WSJ : Iran Threatens Missile Attacks, Hoping Trump Sees Strength Not Weakness

Iran Threatens Missile Attacks, Hoping Trump Sees Strength Not Weakness
The U.S. is demanding that Tehran restrict its missile program as part of a deal to avert new clashes, but it has so far refused

  • Iran’s missile program, born from early Islamic Republic weakness, now serves as a deterrent against potential military confrontation.
  • Tehran possesses an estimated 2,000 midrange ballistic missiles and significant short-range missile stockpiles capable of reaching regional targets.
  • The U.S. is increasing missile-defense systems in the Middle East and demanded Iran curb its missile program in exchange for a deal.

Iran’s missile program was born of weakness in the early years of the Islamic Republic. Now the question is whether it is formidable enough to head off a military confrontation with President Trump.

Tehran unleashed a barrage of around 500 missiles that struck civilian and military locations in Israel last June but did little strategic damage. Though Israel pounded Iran’s missile launchers and storage sites during a 12-day war in June, the regime emerged from the bruising conflict with much of its remaining arsenal intact.

More important, Iran learned how to get more of its missiles past Israeli and American defenses as the war went on.

It is threatening to fire them again on a broader set of targets around the region if Trump orders an attack. That has raised the pressure on the White House, forcing it to worry about Iran’s ability to target Israel and U.S. forces, as well as friendly Arab countries in the Persian Gulf and the wider region.

Tehran still has an estimated 2,000 midrange ballistic missiles that can reach across the region, The Wall Street Journal has previously reported. It also has significant stockpiles of short-range missiles capable of reaching U.S. bases in the Gulf and ships in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as antiship cruise missiles.

“In the absence of any meaningful air force and air defenses and with decimated allies and nuclear capabilities, Iran’s ballistic missiles now constitute the backbone of Iran’s deterrence,” said Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of the Iran Program, at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “They are like a Swiss Army knife for the regime—for coercion, defense and punishment all at once.”

U.S. military leaders are taking the threat seriously. Trump put off plans for a mid-January attack on Iran at the last minute after being convinced the U.S. didn’t have enough forces in the region to carry out the decisive strike he wanted while dealing with an Iranian response and managing escalation.

The Pentagon is moving more missile defense systems to the Middle East, including to the Persian Gulf and to other Arab countries. “If they don’t make a deal, the consequences are very steep,” Trump said Friday, referring to Iran.

Ahead of talks aimed at heading off a conflict that began Friday in Oman, the U.S. had demanded that Iran rein in its missile program as part of the price of a deal that would also address its nuclear enrichment and support for regional militias like Hezbollah and Hamas. But Iranian officials have refused to discuss any restrictions on the country’s stockpile.

The thousands of ballistic missiles Iran built over decades by copying Russian and American technology have been used before to target air bases, energy facilities, desalination plants and cities in the region. Tehran has sometimes limited its retaliatory strikes, even giving brief advanced notice of its targets to signal to the U.S. that it wasn’t seeking a wider war.

Iran is counting on the uncertainty over whether more missiles would hit their targets this time to deter another military confrontation, analysts said.

This past week, hard-liners in Tehran said Iran’s missile program was the main reason the U.S. hasn’t attacked Iran and had opted for talks instead.

“The U.S. has returned to negotiations humbled,” said Brig. Gen. Yadollah Javani, head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ political bureau, as he exhibited a new model of medium-range ballistic missiles.

Building Iran’s missile arsenal was the life’s work of Amir Ali Hajizadeh, a figure so important that Israel killed him in an airstrike during the opening salvo of its surprise attack last June.

During the 1980s war with Iraq, Hajizadeh joined the IRGC unit that was tasked with making ballistic missiles. Most countries refused to sell them to Iran, so the unit started copying Soviet and North Korean designs, and later American Stinger and TOW antitank missiles captured in Afghanistan.

In 2009, he took charge of Iran’s newly created Aerospace Force and propelled Iran’s missile efforts to a new level. To that point, Iran’s arsenal had been mostly short-range, inaccurate rockets. He oversaw the development of missiles capable of precisely striking targets at a distance of 1,000 miles—well within range of Israel.

He was “an ideological hard-liner who was obsessed with the idea of destroying Israel,” said Saeid Golkar, an authority on Iran’s Revolutionary Guard who teaches at the University of Tennessee.

In 2015, Hajizadeh was a leading opponent of a pact that curbed Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. That year, he took to Iranian television to unveil “missile cities”—vast formations of ready-to-launch rockets buried deep under mountains.

After Trump ordered the 2020 strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, Hajizadeh engineered Iran’s response by attacking an American base in Iraq with a volley of drones, the Iranian government said after the missile mastermind was killed. Days later, an air-defense unit operating under his watch accidentally downed an Ukrainian airlines flight near Tehran, killing all 216 onboard.

Iranian-designed drones were used by Iraqi militias to attack U.S. troops, and by Hamas and Hezbollah to attack Israel. Its missiles were launched by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis to attack Saudi foes, Red Sea shipping, American warships and Israeli cities.

