Thursday☕️

26 Dec 2024 — 4 min read

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Yesterday, December 25, 2024, Azerbaijan Airlines Flight J2-8243, an Embraer aircraft carrying 67 people, crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, resulting in 38 fatalities. The flight, originally en route from Baku to Grozny, was diverted due to severe weather conditions and reportedly encountered a bird strike before the crash.

Emergency responders rescued 29 survivors, including three children, with seven individuals in critical condition. Kazakhstan’s Senate Chief stated that the exact cause remains unknown, and an investigation is underway to determine the circumstances behind the incident.

Economics & Markets:

Geopolitics & Conflicts:

On December 23, 2024, the Russian cargo ship Ursa Major sank in international waters between Spain and Algeria after an explosion occurred in its engine room. Operated by Oboronlogistika, a company linked to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the ship was carrying two large port cranes and equipment for icebreakers on a voyage from St. Petersburg to Vladivostok. The explosion caused the vessel to tilt heavily and sink. Spanish maritime services, with assistance from a Russian warship, rescued 14 crew members, but two remain missing.

The cause of the explosion and the ship’s mission remain unclear. Some reports suggest the Ursa Major was transporting military equipment, possibly connected to operations in Syria, while Ukrainian intelligence claimed it was retrieving equipment from the region. Oboronlogistika stated that the sinking was caused by a terrorist act, citing multiple explosions. The incident highlights the dangers of transporting sensitive cargo in geopolitically unstable regions.

Environment & Weather:

Business:

On December 11, 2024, Google requested that the FTC ends Microsoft’s exclusive cloud agreement with OpenAI, stating that the arrangement could increase costs for competitors and limit innovation. The deal requires OpenAI’s tools, such as ChatGPT, to run exclusively on the Microsoft Azure cloud. Google argues that this setup raises expenses for customers and may restrict competition in the growing AI and cloud markets.

Space:

Yesterday, December 25, 2024, Russia launched the Resurs-P No.5 Earth observation satellite into a sun-synchronous orbit using a Soyuz-2.1b rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome. The satellite, designed for high-resolution imaging, supports cartography, environmental monitoring, and resource management, enhancing Russia’s Earth observation capabilities.

Science & Technology:

On December 23, 2024, xAI announced it had raised $6 billion in a Series C funding round, doubling its valuation to $50 billion. The round included investments from major players such as Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, BlackRock, Fidelity, NVIDIA, and AMD. The funds will be used to enhance xAI’s capabilities, focusing on developing advanced AI models like Grok, designed to improve platforms such as X (formerly Twitter) and drive innovation in other applications.
A significant portion of the investment is directed toward xAI’s supercomputer, Colossus, located in Tennessee, which was built and made operational in record time. Despite being founded in July 2023, xAI has quickly established itself as a key player in AI, with its models rapidly improving in speed, scalability, and performance. With this funding and infrastructure, xAI aims to push the limits of AI development and solidify its position in the industry.

Statistic: