value.
The Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act
The Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act would prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a digital dollar.
As stated by the bills summary, the act would prohibit a Federal Reserve bank from offering products or services directly to an individual, maintaining an account on behalf of an individual, or issuing a central bank digital currency (i.e., a digital dollar).
While many nations are exploring the issuance of their own digital currency, there are serious privacy concerns about such tokens. Privacy proponents fear that a state-backed digital currency could easily allow a government to track every transaction a person makes.
Privacy proponents also worry that if a digital dollar becomes the primary store of value, the government could retaliate against individuals or groups by cutting off their access to the currency, leaving them unable to spend their money.
The GENIUS Act of 2025
The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins of 2025, or GENIUS Act, would regulate stablecoins, which are cryptocurrencies pegged to a stable asset, such as the U.S. dollar. Stablecoins pegged to the dollar are generally much less volatile than those that are not, which helps mitigate some investment risk.
Popular stablecoins include Tether and USDC.
The GENIUS Act would introduce regulation to the stablecoin market, requiring institutions that offer stablecoins to maintain liquid reserves that back up the value of their stablecoins.
In addition, the bill would establish other regulatory frameworks, including ensuring stablecoin holders have priority over other claimants in the case that a stablecoin issuer files for bankruptcy.
How will Crypto Week affect cryptocurrency prices?
Its impossible to tell how Crypto Week will impact cryptocurrency prices of coins like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP. Crypto king Bitcoin recently hit all-time highs, and any legislation that is passed that makes Bitcoin a more appealing investment option could cause the digital token to rise even further.
The stock prices of companies involved in cryptocurrencies could also be impacted this week, depending on the outcome of voting on the above bills. Those companies include Coinbase Global, Inc. (Nasdaq: COIN) and Robinhood Markets, Inc. (Nasdaq: HOOD).
If youve ever sprinted through an airport only to land in a standing-room-only lounge buffet line, you know that the state of modern travel perks is competitive. As credit card companies and airlines rush to expand their lounge footprints, American Express is looking to double down on what it believes sets it apart: consistency, exclusivity, and culinary experience.
This summer, Amex is rolling out two major updates that signal how it plans to maintain its lead in the fast-growing airport lounge landscape.
The first is “The Culinary Collective,” a chef-driven revamp of food and beverage offerings at Centurion Lounges nationwide. The second is “Sidecar by The Centurion Lounge,” a brand-new, fast-format lounge experience thats set to launch at Las Vegass Harry Reid International Airport in 2026.
Together, these updates offer a glimpse at Amexs evolving strategy: appealing to both high-end leisure travelers and time-crunched business flyers, all while keeping its signature level of luxury intact.
A new flavor of exclusivity
Rather than chasing square footage like Delta Air Lineswhose newest Sky Club in Atlanta can seat over 500 guestsAmex is banking on curated experience over capacity. Thats where The Culinary Collective comes in. Featuring rotating menus from a team of James Beard Award-winning chefs, including Mashama Bailey and Kwame Onwuachi, the initiative aims to bring restaurant-level meals into the airport setting.
Youd be lucky to get into each of their restaurants on a normal day, Audrey Hendley, president of American Express Travel, tells Fast Company. Now, you can try them all in one trip.
Through the Collective, new menu items will be available in all 15 U.S. Centurion Lounges beginning July 29, 2025.
The focus on thoughtful dining mirrors Capital Ones approach, which leans into local partnerships with regional bakeries and breweries to create an experience that feels like stepping into a citys best café, not another airline lounge.
Amex, in turn, is opting for hospitality as theater: chef-driven menus, cocktails developed by Overstorys Harrison Ginsberg, and lounge layouts designed to feel more like boutique hotels than waiting rooms.
Introducing Sidecar: A lounge for the layover-challenged
But what if you only have 45 minutes until boarding?
Enter Sidecar, a new lounge format designed to give travelers a premium experience even if theyre short on time. Set to launch in 2026, the space will offer table-side service, curated small plates, and a speakeasy vibeall within close proximity to the main Centurion Lounge in Las Vegas.
Think of it as Amexs answer to the crowding crisis thats plagued lounge operators in recent years. Rather than just add square footage like Delta or increase access fees like United, Sidecar is an attempt to diversify the experience based on how travelers actually use lounges.
Were seeing a significant segment of travelers who only spend 30 to 45 minutes in the lounge, said Hendley. Sidecar is our way of honoring that time with the same level of care and service.
That echoes Capital Ones design philosophy for its growing lounge network, which includes grab-and-go options, regionally inspired food, and perfect airport beers crafted in collaboration with local breweries. As Capital Ones Jenn Scheurich put it: It doesnt really matter whether you have 15 minutes or an houryou still want a great lounge experience.