Iran saw this as a way to protect itself by using allies as a shield. “The foreigner around us is insecure, but Iran is at a peak of stability,” Hajizadeh said in a 2015 state TV interview.

“He is the one that had the biggest say in the way that Iran approached its strategy and fought its wars,” said Afshon Ostovar, associate professor at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif.

He was killed on June 13 in Israeli strikes that decapitated much of Iran’s military leadership.

FT : Hims & Hers abandons copycat weight-loss drug in face of FDA probe

Hims & Hers abandons copycat weight-loss drug in face of FDA probe
Novo Nordisk had accused the telehealth company of breaching its patent on Wegovy

Hims & Hers will stop selling its discounted version of Novo Nordisk’s weight-loss pill Wegovy, handing the Danish drugmaker a win and capping two days of intensifying pressure on the US telehealth company.

Less than 24 hours after the US Food and Drug Administration said it would investigate Hims and other companies offering compounded weight-loss drugs, Hims said “we have decided to stop offering access to this treatment”.

On Thursday, the company said it would offer a discounted version of Wegovy retailing at $49 a month. The treatment would contain semaglutide, the same active ingredient as Novo’s drug. Denmark-based Novo began selling Wegovy in the US last month for $149 a month at the lowest dose after it became the first oral version of a weight-loss drug to be approved by regulators worldwide.

Novo slammed Hims’ rival product and threatened to sue the company.

Wall Street analysts said the move exposed Hims to litigation risk because Novo’s pill, which was approved in December, is under patent protection. Hims’ share price sank about 15 per cent after markets closed Friday, when the FDA announced its enforcement threat.

Hims shares are trading at the lowest level since November 2024 as the company is trying to broaden its products beyond cheaper versions of popular weight-loss drugs sold by Novo and rival Eli Lilly.

The San Francisco-based company is scheduled to run a Super Bowl ad on Sunday.

Last year, the FDA sent warning letters to drug companies about the claims made in their ads, and said the enforcement threats were prompted in part by Hims’ 2025 Super Bowl commercial.

The Information : How Capex Ramp Up Will Squeeze Google, Amazon, Meta

How Capex Ramp Up Will Squeeze Google, Amazon, Meta

The Takeaway
  • Amazon, Google, Meta face free cash flow wipeout from AI capex.
  • Companies must choose between stock buybacks or increased borrowing.
  • Oracle already leveraged for its AI data center expansion.


Big tech’s dramatic ramp-up in projected capital expenditures this year will all but wipe out free cash flow for Amazon, Google and Meta Platforms. That will force some of those companies to make some difficult choices, such as whether to end stock buybacks or borrow more money.

The good news is that the big tech companies have the capacity to each borrow hundreds of billions more money than they currently do.


Most of the big tech companies in recent years have begun returning cash to shareholders through dividends and buying back stock. Google and Meta Platforms, for instance, do both. But that could be difficult this year, with capital expenditures aimed at expanding computing capacity for AI almost entirely absorbing the cash their operations generate. (See above chart).

Google and Meta have already started to scale back their stock buybacks. Cutting off the dividend, though, could be tricky, as both companies only introduced the payouts in 2024, which made their stocks more appealing to investors.

Amazon won’t have the same problem, as it hasn’t bought back stock since 2022 and has never paid a dividend. But its projected capex this year of $200 billion is higher than the $178 billion in cash from operations analysts estimate it will produce, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence, which means unlike the other companies it will burn cash anyway.

Amazon issued $15 billion in bonds in November, beefing up its cash position, so it had $123 billion in cash on hand as of Dec. 31. That gives it a sizable cushion. Still, it is in talks to invest tens of billions in OpenAI, The Information has reported, which will reduce that cash pile meaningfully. On Friday, Amazon signaled its intention to borrow more money, filing a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission that gives it the ability to quickly sell bonds.

Microsoft is in a different position. Its capex ramp-up hasn’t been quite as aggressive as the other companies’. In the first half of its 2026 June-ending fiscal year, for instance, it has spent $49 billion on capex, easily covered by the $80 billion in cash generated by its operations. For the full year ending in June, analysts are projecting $103 billion in capex, leaving it with free cash flow of $66 billion, only down a little from fiscal 2025, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. (Microsoft has said its fiscal year 2026 growth rate in capex in fiscal 2026 will be greater than it was last year, when capex grew 45% to $65 billion, but it hasn’t projected a full-year number, unlike the other companies.)

While Microsoft will likely generate plenty of free cash flow, it faces constraints the other companies don’t have—namely, a much bigger dividend commitment. Microsoft paid out $24 billion in dividends last fiscal year and has raised the dividend 10% this year.

In comparison, Meta and Google paid out $5 billion and $10 billion in dividends, respectively. They should still be able to afford those payments this year, although it will be tight for Meta in particular. The Facebook owner also spent $26 billion on stock buybacks last year, a slight drop from 2024, but with its free cash flow likely to shrivel this year it seems likely to have to slash its buyback this year.

