Trump Outmaneuvers EU in Historic Trade Deal

Welcome back!

Here’s your must-read news this morning:

• U.S.-EU trade deal

• China’s AI counterplan 

• DOGE's regulation slayer

I’ve got all the details for you, so let’s dive in.

— Josh

MARKETS

💰 Trump Outsmarts EU in Trade Deal, Sparks Outrage Among European Leaders

The Scoop: President Donald Trump announced a landmark trade deal with the European Union on Sunday, averting a potential trade war by setting a 15% tariff on most EU goods, including cars, while securing $750 billion in EU energy purchases and $600 billion in investments into the U.S.

The Details:

• The agreement, finalized days before an Aug. 1 tariff deadline with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, sets a 15% tariff rate—lower than Trump’s threatened 30% but higher than the EU’s hoped-for 10%.

• Exemptions include aircraft, components, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals; the 15% tariff does not stack with existing tariffs.

• The EU committed to buying $750 billion in U.S. energy and investing $600 billion in the U.S., with additional unspecified billions for military equipment.

What’s Next: Some European officials and media, including the Financial Times and The Guardian, acknowledged that President Donald Trump outmaneuvered the EU in its trade deal. French Prime Minister François Bayrou called it an act of “submission,” while Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said he supported the deal “without any enthusiasm.” Additionally, former Belgian Prime Minister and ex-MEP Guy Verhofstadt labeled it “scandalous” and a “disaster,” noting the EU gained “no concessions” from the U.S. An EU ambassador, quoted by the Financial Times, admitted, “Trump pinpointed our pain threshold precisely.”

Markets Roundup

🏦 Economy & Policy

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: The U.S. and China are set to extend their tariff truce by an additional 90 days during trade negotiations beginning Monday in Stockholm. (SCMP)

• As the August 1 deadline approaches, U.S.-Canada trade negotiations have shown little progress, with both sides entrenching their positions. (CBC)

• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is scheduled to meet President Donald Trump on Monday, aiming to advance a final agreement to lower tariffs on British steel. (INV)

• U.S. equity futures edged higher early Monday, with Dow Jones futures up 117 points (0.26%), S&P 500 futures rising 0.32%, and Nasdaq 100 futures gaining 0.5%. (CNBC)

🏢 Industry & Deals

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: The AI boom is driving a surge of tech workers back to San Francisco, boosting housing demand, downtown foot traffic and commercial leases. (WP)

• Samsung secures a $16.5 billion deal to manufacture semiconductors for Tesla, providing a significant boost to its struggling foundry division. (BBG)

• Astronomer enlisted Gwyneth Paltrow, the ex-wife of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, as a "temporary spokesperson" amid fallout from the band's kiss-cam scandal involving the resignation of the company's CEO and HR executive. (PM)

• A Florida CEO was sentenced to five years in prison for orchestrating the largest fraud in FCC history, pilfering over $100 million from an "Obama phone" scam targeting federal programs. (FBN)

💵 Energy & Commodities

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: The EU plans to replace Russian oil and gas with $750 billion in U.S. fuel imports under a new trade deal. (U24M)

• Ivanhoe Electric’s proposed Santa Cruz copper mine in Arizona emerges as a potential remedy to America’s escalating copper shortage, with operations expected to begin by 2028. (FBN)

• Trump labeled wind power a "con job," vowing to block all windmill construction in the U.S. (TEL)

• China announced a plan to boost agricultural product consumption, focusing on optimizing "green and high-quality products to meet multi-level consumer needs." (INV)

🌕 Crypto

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: Galaxy sold a record-breaking $9 billion in Bitcoin, offloading over 80,000 BTC, the largest Bitcoin transaction by notional value to date. (TB)

• Prosecutors may criminally charge Dragonfly Capital employees, including general partner Tom Schmidt, over their 2020 investment in privacy tool Tornado Cash. (CD)

• Tyler Winklevoss accused JPMorgan of halting Gemini's onboarding in retaliation for his criticism of the bank's new fintech data access fees. (X)

• BlackRock's crypto chief Joseph Chalom has joined SharpLink Gaming, the second-largest Ethereum treasury company, as co-CEO. (DLN)
  

TECH

💻 Chinese AI Giants Unite to Build Domestic Ecosystem Amid U.S. Restrictions

The Scoop: China’s AI industry has formed two new alliances to build a self-sufficient ecosystem, countering U.S. export restrictions on advanced Nvidia chipsets, announced during the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai.

The Details:

• The “Model-Chip Ecosystem Innovation Alliance,” led by LLM developer StepFun, unites chipmakers like Huawei, Biren, and Moore Threads to integrate chips, models, and navigate U.S. sanctions.

• The Shanghai General Chamber of Commerce AI Committee, including SenseTime, StepFun, MiniMax, Metax, and Iluvatar CoreX, aims to fuse AI with industrial transformation, shifting from restricted tech like facial recognition to LLMs.

• Huawei’s CloudMatrix 384, with 384 Ascend 910C chips, outperformed Nvidia’s GB200 NVL72 in some metrics, using system-level innovations to compensate for weaker chip performance, according to SemiAnalysis.