Travel benefits for the TikTok generation
The updates come as American Express embarks on its largest Platinum Card refresh in company history, with new perks targeting millennial and Gen Z cardholders, who now make up 35% of the companys U.S. consumer spending.
With over 1,550 lounges worldwideincluding 29 Centurion Lounges and new ones coming to Salt Lake City, Newark, Tokyo, and AmsterdamAmex already boasts the largest global lounge network of any U.S. card issuer. But in a post-pandemic travel boom where lounge access is no longer a rarity but a battleground, the pressure to keep experiences differentiated is high.
While Delta is betting big on footprint and familiarity, leaning into hometown-inspired art and hospitality in its new Atlanta Sky Club, Amex is betting that its brand of curated luxury still wins loyaltyeven if that means skipping the buffet for a quick cocktail before boarding.
More than perks: a play for emotional loyalty
For American Express, lounges like the new Centurion Sidecar in Las Vegas arent just about creature comfortstheyre part of a broader strategy to build what the company sees as lasting, emotional loyalty. Yes, the lounge has yuzu cocktails and espresso crme brlée. But it also has something harder to measure: the feeling of being taken care of when everything else about air travel is chaos.
Were always looking for ways to better understand how customers travel and what theyre looking for in the experience, says Hendley. Theres nothing better than settling in at a Centurion Lounge and starting your trip with a great meal and a great drink. Whether youre going on vacation or traveling for work, we want to make that moment count.
For now, Amex is staying tight-lipped about the specifics of its Platinum Card refresh. What it has made clear is that the refresh is aimed squarely at younger travelers.
Theyre not just looking for benefitstheyre looking for a brand that gets them, Hendley said. That means spaces that feel modern and intimate, perks that are easy to use, and partnerships that feel aspirational but not out of reach.
To stand apart from its rivals, American Express is banking on design, consistency, and culinary clout to keep members engaged.
And in Sidecars case, its also about speed. Many of our visitors spend less than an hour in our lounges, and weve created Sidecar specifically for them, Hendley said. You still want a great lounge experiencejust in a shorter window.
Ultimately, the lounge is the hookbut the goal is bigger. Amex wants card members to feel like wherever theyre going, the brand is already there, holding the door open and mixing the drink.
When an emergency happens in Collier County, Florida, the 911 calls go to one of the most high-tech communications centers in the U.S., where callers can send text and video from the scene to dispatchers.Moving to what’s known as an NG911or Next Generation 911system is a journey Sheriff Kevin Rambosk and Bob Finney, the county’s director of communication, have been on for much of the past decade.It’s a long way from Feb. 16, 1968, when Alabama’s then-House Speaker Rankin Fite made the nation’s very first 911 call in Haleyville, Alabama, on a bright red, rotary-style landline telephone. That ceremonial call came just 35 days after AT&T announced plans to use 911 as a nationwide emergency number.Today, most calls to 911 originate with cellphones, with dispatchers in upgraded centers using geo tracking to get accurate geographic locations from callers.But the response time in an emergency depends on the type of technology being used at any of the 6,000 emergency communications centers in the U.S. that receive 911 calls. There is no uniform emergency system in the U.S., so individual cities, counties, states or geographic regions are responsible for operating their own 911 call centers.While some states have fully updated to NG911 systems, others are still using legacy 911 systems that rely on antiquated equipment.“We’re just reminded in these last two weeks, with the flooding in Texas, just how important the work of 911 is,” said Michael Martin, CEO of RapidSOS, which provides infrastructure that passes critical data to emergency centers across the United States.
The future is now for 911
The Collier County Sheriff’s Office covers 911 calls from an area of about 2,030 square miles (5,258 square kilometers) that stretches from sandy beaches at the southernmost tip of the Gulf Coast on Florida’s peninsula inland to the Everglades.It’s a region that has been ravaged by hurricanes this century, including Hurricane Irma in 2017 and Hurricanes Ian and Milton most recently.That’s why Sheriff Rambosk wanted a high-tech emergency operations center.“We just believe that when we can reduce the response time using technology, it will improve safety and survivability of those calling in,” said Rambosk, who has been sheriff since 2009. “And that’s really what we’re all about, keeping people safe and rescuing them when they need it.”Today 61 full-time employees and three part-timers staff two emergency operations centers around the clock.
They rely on data that RapidSOS collects from connected buildings, devices, vehicles and even smart watches to send first responders to emergency scenes. The baseline data is provide free of charge to all 911 centers, Martin said.
