An investigation into a 'staggering' and 'unconscionable' scheme against Oklahomans


Ben Felder, Oklahoman
Wed, July 19, 2023 

Attorney General Gentner Drummond speaks Tuesday during a news conference at the state Capitol in Oklahoma City.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond says he is prepared to file the largest lawsuit in state history to recoup billions of dollars in natural gas costs from a 2021 winter storm, which left Oklahoma ratepayers with significantly higher utility bills.

Drummond announced Tuesday he is soliciting bids for outside legal help in pursuing the case.

An initial investigation found no wrongdoing by oil and gas firms and utility companies like Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co., Drummond said.

Instead, he accused natural gas marketers of reducing supply as demand rose to combat frigid temperatures, resulting in a cost spike.

“Several companies reaped billions of dollars at the expense of Oklahoma families and businesses,” Drummond said during a news conference at the state Capitol. “The magnitude of this scheme is staggering and unconscionable. The conduct in question is well outside the parameters and boundaries of ordinary capitalism.”

Crews work Feb. 17, 2021, to clear snow from the parking lot of the The Market at Czech Hall in Oklahoma City.

Drummond would not name any potential lawsuit targets but said most are based outside the state.

Dozens of providers sold natural gas to Oklahoma utilities. Last year, the Public Utility Division of the Oklahoma Corporation Commission released the list of vendors the utilities did business with during Winter Storm Uri, which brought record-low temperatures in February 2021, resulting in more than $3 billion in higher natural gas costs.

More: Who got paid during the February 2021 storm? More than 65 Oklahoma companies split a $3 billion+ pot

To avoid customer bills increasing by hundreds if not thousands of dollars, state officials allowed utility companies to use state-backed bonds to pay off the high costs and recoup that money from customers over the next two decades.

State officials, utility companies and the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which regulates the oil and gas industry, said using state bonds was the most logical response.

But Oklahomans still expressed frustration at higher utility bills and an energy sector that appeared to be caught flat-footed during an era of climate change-caused extreme weather.

Snow covers rooftops Feb. 17, 2021, in Oklahoma City.

“The companies who reaped billions of dollars on the backs (of) hard-working Oklahomans must be held accountable," AARP Oklahoma State Director Sean Voskuhl said Tuesday. "Oklahoma utility customers want action to be taken against the companies who bilked customers out of billions of dollars in a matter of days during Winter Storm Uri and further demand the recovered funds are returned to customers immediately.”

Corporation Commissioner Kim David, elected last year to the three-person board, praised Drummond for not holding liable oil and gas companies, which contribute millions in campaign donations to corporation commissioners.

More: Energy firms help fund candidates seeking to regulate Oklahoma's oil and gas sector

“I am thankful for confirmation that no wrong-doing was done by the Corporation Commission, Oklahoma’s regulated utilities, or the producers of oil and gas," David said in a statement.

A man walks along NW 164 as an Oklahoma City Public Works truck plowing snow approaches Feb. 17, 2021, in northwest Oklahoma City.

David also said she hoped a lawsuit would result in overpayments being "returned to Oklahoma ratepayers.”

Bob Anthony, a longtime commissioner who has been critical of the state's response to the high storm costs, said he welcomed Drummond's investigation but felt more should have been done years ago.

"Although I greatly appreciate the attorney general's willingness to investigate and perhaps even prosecute market manipulators who profited billions on the backs of Oklahoma utility customers, the A.G.'s efforts come two years late because the Oklahoma Corporation Commission refused to do its duty and protect ratepayers from fraud and market manipulation," Anthony said in a statement.

The state of Kansas filed a lawsuit earlier this year against a natural gas company it accused of manipulating the market during Winter Storm Uri.

Vehicles travel west Feb. 14, 2021, along the John Kilpatrick Turnpike during a winter storm in Oklahoma City.

Oklahoma’s attorney general office has more than 120 attorneys, including consumer protection experts. But Drummond said his office needs to contract with outside attorneys with even more expertise.

Drummond said legal fees will be “capped at a reasonable amount.”

Drummond would not speculate on a timeline or predict when a lawsuit would be filed. But he said his first six months in office should prove he acts quickly.

Drummond was elected last year after beating the Republican incumbent who Gov. Kevin Stitt had selected to fill the open seat.

A person uses a snowblower Feb. 17, 2021, to clear their driveway in Yukon.

Drummond, also a Republican, already has announced several investigations into financial mismanagement within the governor’s office and involving state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma attorney general will target companies who hiked prices in winter storm

Oklahoma Considers Natural Gas Manipulation Case Over 2021 Storm

Rachel Adams-Heard
Tue, July 18, 2023 


(Bloomberg) -- Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond may bring a natural gas market manipulation case related to the 2021 winter storm that drove energy prices to record highs and left millions of people in the dark.

Drummond held a news conference on Tuesday morning in Oklahoma City and said he plans to retain outside counsel to pursue a possible lawsuit. He indicated that natural gas marketers are a likely target.

“It will probably be the most significant lawsuit filed by the state of Oklahoma in its history,” Drummond said. “Broadly, there are no parameters on the scope of the investigation.”

After Kansas became the first state to file a lawsuit alleging natural gas market manipulation during Winter Storm Uri, Drummond announced in March that he was reviewing whether similar circumstances existed in Oklahoma. In the Kansas case, state Attorney General Kris Kobach’s office is accusing Macquarie Energy LLC of buying next-day gas at a key midcontinent hub at “irrational” prices during the storm — a move the suit says artificially inflated prices by “hundreds of dollars” per million British thermal units. The case was moved from a state district court to a federal court in May.

 Kansas AG Says Macquarie Rigged Gas Market During 2021 Freeze

When asked whether Macquarie would be involved in the Oklahoma case, Drummond said that “generally, most of the companies that manipulated the marketing price are outside Oklahoma.”

