Nonrival

June 12, 2026

Human experts + AI summaries - on public policy, economics, and technology.

Trump's New AI Security Order Acknowledges Real Risks but Keeps Industry Regulation Voluntary

the_conversation

• Trump signed an executive order requiring AI companies to give the government 30-day early access to major new AI models before public release, but compliance remains voluntary
• The order responds to growing concerns about AI systems that can autonomously find software vulnerabilities and write malicious code to exploit them
• While the approach acknowledges serious AI safety risks, experts argue voluntary self-regulation isn't enough given commercial pressures to prioritize speed over safety

Scientists Build Light-Based Computer Processor That's 1000 Times Faster Than Electronics

science

• Researchers have created an all-optical signal processor that uses light instead of electrons to process data at terabit-per-second speeds in real time
• This breakthrough could revolutionize high-speed communications and data processing by eliminating the speed bottlenecks of traditional electronic processors
• The technology demonstrates real-time signal equalization—a key function in digital communications—at speeds far beyond what current electronic systems can achieve

AI Reveals Why Investors Really Buy the Same Stocks for Completely Different Reasons

chicago_booth

• Researchers used transformer models (the same AI behind ChatGPT) to analyze millions of investment portfolios and discovered that investors buy the same stock for vastly different reasons—some see Apple as a growth play, others as a defensive cash-flow investment.
• The AI creates "embeddings" that capture these hidden investment motivations by analyzing which stocks investors group together, revealing patterns that traditional financial metrics completely miss.
• This approach can predict portfolio holdings better than conventional methods and even simulate investor behavior in hypothetical crisis scenarios that have never occurred before.

In the News

Trump's Clean Energy Cuts Are Already Killing 40,000 Jobs Before They're Created

yale_climate

• Companies have canceled nearly $30 billion in clean energy projects that would have created 40,000 jobs, following Trump administration policy changes and funding cuts
• The cancellations include investments in electric vehicles, batteries, and solar panel manufacturing, representing a sharp reversal from 2024's growth
• Uncertainty from cuts to federal tax credits, restrictions on wind and solar projects, and lowered emission standards are driving manufacturers to abandon planned investments

Analysis

A Massive Landslide Created a 1,500-Foot Tsunami in an Alaska Fjord Where Cruise Ships Regularly Travel

science

• A landslide triggered a tsunami that reached 481 meters (1,500 feet) high in Alaska's Dickson Fjord, one of the tallest waves ever recorded
• The fjord is regularly visited by cruise ships, raising questions about monitoring and safety protocols for such extreme natural events
• This event demonstrates how climate change and glacial retreat may be increasing the frequency of massive landslides in Alaska's coastal regions

Also Worth a Look

• China's battery dominance could squeeze out South Korea and threaten US military supply chains (atlantic_council)
• How America Built a Presidency Powerful Enough to Threaten Democracy (statecraft)
• Scientists Create Nearly Perfect Single-Color Light from Organic Materials (science)
• Scientists Create First Global Map of Ancient DNA Still Shaping Human Evolution (science)
• Why Corporate Diversity Programs Are Moral Imperatives, Not Just Business Strategies (the_conversation)
• Scientists develop sugar shields to help immune cells break through cancer's defenses (the_conversation)
• The Sewing Machine Had Opposite Effects on Rich and Poor Women in 19th Century America (voxeu)