Tentative tree planting ‘decades overdue’ in sweltering Athens


By AFP
April 22, 2025


An aerial view of the city of Athens on April 18, 2025 

- Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File JUSTIN SULLIVAN

John HADOULIS

On a cloudy spring morning in one of Athens’ most densely inhabited districts, thousands of fresh saplings dotting a small hilltop park mark a fledgling effort to tackle crippling heat that critics say is long overdue.

This is Athens’ first “micro-forest”, part of an initiative by recently elected mayor Haris Doukas to plant 5,000 trees annually in the thickly concreted city, where in summer the thermostat routinely tops 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit).

Planting vegetation is crucial to help cities beat the heat, scientists say, as climate change stokes hotter and more intense heatwaves and the so-called “urban heat island” effect amplifies temperatures among tightly packed buildings.

But the knee-high plants in Alepotrypa park (“foxhole” in Greek) in Athens’ Kypseli neighbourhood will need around a decade to mature.

They are “too little, too late,” said Katerina Christoforaki, an architect and urban planner at the National Technical University of Athens, who has worked on past city redevelopment projects.

Athens’ last major overhaul came when it was preparing to host the 2004 Olympic Games. But most of the attention fell on stadium construction and transport, not greenery.

“We haven’t given the proper attention on reducing vehicle traffic or upgrading building infrastructure,” she said.

Most of the capital and its roads were built with materials that are over 40 years old, with buildings absorbing heat in the summer and offering poor insulation in winter, she said.

Meanwhile, a number of key public urban planning agencies were defunded and sidelined during the near-decade long Greek debt crisis, she said, adding that most of the emphasis today is on boosting tourism infrastructure.

Athens’ deputy mayor for climate, Nikos Chrysogelos, is one of the country’s most experienced ecology activists and a former Greens European Parliament lawmaker.

On a table in his cluttered office, there are maps showing temperatures in each district of the capital and the areas most vulnerable to heatwaves.

Chrysogelos agrees that Athens “lost an opportunity” to strengthen its defences against heat around the time it hosted the 2004 Olympics.

“From 2000 onwards we could have done much more, because we knew the scale of the problem,” he told AFP.



– ‘Boiling kettle’ –



Not only has the greater Athens area of nearly four million developed haphazardly, but the Greek capital has also lost 60 percent of its surrounding forests to fire in recent years, Chrysogelos said.

In addition, high-rise buildings on the Athenian coast have kept the sea breeze from cooling the city, he said.

Central Athens is the second most densely populated area in Europe after Paris, according to Eurostat.

According to OECD data, there are only 0.96 square meters of green space per resident, far short of the World Health Organization’s recommendation of at least nine square meters per capita.

Ivvona Kujda, a housekeeper originally from Poland who has lived in Athens for over 30 years, said recent heatwaves in the city have been “harrowing”.

“The way Athens is situated, there’s mountains on three sides. Which means we are essentially in a boiling kettle,” Kujda said.

In 2021, a heatwave that saw city temperatures reach 45C was described as the worst in three decades.

Two years later, more records were broken as a sustained heat wave saw temperatures consistently top 40C. The National Observatory of Athens said July 2023 was the warmest on record since it began monitoring data in 1863.



– ‘Green corridors’ –



WWF officer Achilleas Plitharas formerly headed the environment group’s Green Spaces programme and worked on resilience plans with the Athens authorities until 2019.

“It’s not that Athens missed the train. We never even built the rails for a train,” Plitharas told AFP.

He said the city now needs a far more drastic solution than pocket parks to boost its climate resilience, including potentially the demolition of entire city blocks and “the creation of extensive green corridors”.

That requires political will and tough choices.

“It also requires a culture of cooperation, which we lack,” Plitharas said.

In office since January 2024, mayor Doukas has said planting 25,000 trees by 2028 should help bring down perceived temperatures by three to five degrees in summer.

New sensors will also provide real-time temperature data neighbourhood by neighbourhood on the hottest days, to better plan an emergency response if needed.

Athens’ wider aim to become carbon neutral by 2030, including making dozens of municipal buildings more energy efficient and encouraging low-emissions transport, will require some 6.5 billion euros (7.39 billion dollars) in EU and national funds, plus private investment.

Meanwhile, people do what they can to stay cool.

Housekeeper Kujda works only in the morning and late afternoon, returning to her air-conditioned home during the hottest hours of the day.

“We do not have enough greenery, not enough oxygen,” the 54-year-old said.

“I think it’s going to get worse every year now because the climate is changing.”

jph/klm/np/giv/tym

AFP is publishing this story to coincide with Covering Climate Now’s 89 Percent Project, which aims to highlight that the majority of people in the world want to see stronger climate action.

UK hosts global energy summit with renewables under attack


By AFP
April 23, 2025


The future of renewable energy is causing international disagreements

 - Copyright AFP SAEED KHAN

Pol-Malo LE BRIS

An international summit on the future of energy security opens in London on Thursday amidst major disagreements over the role of renewables in satisfying the world’s thirst for energy.

The two-day International Energy Agency (IEA) meeting takes place amid global economic turmoil sparked by wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.

It also comes at a time of a trade war between the United States and China and wider economic uncertainty surrounding US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

“The summit will examine the geopolitical, technological and economic factors affecting energy security at the national and international level,” the IEA said.

Several energy ministers from European countries are to attend the gathering, including 120 senior government officials, business leaders, and experts.