“If you follow the data, it appears as thought there was a short squeeze,” Drummond said. “Certainly, natural gas marketers could do it again, and I will sue them.”

Macquarie has previously said it doesn’t comment on active litigation.

Drummond, a Republican who took office earlier this year, is Oklahoma’s third attorney general since Uri. Mike Hunter, who held the position during the storm, announced an investigation in the days after natural gas prices soared to all-time highs. He abruptly resigned just a few months later and was replaced by John O’Connor, who warned he would file multiple lawsuits against oil and gas companies, but later walked that back.

Following the storm, Oklahoma paved the way for utilities to issue billions in ratepayer-backed bonds in order to spread out the costs incurred due to all-time high energy prices. Drummond said Tuesday that if a lawsuit is successful he would work to make sure any recovery is seen by consumers. He also noted that the bonds include so-called claw back provisions.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who’s facing an impeachment trial, also announced an investigation into potential natural gas market manipulation following the storm, but hasn’t brought a case. On Tuesday, Drummond said he would be “happy to partner” with his counterparts in Texas and Kansas.

“I am aware of what Texas and Kansas are doing,” he said. “I think that we will do it better.”

New small nuclear reactor in Eastern WA to create energy, jobs by 2030

Annette Cary
Wed, July 19, 2023 

Energy Northwest has signed an agreement with the goal of having an advanced small nuclear reactor producing power in Eastern Washington by the end of 2030.

It could potentially deploy as many as 12 Xe-100 reactors, together capable of generating up to 960 megawatts of electricity, Energy Northwest said in an announcement Wednesday of a joint development agreement with X-energy Reactor Co.

Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., praised the planned project, saying that advanced nuclear technology is “bringing next-generation development to the marketplace, strengthening our nation’s energy security and providing economic security for businesses in the Tri-Cities and beyond.”

Energy Northwest has operated the Columbia Generating Station, the Northwest’s only commercial nuclear power plant, about 10 miles north of Richland since 1984. The plant produces 1,207 megawatts of electricity, or enough to power about 1 million homes.

The new reactors would be on leased land at a site adjacent to Columbia Generating Station. It is on land at the Hanford nuclear reservation that was not used by the federal government for weapons work.

Columbia Generating Station, owned and operated by Energy Northwest, is a boiling water nuclear power reactor located about 10 miles north of Richland, Washington.

“As the Northwest region of the United States pursues a future clean energy grid, it is clear it will need new sources of dependable, carbon-free power,” said Bob Schuetz, chief executive of Energy Northwest.

X-energy announced in April 2021 that it would work with Energy Northwest and Grant County PUD to develop, build and operate an 80-megawatt reactor near Richland. It was proposed as the first Xe-100 reactor in the nation.

But in March 2023 X-energy said would instead work with Dow to demonstrate its first grid-scale advanced nuclear reactor in North America at one of Dow’s U.S. Gulf Coast sites.

It has since announced that Dow will use the reactor at its UCC Seadrift Operations site in Texas, where basic and specialty chemical products are made.

The joint development agreement with Energy Northwest would make Washington the second location in North America with an Xe-100 reactor project.

“Energy Northwest is a leader in building the clean energy grid, and the advancement of our partnership is expected to help meet growing commercial and household demand for reliable carbon-free energy across the state of Washington,” said J. Clay Sell, chief executive of X-energy.

“Energy Northwest’s experience as a leading nuclear operator in the region uniquely positions it to showcase the benefits and scalability of advanced nuclear,” he said.
Backing up intermittent clean energy

Each Xe-100 module can provide 80 megawatts of full-time electricity or 200 megawatts of high-temperature steam for large regional electricity providers or industrial manufacturing systems.

Module components can be manufactured and construction done offsite.

The modules could then be shipped by truck, with electricity production scaled up as needed by adding additional modules. The standardized construction is intended to save time and to provide more predictable and manageable construction costs.

The smaller size of the nuclear power modules and the ability to quickly ramp up and down would complement intermittent renewable resources, such as wind and solar, that rely on weather conditions to generate power,

X-energy says it has a simple design for the high-temperature, gas-cooled reactor with meltdown-proof “walk-away” safety. Its fuel will withstand temperatures about four times greater than conventional nuclear fuel, it said.

“Energy Northwest’s mission is to provide the region with clean, reliable and affordable electricity, and X-energy’s innovative advanced reactor technology will be a valuable addition to our existing portfolio of carbon-free electric generating resources,” Schuetz said.

In addition to the Columbia Generating Station, Energy Northwest owns and operates hydroelectric, solar, battery storage and wind projects.

In 2021 the Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program awarded X-energy $1.2 billion in cost-sharing funding to develop, license, build and demonstrate an advance reactor and fuel fabrication facility by the end of the decade.

X-energy plans to bring what it learns on that project in Texas to Washington state.

Why Washington state?

Sell said in 2021 that a critical element in X-energy interest in the Tri-Cities area was the way the market in Washington state is being shaped by the Clean Energy Transformation Act. The act commits the state’s electric utilities to fully transition to clean, renewable and non-emitting resources by 2045.

He also likes the Tri-Cities support for nuclear energy.

“This community knows about nuclear power. This community has a proud tradition,” he said in 2021.

Work to bring more jobs related to nuclear power to the Tri-Cities area also was good news for union workers.

“Today’s historic announcement between Energy Northwest and X-energy will not only secure Washington’s ability to provide clean, affordable and dispatchable energy throughout our region, but will supply job opportunities for hundreds of our members and their families,” said Nickolas Bumpaous, president of the Central Washington Building and Construction Trades Union.

Energy Northwest now employs about 1,000 workers.

'Breakthrough' geothermal tech produces 3.5 megawatts of carbon-free power

Fervo Energy's Nevada site is slated to power Google data centers.