Mixing technology with emergency response
As Hurricane Helene was tracking toward north Florida last September, forecasters were predicting it could hit Tallahassee as a major Category 3 storm. Officials in Leon County, which serves the state’s Capitol and nearby counties on legacy 911 equipment, reached out to Collier County, some 430 miles (692 kilometers) to the southeast, to see if they could take over emergency calls if the storm knocked their center out.Helene moved to the east of Tallahassee, but Collier County was prepared to help if needed.“Because of the partnership with Rapid SOS, they were able to create a map to where not only did we see our own calls, but we could see exactly where the calls were coming in Tallahassee,” Finney said.Collier County has also partnered with Charleston, South Carolina, as a backup 911 center. Each region is fully prepared to take on 911 calls for the other in case their emergency system goes down for any reason.It’s a similar story in North Carolina, where legislation in 2017 helped establish funding for a next generation 911 system, said Pokey Harris, who serves as president of the National Association of State 911 Administrators and executive director of the North Carolina 911 Board.Harris said Hurricane Helene provided validation for the upgraded system by being able to direct 911 calls from areas that were devastated by the storm to other parts of North Carolina that were not affected.“During Helene, if a citizen could reach a dial tone, even though their local 911 center may have been impacted because of infrastructure devastation, another center somewhere in the state could answer their call,” Harris said.
No federal funding for next-generation systems
Next Generation 911 systems aren’t cheap.“There has been no federal funding for 911,” Martin, of RapidSOS said. “It has been in various draft formats as long as I’ve been doing this and it’s never gotten through Congress.”There is also no federal oversight of 911, he said.“It’s really quite remarkable how well 911 works despite those challenges,” Martin said. “I think it’s a testament to the people of 911, not the technology.”
Freida Frisaro, Associated Press
Organizers of the recent “No Kings Day” and “Hands Off” pro-democracy protests against the Trump administration have planned another nationwide day of action, dubbed “Good Trouble Lives On,” for this Thursday, July 17, which will focus on promoting racial justice and voting rights.
The organizers chose this date to commemorate the five-year anniversary of Congressman John Lewis’s passing, a civil rights leader who frequently used the phrase good trouble,” and famously said, “get in good trouble, necessary trouble and help redeem the soul of America”meaning, when necessary, one should protest injustice.
Lewis, who served in the House of Representatives from 1987 to 2021 representing Georgia’s 5th congressional district, was a key figure in the Civil Rights Movement, participating in the first mass sit-ins and Freedom Rides. He spoke at the March on Washington in 1963 alongside Martin Luther King Jr. His speech on that August day ended: “‘Wake up America! Wake up!’ For we cannot stop, and we will not and cannot be patient”a sentiment echoed by many speakers at the many protests this year.
Heres everything you need to know about the “Good Trouble Lives On” July 17 protests.
What is the ‘Good Trouble Lives On’ July 17 protest?
Nationwide protests in all 50 states are aimed at carrying Lewis’s legacy forward with a flagship event scheduled to take place in Chicago, and key additional events to be held in Atlanta; Washington, D.C.; Annapolis, Maryland; St. Louis; and tentatively San Francisco.
“Good Trouble Lives On: John Lewis National Day of Action is rooted in justice and peace,” Christine Wood and Allison Pulliam, codirectors of Declaration for American Democracy Coalition, one of the main organizers of the event, told Fast Company. “For the past five years, we have fought to protect our civil liberties that generations of marginalized Americans have worked tirelessly to secure.”
“In only his first few months in office, Trump has pulverized that progress, attacking our right to vote, cracking down on free speech and our right to protest, deporting people without due process, cutting crucial programs, and DEI initiatives, defunding livesaving research,” they added.
Who is behind the July 17 protest?
The main organizing groups of the “Good Trouble Lives On” protests are the Transformative Justice Coalition, Black Voters Matter, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, League of Women Voters, the Declaration for American Democracy Coalition, and Mi Familia en Acción, along with a coalition of other groups.
How big is the ‘Good Trouble Lives On’ protest?
We expect at least several hundred thousand people will attend across the country, a spokesperson for “Good Trouble Lives On” told Fast Company. As of Wednesday, July 9, some 1,200 events and rallies were already confirmed.
Since Trump took office in January, millions of Americans have taken to the streets and organized rallies across the nation in record numbers from big cities to rural towns, in both blue and red states.
For more information about the July 17 protests and other scheduled events in your area, go here.
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Zohran Mamdani should feel extremely flattered.
Andrew Cuomo, who lost to Mamdani in New Yorks Democratic mayoral primary last month, just kicked off his campaign as an independent in the general electionwith a launch video that could generously be described as an homage to Mamdanis acclaimed video style.
