President Donald Trumps second-term strengths look different from his first, according to recent polling.
Once strengthened by economic issues, Trump’s approval is now relatively low on the economy and he’s leaning on his stronger issues of crime, border security, and immigration. Concerns about the economy and immigration helped propel him to the White House, but polling over the past year shows that Americans’ faith in the Republican president’s handling of the economy is low, particularly among independents, and his approval on immigration has fallen slightly.
Now, Trump’s strongest issues are border security and crime, but there were signs of potential weakness on crime in the most recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
At the same time, Trumps overall approval has been fairly steady in AP-NORC polling since the beginning of his second term in January. This month, 39% of U.S. adults approve of how Trump is handling his job as president, which is back in line with his average approval rating after a slight uptick in August. There was a similar pattern during his first White House term, when his approval stayed within a narrow range.
Here are the issues on which he’s been strongest and weakest in his second term:
Trumps biggest strengths are border security and crime
Trump has turned border security into a strength of his second term, a sharp reversal from his first term in office.
Most U.S. adults approve of Trumps approach to border security, according to the poll. He gets higher marks on that than on his handling of the presidency overall or other issues that had previously been top strengths, including immigration and crime. This has also emerged as a unique strength of his second term. Only about 4 in 10 U.S. adults approved of Trumps approach to border security in 2019, during which time Trump was focused on securing money for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
His approval on immigration is slightly lower than it was early in his second term, but it remains a bit higher than his overall job approval.
In March, about half of U.S. adults approved of his handling of immigration. The most recent measure found his approval on immigration at 43%, a tick higher than his overall approval rating.
Even with the slight dip, immigration remains a strength in a way it was not in his first term, when closer to 4 in 10 U.S. adults approved of his immigration approach. When he started his second term, it was about half who approved.
Trump has taken steps to deport immigrants who are living in the United States illegally, and the recent poll finds a sizable share of Americans about half say Trump has gone too far in pursuit of that goal. That is roughly the same share as held that stance in a poll conducted in April.
His approval on how he is handling crime is down slightly to 46%, after reaching 53% in August as he deployed the National Guard in the District of Columbia. But that still exceeds his overall job approval, and it also is an advantage among certain groups such as independents. About 4 in 10 independents approve of Trumps approach to crime, compared with 25% who approve of his approach to the presidency overall.
Trump is weaker on the economy with independents
The economy is often a fraught point for presidents, and there are indications that Americans continue to be concerned about the countrys economic state.
Just 37% of U.S. adults approve of Trumps handling of the economy. That is down slightly from August, when 43% approved, but broadly in line with his overall approval.
The economy is a particularly weak issue for Trump among independents. Only about 2 in 10 independents approve of how Trump is handling the economy, much lower than the share who approve of his handling of border security and crime.
In Trumps first term, closer to half of U.S. adults approved of his handling of the economy. This height of his success on this issue came at the beginning of 2020, right before the COVID-19 pandemic sparked an economic downturn.
His approval on this issue varied throughout the pandemic, and about half of U.S. adults approved of his economic approach just before he lost the 2020 presidential election. At that point, however, more were more worried about the coronavirus pandemic than the economy. His approval has been consistently lower in his second term. When he came into office, only about 4 in 10 approved of how he handled the economy.
Trumps lowest issues among Republicans: Trade and health care
About 7 in 10 Republicans approve of Trumps approach to trade negotiations with other countries and health care, marking the lowest issue ratings among his base. While he has a majority approval among Republicans on those issues, it falls short of his much higher approvals on topics such as border security and crime.
Overall, U.S. adults are not thrilled about how he is handling these issues, either. Only about one-third approve of how Trump is handling either trade negotiations with other countries or health care. These have been steadily low in recent AP-NORC polls but roughly track with Trumps overall approval. They were also similarly low in his first term.
About 6 in 10 U.S. adults say Trump has gone too far when it comes to imposing new tariffs on other countries. That includes about 9 in 10 Democrats but also roughly 6 in 10 independents and 3 in 10 Republicans. Very few people, including Republicans, want Trump to go further on imposing tariffs.
Trump is earning lower marks on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Some 37% of U.S. adults approve of the way Trump is handling the conflict between the sraelis and the Palestinians, down from the 44% who approved in March.
Slightly fewer Republicans approve of how Trump is handling the conflict 72%, compared with 82% of Republicans who approved of the way Trump was handling the issue in March. Democrats are also slightly less likely to approve: 9% now, down from 14% in March.
Despite this, Trump’s approval on foreign policy has been steady. About 4 in 10 U.S. adults approve, in line with April.