Fervo Energy


Kris Holt
·Contributing Reporter
Tue, July 18, 2023

Fervo Energy says it has achieved a breakthrough in geothermal technology. It carried out a 30-day well test at its site in northern Nevada and says it was able to achieve a "flowrate of 63 liters per second at high temperature that enables 3.5 megawatts of electric production." The company says the test resulted in flow and power output records for an enhanced geothermal system (EGS) and that it was completed without incident.

A megawatt can power around 750 homes at once. Fervo is expected to connect its Project Red site to the grid this year. It will be used to power Google data centers and some of the company's other Nevada infrastructure. Google and Fervo signed an agreement in 2021 to develop a "next-generation geothermal power project."

This is the first time an energy company has shown that an EGS can work on a commercial scale, according to Bloomberg. It's been a long road to reach this point, as scientists have been trying to make EGS a reality since the 1970s.

For a natural geothermal system to produce electricity, it needs a combination of heat, fluid and rock permeability, as Bloomberg notes. In many areas, the rock has the required levels of heat, but not enough permeability for fluid to flow through it.

An EGS creates this permeability artificially by drilling deep underground and injecting fluid to create fractures in the rock. That approach can vastly increase the number of potential sites for a geothermal power plant.

Fervo says it's the first company to "successfully drill a horizontal well pair for commercial geothermal production, achieving lateral lengths of 3,250 feet, reaching a temperature of 191°C, and proving controlled flow through rigorous tracer testing."

One of the major advantages of geothermal power plants is that they're entirely carbon free — Google aims to run all of its offices and data centers on carbon-free energy by 2030. These plants can also operate at any time (unlike solar and wind), making geothermal energy a compelling source of renewable power. However, cost reductions and regulatory red tape are barriers to making EGS more broadly available, according to Fervo CEO Tim Latimer.

The company is hoping to replicate its success at a site in Utah. If Fervo sees similar results there and it successfully implements design upgrades to maximize output, the site is expected to generate enough electricity to power 300,000 homes simultaneously, Latimer said. That's around a quarter of all homes in Utah.

“Achieving our goal of operating on 24/7 carbon-free energy will require new sources of firm, clean power to complement variable renewables like wind and solar,” Michael Terrell, Google's senior director for energy and climate, said in a statement. “We partnered with Fervo in 2021 because we see significant potential for their geothermal technology to unlock a critical source of 24/7 carbon-free energy at scale, and we are thrilled to see Fervo reach this important technical milestone.”

500-year-old gold coins discovered in a German monastery were 'hastily hidden' during a 'dangerous situation'

Jennifer Nalewicki
Tue, July 18, 2023

A person wearing gloves holds a gold coin.

Archaeologists in Germany have uncovered a handful of 500-year-old gold coins buried among the ruins of a medieval monastery.

Known as Himmelpforten, the Augustinian Hermit monastery housed monks from its founding in 1253 into the 16th century. The archaeologists think the four coins were "hastily hidden" by one of the monks in 1525 during an uprising in which farmers stormed the monastery in Wernigerode, a town in central Germany, according to a translated article in Mitteldeutsche Zeitung, a German newspaper.

"The gold coins were of great value, and the small fortune was probably hidden by a monk in an acutely dangerous situation," Felix Biermann, a project manager and archaeologist from the Saxony-Anhalt State Office for Monument Preservation and Archaeology, told Mitteldeutsche Zeitung. "It didn't end well because the coins couldn't be recovered."

Related: Massive hoard of Roman-era silver coins unearthed in Germany

Classified as guilders (guldens), a type of currency used during the Holy Roman Empire, the coins include one that was minted in Frankfurt before 1493, during the reign of the Holy Roman emperor Frederick III; another coin minted in Schwabach, outside Nuremberg, sometime between 1486 and 1495; and two coins produced in Bonn by the Archdiocese of Cologne around 1480, according to Newsweek.

In addition to the coins, researchers discovered an array of artifacts, including brass book clasps from the monastery's library, ceramics, animal bones, a cavalry spur and lead seals that were used to stamp cloth for commerce, all of which provide insight into the large-scale trade and prosperity of the monastery, according to Mitteldeutsche Zeitung.

All that remains of the monastery itself is the foundations of some buildings, including the main chapel and refectory where the monks would have dined.

A man unearthed 700 gold coins in a Kentucky cornfield. It could confirm a long-held theory about how Southerners protected their treasure during the Civil War.

Erin McDowell
Wed, July 19, 2023

A man recently found a treasure trove of gold coins in a Kentucky cornfield.

Certified Collectibles Group; Brian Koellish/Getty Images

An unidentified man found a treasure trove of gold coins in a Kentucky cornfield.


The coins, which were minted before or during the Civil War, could be worth more than $1 million.


Urban legends have circulated for years about treasure buried before and during the Civil War.

An unidentified man recently found a treasure trove of more than 700 gold coins — believed to be worth more than $1 million — in a Kentucky cornfield.

According to The New York Times, the discovery apparently confirms a long-held belief by treasure hunters that Southerners buried valuables before and during the Civil War to protect it from invading armies.

The finding, which is now being referred to as the Great Kentucky Hoard, includes genuine $1, $10, and $20 gold coins minted before and during the Civil War.
Urban legends have circulated for years about treasure buried before and during the Civil War

According to Live Science, Ryan McNutt, a conflict archaeologist at Georgia Southern University, said that the coins might have been buried before a Confederate raid carried out by General John Hunt Morgan in the summer of 1863.

At the time, Kentucky was declared a neutral state. Citizens were reportedly wary of their funds being stolen by the Confederacy, which led some to believe people may have buried their wealth in the ground for safekeeping.

Since the 19th century, treasure hunters have sought to unearth the gold they believe was hidden in the Civil War. The New York Times shared archival reports describing how people unearthed gold in Georgia in 1884, and in Alabama and Tennessee in 1926.

