AI leaders call for slower AI model development, warning technology is advancing too fast

Dario Amodei, Sam Altman and Elon Musk have called for a more deliberate pace of artificial intelligence development, signaling growing concern among some of the technology industry's most prominent leaders that advances in frontier AI systems could be outpacing the safeguards designed to control them.

Europe records busiest summer for air traffic despite Middle East war

Europe recorded its busiest summer for air traffic on record in 2026, with an average of 35,959 flights per day between June and August, even as the war in the Middle East disrupted established aviation routes and shifted holiday travel plans.

US Army selects 5 companies for $2.2 billion Nuclear Microreactor Program

The U.S. Army has selected five companies to develop nuclear microreactors at five military installations, committing up to $2.2 billion in government funding as Washington seeks to strengthen military energy resilience and reduce dependence on vulnerable power grids.

Asia

China launches World AI Cooperation Organization with 29 founding nations

Twenty-nine countries have signed an agreement establishing the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO), creating a new intergovernmental body headquartered in Shanghai

EU and South Korea expand partnership with Digital Trade pact and enhanced Security cooperation

European Union and the Republic of Korea have agreed to deepen cooperation across trade, security, defense, technology, and supply chain resilience,

Uzbekistan begins construction on first integrated nuclear power plant with Russian support

Uzbekistan has officially launched construction of its first nuclear power plant with Russian support, marking a major milestone in the country's long-term energy strategy.

Turkmenistan hosts IAEA workshop to strengthen Nuclear Security cooperation

Experts from Asia and Europe gathered in Turkmenistan for the first International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) interregional workshop on materials outside regulatory control

Europe

More than 300,000 displaced in France and Spain as firefighters battle raging wildfires

Firefighters in France and Spain are battling fast-moving and...

Andy Burnham becomes UK’s seventh prime minister in a decade

Andy Burnham became Britain's seventh prime minister in a decade on July 20, promising to restore political stability, tackle the cost-of-living crisis, and reshape the country's economic model after years of political upheaval.

Europe sizzles as heat records are smashed in Germany, Denmark and Czech Republic

Central Europe bore the brunt of an intensifying heatwave on as Switzerland, Denmark, Germany and the Czech Republic recorded unprecedented temperatures

France places one-third of country under Red Heatwave Alert as extreme temperatures disrupt daily life

France has placed more than a third of the country under its highest heatwave warning as an intense and prolonged spell of extreme temperatures grips the nation

Middle East

Trump ties US-Saudi nuclear deal to Abraham Accords

U.S. President Donald Trump has tied a newly signed US-Saudi Arabia civilian nuclear cooperation agreement to a separate diplomatic objective, saying the deal will only move forward if Riyadh joins the Abraham Accords and establishes relations with Israel.

Full text of 14-point preliminary US-Iran agreement

U.S. President Donald Trump signed the preliminary deal with Iran in France on June 17, 2026, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed the document in Tehran

Trump says US-Iran peace deal scheduled to be signed on Sunday

U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday that a framework...