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The AP-NORC poll of 1,183 adults was conducted Sept. 11-15, using a sample drawn from NORCs probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.
Linley Sanders, Associated Press
Michaels announced Wednesday it is bringing back a slice of Joann fabrics, as it’s opening two store-in-store experiences: “The Knit & Sew Shop” and “The Party Shop at Michaels.”
The “Knit & Sew Shop is now available in all Michaels stores across the U.S. and Canada, featuring the Joann name and logo as a dual-branded shop, with a curated assortment of threads, sewing notions, and yarnwith fabric also available in most stores.
The selection will also include the Big Twist yarn collectionhitting shelves at the end of Octoberwhich was a favorite among Joann’s loyal customers, and was part of Michaels’ purchase of Joanns intellectual property (IP).
“The Knit & Sew Shop” will feature new in-store services, including fabric-cutting tableswhich will be available in more than 650 stores by mid-Octoberand new sewing machines.
Michaels now carries fabric in over 840 stores, with plans to expand to over 250 more locations. According to the retailer, it will dedicate nearly 25% more space to fabric and expand its yarn selection by 25% this year “to meet strong customer demand.”
The Texas-based company acquired the beloved fabrics retailer’s IP and private brands, including Big Twist, in June, after Joann closed all of its stores following a second bankruptcy.
[Photo: Michaels]
By reviving the fabric and craft stores brand name, Michaels is hoping to make it the destination for crafters.
“The launch [is] a transformative step forward on our mission to become the go-to destination for fueling creativity and celebration,” Michaels CEO David Boone said in a statement.
Over on Reddit, some former Joann customers are visibly excited about Michaels’ new offerings. “Am I really at Michael’s?! Or am I dreaming? Doth my eyes deceive me, or am I really seeing KC yarn for sale in a Michael’s?!” one user wrote, referencing a yarn brand formerly sold at Joann.
However, not everyone is happy about Michaels’ latest moves.
In particular, some Joann loyalists are debating whether the moves can be seen as Michaels attempting to steal former Joann customers, with one writing in this Reddit thread, “I dont hate Michaels . . . That being said, I would argue that they are trying to be Joanns (As well as Party City!).”
The Party Shop at Michaels, which follows Party City’s collapse in late 2024, features an expanded selection of party supplies, including balloon bars and in-store parties for kids.
Party City said it was forced to close its doors last February because of inflation and changes in consumer spending, after filing for bankruptcy twice.
Washington’s hottest club has everything Cabinet secretaries, a new stone patio, food from the White House kitchen, and even a playlist curated by President Donald Trump.
But good luck getting a spot on the guest list. So far, only some of the president’s political allies, business executives, and administration officials have been invited.
In Trump’s remake of the White House, the Rose Garden is now the Rose Garden Club, with the iconic lawn outside the Oval Office transformed into a taxpayer-supported imitation of the patio at Mar-a-Lago, the president’s private Florida resort.
Trump debuted the name during his first formal dinner there this month and has included it on his official public schedule, too. He’s set to host another event on Wednesday evening with members of his Cabinet and senior staff, according to an official who wasn’t authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
Presidents have always used invitations to the White House as a prestigious reward for friends and supporters, but Trumps rebranding of an iconic area of the Peoples House is unprecedented. Its a fresh example of how the billionaire Republican is replicating the gilded and cloistered bubble of his private life inside the confines of the most famous government housing in the country.
Trump has long understood the allure of exclusive spaces
In his first term, Trump had an eponymous hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue a few blocks away from the White House and would go there often for dinner. But the Trump family sold the property during President Joe Biden’s administration, leaving him without a uniquely Trump establishment in the city in his second term.
Now he doesnt need to go anywhere to enter his comfort zone and, in fact, has been spending less time at his home on his golf course in central New Jersey than he did in the first year of his first term.
To make the Rose Garden his own, Trump paved over the grass and set out tables and chairs, complete with yellow-and-white striped umbrellas that resemble the ones at Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, Florida. He also installed a speaker system to play his favorite tunes as he does in Florida.
The project cost about $2 million and was paid for by the Trust for the National Mall, a nonprofit that works with the National Park Service.
The events on the new White House patio so far have been official in nature and are part of the long tradition of presidential entertaining at the Executive Mansion, with military social aides on hand to escort guests and the kitchen staff tasked to whip up the sustenance.
Trump, who rose to fame as a New York real estate executive, also ran casinos and hotels, and he still loves playing host. He frequently flatters his guests as brilliant and beautiful and relishes the ability to gather the countrys most powerful people.
So who pays for them?
All presidents invite family members and friends, lawmakers and political allies, donors and business leaders, and others to the White House for reasons that range from bill signings and policy announcements to picnics and lavish state dinners.