Dennis Parada, right, and his son stand at the site of the FBI's dig for cvil war-era gold in Dents Run, Pennsylvania, in September 2018

AP Photo/Michael Rubinkam

In 2018, a US treasure hunter accused the FBI of covering up a possible discovery of Civil War-era gold in Pennsylvania. According to The New York Times, the FBI was investigating the rural area of Dents Run, Pennsylvania, where "a trove of lost Civil War gold" was rumored to have been located. CBS reported that according to local lore, an 1863 shipment of Union gold disappeared on its way to the US Mint office in Philadelphia.

However, the FBI asserted that the 2018 dig came up empty, leading the rumors of buried Civil War gold to remain just that: rumors. According to CBS, a court-ordered release of government photos, videos, maps, and other documents appeared to confirm the FBI's claim.

The Kentucky coins have already sold, and the entire collection could rake in more than $1 million

A coin from the Great Kentucky Hoard.

Courtesy of Certified Collectibles Group

Surprisingly, despite reportedly being buried in the ground for 160 years, nearly all of the coins are in mint condition. A single gold dollar from the collection was valued at roughly $1,000.

One type of coin in the collection, a gold Liberty double-eagles coin minted in 1863, could be worth anywhere from a few thousand dollars to up to over $380,000 at auction, depending on their condition and when they were minted, according to The New York Times.

The total confirmed value of the hoard is unknown, but the Times estimates it could be worth upwards of $1 million given the number of high-value coins found.

The exact location where the coins were found, as well as who found them, has not been shared publicly. However, a video shows the moment when the unidentified man made the historic discovery.

In a short clip posted to YouTube by GovMint, the coin dealer charged with selling the coins, a man could be heard identifying how many coins he had dug up, calling it "the most insane thing ever."

"This is what every treasure hunter dreams about and this man lives it," one commenter wrote.

NO CHARIOT FOUND

3,000-year-old untouched burial of 'charioteer' discovered in Siberia

Tom Metcalfe
Tue, July 18, 2023 

We see a skeleton in a dirt burial. There is a bronze bar with hooked ends across the skeleton's waist and a bowl to the upper right.

Archaeologists in Siberia have discovered the untouched 3,000-year-old grave of a person thought to be a charioteer — indicating for the first time that horse-drawn chariots were used in the region.

The skeletal remains were interred with a distinctive hooked metal attachment for a belt, which allowed drivers of horse-drawn chariots to tie their reins to their waists and free their hands. This type of artifact has also been found in Chinese and Mongolian graves.

Aleksey Timoshchenko, an archaeologist at the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Live Science in an email that the object was found in its original placement at the waist of the person in the undisturbed grave.

A bird's-eye view of a grassy field that has exposed brown dirt with graves where the archaeologists excavated.

"This fact, along with direct analogies in burial mounds of China, allows us to determine their purpose a little more confidently," he said.


Timoshchenko led the latest expedition to the Askizsky region of Khakassia in Siberia, where Russian archaeologists have already spent several years excavating areas ahead of the expansion of a railway. The team discovered the charioteer burial and other graves this month near the village of Kamyshta.

Related: 2,700-year-old leather saddle found in woman's tomb in China is oldest on record

Unknown object

An aerial view of the charioteers burial, which is surrounded by a square perimeter of stones.

Oleg Mitko, an archaeologist at Novosibirsk State University in Russia who's a consultant for the finds but not an expedition member, said objects like the "charioteer's belt" had been found before but not understood.

"For a long time in Russian archaeology this was called a PNN — an 'item of unknown purpose,'" he told Live Science in an email. But recent discoveries of Bronze Age charioteer burials in China, along with the remains of chariots and horses, indicated that "this object is an accessory for a chariot."

No chariots had been found in Siberian burials, he said, and the hooked bronze belt plate may have been placed in the Late Bronze Age grave as a symbolic substitute.

We see a skeleton on the ground with a bowl to the upper right of the skull.

Burial mound

The tomb of the "charioteer" was found among graves dated to about 3,000 years ago during the time of the Lugav culture, according to a translated statement. The burial consisted of an earthen mound heaped over a roughly square stone tomb; a bronze knife, bronze jewelry and the distinctive belt part were among the grave goods.

Timoshchenko said the Bronze Age people of the Lugav culture were mainly engaged in cattle breeding and were replaced in the region in about the eighth century B.C., during the Early Iron Age, by Scythian people of the Tagar culture.

According to the statement, the latest excavations unearthed burials from three Bronze Age phases in the region: the earliest from about the 11th century B.C., as the Karasuk culture transitioned into the Lugav culture; a second, with the charioteer, from the Lugav culture itself; and a third after the eighth century B.C., from the early Bainov stage of the Tagar culture.

Stability AI CEO Says Most Coders in India Will Lose Jobs Within a Year or Two

Robert Carnevale
Tue, July 18, 2023


Indian coders’ days are numbered, the CEO of Stability AI Emad Mostaque says. Based on his estimate, most outsourced coders in the country will be out of a job within a year or two as artificial intelligence allows for far greater work to be done by fewer people. That reality coupled with the nation lacking the protective labor laws of certain other countries means Indian coders are likely to be in a tricky situation relatively soon.

Mostaque highlighted the impact AI will have on coders Level 3 and under, citing their skill level and type of job as being key reasons why artificial intelligence is coming for them specifically. “If you’re doing a job in front of a computer, and no one ever sees you, then [AI is] massively impactful, because these models are like really talented grads,” Mostaque said, sharing his thoughts in a call with UBS analysts, as reported by CNBC.

Meanwhile, Mostaque acknowledged that countries with heavily pro-worker labor laws, like France, will not see these sorts of shakeups since the workers are legally protected from such situations. With that said, he still predicted that there will be no more traditional coders in five years’ time.