Like Amazon, Meta and Google both sold debt last year, buttressing their cash resources. All three of the companies have ample borrowing capacity left. Take Google: credit ratings agency S&P said in November the company could lift its “net debt over $200 billion” before it would trigger a downgrade in its bluechip AA+ credit rating. Google currently has $47 billion of debt, which is more than offset by its $127 billion in cash, which means it has no net debt.

Analysts estimate Google will generate $218 billion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization in 2026, according to S&P. In theory, if it was willing to accept a lower credit rating, it could borrow twice its projected Ebitda, which would be $400 billion.

One company that has already stretched its balance sheet to pay for expanded AI computing capacity investment is Oracle. It had about $88 billion in net debt as of Nov. 30, more than twice its estimated fiscal 2026 Ebitda of $35.5 billion. Oracle is raising between $45 billion and $50 billion in debt and equity to help finance its data center build-out.

Oracle also is on track to pay out $5.7 billion in dividends this year, even though it is burning cash. Investors, however, have responded negatively: Oracle stock has dropped 27% so far this year.

>>> Weekend Papers Summary

FINANCIAL TIMES
-The US is preparing a substantial arms sale package for Taiwan, which may include up to $20 B worth of systems, following a previous $11.1 B package announced in December. This initiative has raised concerns in Beijing, with China warning that it could jeopardize President Trump's upcoming state visit to China in April. Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged the US to handle arms sales to Taiwan cautiously, reflecting a historical pattern of Chinese opposition to such sales before high-level meetings. The package is expected to feature Patriot missiles, NASAMS, and two additional weapon systems, although the final details remain uncertain amid discussions.
-Chinese consumers are rapidly purchasing Apple’s new iPhones, particularly the "Hermès orange" premium model, which has helped reverse a prolonged sales decline in the company’s significant market. CEO Tim Cook highlighted a 38% year-on-year revenue increase in China for the fourth quarter, hitting $26 B. Analysts attribute the iPhone 17's success to its design refresh, which enhances its status-symbol appeal and makes the handsets more recognizable as new. The vivid orange model has generated extensive online interest, gaining traction through social media posts and videos, although Apple refers to it as 'cosmic orange.' IDC's Nabila Popal noted that the distinct design changes have attracted early upgraders.
-Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the US is pressing for an end to the Ukraine-Russia war before summer, amid political pressure in Washington for a negotiated settlement before midterm elections. A delegation from Donald Trump has proposed a timetable for peace talks, aiming for a signed agreement by June. The US has suggested that Ukrainian and Russian teams meet in Miami soon. Zelensky indicated that the urgency is influenced by elections, highlighting Kyiv's proposal of a sequence plan during negotiations, which includes security guarantees and a recovery plan for Ukraine. Additionally, a new ceasefire covering energy infrastructure strikes has been suggested as a de-escalation measure during discussions.
-The US and India have reached a framework for an interim trade agreement, resolving a prolonged stalemate between the two nations. This development followed Trump's communication with Modi, where India reportedly agreed to halt Russian oil purchases, linked to a 50% US tariff on Indian imports. Under the new agreement, India will allow imports of many US industrial goods and select food products, while its exports to the US will incur an 18% reciprocal tariff. Additionally, India plans to boost its imports from the US to $500 B over five years, aiming to double the current import levels. Both nations also committed to tackling non-tariff barriers, with India pledging to eliminate restrictive import licensing that has historically strained their trade relationship. Previous attempts to establish a bilateral trade pact had faltered over differing positions, particularly regarding India's agricultural market access.
-Donald Trump removed a racist meme depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes from his Truth Social account after widespread backlash, including condemnation from within the Republican Party. The offensive clip, which questioned the legitimacy of Trump's 2020 election defeat and used imagery from The Lion King, prompted calls for retraction, notably from Republican Senator Tim Scott, who labeled it the "most racist" incident from the White House. The Obamas' office declined to comment on the situation.
-Anthropic has gained significant traction this week, positioning itself as a key player in the AI market aimed at businesses, valued at hundreds of Bs. Unlike competitors like OpenAI and Google, which focus on consumer products, Anthropic emphasizes tools for developers. Recent software releases and a strategic Super Bowl ad have increased its visibility, contributing to a funding round of approximately $35 B at a $350 B valuation, with expectations of surpassing $30 B in annual revenue by the end of this year. Investors view Anthropic as a safer long-term investment due to its business model, product focus, and strong leadership.
-The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) intends to take action against copycat weight-loss drugs sold by Hims & Hers, following the company's announcement to offer a lower-priced alternative to Novo Nordisk's Wegovy. The FDA will restrict sales of unapproved compounded drugs and address misleading advertisements, emphasizing compliance and enforcement to ensure public health safety. Hims has priced its semaglutide-based product at $49 per month, while Novo's Wegovy retails for $149. Novo condemned Hims' actions as "illegal mass compounding" and has threatened legal measures, alleging deceptive practices by Hims in marketing similar GLP-1 products.
-President Javier Milei is proposing significant changes to Argentina's labour market, igniting tensions with unions amid a politically sensitive landscape dominated by the left-leaning Peronist movement. The current system, which offers strong job protections and has remained largely unchanged since the 1970s, is criticized for hindering formal employment, resulting in nearly half of Argentines working off the books. Milei's reforms aim to reduce legal uncertainties and costs associated with hiring, addressing concerns voiced by small business owners about the risks of maintaining registered employees. The proposed changes are set to be discussed in Congress soon.
-The Super Bowl significantly influences not only sports fans but also popular culture, according to USC professor Jeff Fellenzer. The NFL is considered America's national pastime, with NBC’s Sunday Night Football leading as the highest-rated show for 15 years, attracting 20-25 M viewers weekly. Expecting record revenues of $25 B, the NFL has seen viewership levels reminiscent of 1989. The live game appeal has attracted advertisers and tech firms, with YouTube offering a premium NFL service, Amazon broadcasting Thursday Night Football, and Netflix streaming games, highlighting the league's expansion beyond the US.
-Netflix is undergoing a US government antitrust review regarding its $83B acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, as Paramount pursues a competing bid. The US Department of Justice (DoJ) is investigating whether Netflix might gain monopoly power, assessing potential competition risks linked to the deal. Netflix claims it is unaware of any investigation beyond the standard merger review and is cooperating with the DoJ. Warner Bros expressed confidence in the transaction meeting regulatory requirements. The DoJ's review is based on the Sherman Act and Clayton Act, with increased enforcement of monopolization concerns in recent years.