What’s Next: In two weeks, the Trump administration will release a national security probe's findings on semiconductor imports, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said after meeting the EU's Ursula von der Leyen. President Donald Trump has hinted at higher tariffs, driving Taiwan-based companies to invest in U.S. chip production, potentially escalating U.S.-China tech tensions and impacting China's AI self-reliance.

Tech Roundup

🧠 AI

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: The Chinese government proposes a global AI cooperation organization, eyeing Shanghai as its headquarters, days after the U.S. unveils plans to deregulate its AI industry. (TG)

• Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg appoints former OpenAI researcher Shengjia Zhao to lead Meta Superintelligence Labs, drawing on Zhao’s expertise from breakthroughs like GPT-4 and o1 reasoning model. (TC)

• Huawei unveiled its most advanced AI server system, the CloudMatrix 384, positioning it as a direct challenge to Nvidia’s export-restricted GB200 NVL72. (SA)

• Alibaba will launch AI-powered glasses by the end of 2025, creating a Chinese rival to Meta. (CNBC)

🤖 Hardware & Robotics

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: Elon Musk envisions Tesla reaching a $30 trillion valuation by leveraging its AI-driven robotaxi fleet and humanoid Optimus robots. (BAR)

• Unitree Robotics unveiled its R1 humanoid robot in China, priced at just over $6,000, showcasing fist-fighting and cartwheel capabilities. (NDTV)

• A German firm transforms live cockroaches into swarm robots equipped with AI backpacks for navigation and data collection. (IE)

• Northwestern University researchers created a robot muscle system with plastic bones and water-powered fake muscles, which could make robots with lifelike flexibility and strength. (NWU)

🚀 Defense & Space

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: The Pentagon is set to deploy an "unprecedented" 33,000 AI-powered guidance systems to enhance Ukraine’s drone capabilities, bolstering defenses against Russian attacks. (U24M)

• China’s two leading satellite networks have launched less than 1% of their intended satellite fleet, underscoring their growing lag behind SpaceX in the race for space communications dominance. (NYT)

• A leading drone expert warns that America’s skies remain vulnerable to national security threats due to lax oversight, as unregulated drone activity escalates. (FOX)

• A pioneering AI system enables satellites to autonomously make decisions, enhancing mission efficiency by processing data onboard. (EH)

💰 Venture Capital & Deals

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: AI-powered HR platform Ashby secured $50 million in a Series D round, led by Benchmark, to enhance its recruitment tools. (CBN)

• Nuclear technology startup Deep Isolation raised $33 million in a private placement to test its system for storing radioactive waste deep underground. (BBG)

• German startup Project Q secured €7.5 million ($8.75 million) to enhance its Internet of Defence (IoD) capabilities, focusing on scalable sensor intelligence systems, with funding led by Project A. (EUS)

• Spear AI, a startup founded by U.S. Navy veterans, raised $2.3 million from Cortical Ventures and others to apply AI to submarine data analysis. (MTN)

FREEDOM

🪚 DOGE Creates AI Tool to Slash 50% of Federal Regulations

The Scoop: The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is deploying an AI-powered tool to slash half of the federal government’s 200,000 regulations by January 2026, targeting unnecessary rules to save trillions in compliance costs, according to the Washington Post.

The Details:

• The DOGE AI Deregulation Decision Tool has reviewed over 1,000 regulatory sections at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and driven all deregulations at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

• The tool aims to identify and eliminate regulations not legally required, with a goal of cutting 100,000 rules by the first anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration.

• A White House spokesperson clarified that no plan is finalized but lauded DOGE’s team as “the best and brightest” for tackling this unprecedented regulatory overhaul.

What’s Next: Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought confirmed on CBS News’ Face the Nation that his office is exploring additional rescissions packages, including targeting Education Department funding, with more bills possible before September.

Freedom Roundup

🏛️ Policy

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: Lt. Col. Matthew Lohmeier, previously dismissed by the Biden administration for critiquing Pentagon DEI initiatives, secured a Senate confirmation as Air Force Under Secretary. (TH)

• Kansas City terminated its free bus program due to budget constraints, while NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani pushes for no-fare transit. (FBN)

• HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to remove all 16 members of the Preventive Services Task Force, citing its "woke” cancer screening and preventive care recommendations. (ABC)

• The Washington Post Editorial Board praised Trump’s initial AI action plan as a promising step toward maintaining U.S. leadership in artificial intelligence innovation. (WP)

💬 Free Speech & Woke Overreach

• ⭐ Editor’s Pick: A new police unit in England will monitor social media for anti-migrant posts. (TEL)

• Former "Tonight Show" host Jay Leno criticized current late-night hosts for their partisan political humor, arguing it alienates half the audience. (THR)

• Yale law professor Jed Rubenfeld argued that French President Emmanuel Macron is unlikely to prevail in his defamation lawsuit against Candace Owens over transgender-related claims about his wife. (TFP)

• Iran’s parliament approved a contentious “Combating Untrue News Content” bill, sparking widespread free-speech concerns. (BNE)

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