Also Read:
FTC to Investigate ChatGPT Maker OpenAI Over Consumer Harm

Reps for Stability AI told TheWrap they had nothing to further to add to CNBC’s report.

Stability’s CEO isn’t the only one feeling that artificial intelligence is the wave of the future and could disrupt certain sectors. Disney CEO Bob Iger is also bullish on AI and has his legal teams working overtime to figure out how they can effectively incorporate artificial intelligence into Disney’s operations.

Furthermore, the CEO of U.K. energy supplier Octopus Energy, Greg Jackson, has been incorporating AI into his company’s customer service department and it’s been doing the jobs of hundreds of employees all with better customer satisfaction rankings than the company’s human workers. While layoffs were not likely for Octopus Energy’s staff as a result of AI’s successes, that may not be the case for workers of other companies, as evidenced by Mostaque’s forecast for Indian coders.

Also Read:
Bob Iger Is ‘Bullish’ on AI Prospects at Disney: ‘Our Legal Team Is Working Overtime’

A top AI expert says most outsourced coders in India will be out of a job in 2 years thanks to the technology


Kai Xiang Teo
Tue, July 18, 2023 


Stability AI CEO Emad Mostaque thinks AI will eliminate most outsourced coding jobs in India.


This isn't the first time he made such a bold call.


He previously said AI would make most programmers obsolete in 5 years.

AI will soon eliminate most outsourced coding jobs in India as the technology will drastically reduce the need for them, according to a leading AI expert.

India's "outsourced coders up to level three programmers will be gone in the next year or two, whereas in France, you'll never fire a developer," Emad Mostaque, the CEO of Stability AI, said in a call with UBS analysts, attributing these differences to better workers' protections in France.

The comments were reported by CNBC on Tuesday.

There are about five million coders based in India, according to an April 17 Bloomberg report.

This isn't Mostaque's first bold claim about AI. In an interview on the Moonshots and Mindsets podcast posted on June 29, Mostaque — whose company created Stable Diffusion, a tool that transforms text into AI-generated art — predicted AI could replace most programmers in five years.

He later caveated his comment saying he was specifically referring to traditional coders.

Tech jobs are one of the professions most likely to be replaced by AI, Insider's Aaron Mok and Jacob Zinkula previously reported.

But not everyone shares Mostaque's pessimism.

GitHub's CEO Thomas Dohnke told Computer Weekly last year that AI could help developers be more productive. "It's so much more attractive to have an AI assistant with you, instead of reading stacks of books or wiki articles."

Additionally, workers with AI skills stand to gain as the tech industry is placing a greater focus on talent in this area, Insider's Thomas Maxwell reported.

Emad Mostaque did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.

How much will Kenya's tax protests destabilize the country?



Diego Mendoza
Wed, July 19, 2023 

Kenya was rattled by massive protests against tax hikes Wednesday, a day after opposition leader Raila Odinga ordered his supporters to take to the streets for three days of demonstrations.

Meanwhile, Kenyan President William Ruto said that the opposition is merely using the tax debate to blanket their real grievance of Odinga losing the 2022 election.

Previous protests contesting Ruto’s election have already led to more than 300 arrests and several deaths, with international actors and religious leaders warning that the country is spiraling into unprecedented civil violence.

We’ve curated insights and reporting on how the demonstrations will impact the country.
Insights

“Enough is enough,” Nation Media Group told both Ruto and Odinga, arguing in an editorial that both men are at fault “if the country goes the way of failed states.” The media company did not validate or dissect claims by any party, rather arguing that the personal ”supremacy contest" between the two men is an “appalling leadership failure.”

Former first lady Mama Ngina Kenyatta has been propped up by supporters of Ruto as a key negotiator that could help settle some of the protesters’ qualms. She “understands that such protests affect traders negatively and subsequently hurts the economy” one anti-protest trader told Kenyans, an online news agency. But security has also reportedly been scaled back from her and former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s home in the wake of the protests, Kenyans reports.

The protests are threatening Kenya’s much-needed tourism industry, with travel agencies reporting massive cancellations across the country. 3.1 million Kenyans are directly employed in the sector, and tourism is the country’s third-biggest source of foreign exchange. —

Kenyans have not seen the fulfillment of promises such as free education in return for higher taxes, argues economist Joy Kiiru, which has angered protesters for years. Meanwhile, corruption is more evident than ever, she claims. “Why in a country that is struggling like Kenya do public officials drive high-end vehicles?” Kiiru told Citizen TV.

The protests are as much about the high cost of living in Kenya as they are about the tax hikes, according to Semafor’s Muchira Gachenge. The current regime won by only a slim margin after campaigning on lowering daily costs. But a year later, the price of basic commodities is at an all-time high, motivating many to hit the streets. Businesses have been severely affected in the capital of Nairobi, with traders shuttering their stores in fear of opportunistic looting and destruction, Gachenge says, adding that further protests will put more pressure on the economy.

Police in Kenya open fire on activists protesting new taxes. At least 12 people are wounded


EVELYNE MUSAMBI
Updated Wed, July 19, 2023 

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Police in Kenya opened fire on protesters in clashes that left at least 12 people wounded Wednesday as the opposition organized demonstrations calling for the government of President William Ruto to lower the cost of living.

The opposition called for three days of countrywide protests aimed at forcing the president to repeal a finance law imposing new taxes. Ruto had vowed that no protests would take place, saying he would take opposition leader Raila Odinga “head-on.”

Four protesters were injured in the Mathare area of the capital, Nairobi, according to a police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to the media. The Associated Press witnessed one man shot in the shoulder and two others shot in the leg in Mathare.

In Nairobi's Kangemi area, health records worker Alvin Sikuku told the AP that two young men had been brought into the Eagle Nursing Home clinic. “Police are using live bullets,” he said. One man was shot in the back and severely wounded, and the other was shot in the leg. “We don't yet know if they were protesting or just walking by,” Sikuku said.