The United States will only be represented by acting deputy secretaries of state, while China, Saudi Arabia and Russia are skipping the event altogether.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is to detail Europe’s efforts to promote affordable and sustainable energy, although there are doubts over how much importance the summit will give to renewables.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has welcomed the meeting.

“The overall theme is one that OPEC supports. It is positive to see the IEA refocusing on energy security after veering away from this fundamental goal,” the group said on Wednesday.

“Many net zero policies have endorsed unrealistic timelines or had little regard for energy security, affordability or feasibility,” said OPEC, which has previously described the phasing out of fossil fuels as a “fantasy”.

OPEC, whose membership is dominated by oil-producing Gulf states, believes that energy security must be achieved by adding renewable energy sources to existing fossil fuels, not by replacing them.

European countries believe, however, that nuclear energy and renewables are the best way to avoid dependence on imported oil and gas, the prices of which have been increasingly volatile since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

In the United States, Trump has repeatedly stated that he wants to lower energy prices with a “drill baby drill” approach in oil and gas fields, while limiting the development of wind power projects.

The purpose of the IEA, which was established in 1974 in response to the first oil crisis, remains “to promote the energy transition as a tool for energy sovereignty,” according to the French Energy Ministry’s office.

It says “there is no stated American agenda for this meeting, and no European concern about a deviation from the agenda”.

But according to a source at a major European energy company, the IEA and its executive director Fatih Birol have moderated their rhetoric toward renewables in recent months.

The idea is to “avoid antagonising the Trump administration and to calm things down a little with OPEC”, this source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Vietnam village starts over with climate defences after landslide


By AFP
April 23, 2025


Nguyen Thi Kim sitting on a pillar of a destroyed house at the original site of Lang Nu village in Lao Cai province, after part of it was wiped away in a landslide triggered by Typhoon Yagi - Copyright AFP Nhac NGUYEN

Tran Thi Minh Ha and Lam Nguyen

Nguyen Thi Kim’s small verdant community in northern Vietnam no longer exists, wiped away in a landslide triggered by Typhoon Yagi’s devastating heavy rains last year.

She and dozens of survivors have been relocated to a site that authorities hope will withstand future climate change-linked disasters, with stronger homes, drainage canals and a gentler topography that lessens landslide risks.

It is an example of the challenges communities around the world face in adapting to climate change, including more intense rains and flash floods like those Typhoon Yagi brought last September.

Kim lost 14 relatives and her traditional timber stilt home when Yagi’s rains unleashed a landslide that engulfed much of Lang Nu village in mountainous Lao Cai province.

The storm was the strongest to hit Vietnam in decades, killing at least 320 people in the country and causing an estimated $1.6 billion in economic losses.

It is unlikely to be an outlier though, with research last year showing climate change is causing typhoons in the region to intensify faster and last longer over land.

Climate change, caused largely by burning fossil fuels, impacts typhoons in multiple ways: a warmer atmosphere holds more water, making for heavier rains, and warmer oceans also help fuel tropical storms.

Kim remains traumatised by the landslide.

She says everything is painful, especially the memory of the moment a torrent of mud swept away her and her two-year-old daughter.

“This disaster was too big for us all,” she said recalling the moment the pair were pulled from the mud hours later.

“I still cannot talk about it without crying. I can’t forget,” the 28-year-old told AFP.



– ‘We need to change’ –



Yagi hit Vietnam with winds in excess of 149 kilometres (92 miles) per hour and brought a deluge of rain that caused destructive flooding in parts of Laos, Thailand and Myanmar.

In Lang Nu, 67 residents were killed, and authorities vowed to rebuild the homes of survivors in a safe spot.

By December, 40 new houses were ready at a site around two kilometres away.

It was chosen for its elevation, which should be less impacted by adjacent streams, and its relatively gentle slope gradient.

“Predicting absolute safety in geology is actually very difficult,” said Tran Thanh Hai, rector of Hanoi University of Geology and Mining, who was involved in choosing a new site.

But the site is secure, “to the best of our knowledge and understanding”.

Lao Cai is one of Vietnam’s poorest areas, with little money for expensive warning systems.

However, a simple drainage system runs through the new community, diverting water away from the slope.

This should reduce soil saturation and the chances of another landslide, scientists who worked on the site told AFP.

The village’s new homes are all built of sturdier concrete, rather than traditional wood.

“We want to follow our traditions, but if it’s not safe any longer, we need to change,” Kim said, staring out at the expanse of mud and rock where her old village once stood.

Months later it remains frozen in time, strewn with children’s toys, kitchen pans and motorcycle helmets caught up in the landslide.



– ‘Safest ground for us’ –



Like Kim, 41-year-old Hoang Thi Bay now lives in the new village in a modern stilt house with steel structural beams.

Her roof, once made of palm leaves, is now corrugated iron and her doors are aluminium glass.

She survived the landslide by clinging desperately to the single concrete pillar in her old home as a wall of mud and rocks swept her neighbourhood away.

“I still wake up in the night obsessing over what happened,” she told AFP.

“Our old house was bigger and nicer, with gardens and fields. But I sleep here in the new house and I feel much safer,” she said.

Even at the new site, home to around 70 people, there are risks, warned Hai.

Development that changes the slope’s gradient, or construction of dams or reservoirs in the area could make the region more landslide-prone, he said.

Building more houses or new roads in the immediate area, or losing protective forest cover that holds earth in place, could also make the site unsafe, added Do Minh Duc, a professor at the Institute of Geotechnics and Environment at the Vietnam National University in Hanoi.

Yagi wiped out large areas of mature natural forest in Lao Cai and while private companies have donated trees for planting, it is unclear whether they can provide much protection.

“In terms of landslide prevention, the only forest that can have good (protective) effects is rainforest with a very high density of trees, so-called primary forest,” explained Duc, an expert on disaster risk maps who also helped choose the new site.

Leaving the old community was hard for Kim, whose family had lived and farmed there for nearly half a century.

But she is grateful that she and other survivors have a second chance.

“I believe this is the safest ground for us.”

AFP is publishing this story to coincide with Covering Climate Now’s 89 Percent Project, which aims to highlight that the majority of people in the world want to see stronger climate action.

Coral reefs pushed to brink as bleaching crisis worsens


By AFP
April 23, 2025


Corals turn white under heat stress, which causes them to expel the algae which give them bright colours and nutrients - Copyright POOL/AFP/File Curtis Means

An unprecedented coral bleaching episode has spread to 84 percent of the world’s reefs in an unfolding human-caused crisis that could kill off swathes of the essential ecosystems, scientists warned Wednesday.

Since it began in early 2023, the global coral bleaching event has mushroomed into the biggest and most intense on record, with reefs across the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans affected.

Coral turns ghostly white under heat stress and the world’s oceans have warmed over the last two years to historic highs, driven by humanity’s release of planet-warming greenhouse gases.

Reefs can rebound from the trauma but scientists told AFP the window for recovery was getting shorter as ocean temperatures remained higher for longer.

Conditions in some regions were extreme enough to “lead to multi-species or near complete mortality on a coral reef”, said the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

This latest episode was so severe and lasting that even more resilient coral was succumbing, said Melanie McField from the Healthy Reefs for Healthy People initiative, which specialises in the Caribbean.

“If you continue to have heatwave after heatwave, it’s hard to see how that recovery is going to happen,” the veteran reef scientist told AFP from Florida.

Bleaching occurs when coral expels algae that provides not just their characteristic colour but food and nutrients, leaving them exposed to disease and possibly eventually death.

Live coral cover has halved since the 1950s due to climate change and environmental damage, the International Coral Reef Initiative, a global conservation partnership, said in a statement Wednesday.

Scientists forecast that at 1.5C of warming, some 70 to 90 percent of the world’s coral reefs could disappear — a disastrous prospect for people and the planet.

Coral reefs support not just marine life but hundreds of millions of people living in coastal communities around the world by providing food, protection from storms, and liveloods through fishing and tourism.



– Coral crisis –



Mass coral bleaching was first observed in the early 1980s and is one of the best known and most visible consequences of steadily rising ocean temperatures caused by global warming.

The latest coral bleaching event is the fourth and largest yet, and the second in a decade, exceeding the record area affected during the last episode of 2014-2017.

“From 1 January 2023 to 20 April 2025, bleaching-level heat stress has impacted 83.7 percent of the world’s coral reef area”, NOAA said in its latest update on Monday.

Oceans store 90 percent of the excess heat caused by humanity’s burning of fossil fuels, causing warmer sea temperatures, which are the leading cause of coral bleaching.

“The link between fossil fuel emissions and coral mortality is direct and undeniable,” said Alex Sen Gupta, a climate scientist at the University of New South Wales in Australia.

To accurately accommodate the increased risk of mass coral death due to this event, NOAA was forced to add three new levels to a widely used bleaching alert scale.

“It’s the coral reef equivalent of adding Category 6 and 7 to the tropical cyclone scale,” said Sen Gupta.



– ‘Mass mortalities’ –



McField said in September 2023, an iconic reef off Honduras was suffering bleaching but still boasted 46 percent average living coral coverage.

“By February 2024, all of that died, and it was down to five percent living coral… We never saw that before, these mass mortalities,” McField said.

The planet has already warmed at least 1.36 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times, says the EU’s climate monitor Copernicus.

Scientists predict the 1.5C threshold could be crossed early in the next decade.

At 2C almost all corals would disappear.

If the current climate policies of all governments were implemented in full, the world could warm by up to 3.1C by 2100.

Landmark Nepal survey estimates nearly 400 elusive snow leopards


By AFP
April 22, 2025


A snow leopard, seen here in India's northern Ladakh region in March

 - Copyright AFP/File SAUL LOEB

Anup OJHA

Nepal’s first nationwide survey of the threatened snow leopard estimated nearly 400 of the elusive big cats in the Himalayan nation, wildlife officials said Tuesday.

Habitat loss, climate change and poaching have greatly impacted snow leopard populations across Asia, listed as a “vulnerable” species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

But the survey offers a rare shot of hope, confirming numbers lie at the upper end of the previous estimates.

With thick grey fur dotted with dark spots, and large paws that act as natural snow shoes, the species are difficult to spot and quick to hide, making field research challenging.

“This is a historic step in Nepal’s snow leopard conservation journey,” Haribhadra Acharya, senior ecologist at the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, told AFP.

“This is the first time we are getting authentic data with the great effort of researchers,” he said.

An estimated total of 397 snow leopards were counted, determined through motion-sensor camera and genetic analysis in seven key areas.

It offers the most comprehensive national estimate of snow leopards — also known as the “ghosts of mountains” — previously estimated by the IUCN to be in the range of 301-400.

Snow leopards are the least studied of the big cats globally due to their low population density and remote mountain habitats they inhabit.

“Nepal has only two percent of the size of the snow leopard habitats globally, (yet) we host 10 percent of the total estimated population”, Ghana S Gurung, country representative of WWF Nepal, told AFP.

“More importantly, we are the second smallest country in terms of snow leopard habitat size after Bhutan, (but) we hold the fourth largest population,” he added.



– ‘Increased human activity’ –



The Snow Leopard Trust, a US-based conservation group, says the exact total number is not known but that “there may be as few as 3,920 and probably no more than 6,390” across 12 countries in Asia.

Although conservationists have welcomed the new population estimate, many remain concerned about the threats posed by climate change and infrastructure development.

“New road construction, installation of transmission lines, and increased human activity in search of herbs are disrupting snow leopards’ habitats in the Himalayas,” said Acharya, one of the lead researchers.

Experts say the increasing avalanches in the mountains — where climate change is exacerbating extremes of weather patterns — are another threat.

Nepal has been praised worldwide for its efforts to protect wildlife which have helped several species, including tigers and rhinos, to return from the brink of local extinction.

The country’s conservation efforts have helped to triple its tiger population to 355 since 2010 and to increase one-horned rhinoceros from around 100 in the 1960s to 752 in 2021.

New Trump task force vows to root out ‘anti-Christian bias'

There is no evidence of widespread anti-Christian bias in the United States 


By AFP
April 22, 2025


US President Donald Trump (L) has tasked Attorney General Pam Bondi with ending the "persecution" of Christians - Copyright AFP/File SAUL LOEB

US Attorney General Pam Bondi hosted the opening meeting of an “anti-Christian bias” task force Tuesday, as the government pressed federal workers to inform on work colleagues engaging in discriminatory behavior.

Although the United States has the world’s largest Christian population, President Donald Trump — who counts evangelicals among his most fervent supporters — deemed it necessary to sign an Executive Order creating the task force to counter “persecution” of the faithful.

Despite a criminal conviction for hush money payments in a porn star scandal, two divorces and a string of sexual assault allegations, Trump has long made himself a champion of right-wing Christians.

His cabinet contains several members with links to Christian nationalists, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

In memos seen by AFP, government employees have been told to provide examples of anti-Christian bias they have witnessed at work — providing dates and locations as well as the names of those involved.

An email sent out Tuesday by Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins asked staff to inform the department of any “informal policies, procedures or unofficial understandings hostile to Christian views.”

A similar message sent to State Department staff earlier this month caused alarm among officials that the move could create a culture of fear, according to Politico.

Bondi said her task force would work with faith-based organizations and state-level bureaucracies to identify and “fix” abuses by the federal government.

Christians are the dominant religious majority in America — roughly two-thirds of the country identifies as a member of the faith — and they enjoy more political influence than any other group.

The evidence of anti-Christian bias in the FBI’s crime statistics is threadbare, with attacks on churches dwarfed by the figures for synagogues, where incidents have been soaring.

The Washington-based liberal Interfaith Alliance lobby group has condemned Trump’s focus on anti-Christian bias, arguing that the task force would aid organizations looking to circumvent anti-discrimination laws.

“There is no evidence of widespread anti-Christian bias in the United States and perpetuating this myth is deeply offensive to the actual Christian persecution that happens in other countries around the world,” it said in a statement after Trump created the task force.

Social Media

EU slaps fines on Apple and Meta, risking Trump fury


By AFP
April 23, 2025


The EU fined Apple 500 million euros ($570 million) after the company prevented developers from steering customers outside its App Store to access cheaper deals - Copyright AFP/File Nicolas TUCAT

Raziye Akkoc

The EU on Wednesday slapped Apple and Meta with 700 million euros in fines for breaking digital competition rules, risking the wrath of US President Donald Trump.

The penalties threaten to cause more tension in the already fraught relationship between the bloc and Trump, as the two sides discuss a deal to avoid his sweeping tariffs on the EU.

The European Commission fined Apple 500 million euros ($570 million) after concluding the company prevented developers from steering customers outside its App Store to access cheaper deals.

The EU also fined Meta 200 million euros over its “pay or consent” system after it violated rules on the use of personal data on Facebook and Instagram.

The fines are the first under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which came into effect last year, forcing the world’s biggest tech firms to open up to competition in the EU.

They could rise further if Meta and Apple fail to comply within 60 days, the commission said, threatening the US giants with “periodic penalty payments”.

The EU bolstered its legal arsenal over the past two years with major twin laws, the Digital Services Act and the DMA.

But since Trump’s return to the White House, there have been concerns that the EU would shy away from enforcing them.

Trump frequently lashes out at the EU over its digital laws and taxes — claiming they are “non-tariff barriers” to trade — and many tech CEOs have aligned with his administration.

He has imposed 25-percent tariffs on steel, aluminium and auto imports from the EU, which Brussels hopes he will lift after an agreement.

Antitrust commissioner Teresa Ribera said in a statement the fines “send a strong and clear message”, insisting the bloc had taken “firm but balanced enforcement action”.

– Apple appeal –

The fines — which come after the investigations began in March 2024 — also appear to be more modest than past penalties against US Big Tech.

When Apple committed similar offences on its App Store, the commission slapped a 1.8-billion-euro fine in March 2024 under different EU rules.

