Google Acquires Wind and Solar Developer to Secure Power Supply for AI Data Centers

Supreme Court Affirmative Action Ban Shifts Black and Hispanic Students from Elite Universities to Flagship State Schools

SpaceX Acquires xAI in $250 Billion Deal to Integrate Rocket Business with Artificial Intelligence

Trump Reduces India Tariffs to 18 Percent After Modi Pledges to Stop Russian Oil Purchases

Xi Jinping Purges Military Leadership in Unprecedented Campaign Targeting Nearly All Senior Commanders

BREAKING...CLINTONS AGREE TO APPEAR FOR DEPOSITIONS IN EPSTEIN PROBE...LOOMING BIPARTISAN CONTEMPT VOTE BROKE RESISTANCE...DEMOCRATS JOINED REPUBLICANS...MONTHS OF REFUSAL ENDS...

Google Acquires Wind and Solar Developer to Secure Power Supply for AI Data Centers

Google plans to spend $4.75 billion to acquire Intersect, a wind and solar developer, making it the only major tech company to own a power generation firm as the industry faces mounting electricity demands from artificial intelligence operations. The acquisition positions Google favorably with regulators who increasingly prefer tech companies that provide their own power sources, particularly as the Trump administration pushes firms to avoid transferring energy costs to consumers. Tech companies are racing to build data centers faster than new power plants can be constructed to serve them, creating strategic pressure to secure dedicated electricity sources. Regulators in multiple regions are considering expedited grid connections for data centers built alongside new power generation, since self-supplied facilities require fewer investments in centralized infrastructure and transmission networks, though most still maintain grid connections for supplemental power. While renewable energy attracts significant attention, the power sector is experiencing a substantial shift toward natural gas turbines to meet surging data center demand. GE Vernova reported a backlog of 89 gigawatts in gas turbine orders, reflecting the industry's turn to reliable baseload power as AI computing requirements outpace renewable energy development timelines.

WSJ

Supreme Court Affirmative Action Ban Shifts Black and Hispanic Students from Elite Universities to Flagship State Schools

Following the Supreme Court's 2023 ruling prohibiting race-conscious college admissions, Black and Latino enrollment declined at the nation's 50 most selective universities but increased substantially at other institutions, according to analysis by nonprofit organization Class Action. Public flagship universities saw overall freshman enrollment of underrepresented minority students rise 8 percent, with less selective colleges experiencing major gains as higher rejection rates at elite schools redirected Black and Hispanic applicants to these alternative institutions.

NYT

SpaceX Acquires xAI in $250 Billion Deal to Integrate Rocket Business with Artificial Intelligence

Elon Musk announced that SpaceX has acquired his artificial intelligence startup xAI in a transaction that values the combined entity at $1.25 trillion and xAI at approximately $250 billion, merging the established rocket-and-satellite company with the AI firm facing intense competition from OpenAI, Anthropic, and DeepMind. SpaceX operates reusable rockets, astronaut spacecraft, and Starlink, the world's largest satellite broadband network serving millions globally, while xAI develops large-language models and runs Grok, a chatbot integrated into the X social media platform. The acquisition represents Musk's latest consolidation of his business empire, following Tesla's 2016 purchase of SolarCity and last year's merger of xAI with X, formerly Twitter, and builds on existing collaboration as SpaceX was among xAI's first customers in 2024 for Starlink customer support features.

WSJ

Trump Reduces India Tariffs to 18 Percent After Modi Pledges to Stop Russian Oil Purchases

President Donald Trump announced an immediate reduction in tariffs on India from 50 percent to 18 percent following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's agreement to halt purchases of Russian oil, resolving months of trade tensions between the two nations. Trump had previously imposed a dual-tariff structure on India: a 25 percent "reciprocal" tariff based on trade imbalances, plus an additional 25 percent punitive levy specifically targeting India's Russian oil purchases, creating a combined 50 percent rate among the world's highest. With India's commitment to stop funding what Trump characterized as Moscow's war machine in Ukraine, US officials including Ambassador Sergio Gor confirmed the 25 percent punitive levy would be removed, leaving only the reduced 18 percent reciprocal tariff in place. The agreement followed discussions between Trump and Modi covering trade, the Ukraine conflict, and potential Indian purchases of American and Venezuelan oil.

FT

Xi Jinping Purges Military Leadership in Unprecedented Campaign Targeting Nearly All Senior Commanders

Chinese President Xi Jinping has removed nearly all of the approximately 30 generals and admirals who commanded specialized departments and theater operations at the start of 2023, conducting the most extensive military purge in modern Chinese history. The dismissals, ostensibly focused on corruption but also centered on loyalty to Xi, have systematically dismantled the high command he hand-picked after nearly a decade in power, with the latest removal being General Zhang Youxia, Xi's top general and a Central Military Commission member. New York Times analysis of Chinese state media reports and official announcements reveals that dozens of senior military officials have been expelled or disappeared during the nearly three-year campaign, creating unprecedented upheaval within the People's Liberation Army despite Xi's earlier installation of loyalists intended to transform the force into a world-class military.

NYT

February 3 1966: Lunik 9 soft-lands on lunar surface

Lunik 9 was an unmanned Soviet spacecraft that became the first probe to achieve a controlled soft landing on the Moon and transmit photos from the Ocean of Storms back to Earth. Americans reacted with alarm and renewed urgency, seeing it as another Soviet lead in the Space Race and quickly pushing forward their own Surveyor landers and the Apollo program to reassert U.S. technological and prestige dominance.

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Sources

1. https://www.wsj.com/business/energy-oil/google-is-spending-big-to-build-a-lead-in-the-ai-energy-race-a8b5734a?mod=hp_lead_pos9
2. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/03/us/colleges-see-major-racial-shifts-in-student-enrollment.html
3. https://www.wsj.com/tech/elon-musk-says-spacex-has-acquired-xai-038a4072?mod=hp_lead_pos2
4. https://www.ft.com/content/72f1947e-20aa-4a46-bd29-c2f563f24054
5. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/02/03/world/asia/china-xi-military-purge.html