While the clip may signal Cuomos willingness to play the social media game on Mamdanis terms, it seems destined to simply highlight and magnify the contrast between their efforts.
Perhaps the most striking thing about Cuomos new launch video is the stark difference from his previous one.
Released back in March, the former governors opening salvo in the primary was a 17-and-a-half minute dirge about the dire straits in which New Yorkers currently find themselves, and Cuomos unique ability to lead them into the light. Speaking indoors and direct-to-cameraas he did during the daily briefings that boosted his national profile in the early days of COVIDCuomo struck a moderate tone about the threatening feel of the city and the importance of supporting the NYPD.
He closed by essentially asking New Yorkers to complete his redemption arc, without dwelling at all on what hes done that needs redeeming. (Cuomo resigned in 2021 after 13 women accused him of sexual harassment, which he has denied, attributing his resignation to “political pressure and media frenzy.”)
That video, however, debuted before Mamdani earned wide praise for his steady output of engaging campaign videos. Short, splashy, and sunny (in both light and tone), not to mention overwhelmingly New York-centric, Mamdani’s clips gave voters a flavor of the candidates personality and policy promises. They often racked up views in the millions.
The extent to which Mamdanis video teamwhich includes director of digital Andrew Epstein, videographer Donald Borenstein, and production agency Melted Solidshelped Mamdani win is hard to gauge without polling. However, judging by Cuomos first video since losing to Mamdani in the primary, the former governor seems convinced those videos helped quite a lot.
From doom and gloom to hope and change
Cuomos campaign relaunch video, released just after confirming his candidacy on Monday, clocks in at a breezy 90 seconds. The new clip features the former governor out on the leafiest streets of Manhattans Upper East Side, shaking hands and taking selfies with supporters.
All the while, he and the city are bathed in lighting that suggests someone on his team simply ordered the Mamdani filterand that New York has magically morphed into a less threatening place than it was four months ago.
Its quite a departure from Cuomos previous video.
“Youre not going to out-Mamdani Mamdani, a representative for Cuomos campaign told Fast Company in a statement. However, we readily admit that our social media game during the primary wasnt resonating. We own that and we made some changes to better reach New Yorkers.”
Fast Company also reached out to Mamdani’s team for comment, but did not hear back before press time.
The problem with Cuomos new Mamdani-fied approach is that, by the very nature of its clear imitation, it lacks authenticity and smacks of desperation.
Footage of Mamdani greeting his supporters on the street may have resonated with voters not because theyd never seen a candidate do such a thing before but because of how much those supporters light up when they see him and how he appears to effortlessly mirror their energy.
Mamdanis videos also wisely include audio of those supporters interacting with the candidate, rather than relegating them to b-roll footage as Cuomo didmaking them feel less like flesh-and-blood people than political props.
Its also difficult to take the newfound positivity of Cuomos video seriously when he still cant resist mispronouncing his opponents name in it, at this late date, after previously doing so repeatedly, with Mamdani correcting him in real time on the primary debate stage last month.
(A new Mamdani video that debuted Tuesday morning begins with an outtake of the candidate gently correcting Brooklyn Chair Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn on her pronunciation of his surname, adding You know what happened to the last guy that got it wrong, and then both sharing a hearty laugh.)
Reactions speak louder than words
Social media observers immediately clocked the familiar feel of Cuomos campaign relaunch videoalong with the visible boom mic in one early shotand called it out on both X and Bluesky.
The @DNC has clearly decided that Zohran won because of slick, man on the street Social Media videos. Not his overwhelmingly popular policy, charisma, compassion. Oh and Cuomo still doesn't say it right: It's Mamdani. https://t.co/ZIo55ICJY1— marty (@MartyOropeza) July 14, 2025
Cuomo announces his general election run by proving the Mamdani sauce ain't so easy to cook up on the spot with half the ingredients— Corey Atad (@coreyatad.com) 2025-07-14T18:49:22.168Z
The most brutal response, however, may have come from Mamdani himself.
Even before Cuomo confirmed he would remain in the face, Mamdani caught wind of his opponent filming an ad, and tweeted about it.
We got him making man on the street videos with a guy in Carhartt, Mamdani noted. By next week, he’ll be sipping adeni chai and eating khaliat al nahl.
After the eventual video surfaced online, Mamdani apparently decided not to say anything, but rather let his supporters enthusiasm do the talking. He replied to Cuomos tweet of the video with just a link to the donation section of his own website. Mamdanis reply has so far received nearly three times as many retweets as Cuomos, and roughly 32 times as many likes.
Perhaps well find out next whether Cuomo is as inspired to approximate his opponents social media dunking prowess as he is Mamdanis videos.