Trump is expected to entertain on the white marble patio, in the shadow of the Washington Monument, as often as he can, the White House said.
Taxpayers pick up the tab for some of the social events hosted by a president, like the gathering for Republican lawmakers. Congress gives the White House money to pay for events like these since the Executive Mansion is also the presidents home.
Events of a more personal nature, like a birthday party or the funeral service Trump held at the White House in 2020 for his younger brother, Robert, would have to be paid for by the president since it is not considered government or the peoples business.
Tech titans lose out to GOP lawmakers for club’s opening
The official debut of the Rose Garden Club was supposed to be with tech titans such as Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Google’s Sundar Pichai, and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella. However, rain forced Trump to move the Sept. 4 event indoors to the ornate State Dining Room.
The honor of being first instead went to Republican lawmakers, who gathered around two dozen tables under a clear night sky on Sept. 5.
Holding a microphone, Trump welcomed his guests by saying you are the first ones in this great place. He described it as a club for people that can bring peace and success to our country.
Table settings featured white tablecloths and yellow roses, plus a place card that said, The Rose Garden Club at the White House.
Dinner started with a Rose Garden Salad that included tomatoes and iceberg lettuce, followed by steak or chicken, or pasta primavera for vegetarians. Chocolate cake was the dessert.
Trump sat at a corner table with House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana, Rep. Ronny Jackson of Texas, and Sen. Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania. Other lawmakers circulated by Trumps table for photos with the president. Some were posted online.
“It was a honor to be there, wrote Rep. John McGuire of Virginia.
Chris Megerian and Darlene Superville, Associated Press
A lifelong fan of Tomb Raider, French gamer Romain Bos was on tenterhooks when an update of the popular video game went online in August.
But his excitement quickly turned to anger.
The gamer’s ears and those of other Tomb Raider” fans picked up something amiss with the French-language voice of Lara Croft, the games protagonist.
It sounded robotic, lifeless even shorn of the warmth, grace, and believability that French voice actor Françoise Cadol has given to Croft since she started playing the character in 1996.
Gamers and Cadol herself came to the same conclusion: A machine had cloned her voice and replaced her.
It’s pathetic,” says Cadol, who straight away called her lawyer. My voice belongs to me. You have no right to do that.
It was absolutely scandalous, says Bos. It was artificial intelligence.
AI encroaching everywhere
Aspyr, the game developer based in Austin, Texas, didnt respond to e-mailed questions from The Associated Press. But it acknowledged in a post last week on its website that what it described as unauthorized AI generated content had been incorporated into its Aug. 14 update of Tomb Raider IVVI Remastered” that angered fans.
Weve addressed this issue by removing all AI voiceover content, Aspyr’s post said. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
Still, the affair has triggered alarms in the voiceover community, with campaigners saying it’s a sobering example of the dangers that AI poses to human workers and their jobs.
If we can replace actors, well be able to replace accountants, and a whole range of other professions that could also be automated,” says Patrick Kuban, a French-language voice actor who is also a co-president of United Voice Artists, an international federation of voiceover artists.
“So we need to ask ourselves the right questions: How far should we go, and how do we regulate these machines?”
Hollywood has seen similar concerns, with video game performers striking for 11 months for a new contract this year that included AI guardrails.
This is happening pretty much everywhere. Were getting alerts from all over the world from Brazil to Taiwan, Kuban said in an Associated Press interview.
Actors voices are being captured, either to create voice clones not perfect ones but for illicit use on social media by individuals, since there are now many apps for making audio deepfakes,” Kuban said.
These voices are also being used by content producers who arent necessarily in the same country,” he said. So its very difficult for actors to reclaim control over their voices, to block these uses.
Cadol’s Voice Guardians
Cadol says that within minutes of the release of the Tomb Raider update, her phone began erupting with messages, emails and social media notifications from upset fans.
I took a look and I saw all this emotion anger, sadness, confusion. And that’s how I found out that my voice had been cloned, she said in an AP interview.
Cadol says 12 years of recording French-language voiceovers for Lara Croft from 1996 to 2008 built an intimate bond with her fans. She calls them the guardians of her work.
Once the initial shock subsided, she resolved to fight back. Her Paris lawyer, Jonathan Elkaim, is seeking an apology from Aspyr and financial redress.
Grammar error
In the update, new chunks of voiceover appear to have been added to genuine recordings that Cadol says she made years ago.
Most notably, fans picked up on one particularly awkward segment. In it, a voice instructs players how to use their game controllers to make Lara Croft climb onto an obstacle, intoning in French: Place toi devant et appuyez sur avancer Stand in front and press advance.’
