Israeli Interior Minister: Entire Lebanon Should Be Destroyed

The European Commission has obtained new AI regulatory enforcement powers effective August 2, enabling it to conduct model assessments, restrict market access, and impose fines on companies developing general-purpose AI (GPAI) models, with U.S. AI firms including OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google as key targets. Under the implementation framework of the EU AI Act, the Commission can require companies to submit model assessments before their products enter the European market, and impose penalties for violations of up to €15 million or 3% of the company’s global annual revenue, whichever is greater. These new powers are viewed as a key measure for the EU to advance "tech sovereignty," and may further escalate tech regulatory frictions between Europe and the U.S. Earlier, the EU fined Google $1 billion under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), and former U.S. President Donald Trump once threatened to levy "massive" tariffs on the bloc. The EU AI Office noted that risks from advanced AI models are growing, necessitating strengthened oversight. Analysts point out that even if AI companies are headquartered in the U.S., they cannot evade EU regulation; non-EU AI service providers must also appoint an authorized representative within the EU to serve as a regulatory liaison. Recently, the EU has intensified communications with firms like OpenAI and Anthropic, focusing on security risks related to AI models. OpenAI confirmed it is cooperating with the EU AI Office. Tom Gordon, vice president of policy for OpenAI’s Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), said the company will continue to collaborate with the European Commission and the industry ecosystem to promote the implementation of the AI Act while advancing the development of artificial intelligence in Europe.

Blockchain fintech firm Ripple has announced strategic investments in UK-based asset transfer agent Zilo and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)-regulated tokenization solution provider Licuido, to advance the adoption of tokenized financial assets on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). Ripple stated that the investments aim to integrate regulated asset transfer agency, asset issuance, and collateral liquidity capabilities into the XRPL infrastructure, addressing idle collateral asset issues in traditional financial markets and enabling tokenized funds to be used as collateral from their launch. Zilo offers global transfer agency and asset solutions for wealth management firms, having raised around $58.7 million in total funding to date. Licuido specializes in institutional asset tokenization services. The specific investment amounts for both companies were not disclosed. This development follows shortly after Aviva Investors launched tokenized U.S. dollar liquidity fund shares on XRPL. Prior to this, Ripple also launched the Ripple Mint platform to help institutions issue, redeem, and manage its U.S. dollar stablecoin, Ripple USD (RLUSD). Data shows that the current tokenized real-world asset (RWA) size on XRPL is approximately $368 million, ranking 11th globally; Ethereum leads with $17.1 billion. Over the past 30 days, the number of RWA holders has risen by 50% to 1.57 million, while total tokenized asset value has increased by 1.5% to $37.3 billion.

New York Fed President John Williams said the Federal Reserve’s decision to hold interest rates steady in July aligns with current economic conditions: the labor market remains stable, economic growth is solid with no signs of overheating, justifying no immediate rate hikes. Williams noted that the impact of tariffs on U.S. inflation has mostly passed through and is unlikely to drive significant further inflation in the coming months. In the baseline scenario, inflationary pressures from energy prices and tariffs are near their peak, and factors that previously pushed inflation higher are expected to gradually ease. He stated that the Middle East conflict has lifted oil prices, but markets generally expect the situation to eventually de-escalate, with prices likely to fall once energy trade resumes. Still, energy markets remain highly uncertain. Williams reiterated that U.S. inflation is projected to return to the Fed’s 2% target by 2028. He pointed out that falling housing costs, declining goods inflation, and cooling core services inflation will continue to pull inflation lower. On the AI investment boom, Williams said he sees no signs of a bubble at present. He views AI as a general-purpose technology with transformative potential; current investment enthusiasm reflects market expectations of productivity gains and new business models, though competition among different firms and technology paths may lead to market volatility in the future. Additionally, Williams said the Fed scrapped forward guidance due to high current economic uncertainty, noting that policy should be adjusted dynamically based on data obtained at each meeting rather than setting a pre-determined path. He stressed that the Fed will continue to independently assess economic data and remain committed to bringing inflation back to its 2% target.

Whale trader Loracle boosts gold long positions. According to monitoring by Mlm Onchain, the whale has established and is continuously adding to gold long positions worth over $23 million, while opening ETH short positions worth over $28 million and SNDK short positions worth over $8 million.

American Bitcoin (NASDAQ: ABTC) released its Q2 2026 financial report, showing that as of June 30, the company’s Bitcoin reserves rose to approximately 8,002 BTC, an increase of about 981 BTC from the end of Q1, representing a 14% quarterly growth. Satoshis per share grew by roughly 11%. During the reporting period, the company mined approximately 932 BTC, hitting a record high quarterly production. Mining revenue totaled around $67.02 million, an 8% quarter-over-quarter increase, with gross margin remaining at roughly 50%. The per-BTC mining cost stood at $36,500, nearly unchanged from the prior quarter. Mike Ho, CEO of American Bitcoin, stated that the company will continue expanding mining infrastructure and strengthening its balance sheet to steadily grow its Bitcoin reserves. Eric Trump, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, noted that the firm now holds over 8,000 BTC and operates one of the world’s largest Bitcoin mining platforms, expressing unwavering confidence in Bitcoin’s long-term prospects.

According to market data from BIT (Bit.com), GameStop (GME)’s decline widened to 12% during pre-market trading of US stocks.