In the city of Nakuru, Nakuru Referral Hospital Medical Superintendent James Waweru confirmed that four people came in with gunshot wounds, two of them shot in the abdomen, one in the chest and another one in the leg. A fifth person had been cut and wounded.

The Interior Ministry said more than 300 people were arrested during Wednesday’s protests and that they will be charged with crimes including looting, destroying property and assaulting police.

The opposition in a statement condemned the arrests of seven elected leaders and two close associates of Odinga, calling it a “desperate attempt” by the Ruto administration to paralyze the opposition.

Businesses and schools in Nairobi were closed as police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse protesters.

Demonstrations were reported in several other parts of the country including the western counties of Kisumu, Migori and Kisii where the opposition enjoys huge support.

Police had said the protests were illegal as no permit had been issued, but the right to peaceful protests is enshrined in the Kenyan constitution.

The opposition has said protests would continue Thursday.

Last week’s protests killed at least 10 people, according to watchdogs, with a police officer confirming at least six to the AP. Many others were injured, including 53 children who went into shock after tear gas was thrown inside their school compound.

Religious leaders have called for dialogue between the government and the opposition to end the protests. Catholic bishops on Wednesday issued a statement reiterating that “no further blood should be shed” and urged the president to repeal the newly passed Finance Act that has agitated many Kenyans.

The law has raised the price of fuel to its highest level as the government implements a doubling of value added tax on petroleum products to 16%. The prices have taken effect despite a court order suspending the implementation of the controversial new taxes.

A Nairobi resident, Wycliffe Onyango, said his entire earnings are spent on food. “Right now there is no work going on. We are suffering. I plead with the government to deal with the cost of living,” he added.

The International Monetary Fund this week called the law's approval a “crucial” step toward reducing Kenya’s debt vulnerabilities.

Western envoys from 13 countries on Tuesday issued a joint statement calling for dialogue and expressed concern over the loss of lives and destruction of property.

The Kenya Medical Association said its members had attended to “hundreds of injured Kenyans and witnessed tens of fatalities” as a result of protests in recent months, and access to health facilities was limited for patients and workers, leading to increased mortality.

Human Rights Watch urged political leaders to stop labelling protesters as “terrorists” and respect the right to peaceful protests. The group also called out the police for using force and live bullets to confront protesters.

___

Associated Press writer Cara Anna and photographer Brian Inganga contributed to this report.

Kenya Azimio demonstrations: 'I feel betrayed by William Ruto'

Basillioh Rukanga - BBC News, Nairobi
Wed, July 19, 2023 

A protester kneels on road while wearing a shirt with the slogan ''Ruto is not my president'' during a countrywide protest

Kenya's police have been battling protesters in the latest opposition protests against the rising cost of living and tax hikes, with at least 24 people having been shot dead in recent months.

During last year's presidential election, James Wainaina, a taxi driver in the capital, Nairobi, voted for William Ruto, who portrayed himself as the candidate of what he called the "hustler nation" - ordinary people struggling to get by.

But now Mr Wainaina feels betrayed and supports the protests.

Since President Ruto came to office, prices have continued to soar, while his government has raised taxes.

Mr Ruto says the extra revenue is needed for escalating debt repayments and to fund projects to create jobs, but the tax rises have made life even harder for the poorest Kenyans.

Mr Wainaina's daughter, a high school student, recently stayed at home for three weeks because he was unable to pay her 14,000-shilling ($100; £75) school fees.

Mr Wainaina says his business has declined because of the cost-of-living crisis.

He gets fewer clients and nearly all his earnings now go into simply keeping his car on the road.

Five years ago, he could make up to 4,000 shillings a day, enough to cover his basic necessities, including school fees, he says.

He laments there are times he now goes home with just 500 shillings after expenses "which is not enough to fuel the car the next day".

"It is very difficult for us," he says. The government, he adds, has not made it easy for small businesses, especially the "hustlers" .

Mr Wainaina says they were lied to.

"It doesn't seem like things will be better, you see [the president] lied to us, we are being oppressed, things are becoming difficult. When the cost of fuel goes up, the price of everything else goes up, even electricity. Things are becoming worse."

Even those who still support the government are expressing "a considerable level of unhappiness with the current state of affairs", according to the latest survey by a local polling firm, Tifa.

Its survey shows that 56% of Kenyans think the country is heading in the wrong direction, up from 48% in March.

The polling firm suggests the discontent may be feeding into support for the protests called by the Azimio opposition coalition, led by Raila Odinga, who was defeated by Mr Ruto last year.

At least 24 people have been killed in recent protests

Government data show that the prices of some key food products have risen considerably in the 12 months to June - with the staples - maize, grain and flour - increasing by up to 30%, rice and potatoes by nearly 20% and sugar costing nearly 60% more.

Despite that, in the finance bill which became law on 1 July, the government doubled the value-added tax on fuel products from 8% to 16%, and introduced a 1.5% housing levy on employees' basic pay, with an equivalent amount paid by the employer.

The levy is supposed to go to a fund to construct homes for the less well-off while creating jobs.

Besides that, taxes on sales (Turnover Tax) were tripled to 3% for small businesses, and income tax for high-earning employees was raised from 30% to a maximum of 35%.

The government defends the new taxes - now temporarily suspended by a court - as necessary because of the country's high debts.

It accuses the previous administration of massively adding to the country's debt burden by spending huge amounts of money on infrastructure projects that did not help the ordinary Kenyan.

Mr Ruto served in the previous government as deputy president, but he distanced himself from it after falling out with then-President Uhuru Kenyatta.

He and government officials have told Kenyans that paying the taxes is a short-term "sacrifice" for the future of the country.

But Mr Wainaina is not convinced. Likewise, Edwin Simiyu, a boda boda (motorcycle taxi) rider in Kiambu town near the capital regrets voting for the current administration.

