Daily Strategic Briefing

Intel to throw networking biz over the side of its rapidly shrinking ship

Chipzilla hopes it can pull an Altera with its NEX division, and is now looking for buyers Intel isn't just laying off employees and closing plants in a bid to cut costs – it's also reportedly planning to get rid of its entire Network and Edge Group (NEX) to help right the ship. …

Senator to Google: Give us info from telco Salt Typhoon probes

AT&T and Verizon refused to hand over the security assessments, says Cantwell US Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) has demanded that Google-owned incident response firm Mandiant hand over the Salt Typhoon-related security assessments of AT&T and Verizon that, according to the lawmaker, both operators have thus far refused to give Congress.…

First release candidate of systemd 258 is here

The latest version of systemd looks to be a big one, with substantial new functionality. More to love – right? Like it or not, systemd is the industry-standard init system these days. A new release is coming, and it's a big one.…

Orbital datacenters subject to launch stress, nasty space weather, and expensive house calls

Space is hard, especially for racks of fragile computer equipment opinion  William Gibson's Neuromancer holds up well after 40 years. One of the cyberpunk novel's concepts was an AI housed in an orbital datacenter (ODC) above the Earth. Today, startup companies and venture capital firms are hoping to turn orbital datacenters into reality to enable AI, believing that free power from the sun and cooling using the emptiness of space will unlock the technology from its terrestrial-based shackles of electric bills and cooling water.…

How to find forgotten Wi-Fi passwords and SSIDs in Windows and Android

If you've ever logged into a network on your laptop or phone, the password is still there hands-on  You're at a place you've been before and your Windows laptop immediately remembers the SSID and password for the Wi-Fi network, logging you on automatically. But your phone, tablet, and your coworker's laptop have never been here before, so they can't connect. If only you remembered the password or had it written down somewhere.…

Meta names Shengjia Zhao as chief scientist of AI superintelligence unit

Summary:

Shengjia Zhao, a former OpenAI researcher, will round out the leadership team at Meta’s new AI lab.

AI referrals to top websites were up 357% year-over-year in June, reaching 1.13B

Summary:

AI platforms in June 2025 generated over 1.13 billion referrals to the top 1,000 websites globally, up 357% year-over-year.

Sam Altman warns there’s no legal confidentiality when using ChatGPT as a therapist

Summary:

In response to a question about how AI works with today’s legal system, Altman said one of the problems of not yet having a legal or policy framework for AI is that there’s no legal confidentiality for users’ conversations.

A timeline of the US semiconductor market in 2025

Summary:

From leadership changes at legacy semiconductor companies to wishy washy policy around chip exports, a lot has happened already.

Should Silicon Valley celebrate Trump’s AI plans?

Summary:

The big AI companies seem to be in a celebratory mood after President Donald Trump unveiled his AI Action Plan — not surprising, perhaps, since the plan was shaped by Trump’s Silicon Valley allies. Today on TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Max Zeff, and Anthony Ha look at how the Trump administration plans to […]

Veranda Learning raises Rs 357 Cr via QIP

Chennai-based Veranda Learning will use about Rs 310 crore from the QIP to repay NCDs issued to Ascertis Credit in 2024, with the remaining funds allocated to technology upgrades, content development, settlement of pending dues, and enhancing platform scalability.

MoEngage to secure $200M from ChrysCapital, A91 Partners, and Goldman Sachs: Report

The funding round is likely to value the Bengaluru and San Francisco, California-based firm between $750 million and $800 million.

Lifestyle and travel focused startup Escape Plan wings $5M in seed round

Jungle Ventures- and Fireside Ventures-backed Escape Plan plans to build a multi-brand travel gear platform with quick delivery and offline expansion plans.

Priyanka Gill's lab-grown diamond startup Coluxe closes friends and family funding round

Coluxe's capital injection is expected to support its digital launch in August 2025 as well as expand its product catalogue and infrastructure.

AI startup Olto raises $5.1M in pre-seed funding co-led by Nexus Venture Partners and The General Partnership

The company was founded by former Amazon executives Kintan Brahmbhatt and Jean-Baptiste Chaput, along with Pranav Midha joining as founding engineer.

India Motor Parts Proposes ₹30 Dividend After 6.4% Revenue Growth

India Motor Parts & Accessories Ltd held its 71st AGM on July 25, 2025. FY2024-25 revenue grew 6.4%. Final dividend proposed at Rs.20/share, total Rs.30/share. Source: ScoutQuest

RITES Bags ₹177 Cr Bharat Electronics Deal for Andhra Pradesh Unit

Bharat Electronics awards RITES a ₹177 crore contract for a manufacturing unit. The facility will be established in Andhra Pradesh. Source: ScoutQuest

CRISIL Declares ₹900.8 Dividend, Ex-Date May 7

CRISIL declares Rs. 900.8/share dividend; ex-date May 7, 2025. The company achieved strong 37.7% total returns over the past year. Source: Marketsmojo

Jonjua Overseas Buys Major HSJonjua for ₹34.5 Cr to Boost Global Expansion

Jonjua Overseas acquired trade name Major HSJonjua for Rs. 3,453.21 lakhs. The move aims to strengthen its brand portfolio and expand globally. Source: ScoutQuest

SJS Enterprises Q1 Results on 29 Jul '25

SJS Enterprises to announce its next results on 29 July 2025. Source: Marketsmojo

Agricultural Commodities Updates: Orange Juice Falls by 2.92%

Country: Commodity, Description: Top commodity losers are Orange Juice (-2.92%), Coffee (-2.52%) and Sugar (-1.76%). Gains are led by Cocoa (2.59%), Rubber (2.42%) and Wool (1.47%).

