Top Stories for Today: Binance founder sentenced, Amazon’s earnings boost, and Biden’s gas dilemma
The founder of Binance, Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, has been sentenced to four months in prison for violating U.S. anti-money laundering laws. This comes after CZ pleaded guilty to the charges in November 2023 and agreed to step down as CEO of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.
In other news, Amazon’s earnings received a boost from cloud and ad growth, reporting revenue of $143 billion, surpassing Wall Street’s estimates. Meanwhile, U.S. trade regulators are challenging “junk” patent listings, including Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic.
Huawei has seen a significant increase in profits, soaring 564% year over year, outpacing its rival Apple despite U.S. sanctions. On the other hand, Apple is reportedly hiring AI experts from Google, and Samsung is benefiting from artificial intelligence-powered profits.
President Joe Biden is facing pressure to make gas more expensive, as cheap gas is becoming politically costly in an election year dominated by inflation concerns. The pressure is mounting on Biden to enforce sanctions against major oil producers like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela, which could lead to higher gas prices.
Boeing investors are facing a choice regarding CEO Dave Calhoun’s reelection to the board, with proxy advisor Glass Lewis advising against it due to safety concerns. Calhoun has announced plans to step down at the end of the year.
In surprising discoveries, a girl in North Carolina mistook 60,000 bees for a monster in her bedroom, a rare statue depicting a female ballplayer from ancient Mesoamerica will be displayed, and a Roman dodecahedron sculpture will be presented in Lincolnshire. Additionally, a papyrus scroll recalling Plato critiquing a flute song on his deathbed was found buried under volcanic ash from Mount Vesuvius.
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