Apple faces a litany of accusations. The EU also told Apple in preliminary findings it was in breach of the DMA — and therefore at risk of another hefty fine — for not making it easy for rivals to provide alternatives to its App Store.

Apple, however, slammed the decisions and said in a statement it would appeal the fine.

“Today’s announcements are yet another example of the European Commission unfairly targeting Apple in a series of decisions that are bad for the privacy and security of our users, bad for products, and force us to give away our technology for free,” the company said.

Meta accused the EU of “attempting to handicap successful American businesses while allowing Chinese and European companies to operate under different standards”.

“This isn’t just about a fine; the Commission forcing us to change our business model effectively imposes a multi-billion-dollar tariff on Meta while requiring us to offer an inferior service,” said Meta’s chief global affairs officer Joel Kaplan, a prominent Republican and Trump ally.

In a rare bit of good news for Apple, the EU closed its investigation over its user choice obligations after Apple complied with the DMA, and made it easy to select a default browser and for users to remove pre-installed apps such as Safari.

– Meta’s data use –

The fine against Meta concerned its “pay for privacy” system, which has faced fierce criticism by rights defenders in Europe after its introduction in November 2023.

It means users have to pay to avoid data collection, or agree to share their data with Facebook and Instagram to keep using the platforms for free.

But the commission concluded Meta did not provide Facebook and Instagram users a less personalised but equivalent version of the platforms, and “did not allow users to exercise their right to freely consent to the combination of their personal data”.

Meta in November last year proposed a new version, which the EU is currently assessing.

200 French media groups sue Meta over ‘unlawful’ advertising: lawyers



By AFP
April 23, 2025


Mark Zuckerberg has mounting legal problems in Europe - Copyright AFP SAUL LOEB

Around 200 French media groups, including leading television channels and newspapers, are taking legal action against Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, over its online advertising practices, their lawyers announced on Wednesday.

The social media giant is accused of “targeting advertisements based on the massive and unlawful collection of users’ personal data,” according to a statement from their lawyers, French firm Darrois and US-based Scott+Scott.

The plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against the company on Wednesday before the Paris commercial court, seeking “compensation for the massive economic harm … caused by the unfair business practices of the American giant.”

According to them, Meta “massively collected users’ personal data without informing them or seeking their consent,” in violation of European data protection rules.

“By exploiting this data to offer ultra-targeted advertising, Meta was able to capture the majority of advertising investments to the detriment of the media,” said the lawyers, describing this joint legal action as a “historic first.”

The list of plaintiffs includes public and private TV stations from TF1 to France Televisions, state radio broadcaster Radio France, newspapers Le Figaro and Liberation, as well as local magazine publishers.

Meta did not respond immediately when contacted by AFP.

The lawyers representing the media groups pointed out that Meta and Google dominate the online advertising market.

“Together, they account for 75 percent of the market and 90 percent of its growth,” they stated, adding that advertising makes up 98 percent of Meta’s global turnover.

“Without Meta’s unfair practices, French media outlets would have received a significantly larger share of digital advertising investment,” the lawyers argued.

The European Union slapped Meta with a 200-million-euro ($227 million) fine on Wednesday for violating rules on the use of personal data on Facebook and Instagram.

The fine targeted Meta’s “pay for privacy” system, which means users have to pay to avoid data collection or agree to share their data with Facebook and Instagram to keep using the platforms for free.

US urges curb of Google’s search dominance as AI looms


By AFP
April 22, 2025


Google contends the US is overreaching by asking a federal judge to order it to sell its popular Chrome web browser - Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP Brandon Bell

Glenn CHAPMAN

US government attorneys urged a federal judge Monday to make Google spin off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant’s online search dominance.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) made its pitch at a hearing before District Judge Amit Mehta, who is considering “remedies” after making a landmark decision last year that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in online search.

“Nothing less than the future of the internet is at stake here,” Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater said prior to the start of the hearing in Washington.

“If Google’s conduct is not remedied, it will control much of the internet for the next decade and not just in internet search, but in new technologies like artificial intelligence.”

Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leader in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings.

Google countered in the case that the United States has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending a spinoff of its widely used Chrome, and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system.

The legal case focused on Google’s agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker.

“The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America’s global technology leadership,” Walker wrote in a blog post.

“The DOJ’s wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court’s decision.”

The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020.

Judge Mehta ruled against Google in August 2024.

– Ad tech under fire –

Google’s battle to protect Chrome renewed just days after a different US judge ruled this month that it wielded monopoly power in the online ad technology market, in a legal blow that could rattle the tech giant’s revenue engine.

The federal government and more than a dozen US states filed the antitrust suit against Alphabet-owned Google, accusing it of acting illegally to dominate three sectors of digital advertising — publisher ad servers, advertiser tools, and ad exchanges.

The vast majority of websites use Google ad software products that, combined, leave no way for publishers to escape Google’s advertising technology, the plaintiffs alleged.

District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema agreed with most of that reasoning, ruling that Google built an illegal monopoly over ad software and tools used by publishers, but partially dismissed the argument related to tools used by advertisers.

“Google has willfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising,” Brinkema said in her ruling.

The judge concluded that Google further entrenched its monopoly power with anticompetitive customer policies and by eliminating desirable product features.

Online advertising is the driving engine of Google’s fortune and pays for widely used online services like Maps, Gmail, and search offered free.

Money pouring into Google’s coffers also allows the Silicon Valley company to spend billions of dollars on its artificial intelligence efforts.

Combined, the courtroom defeats have the potential to leave Google split up and its influence curbed.

Google said it is appealing both rulings.

Trial testimony reveals OpenAI interest in Chrome: reports


By AFP
April 22, 2025


Image: © Digital Journal

OpenAI is ready to buy Chrome if Google is forced to sell its popular browser as part of antitrust trial, a top executive testified Tuesday, according to media reports.

OpenAI product manager Nick Turley revealed the startup’s interest in the world’s most popular internet browser while testifying in court in Washington DC.

Turley spoke in front of a judge who will decide what remedies to impose on Google after making a landmark decision last year that the tech giant maintained an illegal monopoly in online search.

US government attorneys have urged Judge Amit Mehta to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant’s online search dominance.

Google countered in the case that the US government has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending it be forced to sell Chrome and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system.

The legal case focused on Google’s agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker.

“The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America’s global technology leadership,” Walker wrote in a blog post.

“The DOJ’s wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court’s decision.”

A Bloomberg analyst has estimated the price of Chrome browser, which has more than three billion users, at $15 billion or more.

Turley said during his testimony that OpenAI had approached Google about integrating its search technology into ChatGPT artificial intelligence power digital assistant but was rebuffed, according to media reports.

Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leaders in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings.

The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020.

Mehta ruled against Google in August 2024 and the tech giant has appealed.

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M

WEF confirms investigation into claims against founder Schwab


By AFP
April 23, 2025


Klaus Schwab was the driving force behind the World Economic Forum becoming an annual gathering of the world's rich and powerful - Copyright AFP/File FABRICE COFFRINI

The World Economic Forum confirmed Wednesday that it has launched an investigation into allegations made against its founder Klaus Schwab that reportedly prompting his resignation this week.

In a statement confirming a report by the Wall Street Journal, the WEF said its board of trustees “unanimously supported the Audit and Risk Committee’s decision to initiate an independent investigation following a whistleblower letter containing allegations against former Chairman Klaus Schwab”.

The WEF, which hosts the annual meeting of wealthy, famous and influential global elites at the luxury Swiss ski resort of Davos, initially provided no explanation when it announced Monday that its longtime chairman had stepped down from the board with immediate effect.

In the first statement, the WEF’s board hailed Schwab’s “outstanding achievements” in his 55 years in charge.

But the WSJ reported that the decision had been prompted by a board decision to investigate allegations of financial and ethical misconduct by the longtime leader and his wife Hilde.

Schwab denies the claims, the paper added.

The letter, said to have been sent by anonymous current and former WEF staff, “included allegations that Klaus Schwab asked junior employees to withdraw thousands of dollars from ATMs on his behalf and used Forum funds to pay for private, in-room massages at hotels,” wrote the WSJ, which said it had seen the letter and spoken with people familiar with the case.

“It also alleged that his wife Hilde, a former Forum employee, scheduled ‘token’ Forum-funded meetings in order to justify luxury holiday travel at the organisation’s expense,” the paper said.

– Emergency meeting –

The letter also reportedly raised concerns about how Schwab treated female employees, and how his decades-long leadership allegedly allowed instances of sexual harassment and discriminatory behaviour to go unchecked.

Schwab could not immediately be reached for comment but according to the paper, he had vehemently denied all the allegations and warned board members he would sue if they pursued an investigation.

Despite this, the board of trustees decided at an emergency meeting on Sunday to open a probe, and Schwab opted to resign immediately.

In its statement Wednesday, WEF stressed that its decision “was made after consultation with external legal counsel and in line with the Forum’s fiduciary responsibilities”.

“While the Forum takes these allegations seriously, it emphasises that they remain unproven, and will await the outcome of the investigation to comment further.”

Schwab had already stepped down as executive chairman last year, with Norway’s former foreign minister Borge Brende taking over daily management.

A few weeks ago, the 87-year-old Schwab said he would step down as non-executive chairman but with the handover lasting until January 2027.

WEF has said that vice chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe will serve as interim chairman as a search committee looks for a permanent replacement for Schwab.

US universities issue letter condemning Trump’s ‘political interference’


By AFP
April 22, 2025


Trump's war against universities has seen him threaten to cut federal funding over policies meant to encourage diversity among students and staff - Copyright AFP CHARLY TRIBALLEAU

More than 100 US universities and colleges, including Ivy League institutions Princeton and Brown, issued a joint letter on Tuesday condemning President Donald Trump’s “political interference” in the education system.

The move comes a day after Harvard University sued the Trump administration, which has threatened to cut funding and impose outside political supervision.

“We speak with one voice against the unprecedented government overreach and political interference now endangering American higher education,” the letter read.

“We are open to constructive reform and do not oppose legitimate government oversight. However, we must oppose undue government intrusion,” it said, adding: “We must reject the coercive use of public research funding.”

Trump has sought to bring several prestigious universities to heel over claims they tolerated campus anti-Semitism, threatening their budgets, tax-exempt status and the enrolment of foreign students.

The letter said the universities and colleges were committed to serving as centres where “faculty, students, and staff are free to exchange ideas and opinions across a full range of viewpoints without fear of retribution, censorship, or deportation.”

Trump’s war against universities has seen him threaten to cut federal funding over policies meant to encourage diversity among students and staff.