Metals Commodities Updates: Lithium Carbonate Gains by 3.33%

Country: Commodity, Description: Top commodity gainers are Lithium Carbonate (3.33%). Biggest losers are Silver (-2.29%), Platinum (-1.13%), Steel Rebar (-1.07%) and Gold (-0.93%).

Energy Commodities Updates: Crude Oil WTI Drops by 1.45%

Country: Commodity, Description: Top commodity losers are Crude Oil WTI (-1.45%), Brent Crude Oil (-1.19%) and Uranium (-0.90%). Gains are led by Natural Gas UK GBP (1.04%) and Natural Gas EU Dutch TTF (0.51%).

FX Updates: Brazilian Real Drops by 0.73%

Country: Currency, Description: Top currency losers are Brazilian Real (-0.73%), South Korean Won (-0.71%), British Pound (-0.55%), Japanese Yen (-0.44%) and Euro (-0.12%). Gains are led by Dollar Index (0.30%).

Ibovespa Pressured by US Tariffs

Country: Brazil, Description: The Ibovespa slid 0.2% to close at 133,526 on Friday, as Brazil’s export- and commodity-heavy benchmark faced headwinds from escalating trade-war tensions. With President Trump’s 50% tariff on Brazilian goods set to take effect in days, agribusiness, mining and manufacturing firms are bracing for sharply higher export duties, a concern amplified by Lula’s vow to defend national sovereignty “at all costs” and US diplomats’ overtures on strategic minerals, both of which have intensified policy uncertainty. Compounding the strain, Washington has been readying emergency legal justifications for tariffs and threatening sanctions against Brazilian officials. Meanwhile, mid-July inflation accelerated to 5.3% year-on-year, above forecasts and highlighting persistent price pressures that preclude any near-term rate relief from Copom. Vale (-1.8%), Banco Santander (-1.4%) and Companhia Sanea (-1.4%) led the declines. The Ibovespa eked out a modest 0.1% gain on the week.

Judge dismisses Trump lawsuit over Chicago sanctuary city policy

Summary: Federal judge ruled the Justice Department lacked standing to sue over sanctuary policies, citing Tenth Amendment protections for state sovereignty., Description: A federal judge dismissed the Trump administration's lawsuit against Chicago, Cook County, and Illinois over their sanctuary city policies on Friday, marking the first legal defeat in the administration's broader campaign against jurisdictions that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, as reported by ABC News and Bloomberg.

Florida starts deportation flights from 'Alligator Alcatraz' center

Summary: The controversial Everglades facility has deported about 100 detainees this week as Gov. DeSantis vows to increase enforcement operations., Description: Florida has begun deportation flights from its controversial "Alligator Alcatraz" immigration detention center in the Everglades, with Governor Ron DeSantis announcing that about 100 detainees have been deported directly from the facility this week. The state-run detention center, which opened in July and can house up to 4,000 migrants, represents an unprecedented approach to immigration...

Taiwan holds unprecedented Great Recall election targeting opposition lawmakers

Summary: Voters target 24 opposition lawmakers in unprecedented bid to break legislative gridlock that has frustrated President Lai's agenda., Description: Lines stretched down Taipei’s rain-slicked side streets early Saturday as voters began casting ballots in an unprecedented attempt to fire almost one-fifth of Taiwan’s parliament. The so-called “Great Recall” targets 24 lawmakers from the Kuomintang (KMT), the China-friendly opposition that wrested control of the 113-seat Legislative Yuan last year. Another seven KMT legislators face identical...

Cambodia calls for 'immediate ceasefire' after Thailand border clash

Summary: Two days of fighting have killed at least 16 people and displaced over 142,000 as tensions escalate over disputed temple site., Description: Cambodia has called for an "immediate ceasefire — unconditionally" with Thailand following two days of deadly cross-border fighting that erupted on July 24, 2025, marking the most serious military escalation between the Southeast Asian neighbors in over a decade. The appeal came from Cambodia's UN ambassador Chhea Keo after an emergency Security Council meeting, as the conflict has resulted in...

USAID report finds no evidence Hamas stole humanitarian aid in Gaza

Summary: Internal analysis of 156 theft incidents contradicts Israeli claims, with 44 cases linked to Israeli military actions instead., Description: A new internal USAID analysis has found no evidence of systematic theft of U.S.-funded humanitarian aid by Hamas in Gaza, contradicting long-standing Israeli and American claims that have been used to justify controversial militarized aid distribution methods. The study, which examined 156 incidents of stolen or lost supplies between October 2023 and May 2025, instead found that 44 cases were...