Not only does it sound clunky but it also rings as grammatically incorrect to French speakers mixing up the polite and less polite forms of language that they use, depending on who they’re addressing.
Gamers were up in arms. Bos posted a video on his YouTube channel that same evening, lamenting: “Its half Françoise Cadol, half AI. Its horrible ! Why have they done that?
I was really disgusted, the 34-year-old said in an AP interview. I grew up with Françoise Cadol’s voice. I’ve been a Tomb Raider fan since I was young kid.”
Lara Croft is a bit how should I say a bit sarcastic at times in some of her lines. And I think Françoise played that very, very well, he said.
Thats exactly why now is the time to set boundaries,” he added. Its so that future generations also have the chance to experience talented actors.”
John Leicester and Nicolas Garriga, Associated Press
Historically, one of the best ways to generate interest in what someone has to say is to not allow them to say it.
Trump and his handpicked chair of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may not have set out to create a built-in, eager audience for Jimmy Kimmel content when they allegedly pressured ABC to yank his show off the air last week, but thats just what they did.
Kimmel knew hed be speaking to far more viewers than usual during last nights comeback episode, and he did not squander the opportunity. Instead, he delivered a bold yet measured once-in-a-lifetime monologue that reached across the aisle while punching up at those in power.
At one point during his remarkable monologue, the host directly commented on the size of his new audience. He played a clip of Trump gloating over ABCs decision to pull him off the air, claiming Kimmel would be easy to replace because he had no ratings.
Well, tonight I do, Kimmel retorted.
Indeed, he did. Although the linear TV ratings are not in yetand will likely be skewed by the fact that local broadcasting companies Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair refused to carry the show in several major markets, including Washington, D.C.the YouTube clip for Kimmels opening monologue earned seven million views in a matter of hours and was up to 10 million as of this writing.
He tried his best to cancel meinstead, he forced millions of people to watch the show, Kimmel continued. He might have to release the Epstein files to distract from this.
Kimmel and his writers understood the assignment
More important than the size of the audience for last nights episode was its breadth.
Kimmel and his writers understood that this first monologue back from the brink of cancellation would reel in not only the usual fans and a huge batch of lapsed supporters, but also a hate-watching MAGA contingent, and curious viewers of all ideological stripes.
Everyone wanted to know: Would it be a chastened Kimmel playing nice? An undeterred Kimmel talking righteous trash? Would he feature a star-studded circle of supporters like Stephen Colbert recently did in his first show after CBS announced his cancellation?
Much like the general state of affairs in 2025, no outcome seemed off the table.
What viewers might not have expected, though, is what they ended up getting: a deeply nuanced and heartfelt plea for unity, beneath the more-expected surface layer of scathing, hilarious jokes at this administrations expense.
The ostensible reason that FCC chair Brendan Carr appeared to urge broadcasters to dump Kimmel last week was a single sentence the host uttered, which many interpreted as suggesting that Charlie Kirks murderer was aligned with MAGA. Kimmel had reportedly meant to address this misconception last week, before his show was pulled.
Last night, he finally did.
It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man, he said, tearing up. I don’t think there’s anything funny about it . . . Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group for the actions of what was obviously a deeply disturbed individual. That was really the opposite of the point I was trying to make. But I understand that, to some, it felt either ill-timed or unclear or maybe both. And for those who think I did point a finger. I get why you’re upset. If the situation was reversed, there’s a good chance I’d have felt the same way.
Kimmel may not have apologized for his previous words, but he did something rarer and arguably more powerful: He validated the people genuinely outraged by them. He cut right through the film of polarization that envelops every current event but especially those in the weeks since Kirks murder, and emphasized both sides shared humanity.
No wonder he teared up again nearly 10 minutes later, while recalling Erika Kirks magnanimous forgiveness of her husbands killer during Kirks memorial service over the weekend.
Speaking truth to powerwith a smile
Though surrounded by savage clowning on Carr and Trump, Kimmels comments about Kirk were so considered and seemingly genuine, they made the campaign to silence him look even more cynical and malicious in contrast. Even if Kimmel were only pretending to be so affected by the murder of a young father with whom he vehemently disagreed, well, at least hes incredible at pretending.
Trump, meanwhile, gives away the game every time he speaks about Kimmels suspension. Around the time the show aired last night, the president sent out a furious Truth Social post, threatening to test ABC on whether keeping Kimmel on the air amounts to a major illegal Campaign Contribution to Democrats.
He seemingly forgot to mention that the push to get rid of Kimmel, which he hinted at as far back as July, was supposed to be on behalf of Charlie Kirk.
