
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Coast Guard Capt. Jamie Frederick said Wednesday afternoon a team of experts is analyzing banging sounds that were picked up earlier Wednesday and late Tuesday, but the search mission for the Titan submersible—which has five passengers and disappeared Sunday—has not yielded any other signs of the missing vessel.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>A Canadian airplane picked up “<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/06/21/canadian-maritime-surveillance-plane-detected-underwater-noises-in-titanic-sub-search-area/?sh=3da0017845be">underwater noises</a>&nbsp;in the search area,” Frederick said, leading authorities to direct many of their search efforts around the area where the sound was heard.</p>



<p>The sounds are being analyzed by experts, but their source has not yet been identified.</p>



<p>The search area has been almost doubled in size since the Coast Guard last&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katherinehamilton/2023/06/20/titanic-sub-has-40-hours-of-oxygen-left-as-authorities-search-area-the-size-of-connecticut/?sh=68719d8b4fc7">addressed</a>&nbsp;the public Tuesday afternoon, and is now incorporating an area twice the size of Connecticut.</p>



<p>Frederick declined to give a timeline for how much longer the crew would search for the submersible, and clarified the mission is still “100%” a search-and-rescue attempt and not yet a recovery mission.</p>



<p>He also shared the team’s thoughts and prayers with the families of the <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katherinehamilton/2023/06/20/what-we-know-about-the-passengers-on-the-missing-titanic-submersible/?sh=1a20a8212d21">five people onboard</a> the Titan.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The sound from TITAN 📣<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OceanGate?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OceanGate</a> The five people stuck inside the Titanic submarine 🥺<br><br>Paul-Henry Nargeolet, 73<br>Stockton Rush, 61<br>Hamish Harding, 58<br>Shahzada Dawood, 48<br>Sulaiman Dawood, 19<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TitanicRescue?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TitanicRescue</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/titanicsubmarine?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#titanicsubmarine</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OceanGate?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OceanGate</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OceanGateExpeditions?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OceanGateExpeditions</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/submarinemissing?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#submarinemissing</a> <a href="https://t.co/JftL3c6GU1">pic.twitter.com/JftL3c6GU1</a></p>&mdash; Abdullah Attique (@abooodddiii) <a href="https://twitter.com/abooodddiii/status/1671654454783885312?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 21, 2023</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>The Titan had 96 hours of life support, which means the passengers likely have less than 24 hours of air remaining. Coast Guard Rear Adm. John Mauger&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-us-canada-65967464?ns_mchannel=social&amp;ns_source=twitter&amp;ns_campaign=bbc_live&amp;ns_linkname=64931083f2e5745fd8a78178%26Oxygen%20will%20run%20out%20tomorrow%20morning%2C%20admiral%20says%262023-06-21T15%3A03%3A43.030Z&amp;ns_fee=0&amp;pinned_post_locator=urn:asset:b44431e1-1f73-4df6-8b03-204415f94808&amp;pinned_post_asset_id=64931083f2e5745fd8a78178&amp;pinned_post_type=share" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told</a>&nbsp;the BBC on Wednesday that rescue crews are assuming they have until Thursday morning to find the submersible with its occupants still alive. But the oxygen “is just one piece of data” the team is considering in its time line for how much longer to search, Frederick said. The submersible&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katherinehamilton/2023/06/19/5-reportedly-missing-after-titanic-wreck-tourism-vessel-disappears-in-atlantic/?sh=777119a57190">went missing</a>&nbsp;shortly after it dove at 4 a.m. Sunday morning off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada, to view the wreck of the R.M.S.<em>&nbsp;Titanic&nbsp;</em>more than 2 miles underwater.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/06/21/canadian-maritime-surveillance-plane-detected-underwater-noises-in-titanic-sub-search-area/?sh=3da0017845be">‘Underwater Noises’ Detected In Titanic Sub Search By Canadian Military Plane</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katherinehamilton/2023/06/20/what-we-know-about-the-passengers-on-the-missing-titanic-submersible/?sh=1a20a8212d21">What We Know About The Passengers On The Missing Titanic Submersible</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katherinehamilton/2023/06/19/5-reportedly-missing-after-titanic-wreck-tourism-vessel-disappears-in-atlantic/?sh=777119a57190">5 Reportedly Missing After Titanic Wreck Tourism Vessel Disappears In Atlantic</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katherinehamilton/2023/06/20/titanic-sub-has-40-hours-of-oxygen-left-as-authorities-search-area-the-size-of-connecticut/?sh=68719d8b4fc7">Titanic Sub Has 40 Hours Of Oxygen Left As Authorities Search Area The Size Of Connecticut</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>


Bahamian research vessel arrived in the search area for the OceanGate Titan Submersible

Titan Sub Search-And-Rescue Still ‘100%’ On—But Just Hours Of Oxygen Left In Vessel


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Drugmaker GSK <a href="https://www.gsk.com/en-gb/media/press-releases/gsk-shares-positive-data-for-arexvy-its-respiratory-syncytial-virus-older-adult-vaccine-indicating-protection-over-two-rsv-seasons/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a> Wednesday its RSV vaccine gave long-term protection in older adults after a single shot, according to results from its late stage clinical trial, promising news for efforts to combat the common and potentially lethal infection.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>GSK said the shot, which is designed to protect adults ages 60 and older and is marketed as Arexvy, conveyed strong protection against lower respiratory tract disease and severe disease from RSV over two full seasons.</p>



<p>The findings, which have yet to be fully published, come from the company’s late stage trial of around 25,000 people testing the safety and efficacy of a single dose of Arexvy against RSV, a very common respiratory infection that normally only causes mild, cold-like illness in healthy adults but can trigger severe, possibly fatal, disease in older adults, young infants and those with underlying health conditions.</p>



<p>Lasting protection was also observed in people with underlying health conditions or of advanced age, GSK said, a particularly important finding given the vulnerability of these groups following infection.</p>



<p>Tony Wood, GSK’s chief scientific officer, said the result “reinforces our confidence in [the vaccine’s] potential to make a significant public health impact.”</p>



<p>Other data, notably the shot’s safety and ability to provoke an immune response, were consistent with earlier observations from the trial, which showed the shot to be safe and have side effects in line with other vaccines.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-we-don-t-know">WHAT WE DON’T KNOW</h2>



<p>It’s not clear how often people will need to be vaccinated against RSV and the seasonal nature of the virus—similar to what happens with flu—suggests vaccines could be yearly. This is still an open question and one that will be guided over time by public health policy, real-world data and other concerns in addition to clinical trial data. GSK evaluated an annual revaccination schedule in around half of its trial participants. The findings were similar to those who had only received the one shot and suggested “revaccination after 12 months does not appear to confer additional benefit for the overall population,” GSK said. The company said it will continue to “evaluate longer term follow up” and assess the “optimal timing for potential revaccination.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



<p>The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is set to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/acip/meetings/downloads/agenda-archive/agenda-2023-06-21-23-508.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">meet</a>&nbsp;Wednesday. The group, comprised of vaccine and public health experts, meets regularly to discuss the science surrounding vaccines and infectious diseases and develop guidelines for how vaccines should be administered to the civilian population. These guidelines form the basis of official immunization schedules. RSV vaccines for older adults are on the agenda and talks will determine how they are rolled out for the very first time. There are now&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2023/05/03/fda-approves-first-ever-rsv-vaccine-after-brutal-2022-season/?sh=505f124410b2">two</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/06/01/fda-approves-pfizers-rsv-vaccine-for-older-adults-it-could-be-available-this-fall/?sh=8ef1bb335ca2">authorized</a>&nbsp;shots intended to protect older adults from RSV, both of which were only approved this year after years of setbacks. GSK’s shot was the first to gain clearance, followed closely by Pfizer’s shot, Abrysvo. FDA advisors have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/05/18/rsv-vaccine-fda-advisors-recommend-pfizer-shot-to-protect-infants-from-infection-heres-what-to-know/?sh=4e0f12523859">recommended</a>&nbsp;the agency clear Pfizer’s shot for use in pregnant people to protect infants in their first months of life.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/06/01/fda-approves-pfizers-rsv-vaccine-for-older-adults-it-could-be-available-this-fall/?sh=8ef1bb335ca2">FDA Approves Pfizer’s RSV Vaccine For Older Adults—It Could Be Available This Fall</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://qz.com/rsv-vaccine-pfizer-global-south-1850401425" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pfizer&#8217;s RSV vaccine promise to the Global South is already several years behind schedule</a>&nbsp;(Quartz)</p>


Human respiratory syncytial virus inoculation

RSV Vaccine For Adults Gives Long-Term Protection, GSK Says After Late-Stage Trial


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>A sweeping climate report released Monday says Europe is the world&#8217;s fastest-warming continent, which has contributed to violent wildfires, drought conditions and a rise in heat-related deaths over the last several years.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Europe&#8217;s temperatures are increasing at twice the global average rate of 1.2 degrees Celsius, according to the most recent&nbsp;<a href="https://climate.copernicus.eu/esotc/2022/european-state-climate-2022-summary" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">European State of the Climate</a>&nbsp;report, and have been since the 1980s.</p>



<p>2022 brought a spring and summer drought through much of Europe; record-breaking heat; wildfires in the Czech Republic, France, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and the U.K.; and a record loss of glacier ice from the European Alps.</p>



<p>More than 16,000 people died last year from severe heat in Europe, and about $2 billion in damages were attributed to floods and storms brought by weather and climate extremes,&nbsp;<a href="https://uk.news.yahoo.com/europe-worlds-fastest-warming-continent-112322072.html?guccounter=1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Yahoo News</a>&nbsp;reported.</p>