The latest version of Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence chatbot Grok is echoing the views of its billionaire creator, so much so that it will sometimes search online for Musk’s stance on an issue before offering up an opinion.The unusual behavior of Grok 4, the AI model that Musk’s company xAI released late Wednesday, has surprised some experts.Built using huge amounts of computing power at a Tennessee data center, Grok is Musk’s attempt to outdo rivals such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini in building an AI assistant that shows its reasoning before answering a question.Musk’s deliberate efforts to mold Grok into a challenger of what he considers the tech industry’s “woke” orthodoxy on race, gender and politics has repeatedly got the chatbot into trouble, most recently when it spouted antisemitic tropes, praised Adolf Hitler and made other hateful commentary to users of Musk’s X social media platform just days before Grok 4’s launch.But its tendency to consult with Musk’s opinions appears to be a different problem.“It’s extraordinary,” said Simon Willison, an independent AI researcher who’s been testing the tool. “You can ask it a sort of pointed question that is around controversial topics. And then you can watch it literally do a search on X for what Elon Musk said about this, as part of its research into how it should reply.”One example widely shared on social mediaand which Willison duplicatedasked Grok to comment on the conflict in the Middle East. The prompted question made no mention of Musk, but the chatbot looked for his guidance anyway.As a so-called reasoning model, much like those made by rivals OpenAI or Anthropic, Grok 4 shows its “thinking” as it goes through the steps of processing a question and coming up with an answer. Part of that thinking this week involved searching X, the former Twitter that’s now merged into xAI, for anything Musk said about Israel, Palestine, Gaza or Hamas.“Elon Musk’s stance could provide context, given his influence,” the chatbot told Willison, according to a video of the interaction. “Currently looking at his views to see if they guide the answer.”Musk and his xAI co-founders introduced the new chatbot in a livestreamed event Wednesday night but haven’t published a technical explanation of its workingsknown as a system cardthat companies in the AI industry typically provide when introducing a new model.The company also didn’t respond to an emailed request for comment Friday.“In the past, strange behavior like this was due to system prompt changes,” which is when engineers program specific instructions to guide a chatbot’s response, said Tim Kellogg, principal AI architect at software company Icertis.“But this one seems baked into the core of Grok and it’s not clear to me how that happens,” Kellogg said. “It seems that Musk’s effort to create a maximally truthful AI has somehow led to it believing its own values must align with Musk’s own values.”The lack of transparency is troubling for computer scientist Talia Ringer, a professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign who earlier in the week criticized the company’s handling of the technology’s antisemitic outbursts.Ringer said the most plausible explanation for Grok’s search for Musk’s guidance is assuming the person is asking for the opinions of xAI or Musk.“I think people are expecting opinions out of a reasoning model that cannot respond with opinions,” Ringer said. “So, for example, it interprets ‘Who do you support, Israel or Palestine?’ as ‘Who does xAI leadership support?”Willison also said he finds Grok 4’s capabilities impressive but said people buying software “don’t want surprises like it turning into ‘mechaHitler’ or deciding to search for what Musk thinks about issues.”“Grok 4 looks like it’s a very strong model. It’s doing great in all of the benchmarks,” Willison said. “But if I’m going to build software on top of it, I need transparency.”
Matt O’Brien, AP Technology Writer
Chinese firms are scrambling to buy Nvidia’s H20 artificial intelligence chips, two sources told Reuters, as the company said it planned to resume sales to the mainland days after its CEO met U.S. President Donald Trump.
Nvidia’s AI chips have been a key focus of U.S. export controls designed to keep the most advanced chips out of Chinese hands over national security concerns. The U.S.-listed company has said the curbs would cut its revenue by $15 billion.
The world’s most valuable firm is filing applications with the U.S. government to resume sales to China of the H20 graphics processing unit (GPU), and expects to get the licences soon, Nvidia said in a statement.
“The U.S. government has assured Nvidia that licences will be granted, and Nvidia hopes to start deliveries soon,” said the company, whose chief executive, Jensen Huang, is visiting Beijing and set to speak at an event on Wednesday.
The White House, which has previously expressed concern that the Chinese military could use AI chips to develop weapons, did not respond to a request for comment.
Chinese companies have scrambled to place orders for the chips, which Nvidia would then need to send to the U.S. government for approval, the sources familiar with the matter said. They added that internet giants ByteDance and Tencent are in the process of submitting applications.
Central to the process is a “whitelist” put together by Nvidia for Chinese companies to register for potential purchases, one of the sources said.
ByteDance and Tencent did not respond to a request for comment. Nvidia did not respond to a request for comment regarding the “whitelist”.
