Delhi terror attack heightens India-Pakistan tension

Rajeswari Pillai 

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A powerful car bombing near Delhi’s Red Fort Metro Station has ratcheted up existing tensions between Delhi and Islamabad. While a motive for the 10 November attack is yet to be specified, the perpetrator and a co-conspirator were from Kashmir, which is the subject of ongoing territorial disputes between India and Pakistan. The Indian government has been reluctant to explicitly link the attacks to Pakistan or Pakistan-based terrorist groups, such as Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), but some commentators have nonetheless drawn such connections.

The terror attack killed at least 13 people and injured around 20. While it remains to be seen how the government will respond to this attack, in May Prime Minister Narendra Modi said ‘any future act of terror will be treated as an act of war’. In that same month, India and Pakistan went through a short, intense aerial conflict following an April terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, which killed 25 tourists and was linked to the Resistance Front, a Pakistan-based group.

In a major intelligence victory just hours prior to the blast, the Jammu and Kashmir police recovered about 3,000 kg of explosives from two rented apartments in Faridabad, linked to a medical professional working in a local hospital in the city. The confiscated materials included 350 kg of ammonium nitrate, commonly used in explosives for terror attacks. India’s national Forensic Science Laboratory has collected more than 40 samples from the blast sites. An official from the organisation said that one of the materials used in the blast was ammonium nitrate, but a second sample pointed to something more powerful.

Japan warns citizens in China about safety as diplomatic crisis deepens

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"We have made judgments based on comprehensive consideration of the security situation in the country or region, as well as its political and social conditions," Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara said on Tuesday (November 18, 2025) about the safety notice.

The Japanese embassy in China had on Monday (November 17, 2025) reminded citizens to respect local customs and be careful in their interactions with Chinese people. It also asked citizens to be aware of their surroundings when outside, advising them not to travel alone and urging extra caution when travelling with children.

"If you see a person or group that looks even slightly suspicious, do not approach them and leave the area immediately," the embassy notice said.

Film distributors have also suspended the screening of at least two Japanese films in China amid the deepening dispute between Tokyo and Beijing, in what Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said late Monday (November 17) was a "prudent decision" that took into account souring domestic audience sentiment.

130 Years Of Bad Blood! Why China Must Respect Japan’s Military Might As Tensions Soar Over Taiwan?

Sumit Ahlawat

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The war rhetoric between China and Japan is once again reaching dangerous proportions. China reacted angrily after the new Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comment that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo.

Beijing responded by sending Coast Guard ships to the disputed Senkaku Islands and warning travelers and students about safety risks in Japan.

The uninhabited islands in the East China Sea are claimed by both countries and are known as Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan. The islands are north of Japan’s westernmost islands and near Taiwan.

Chinese travellers are an important part of Japan’s tourism industry. In 2024, more than seven million Chinese nationals visited Japan, accounting for nearly one in five international tourists, according to Japan’s tourism bureau.

For many observers, trained in the Eurocentric view of history, the rising Sino-Japanese tensions could be a sideshow in the Indo-Pacific theatre, which is often described as a bipolar contest for influence between the US and China.

Working with Japan and Korea to Compete with China on AI

Scott W. Harold

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As President Trump traveled to the Indo-Pacific in late October for his first summit with new Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae and the APEC Summit hosted by President Lee Jae-myung in South Korea, the U.S. signed agreements with both Japan and South Korea outlining plans for broadening cooperation aimed at outcompeting China on AI. What are the most promising areas for collaboration on AI with these countries, and what specific steps can Washington take with them? RAND examined these questions in a pair of recent reports, looking at what makes Japan and South Korea critical partners for the United States in seeking to shape a world safe for democracy by leveraging the power of AI.