"[The president] said we should give him one year and then we'd see positive changes. Now when he is in, he changes the tune and says we should wait for years before things become better. We are suffering, we have been totally betrayed, we've been forgotten," he says.

Charles Kaindo is hard at work in the same town selling second-hand clothes on a pavement.

The hawker tells the BBC it is unfortunate the government has broken its promises.

He says there will be a time when people will say "enough is enough" - explaining that hard-working people will turn to crime and others "may even take their lives when the suffering becomes too much".

Charles Kaindo says the government broke its promises

But not everyone thinks that higher taxes are a bad thing.

Jane Njeri, an accountant in the private sector, says she does not envy the government - which needs the money to pay off the huge debts that Kenya owes.

The Kenya shilling has been steadily weakening against the US dollar in recent months, making the cost of debt repayments even higher.

"It's not going to be an overnight thing. We are at a bad place, depreciating shilling, debt and unemployment," she says.

The disquiet in Kenya arises from the "sense of contradiction" between the "hustler narrative" about easing the cost of living that was sold during the campaign and the "reality where we are seeing taxes being increased on everyday goods", according to Ken Gichinga, chief economist at business consulting firm Mentoria Economics.

He says rather than focusing on consumption taxes that raise the cost of living, the government should do more to spur private-sector growth.

He argues against the government housing projects being funded by the new levy, saying it is unlikely to resolve either the housing or unemployment problem.

"Lower interest rates, lower taxation, and loosen regulation. Do those three and the whole economy will be able to create jobs. Let the free market work."

However, economic analyst Odhiambo Ramogi says he is convinced that that the president's intentions are noble - though the methods "are wrong".

He says the government should first cut waste before asking ordinary Kenyans to pay more.

The government accepts this point - David Ndii, its chief economic adviser, has acknowledged on Twitter that the government was "wasteful".

Ndindi Nyoro, chairman of the parliamentary budget committee, told the BBC that the government's tax plan was to ensure that government was not digging a bigger debt hole by borrowing more. He said the focus was on creating a balance to ensure what "will make Kenyans take part in baking the national cake".

But a growing number of Kenyans do not think this is working and are taking to the streets to make their point.

Photographer Brian Inganga contributed to this report.

Kenya Protests

Riot policemen fires teargas during clashes with protesters in the Kibera area of Nairobi, Kenya Wednesday, July 19, 2023. Kenyans were back protesting on the streets of the capital Wednesday

MONARCHISTS, GENERALS DENY MOVE FORWARD

Pita Limjaroenrat: Thai reformist leader who won election will not be PM

Derek Cai & Thanyarat Doksone - in Singapore & Bangkok
Wed, July 19, 2023 

Supporters cheered as Pita Limjaroenrat left the parliamentary chamber after being suspended

Thai reformist Pita Limjaroenrat's bid to be nominated prime minister has ended, prompting outrage from his supporters after he won May's election.

The 42-year-old was first dramatically suspended from parliament by the constitutional court, forcing him to leave the debating chamber.

Lawmakers then agreed to block a second vote on whether he should be PM.

The Move Forward party leader had swept to victory in the general election as voters rejected years of military rule.

But to seal his victory, he needed the approval of parliament - which he failed to secure last week, plunging the country into political limbo.

The constitutional court must now decide whether he should be disqualified from parliament for owning shares in a long-defunct media company.

"I would like to say goodbye until we meet again," Mr Pita said, raising his fist as he left the floor of the assembly to cheers from party allies.

Mr Pita, a Harvard graduate and former tech executive, won on the promise of major reforms, including a pledge to amend lese-majeste, Thailand's strict royal defamation laws, pitting him against the unelected senate and other conservatives who say he poses a threat to the monarch.

Move Forward supporters outside parliament have seen their hopes for change scuppered

Outside parliament, Move Forward supporters wondered what the point of the election had been.

"Why ask people to go to the polls? Why don't you just pick someone from your families to be the prime minister?" asked one man, AFP news agency reported.

"Pita is not wrong at all. He did everything right," a woman said.

Before he was forced to leave parliament, Mr Pita had said he would stop working as an MP until the court made its decision.

"I think Thailand has changed and will never be the same since 14 May," he said, referring to the date of his election victory.

"The people have won halfway, there's another half to go."

Uphill battle


Mr Pita needed the votes of more than half of the 749 members in parliament's two chambers to become prime minister.

Last week, he secured only 324 votes, 51 short of the required 375. He had a clear majority from elected MPs in the lower house, but not from the upper house.

He always faced an uphill battle, as there was little evidence that the 249 upper house senators would support him. They were all installed by the military leaders of a 2006 coup as a brake on any democratic outcome that the military and royalists were uncomfortable with.

Move Forward is popular among young Thai voters who wanted to end nearly a decade of conservative military rule.

Art Chaturongkul, a 39-year-old living in Bangkok, said he and fellow supporters are deeply concerned as they see Mr Pita as representing their voices in the parliament.

"I'm filled with mixed emotions. Utter rage, frustration, and disappointment. It feels like a setback to the democratic process," he had earlier told the BBC.

Move Forward has formed a coalition government with seven other parties, including Pheu Thai, the second most popular party in the May election.

Many young voters switched to voting for Move Forward because Pheu Thai had been unwilling to rule out doing deals with the military.

Pro-establishment campaigners have sought to block Mr Pita from taking the reins of power after the shock election results in May.

Two cases have been filed against him in the conservative-leaning Constitutional Court. Alongside the one for which he was suspended, the other complaint claims Move Forward's proposal to amend lese-majeste laws - which have seen hundreds of critics of the monarchy jailed - amounts to an attempt to an overthrow Thailand's entire political order.

There is a precedent for what is happening now. In the 2019 elections, Future Forward - the predecessor to Move Forward - was dissolved by the Constitutional Court after it was found to have violated electoral rules.

