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The global race to regulate AI
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Biden pledges to cut greenhouse gas emissions by up to 52% by 2030
U.S. President Joe Biden seen in the Oval Office on April 15. (Photo by Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)
The Biden administration is moving to address global warming by setting a new, economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions reduction target of 50% to 52% below 2005 levels by 2030.
Why it matters: The new, non-binding target is about twice as ambitious as the previous U.S. target of a 26% to 28% cut by 2025, which was set during the Obama administration. White House officials described the goal as ambitious but achievable during a call with reporters Tuesday night.
America scrambles for restaurant workers
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Vaccinations keep climbing, and restaurants are ready to roar back this summer. But eateries from Miami to Martha’s Vineyard to Los Angeles are facing the same problem: not enough workers.
The big picture: Millions of restaurants are hiring all at once and, after a deadly pandemic, the jobs of waiters, cooks, and hosts seem more dangerous than they ever have before. All of this is contributing to a nationwide hospitality worker shortage as the economy opens back up.
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Coronavirus cases aren't budging — even after vaccinations doubled
The U.S. is pumping out coronavirus vaccines by the millions, but the coronavirus isn’t slowing down.
The big picture: This spring has seen a surge in vaccinations but almost no change in the coronavirus’ spread, leaving the U.S. with an outbreak that’s still too big.
Stock buybacks are kicking back into high gear
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
It was expected that with the economy improving and company balance sheets already loaded with cash, U.S. firms would slow down their debt issuance in 2021 after setting records in 2020. But just the opposite has happened.
Why it matters: Companies generally issue bonds for one of two reasons — because they're worried about not having enough cash to cover their expenses or because they want to lever up and make risky bets.
Japan vows deeper emissions cuts ahead of White House summit
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. Photo: Carl Court/Getty Images
Japan on Thursday said it will seek to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 46% below 2013 levels by 2030, per the AP and other outlets.
Why it matters: The country is the world's fifth-largest largest carbon dioxide emitter and a major consumer of coal, oil and natural gas.
The global race to regulate AI
Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios
Regulators in Europe and Washington are racing to figure out how to govern business' use of artificial intelligence while companies push to deploy the technology.
Driving the news: On Wednesday, the EU revealed a detailed proposal on how AI should be regulated, banning some uses outright and defining which uses of AI are deemed "high-risk."
Exclusive: Chauvin trial prosecution worked with strategic communications firm
People gather at the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue to celebrate the guilty verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial on April 20, 2021 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images
For most of the past year, a strategic communications firm with deep Washington ties has played an integral role for the prosecution in the State of Minnesota v. Derek Chauvin — operating without pay and so under-the-radar that most of its own staff had no idea.
The big picture: Finsbury Glover Hering — formerly known as the Glover Park Group — has been conducting media monitoring and analysis as part of legal team special prosecutor Neal Katyal's vision for a three-pronged "modern appeal/trial strategy."
World leaders brace for historic Trump Facebook ban decision
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
The upcoming decision from Facebook’s independent Oversight Board on whether to uphold or reverse Facebook’s indefinite suspension of former President Trump’s profiles has policymakers on edge.
Why it matters: The decision will set a historic precedent for how the tech giant treats accounts of world leaders, and could be a litmus test for the board’s power.
Putin warns the West as Russian police detain almost 1,800 Navalny protesters
Opposition supporters attend a rally in support of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, in central Moscow, Russia, on Wednesday. Photo: Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images
Security forces detained at least 1,770 supporters of the jailed, hunger-striking Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny amid protests across Russia Wednesday, according to the independent monitoring group OVD-Info.
The big picture: At least 30 protesters were arrested in Moscow, 805 in St. Petersburg and 119 in the Urals city of Ufa, among dozens of other cities, the group estimates.
India sets COVID daily case world record
People filing the oxygen cylinders for housed patients at Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi, India, on Tuesday. Photo: Sonu Mehta/Hindustan Times via Getty Images
India's health ministry confirmed 314,835 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, taking the total tally to nearly 16 million infections.
Why it matters: It's the highest number of coronavirus cases reported in a single day anywhere in the world, eclipsing the previous record of 307,581 cases set in the U.S. on Jan. 8, AP notes.
North Carolina Sheriff's deputy fatally shoots Black man
A Black man was fatally shot by a North Carolina sheriff's deputy in Elizabeth City, northeast of Raleigh, on Wednesday, igniting protests in the local community.
Details: Pasquotank County Sheriff Tommy Wooten said at a news briefing the State Bureau of Investigation was investigating the shooting of Andrew Brown Jr., which happened about 8:30 a.m as deputies were serving a search warrant.
Pew: Over 80% of Asian adults say violence against them is increasing
Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images
More than 80% of Asian adults say that violence against them is increasing, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.
The big picture: The survey, conducted April 5-11, comes after the recent shootings in Atlanta in which eight people, including six Asian women were killed, as well as a yearlong spike in hate incidents against the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.
China's government tied to new hack attacks targeting U.S. government
A member of the hacking group Red Hacker Alliance monitoring global cyberattacks on his computer at their office in Dongguan, China's southern Guangdong province. Photo: Nicolas Sfouri/AFP via Getty Images
The Chinese Communist Party is believed to be responsible for newly found hack attacks on the U.S. government, businesses and American infrastructure, cybersecurity company Mandiant said Wednesday.
Why it matters: This is the third major cybersecurity breach to hit the U.S. in recent months — including two in March blamed on hackers linked to China's government: one targeting 30,000 U.S. victims, including small businesses and local governments, the other hitting Microsoft.
Danger lurks in the Democrats' police talk
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Democrats celebrate last June after they passed the George Floyd Policing Act. Photo: Ting Shen/Xinhua via Getty Images
As Congress forges ahead with police reform legislation, Democratic operatives are warning lawmakers to steer clear of any defund-the-police rhetoric since it could hurt them in the midterms.
Why it matters: President Biden and his fellow Democrats say Congress needs to pass the George Floyd Policing Act, which would ban chokeholds, prohibit no-knock warrants and generally make it easier to hold officers accountable for misconduct.
Exclusive: Harris meets Guatemalan president Monday, travels in June
Photo: Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images
Vice President Kamala Harris will meet virtually Monday with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei to discuss solutions to the surge of migration, and she'll visit the region in June, a senior White House official told Axios.
Why it matters: The administration is taking a multi-pronged approach to solving the problem and also hopes to announce details about its plan for investing aid in Central America on Monday — although a final dollar amount has yet to be decided.
Scoop: Government pays for some sponsors to pick up migrant kids
MIgrant minors play soccer at a holding facility in Donna, Texas. Photo: Dario Lopez-Mills/AFP via Getty Images
The federal government has been paying travel costs for adult sponsors trying to get to shelters to pick up migrant children, a Department of Health and Human Services agency spokesperson confirmed to Axios.
Why it matters: Officials would not provide numbers, but the policy shift underscores the urgency the Biden administration feels to quickly release kids who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border alone and remain in HHS custody.