<p>European economies and ecosystems took a big hit due to the unprecedented climate change, the report said—the Iberian Peninsula, which provides water to Spain, saw its fourth drier-than-average year in a row; dry conditions hit farmers in France and Germany, which saw a lower-than-average cereal and grape yield; and glaciers saw a new record mass loss for a single year.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>The Earth has been warming at an unprecedented rate since the mid-1800s, when the industrial revolution introduced a skyrocketing usage of fossil fuels and other climate-harming behaviors that kicked off a warming rate not seen in the past 10,000 years,&nbsp;<a href="https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according to NASA</a>. Widespread and rapid changes in the atmosphere, ocean and biosphere have occurred since, and Monday’s report says Europe is now 2.3 degrees Celsius hotter than it was in pre-industrial times. A relatively recent shift to prioritizing climate solutions has politicians and global organizations pushing for greener alternatives to harmful energy sources like coal and oil, and the 2015 Paris Accords has 195 member nations focused on cutting roughly 50% of emissions by 2030.</p>



<p>Environmentalists demonstrate during the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21) on December&nbsp;&#8230; [+]<small>GETTY IMAGES</small></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>30%. That&#8217;s how many more warm days occurred in Europe in 2022 than in the average year. Temperatures were 7 to 10 degrees Celsius warmer than average for seven of the 12 months in 2023, and in July temperatures reached 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) for the first time on record in the U.K.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



<p>Hotter days, bigger wildfires and more frequent floods. The State of the Climate report says the trend of high temperatures and drought will allow fires to burn hotter for longer periods of time. In addition, rainfall in months when snow is more common can lead to ice melt and increased flooding, as seen in Greenland last fall.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>The climate report was released on the same day President Joe Biden is expected to launch more than $600 million worth of new climate change initiatives. On a three-day visit to California that starts Monday, Biden is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/06/19/biden-launching-new-600-million-climate-change-initiative-focused-on-great-lakes-and-coasts/?sh=411cc2e3749d">expected to announce&nbsp;</a>a $575 million National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration project to help coastal and Great Lakes communities become more resilient to climate change and a $67 million investment for California to modernize its electric grid.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/06/19/biden-launching-new-600-million-climate-change-initiative-focused-on-great-lakes-and-coasts/?sh=411cc2e3749d">Biden Launching New $600 Million Climate Change Initiative—Focused On Great Lakes And Coasts&nbsp;</a>(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/indiarice/2023/06/17/current-climate-demand-for-oil-will-peak-by-the-end-of-the-decade/?sh=561c084a55df">Current Climate: Demand For Oil Will Peak By The End Of The Decade</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/environment/climate-crisis/2023/06/19/climate-change-is-scarring-europe-and-southern-countries-most-of-all/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Climate change is scarring Europe, and southern countries most of all </a>(<em>Irish Times</em>)</p>


Start of the day – Traffic

Europe Warming Faster Than Any Other Continent, Report Suggests


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Only “human creators” can be nominated for Grammy Awards, according to new eligibility requirements released Friday by the Recording Academy, as the music industry adds new limitations for songs produced by artificial intelligence.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Any work that features elements created by AI must also feature a “human authorship component” that is “meaningful” in order to be considered for a Grammy Award, according to new&nbsp;<a href="https://www.recordingacademy.com/awards/awards-updates" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">requirements</a>&nbsp;released Friday by the Recording Academy.</p>



<p>The Recording Academy previously&nbsp;<a href="https://www.recordingacademy.com/advocacy/news/ai-copyright-protecting-music-creators-united-states-copyright-office" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;it “embraces advances in technology,” adding it wanted to ensure “human creativity and passion is protected.”</p>



<p>Other eligibility changes require artists to account for at least 20% of a work in order for it to be considered.</p>



<p>The number of people eligible for the Grammy’s “Big Four” categories—best new artist and best new album, song and record—was also decreased from 10 to eight.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Paul McCartney&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/06/13/ai-you-need-is-love-artificial-intelligence-helps-create-final-beatles-song-paul-mccartney-says/?sh=5c3ce17b1275">announced</a>&nbsp;Tuesday that a “final” Beatles song would be released later this year after it was completed with the help of AI. McCartney—who did not name the song—said the technology was used to “extricate” John Lennon’s voice from a demo tape, while Lennon’s “pure” vocals” were used to complete the song.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-surprising-fact">SURPRISING FACT</h2>



<p>Researchers at Meta&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/FelixKreuk/status/1667086356927901696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced</a>&nbsp;an open-sourced AI program—<a href="https://huggingface.co/spaces/facebook/MusicGen" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MusicGen</a>—last week that allows users to generate music based on text input.</p>



<p>Forbes Daily: Get our best stories, exclusive reporting and essential analysis of the day’s news in your inbox every weekday.Sign Up</p>



<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and you acknowledge our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>AI-generated music&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/05/03/ai-generated-music-is-here-sung-by-stars-like-drake-and-ariana-grande-but-it-may-be-very-illegal/?sh=42692453aa32">became</a>&nbsp;a social media trend this year, including AI-created songs that featured Drake, Kendrick Lamar, the Weeknd and others. Universal Music Group sent a letter to streaming services—like Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube and TikTok—in April requesting they prevent AI programs from accessing their platforms to train on copyrighted lyrics and melodies,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/aec1679b-5a34-4dad-9fc9-f4d8cdd124b9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to the&nbsp;<em>Financial Times</em>. The U.S. Copyright Office&nbsp;<a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/03/16/2023-05321/copyright-registration-guidance-works-containing-material-generated-by-artificial-intelligence#:~:text=And%20in%20the%20current%20edition,any%20creative%20input%20or%20intervention" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">will only</a>&nbsp;offer copyright to works “created by a human being,” adding it will not “register works produced by a machine.” The Recording Academy—which presents the Grammy Awards—<a href="https://www.recordingacademy.com/advocacy/news/ai-copyright-protecting-music-creators-united-states-copyright-office" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;it is working with the copyright office to discuss possible regulations for AI-generated music, adding it wants to “ensure human creativity is always at the forefront of copyright policy.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/06/13/ai-you-need-is-love-artificial-intelligence-helps-create-final-beatles-song-paul-mccartney-says/?sh=5c3ce17b1275">AI You Need Is Love: Artificial Intelligence Helps Create ‘Final’ Beatles Song, Paul McCartney Says</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/05/03/ai-generated-music-is-here-sung-by-stars-like-drake-and-ariana-grande-but-it-may-be-very-illegal/?sh=42692453aa32">AI-Generated Music Is Here—‘Sung’ By Stars Like Drake And Ariana Grande—But It May Be Very Illegal</a> (<em>Forbes</em>)</p>


Chicago Chapter 60th Anniversary Concert

Grammy Awards Restrict AI: Only ‘Meaningful’ Human Work Will Be Recognized


<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-as-international-organizations-push-for-automation-in-social-assistance-programs-a-report-by-the-human-rights-watch-finds-that-the-algorithms-can-t-always-identify-the-most-vulnerable-households">As international organizations push for automation in social assistance programs, a report by the Human Rights Watch finds that the algorithms can’t always identify the most vulnerable households.</h3>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<p>The World Bank is increasingly incentivizing countries to develop technologies that can find and rank people in poverty so they can be provided with cash transfer and social assistance programs, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hrw.org/report/2023/06/13/automated-neglect/how-world-banks-push-allocate-cash-assistance-using-algorithms#_ftn102" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a>&nbsp;by the Human Rights Watch. But an algorithm used by a Jordanian government, which ranked households on 57 socio-economic factors in order to distribute funds from the World Bank, was found to be inaccurate and biased, the report says.</p>



<p>A cash transfer program for low-income households in Jordan, called Takaful, uses an algorithm to track indicators like property, car and business ownership, the number of members in a household, and electricity and water consumption to assess which families qualify for assistance. The program, launched by the National Aid Fund (NAF) in Jordan in 2019, was responsible for the allocation of roughly $1 billion provided by the World Bank and has 220,000 families enrolled as beneficiaries. The Human Rights Watch, a nonprofit that advocates and researches human rights, found that the algorithm failed to take into account the economic complexities faced by Jordanians who are under the poverty line, leading to some people in dire need being excluded.</p>



<p>Lead researcher Amos Toh, whose team conducted 70 interviews with families and business owners in Jordan since late 2021, says some factors took the country’s social realities into account. For instance, because women comprise a small part of the Jordanian labor force, households that are headed by a woman were more likely to qualify for the program. But other indicators that influence the algorithm, such as asset ownership and electricity consumption, are not appropriate measures of poverty and can make the program seem like a “lottery,” he says.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>“These rigid indicators and measurements that comprise the algorithm lead to a loss of nuance and aren’t able to capture what any family is going through at one point in time.”Amos Toh, researcher at Human Rights Watch</p>
</blockquote>



<p>The study found that some families who were disqualified had recently inherited property but didn’t have the financial means to make ends meet. Other applicants who owned a car that was less than five years old or a business that was worth over $4300 were automatically excluded by the algorithm, even if the car owner couldn’t afford petrol or the business was failing.</p>



<p>Mariam, a woman who lives with her family outside the city and needs a car for commuting and transporting water, was dropped from the Takaful program in 2022, according to her interview with the Human Rights Watch. She says that owning a car, which is one of the criteria factored into the algorithm, affected her chances of getting financial aid. “The car destroyed us,” she told Human Right Watch.</p>