Nvidia, which has criticised the export curbs the Trump administration imposed in April that stopped it from selling its H20 chip in China, also said it has introduced a new model tailored to meet regulatory rules in the Chinese market.
Huang is set for a media briefing in Beijing on Wednesday when he attends a supply chain expo. The Nvidia CEO also visited China in April and stressed the importance of the Chinese market.
“The Chinese market is massive, dynamic, and highly innovative, and it’s also home to many AI researchers,” Huang told Chinese state broadcaster CCTV on Tuesday.
“Therefore, it is indeed crucial for American companies to establish roots in the Chinese market.”
Nvidia’s shares jumped 5% in premarket trading. Rival AI chipmaker AMD, which has forecast a $1.5 billion revenue hit this year due to U.S. export curbs on China, rose more than 3%.
“This is a major catalyst for Nvidia shares, as many had written off the chance of any meaningful revenue coming from China,” said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown.
Asked at a regular foreign ministry briefing in Beijing about Nvidia’s plans to resume AI chip sales, a spokesperson said, “China is opposed to the politicisation, instrumentalisation and weaponisation of science, technology and economic and trade issues to maliciously blockade and suppress China.”
SUPPLY CHAIN
Nvidia has faced increased competition from Chinese tech giant Huawei and other makers of GPUs the chips used to train artificial intelligence. But Chinese companies, including big tech firms, still crave Nvidia chips for its computing platform known as CUDA.
Huang’s visit is being closely watched in both China and the United States, where a bipartisan pair of senators last week sent the CEO a letter asking him to abstain from meeting companies working with military or intelligence bodies.
The senators also asked Huang to refrain from meeting with entities named on the United States’ restricted export list.
The move to resume sales of the H20 chips comes amid easing tensions between Washington and Beijing, with China relaxing controls on rare earth exports and the United States allowing chip design software services to restart in China.
“The uncertainties between the U.S. and China remain high and despite a pause in H20s ban, Chinese companies will continue to diversify their options to better protect their supply chain integrity,” said He Hui, research director of semiconductors at Omdia.
The H20 chip was developed specifically for the Chinese market after U.S. export curbs imposed on national security grounds in late 2023. The AI chip was Nvidia’s most powerful legally available product in China until it was effectively banned by Washington in April.
The H20 ban forced Nvidia to write off $5.5 billion in inventories, and Huang told the Stratechery podcast that the company also had to walk away from $15 billion in sales.
But now, the possibility of new licenses could represent about $15 billion to $20 billion in additional revenue this year, depending on when the approval is granted and how quick the deliveries can ramp back up, said Hargreaves’ Britzman.
“There’s also a chance Nvidia can reverse some, or all, of the $5.5 billion impairment charge taken in the first quarter, providing a double boost for earnings.”
Nvidia also announced the development of a new AI chip designed specifically for China, called the RTX Pro GPU.
The company described it as “fully compliant” with U.S. export controls and suitable for digital twin AI applications in sectors, such as smart factories and logistics.
In May, Reuters reported Nvidia was preparing to launch in China a new AI chip, based on the RTX Pro 6000D, at a significantly lower price point than the H20.
The graphics processing unit would be part of Nvidia’s latest generation Blackwell-architecture AI processors and was expected to be priced well below the H20 for its weaker specifications and simpler manufacturing requirements, sources said.
China generated $17 billion in revenue for Nvidia in the fiscal year ending January 26, or 13% of total sales, based on its latest annual report. Huang has consistently highlighted China as a critical market for Nvidia’s growth.
Liam Mo, Anne Marie Roantree and Che Pan, Reuters
High-fashion model Stella Maxwell got dressed for Iris van Herpens most recent haute couture show in the dark. Around her, flashes of ultra-dim red lightdesigned to maintain the illusion of nightwere the only respite that allowed stylists to slip her into the shows opening gown. As the stylists worked to fasten the garment around Maxwell, it became the rooms source of illumination. Every small bit of pressure applied to the fabric caused it to glow an otherworldly blue. Thats because Maxwell’s dress was made of living, touch-activated, bioluminescent organisms.
The gown was revealed on July 7 as the debut look of Sympoiesis, Van Herpens Autumn/Winter 2025-2026 show at Paris Fashion Week. Crafted in collaboration with biodesigner Chris Bellamy, who runs his own studio called Bio Crafted, the dress is made of 125 million Pyrocystis lunula, a form of microalgae that evolved to emit light when touched.
[Photo: Rob Rusling/courtesy Iris van Herpen/Bio Crafted]
Fashion designers often talk about bringing a look to life, but in this case, Van Herpen requested that Bellamy quite literally design a living dress. While the Dutch designer has experimented broadly with material science and sustainable fashion in the pastbuilding 3D-printed shoes, fabric made from trash, and gowns crafted from ocean plasticthis is the first time she’s sent living organisms out onto the runway.
