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Google has acquired wind and solar developer Intersect from TPG Rise Climate for $4.75 billion, taking on the company’s debt. The deal signals a shift by big tech from relying mainly on power purchase agreements to owning generation assets, aiming to secure long‑term, controllable clean power for energy‑intensive operations such as data centres and AI.

Tencent has launched SkillHub, a China‑focused distribution and community platform for Skills compatible with the OpenClaw AI‑agent framework. The service provides domestic mirrors, curated skill listings, Chinese search and a safety stack, while converting Tencent products into callable Skills to capture the emerging agent application layer.

Yangdian Technology said on March 12 it has no plans to integrate its HanTang Cloud or HanYang Intelligent products with OpenClaw, the viral framework behind China’s recent AI‑agent craze known as “养龙虾.” The response underscores a cautious stance by mid‑tier vendors amid rapid consumer uptake, regulatory scrutiny and unresolved technical and security questions.

Apple is preparing a foldable iPhone whose interior behaves like an iPad, with a wide, tablet‑sized screen and iOS updates enabling side‑by‑side app layouts. The design prioritizes multitasking and could shift expectations for premium foldables, but success hinges on durability, developer adoption and price.

Wayve, Uber and Nissan have signed a memorandum to pilot autonomous taxis in Tokyo by the end of 2026, using Wayve’s AI driving system in Nissan Leaf EVs and rides booked through Uber. The collaboration unites machine-learning autonomy, ride-hailing distribution and OEM manufacturing but faces technical, regulatory and public-acceptance hurdles before it can scale.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said it and Hezbollah conducted a five-hour coordinated missile-and-drone campaign striking more than 50 targets across Israel and claiming hits on US bases in Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Tehran framed the action as part of an ongoing campaign to alter battlefield realities, a development that raises the risk of broader regional escalation and complicates US and allied responses.

Two more US MQ‑9 Reaper drones were lost in strikes on Iran, bringing total MQ‑9 losses to 11 at a reported value exceeding $330 million. The attrition highlights tactical vulnerabilities, strains ISR capabilities, and raises strategic and budgetary questions for US operations in the region.

Eleven days into a U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran, Tehran’s heavy retaliation and civilian casualties have intensified regional instability and disrupted Gulf commerce. Domestically, widespread public opposition and sharp criticism from Democratic senators — alongside an emerging conservative split — are constraining U.S. political space for the war. Polling places support for the campaign at roughly 25–30 percent, raising questions about its sustainability and political costs ahead of U.S. elections.

Iran held a public funeral in Tehran on March 11 for senior commanders killed in US and Israeli military strikes on February 28. The ceremonies are a domestic and international signal of resolve that increases the risk of further retaliation or miscalculation in an already volatile region.

Pakistan has deployed the Chinese-built Type 054A/P frigate Shahjahan to escort its merchant ships in the Gulf of Oman and eastern approaches to the Strait of Hormuz, a move framed as a sovereign, non-aligned effort to protect vital trade and energy flows. The mission gives Islamabad greater autonomy and helps break the U.S.–Iran naval duopoly in the waterway, while highlighting capability gaps that will likely push Pakistan toward acquiring larger destroyers and deeper logistical arrangements.

President Trump said conditional talks with Iran are possible, even as the Pentagon announced intensified strikes inside Iran. The mix of public openness to negotiation and simultaneous military pressure creates a risky, potentially ambiguous moment that could either open a narrow path to de‑escalation or exacerbate miscalculation in an already volatile region.

Since US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, the campaign has produced three forms of blowback — sharp energy price rises, domestic political and security pushback, and fraying alliances — that limit Washington’s ability to sustain prolonged military pressure. These pressures increase the odds of a shorter, more constrained US approach or of escalating costs if the conflict continues.

Iranian leaders have publicly rejected a ceasefire and warned they will continue missile attacks against perceived aggressors, signaling a willingness to use sustained force rather than return to talks with the United States. The rhetoric increases the risk of wider regional escalation while giving Tehran leverage in any future diplomatic calculations.

Shaanxi Heimao’s founder, Li Baoping, sold 32.79 million shares in a block trade that realised about RMB170.8m after buying the same stock a year earlier for roughly RMB100m. The company, a coking producer, has reported two consecutive years of heavy losses totalling more than RMB2.2bn and faces industry-wide headwinds including weak coke prices, high input costs and structural overcapacity.

Uber and Amazon‑owned Zoox will begin offering Zoox’s purpose‑built robotaxis on the Uber app, starting with a Las Vegas pilot this summer and expanding to Los Angeles by mid‑2027. The partnership combines Zoox’s dedicated autonomous vehicles with Uber’s distribution, but widespread adoption will hinge on regulatory approvals, operational scaling and economic viability.

Meta announced four new AI chips under its MTIA programme, with MTIA 300 already in production and three further models slated through 2027. The chips aim to accelerate both training and inference for generative features and ranking systems, reflecting a broader industry move toward custom silicon to cut costs and control performance.

U.S. markets opened mixed as a strong rally in Oracle—a result of an upward revision to its fiscal guidance—lifted the Nasdaq while the Dow edged lower and gold miners plunged. The session highlighted narrow market leadership and the potential fragility of gains if broader participation does not follow.

US core CPI rose 2.5% year‑on‑year in February, in line with expectations, while monthly core inflation slowed to 0.2%. The numbers suggest gradual disinflation but leave the Federal Reserve with an ambiguous signal, especially amid geopolitical risks that could quickly alter the outlook.

The White House said on March 10 that the US Navy is not escorting any commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. The brief statement carries strategic weight: it signals either a deliberate restraint to avoid escalation or limits in naval capacity, and has implications for regional security, shipping risk, and global energy markets.

Midea has committed another 600 billion yuan in R&D over the next three years as it shifts its appliance business toward AI. The company unveiled MevoX, a home intelligence agent, MIA 1.0 for unified device orchestration and an open-platform strategy to accelerate whole‑home intelligence and partnerships with car and phone makers.