<p>Jordan is not the first country whose government has used an algorithm to make crucial decisions about people’s lives. An algorithm used by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/welfare-algorithms-discrimination/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rotterdam</a>&nbsp;that ranked people who received welfare benefits based on their risk of fraud was found to be biased and flawed.&nbsp;<a href="https://themarkup.org/prediction-bias/2021/12/02/crime-prediction-software-promised-to-be-free-of-biases-new-data-shows-it-perpetuates-them" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Crime prediction</a>&nbsp;software used by police departments in the U.S. has been repeatedly found to be racially biased and problematic. In 2016, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/australia-tech-ai/feature-australian-robodebt-scandal-shows-the-risk-of-rule-by-algorithm-idUKL8N3340SN" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Australian</a>&nbsp;government used an automated system to calculate overpayment and issue debt notices to welfare recipients which wrongly accused about 400,000 people.</p>



<p>“When we were in Jordan and interviewing people, they kept talking about how the algorithm is depriving them of support,” Toh told&nbsp;<em>Forbes.&nbsp;</em>“These rigid indicators and measurements that comprise the algorithm lead to a loss of nuance and aren’t able to capture what any family applying is going through at one point in time.”</p>



<p>The algorithm was developed by the National Aid Fund, a social protection agency in Jordan. It pulls in 80 percent of the application data from the National Unified Registry, a database of applicants’ information that includes their income, employment and education. The World Bank gave a&nbsp;<a href="https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/368601602882565893/pdf/Jordan-National-Unified-Registry-and-Outreach.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">loan</a>&nbsp;of $2.5 million to create the registry with the help of a third-party contractor called&nbsp;<a href="https://naf.gov.jo/EBV4.0/Root_Storage/EN/EB_List_Page/Rapid_Social_Assessment_-_ECT_AF2_c.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Optimiza</a>. Also known as Al-Faris National Investment Company, Optimiza is an Amman-based software provider and tech consultancy that processes the data and manages the database. The company, which said the NAF was a client, declined to comment.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>“The car destroyed us.”Mariam, applicant of the Takaful program</p>
</blockquote>



<p>Toh says human-induced inaccuracies and inconsistencies in the data compilation could affect the ranking of individuals in the algorithm. Data collected from surveys and mass registration exercises are often conducted infrequently and in limited areas, the study found. Another flaw in the program was that it didn’t accept applications where an individual’s expenses were 20 percent more than their income. To work around it, applicants had to arbitrarily inflate their income or lower expenses, Toh says.</p>



<p>In a detailed&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/media_2023/06/thr_jordan0623%20annex%202.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">response</a>&nbsp;to Human Rights Watch, the National Aid Fund said that each of the 57 indicators held a certain weight and the indicators were developed based on the concept of “multidimensional poverty.” NAF said it conducted house visits to verify data collected in the form and that it has a complaints and appeals process for citizens. The World Bank said in response that targeting through algorithms and formulas is an “effective tool… to make the most of constrained fiscal space” and reduce poverty.</p>



<p>The World Bank also has given loans for similar projects to upgrade technologies and databases in seven other countries in the region, including Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Morocco, Yemen and Tunisia. HRW found that the World Bank has loaned $100 million to Tunisia to develop and integrate&nbsp;<a href="https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/831811560823331664/pdf/Tunisia-GovTech-Digital-Transformation-for-User-Centric-Public-Services-Project.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">machine learning</a>&nbsp;and a targeting AI model into the country’s social registry to detect fraud and improve compliance.</p>



<p>“At the end of the day, the algorithm generates a crude ranking of people&#8217;s poverty that essentially pits one household needs against another for support and generates social tension,” Toh says.                                        </p>


Roman Theater in Amman

An Algorithm Aimed To Help Jordan’s Poor. It Excluded Some In Need, Report Finds


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” world tour—which launched with two nights in Stockholm last month—may have contributed to Sweden’s increased inflation rate in May, according to an economist from Danske Bank, after the tour resulted in increased hotel, restaurant and recreation prices.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Michael Grahn, Danske Bank’s chief economist,&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/MichaelGrahn1/status/1668865814110380033?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;Beyoncé’s tour “probably” added between 0.2 and 0.3 percentage points to Sweden’s inflation rate, which fell from 10.5% in April to 9.7% in May.</p>



<p>The Swedish government&nbsp;<a href="https://www.scb.se/en/finding-statistics/statistics-by-subject-area/prices-and-consumption/consumer-price-index/consumer-price-index-cpi/pong/statistical-news/consumer-price-index-cpi-may-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">noted</a>&nbsp;in its inflation report that the inflation rate was affected by hotel and restaurant prices, which rose 3.3% over the previous month, and prices for “recreational services,” which include concert tickets.</p>



<p>Grahn—who said the scenario was “very rare”—<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-beyonce-effect-swedens-inflation-feels-the-hit-417370a6?mod=hp_listb_pos4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told</a>&nbsp;the&nbsp;<em>Wall Street Journal&nbsp;</em>that increased prices were most likely affected by Beyoncé’s fans, who “vacuumed hotels around Stockholm” while “bidding” for hotel rates.</p>



<p>The added percentage points are expected to be “reversed” in June as hotel and ticket prices “reverse back to normal,” Grahn&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/MichaelGrahn1/status/1668865816597610496" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">added</a>.</p>



<p>Beyonce performed both Stockholm shows before sold-out audiences of 46,000, including many who flew in from around the world.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>“Beyoncé is responsible for the extra upside surprise this month,” Grahn&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/abc431c4-426d-4a9f-9674-f437ed504eb7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told</a>&nbsp;the&nbsp;<em>Financial Times</em>, adding, “It’s quite astonishing for a single event. We haven’t seen this before.”</p>



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<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and you acknowledge our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Ticketmaster&nbsp;<a href="https://blog.ticketmaster.com/beyonce/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">warned</a>&nbsp;in February that demand for “Renaissance” tour tickets in “Group A” cities—including Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Toronto and Washington D.C.—exceeded the number of tickets available by 800%.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>$2.4 billion. That’s how much&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/petercohan/2023/05/08/beyonc-renaissance-tour-could-outearn-taylor-swift-eras-by-600-million/?sh=4933e31e49bc">estimates</a>&nbsp;Beyoncé’s tour could gross in revenue.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forbes-valuation">FORBES VALUATION</h2>



<p>Beyoncé has a net worth of $540 million,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/beyonce-knowles/?sh=1d5096693ce7">according</a>&nbsp;to our most recent estimates.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Beyoncé—who has won a record 32 Grammy Awards—announced her long-anticipated “Renaissance” world tour to coincide with the release of her&nbsp;<em>Renaissance</em>&nbsp;album, which&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/marisadellatto/2022/08/08/beyoncs-renaissance-is-a-no-1-album-but-its-not-her-biggest-debut-ever/?sh=525fc48127d5">debuted&nbsp;</a>No. 1 on the&nbsp;<em>Billboard&nbsp;</em>200 last August. The tour—Beyoncé’s first since 2018—opened in May in Stockholm before subsequently reaching other European cities. The tour will start its North American leg in July. “Renaissance” is Beyoncé’s first solo tour since 2016, when she grossed&nbsp;<a href="https://www.billboard.com/pro/beyonce-formation-tour-2-million-tickets-250-million-dollars/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$256 million</a>&nbsp;with “The Formation World Tour.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2023/02/01/beyonc-announces-renaissance-world-tour-dates/?sh=2424d9314d9f">Beyoncé Announces ‘Renaissance’ World Tour Dates</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/marisadellatto/2022/08/08/beyoncs-renaissance-is-a-no-1-album-but-its-not-her-biggest-debut-ever/?sh=72337d5d27d5">Beyoncé’s ‘Renaissance’ Is A No. 1 Album—But It’s Not Her Biggest Debut Ever</a> (<em>Forbes</em>)</p>


Beyoncé RENAISSANCE WORLD TOUR – London

Beyoncé Caused Inflation? ‘Renaissance’ Tour May Have Boosted Sweden’s Costs, Economist Says


<p>It’s been just over six months since ChatGPT was launched on the world. Like every other transformative technology shift, it’s already prompting leaders to question how they do everything from drug discovery and investing to talent management and partnerships. And yet unemployment rates remain near a 50-year low as employers struggle to find and retain the talent they need to get ahead of the next wave in work.</p>



<p>That’s prompting a move towards skills-based hiring, experimentation with AI and other themes that we explored at our<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesliveteam/2023/04/24/2023-forbes-future-of-work-summit-work-disrupted/?sh=6b5d7a007f6e">&nbsp;Future of Work Summit</a>&nbsp;last week. Here is a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/emmylucas/2023/06/01/2023-forbes-future-of-work-summit/?sh=7587326c48d7">summary of highlights from the event</a>, courtesy of Emmy Lucas, and a shout-out to Jena McGregor for creating such a thought-provoking event.</p>



<p>On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to hear from experts at McKinsey about what they’re seeing and doing in this realm at their annual media day. The management consultancy has faced plenty of challenges in the past few years—from paying hefty fines over its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2021/02/04/reports-mckinsey-has-reached-573-million-settlement-with-states-for-its-role-in-marketing-opioid-drugs/?sh=3f644e1065d1">role in marketing opioid drugs</a>&nbsp;to an embarrassing lack of diversity in its senior ranks. (<em>Full Disclosure: I worked there in 2020.)</em></p>



<p>And yet McKinsey remains<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/stephaniefillion/2022/08/10/meet-the-worlds-best-management-consulting-firms-2022/?sh=28cea78a2888">&nbsp;the advisor of choice</a>&nbsp;for many of the world’s top leaders, having built a deep bench of expertise in areas like sustainability, organizational health, growth strategies and digital transformation. More than a million people applied for 10,000 jobs last year. What’s more, some among that top 1 percent didn’t come in with traditional four-year degrees—reflecting what chief people officer Katy George describes as a shift towards hiring for potential vs. pedigree. “We used to be the stewards of jobs,” says George. “Now, we are stewards of skills.”</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-ceo-shift-around-ai"><strong>The CEO Shift Around AI</strong></h3>