The third pillar of the Trump administration’s AI Action Plan prioritizes exporting American AI to allies and partners, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, which the Pentagon has consistently identified as its “priority theater.” RAND found in examining the prospects for expanded AI cooperation between the United States, Japan, and South Korea, that the three sides share a common understanding of the threat to the region posed by authoritarian revisionists such as China, North Korea, and Russia. The U.S. and Japanese national security strategies, for example, prioritize supporting a free and open Indo-Pacific, while the Republic of Korea’s 2023 National Security Strategy referred to a ‘free, peaceful, and prosperous Indo-Pacific’ and the Lee Jae-myung administration’s initial policy moves have continued to prioritize the U.S. alliance, cooperation with Japan, and collaboration on (and investment in) artificial intelligence.

The Real Story Behind Trump’s F-35 Offer to Saudi Arabia

Seth Frantzman

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The United States could move forward with a sale of F-35s to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, President Donald Trump indicated on November 17. The comments came as Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, was arriving in Washington for a meeting with the president.

The F-35s are only one part of a much larger series of deals and discussions that Riyadh is seeking in Washington.

Asked about the F-35s, Trump said, “I will say that we will be doing that. We’ll be selling F-35s,” according to reports. The F-35 is a symbol of being a close ally and partner of the United States. When it comes to Riyadh, this is important because Saudi Arabia has been a key US partner for around 80 years. However, many things have changed over the last decades.

My Favorite Marshal: The US’ Bad Bet on Pakistan

Mohammed Ayoob

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There is a strong sense of déjà vu among Pakistan-watchers these days. The country is on the verge of a rerun of the 1958 military coup. Field Marshal Asim Munir, the second to hold such an exalted rank in Pakistan’s history, struts around the political and military stage with his political minions, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The newly minted field marshal’s powers were expanded and consolidated recently by a constitutional amendment that extended his control over all branches of the armed forces as the chief of defense forces. While ostensibly meant to “ensure greater coordination and unified command” among the three services, in reality, this is a consolidation of his authority over the political system. The amendment also provides Field Marshal Munir with lifelong legal immunity for all acts of omission or commission.

Field Marshal Munir’s popularity had risen to new heights during and after the brief and inconclusive war with India in May. The servile media portrayed him as the “savior” of Pakistan in the face of Indian “aggression.” No one raised questions about the Pakistani army’s alleged complicity with the perpetrators of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam in April that led to the Indian retaliation next month.

The glorification of the army chief and the military establishment stems from the perception that the military is the only institution holding the country together in the face of the Baluchistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa regional insurgencies, terrorist attacks attributed to the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and a chaotic civilian parliament.

Why Hasn’t the EU Given up on Turkey?

Robert Ellis

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There are no limits to the extent some people are prepared to go to hold on to power. This is more apparent in an autocratic system than in a democratic one. Russian president Vladimir Putin’s hold on power is determined by the outcome of his war on Ukraine, and his new nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile and Poseidon drone are indicators.

In Turkey, the aging autocrat, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has his back to the wall, and now he has announced “a new juncture” in the Kurdish peace process. To hardened observers of the Turkish scene, this is old wine in a new bottle.

Turkey’s Kurds first became a problem with the Sheikh Said rebellion in 1925. Said was the head of an influential religious order, and Mustafa Kemal’s secular reforms (the abolition of the Caliphate and the abrogation of Sharia law) reduced their power.

The Treaty of Sèvres in 1920 partitioned Turkey and the creation of an autonomous Kurdistan. Still, after the War of Independence, this was superseded by the Lausanne treaty in 1923, which defined the borders of modern Turkey. Said called for an independent Kurdistan and the restoration of the Caliphate, but this incipient Kurdish nationalism consolidated Kemalist reforms and Turkish nationalism.

Does Al Jazeera Collaborate With Hamas?

Toby Dershowitz

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Al Jazeera’s leadership shake-up has been in the headlines. Will its new executives direct the Qatari state-funded media arm to cease its cozy relationship with Hamas? Allegations have been swirling that the royal family’s soft power news outlet is not merely reporting what Hamas says but is actively collaborating with the terrorist organization.

