Thursday, August 24 — 7 significant news stories

Today ChatGPT read 1179 top news stories. After removing previously covered events, there are 7 articles with a significance score over 7.

[7.2] Department of justice charges 371 people for Covid-19 fraud, recovers $231 million. — CNBC

Federal law enforcement agencies have charged 371 individuals as part of a nationwide Covid-19 fraud operation totaling more than $830 million, according to the Justice Department. The repression led to the return of the stolen funds in the amount of $ 231 million. Some of the accused were linked to violent crimes and international criminal gangs.

[7.2] Witness retracts false testimony, implicates Trump in criminal case. — The Guardian US

A witness in the criminal case against Donald Trump has retracted previous false testimony and provided new information that implicates the former president, according to the US Department of Justice. The witness, identified as the director of information technology at Mar-a-Lago, changed their testimony after switching lawyers and is now a target of the investigation. Trump is facing multiple criminal cases, including charges related to the hoarding of classified documents, attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, and hush-money payments.

[7.1] Nvidia's Q3 sales triple, exceeding expectations, driven by AI demand. — The New York Times

Nvidia has projected third-quarter sales of $16 billion, nearly triple the level a year ago and $3.7 billion more than analysts' average expectations. The company's strong financial performance could reignite enthusiasm for tech stocks on Wall Street and indicates the growing demand for AI technology in various industries. Nvidia has been able to cash in on this trend by enhancing its GPUs and software to cater to the needs of AI programmers.

[7.1] BRICS expands, welcomes new members, emphasizes multilateralism and peace. — The Hindu

During the 15th BRICS summit in Johannesburg, the members of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) announced the expansion of the grouping by welcoming six new countries: Argentina, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates. The addition of these new members is expected to strengthen the organization and increase confidence in the idea of a multipolar world order. The BRICS members also emphasized their commitment to inclusive multilateralism and the peaceful resolution of disputes.

[7.1] Equinor opens world's largest floating offshore wind farm in Norway. — Reuters

Norwegian energy company Equinor and its partners have opened the world's largest floating offshore wind farm, Hywind Tampen. The wind farm, which has a capacity of 88 megawatts, will supply power to nearby oil and gas platforms in the North Sea, reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. The project is part of Norway's plan to pivot towards offshore wind and reduce CO2 emissions by 50% by 2030.

[7.0] SpaceX Crew-7 mission to launch four international astronauts. — Space.com

The SpaceX Crew-7 mission is set to launch with four astronauts from four different countries. The launch will be broadcast live on NASA's YouTube channel, starting on Thursday at 11:45 p.m. EDT (link). The astronauts on board include Jasmin Moghbeli from NASA, Andreas Mogensen from the European Space Agency, Satoshi Furukawa from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and Konstantin Borisov from Russia's space agency, Roscosmos.

[7.0] South Carolina court upholds strict abortion ban, reversing earlier decision. — The Guardian US

South Carolina's all-male supreme court upheld a strict six-week abortion ban, which prohibits abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected, reversing a previous ruling that found a similar restriction unconstitutional. The court stated that the state constitution’s protection against “unreasonable invasions of privacy” did not cover a right to abortion. The decision came after a temporary ban halt in May and has been seen as a significant setback for reproductive rights advocates.

This story didn’t get a rating over 7, but was covered by 28 sources. (I think popularity of a story is the last missing piece in the formula — I’ll see how it can be included).

[6.6] Embraer jet carrying Wagner chief crashes, cause unknown, possible missile. — Reuters

Flight-tracking data shows that the Embraer Legacy 600 executive jet carrying Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin showed no signs of trouble until a sudden drop in its final 30 seconds before crashing. The aircraft plummeted more than 8,000 feet in that time, with video footage showing it descending rapidly with its nose pointing almost straight downward. Russian investigators have opened a criminal probe to determine the cause of the crash, with some sources suggesting it may have been shot down by surface-to-air missiles.

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Thanks for reading us and see you tomorrow,

Vadim