<p>Among the most coveted of skills, of course, is the ability to understand and leverage ChatGPT and other forms of generative AI. Alex Singla, a senior partner and global leader of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/how-we-help-clients" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">QuantumBlack, AI by McKinsey</a>, said that conversations with CEOs have shifted over the past several weeks. Gone are the requests for explanations of how the technology works — and whether it’s over-hyped. Now, Singla says, five questions dominate:</p>



<ul>
<li>What are the specific use cases?</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>How do I get started?</li>



<li>What are the risks I need to manage?</li>



<li>What are the implications for present and future employees?</li>



<li>How do I learn fast?</li>
</ul>



<p>The automation that McKinsey had previously predicted would take effect by 2040 has now moved up to 2030. The winners will be those who move fast and quickly figure out how to integrate these new technologies into their IT stacks and work flows, and reimagine how they manage talent and design their operating model as a result.</p>



<p>Jacky Wright, a former chief digital officer of Microsoft US who became McKinsey’s first chief technology &amp; platform officer last fall, also notes that generative AI is already creating new roles around risk and prompting forward-thinking companies to constantly iterate existing job descriptions.</p>



<p>Junior analysts, for example, will no longer need to spend most of their time gathering research, preparing pitch decks and creating content that synthesizes the data. Their focus is instead shifting to more value-added tasks.</p>



<p>Senior Partner Ben Ellencweig of QuantumBlack, in true McKinsey fashion, distills AI’s current impact to four Cs:&nbsp;<strong>coding</strong>&nbsp;(<em>AI-generated suggestions are already generating productivity gains of up to 55%s</em>),&nbsp;<strong>customer engagment&nbsp;</strong>(<em>suggesting more personalized ways to engage customers</em>),&nbsp;<strong>creative content generation&nbsp;</strong>(<em>especially in marketing</em>) and&nbsp;<strong>content synthesis</strong>&nbsp;(<em>essentially connecting the dots</em>). “All the mundane tasks go away,” he says. “It’s about change management &#8230; just moving at a lightning speed.”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/mckinsey-digital/our-insights/what-every-ceo-should-know-about-generative-ai" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Here’s a report</a>&nbsp;that QuantumBlack produced on what CEOs need to know about generative AI,</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-productivity-paradox">The Productivity Paradox</h3>



<p>The current job market is both confounding and heartening to Anu Madgavkar, a McKinsey Global Institute partner who leads global research focused on labor markets and talent trends. Despite economic headwinds, people continue to switch jobs, work schedules and industries, helping job openings go up. That points to resilience and reasons for optimism, in her view. A key lever to keep the momentum going is to accelerate productivity growth, which now lags historical averages. Correcting that could add $10 trillion to US GDP,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/mgi/our-research/rekindling-us-productivity-for-a-new-era#at-a-glance" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">by McKinsey’s calculations</a>.</p>



<p>While technology has the power to accelerate productivity gains, it’s not the only ingredient. Labor mobility, regulations, hiring practices and other factors also play into productivity. About three-quarters of of open job descriptions still ask for a four-year degree but 13 states have removed that criteria as a prerequisite in applying for public-sector roles and momentum is building for a more skills-based approach. As an example, Scott Blackburn, a senior partner &amp; global co-leader of the McKinsey Center for Government pointed out how infantry soldiers are extensively trained in many of the skills needed in managing corporate risk.</p>



<p>Asutosh Padhi, McKinsey’s managing partner for North America, argues that “productivity is the only solution” for America’s continued prosperity. “How do we pay for the energy transition?,” he asked. “It all comes down to productivity at the state level, the sector level.”</p>



<p>And yet, as senior partner Olivia White of The McKinsey Global Institute noted, U.S. productivity gains have halved to an annual rate of 1.1% over the last 15 years. Moreover, those figures vary widely across the country. She cited seven states that were outperforming in terms of gains: North Dakota, California, New York, Texas, Colorado, Massachusetts and Washington. Many more are underperforming, she notes, creating a productivity gap that will only exacerbate the country’s regional divide.</p>



<p>Ezra Greenberg, a partner and global leader in overseeing macro scenarios and trends for the firm, has one piece of advice that almost every company can follow: “Keep your Baby Boomers.” Their institutional knowledge and ability to mentor younger generations could prove to be priceless in the coming years. For Boomers, that could be a recipe to work less and get paid more — if they adapt to new technologies and reimagine their own roles, too.</p>


Students Working On Computer Assignment During Seminar Group

What CEOs Are Asking McKinsey About AI, Talent And The Future Of Work


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>A vaccine for chikungunya—a mosquito-borne infection with similar symptoms to dengue and Zika—could finally be on the horizon after promising results from a late stage trial were published in the&nbsp;<em>Lancet</em>&nbsp;on Monday, a key towards tackling the emerging global health threat as climate change creates increasingly ideal conditions for the virus to spread explosively, including in the U.S.</p>



<p>Aedes mosquitoes can spread chikungunya.<small>GETTY IMAGES</small></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Valneva’s chikungunya shot, made from a weakened form of the virus and administered in a single dose, was safe, well-tolerated and provoked an immune response that indicates protection against disease, according to the firm’s late stage clinical trial published in the peer reviewed medical journal.</p>



<p>Researchers said the trial—which enrolled 4,115 healthy adults across the U.S., 3,082 of whom were given the vaccine—did not raise any safety concerns over the shot and Juan Carlos Jaramillo, Valneva’s chief medical officer, said an independent board evaluating the trial’s data and any adverse reactions reported afterwards came to the same conclusion.</p>



<p>Common side effects reported in the trial included headaches, fatigue, muscle and joint pain and pain at the injection site, which were consistent across different age groups.</p>



<p>As the study was conducted in the U.S., a region where chikungunya is not endemic, researchers measured the immune system’s response to test whether the vaccine protects against disease caused by infection with the virus.</p>



<p>Immune responses—tested in 362 participants, 266 of whom received the shot—were strong, the researchers said, with 99% showing antibody levels considered to protect against the virus 28 days after vaccination.</p>



<p>While antibody levels—which were similar for both younger and older subjects—fell after the 28 day mark, the researchers said protection persisted for 96% of vaccine recipients six months after getting the shot.</p>



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<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and you acknowledge our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>$500 million. That’s the estimated global market for chikungunya vaccines by 2032, according to Valneva.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



<p>The trial’s length meant researchers were not able to evaluate the protection the shot provided for periods longer than six months and they said a follow up study is already underway to test immune responses over five years. They said results from the one year point are encouraging. As a precaution, researchers are also keeping an eye on the risk of miscarriage following the shot, which was slightly higher among research subjects than the general population. While this could be down to the small sample size and be a natural statistical variation—two miscarriages were explained by genetic disorder or medical history while no reason could be identified for the other—and no safety concerns were flagged, the researchers said monitoring will be needed as the vaccine is rolled out.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-we-don-t-know">WHAT WE DON’T KNOW</h2>



<p>As the study was undertaken in the U.S., protection against chikungunya has been inferred from the immune response provoked by the vaccine. While antibody levels are predictive of protection against serious illness—antibodies are proteins that can block viruses from entering cells—they are only one aspect of the immune system and are relatively short lived and offer only a partial insight into a vaccine’s potential value. Studies in areas where chikungunya is endemic—spreading naturally and constantly present—will be needed to verify and expand the trial&#8217;s findings and see how it works in the real world. Important factors researchers are considering are its impact on children and teens—a trial is underway in Brazil—and whether existing or subsequent exposure to the virus will meaningfully alter responses to the vaccine. Writing in a linked comment article, Kathryn Stephenson, a researcher at the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center who was not involved in the study, said “real-world effectiveness studies in the context of actual” outbreaks will also be crucial to confirming the shot’s value.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>The name chikungunya&nbsp;<a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/chikungunya" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">comes</a>&nbsp;from the Kimakonde language,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/chikungunya/facts/factsheet#:~:text=Chikungunya%20is%20a%20viral%20disease,associates%20fever%2C%20arthralgia%20and%20rash." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">meaning</a>&nbsp;“to become contorted” or “that which bends up,” a reference to the stooped or contorted posture of those infected with the virus on account of the severe joint pain it can cause. In addition to joint pain—potentially debilitating and can last for weeks, months or even years and develop into chronic arthritis—symptoms of chikungunya include fatigue, headaches and nausea and the infection is often confused with dengue and Zika, which have similar symptom profiles. While serious disease and death from chikungunya are rare—children and older people are at the greatest risk—the virus can still cause significant ill health in regions where it circulates, Aslam Khan, a clinical assistant professor of pediatric infectious diseases and global health faculty fellow at Stanford University, told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>. There are also no treatments directly targeting the virus and no approved vaccines. Valneva, which until recently was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fiercebiotech.com/deals/merck-admits-defeat-race-valneva-get-first-chikungunya-vaccine-market" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">competing</a>&nbsp;for primacy with Merck, is potentially in line to be first and its shot is being reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration and Canada’s health authority.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-news-peg">NEWS PEG</h2>