Al Jazeera sells its content to major wire services like AP and Reuters. Al Jazeera has resource-sharing agreements that allow outlets like CNN to access Al Jazeera’s footage and Al Jazeera to use CNN’s news feed. Al Jazeera also has arrangements with BBC, France 24, and The Guardian that enable them to use Al Jazeera’s video footage and reports. Other media outlets, including Deutsche Welle and Euronews, have direct syndication arrangements, allowing them to use Al Jazeera’s content without intermediaries.

Credible reports indicate that Al Jazeera’s ties to Hamas extend well beyond journalism. Evidence points to coordination between the Qatari network and Hamas terrorists, raising serious reputational and policy questions for Al Jazeera and for media or corporate partners that cooperate with it.

What Will It Take for Europe to Defend Itself?

Benjamin Giltner

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At the end of last month, the Romanian defense ministry announced that roughly 700 US troops would be withdrawn from its borders. Though some American senators expressed alarm over this withdrawal, the number of troops is negligible in the balance of forces between NATO and Russia on the European continent. Nevertheless, even if the United States were to withdraw all its ground forces from Europe, European countries have sufficient capabilities to deter a Russian ground invasion.

And they should. Europe is rediscovering the reality of international politics that effective statecraft will require its own efforts to deter Russian aggression.

The question is, what should they do to deter Russia? Though the war in Ukraine has proven Russia’s weaknesses, history is littered with cases of defeated armies learning from their mistakes and reconstituting themselves to become more formidable fighting forces.

First and foremost, European nations must define their military objectives. These objectives should include deterring Russia from attacking NATO territory and minimizing escalation should Russia decide to do so.

Zelensky remains a creature of the corruption plaguing Ukraine

Ian Proud

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The $100 million corruption scandal around Ukraine’s energy system that broke this past week is critical to ordinary Ukrainians for its timing. Russia has been bombarding the country’s energy infrastructure on a daily basis to deny ordinary citizens heat and electricity during the cold and dark winter months.

In November 2024, a separate scandal broke that $1.6 billion set aside to build protective bunkers around electricity sub-stations had not led to any being built.

With this in mind, many have responded that the highly publicized nature of this latest scandal, which resulted in the resignations of both the energy and justice ministers, offers visible proof that progress is being made in tackling corruption in Ukraine. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) of Ukraine, which is often at the spearhead of such investigations, was first established by Presidential Decree in April 2015. That it continues to function is indeed a positive sign.

It's not possible, however, to claim that corruption has emerged as a specifically wartime phenomena. This energy scandal is hardly a one-off. In September 2021, with Zelensky having already been in power for two and a half years, the European Court of Auditors reported that state corruption and capture were still widespread in Ukraine. It pointed out that “tens of billions of Euros are lost annually as a result of corruption,” and that EU support delivered over 20 years had not delivered the desired results.

Can the American Right Find Its Way Back?

MICHAEL R. STRAIN

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Under the influence of Donald Trump and his MAGA movement, the American right has become unrecognizable to those who remain committed to the values espoused by Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher. The question now is whether the Republican Party can still recover their brand of dignified conservatism.

WASHINGTON, DC – When I speak to college students about the problems with democratic socialism and populism, I often quote then-British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s warning: With these economic policies, “you eventually run out of other people’s money.” Since this often produces quizzical looks, I then follow up with a quote from Thatcher’s 1983 address to the Conservative Party conference: “There is no such thing as public money, there is only taxpayers’ money.”

Children among 26 killed in one of Russia's deadliest strikes on western Ukraine

Jonathan Beale,

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At least 26 people have been killed including three children in a Russian missile and drone attack that hit two blocks of flats in the western city of Ternopil, Ukrainian officials say.

They say another 93 people were wounded, 18 of them children, in the strike early on Wednesday - one of the deadliest in the region since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Ukraine's air force later said Russian X-101 cruise missiles had hit the residential flats.