NEW YORK TIMES
-Hours after immigration agent Renee Good was fatally shot in Minneapolis, a federal prosecutor sought to search her vehicle for evidence believed necessary for a civil rights investigation into the agent's use of force. Joseph H. Thompson noted that the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension would collaborate with the FBI to determine the shooting's legality. However, as FBI agents prepared to execute a warrant, they received orders from senior officials, including FBI director Kash Patel, to halt the investigation, fearing it would contradict President Trump’s statements about Good’s actions during the incident.
-Chad Mizelle, a former chief of staff to Attorney General Pam Bondi, recently posted a help wanted sign for federal prosecutors on social media, reflecting staffing challenges within the Justice Department. Mizelle's solicitation for Assistant US Attorneys (AUSAs) emphasized the need for candidates who support President Trump and his anti-crime agenda, marking a shift from traditional recruitment methods that did not focus on political loyalty. This call for applications underscores a broader issue: the perception that the current administration prioritizes political alignment over qualified legal talent, discouraging highly skilled candidates from applying. Reports indicate a significant decline in applications for Justice Department positions, as the intermingling of law enforcement with political agendas has tarnished its reputation as a desirable workplace.
-President Trump has expressed a desire for the Republican-led federal government to take over the administration of elections, suggesting a "nationalization" of the voting process. This stance conflicts with the US Constitution, which delegates election management to the states. His comments have raised concerns among election officials from both parties, particularly in light of his previous attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election and his criticisms of the electoral system. These recent remarks coincide with Republican worries about maintaining majorities in Congress. White House officials argue that Trump is advocating for federal legislation aimed at securing elections, referring specifically to the federal SAVE Act that mandates US citizenship verification for voter registration. Despite this, Trump reiterated his position by highlighting perceived corruption in elections and posited that states act as agents for the federal government, questioning why the federal government does not directly manage elections.
-President Trump shared a racist video clip depicting former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama as apes, asserting he had no reason to apologize despite later deleting the video following backlash. The 62-second clip, which included conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and was posted late Thursday, aligns with Mr. Trump's history of promoting offensive stereotypes about Black Americans. During a press interaction on Air Force One, Trump claimed he only viewed the video’s beginning regarding voter fraud and attempted to shift responsibility, stating he had entrusted someone else to post it without reviewing the entire content. Nonetheless, he expressed no remorse, insisting, “No, I didn’t make a mistake.”
-The US domestic market for .50-caliber firearms is limited, with high retail prices and minimal civilian use. In stark contrast, Mexican cartels represent a significant demand for these weapons, which have been used in serious acts of violence, including attacks on officials and civilians. The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives reported that over 40,370 rounds of .50-caliber ammunition have been seized near the Mexico border since 2012, with a third sourced from Lake City, highlighting its prominent role in supplying ammunition for violent confrontations involving Mexican cartels. Other manufacturers from Brazil and South Korea also contribute to this supply, but Lake City stands out as a major contributor to the conflict.
-The Faroe Islands, a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, are situated strategically between Iceland and Scotland, making them pivotal in the geopolitical landscape influenced by the ongoing tensions surrounding Greenland. With 18 rugged islands and a population of 55,000, the Faroes have developed a strong local economy, primarily through their lucrative salmon exports, and provide a high standard of living for their residents. Despite their relative autonomy compared to Greenland, recent geopolitical upheavals, particularly U.S. President Trump's threats regarding Greenland, have led to heightened tensions and a re-evaluation of the Faroes' relationship with Denmark. As the territory contemplates greater independence, the ongoing interest from global powers emphasizes their significance in the shifting dynamics of the Arctic region, underscored by comments from local leaders advocating for change in their political status amidst a resurging focus on the area reminiscent of the Cold War era.
-Since its premiere at the Kennedy Center, the film "Melania," focusing on Melania Trump’s second term as first lady, has faced criticism and mockery, being labeled as “propaganda” and a “mockumentary.” However, the film is not merely documentary or promotional; it serves as a launchpad for a new lifestyle brand named “Melania.” The film emphasizes her “creative vision” and fashion choices, showcasing her style decisions during the inauguration and revealing her commitment to family values. Moreover, her agent hinted that the film supports her luxury brand endeavors, which trace back to her legal battles for brand establishment during the earlier Trump administration.
NY POST
-The Department of Justice will permit members of Congress to review unredacted files concerning convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein starting Monday, as communicated in a letter to lawmakers. This disclosure follows a law enacted by Congress last year mandating the release of over 3M documents by the Justice Department. Lawmakers are required to notify the Department 24 hours in advance for file access, which will occur on Department computers with restrictions—only lawmakers can view them, notes can be taken but electronic copies are prohibited. Despite prior scrutiny regarding delays, inadequate redactions, and incomplete releases of the total 6 M documents associated with Epstein, lawmakers view this access as a significant victory for transparency efforts. Representative Ro Khanna, a proponent of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, highlighted the effectiveness of Congressional pressure in obtaining this concession from the Justice Department.
-Walmart is increasing the hourly pay for pharmacy technicians to as much as $40.50 and is introducing 3,000 new pharmacy leadership roles, many of which do not require a college degree. Currently, Walmart employs around 35,000 pharmacy technicians and 15,000 pharmacists across approximately 4,600 pharmacies in the US. Previously averaging $22 an hour, the raise represents a potential 84% increase for top earners. However, not all pharmacy workers will qualify for the highest rate, as salaries will vary depending on credentials and location. The new roles include pharmacy operations team leads, who average $28 an hour with potential earnings of up to $42 plus bonuses. Higher wages will be particularly concentrated in areas with a high cost of living. The new leadership positions will allow pharmacy managers and pharmacists to focus more on patient care, as they oversee daily operations without necessitating a college degree, thereby reducing entry barriers into higher-paying healthcare jobs.

