In partnership with

Send stories, jokes and hate mail to [email protected] 

Happy Friday beautiful people,

We’re staying strong and resisting the calls of our European ancestors to take the whole of August off. Very brave, I know.

This is because we have a divine duty to keep the 4,000+ of you informed and up to date with memes.

Let’s get stuck in…

⏰ Today's reading time is 5 minutes

Quote of the Week

Bezos-backed Perplexity AI makes surprise bid for Google Chrome

Perplexity AI, a three-year-old AI start-up backed by Jeff Bezos and Nvidia, has made an unsolicited $34.5 billion bid to buy Google Chrome.

The browser has around three billion users and is a major part of Google’s search dominance, which is already under fire from two US antitrust cases.

A ruling this month could even force Google to break up its search business, though the company says spinning off Chrome would be unprecedented and harmful (they would say that, though).

Industry reaction to the offer has been sceptical.

Perplexity is worth about $18 billion and hasn’t explained how it would fund the deal, as Chrome could be worth ten times the supposed bid.

Some suggested a serious offer from a tech heavyweight like Sam Altman (OpenAI) or Elon Musk (X) could reshape the AI market.

Perplexity positions itself as a champion of the “open web” and user choice, saying it would keep Google as Chrome’s default search engine but let users change it.

Last month, Perplexity launched its own AI browser, Comet, as it tries to compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini.

Nope, we hadn’t heard of it either, hence the bid for Chrome…

The Enterprise Guide to Secure Voice AI Rollouts

Deploying Voice AI in a regulated industry? This guide shows how security isn’t just a requirement—it’s your rollout strategy.

Learn how HIPAA and GDPR compliance can accelerate adoption, reduce risk, and scale across 100+ locations.

From encryption and audit logs to procurement readiness, this guide outlines what enterprise IT, ops, and CX teams need to launch AI voice agents with confidence.

Download The Free Guide

JD Vance’s UK “holiday” has turned into a wingnut networking tour of the British right.

On Tuesday, former Chancellor and current lizard-person George Osborne hosted the US vice-president in the garden of Dean Manor, introducing him to senior Conservatives including Robert “Ozempic” Jenrick, Chris Philp, Laura Trott and newcomer Katie Lam, as well as GB News and Spectator owner Sir Paul Marshall.

Over 90 minutes, they discussed free speech, the Ukraine war, border control, and how the Tories might claw back power (good luck with that one) — with Jenrick handing Vance a signed copy of Roger Scruton’s England: An Elegy, a nod to Vance’s own memoir A Ballad to Sofa-fucking Hillbilly Elegy.

The stop was one of several political encounters for JD.

Vance put on his wife’s best makeup for breakfast with Toady McToadface Nigel Farage the next morning and a wholesome BBQ in the evening with The Apprentice’s Tom Skinner, one half of the UK’s boshfathers alongside “Big John” Fisher.

A notable omission from the tour was current Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, which goes to show how long many Tories think she has left, especially given how much she is endearing herself with the everyday voter these days.

Those close to Vance say his interest in British politics is ‘unusually detailed’, with him having an admiration for the Cameron-era Conservatives and ‘genuinely caring’ about the future of Europe— despite his public criticisms of European leadership, defence spending and it’s supposed issues with free speech.

Because nothing says free speech like asking for local villagers social media handles when you’re on holiday.

Trump says Putin will make deal on Ukraine as leaders prepare for Alaska meeting

Donald Trump meets Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday for a summit aimed at securing a ceasefire in the Ukraine war — but without Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the table (for now).

The Ukrainian modestly successful comedian President warned that decisions taken without Kyiv’s input would be “stillborn” and has reiterated that no territorial concessions are possible without binding security guarantees.

European leaders were excluded from the summit, with the assumption that, like the rest of Europe in August, they’d be refusing to do any real work.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio called a ceasefire “critical” to allow talks on security and disputed territory, but stressed that any deal must be agreed by both Russia and Ukraine.

The talks come amid ongoing fighting. Hours before the summit, Russia launched two ballistic missiles and 97 drones at Ukraine, while Russian forces claimed to have downed 53 Ukrainian drones.

Analysts see the Alaska venue as historically symbolic but politically risky, with some warning Putin could use it to shape Trump’s thinking and avoid harsher sanctions going forward, potentially isolating him further from European leaders.