<p>Chikungunya is spread by&nbsp;<em>Aedes</em>&nbsp;mosquitoes, which are typically found in warmer, tropical regions of the world and are responsible for spreading other viruses including dengue, Zika and yellow fever. There have been multiple&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/chikungunya-monthly#:~:text=Situation%20update%2C%2017%20March%202023,reported%20from%20Paraguay%20(43)." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">outbreaks</a>&nbsp;of chikungunya in various parts of the world this year, including parts of the Americas and Asia. Various health authorities and experts have identified it as an&nbsp;<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11908-022-00789-y" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">emerging</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6147074/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">threat</a>&nbsp;to global health.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>Khan told&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>he considers the risk to the U.S. from chikungunya to be low but said he believes “that is changing.” Khan explained that we “have already found the mosquito vector within the United States and with climate change, ultimately there may be favorable conditions for ongoing growth and proliferation of those species. Humans can serve as a potential reservoir for the virus which can be picked up and spread by these mosquitoes,” he explained.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/climate-hazards-are-turning-218-diseases-bigger-threats-rcna41631" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Floods, heat and other climate hazards are turning 218 infectious diseases into bigger threats, study says</a>&nbsp;(NBC News)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(19)30258-0/fulltext" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The story of chikungunya virus</a>&nbsp;(Lancet)</p>



<p><a href="https://cepi.net/news_cepi/new-book-challenges-world-leaders-to-get-behind-100-days-mission-to-end-pandemics/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Disease X: The 100 Days Mission to End Pandemics </a>(Book by Kate Kelland)</p>


Biting mosquito

First Vaccine For Chikungunya—An Emerging Mosquito-Borne Threat—Nears After Promising Trial Results


<p>​​The Securities and Exchange Commission is suing Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, its U.S. affiliate and founder Changpeng Zhao.</p>



<p>Among the reams of evidence provided by the agency, which include employee text messages, testimonies of former executives and Binance’s audit reports, some accusations seemed especially bizarre. Here are five that caught our eye:</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-former-chief-compliance-officer-said-there-s-no-fking-way-we-are-clean"><strong>The former chief compliance officer said “there’s no fking way we are clean”</strong></h2>



<p>In a&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060.17.5_1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">text exchange</a>&nbsp;with another employee, Binance’s former chief compliance officer, Samuel Lim, said he did not believe the company was “clean.” As an example, he said that the exchange’s customer service is teaching users how to circumvent sanctions.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-binance-is-accused-of-hijacking-more-user-funds-than-ftx"><strong>Binance is accused of hijacking MORE user funds than FTX</strong></h2>



<p>The SEC alleges Binance and Binance.US&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060.21.0_2.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">redirected</a>&nbsp;over $12 billion in clients’ assets to entities controlled by Zhao between 2019 and 2021. That’s $4 billion more than the $8 billion shortfall initially claimed in the case of FTX, formerly the second-largest crypto exchange and the subject of a spectacular collapse in November. Additionally, millions of dollars of customer and corporate funds were commingled in accounts of Merit Peak, a British Virgin Islands trading firm owned by Zhao, according to the agency.</p>



<p>In a&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1666848861497831449?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Twitter post on</a>&nbsp;Thursday, Zhao denied the claim but only addressed the Binance.US part of the allegation. &#8220;To the best of my knowledge, Binance.US had in total roughly $2 billion in user funds. This number in USD equivalent fluctuates a little as crypto prices change. And declining as users withdraw due to recent news. All user funds are accounted for, and never left the Binance.US (unless users withdraw themselves of course), ever.&#8221; he wrote.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-binance-received-damning-audits"><strong>Binance received damning audits</strong></h2>



<p>Since Binance.US’s inception and through at least 2022, auditors from Armanino have&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060.20.8.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">identified</a>&nbsp;“significant deficiencies that aggregated to material weaknesses” relating to Binance’s control over the operation of the Binance.US Platform and custody and control of customer assets, and the fact that Binance’s custody of U.S. customer assets was completely opaque” to employees of BAM Trading, Binance.US’s operator. Drawbacks listed in the 2019 audit included commingled customer and company funds, reliance on the parent for financial data and the lack of a disaster plan.</p>



<p>A separate&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060.19.10_1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">audit</a>&nbsp;from FGMK shows that Binance.US lost $181 million in 2022.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-two-former-ceos-of-binance-us-claimed-that-zhao-ran-the-american-unit"><strong>Two former CEOs of Binance.US claimed that Zhao ran the American unit</strong></h2>



<p>Brian Brooks, former chief executive of Binance.US who resigned three months after taking the job,&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060.20.3.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;that “what became clear to me at a certain point was CZ was the CEO of BAM Trading, not me.” Binance has maintained that it operates independently from its American affiliate.</p>



<p>Brooks added that during his tenure Binance.US had a group of Shanghai-based employees who received part of their compensations in Binance’s BNB<a href="https://www.forbes.com/digital-assets/assets/bnb-bnb/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BNB</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/digital-assets/assets/bnb-bnb/">+0.9%</a>&nbsp;token and were part of a company called “Boran.”</p>



<p>Catherine Coley, the first chief executive of Binance.US–who abruptly left the company in 2021 and has been little heard from since– also revealed the subsidiary was not independent. The SEC alleged that for at least the first year of its existence, the parent company Binance.com insisted that Zhao and Guangying Chen, a close associate of Zhao also known as Heina, had to control the bank accounts of BAM Trading, the U.S. exchange. Coley&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060.18.16_1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told</a>&nbsp;company lawyer Wei Zhou in an electronic exchange: “I’m confused why we go through all of these measures with separating BAM vs. .com and then have a non-U.S. resident, non employee on the bank applications.” Zhou replied “You know what HQ Finance’s position is, right?… They want to have Heina as signatory on US BAM bank accounts”</p>



<p>He advised: “No need to pound the separation thing too much. I think most people understand that by now.”</p>



<p>Coley dubbed an effort to escape Zhao’s control as “Project 1776,” a reference to the American Revolution. She told a fellow employee it was “for our independence,” according to the suit.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wash-trades-occurred-with-employees-knowledge"><strong>Wash trades occurred with employees’ knowledge</strong></h2>



<p>The SEC&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060.1.0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">alleges&nbsp;</a>that wash trading, or self-dealing, which typically results in an inflated trading volume that creates a false appearance of market interest, regularly took place on the Binance.US platform. Much of it occurred through accounts affiliated with Sigma Chain, an entity owned and controlled by Zhao, essentially making it a market maker on the Binance.US Platform.</p>



<p>In an online discussion in January 2021 about a drop in trading volume from Sigma Chain, the company&#8217;s sales director<strong>&nbsp;</strong>told other employees that 20 other accounts were fronts: &#8220;fyi, these are ALL sigma chain.&#8221; Later that month, an employee found he could trade with himself.</p>



<p>The SEC’s 13-count&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sec.gov/files/litigation/complaints/2023/comp-pr2023-101.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">suit</a>&nbsp;alleges that the crypto exchange, its American branch and Zhao “enriched themselves by billions of dollars while placing investors’ assets at significant risk” and “designed and implemented a multi-step plan to surreptitiously evade U.S. laws.”</p>



<p>Binance.US&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/BinanceUS/status/1666996908651323393" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;late on Thursday that it would suspend deposits and withdrawals in U.S. dollars on its platform. In a message to customers, the company said it was “taking necessary actions” in a transition to a crypto-only exchange after the SEC suit discouraged banks from working with it</p>



<p>Zhao, Binance and two U.S subsidiaries have until June 28 to <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060/gov.uscourts.dcd.256060.23.0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">respond</a> to the suit, which was filed in the federal court for the District of Columbia. A hearing on an SEC request to freeze the assets of Binance.US is set for June 13 at 2:00 PM Washington time.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ninabambysheva/"></a></p>


SEC Targets $120 Billion of Tokens With Coinbase And Binance Suits

5 Most Surprising Revelations From The SEC’s Binance Lawsuit


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Facebook and Instagram’s parent company Meta has been testing its challenger to Twitter—internally dubbed “Project 92” and previously “Barcelona”—for months with celebrities and influencers, and gave employees a sneak preview this week.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Meta&nbsp;<a href="https://www.platformer.news/p/meta-is-building-a-decentralized" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told</a>&nbsp;tech journalist Casey Newton in March the company “believe(d) there’s an opportunity for a separate space where creators and public figures can share timely updates about their interests.”</p>



<p>In May, Bloomberg&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-05-19/instagram-readies-twitter-competitor-for-summer-release?srnd=premium&amp;leadSource=uverify%20wall" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;Meta had been quietly testing it with celebrities and influencers for months and potentially could be ready to launch it as early as June.</p>



<p>Last week, Meta employees got a preview of the app, The Verge&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/8/23754304/instagram-meta-twitter-competitor-threads-activitypub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>, which will stand alone but based on Instagram, and will likely allow users to transfer information and followers from Instagram.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/8/23754304/instagram-meta-twitter-competitor-threads-activitypub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Screenshots</a>&nbsp;of the app acquired by The Verge show a mobile app with an appearance extremely similar to Twitter, featuring verified users, like and reshare buttons and a messaging option.</p>



<p>Meta chief product officer Chris Cox reportedly told employees the goal of the new app is to have a platform prioritizing “safety, ease of use, reliability” and to ensure that creators have a “stable place to build and grow their audiences.”</p>



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<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and you acknowledge our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<p>There is still no set launch date or official name for the app—nicknamed both Project 92 and “Barcelona” internally—though could be called Threads, “based on internal documents” reviewed by The Verge.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>“We’ve been hearing from creators and public figures who are interested in having a platform that is sanely run, that they believe that they can trust and rely upon for distribution,” Cox said to employees, in a clear dig at Twitter, and new owner Elon Musk, when showing the app, The Verge reported, calling it “our response to Twitter.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cheif-critic">CHEIF CRITIC</h2>