Electrek : Xiaomi reveals 990-horsepower YU7 GT performance SUV with 186 mph top

Xiaomi has officially filed for the YU7 GT, a nearly 1,000-horsepower performance version of its popular YU7 electric SUV that will hit a top speed of 300 km/h (186 mph), making it one of the fastest electric SUVs ever built.

The filing appeared today in China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) regulatory catalog, revealing a widebody beast that positions Xiaomi squarely against any high-performance SUVs.
And it’s not even an “Ultra.”

Nearly 1,000 horsepower from dual motors
The YU7 GT packs a dual-motor powertrain with a 288 kW (386 hp) front motor and a massive 450 kW (603 hp) rear motor, combining for a total output of 738 kW, that’s 990 horsepower.

For context, that significantly exceeds the standard YU7 Max’s 508 kW (681 hp) dual-motor setup, which already hits 0-100 km/h in 3.23 seconds. The YU7 GT’s additional 230 kW is expected to push acceleration times approaching 2 seconds to 100 km/h.

The 300 km/h top speed puts it in rare company among production SUVs.

Widebody design with serious hardware
The YU7 GT isn’t just a software tune, it’s a proper performance variant with:
  • Widebody kit: 16mm longer and 11mm wider than standard YU7
  • Dimensions: 5,015mm × 2,007mm × 1,597mm (3,000mm wheelbase)
  • Staggered 21-inch wheels: 265/40R21 front, 295/35R21 rear (vs. standard 245/55R19)
  • Red brake calipers (likely carbon-ceramic brakes)
  • Large rear diffuser and prominent “GT” badge
  • All-black exterior versus the YU7’s colorful options
  • CATL ternary lithium battery (capacity not yet disclosed)

The MIIT filing shows extensive customization options including different wheel designs, caliper colors, spoiler configurations, and body decals.
Here are all the images from the filing:


Pricing and positioning
Market speculation puts the YU7 GT between 450,000-500,000 yuan ($60,000-70,000), positioning it below the SU7 Ultra sedan (which starts around 500,000 yuan with its tri-motor 1,526 hp powertrain).
Xiaomi still hasn’t confirmed if an Ultra version of the YU7 is coming or if the GT is going to be the top-of-the-line for the SUV.
The bigger picture: Xiaomi’s rapid expansion
The YU7 GT joins an aggressive 2026 lineup that includes:
  • YU9: Large flagship SUV
  • SU7 L: Long-wheelbase sedan
  • YU7 GT: Performance SUV (this filing)
The standard YU7 has been a hit, delivering 39,089 units in December alone and 153,673 total in 2025. In January 2026, Xiaomi delivered over 39,000 vehicles again, with YU7 dominating sales.

For a company that only started delivering cars in April 2024, this trajectory is remarkable.

