Thursday, June 11, 2026

World

Iran closes Strait of Hormuz after fresh US strikes

The US has launched a second wave of airstrikes on Iran, targeting Qeshm Island and ports along the Strait of Hormuz, and Iran has responded by closing the strait to all vessels and launching drone strikes on US military bases in Bahrain and Kuwait. The Strait of Hormuz carries roughly 20% of the world's oil supply, meaning the closure threatens an immediate global energy crisis. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth framed the campaign as negotiating "with bombs."

MarketStrait of Hormuz traffic returns to normal by end of June?7%

Economy

Trump's Iran war accelerates China's clean energy boom

The US-Iran conflict has disrupted global energy supplies badly enough to supercharge demand for alternatives, and China's cleantech industry is the primary beneficiary. Chinese solar, battery, and EV manufacturers are filling supply gaps and winning contracts that would have been unthinkable before the war rattled fossil fuel markets. The surge is compounding pressure on Western policymakers already struggling to compete with Beijing's industrial subsidies.

Tech

xAI fired engineer who flagged Grok safety risks

A former xAI engineer has sued the company and SpaceX, claiming he was fired for raising safety concerns about the Grok AI model just days before SpaceX's historic market debut. The lawsuit alleges the dismissal was retaliation designed to suppress scrutiny ahead of the IPO, raising fresh questions about how Elon Musk's companies handle internal dissent on AI risk. The timing — warnings filed days before SpaceX's stock market listing — is at the center of the retaliation claim.

MarketSpaceX IPO closing market cap above $2.2T?40%

Politics

Northern Ireland sees second night of anti-immigration riots

Police deployed water cannon for a second consecutive night to disperse rioters in Northern Ireland, after a crowd of around 300 people burned a truck and pelted officers with bricks near Newtownabbey, eight miles north of Belfast. The unrest was triggered by a knife attack and has since folded into broader anti-immigration protests targeting hotels housing migrants. It marks the first use of water cannon in Northern Ireland in years.

Science

Earth's energy imbalance hits record high driving faster warming

New analysis shows the planet's energy imbalance — the gap between heat arriving from the sun and heat escaping back to space — has reached a record high, meaning Earth is trapping more energy than at any point in the observational record. The imbalance is the direct engine of global warming, and its acceleration suggests temperature rises in coming decades could outpace existing climate models. The finding draws on satellite measurements tracking energy flux since 2005.