<p>Twitter CEO Elon Musk responded to a tweet about Meta’s challenger crudely Friday,&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1667443908060520449" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tweeting</a>&nbsp;“zuck my tongue” in response to a link reporting that Meta had been trying to get the Dalia Lama—who recently made&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-65229327" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">headlines</a>&nbsp;for saying “suck my tongue” to a child—as a user. Meta reportedly has DJ Slime signed on to use the app, and are also in talks with Oprah, The Verge reported.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Many frustrated users have posted publicly about finding an alternative to Twitter since billionaire Elon Musk took over in October 2022 and began quickly making changes to the platform, ranging from adding an algorithm-driven “For You” page, to eliminating moderation teams charged with eliminating offensive content, to charging people to be verified and get access to features like an edit button. Mastodon attempted to fill the gap shortly after Musk bought Twitter, offering a less centralized&nbsp;<a href="https://joinmastodon.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">platform</a>&nbsp;but promising “no algorithms or ads to waste your time.” But,&nbsp;<em>Wired</em>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/the-mastodon-bump-is-now-a-slump/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;that Mastodon’s number of active users fell to 1.4 million at the end of January—dropping by more than one million—since people flocked to it in November 2022.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Project 92 isn’t the only recent Twitter challenger. Twitter’s former CEO Jack Dorsey launched&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2023/05/01/what-is-bluesky-heres-what-to-know-about-ex-twitter-ceos-new-invite-only-social-network--as-these-celebrities-sign-up/?sh=7c0dbce76342">Bluesky</a>, a decentralized app that was developed in parallel with Twitter and has an interface almost indistinguishable from Twitter, along with a similar algorithm. Bluesky is currently invitation-only after launching its beta version for iOS in February and for Android in April. Bluesky plans to allow users to create their own content moderation guidelines or subscribe to guidelines created by others, including the ability to opt-in or opt-out of viewing violent or hateful content.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/8/23754304/instagram-meta-twitter-competitor-threads-activitypub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Instagram’s upcoming Twitter competitor shown in leaked screenshots</a>&nbsp;(The Verge)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2023/05/19/instagram-is-preparing-a-twitter-like-app-to-be-launched-this-summer-report-says/?sh=4afdb443100c">Instagram Is Preparing A Twitter-Like App To Be Launched This Summer, Report Says</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>


Facebook Covers Sign At Menlo Park Headquarters

Meta’s ‘Response To Twitter’ May Launch Soon. Here’s What To Know About It.


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Tesla CEO Elon Musk reclaimed his throne as the richest man on earth Thursday, wrestling the title away from LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault as shares of Musk’s electric vehicle giant surged to their highest level this year.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Tesla stock rallied 4.6% to $235 in Thursday trading, notching its 10th straight day of gains.</p>



<p>Musk’s firm is on pace for its highest closing share price since October 6, 2022.</p>



<p>After cratering to a two-year low in early January, Tesla shares are up nearly 115%, the third-largest return of any company in the S&amp;P 500, which is up 12% this year.</p>



<p>That rally has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryadolan/2023/06/07/elon-musk-becomes-worlds-richest-person-again/?sh=54a20bdf4ca4">propelled</a>&nbsp;Musk to once again become the richest person on the planet, according to&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>’ calculations, pegging Musk’s net worth to be $220.2 billion, $4.2 billion bigger than Arnault’s by market close.</p>



<p>On Wednesday, Musk briefly&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryadolan/2023/06/07/elon-musk-becomes-worlds-richest-person-again/?sh=54a20bdf4ca4">topped</a>&nbsp;Arnault for the first time since December, though he slid below Arnault again by market close.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-contra">CONTRA</h2>



<p>Despite the sustained rally, shares of Tesla remain more than 40% below their November 2021 peak of $410, far underperforming the S&amp;P’s 6% loss during the period.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>After surging during the pandemic, Tesla stock faltered dramatically last year as investors&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2022/01/02/tesla-says-it-delivered-record-936172-electric-vehicles-in-2021/?sh=5f3657494d8b">soured</a>&nbsp;on the company’s promises of near limitless growth and Musk’s affair with Twitter, the social media platform he controversially bought last year for $44 billion,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2022/12/16/market-reacts-to-musk-antics-tesla-slides-to-2-year-low-as-twitter-embroiled-in-controversy/?sh=65f1706b15fd">pulling away</a>&nbsp;the billionaire’s time and financial resources from Tesla. Wall Street began to regain faith in Tesla after the firm&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/01/25/tesla-posts-best-ever-quarterly-revenue-and-profit/?sh=7db6e03437d1">reported</a>&nbsp;record quarterly revenue and earnings in January, setting forth a rally that gradually gained steam as Musk&nbsp;<a href="https://www.barrons.com/articles/tesla-stock-price-elon-musk-twitter-ceo-81418315" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">found</a>&nbsp;a replacement as Twitter CEO and played nice with lawmakers in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/elon-musk-meets-top-biden-admin-officials-discuss-electrification-goals-2023-01-27/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">U.S.</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/russellflannery/2023/05/31/musk-visit-highlights-business-role--in-us-china-ties---amcham-china-president/?sh=4f79f55018ca">China</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/elon-musk-emmanuel-macron-france-gets-red-carpet-treatment-amid-green-investment-push/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">beyond</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Tesla, which&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswealthteam/article/elon-musk/">accounts for</a>&nbsp;a majority of Musk’s fortune, may be booming, but Twitter is amidst a far gloomier stretch as Musk’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2023/04/17/musk-admits-twitter-purchase-wasnt-financially-smart-and-he-paid-twice-what-its-worth/?sh=5e12024b65c6">efforts</a>&nbsp;to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-04/elon-musk-says-twitter-can-be-most-valuable-company-in-the-world" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">transform</a>&nbsp;the company into the most valuable company on earth. The&nbsp;<em>New York Times</em>&nbsp;reported Monday Twitter’s advertising revenues were&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katherinehamilton/2023/06/05/twitters-us-ad-sales-down-59-despite-musks-breaking-even-claims-report-says/?ss=topadvisorshook&amp;sh=709385e4572c">down 59%</a>&nbsp;this April compared to the year prior, while Fidelity said last week it values Twitter at about&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/antoniopequenoiv/2023/05/30/fidelity-values-twitter-at-roughly-15-billion-a-third-of-the-sticker-price-paid-by-musk/?sh=65649d1e13e7">$15 billion</a>, about a third of the sticker price Musk paid last year.</p>



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<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and you acknowledge our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryadolan/2023/06/07/elon-musk-becomes-worlds-richest-person-again/?sh=54a20bdf4ca4">Elon Musk Briefly Becomes World’s Richest Person Again</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/06/02/tesla-stock-hits-4-month-high-as-elon-musks-net-worth-soars/?sh=1329c9c26b91">Tesla Stock Hits 4-Month High As Elon Musk&#8217;s Net Worth Soars</a> (<em>Forbe</em>s)</p>


Elon

Elon Musk Ends Day As World’s Richest Person For First Time In 6 Months


<p>With the era of low interest rates and ample liquidity coming to an end, some of the world’s richest families have made (or are planning to make) major shifts in asset allocation, the new 2023 UBS Global Family Office Report shows. The survey, released today, covers 230 “family offices,’’ each handling investments for a single wealthy family. The families have a collective net worth of nearly $500 billion, or an average of $2.2 billion each.</p>



<p>The average portfolio breakdown of those surveyed in 2022 is 55% in traditional asset classes (down from 57% in 2021) and 45% in alternatives (up from 43% last year). But lurking below those broad categories is a more significant shift–away from private equity and towards long out-of-favor fixed income.</p>



<p>With yields on short-duration fixed income currently at more than 5%, a third of those surveyed by UBS are already holding such debt. Moreover, nearly half plan to make significant or moderate increases to fixed income holdings in 2023 and beyond.</p>



<p>“We’re seeing that liquidity is a big factor in decision making,” Charles Otton, UBS’ head of global family and institutional wealth for the Americas, tells&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>. “We all got very used to money being free, but now people are valuing liquidity and adjusting their portfolio accordingly.”</p>



<p>A similar Global Family Office Report, released by Blackrock earlier this year, also shows that money managers for the rich tweaking their portfolios. Almost half of the 120 offices surveyed in that report said they planned to change investment strategy or make portfolio adjustments this year. Many have jumped into fixed income and private credit in response to the current market environment.</p>



<p>“By seeking maximum flexibility and leveraging a broad toolkit, portfolios can pivot nimbly across duration, regional and sector exposures in response to rapidly shifting conditions,” wrote Rick Rieder, BlackRock’s chief investment officer of global fixed income.</p>



<p>Family offices are shifting allocations when it comes to alternative investments. While U.S. family offices’ allocation to alternatives was roughly the same from 2021 to 2022 (declining modestly from 36% to 34%), direct private equity exposure dropped dramatically (from 24% to 14%), according to UBS. Meanwhile, allocation to hedge funds rose significantly over that same period (from 4% to 7%). This trend holds true globally as well: As uncertainty abounds in markets, there has been a reemerging emphasis on active over passive investment management.</p>



<p>While there is still some private equity exposure among family offices, most have been reducing direct private equity investments in the near-term, instead turning to PE funds, private debt and infrastructure. Rather than searching for brand new private equity companies, which are often riskier investments, family offices are now favoring private market businesses that have grown to a certain point and have some kind of EBITDA, Otton observes.</p>



<p>Many of those surveyed also plan to reduce exposure to real estate this year, the report found. “There is a general caution creeping in given higher rates and some softness—though more commercial than domestic residential real estate, where investment remains strong,” explains Otton. Over the longer term, however, roughly a third of family offices still plan to increase exposure in this sector once capital becomes more available and valuations are lower.</p>



<p>While allocations to emerging market equity have largely held flat in recent years, family offices plan to increase their exposure in that space throughout 2023 amid China’s reopening and an apparent peak in the U.S. dollar. Nearly half of their assets are still in North America, but the majority of offices plan to increase their allocations to Western Europe for the first time in years.</p>