Electrek’s Take
990 horsepower in a likely ~$60,000 SUV is absurd, and I mean that as a compliment.
Xiaomi is doing what Tesla did a decade ago: using performance halo cars to build brand credibility while volume models pay the bills. The SU7 Ultra put Xiaomi on the Nürburgring leaderboard. The YU7 GT will put them on the radar of every performance SUV buyer in China.
The question is whether there’s actually a market for $60,000+ Chinese performance SUVs outside of China. In Europe, where Xiaomi is eyeing expansion, the competition is brutal, you’re up against Porsche, BMW, Mercedes, and Tesla, though to a lesser degree in that segment.
But if they can deliver this kind of performance at even 80% of what German rivals charge, they’ll find buyers.

Fortune : What caused the massive Bitcoin crash? Clues point to a blow-up at Hon

What caused the massive Bitcoin crash? Clues point to a blow-up at Hong Kong hedge funds

Crypto prices got absolutely rocked this week with Bitcoin falling nearly $15,000 in 24 hours—a bloodbath not seen since the collapse of crypto conman Sam Bankman-Fried’s empire back in 2022. On Friday, Bitcoin had clawed back most of those losses, and is now trading around $70,000, but the episode has left even longtime crypto insiders asking each other “What just happened?!” There are plenty of theories swirling around, but one is particularly compelling: The cause of the crash lies with Hong Kong traders who placed high-leverage Bitcoin bets that went horribly wrong.

That theory was put forth on X by Parker White, a former equities trader who is now COO at a crypto firm called DeFi Development Corporation. In a long thread, White said there is evidence pointing to the sudden implosion of Hong Kong hedge funds that held call options in BlackRock’s IBIT, which is the world’s biggest Bitcoin ETF.

White suggests that the hedge funds used the Yen carry trade (a form of interest arbitrage) to finance big positions in out-of-the-money IBIT options. This amounted to a risky bet that Bitcoin prices, which have been slumping since a big sell-off in October, would recover. The hoped-for rally didn’t arrive, however. Meanwhile, White speculates that the Hong Kong funds also got pummeled by headwinds in the Yen-carry trade—which made their financing more expensive—and exposure to recent convulsions in the silver market.

The upshot is the hedge funds faced a perfect storm and, as the crypto market slumped further this week, the value of their holdings declined until they got liquidated—forcing the mass sell-off of IBIT shares and a calamitous fall for Bitcoin. Here is how White explained what happened in trader-speak:

Now, I could easily see how the fund(s) could have been running a levered options trade on IBIT (think way OTM calls = ultra high gamma) with borrowed capital in JPY. Oct 10th could very well have blown a hole in their balance sheet, that they tried to win back by adding leverage waiting for the “obvious” rebound. As that led to increased losses, coupled with increased funding costs in JPY, I could see how the fund(s) would have gotten more desperate and hopped on the Silver trade. When that blew up, things got dire and this last push in BTC finished them off.

In his post, White also pointed out that the Hong Kong hedge funds, whose Bitcoin trading occurred only in the form of ETF shares, are not part of the traditional crypto ecosystem. This means that chatter about their predicament did not bubble up on “Crypto Twitter”—which is the go-to forum for industry news—and nor did it create counter-parties who incurred big losses, and would be likely to warn others.

White’s theory is just that, of course: no more than a theory. Meanwhile, history shows that major Bitcoin crashes have typically been touched off by multiple factors, not a single event. And indeed, this week’s crypto crackup coincided with a broader AI-related asset sell-off, uncertainty over the fate of a key blockchain bill, as well as crypto names appearing in the Epstein files—factors that all likely contributed to Thursday’s meltdown.

Still, White’s explanation is the most persuasive, and is further supported by other circumstantial evidence, including a recent decision by the Securities and Exchange Commission to lift limits on trading Bitcoin options.

Meanwhile, other longtime crypto figures expressed cautious support for the Hong Kong hedge fund theory. That included the respected venture capitalist Haseeb Qureshi who described the theory as plausible, but added that it may take months to wait for regulatory filings that could help confirm it, and that in some cases a key crypto player can “blow up” without anyone ever learning their identity. But for those who are confident that a hedge fund is at the root of this week’s market troubles, there is already a Polymarket forum to bet on the culprit.

The Information : Microsoft Sales Chief Responds to Potential Rivalry with OpenA

Microsoft Sales Chief Responds to Potential Rivalry with OpenAI’s New Agent Product

The Takeaway
  • Microsoft sales chief positions company against OpenAI’s new Frontier AI agent product.
  • Microsoft emphasizes platform strength, diverse AI models, and enterprise security.
  • OpenAI and Anthropic AI agents may threaten traditional enterprise software market.

Microsoft’s top sales executive told staff on Friday that the company was uniquely positioned to compete against a new OpenAI product aimed at helping businesses automate office tasks across different software applications—including Microsoft’s own apps.

In an email, Microsoft Chief Commercial Officer Judson Althoff provided talking points salespeople could use in selling Microsoft’s tools for managing so-called AI agents, including highlighting their potential advantages over OpenAI’s new product, known as Frontier, according to two Microsoft employees who received the email.

