The Pentagon bets $400M on rare earths, becoming the largest shareholder in the only US rare earth mine as US tariffs hit century highs. Googleโs $2.4 billion deal with AI coding startup Windsurf signals major disruption for the startup ecosystem. Meanwhile, adversaries, researchers, and corporations manipulate AI with hidden prompts, fake research, and fabricated articles, threatening the accuracy of daily information.
๐ฏ WHAT YOU'LL LEARN: How the Pentagonโs rare earth investment signals a seismic shift in US industrial policy | Why current tariff levels havenโt hit yet but are on track to devastate households | How researchers and foreign players are gaming AI systems | Why 1,500 workers say automation targets the wrong jobs | How big techโs creative antitrust tactics may upend M&A
๐ TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Market Overview
00:34 Pentagon's Venture into Venture Capitalism
02:54 TikTok and US Industrial Policy
04:02 Trade Wars and Economic Impact
06:52 Antitrust Evasion and Startup Ecosystem
09:10 AI and Cybersecurity Threats
12:53 AI Automation Workforce Misalignment
14:10 Strategic Outlook
๐ KEY DATA COVERED: โ Pentagon becomes largest shareholder in only US rare earth mine โ US tariffs reach highest level since 1910 โ ChatGPT-4 repeats propaganda 71.4% of the time (up from 28.6%) โ 48% of AI deployments target areas workers don't want automated โ Google pays $2.4B to license tech instead of acquiring startup
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๐ฌ What's your take? Drop your thoughts below.
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๐ SOURCES & DEEP DIVES:
- Rare Earths & DOD: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/07/10/pentagon-rare-earths/
- US Tariff Analysis (Yale Budget Lab): https://budgetlab.yale.edu/research/state-us-tariffs-july-14-2025
- Federal Reserve Trade Impact: https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/trade-offs-of-higher-u-s-tariffs-gdp-revenues-and-the-trade-deficit-20250707.html
- AI Academic Manipulation: https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/Artificial-intelligence/Positive-review-only-Researchers-hide-AI-prompts-in-papers
- Russian Propaganda Network: https://americansunlight.substack.com/p/bad-actors-are-grooming-llms-to-produce
- Cybersecurity Database Crisis: https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/11/1119370/cybersecurity-alarm-system-breaking-down/
- Google-Windsurf Deal: https://windsurf.com/blog/windsurfs-next-stage
- Cognition Buys Windsurf: https://cognition.ai/blog/windsurf
- Cognition Windsurf Acquisition: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/14/cognition-to-buy-ai-startup-windsurf-days-after-google-poached-ceo.html
- TikTok US App Development: https://www.theinformation.com/briefings/tiktok-building-new-version-app-u-s-users
- Malaysia Chip Permits: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/malaysia-says-trade-permit-required-ai-chips-us-origin-2025-07-14/
- EU Pause: https://policy.trade.ec.europa.eu/eu-trade-relationships-country-and-region/countries-and-regions/united-states_en
- Stanford AI Workplace Study: https://www.rand.org/pubs/perspectives/PEA4012-1.html
Full list: https://youtu.be/ml9YqIQ2Y4k
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