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Meta has ordered its employees to stop using Manus tools for internal projects and is blocking the Singapore-based firm's staff from accessing the Facebook parent company's internal data systems from this month. The operational split comes as Manus and Meta move to comply with Chinese regulators' demands to reverse the deal, which CNBC says has become a test case for how far Beijing will go to safeguard its strategic technology and talent. Bloomberg observes that Meta’s landmark acquisition of Manus, which was initially celebrated as a blueprint for Chinese AI startups keen to expand on a global stage, quickly drew criticism for handing over key technology to a geopolitical rival.

 

CNBC

Elon Musk's assets in the Middle East may be at risk amid threats from Iran's military, according to state media. The Fars News Agency has reported that the use of Musk's Starlink internet platform and the X social media service by U.S. and Israeli forces justifies the targeting of his facilities. An unnamed source claimed that Musk's companies were involved in U.S. military operations, including alleged war crimes in Iran. The Islamic Republic has said it reserves the right to strike Musk-affiliated sites across the region, including Starlink stations in several Arab countries. Meanwhile, Musk's company SpaceX has become an increasingly important contractor for the U.S. military and intelligence community through its Starshield program.

 

CNBC

Forbes

President Trump has nominated former Securities and Exchange Commission chair Jay Clayton to be the country’s leading intelligence official. Trump had faced widespread criticism for his decision to install Bill Pulte, who has no known experience in intelligence, as acting director of national intelligence while searching for a permanent candidate. Clayton is U.S. attorney for the southern district of New York.

 

Financial Times

The Guardian

A report from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike says China-linked hackers presented the biggest espionage threat to technology companies over the past year, observing that such hacking ​campaigns align with Beijing’s strategic priorities and a sustained interest in technology ‌development, intellectual property, and information with strategic and economic value. Meanwhile, the report said North Korean hacking campaigns have “posed a major threat” in the past year, and Russia and Iran-linked hacking groups also heavily target other countries’ technology sectors for intelligence ⁠collection ​and destructive malware attacks.

 

Reuters

Microsoft is limiting employees' use of Anthropic's Claude Fable 5 because of the AI startup's new data retention requirements. All other Claude models are still available internally at Microsoft, because they operate under Zero Data Retention (ZDR) rules. It is not ​yet clear whether Microsoft's legal teams will clear Claude ​Fable 5 for internal use, The Verge reports.

 

The Verge

The U.S. Justice Department has issued subpoenas to major banks, including JPMorgan Chase ​and Bank of America, seeking information on whether ‌they improperly closed customer accounts for political reasons, according to a source familiar with the matter. The Wall Street Journal reports that the subpoenas, some dating back ​to last year, were from the U.S. Attorney's ​Office in Washington, D.C., headed by Jeanine Pirro, and escalate a campaign by President Trump to obtain evidence that lenders allegedly discriminated against conservatives, including his own family.

 

Wall Street Journal

Judge Richard Eaton of the Manhattan-based Court of International Trade has called on the Trump administration to expedite refunds of more than $10bn in revenue from tariffs that were ‌collected and later deemed illegal by the Supreme Court. Eaton, who stopped short of issuing a new order compelling White House officials to speed up the refunds, observed that delays were leading to a "growing inequity" between large importers who hired customs brokers to help them navigate ​a government system for seeking refunds, and smaller businesses which had not.

 

Reuters

Dan Diasio, EY’s global consulting artificial intelligence (AI) leader, has warned that many companies are focusing too heavily on using artificial intelligence to cut costs and reduce headcount, rather than pursuing its greater potential to drive growth. He argues that while productivity improvements can generate efficiencies, there is a natural limit to the value created through cost reduction alone. Mr. Diasio said AI can accelerate tasks such as coding, research, analysis, and testing, but it does not eliminate the need for human judgment, oversight, governance, and coordination. He notes that companies often underestimate the ongoing costs of AI deployment, including platform management, maintenance, supervision, and risk management, meaning productivity gains do not automatically translate into lasting cost savings. Instead, Mr. Diasio believes the biggest opportunity lies in using AI to create new products, services, business models, and markets. He cautions that fear-driven strategies centered on layoffs could discourage employees from helping redesign workflows and unlock AI’s full potential. 

 

Business Insider

Chinese employers are quietly cutting jobs as AI tools replace roles, avoiding mass layoffs to maintain stability. Labor laws - under which companies must seek government approval ⁠for job cuts exceeding 10% of their workforce - and political concerns are driving gradual, small-scale layoffs instead of large-scale redundancies. Reuters observes that the strategy contrasts with the massive AI-linked job cuts announced by major global companies that have precipitated a wave of anti-AI populism in ​the West. "Private companies will need to make room for some level of inefficiency in order ​to avoid mass layoffs that would prompt 'social instability' and could have political ramifications," a senior manager at a big Chinese fintech company told Reuters.

 

Reuters

A report from KPMG on how AI is being used by businesses exaggerated adoption of the technology with bogus case studies that appear to have been based on AI hallucinations.

 

Financial Times

PCAOB Chair Demetrios Logothetis has outlined plans to modernize the regulator’s inspection program, shifting its focus from reviewing individual audit engagements toward assessing firms’ overall quality control systems. He has also backed revisions to the PCAOB’s QC 1000 quality control standard, which is due to take effect in December 2026. The proposed changes would simplify compliance requirements, provide greater flexibility in assigning quality control responsibilities, remove the requirement for large firms to maintain an External QC Function, shorten documentation retention periods from seven to five years, and reduce certain reporting and evaluation obligations. The review comes amid significant changes in the accounting profession, including growing private equity investment in audit firms and rapid technological advances. Logothetis said the PCAOB must better understand how alternative ownership structures and evolving business models affect audit quality and independence.

 

Accounting Today

Chief communications officers (CCOs) are becoming increasingly influential within corporate leadership teams, with many now reporting directly to chief executives and playing a broader role in business strategy, product development, reputation management, and artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives. Nearly half of CCOs reported directly to their CEO in 2025, up from 37% a decade ago, reflecting the growing importance of managing corporate narratives in an era of social media scrutiny, polarized audiences, and AI-driven information discovery. Companies including Gap, Peloton, Reddit, State Farm, and Accenture have recently created chief communications officer roles, while some communications executives have moved into senior operational positions.  The growing influence of communications leaders has been accompanied by rising compensation, with median base salaries increasing by more than 10% over the past two years and a growing number of CCOs earning $2m or more annually.

 

Wall Street Journal

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized the emergency use of nitenpyram, a generic over-the-counter tablet, to treat ​infestations caused by the New World screwworm in dogs and ‌cats. “The U.S. government is maintaining an aggressive approach to stop the spread and eradicate this pest,” said U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “When I signed the initial emergency declaration back in August 2025, we established a proactive defense. Today’s authorization is the latest tactical tool in that ongoing containment strategy - providing an affordable, fast-acting treatment for dogs and cats in affected areas.” U.S. officials this month confirmed the first domestic cases of the parasite in more than ​six decades in cattle, a goat and a dog ​in Texas and New Mexico.

 

U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Reuters