Althoff’s effort to rally his troops shows how quickly new AI announcements are impacting the enterprise software industry. Over the past few weeks, public market investors have sold off software stocks on fears that AI—including agents made by Anthropic and OpenAI—will make traditional enterprise software apps less valuable and impact their growth.

It’s not the first time Microsoft has found itself in competition with OpenAI after investing $13 billion in the startup in exchange for the right to use OpenAI’s technology in its own products. As both companies sold similar AI products to businesses, Microsoft has repeatedly told salespeople to tell customers that Microsoft could provide more security and compliance guarantees than the younger startup.

Newfangled AI agents developed by firms such as OpenAI and Anthropic are still rife with security vulnerabilities, limited in their capabilities and make mistakes, but AI leaders including Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang increasingly describe a future in which AI agents themselves will use traditional enterprise apps to perform tasks currently handled by people. That could put the enterprise app business in a precarious position.

Microsoft, the No. 1 seller of enterprise apps, is trying to get ahead of AI upstarts like OpenAI by releasing its own products for workers to create and direct AI agents. Microsoft’s Agent 365 aims to help companies keep track of different AI agents—including those offered by OpenAI—and connect those agents to other applications so they can reorganize files or create forecasts based on data stored in those applications.

Microsoft is also developing Windows-based AI agents that could perform tasks and use applications on a customer’s computer the way a human would, The Information reported last week.

Microsoft is far from alone. Other enterprise software firms like ServiceNow, Salesforce, and Amazon have recently debuted products meant to help customers keep track of and direct agents from a range of different AI providers.

The traditional enterprise firms are keeping a watchful eye on both OpenAI and Anthropic, from which many of them buy AI models to power features in their enterprise apps.

Using a technique known as reinforcement learning, OpenAI and Anthropic have been training AI to be able to use enterprise apps as a “digital coworker” alongside humans for the better part of a year. Now, they are trying to get such AI in the hands of businesses.

OpenAI said a customer could use Frontier, which it announced on Wednesday, to create multiple “AI coworkers” and assign them different tasks that involve pulling in data from various applications: one AI agent could research potential sales leads while another could take that agent’s findings and check it against existing customer accounts stored in a company’s sales database and send sales pitches to customers that aren’t already in the system.

Ominous Chart?

OpenAI didn’t specify which well-known enterprise apps its AI would use to perform these tasks. But it included a graphic in its blog post about Frontier, showing how OpenAI’s technology for directing these agents would sit on top of companies’ “systems of record.” That term describes applications made by firms such as Microsoft and Salesforce that store corporate data customers trust to be accurate.

Some executives at traditional enterprise application firms said they viewed the graphic as OpenAI’s way of showing the heavy influence it wants to have over the way businesses use and pay for software and AI. (An OpenAI spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)

To be sure, OpenAI isn’t arguing that the AI itself will work out of the box. It’s hiring AI specialists to work deeply with customers to reorganize their IT systems and make their existing software work better with AI. Anthropic also has such employees, which work with companies such as Cox Automotive to develop AI agents to power new products.

In the Friday email, Althoff said OpenAI is a worthy competitor that deserves respect, but he also urged sales teams to stay the course and keep in mind the advantages Microsoft has as it competes with the startup, said a current employee.

One of these advantages, Althoff said, is that Microsoft is a “platform” company that offers many different AI models and has longstanding relationships with enterprise customers. OpenAI, in contrast, is an AI developer that has yet to show it can be a platform company, especially since it has no infrastructure of its own in place, Althoff said in the email. (OpenAI relies on cloud providers such as Microsoft to run its technology and business.)

‘Application Scaffolding’

Althoff emphasized that Microsoft’s Azure cloud server business—which also powers OpenAI’s technology—already offers access to a wide range of models, making Microsoft a more logical destination for directing multiple AI agents, the people said. Microsoft offers OpenAI’s models as well as those of other providers like Anthropic, Mistral, and xAI.

Althoff also said Microsoft has experience working with large enterprises with complex security and compliance needs, which made it better positioned to win business, the people said.

OpenAI’s Frontier release came several weeks after its archrival Anthropic released Cowork, a product that also aims to automate workplace tasks by taking over a user’s computer to perform work on their desktop like a human would.

Microsoft leaders almost immediately discussed how Cowork stacked up against Microsoft’s AI products like 365 Copilot—which uses models from Anthropic and OpenAI to automate tasks in its flagship Office 365 and Outlook software—and how Microsoft could potentially compete with the Anthropic product.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has previously said that the company’s strategy is to develop “application scaffolding”—software that helps customers use AI models to automate tasks across various applications and data they use. He argued that AI models themselves could become “commoditized,” meaning value would flow to firms like Microsoft that give customers useful tools to connect the models to applications and data.

WSJ : Why a 175-Year-Old Glassmaker Is Suddenly an AI Superstar

Why a 175-Year-Old Glassmaker Is Suddenly an AI Superstar
Everyone told the company to sell its unprofitable fiber-optic business. Now that division is powering its stock to all-time highs.