The Republican president has also pursued a wide-ranging immigration crackdown that has expanded to foreign students, revoking their visas, often for little or no reason.

The White House has publicly justified its campaign against universities as a reaction to uncontrolled “anti-Semitism” and the desire to reverse diversity programs aimed at addressing historical oppression of minorities.

The administration claims protests against Israel’s war in Gaza that swept across US college campuses last year were rife with anti-Semitism.

– Harvard lawsuit –

Many US universities, including Harvard, cracked down on the protests over the allegations at the time.

Several top institutions, including Columbia University, have also bowed to demands from the Trump administration, which claims that the educational elite is too left-wing.

In the case of Harvard, the White House is seeking unprecedented levels of government control over admissions and hiring practices at the country’s oldest and wealthiest university.

But Harvard rejected the government’s demands, prompting the Trump administration last week to order the freezing of $2.2 billion in federal funding to the institution.

In its lawsuit, Harvard calls for the freezing of funds and conditions imposed on federal grants to be declared unlawful, as well as for the Trump administration to pay the institution’s costs.

The Department of Homeland Security has also threatened Harvard’s ability to enroll international students unless it turns over records on visa holders’ “illegal and violent activities.”

International students made up 27.2 percent of Harvard’s enrollment this academic year, according to its website.

Moving fast and breaking everything: Musk’s rampage through US govt


By AFP
April 23, 2025


Elon Musk holds a chainsaw to symbolize his radical cuts of the US government.

 — © AFP SAUL LOEB

Sebastian Smith

In Silicon Valley, they talk about “moving fast and breaking things.” In Washington, these days, they call it Elon Musk doing his job.

The one thing even Musk, the richest human alive, is not allowed to obtain under the US constitution is the presidency, because he was not born in the United States.

But when Donald Trump charged him with downsizing the entire government, Musk scored a good second best.

The South African-born 53-year-old’s official title is the non-descript “special government employee.” In reality, he is one of the most powerful individuals in the country.

As Trump’s top financial supporter during last year’s election, Musk emerged over the first 100 days of the new administration with extraordinary access.

The bulky figure, usually wearing a T-shirt and Trump-themed baseball cap, appeared alongside the president at cabinet meetings and Oval Office sessions. On golf weekends. On Marine One. On Air Force One.

And he rode that authority to launch the cost-cutting, so-called Department of Government Efficiency.

Unopposed by Trump’s pliant Republican majority in Congress, and barely slowed by lawsuits, the Tesla and SpaceX magnate hit the task with the manic energy of a venture capitalist.

In a shock-and-awe campaign, he ripped through official Washington, canceling programs, raiding secretive computers, and portraying the US government as a seething mess of fraud.

At one point Musk projected a staggering $2 trillion saving from the $7 trillion federal budget. This then became a $1 trillion target.

And the number has quietly continued to dwindle, leaving Musk’s legacy uncertain — in more ways than one.

As his Tesla car company posted a shocking 71 percent drop in first-quarter profits on Tuesday, Musk announced he would be reducing his White House gig.

– Shock and awe –

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk with his son X Æ A-Xii join US President Donald Trump as he signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, February 11, 2025. – Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP JP Yim

But the man who wants to colonize Mars is not prone to self-doubt.

Musk has appeared all-powerful and at times — as his handpicked team of young IT wizards rampage through government computer systems — all-knowing.

One of his first and splashiest moves was to send emails to 2.3 million civil servants, offering buyouts — and making clear their futures now hang by a thread.

The email subject line, “Fork in the Road,” was the same as a similar email Musk sent out to employees at Twitter after he bought the social media company before drastically reducing jobs and rebranding it as X.

Musk also demanded every single employee respond to a weekly email describing five things they’d accomplished. This, he said, was to check staff had a “pulse.”

He jokingly brandished a shiny chainsaw gifted by Argentina’s libertarian president, Javier Milei.

– Ending US foreign aid –

Initial results were dramatic.

Elon Musk shuttered the US foreign aid organization USAID. — © AFP

Within weeks of Trump taking office, Musk’s DOGE crew effectively shut down USAID, the main US foreign aid organization. Staff at headquarters in Washington were told to go home, life-saving programs around the world were frozen, and some government employees were stranded abroad.

Other early targets included any government projects based on DEI, or diversity, equity and inclusion — anathema to the Trump government.

Musk’s DOGE has also tried to shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a watchdog agency meant to guard ordinary Americans against bank malpractice, but seen in Trump world as a meddling leftist entity.

In that, as in the other attacks, DOGE’s modus operandi was the same: Musk’s team of outsiders entered the CFPB’s internal computer systems, taking over the financial controls and social media accounts, then locked out staff.

“CFPB RIP,” Musk posted on X.

– Trouble in Musk’s world –

Signs are emerging after three months that Musk’s political rocket ship, at least, may finally be losing altitude.

A person smashes a Tesla car during anti Elon Musk protest in London. — © AFP

Liberals, who once saw Musk as a cult hero for overseeing the ground-breaking electric cars, now slap on bumper stickers awkwardly declaring they bought their Tesla “before Elon went crazy.”

Others have taken darker routes — vandalizing or setting fire to Teslas.

And the company’s stock price continues to tank.

Then there’s the matter of DOGE’s effectiveness.

Setting aside the often traumatic damage inflicted on longstanding government bodies, there’s increasing doubt over the actual savings.