Trump maintains that both Putin and Zelenskyy “want to make peace,” but critics fear the optics of an exclusive Trump-Putin meeting will tilt momentum in Russia’s favour before Ukraine gets its say.

Nvidia and AMD to pay Trump administration 15% of chip revenue for export licences to China

In a move straight of Tony Soprano’s mafia extortion handbook, Nvidia and AMD have struck a “special” deal with the Trump administration, agreeing to hand over 15% of Chinese revenues from certain high-powered chips in exchange for export licences to China.

The arrangement applies to Nvidia’s H20 chip and AMD’s MI308 — both designed for AI workloads — which had been banned under US national security export controls.

The move follows months of lobbying by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and comes despite warnings from 20 security experts that the chips could bolster China’s military capabilities, enabling autonomous weapons and advanced surveillance.

Critics say the agreement undermines the national security rationale for the original ban, with trade policy analysts calling it either a “shakedown” or an unconstitutional export tax.

Democratic congressman Jake Auchincloss warned it created a perverse incentive for the US to sell AI to China.

Trump dismissed security concerns as overblown, calling the H20 “old”, and has framed the deal as allowing US firms to compete globally while capturing revenue for the government.

Beijing has accused Washington of “unilateral bullying”.

Ironic.

Netanyahu says he backs 'Greater Israel', which includes parts of Jordan and Egypt

Benjamin Netanyahu has openly aligned himself with the hardline “Greater Israel” vision, telling i24 News he feels “very” connected to the concept when presented with a symbolic amulet of the so-called “Promised Land”.

Nothing wrong with a bit of living space for your people, no?

The idea, long promoted by Israeli ultra-nationalists nutjobs, imagines Israel’s borders expanding far beyond its current internationally recognised territory to include the occupied Palestinian territories and parts of Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.

Netanyahu described himself as being on a “historic and spiritual mission”, echoing rhetoric from ministers in his own government.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has previously argued for Israel’s borders to stretch as far as Damascus and even into parts of Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

As if he was talking about Bigfoot or the Epstein files, Smotrich claimed back in 2023 that “there is no such thing” as the Palestinian people.

The remarks come as Israel continues its military occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and parts of southern Lebanon and Syria — and as regional critics accuse Netanyahu’s government of pursuing de facto annexation under the cover of ongoing conflict.

Berkshire Hathaway takes stake in troubled insurer UnitedHealth Group

Berkshire Hathaway has quietly taken a $1.6 billion stake in UnitedHealth, buying more than 5 million shares during the second quarter despite the insurer’s battered reputation and 50% share price drop this year.

The surprise move instantly boosted UnitedHealth’s stock nearly 10% after hours.

UnitedHealth, the largest US private health insurer, is under Justice Department investigation over Medicare billing, has scrapped its earnings outlook and recently replaced its CEO amid serious fraud allegations.

The previous CEO also found himself in a spot of bother.

Buffett has previously called the US healthcare system a “tapeworm” on the economy, but has a track record of bargain hunting in troubled companies.

It trimmed stakes in Apple and Bank of America, though Apple remains its largest holding alongside American Express, Coca-Cola, Chevron and Bank of America.

The purchases come as Buffett, turning 95, prepares to step down as Berkshire CEO at year’s end, passing control to Greg Abel, who will oversee future capital allocation.

UnitedHealth also drew interest from semi-autistic savant Michael Burry (Christian Bale in The Big Short), with the stock now trading at a decade-low price-to-earnings ratio just under 12.

A Private Circle for High-Net-Worth Peers

Long Angle is a private, vetted community for HNW entrepreneurs and executives ($5M-$100M net worth). No membership fees.

Connect with self-made peers in confidential discussions and live meetups.

With $100M+ invested annually, secure preferential terms unavailable to individual investors.

Apply to Join

🍻Half Pints

Quick-fire news you might have missed

Meme of the Week

Balkan Week of the Week

Funnily enough, one of the most peaceful weeks in the history of the region.

Tito would be proud.

That’s all for today, but before you go…

Barring an act of god or being kidnapped by Mossad, we’ll be back, bigger and better, next week.

But before you go back to living your life, we need you to give us some vital feedback in the poll below.

We’re always open to feedback (and hate-mail), so feel free to reply and we’ll get back to you within 5 “working” days.

Thanks to Rob and Jesus