<p>The UBS report also sheds light on the top concerns for family offices in 2023, with many remaining cautious about an uncertain global economic growth outlook. High inflation was the top worry last year, and while that was cited by many again, that has now been supplanted by geopolitical concerns at the top of the list, according to the survey. In the United States, however, people are much more focused on the state of the economy, with the likelihood of a recession as the biggest concern among family offices there.</p>


Couple standing on balcony of modern house

Rich Families Making Major Changes To Asset Allocation, New Reports Find


<p>Boeing is partnering with Equatic, a Los Angeles-based startup that removes carbon from the ocean, in a first-of-its-kind deal to buy a massive amount of carbon credits and green hydrogen that’s likely worth at least $50 million.</p>



<p>Under the five-year arrangement, Equatic will remove 62,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide for the aerospace giant and supply it with 2,100 metric tons of “green” hydrogen generated as a byproduct of its technology. Equatic declined to provide a value for the agreement, though it’s more than double the size of a 25,000-ton CO2 elimination contract competitor&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jpmorganchase.com/news-stories/jpmorgan-chase-seeks-to-scale-investment-in-emerging-carbon-removal-technologies" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Climeworks just announced with JP Morgan Chase</a>. Climeworks values that deal—which doesn’t include hydrogen fuel—at more than $20 million. (The financial company is also contracting with startup Charm Industrial to put captured carbon underground as “bio-oil” made with agricultural scraps.)</p>



<p>The deal arose from plans for a technology partnership between the companies related to large-scale CO2 removal facilities Equatic is developing, said Lorenzo Corsini, the startup’s principal advisor, who declined to discuss specific details.</p>



<p>“This catalyzes the development of the technology and it&#8217;s a leap of faith by Boeing,” Corsini told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>. Boeing is “serious about removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and knows that they need to invest upfront to do this.”</p>



<p>Equatic recently spun out of UCLA’s Institute for Carbon Management and is part of a new wave of companies with a mission to slow the buildup of climate-warming CO2 by pulling it out of the atmosphere. Unlike the approach of rivals such as Climeworks, Charm and CarbFix, which absorb CO2 from the ambient air and store it, Equatic’s focus is using electrolysis to remove CO2 from seawater and convert the carbon into seashell-like material that it believes won’t harm the aquatic environment. Hydrogen, which is increasingly seen as a promising clean fuel for industrial applications and transportation, is also a byproduct.</p>



<p>“Reaching aviation’s sustainability goals will require a multi-faceted approach and Boeing sees immense value in Equatic’s technology,” Sheila Remes, Boeing&#8217;s vice president of environmental sustainability, said in an emailed statement. “We are excited to partner with Equatic on both green hydrogen feedstock and carbon dioxide removal.”</p>



<p>Equatic focuses on oceans as they’re Earth’s largest CO2 reservoir. Founder Gaurav Sant, director of the UCLA initiative, believes its approach amplifies natural processes and is the cheapest, most energy-efficient way to achieve gigaton-level CO2 removal and produce hydrogen from nonpolluting sources. The amount of CO2 removed is also measurable “down to the gram,” the company said.</p>



<p>(For more on Equatic see&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2023/04/12/equatic-startup-co2-green-hydrogen/?sh=6a2da83a426a"><em>An L.A. Startup Aims To Turn The Oceans Into A CO2 Sponge And ‘Green’ Hydrogen Machine</em></a>)</p>



<p>That’s important because of growing skepticism around carbon offsets, such as those sold by Verra, the biggest certifier of carbon credits. David Antonioli, the non-profit’s CEO, stepped down this month after acknowledging that a significant portion of credits it’s approved is not based on reality, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/may/23/ceo-of-worlds-biggest-carbon-credit-provider-says-he-is-resigning" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report by&nbsp;<em>The Guardian</em></a>.</p>



<p>Equatic began operating pilots in Los Angeles and Singapore in April to demonstrate the technology. A larger “sub-commercial” facility is set to open as soon as late next year in Singapore, integrated within an existing desalination plant. It will be able to remove 3,500 metric tons of CO2 annually. Equatic then wants to have its first commercial plant running in about three years with the capacity to remove 100,000 metric tons of CO2 and generate 3,500 tons of hydrogen annually. That’s about three times the size of Climeworks’ Mammoth plant under construction in Iceland, which will be able to capture and store 36,000 tons of CO2 annually when fully operational.</p>



<p>The company is in the process of raising $100 million for research and plant construction costs. It’s already taken in $30 million from backers including the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Anthony and Jeanne Pritzker Family Foundation, Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment, National Science Foundation, Singapore’s Temasek Foundation, PUB: Singapore’s National Water Agency and the Energy Department.</p>



<p>Corsini estimates Boeing’s purchase agreement is the fifth-largest CO2 elimination deal that’s been announced. Equatic had previously announced that financial services company Stripe is buying CO2 offset credits from its small pilot facilities. Boeing will get credits from the Singapore plant that is to open by early 2025 and Equatic’s first commercial facility, the location of which hasn’t been announced.</p>



<p>“Because we’re still engineering and building those plants, we haven&#8217;t started really reaching out more systematically to clients to fill the pipeline,” Corsini said. In addition to Boeing, “we also have a number of other partners. Expect some more announcements soon on that,” he said, declining to elaborate.</p>


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Boeing Bets On Startup Equatic With Massive CO2 Removal, Hydrogen Deal


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Apple announced that its new 15-inch MacBook Air—the world’s thinnest 15-inch laptop, according to Apple—will be available starting next week, marking a middle-price point offering for the company that previously had a significant price difference between its smaller MacBooks and larger models.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The new model will weigh in at 3.3 pounds and come in four colors.</p>



<p>Bergeron said the laptop will have Apple’s M2 chip, making it 12 times faster than Intel-based MacBook Air; it is quoted at an 18-hour battery life.</p>



<p>The new model will start at $1,299 and be available next week, while the 13-inch MacBook Air powered by the same chip will start at $1,099; the 13-inch MacBook Air with an M1 chip—Apple’s older version—will drop below $1,000, now priced at $999.</p>



<p>Customers can order the new model starting Monday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Apple didn’t previously offer a 15-inch version of its MacBook Air—which comes in 13-inch options—or its MacBook Pro, its larger laptop that comes in a 14- or 16-inch option. The new model will provide a choice to users who don’t want the extra computing power of the MacBook’s 14- and 16-inch models, but do want the option of a screen bigger than 13 inches. The last time Apple offered a 15-inch laptop of any kind was 2019, but Apple&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2019/11/13/20961717/apple-macbook-pro-16-inch-model-screen-discontinued-display-laptop" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">discontinued</a>&nbsp;its 15-inch MacBook Pro that year in exchange for the 16-inch option. Apple’s laptop prices have historically been high, too, with the 16-inch MacBook Pro starting at $2,499. Moving forward, the lower price and bigger screen size is meant “to deliver even more value and choice to everyone,” according to the Apple release.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



<p>The big announcement expected from Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference is the company’s long-awaited mixed-reality headset that is rumored to have both virtual reality and augmented reality compatibility. The device is rumored to look like ski goggles, The Verge&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theverge.com/23728368/wwdc-2023-date-time-live-stream-watch-how-to-rumors" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>, and is supposed to have external sensors to help users navigate reality.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forbes-valuation">FORBES VALUATION</h2>



<p>Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, who kicked off the keynote address Monday at the Worldwide Developers Conference, is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/tim-cook/?sh=612f5e173ea4">estimated</a>&nbsp;to be worth $1.9 billion by&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>.</p>



<p>Forbes Daily: Get our best stories, exclusive reporting and essential analysis of the day’s news in your inbox every weekday.Sign Up</p>



<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and you acknowledge our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/5/23739220/apple-macbook-air-15-features-specs-price-release-date-wwdc-2023" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Apple’s new 15-inch MacBook Air is the ‘world’s thinnest’</a>&nbsp;(The Verge)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/live-blog/2023-06-05/apple-worldwide-developers-conference" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Apple Headset, iOS 17, New Mac: Live WWDC 2023 Analysis With Mark Gurman</a> (Bloomberg)</p>


Apple Store Opens In Knightsbridge

Apple Announces Plans For Its Largest MacBook Air Yet At Developer Conference


<p><strong>TikTok has stored the most sensitive financial data of its biggest stars — including those in its “Creator Fund” — on servers in China. Earlier this year, CEO Shou Chew told Congress “American data has always been stored in Virginia and Singapore.”</strong></p>



<p>O<strong>ver the past several years,</strong>&nbsp;thousands of TikTok creators and businesses around the world have given the company sensitive financial information—including their social security numbers and tax IDs—so that they can be paid by the platform.</p>



<p>But unbeknownst to many of them, TikTok has stored that personal financial information on servers in China that are accessible by employees there,&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;has learned.</p>



<p>TikTok uses various internal tools and databases from its Beijing-based parent ByteDance to manage payments to creators who earn money through the app, including many of its biggest stars in the United States and Europe. The same tools are used to pay outside vendors and small businesses working with TikTok. But a trove of records obtained by&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;from multiple sources across different parts of the company reveals that highly sensitive financial and personal information about those prized users and third parties has been stored in China. The discovery also raises questions about whether employees who are not authorized to access that data have been able to. It draws on internal communications, audio recordings, videos, screenshots, documents marked “Privileged and Confidential,” and several people familiar with the matter.</p>



<p>In testimony before Congress earlier this year, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew claimed U.S. user data has been stored on physical servers outside China. “American data has always been stored in Virginia and Singapore in the past, and access of this is on an as-required basis by our engineers globally,” he said under oath at a House hearing in March.</p>