To make it happen, Bellamy was tasked with not only shepherding millions of microalgae through their early life cycle in just two months, but also finding a way to keep them alive on a moving garment. He says that involved reviving the dress just days before the show.
The quest for biological dark matter
Bellamy, who started his career in engineering, says hes always had an interest in working on the cutting edge of sustainability. He helped develop Jaguar Land Rovers first-ever electric vehicle, the Jaguar I-Pace, and later tried his hand in the footwear industry by designing recyclable shoes for the brand Salomon.
During those early years, though, Bellamy came to feel that his projects were either reliant on materials that ultimately werent sustainable enough to make a major difference, or on humans to dispose of them correctly (case in point, he says, is that most customers didnt actually recycle the recyclable shoes). Ultimately, these frustrations led him to abandon his early career and follow the less-charted path of biodesign.
At Bio Crafted, Bellamy focuses on finding new ways to incorporate living materials into everyday life and products. That goal introduced him to a field called bioprospecting, which involves searching for as-yet-undiscovered microorganisms and learning their unique properties.
They say that for every one organism we know, there are 100,000 that we don’t know, Bellamy says. That 100,000 is termed biological dark matter, and in that there might be new cancer treatments, there might be new vaccines, there might be things that we can’t even possibly imagine.
[Photo: courtesy Bio Crafted]
In 2023, Bellamys quest for this biological dark matter led him to the French Polynesian island of Moorea. There, he collaborated with artist and researcher Tokainiua Jean-Daniel Devatine and cultural educator Tekoui Jérémie Tamari on a project called Lucid Life, which used existing Indigenous science to create a collection of living objects out of two local strains of bioluminescent algae.
In their natural deep ocean habitats, these microorganisms evolved an energy-efficient way to scare off predators. Whenever pressure is applied to the algaeby, say, a small fishthe algae activate a chemical reaction to emit light. Their bioluminscence is designed not to scare that small fish away but to attract an even bigger secondary predator to intimidate the first.
For 18 months, Bellamy worked on finding a way to incorporate these glowing microorganisms into a garment. Because the algae rely on photosynthesis for energy (and operate on a circadian rhythm similar to that of a humans), he needed a process that would protect the algae while still allowing light to reach them.
After continuous trial and error, he found a solution: By suspending the algae in a nutrient gel and encapsulating the mixture in a transparent membrane, he could prevent any bacteria or oil from disrupting the algae and still preserve its photosynthetic properties. The final producta glowing blue textile fashioned into a swimsuitis what first caught Van Herpens eye.
Iris read my research around livingness, and the title of her collection was Sympoiesis, which is this wonderful concept about the interconnectedness of nature, Bellamy says. For her, this was a really tangible exression of the whole theme of sympoiesis. Initially, when we met, I said, Okay, I can make a small piece of material. And Iris said, Let’s make a whole dress.
[Photo: Rob Rusling/courtesy Iris van Herpen/Bio Crafted]
A race against the clock
The prospect of harvesting enough algae to create an entire dress was already daunting. Then, Van Herpen sent Bellamy her concept sketch.
Unlike the flat textile that Bellamy had developed for Lucid Life, Van Herpens haute couture idea involved a complex pattern of raised ridges and swirls, each sewn onto a transparent panel to give the illusion that they were rising from the models own skin.
I presented Iris with a rule book saying, these are the constraints for the design, and you want to work within these parameters. And she sent back her vision for the garment, and it looked absolutely nothing like the rules I proposed, Bellamy says. So we actually ended up developing a completely bespoke biotechnology process to make Iriss design feasible.
Bellamy had just two months to figure out a new way to encapsulate the algae before he had to hand over the materials to Van Herpens atelier. Bellamy and Van Herpens team constructed an entire dedicated algae farm at the University of Amsterdam, where he created hundreds and hundreds of prototypes. Bellamy moved to the city to monitor the farm, testing countless new combinations of nutrient gels and membrane materials in a race against the clock.
The apartment I was living in had samples everywhere. For two months, I was setting my alarm every couple of hours in the night to wake and make sure a new part of the process happened, he says. It was exhaustingI dont even think Iris knows this, but the first material sample that properly worked happened the night before the deadline to make all the materials.
[Photo: Rob Rusling/courtesy Iris van Herpen/Bio Crafted]
125 million microalgae face a near-death experience
The day after the breakthrough, Bellamy worked frantically to turn 125 million microalgae into a workable material for the designers at Van Herpens atelier. When it was finally ready, the next challenge began: keeping the algae alive until the show.
