New Hampshire Showdown

OpenAI Valuation Doubts Loom As Softbank Scales Back Margin Loan SoftBank Group's abrupt scaling back of a planned $10 billion margin loan backed by its roughly 13% stake in OpenAI - now targeting as little as $6 billion - reveals deepening lender unease over the AI giant’s $852 billion post-money valuation set in March 2026. The move follows earlier $40 billion bridge financing and comes amid reports that OpenAI missed internal revenue and weekly-active-user targets earlier this year. While the loan itself is SoftBank’s problem, the episode carries real risks for OpenAI. The...

France Pushes Syria Strategic Energy Corridor Vision Despite Bombing During Macron Visit Via The Cradle French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on Thursday said that Paris is developing "alternative routes" following a return to war between the US and Iran, singling out Syria as a primary gateway to Persian Gulf oil. "Among all the efforts we have made since the start of this crisis, there is the idea of preparing alternative routes so that we are not dependent on blockages here or there," Barrot said. AFP/Getty Images: French President Emmanuel Macron shakes hands with...

Majority Believes They Will Achieve The American Dream 250 years after American independence, a majority of people in the United States continue to believe in their personal American Dream. As Statista's Kathraina Buchholz reports, 69 percent of those interviewed by Gallup in the beginning of the year say that they will achieve it in their lifetime. This is in contrast, though, to 54 percent saying that not everybody can achieve the American Dream in this day and age. You will find more infographics at Statista While in a question about other people, Americans' answers are driven by...