The neighbouring Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk regions were also struck, and a drone attack on three districts of the north-eastern city of Kharkiv wounded more than 30 people. Photos posted online showed buildings and cars ablaze.

Ukraine's air force said it had shot down 442 of 476 drones and 41 of 48 missiles launched by Russia, including 10 missiles destroyed by F-16 and Mirage 2000 fighter jets supplied to Kyiv by its Western allies.

But in a reference to how stretched Ukraine's air defences currently are, the air force pleaded for "the uninterrupted and timely supply of aviation weapons from Western partners".

Ternopil, a city closer to the Polish border than the capital Kyiv, has rarely faced attacks since the full-scale invasion. Social media footage of this strike shows missiles shooting across the sky towards the city, though very little sign of air defences reacting from the ground.

Myanmar military raids online scam hub, arrests nearly 350 on Thai border

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Myanmar’s military says it has raided an internet scam hub on the Thai border, arresting nearly 350 people, as part of a highly publicised crackdown against the booming black-market compounds.

The army on Wednesday blamed armed opposition groups for allowing scam centres to operate under their protection but said it had taken action after wresting back territorial control.

Recommended Storieslist of 3 itemslist 1 of 3US sanctions companies and individuals behind Southeast Asian scam centers

Myanmar’s military descended on the gambling and fraud hub Shwe Kokko on Tuesday morning, according to state-run The Global New Light of Myanmar.

“During the operation, 346 foreign nationals currently under scrutiny were arrested,” the daily reported. “Nearly 10,000 mobile phones used in online gambling operations were also seized.”

Department of War Executive Order should prioritize readiness against space stalkers

Brian G. Chow

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The administration has yet to follow up on its 200th Executive Order, which called for enhanced readiness. This silence represents a profound missed opportunity. Amidst a severe, persistent partisan divide, focusing on genuine military readiness offers a pathway for non-partisan decisions. To ensure this initiative cost-effectively achieves its goal of preparing for war so as to keep peace—not just for the United States but the free world—the administration must channel the Executive Order’s mandate into tangible action, starting with what I consider to be the most urgent threat: readiness against space stalkers, or spacecraft that can approach and attack satellites in orbit.

Thus far, the administration’s public argument has been focused on a politically charged but secondary issue, namely that the order will restore the warrior ethos, maximize lethality, not tepid lethality and change what the administration called a “woke” DoD. While this rhetoric satisfies its political base, it risks hardening Democrats’ opposition to the entire initiative. If the administration does not redirect, the long-term fate of this critical national security initiative beyond 2028 may ultimately depend more on partisan politics and which party controls the White House than on the readiness priorities themselves.

By deliberately recalling President George Washington’s 1790 address —“To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace” — the order, in effect, delivers a clear, uncompromising mandate: Unmatched power does not automatically guarantee adequate readiness. But true military readiness doesn’t come from renaming government institutions. True readiness requires us to understand the nature and characteristics of specific threats and tailor our defensive and deterrent resources to meet those threats in a timely and effective manner.

A readiness-focused project, championed by both sides, is the perfect vehicle for this reframing. The immediate priority must now be to help the administration select its first readiness project. This project should demonstrate the initiative’s potential to cost-effectively produce timely and effective readiness against existing and future threats in all operational domains: land, sea, air, cyber and space.

Should Hitler's DNA have been studied – or just left alone?

Tiffany Wertheimer

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Painstaking scientific testing by a team of international experts has been able to debunk a rumour on whether Hitler had Jewish ancestry (he didn't) and determine that he had a genetic disorder which affects the development of sexual organs - all from an old blood-stained swatch of fabric.

While clickbait headlines have focused on whether the Nazi dictator had a micropenis and only one testicle, more serious are the findings that his DNA showed "very high" scores - in the top 1% - for a predisposition to autism, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.Does this mean he had these neurological conditions? Absolutely not, say the experts - it's not a diagnosis.