The company that once made glass bulbs for Thomas Edison lost money on fiber-optic cables for nearly 20 years.

Now, in the global race to build enough computing power for a future driven by artificial intelligence, Corning’s GLW 8.31%increase; green up pointing triangle cables have become the connectors of choice. The Cinderella story for a relatively unflashy but high-tech component has been a boon to the 175-year-old company, and a lesson in how being willing to lose money on new ideas for a long time can pay off.

Corning stock is hovering around its all-time high, boosted by a recently announced $6 billion deal with Meta to supply fiber-optic cable for the company’s rapidly growing array of AI data centers. Corning said it is in talks with others for more such deals. It’s also working on what could be its next big act—fiber that goes inside servers, instead of just connecting them to each other.

Clearer than crystal
Corning’s cables are suddenly in demand because of physics: Data can be sent far more quickly and with less energy using light (which is made of photons) than with electricity (made of electrons). The cables themselves often contain dozens or hundreds of flexible, ultrathin glass fibers to carry signals.

Until recently, fiber optics have primarily been used to connect nodes of the internet—sometimes spanning thousands of miles underground and beneath the waves.

“Over even short distances, transmitting data with photons is three times as efficient as electrons,” says Wendell Weeks, Corning’s chief executive since 2005, who came from the fiber-optic division. “And over long distances, it’s more like 20 times.”

About half of Corning’s manufacturing remains in the U.S., a feat, given how many others have offshored high-tech manufacturing. In a North Carolina factory, it pulls glass strands as thin as a human hair, yet upward of 30 miles long. They’re so transparent, if you filled an ocean with them, you could see straight to the bottom.

Corning’s success in this space wasn’t guaranteed, says Mike O’Day, who heads its fiber business. Until recently, the company was still making a product that hadn’t changed much since its introduction in 1970.

In 2018, Weeks and O’Day went to Dallas to tour a data center owned by Meta, then known as Facebook. They marveled at the demand for fiber-optic cabling to connect all the servers inside that giant warehouse. Facebook was using a mix of copper cables and existing fiber optics, but found both ill-suited to the task.

This spurred Corning’s engineers to make their cables thinner, but also tougher, so they could withstand tight bends, says Claudio Mazzali, Corning’s head of research.

Five years later, ChatGPT made its debut, and demand for fiber-powered data centers exploded.

“We’re thankful that we made the trip in 2018 and thankful that we made the bet,” says O’Day. At the time, they had no idea whether it would be a good investment or a dud, he adds.

The ‘Corning Way’
What made Corning’s fiber reinvention possible is that the company outsources almost nothing, says Mazzali. It even designs the machines used to manufacture its optical fiber and cable.

Weeks says this is part of the “Corning Way.” That self-containment also applies to the workforce, says the CEO. When the company shifts direction, it reassigns engineers rather than laying them off, so they accumulate expertise over decades, across different projects. “The things our engineers do, you can’t learn them from a textbook,” says Weeks.

After the onset of the pandemic, Corning endured six consecutive quarters of shrinking revenue, its lengthiest drop since the 2001 telecom crash. Instead of laying off workers and shrinking factories, the company gave employees the option to take some of their compensation in stock.

“We were probably carrying 4,000 to 5,000 more employees than our revenue could support,” says Weeks. Corning currently employs about 56,000 people worldwide.

Now that demand for fiber is booming, the company needs all of those workers and capacity—and more.

Supply and demand
Corning is the biggest fiber-optics maker by a number of measures and has the lion’s share of the North American market. Fiber for data centers is the fastest-growing part of Corning’s revenue, says O’Day. Its continuing good fortune is contingent on big tech firms continuing to build at the rates they have indicated, say analysts.

“The level Corning’s stock is at today is baking in everything going right, and nothing going wrong,” says William Kerwin, a senior equity analyst at Morningstar.

Like many providers to data centers, Corning is already selling all that it can make. “I think demand for Corning’s fiber is going to be above supply for the foreseeable future,” says Kerwin. “It’s safe to say that if they could produce more, they could ship more.” Another factor: fiber-optic installation is facing a labor shortage.

Whether or not the AI industry meets its targets for growth, businesses both established and emerging will continue to seek optical fiber of the caliber coming from Corning and a handful of global competitors. And Corning already has its next growth business lined up: Nvidia is exploring servers that directly incorporate the glassmaker’s “co-packaged” optics.

It took nearly half a century for Corning to produce a billion miles of optical fiber. The second billion took eight years, a milestone reached last year. The next billion will arrive much sooner.

In part, that’s because more of that fiber is making its way to the dense networks within data centers, enough to soon surpass the long-haul business in terms of miles delivered, says O’Day. And then there’s the fiber that will go inside computers.

While Weeks is optimistic about the relationship with Nvidia, he says he has yet to be invited to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s famous fried-chicken-and-beer summits. The development of co-packaged optics requires patience and capital, Weeks says, just like Corning’s past innovations.

“Once we actually deliver, I guess that’s when you get invited to beer and chicken,” says Weeks.