Some of the most scathing material in Kimmels monologue was about the apparent efforts to use Kirks murder as a means to censor dissenting voicesbe they journalists, professors, or talk show hostsand the host deftly manages to flip those efforts into a further call for unity.
The government push to remove a comedian from television seemed to be so blatant, after all, that it attracted support from unlikely allies such as Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and Candace Owens. Kimmel wisely paints his suspension with patriotism, calling the effort anti-American, and grounds it in the lineage of previously censored comedians like Lenny Bruce and George Carlin.
Maybe the silver lining from this is we found one thing we can agree on and maybe we’ll even find another one, he says near the end of his monologue. Maybe we can get a little bit closer together. We do agree on a lot of things. We agree on keeping our children safe from guns, on reproductive rights for women, social security, affordable health care, pediatric cancer research. These are all things that most Americans support. Let’s stop letting these politicians tell us what they want and tell them what we want.
Though not every vew Kimmel nodded toward is shared by all Americans, his plea for finding common ground capped off an incisive, inclusive monologue that will likely earn him grudging kudos from people who disagree with him.
After the monologue, Kimmel switched gears and went back to doing what he normally does: flexing his First Amendment-protected freedom to make fun of some other things the president recently did.
AI is not ready to hang up its Cupids arrow just yet.
Facebook Dating is the latest dating app to present AI-based features as the answer to swipe fatigue, Meta announced yesterday.
The new features include a dating assistant AI chatbot that allows users to find compatible matches, as well as a Meet Cute feature that automatically pairs them with an algorithmically matched profile once a week, all without users having to swipe a finger.
Rather than searching through endless profiles, users can type out exactly what they are looking for in a romantic partner and the assistant will recommend compatible matches.
The assistant allows users to go beyond traditional traits like height or education, a Meta spokesperson told Fast Company. For example, if a user typed out the prompt: find me a finance bro who loves puppies and long walks on the beach, in theory, the assistant would pull up a match based on publicly available information drawn from their profile.
The AI assistant can also be prompted for dating advice, including effective pickup lines or romantic first date ideas, and will be available in the Matches tab, continuing to roll out gradually across the U.S. and Canada, Meta says.
According to a recent study, just over a quarter of singles are already using AI wingmen to enhance their dating lives, up 333% from 2024.
Facebook Datings move away from the traditional dating app model lands amid a time of swipe fatigue and dating app burnout.
In 2024, 78% of dating app users reportedly feel emotionally, mentally, or physically exhausted from the apps, according to one Forbes Health survey. Many are instead turning to curated and vetted services and personalized matchmakers.
While Facebook Dating may not be the first dating app that comes to mind, it has answered the call.
Facebook said that matches among young adults are up 10% year over year, and that hundreds of thousands of young adults in the U.S. and Canada create accounts each month.
Compared to competitors like Tinder, which has about 50 million daily active users, and Hinges 10 million daily active users, it’s a drop in the bucket. But as the influx of singles run clubs and resurgence of speed-dating has shown, hopeless romantics will try anything once.
Ghia, the nonalcoholic aperitif brand thats become a mainstay at swanky bars and upscale brand events, just launched its newest flavor thats bound to be a crowd pleaser: Blood Orange.
The flavor, described as a blend of Ghias signature bitter aperitif with juicy blood orange, will join the companys line of canned, cocktail-adjacent beverages called Le Spritz, which come in existing flavors like Lime & Salt and Sumac & Chili. Blood Orange Le Spritz launches today on Ghias website at a price point of $24 for a four-pack of eight ounce cans.
As canned cocktails take over grocery store shelves, Ghias latest launch is designed to add a sweeter, more recognizable flavor profile into its portfolio of ready-to-drink (RTD) beveragesinviting a broader, more mainstream audience to sample the brand.
[Photo: David Kitz for Ghia]
The N/A category is still popping off
When Ghia first launched in 2020, its only product was its original aperitif, which is designed to be added to a mixer like a traditional spirit. Since then, the nonalcoholic beverage market has taken off: According to IWSR Drinks Market Analysis data, the category saw overall volumes rise by 29% in 2023, and the total no-alcohol market in the U.S. is expected to be worth almost $5 billion by 2028.
Simultaneously, canned cocktails have become Gen Zs drink of choice, with RTD beverage sales up by 27% in 2023making them the fastest-growing spirits category by revenue that year. Ghia has met both of these industry trends head-on, introducing new product lines including Le Fizz, the brands take on a nonalcoholic wine, and Le Spritz, its answer to the growing demand for RTDs.
[Photo: David Kitz for Ghia]
Since launching in 2021, Le Spritz has sold around four million cans, with the category now accounting for 60% of Ghias total sales, according to internal data shared with Fast Company.