But nevertheless, concerns have been raised about stigmatisation and how ethical the research was, prompting the question - should it have been done at all? "I agonised over it," says Prof Turi King within the first few minutes of Saturday's Channel 4 documentary on the research, Hitler's DNA: Blueprint of a Dictator.The genetics expert told the BBC that when she was first approached to take part in the project several years ago, she was very aware of the potential implications on studying the DNA of someone like Adolf Hitler - "I'm not interested in sensationalising things".

Mysterious drones have been spotted at night at airports across Europe. How worried should we be?

Frank Gardnert

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First comes the warning, that disembodied voice over the tannoy: "Your attention please. Air siren in the city. Please move to the shelter on the minus second floor." Then comes the mosquito-like whine of the incoming Russian drones, massing in their hundreds just above the clouds.

It's followed immediately by the rattle of anti-aircraft fire, the distant thud of explosions, then finally the ominous klaxon call of ambulance and fire sirens.

This is the grim reality of night time in Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine.

These are attack drones that explode on impact.

Drones are now an integral part of modern warfare, but they are not confined to the battlefield.

Across western Europe, far from Ukraine, unarmed drones have also been found buzzing around airports, military bases and power plants, all part of a suspected programme of "hybrid warfare" being waged by Russia, with some speculating they're arriving to test the resilience of certain Nato countries that are helping Ukraine.

In Europe, the Problem Is Deterrence, Not Drones

Ann Marie Dailey

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Since multiple Russian drones crossed into Poland in September, European leaders have expedited the idea of a “drone wall” and rushed to discuss the need to invest in countering drones.

But when it comes to European defense, Russian attack drones are not the true problem. The problem is an erosion of the pillars of nuclear and conventional deterrence.

This erosion has myriad causes, but the impact is that Russia feels emboldened to test NATO's political will by, among other things, flying attack drones at or over a NATO nation. Over-investing in a “drone wall” would be a waste of precious resources that would be better spent on other defense priorities. It would not deter Russia, and perhaps most importantly, it wouldn't even defend against pressing vectors of drone-use violence that Europe is likely to face.

Europe and the United States should be working with Ukraine and investing in research and development to improve what are currently a host of inadequate options for countering uncrewed aerial systems. But instead of focusing on defending against drones from the east, Europe should invest in its ability to strike back at Russia and take steps to demonstrate a willingness to use these capabilities.

crown prince over Khashoggi killing

Bernd Debusmann Jrat 

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US President Donald Trump said Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman "knew nothing" about the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as he welcomed the kingdom's de facto ruler to the White House.

Trump's comments appeared to contradict a US intelligence assessment in 2021 which determined the crown prince had approved the operation that led to Khashoggi's death at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

The crown prince, who has denied any wrongdoing, said at the White House that Saudi Arabia "did all the right things" to investigate Khashoggi's death, which he called "painful".

It was his first US visit since the assassination, which sent shockwaves through the US-Saudi relationship.

In the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump shot back at a reporter who asked a question about the killing.

"You're mentioning someone that was extremely controversial," the US president said.

"A lot of people didn't like that gentleman that you're talking about. Whether you like him or didn't like him, things happen."

"But he [the Crown Prince] knew nothing about it," Trump added. "You don't have to embarrass our guests."

The Oct. 7 Warning for the U.S. on China

Mike Gallagher

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WSJ Opinion: Pete Hegseth and the GeneralsPlay video: WSJ Opinion: Pete Hegseth and the Generals

Review & Outlook: After summoning hundreds of U.S. Generals to Quantico, VA, the U.S. Defense Secretary announced ten directives focusing on combat readiness—but where are the weapons?

Hamas’s shock troops poured across Israel’s border two years ago, kidnapping, raping and killing civilian men, women and children. Israel’s bitter experience offers lessons America should learn before our own moment of reckoning.