<p>TikTok spokesperson Alex Haurek said in a statement that “we remain confident in the accuracy of Shou&#8217;s testimony.” ByteDance did not respond to a detailed request for comment. At publication time, neither company had answered basic questions about whether sensitive tax information of U.S. citizens is stored and accessible in China.</p>



<p>Over the last year, TikTok has been touting its plans to cordon off Americans’ data from China in a $1.5 billion undertaking called&nbsp;<a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/emilybakerwhite/tiktok-project-texas-bytedance-user-data" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Project Texas</a>. That initiative has been central to negotiations with the Biden administration on a deal that would allow the wildly popular app to continue operating in the U.S., despite longstanding national security concerns about its Chinese ownership and the potential for the platform to be used&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilybaker-white/2022/12/22/tiktok-tracks-forbes-journalists-bytedance/?sh=5a6afb397da5">to surveil</a>&nbsp;or influence the 150 million Americans using it. But since those talks hit a snag late last year, with both FBI Director Christopher Wray and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaking out about national security issues with the app, the Biden administration (through the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S.) has demanded that TikTok split from its Chinese parent company or face a possible ban.</p>



<p>“There’s ongoing litigation over TikTok that is not yet resolved,” Yellen, whose department leads CFIUS, said at a hearing in March. And many in Congress have cast doubt on Project Texas altogether: “I don’t believe that it is technically possible to accomplish what TikTok says it will accomplish through Project Texas,” California Republican Jay Obernolte told the TikTok CEO at the March hearing. “There are too many backdoors.”</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>“Even if TikTok was not a subsidiary of a Chinese company, this would be pretty alarming IT security malpractice.”Former White House and CIA national security lawyer Bryan Cunningham</p>
</blockquote>



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<p>Identity theft using stolen social security numbers is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/taxpayer-guide-to-identity-theft" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">not uncommon</a>&nbsp;in the U.S., and the Chinese government&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/10/us/politics/equifax-hack-china.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">has been accused</a>&nbsp;of stealing personal financial information from Americans before. One expert told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;this is precisely why TikTok’s mishandling of such information is troubling.</p>



<p>“Even if TikTok was not a subsidiary of a Chinese company, this would be pretty alarming IT security malpractice,” Bryan Cunningham, a former national security lawyer for the White House and CIA, told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>. He described tax records as some of the most sensitive data there is.</p>



<p>&#8220;It could be just bad IT practice, it could be they felt like they had a legitimate business need,” Cunningham said of TikTok. “But whatever the nuance of that turns out to be… if you store information in the PRC, you better assume that the intelligence services can have it if they want it. They may not target you, but boy, on the face of it, it&#8217;s highly questionable.”</p>



<p>TikTok and ByteDance did not respond to questions about how many people at the companies can access creators’ financial information, where those employees are located and whether there has been unauthorized access to this data. They also did not respond to queries about how long TikTok users and vendors’ payment data had been stored in China and whether it still is today.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Raising regulatory alarms on both sides of the Atlantic</strong></h2>



<p>T<strong>ikTok or ByteDance</strong>&nbsp;employees in China having access to American users and businesses’ sensitive financial records is potentially problematic for geopolitical reasons, particularly against the backdrop of intense regulatory scrutiny in the U.S.</p>



<p>Though there is no national privacy law in the U.S. to protect against the mishandling or misuse of personally identifiable information,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/8152/text" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">one top contender</a>&nbsp;introduced last Congress would require companies to clearly disclose in their privacy policies whether data they collect “is transferred to, processed in, stored in, or otherwise accessible to the People’s Republic of China” and other adversaries. And though a past Federal Trade Commission&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2019/02/video-social-networking-app-musically-agrees-settle-ftc-allegations-it-violated-childrens-privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">settlement with TikTok</a>&nbsp;(then Musical.ly) dealt with a markedly separate set of issues—children’s privacy violations—the agency could take that order into consideration when evaluating the company’s conduct today.</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<p>Jessica Rich, former director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a case like this, the agency would likely consider whether the company had made false or deceptive statements about how it handles users’ information—in a privacy policy, for example—or if the handling of that information had created a real risk of harm. She would not comment specifically on TikTok and ByteDance.</p>



<p>TikTok’s policies suggest that it takes appropriate steps to protect its users’ data. Creators who join TikTok’s Creator Fund&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/legal/page/global/tiktok-creator-fund-terms/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">agree to</a>&nbsp;“all” TikTok policies, including&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/legal/page/us/privacy-policy/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">privacy terms</a>&nbsp;stating that “certain entities within our corporate group… are given limited remote access to information we collect” if it’s necessary for the platform’s operations. They also emphasize that “we use reasonable measures to help protect information from… unauthorized access.” (It does say TikTok may transmit user data to servers outside the U.S. for storage or processing, and that no data storage or transmission is guaranteed to be secure.)</p>



<p>Rich, the former federal regulator, said that if any company claims to be locking down access to information but then making it available to employees around the world who do not need it, the FTC could see that as a deceptive statement and grounds for a potential data security complaint. She also said that the agency generally views financial information and social security numbers as more sensitive than email addresses or phone numbers, and that it may scrutinize those data-sharing cases more aggressively.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>“I would like everything to stay in the U.S.—like, I wouldn&#8217;t see why it would ever need to be stored on a China database.”TikToker and Creator Fund member Zack Fairhurst</p>
</blockquote>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<p>TikTok’s storage of European creators’ bank information in China could also be problematic under Europe’s privacy law, the General Data Protection Regulation.</p>



<p>Even as TikTok launched&nbsp;<a href="https://newsroom.tiktok.com/en-ie/project-clover-ireland" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Project Clover</a>—a Project Texas counterpart across the Atlantic—to safeguard the data of its European users, the Irish Data Protection Commission (TikTok’s lead regulator in the European Union) is already conducting&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dataprotection.ie/en/news-media/latest-news/dpc-launches-two-inquiries-tiktok-concerning-compliance-gdpr-requirements-relating-processing" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">two investigations</a>&nbsp;into whether the company has complied with GDPR. One of those probes is looking specifically at whether TikTok has unlawfully transferred European users’ personal data from the EU to China, and whether it was adequately transparent with users about how it was handling their information. Gabriela Zanfir-Fortuna, vice president for global privacy at the Future of Privacy Forum, said ByteDance tools storing European creators’ data on servers in China could be problematic for that reason.</p>



<p>&#8220;This is the sort of thing that would confirm there are transfers [of personal data] to China happening, so I&#8217;m sure they would be interested in knowing this,” she said of Ireland’s privacy watchdog. (Just last week, the body issued&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/05/22/meta-fined-record-13-billion-for-violating-eu-privacy-rules/?sh=2eff164772c9">a record $1.3 billion fine</a>&nbsp;to Facebook parent Meta, one of TikTok’s biggest rivals, over its own data transfer issues.) GDPR also requires companies to restrict access to sensitive user data on a need-to-know basis, Zanfir-Fortuna added, raising questions about how broad access to these payment tools has been and whether it was necessary.</p>



<p>The Commission would not comment on its ongoing inquiry into TikTok except to say it expects a public update after this summer. TikTok’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/legal/page/eea/privacy-policy/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">policies for Europe</a>&nbsp;say “certain entities in our Corporate Group, located outside your country of residence (see&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/legal/transferee-countries" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>), are given limited remote access to this information” and that this access is “secure and only granted where necessary under strict security controls.” The link included (“here”) lands on a 404 error page.</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Creators react</strong>s</h2>



<p>T<strong>ikToker&nbsp;</strong><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@maddzak?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>Zack Fairhurst</strong></a><strong>,</strong>&nbsp;a member of its Creator Fund who participated in the company’s blitz on Capitol Hill this spring, told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;he had no idea his tax information and social security number might be stored in China. (TikTok brought some creators to Washington in March to raise awareness around&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexandralevine/2023/03/22/how-a-tiktok-ban-would-affect-creators-businesses-economy/?sh=3cbf8eb25608">the benefits of the app</a>.)</p>



<p>“It wouldn&#8217;t really make sense for it to be over there,” Fairhurst told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>. “I would like everything to stay in the U.S—like, I wouldn&#8217;t see why it would ever need to be stored on a China database. … I am actually surprised by that.”</p>



<p>Other creators recalled uploading social security and financial information into TikTok but told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;they were unfazed by the possibility that it’s stored in China because putting themselves out there online is par for the course for those who want to build audiences and careers through social media.</p>



<p>&#8220;There are so many more pressing issues in the U.S.,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@kathrynanja?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kathryn Cross</a>, a 24-year-old creator in the TikTok program, told&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>. “My mom grew up in China, so I just know that the Chinese government is so stringent about maintaining a proper public figure, essentially, that they would never allow something like a Cambridge Analytica scandal to compromise their global position.”</p>



<p>“The benefit TikTok has brought to people&#8217;s businesses and lives, and the innovation behind the For You Page, to me seems so much more valuable than any minute chance that China&#8217;s storing our data… more so it seems like a foreign policy type of conflict,” she added.</p>



<p>Internet star and TikTok Creator Fund member&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@yourrichbff?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Vivian Tu</a>—a former Wall Street trader who doles out financial advice under the handle “YourRichBFF,” said joining any app’s monetization program is “a calculated risk.”</p>



<p>&#8220;If you&#8217;re okay with being on TikTok,” she told&nbsp;<em>Forbes,</em>&nbsp;“you probably don&#8217;t care that much about your banking information being everywhere it&#8217;s stored.”</p>



<p><em>Emily Baker-White contributed reporting.</em></p>


Author: Forbes

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