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The World
The Justice Department accused Google of maintaining an illegal monopoly over search and search advertising in a lawsuit, the government’s most significant legal challenge to a tech company’s market power in a generation. The agency accused Google of illegally maintaining its monopoly over search through several exclusive business contracts and agreements that lock out competition. (New York Times)
The U.S. and Russia are nearing a deal to extend the START nuclear treaty and freeze warheads for a year, which the Trump administration says should include China. The proposal comes as the U.S. unsealed criminal charges against six Russian intelligence officers in some of the world’s most damaging cyberattacks, including disruption of Ukraine’s power grid and the release of a mock ransomware virus that infected computers globally and caused billions of dollars in damage. And now the National Security Agency has warned that Chinese government hackers are taking aim at U.S. computer networks involved in national defense, characterizing the threat as a critical priority in need of urgent attention. (Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal-2)
Moderna’s CEO expects vaccine interim results in November, while Pfizer and BioNTech announced the start of combined Phase I and Phase II clinical trials of their mRNA vaccine candidate in Japan. In the UK, 90 fit volunteers aged 18-30 will be deliberately infected with the coronavirus in the world’s first “human challenge” trials to accelerate vaccine development, while China promised to sell vaccines at ‘fair and reasonable’ price around the world, indicating that poor countries will be given financial help to buy the drugs. In the U.S., Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota: “The next six to 12 weeks are going to be the darkest of the entire pandemic.” Texas health officials predict most residents won't have access to a vaccine until July at the earliest. Globally: South Korea is easing restrictions, touting its “exceptional” success; Argentina passed 1 million cases; in Romania, almost a third of daily tests return positive; Manchester is braced for a move to Tier 3 restrictions. (Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Financial Times, South China Morning Post, NBC News, Texas Tribune, NPR, Romania Insider)
Hong Kong’s jobless rate climbed to 6.4%, its highest level in nearly 16 years, as the tourism sector unemployment reached 11.7%. Meanwhile, a huge Chinese fishing fleet is accused of “raping” the Galapagos Islands on industrial scale: Satellite and radio tracking data shows that almost 300 vessels, part of China’s massive “distant-water” fishing fleet were stationed off the islands in July and August. The ships are understood to have caught several thousand tonnes of squid, tuna and billfish. (South China Morning Post, The Times)
The Supreme Court let stand a Pennsylvania ruling that allowed election officials to count some mailed ballots received up to three days after Election Day. The Court’s action was the result of a deadlock, suggesting that Judge Amy Coney Barrett could play a decisive role in election disputes.(New York Times)
Millennials are losing faith in democracy: Young people are less satisfied with democracy and more disillusioned than at any other time in the past century, especially in Europe, North America, Africa and Australia. (University of Cambridge)
Economy
U.S. single-family homebuilding surged in September, thanks to record-low interest rates and a migration to the suburbs and low-density areas as Americans seek more room for home offices and schooling. (Reuters)
European venture funding is down 17% for the first three quarters of 2020 compared with the peak funding levels of a year ago. However, totals ticked up in the just-ended quarter, with a particularly strong funding month in September, driven by big rounds for the fintech, transport and food sectors. (Crunchbase)
In the first three quarters of this year, across Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley, investment-banking and trading revenues are up 34% from the same period last year. (Wall Street Journal)
The SPAC boom is beginning to show its first cracks, as several private equity-sponsored efforts have needed to downsize. plenty of private equity-sponsored SPACs have continued to hit their targets, and some have even upsized. But the offering glut has let investors become a bit more choosy — if only for allocation reasons, given the relatively low upfront risk — and private equity is increasingly finding itself on the short end. (Axios)
About 7.1 million American households still don't have access to a single checking or savings account, including almost 14% of Black households and 12% of Hispanic ones (compared with less than 3% of white households). Meanwhile, the Fed is taking a cautious approach to issuing digital currency with concerns about theft, fraud and privacy. China is ahead of other nations, after rolling out a homegrown digital currency pilot in April. (FDIC, Wall Street Journal)
MIT researchers have developed a new approach for using algorithms in the recruiting process that can help companies draw talent from a more diverse pool of job applicants. The approach yields more than three times as many Black and Hispanic candidates than companies may have considered using traditional resume screening algorithms. The algorithm also generates a set of interviewees that is more likely to receive and accept a job offer, which can help companies streamline the hiring process. (MIT Sloan)
Technology
iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro Review: Ahead of its time. They’re called “the best iPhones—but not for the 5G.” Don’t consider Apple’s latest iPhones for the superfast 5G network connection, but for the best design in years and a great set of cameras. (The Verge, Wall Street Journal)
Microsoft is teaming with Elon Musk’s SpaceX and others as the software giant opens a new front in its cloud-computing battle with Amazon, targeting space customers. Microsoft would help connect and deploy new services using swarms of low-orbit spacecraft being proposed by SpaceX, and more traditional fleets of satellites circling the earth at higher altitudes. The move comes about three months after Amazon Web Services disclosed its space-focused effort. (Wall Street Journal)
The first AI model that translates 100 languages without relying on English data is released. (AI.Facebook)
Online recruiting platform Handshake raises $80 million; Esports network VENN raises $26 million Series A round. (Crunchbase, Axios)
A team of scientists has developed a first-of-its-kind catalyst that can process polyolefin plastics, types of polymers widely used in things like plastic grocery bags, milk jugs, shampoo bottles, toys, and food containers. The process results in uniform, high-quality components that can be used to produce fuels, solvents, and lubricating oils, products that have high value and could potentially turn these and other used plastics into an untapped resource. (DOE/Ames Laboratory)
Smart Links
Palm Beach, FL may be the hottest real estate market in the world. (CNBC)
How does Google’s monopoly hurt you? Try these searches. (Washington Post)
3 ways leaders can make Black lives matter in the workplace. (MIT Sloan)
Holiday spending projected to plunge by nearly 25% in Houston. (Houston Chronicle)
Get ready for Airbnb’s IPO to blow away expectations. (Marker)
Study: Women assigned to male-dominated study groups were more likely to drop an economics class. (Hechinger Report)
Learn More (Today, 4 pm ET): Swing State Secretaries and the 2020 Elections. A bipartisan group of secretaries from the key swing states of Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania discuss the elections. (Harvard Kennedy School)