The most important is that the hypothetical war can actually happen. Even if we’re intellectually prepared, there’s a risk that years of relative peace has lulled us into a false sense of security. The Israeli defense establishment never truly believed Hamas would launch a full-scale invasion. They viewed Gaza as a chronic but manageable problem—one for diplomats and intelligence officers, distant from the daily concerns of citizens. Israeli politicians and generals also spoke of open conflict with the Iran-led Islamist axis much like their American counterparts speak of China and a Taiwan crisis—the pacing threat and the most likely test, yes, but ultimately a question for tomorrow. Then tomorrow came.

The Logic of Trump’s Neutralization Strategy

Zineb Riboua

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For half a century, American policy toward Israel remained stagnant. Successive administrations spoke of peace, but treated Israel’s strength as a diplomatic problem to be managed rather than a foundation for regional stability. The vocabulary of diplomacy shifted from one administration to another, but the substance remained unchanged. Washington pressed Israel to yield, comforted Arab leaders with gestures, and preserved a peace process that produced neither peace nor progress.

The modern framework of U.S. policy toward Israel began under President Jimmy Carter in 1978 with the Camp David Accords. The peace between Egypt and Israel was an extraordinary achievement; however, it also established a pattern that would define American diplomacy. From that moment, Washington began to view itself less as Israel’s strategic partner and more as a neutral intermediary, pressing Jerusalem to make concessions in pursuit of regional stability.

In fact, under President George H. W. Bush, this mindset became policy. In 1991, his administration withheld ten billion dollars in loan guarantees to pressure Israel over settlements. What started as a posture of neutrality gradually turned into a policy of pressure, with Washington using its influence not to deter Israel’s enemies but to restrain Israel itself.

Donald Trump Gave War a Chance—and It Worked

Aaron MacLean

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It does not matter what happens next; President Donald Trump really does deserve the Nobel Peace Prize. His achievement will stand whether renewed hostilities break out in Gaza, or Benjamin Netanyahu joins Bono and Qatar’s Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to sing about peace onstage in Khan Younis. Compelling the release of all living hostages held by Hamas in return for a ceasefire and tolerable concessions is as close as one gets to a miracle in the business of diplomacy. Trump, along with Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Marco Rubio, and their teams, deserve the world’s admiration.

Barely a week ago, Israel appeared trapped. It had three options in Gaza, each of them unattractive. It could level what was left of the place, probably causing the deaths of many of the remaining hostages, and finally defeat Hamas on the battlefield in a conventional sense while signing up for further isolation and endless trouble in whatever came next. It could attempt to wash its hands of Gaza somehow, the least likely choice, inasmuch as the presence of the hostages would perpetually deny Israel the freedom to move on. A third path, perhaps the worst, seemed the most probable: an endless rope-a-dope in which Hamas would dribble out limited concessions and groups of hostages here and there as it played for time.

The AI Bubble’s Shaky Math

CARL BENEDIKT FREY

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OXFORD – When OpenAI recently committed $1.4 trillion to securing future computing capacity, it was merely the latest indication of irrational exuberance in 2025. By some estimates, US GDP growth in the first half of this year came almost entirely from data centers, prompting a flood of commentary about when the bubble will burst and what it may leave behind. While the late 1990s dot-com party ended with a hangover for Wall Street, Main Street kept what mattered: the infrastructure. Productivity rose, and the fiber laid during the boom years still works today. US President Bill Clinton’s vow to build a “bridge to the 21st century” was one of those rare campaign promises that is actually fulfilled.

Today’s AI investments could well pay off like the internet did. For now, though, the gains look more muted, and the macro downsides larger, than in the case of the dot-com bubble. Consider the potential benefits. In the late 1990s, the internet’s payoff showed up while the bubble was still inflating: US labor productivity growth averaged about 2.8% from 1995 to 2004, roughly double the previous two decades’ pace, before fading in the mid-2000s. You could see the gains in the national accounts even as Pets.com was buying up its ill-fated Super Bowl ads.

