Good morning. OK, give your ChatGPT prompt window a rest for two seconds, because it’s pop quiz time.
The question: What share of U.S. executives and managers—that is, not rank-and-file employees—use unapproved AI tools at work?
Make your best guess, then find the answer below in “Endstop triggered.”
Today’s tech news follows. Have a wonderful weekend. —Andrew Nusca
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China tightens rare earth mineral restrictions (again)
Things are getting tense ahead of planned Donald Trump-Xi Jinping talks.
China’s Commerce Ministry on Thursday introduced new restrictions on products containing certain rare earth minerals from the country, requiring foreign suppliers to secure Beijing’s approval to export them.
Certain lithium batteries and the equipment used to make them—think: electric vehicles and an array of consumer electronics—would also require approval for export, the ministry said.
Products with military uses are pretty much off the table for export. Chips or AI licenses? On a case-by-case basis.
China is moving to tighten its grip on the global technology supply chain as the U.S. and its allies maneuver to build up their domestic capacity and reduce their reliance on the adversary.
It’s not China’s first move on the matter. Beijing earlier this year required permission for exports of some rare earth metals and related products, leading many companies—automotive and defense come to mind—to struggle for supplies.
But hey, that’s the art of the deal. Trump and Xi will meet at the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in South Korea at the end of this month. —AN
Coinbase, Mastercard kicked the tires on buying BVNK
A year after Stripe struck a $1.1 billion deal to acquire the stablecoin startup Bridge, two other big corporate players want to scoop up a stablecoin firm of their own.
The U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase and payments giant Mastercard have each held advanced acquisition talks to buy London-based BVNK, six people familiar with the dealings tell Fortune.
The terms and winning bidder haven’t been finalized, but the sale price is in the range of $1.5 billion to $2.5 billion, according to some of the sources. The talks may not result in a final deal, but at present Coinbase appears to have the inside track over Mastercard.
If any deal is reached, it would be the largest stablecoin acquisition yet, and another signal that stablecoins, or cryptocurrencies pegged to underlying assets like the U.S. dollar, have reached the financial mainstream.
And if BVNK decides to sell itself to Mastercard, it’s the clearest sign yet that the incumbent payments network—whose shares fell in June on news that Amazon and Walmart were pursuing stablecoins—is taking the rise of the technology seriously. —Ben Weiss and Leo Schwartz
Intel unveils first chip built on its 18A process
A rare bit of Intel news that doesn’t involve layoffs or tariffs.
The troubled American chipmaker has cut the ribbon on its Intel Core Ultra Series 3, a.k.a. “Panther Lake,” the first processor built on its 18A manufacturing process.
The chip is expected to feature in laptops and handheld devices later this year and early 2026.
Intel also debuted Xeon 6+ (“Clearwater Forest”), its first 18A-based, 2nm data center server chip, expected in the first half of 2026.
There’s a lot tied up in 18A. Politics, for one: Intel says it’s “the most advanced semiconductor node developed and manufactured in the United States.” The company’s Arizona fab will start high-volume production of 18A chips later this year.
It’s also a crucial lever for Intel to compel more customers to use its Foundry unit. Competing with contract chipmakers like TSMC, Intel believes 18A will help it attract high-value business from customers like Nvidia and AMD, and in turn, help it right its financial ship. —AN
More tech
—Microsoft, Anthropic tap former UK PM. Rishi Sunak will serve as a senior adviser to both.
—“Bitcoin Jesus” comes to terms. Crypto investor Roger Ver may pay $48 million in exchange for dropped U.S. tax fraud charges.
—Instagram might build a TV app, but don’t expect Meta to pay for live sports or studio productions, says chief Adam Mosseri.
—“Dozens” of firms affected by Oracle software hacks, Google says.
—Raghu Raghuram joins Andreessen Horowitz. Former VMware CEO will oversee AI infrastructure and growth investments.
—Fear AI data-poisoning attacks. “A small number of samples can poison LLMs of any size,” Anthropic finds.
—Tesla Full Self-Driving probe. Another U.S. investigation after more than four dozen reports of traffic-safety violations.
Endstop triggered
Answer: An astounding 93% of U.S. executives and managers use unapproved AI tools at work, according to a recent Cybernews study.
What’s more, 57% of regular employees using unapproved AI tools had approval from their managers. Oops.
“This creates an interesting paradox,” the outlet writes. “Those who are supposed to set an example and prioritize company security seem to be the most irresponsible when it comes to AI use at work.”
So, uh, maybe don’t paste your customer database in Claude or Perplexity, OK?