Ghia founder and CEO Melanie Masarin says that the Le Spritz line is expanding the brand’s reach by offering a lower barrier to entry nonalcoholic drinking experience that doesn’t require mixing (unlike Ghia’s original aperitif). Its also helped bring the brand to new retailers, including Whole Foods, Target, and Trader Joes.
[Photo: David Kitz for Ghia]
Ghia blood orange: a mainstream move?
Compared to its existing Le Spritz flavors, which come with more unexpected top notes like ginger and yuzu, Blood Orange is an offering that might be more familiar to a mainstream audience, considering it’s become a popular choice for other companies like Spindrift, White Claw, San Pellegrino, and more.
While Blood Orange is initially launching as a digital exclusive, the company says it will eventually roll out to the brand’s retail partners, including Amazon, over the next few months, a move that will put it directly on shelves in front of curious customers.
Masarin, who is French and Italian, says the flavor took over a year to perfectand describes it as a return to Ghias Italian roots. It’s Ghia’s first addition to the Le Spritz line since 2023.
[Photo: David Kitz for Ghia]
Blood Orange came from wanting something a little more intuitive and approachable, but still layered with the depth of our Aperitif, she says. The citrus rounded out some of the natural bitterness, added a touch of weetness, and created a flavor that pairs beautifully with aperitivo snacks. Its approachable without being simple since it still has the dryness and herbal backbone of Ghia.
Unlike the bulk of RTD cocktails on the market, Blood Orange Le Spritz contains no added sugar, no artificial ingredients, and, of course, no alcohol. The flavor was designed to offer a sweeter option in Ghias overall catalog, but its balanced with marjoram, a Mediterranean herb that adds a piney, herbal quality to the drink.
Masarin describes Blood Orange as Ghias most crushable spritz yeta great entry point for someone new to the brand, and a fresh experience for fans. Its not your mothers orange soda, she says.
The afternoon sun was so hot that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman traded his usual crewneck sweater for a T-shirt on the last legs of a Tuesday visit to the massive Stargate artificial intelligence data center complex that will power the future of ChatGPT.OpenAI announced Tuesday that its flagship AI data center in Texas will be joined by five others around the U.S. as the ChatGPT maker aims to make good on the $500 billion infrastructure investment promoted by President Donald Trump earlier this year.Stargate, a joint venture between OpenAI, Oracle and Softbank, said it is building two more data center complexes in Texas, one in New Mexico, one in Ohio and another in a Midwest location it hasn’t yet disclosed.But it’s the project in Abilene, Texas, that promised to be the biggest of them all, transforming what the city’s mayor called an old railroad town.Oracle executives visiting the eight-building complex said it is already on track to be the world’s largest AI supercluster once fully built, a reference to its network of hundreds of thousands of AI computer chips that will be running in its H-shaped buildings.Altman said, “When you hit that button on ChatGPT, you really don’t I don’t, at least” think about what happens inside the data halls used to build and operate the chatbot.He and Oracle’s new co-CEO Clay Magouyrk also sought to emphasize the steps they’ve taken to reduce the energy-hungry complex’s environmental effects on a drought-prone region of West Texas, where temperatures hit 97 degrees Fahrenheit (36 degrees Celsius) on Tuesday.“We’re burning gas to run this data center,” said Altman, but added that “in the long trajectory of Stargate” the hope is to rely on many other power sources.The complex will require about 900 megawatts of electricity to power the eight buildings.One is already operating, and a second that Altman and Magouyrk visited Tuesday is nearly complete. Each server rack in those buildings holds 72 of Nvidia’s GB200 chips, which are specially designed for the most intensive AI workloads. Each building is expected to have about 60,000 of them.More than 6,000 workers now commute to the massive construction project each day, in what Mayor Weldon Hurt described as a significant boost to the local economy. The campus and nearby expansion will provide nearly 1,700 jobs onsite when fully operational, Oracle said, with “thousands more indirect jobs” predicted to be created.Hand-made signs lining the roads to the facility advertise “move-in-ready” homes for workers.“AI WORKERS? HUGE DISCOUNTS” says one promising homes with one to six bedrooms.But Hurt also acknowledged that residents have mixed feelings about the project due to its water and energy needs.The city’s chronically stressed reservoirs were at roughly half-capacity this week. Residents must follow a two-day-a-week outdoor watering schedule, trading off based on whether their address numbers are odd or even.One million gallons of water from the city’s municipal water systems provides an “initial fill” for a closed-loop system that cools the data center’s computers and keeps the water from evaporating. After that initial fill, Oracle expects each of the eight buildings to need another 12,000 gallons per year, which it describes as a “remarkably low figure for a facility of this scale.”