This time, US labor productivity growth has picked up after two sluggish decades – reaching around 2.7% last year – but it’s too soon to say that AI is the reason. In fact, AI adoption is slipping, with a recent US Census Bureau survey showing lower use among large firms. If the recent uptick in productivity was mostly an AI story, it could be expected to fade as adoption ebbs – another reminder of how fleeting these waves can be. As visible as the 1990s information-technology boom was in real time, it petered out within a decade or so.

Gemini 3 Is Here—and Google Says It Will Make Search Smarter

Will Knight

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Google has introduced Gemini 3, its smartest artificial intelligence model to date, with cutting-edge reasoning, multimedia, and coding skills. As talk of an AI bubble grows, the company is keen to stress that its latest release is more than just a clever model and chatbot—it’s a way of improving Google’s existing products, including its lucrative search business, starting today.

“We are the engine room of Google, and we're plugging in AI everywhere now,” Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, an AI-focused subsidiary of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, told WIRED in an interview ahead of the announcement.

Hassabis admits that the AI market appears inflated, with a number of unproven startups receiving multibillion-dollar valuations. Google and other AI firms are also investing billions in building out new data centers to train and run AI models, sparking fears of a potential crash.

Google boss says trillion-dollar AI investment boom has 'elements of irrationality'

Faisal Islam,

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Every company would be affected if the AI bubble were to burst, the head of Google's parent firm Alphabet has told the BBC.Speaking exclusively to BBC News, Sundar Pichai said while the growth of artificial intelligence (AI) investment had been an "extraordinary moment", there was some "irrationality" in the current AI boom.It comes amid fears in Silicon Valley and beyond of a bubble as the value of AI tech companies has soared in recent months and companies spend big on the burgeoning industry.

Asked whether Google would be immune to the impact of the AI bubble bursting, Mr Pichai said the tech giant could weather that potential storm, but also issued a warning.I think no company is going to be immune, including us," he said.In a wide-ranging exclusive interview at Google's California headquarters, he also addressed energy needs, slowing down climate targets, UK investment, the accuracy of his AI models, and the effect of the AI revolution on jobs.

The interview comes as scrutiny on the state of the AI market has never been more intense. Alphabet shares have doubled in value in seven months to $3.5tn (£2.7tn) as markets have grown more confident in the search giant's ability to fend off the threat from ChatGPT owner OpenAI.

Collective Seapower: NATO’s New Maritime Strategy

Emma Salisbury

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NATO has finally unveiled its new Alliance Maritime Strategy, refreshing a document that had not been publicly updated since 2011. While high-level strategy texts of this kind tend not to be riveting reads, the new strategy stands out in its sense of renewed urgency. It not only frames the maritime domain as a decisive front in our era of revived great-power competition but also centers maritime power as the backbone of NATO’s ability to “fight tonight” and “fight tomorrow.”

At its core, the strategy acknowledges that the oceans are the global commons of competition. Sea lanes, undersea cables, pipelines, and ports no longer serve merely as trade and communications arteries—they are strategic pressure points. NATO’s vision is to bind its maritime posture into a coherent whole, integrating naval forces, industrial bases, and emerging technologies into a system capable of deterrence, resilience, and warfighting at scale. It’s a maritime strategy built not for the expeditionary policing of 2011 but for high-end, sustained combat in defense of allied territory.

The strategy’s vision is crisp yet expansive—credible maritime power is indispensable to collective defense. This power is based on four pillars: readiness, advanced technology, the protection of sea lines of communication, and the ability to prevail in conflict. NATO’s navies must be able to surge and sustain operations at a moment’s notice, supported by ships and systems that are not only numerous but networked, fueled by emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, autonomy, and uncrewed systems. The strategy’s repeated emphasis that the alliance must be able to “prevail” signals a shift from deterrence as posture to deterrence through capability. It is a vision grounded in the realism of a more dangerous world—a world where Western maritime dominance is no longer assured but must be continually earned.