In my latest column for the Telegraph, I propose that economists aren't properly capturing the effects of "services previously considered free". This is because such services were never really free to begin with. Also, in many sectors, this great unbundling is incentivising competition increasingly on quality terms, not just price. Partly inspired by the sign in my local butcher's shop. telegraph.co.uk/business/202…

Scoop: The National Security Agency is spending billions this year on testing AI models - far more than previously known Per a classified NSA estimate described by sources Compute costs for AI have exploded - including for taxpayers washingtonsun.com/technology…

🛑 DOJ: UNITED STATES FILES REQUEST TO INTERVENE IN CASE BROUGHT BY X CORP. AND ELON MUSK SEEKING TO ANNUL DECISION BY EUROPEAN COMMISSION

White House asks OpenAI and Anthropic to hold new models from UK testers until US review dlvr.it/TVdLK2

Here's me still worrying about the Eliza Effect and now we're about to get AI tamagotchis, what could possibly go wrong bloomberg.com/opinion/articl…

Pożar stacji bazowej Starlinków na Mazowszu. Ustalenia RMF FM rmf24.pl/fakty/polska/news-p…

🛑 POLAND: FIRE AT STARLINK STATION WAS "SABOTAGE" (MINISTER)

you couldn't make this up

MORGAN STANLEY ACCIDENTALLY LEAKS 100+ DEAL PIPELINE A Morgan Stanley employee mistakenly emailed an internal document detailing more than 100 investment-banking deals being pitched or monitored across Asia and other regions. The list reportedly included potential IPOs, private-equity backers, pension funds and paused projects. Morgan Stanley said it promptly addressed the inadvertent disclosure and is engaging with relevant parties.

OpenAI Slashes AI Prices in Half — Permanently OpenAI just dropped its new GPT-6 Sol and Luna models with API prices cut by 50% or more, and the company says the reductions have no expiration date. The move puts Sol at half the qz.com/openai-gpt-6-sol-luna… #OpenAI #GPT6 #AIPricing

The album cover of an 80s synth-pop band

In addition, the expansion of NATO Arctic security and geoeconomic collaboration (military, dual and civilian) is a true game changer too, given the NATO expansion with two more key players in the North - Finland and Sweden. Denmark (& Greenland) get the best security guarantees.

