100 or more: In recent weeks, Saudi Arabia has released“100 or more” political prisoners, according to activists – but it’s not clear why. Sentencing people to decades-long terms for tweets is ultimately bad for business, a researcher at Human Rights Watch told The Financial Times.
1 billion: India, one of the world’s most polluted countries, is reportedly finalizing a$1 billion capital subsidy plan to boost its solar manufacturing industry to help reduce dependence on China and profit from the global energy transition. This is one way in which competition is “good for green.”
0.001: The likelihood of the 2024 YR4 asteroid hitting Earth is now at0.001%, according to the European Space Agency, down from 3.1% as forecast by NASA last week. Scientists expect the asteroid to pass our planet in December 2032. We can all wave as it goes by.
7: In other welcome celestial news, those with their eyes toward the heavens can see seven planets – Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune – this week. Your best bet is to watch the sky just after sunset today, tomorrow, and Friday. If you miss them, you won’t get another chance until 2040. And that’s only if that low-probability asteroid doesn’t take us out.
In this “ask ian,” Ian Bremmer argues that the debate over whether the United States or China will lead artificial intelligence is overshadowing a more important question: who will govern a technology advancing faster than governments can regulate?
Earlier this month, the Trump administration had suggested it might mark America’s 250th birthday by granting clemency to hundreds of people. Instead, it issued 11 pardons in early July, including to people convicted of environmental crimes and a political donor, while denying clemency to thousands of other applicants.
Microsoft released its 2026 Environmental Sustainability Report, outlining how the company is advancing its environmental commitments while expanding the infrastructure needed to support AI growth. The report highlights progress across energy, water, waste, and ecosystem goals, including matching 100% of annual global electricity consumption with renewable energy and achieving net positive water replenishment. Read the full report here.