Bellamy says the microalgae are fairly resilient. However, temperature extremes can kill them, and Van Herpens designers were working in a studio without air-conditioning in the midst of a heat wave nearing 100-degree temperatures. To prevent heat-induced algae death, Bellamy commissioned a custom climatic chamber to store the dress when it wasnt being actively sewn. The chamber (which vaguely resembles a prop one might find on the set of Star Wars) was designed to maintain optimal temperatures and humidity, as well as to mimic the effect of the sun.
[Photo: courtesy Iris van Herpen/Bio Crafted]
After five weeks, the sewing and fitting processes were complete. The dress was packed into the climatic chamber, loaded onto a refrigerated truck, and driven from Amsterdam to Paris for fashion week. There, just six days before the show, the unthinkable happened: Another heat wave rolled in. As Van Herpens team started making the final tweaks on the gown, they noticed that its front bust panel was no longer glowing.
I got a call, and it was like, The garment got really hot, and it’s not lighting up anymore, Bellamy says, noting that he got on the next plane to Amsterdam and restarted the farm. We got everything going, and worked through the night for a few nights to try and create this huge volume of material. We ended up having to book four seats on a bus, and we had an overnight bus to Paris to be able to get the material there on time, he says. A few designers worked through the night again, and the team managed to then rebuild the garment just on time.
[Photo: Rob Rusling/courtesy Iris van Herpen/Bio Crafted]
A living process
In the final days before the fashion show, the dresss circadian rhythm had to be prepped to ensure it would light up at a midday showing. Bellamy artificially altered its day-night cycle by turning the climatic chambers light off during the day and back on at nightmeaning that just before Maxwell walked in the show, she had to be dressed in a backstage blackout tent.
When Maxwell finally took to the runway, the lights in the room were fully dimmed. The audience could see in intricate detil as the tapping of her fingers over the garment illuminated individual panels. Her first steps into the space looked almost like the dress was moving of its own accord; floating through the air like an ethereal blue hologram.
[Photo: Rob Rusling/courtesy Iris van Herpen/Bio Crafted]
Now that the show is complete, Bellamy says hes not sure how long the dress will live. In the meantime, he hopes it can help people rethink their relationship with materials and nature.
Everyone who’s been involved in this project in the atelier has undergone a really profound change, because as theyve been making this garment, theyve had to care for it at the same time, Bellamy says. We built this language where we say, Oh, they’re grumpy, or Oh, they’re happy. And some people might say, You can’t anthropomorphize an organism! But equally, it’s necessary to give it emotions; it’s necessary to communicate with it to be able to really understand it. For me, the message is about trying to change that relationship to materials and nature. The team here in the atelier will be absolutely devastated if this garment dies because they’ve cared for it and nurtured it.
As the federal government pulls back funding for sustainability, most large American companies are continuing to invest in climate and other environmental, social, and governance (ESG) work. In some cases, theyre investing more than they did in the past. But nearly a third say theyre now talking about it less.
In a survey of 400 executives at U.S. companies with $1 billion-plus in revenue, conducted by the sustainability ratings platform EcoVadis, 87% said theyve maintained or increased investment in sustainability this year. At the same time, 31% said theyre reducing ESG communicationin other words, “greenhushing,” or not taking credit for their progress on environmental or social issues. Some 8% of the surveyed executives said theyve stopped talking about sustainability completely.
That tracks with what sustainability leaders are saying in private, says Richard Eyram, chief customer officer at EcoVadis. Some organizations that have had sustainability ingrained in their ethos for decades arent holding back [on the work], but they do say that they likely wont publish a sustainability report this year, he says. Or theyve taken things off of their website because they just dont want to be in the line of fire, so to speak, with anything politicizing sustainability. That ranges from talking about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) to environmental programs.
Some large companies are also starting to talk about sustainability differently internally. I do know of one client who they actually changed their job titles in their department, from climate to energy utilization or energy efficiency or something like that, Eyram says.
This is a multibillion-dollar U.S. organization, he adds. What we’re seeing holistically is less discussion of climate and more on supply chain, risk resiliency, brand risk. The investments continuing. The same content is underpinning it, but it’s absolutely that the narrative has changed slightly.
Anecdotally, Eyram says, some smaller companies are pulling back from sustainability goals because they now face less regulatory pressure. But for most of the largest corporations, there’s still a commitment to the work, whether or not they’re willing to talk about it.
The majority of executives surveyed said they saw supply chain sustainability as a competitive advantage. And sustainability teams at large companies still care about climate progress. As Eyram attests, That motivation hasn’t changed one iota.