“These data centers are designed to not use water,” Magouyrk said. “All of the data centers that we’re building (in) this part of Stargate are designed to not use water. The reason we do that is because it turns out that’s harmful for the environment and this is a better solution.”The closed-loop system shows that the developer is “taking its impact on local public water supplies seriously,” but the overall environmental effect is more nuanced because such systems require more electricity, which also means higher indirect water usage through power generation, said Shaolei Ren, a professor at the University of California, Riverside, who has studied AI’s environmental toll.Indeed, the data center complex includes a new gas-fired power plant, using natural gas turbines similar to those that power warships. The companies say the plant is meant to provide backup power for the data halls and is a better option than traditional diesel generators. Most of the power comes from the local grid, sourced from a mix of natural gas with the sprawling wind and solar farms that dot the windy and sunny region.Ren said that “even with emission-reduction measures, the health impacts of essentially turning the data center site into a power plant deserve further study for nearby communities.”Arlene Mendler, a Stargate neighbor, said she wished she had more say in the project that eliminated a vast tract of mesquite shrubland, home to coyotes and roadrunners.“It has completely changed the way we were living,” said Mendler, who lives across the street. “We moved up here 33 years ago for the peace, quiet, tranquility. After we got home from work, we could ride horses down the road. It was that type of a place.”Now, she doesn’t know what to do about the constant cacophony of construction sounds or the bright lights that have altered her nighttime views. The project was essentially a done deal once she found out about it.“They took 1,200 acres and just scraped it to bare dirt,” said her husband, Fred Mendler.The first time most residents heard of Stargate at least by that name was when Trump announced the project shortly after returning to the White House in January. Originally planned as a facility to mine cryptocurrency, developers had pivoted and expanded their designs to tailor the project to the AI boom sparked by ChatGPT.The partnership said at that time it was investing $100 billion and eventually up to $500 billion to build large-scale data centers and the energy generation needed to further AI development. More recently, OpenAI signed a $300 billion deal to buy computing capacity from Oracle. It’s a huge bet for the San Francisco-based AI startup, which was founded as a nonprofit.OpenAI and Oracle invited media and politicians, including U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, to tour the site for the first time Tuesday.Cruz called Texas “ground zero for AI” because if “you’re building a data center, what do you want? No. 1, you want abundant, low-cost energy.”Of the other five Stargate data center projects announced Tuesday, Oracle is working with OpenAI to build one just northeast of Abilene, in Shackelford County, Texas, and another in New Mexico’s Doa Ana County. It also said it is working to build one in the Midwest.Softbank said it has broken ground on two more in Lordstown, Ohio, and in Milam County, Texas.The projects offer OpenAI a way to break out from its longtime partnership with Microsoft, which until recently was the startup’s exclusive computing partner. Altman told The Associated Press his company has been “severely limited for the value we can offer to people.”“ChatGPT is slow. It’s not as smart as we’d like to be. Many users can’t use it s much as they would like,” Altman said. “We have many other ideas and products we want to build.”-The Associated Press and OpenAI have a licensing and technology agreement that allows OpenAI access to part of AP’s text archives.
Matt O’Brien, AP Technology Writer
U.S.-listed shares of Lithium Americas surged more than 70% in premarket trading on Wednesday after a report said the Trump administration was seeking an equity stake of up to 10% in the miner, the latest sign of involvement in industries the government sees as critical to national security.
Reuters reported late on Tuesday, citing two people familiar with the discussions, that the administration was discussing taking the stake in the company as part of talks to renegotiate a $2.26 billion government loan for its Thacker Pass lithium mine.
“Markets can view equity stakes as a leading indicator of favorable ROIC (return on invested capital) the incentive for taking equity stakes seem significantly higher than withdrawing funding,” said analysts at Jefferies.
The loan from the U.S. Energy Department for the Thacker Pass project, a venture with General Motors, was approved by Trump at the end of his first term.
Shares of the automaker, which owns 38% of the mine, gained 2.9% before the bell.
When it opens in 2028, the project is expected to become the Western Hemisphere’s largest source of lithium and could far surpass larger peer Albemarle’s facility in the region.
The project has long been touted as a key way to boost U.S. critical minerals production and cut reliance on China, the world’s largest lithium processor.
The Trump administration has also moved to take a stake in chipmaker Intel and mining company MP Materials as part of efforts to improve domestic manufacturing activity and re-shore supply chains to the U.S.
Lithium Americas had split itself into two, separating its North American and Argentine businesses in November 2022 to boost focus on the Thacker Pass project.