Ah so this is what they meant by increasing defence spending

Ok, we now have the actual text of the Greenland deal (whitehouse.gov/briefings-sta…), so we can say how it compares to the existing 1951 arrangement and who, between Trump and Denmark, lied the most in their framing of it. Long story short - which may surprise some - the Danes lied the most: Trump is pretty much correct in saying that this new deal grants the US control of Greenland. Let's look into what changed compared to the 1951 deal. 1) This is now a permanent arrangement: whereas the existing 1951 deal only lasted as long as NATO existed, this one "does not have an end date and may only be amended by mutual consent." It even survives a hypothetical future independence of Greenland: in that event, Denmark and Greenland must ensure that the independent Greenlandic state "affirmatively assume[s] all of the rights and obligations of the Kingdom of Denmark specified in this Agreement." 2) In the 1951 agreement, the US could set up bases only where both governments agreed, and only on the basis of NATO planning. The new deal locks in three bases: the US can "modernize and expand its activities" at Pituffik, its only base in Greenland until now, and "shall be allowed to establish an additional Defense Area at Narsarsuaq and Mestersvig." Further bases beyond these 3 can be justified by the defense of "the American continent," a US interest rather than a NATO one. Also, quite subtle but this is interesting: Article IV(iii) says that "the United States may establish additional defense areas in Greenland" and that consultations are then held "to decide implementation details based on mutual agreement." What this means is that the principle of a new base is automatically granted and only the implementation details require agreement. Article VII also gives the US "the right to raise concerns regarding construction, or change of use" of any building near a US base, after which the parties decide together what to do. Which means that the US has a say over civilian planning around its bases. 3) On US military movement across Greenland, the wording change between the 1951 agreement and this new one is quite funny. The 1951 text said (Art. V(3)): the US "may enjoy... the right of free access to and movement between the defense areas through Greenland, including territorial waters, by land, air and sea," but only "in accordance with general rules mutually agreed upon and issued by the appropriate Danish authority in Greenland." The new one says: "the United States of America shall enjoy... the right of free access to and movement between the Defense Areas through Greenland, including the Territorial Waters, by land, air and sea." That's it: "May" becomes "shall," and the US military movement no longer has to follow rules "issued by the appropriate Danish authority in Greenland." The US also gets something new on top: "undersea access to and movement within the Territorial Waters," i.e. submarines. 4) Non-NATO exclusion: non-NATO states are barred from military installations or a persistent presence in Greenland unless all three parties approve, giving the US an effective permanent veto. The 1951 deal had no equivalent clause. 5) Investment screening: this is entirely new. "States or investors from a state that is not a member of NATO, a NATO partner, or an EU member state" (i.e. Russia, China, India, the Gulf States, etc.), "shall not be allowed to have (i) control, (ii) significant influence, or (iii) access to non-public information...within Particularly Sensitive Sectors or Activities in the territory of Greenland (including the Territorial Waters), unless agreed between the Parties." Again, it basically means that the US has a permanent veto over who can invest in strategic sectors in Greenland, as far as non-NATO or EU states are concerned. 6) Lastly, in stark contrast with the 1951 deal, the framing of the deal changes significantly: this new deal is largely framed around the US. The 1951 agreement existed only "for the benefit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization." The new one lists the defense of "the American continent" as an objective, celebrates "the irreplaceable role" of the United States military as well as "the United States' indispensable historical and ongoing contributions to the security and defense of Greenland," and names the establishment of Trump's "Golden Dome" missile defense system as a key goal. So, to sum up: - The US secured a permanent military foothold that even an independent Greenland would inherit whether it likes it or not - The US now has veto power over any non-NATO military presence in Greenland, and over who can invest in its strategic infrastructure and resources (beyond NATO and the EU) - Denmark signed away its say over the principle of new US bases, with only the right to discuss the "implementation details" - Danish authorities no longer set the rules for US military movement across the island - And all of it is now justified by the defense of "the American continent" I don't know in which universe this even remotely "recognizes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom and the Greenlandic people's right to self-determination," as Danish PM Mette Frederiksen put it (stm.dk/en/press/press-releas…). Yes, the preamble of the text cynically "reaffirms" Danish sovereignty but, in my book, when you let a foreign country put bases on your soil, move its troops without following your rules and veto who else can come in, in perpetuity, after it spent two years threatening to take you by force, the word for that is anything but "recognized sovereignty" 🤷

Why is architecture so one dimensional and unimaginative these days. Every “redevelopment” looks like this. Just noticed the latest addition of this variety to Oxford street. It’s like we really are going back to the 70s.

Having witnessed the “Trump is about to invade Greenland” media furore from Nuuk itself back in January, I endorse this message 👇 (As I noted at the time there was a distinct Baudrillard vibe to the whole thing.)

Most European security analysts can pick another job since they were totally wrong on how the Greenland crisis was solved. Gardening for example.

Very exciting things going on in my local area of London. See the below story from @conalu about the Chiswick-based company that is planning to revolutionise nuclear power by mounting reactors on barges and directing them to where the need is greatest. As he notes, Core Power has just signed an agreement with the United States Marine Administration to accelerate the construction of a future fleet of U.S.-flagged nuclear-powered merchant ships. The company says it is targeting first construction in the US in 2028. 👇 theviewfromw5.substack.com/p…?

President Karol Nawrocki said he hopes the US will finalize plans to establish a permanent military base in Poland and, if it does, the compound will be christened ‘Fort Trump’ bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

🛑 Spain is considering capping natural gas prices to curb electricity bills, market sources said.