Since 2008, it has also dismissed three PMs aligned with former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who was toppled by a 2006 coup.

Ironically his party, Pheu Thai - which has been on the receiving end of nearly all of the Constitutional Court's rulings - is now poised to benefit from this latest ruling against its coalition partner.

There is no love lost between Pheu Thai and Move Forward, particularly as the former has taken the latter's mantle as a champion of democracy.

But despite winning the election, Mr Pita may have to accept not only giving up the top job, but having no place at all in the new government.

Additional reporting by Jonathan Head

Turmoil in Thailand as rivals derail election winner's PM bid






Updated Wed, July 19, 2023
By Chayut Setboonsarng and Panarat Thepgumpanat

BANGKOK (Reuters) -The leader of Thailand's election-winning Move Forward Party met fresh obstacles in his prime ministerial bid on Wednesday, as a court suspended him as a lawmaker and rivals successfully scuttled his re-nomination in parliament.

U.S.-educated liberal Pita Limjaroenrat has an extremely difficult path to the top job and must overcome fierce resistance from a royalist military at odds with his party's anti-establishment ambitions.

After more than seven hours of debate on a challenge to Pita's candidacy before a planned parliamentary vote on Wednesday, lawmakers voided his nomination, with opponents arguing a motion for him to be endorsed as premier had already been rejected when he was defeated in last week's vote.

As the debate ensued, the Constitutional Court separately announced Pita had been suspended as a lawmaker over an allegation he violated election rules by holding shares in a media firm, taking on its second case against him in six days.

The suspension does not bar Pita from running for premier but it was not immediately clear whether his eight-party alliance would seek to re-nominate him, by filing a different motion.

The 42-year-old had told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday that he was expecting "pre-planned" obstacles, describing efforts by the establishment to stop him as like a "broken record".

Thailand has been run by a caretaker administration since March and 65 days have passed since Move Forward's stunning triumph over military-backed parties in a May election, in what was widely considered a clear public rejection of nine years of government controlled by generals.

"Thailand is not the same since May 14. We have come halfway from the people's victory and there is another half to go," a smiling Pita told the house as he acknowledged the court's suspension order, receiving fist-bumps and applause.

POWER STRUGGLE

Wednesday's drama was the latest twist in a two-decade battle for power between elected parties and Thailand's conservative military establishment, which has seen political bans, court interventions, two coups and huge, at times violent street protests.

A constitution drafted by the military after a 2014 coup and skewed in its favour ensured that Pita was blocked in the first vote by the junta-appointed Senate, which has served as a bulwark against elected politicians and can effectively torpedo attempts to form governments.

Hundreds of Pita's supporters gathered peacefully in Bangkok to protest against the efforts to stop him, some carrying signs denouncing senators.

"I feel angry. They didn't respect the people's will," said protester Wilasini Sakaew, 21. "They didn't listen to the voices of 14 million people."

The progressive Move Forward ran a disruptive election campaign in which they mastered social media to target and win over millions of urban and young voters, promising bold institutional reforms to upend the conservative status quo.

But its agenda has put it on a collision course with powerful, conservative interests, demonstrated by the legal cases against him and a determined effort by rival legislators from the outgoing, army-backed government to keep him at bay.

After the vote to void Pita's nomination, senior officials from Move Forward and alliance partner Pheu Thai said they would arrange a meeting to decide their next move.

The planned prime ministerial vote was expected to be Pita's last, having announced that he would step aside if he fails and let political heavyweight Pheu Thai field its candidate in a third round.

"It is now clear that in the current system, winning public approval is not enough to run the country," Pita posted on Instagram during the debate.

(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat, Panu Wongcha-um and Chayut Setboonsarng; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Thai Court Suspends PM Hopeful Pita’s Status as Lawmaker



Anuchit Nguyen
Tue, July 18, 2023

(Bloomberg) -- A Thai court Wednesday suspended Pita Limjaroenrat’s status as a lawmaker, in the latest roadblock to the pro-democracy leader’s quest to become the country’s next prime minister.

The Constitutional Court suspended Pita as a lawmaker, while accepting to hear a case brought on by the poll panel for a full disqualification. The Election Commission had previously found the Move Forward Party’s leader to be in breach of election rules.

--With assistance from Napat Kongsawad.


US concerned about developments in legal system after Thailand election

 Thailand's parliament votes for a new prime minister

Mon, July 17, 2023
By Simon Lewis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is concerned about developments in Thailand's legal system, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Monday, after two separate complaints against the leader of the party that won the most seats in a May 14 election.

Thailand's parliament is preparing a second vote on Wednesday on whether Pita Limjaroenrat, leader of the progressive Move Forward party, can become prime minister.

An initial vote last week for Pita - who wants to remove the military from politics and dismantle business monopolies, among other changes - was thwarted by a Senate appointed by the royalist military following a 2014 coup.

U.S. officials have said little about the post-election developments in Thailand, a longstanding military ally in a region where Washington is wary of China's growing influence.

Miller, asked at a regular press briefing about the situation in Thailand, said Washington does not have a preferred outcome in the Thai election, but supports a process that reflects the will of the Thai people.

"We are very closely watching the post-election developments - that includes the recent developments in the legal system, which are of concern," Miller said.

Thailand's Constitutional Court has accepted a complaint against Pita and Move Forward over a plan to change a law that prohibits insults against the royal family. The election commission has also recommended the same court disqualify Pita over ownership of shares in a media company in violation of electoral rules.

The cases have raised concerns the court could disqualify Pita from office or dissolve Move Forward, as it did in 2020 with the party's predecessor Future Forward.

Asked to comment on those possibilities, Miller said he would not "speculate about how we might react to events that have not yet occurred" but repeated that recent developments were of concern.

(Reporting by Simon Lewis; editing by Grant McCool)