The company’s net loss nearly doubled in the second quarter, from a year-earlier, its earnings report showed last month.
The stock was last up 67.1% at $5.13 before the bell, after falling nearly 7% in the previous session.
The news also lifted other lithium miners. Albermarle gained 5.2% while Sigma Lithium climbed 5.3%. U.S.-listed shares of SQM rose 2.7% in light volumes.
Purvi Agarwal, Reuters
Hundreds of federal employees who lost their jobs in Elon Musk’s cost-cutting blitz are being asked to return to work.The General Services Administration has given the employees who managed government workspaces until the end of the week to accept or decline reinstatement, according to an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press. Those who accept must report for duty on Oct. 6 after what amounts to a seven-month paid vacation, during which time the GSA in some cases racked up high costs passed along to taxpayers to stay in dozens of properties whose leases it had slated for termination or were allowed to expire.“Ultimately, the outcome was the agency was left broken and understaffed,” said Chad Becker, a former GSA real estate official. “They didn’t have the people they needed to carry out basic functions.”Becker, who represents owners with government leases at Arco Real Estate Solutions, said GSA has been in a “triage mode” for months. He said the sudden reversal of the downsizing reflects how Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency had gone too far, too fast.
Rehiring of purged federal employees
GSA was established in the 1940s to centralize the acquisition and management of thousands of federal workplaces. Its return to work request mirrors rehiring efforts at in several agencies targeted by DOGE. Last month, the IRS said it would allow some employees who took a resignation offer to remain on the job. The Labor Department has also brought back some employees who took buyouts, while the National Park Service earlier reinstated a number of purged employees.Critical to the work of such agencies is the GSA, which manages many of the buildings. Starting in March, thousands of GSA employees left the agency as part of programs that encouraged them to resign or take early retirement. Hundreds of others those subject to the recall notice were dismissed as part of an aggressive push to reduce the size of the federal workforce. Though those employees did not show up for work, some continue to get paid.GSA representatives didn’t respond to detailed questions about the return-to-work notice, which the agency issued Friday. They also declined to discuss the agency’s headcount, staffing decisions or the potential cost overruns generated by reversing its plans to terminate leases.“GSA’s leadership team has reviewed workforce actions and is making adjustments in the best interest of the customer agencies we serve and the American taxpayers,” an agency spokesman said in an email.Democrats have assailed the Trump administration’s indiscriminate approach to slashing costs and jobs. Rep. Greg Stanton of Arizona, the top Democrat on the subcommittee overseeing the GSA, told AP there is no evidence that reductions at the agency “delivered any savings.”“It’s created costly confusion while undermining the very services taxpayers depend on,” he said.DOGE identified the agency, which had about 12,000 employees at the start of the Trump administration, as a chief target of its campaign to reduce fraud, waste and abuse in the federal government.A small cohort of Musk’s trusted aides embedded in GSA’s headquarters, sometimes sleeping on cots on the agency’s sixth floor, and pursued plans to abruptly cancel nearly half of the 7,500 leases in the federal portfolio. DOGE also wanted GSA to sell hundreds of federally owned buildings with the goal of generating billions in savings.GSA started by sending more than 800 lease cancellation notices to landlords, in many cases without informing the government tenants. The agency also published a list of hundreds of government buildings that were targeted for sale.
DOGE’s massive job cuts produced little savings
Pushback to GSA’s dumping of its portfolio was swift, and both initiatives have been dialed back. More than 480 leases slated for termination by DOGE have since been spared. Those leases were for offices scattered around the country that are occupied by such agencies as the IRS, Social Security Administration and Food and Drug Administration.DOGE’s “Wall of Receipts,” which once boasted that the lease cancellations alone would save nearly $460 million, has since reduced that estimate to $140 million by the end of July, according to Becker, the former GSA real estate official.Meanwhile, GSA embarked on massive job cuts. The administration slashed GSA’s headquarters staff by 79%, its portfolio managers by 65% and facilities managers by 35%, according to a federal official briefed on the situation. The official, who was not authorized to speak to the media, provided the statistics on condition of anonymity.As a result of the internal turmoil, 131 leases expired without the government actually vacating the properties, the official said. The situation has exposed the agencies to steep fees because property owners have not been able to rent out those spaces to other tenants.The public may soon get a clearer picture of what transpired at the agency.The Government Accountability Office, an independent congressional watchdog, is examining the GSA’s management of its workforce, lease terminations and planned building disposals and expects to issue findings in the coming months, said David Marroni, a senior GAO official.
Foley reported from Iowa City, Iowa.
Joshua Goodman and Ryan J. Foley, Associated Press