This month, Musk announced a much smaller $150 billion target — and even that is questionable, because the DOGE website, which tracks savings, is reportedly error-strewn.

Where does Musk go next?

Under the law, a “special” employee can only serve the government for 130 days. So in theory Musk will have to leave this summer anyway.

“He’s going to be going back” to his businesses, Trump said. “He wants to.”

Tesla’s EU sales plunge as Musk takes flak


By AFP
April 24, 2025


Trump has defended Tesla but the company's sales have fallen - Copyright AFP/File Mandel NGAN

Tesla electric car sales in Europe plunged in the first three months of the year, industry data showed Thursday, in a fresh blow to its boss Elon Musk who has been criticised for his work in US President Donald Trump’s administration.

Sales of the sleek machines fell 45 percent to just over 36,000 units in the first quarter of 2025 in the 27-nation bloc, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said in a report.

They dropped by 36 percent just in March, suffering in both periods the biggest fall in sales of any of the major car groups tallied in the association’s report, despite a growth in electric vehicle sales overall.

Tesla showrooms have been hit by vandalism, demonstrations and boycott calls in Europe and the United States in a backlash against public service cuts introduced by Musk in his role as a close adviser to Trump.

On Tuesday the company reported a 71-percent drop in first-quarter profits, signalling a hit to demand due to what it called “changing political sentiment.”

It reported profits of $409 million following a drop in sales, while revenues fell nine percent to $19.3 billion.

Musk promptly announced he would scale back his work for the Trump administration in May to focus on Tesla.

– Auto tariff concerns –

Trump’s combative trade policies have raised concerns in the auto sector after he enacted 25-percent tariffs on cars imported into the United States to try to boost US manufacturing.

“Uncertainty in the automotive and energy markets continues to increase as rapidly evolving trade policy adversely impacts the global supply chain and cost structure of Tesla and our peers,” Tesla said on Tuesday.

“This dynamic, along with changing political sentiment, could have a meaningful impact on demand for our products in the near-term.”

Tesla pointed to tariffs as another headwind for the company and analysts have also cited a stale portfolio of vehicles as among the challenges facing the company.

But Tesla said it was on track to launch new vehicles “including more affordable models” in the first half of 2025.

Analysts warn of significant brand damage to Tesla from Musk’s leadership role in the “Department of Government Efficiency,” which has granted itself access to government databases with sensitive personal information and implemented thousands of job cuts.

– EU electric car drive –

Electric vehicle sales grew in several EU countries including Germany, as well as non-EU member Britain, the ACEA said — but they still only accounted for 15 percent of the auto market.

Under ambitious efforts to combat climate change, the EU introduced a set of emission-reduction targets that should lead to the sale of fossil fuel-burning cars being phased out by 2035.

But ACEA director-general Sigrid de Vries in a news release highlighted a “persistent gap between ambitious decarbonisation goals, and the ‘reality check’ of slower-than-expected consumer uptake” of electric cars.

“It is vital that policymakers prioritise the measures that will incentivise a supportive ecosystem — from charging infrastructure to fiscal incentives — to ensure the uptake of zero-emission vehicles can accelerate meaningfully,” she said.

Hybrid fuel-electric cars held the biggest share of the EU market: 36 percent compared to 29 percent for petrol-only vehicles.

The bloc’s car industry has been plunged into crisis by high manufacturing costs, the slow switch to electric vehicles and increased competition from China.

Some manufacturers complain the switch is harder than expected as consumers have yet to warm to electric vehicles, which have higher upfront costs and lack an established used-vehicle market.

Musk in a conference call on Tuesday reiterated his bullish outlook on the long-term prospects for Tesla, highlighting its leadership in key growth areas: robotics, autonomous driving and artificial intelligence.

Tesla says profits plunge 71%, warns of ‘changing political sentiment’

By AFP
April 22, 2025


WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 11: X Æ A-Xii, the son of White House Senior Advisor, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, plays with a toy car as Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump speak alongside a Tesla Model Y and a Cyber Truck on the South Lawn of the White House on March 11, 2025 - Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File Andrew Harnik

John BIERS

Tesla reported a 71 percent drop in first-quarter profits Tuesday in results that lagged analyst estimates as Elon Musk’s automaker warned of a hit to demand due to “changing political sentiment.”

The electric vehicle producer reported profits of $409 million following a drop in auto sales that analysts said reflected brand damage due to Musk’s work for the Trump administration.

Revenues fell nine percent to $19.3 billion.

The company retreated from its 2025 guidance, citing unpredictability over trade policy and demand.

“Uncertainty in the automotive and energy markets continues to increase as rapidly evolving trade policy adversely impacts the global supply chain and cost structure of Tesla and our peers,” the company said.

“This dynamic, along with changing political sentiment, could have a meaningful impact on demand for our products in the near-term.”

On the positive side, Tesla said it was on track to launch new vehicles “including more affordable models” in the first half of 2025.

The statement followed a report last week that the company planned to delay the launch. Analysts have cited a stale portfolio of vehicles as among the challenges facing the company.

Musk is expected to speak later Tuesday on a conference call with investors and analysts, some of whom have called on the billionaire to announce a plan to exit the Trump administration in order to focus on Tesla.

Musk, the world’s richest person, donated more than $270 million to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign.

Analysts warn of significant brand damage to Tesla from Musk’s leadership role in the “Department of Government Efficiency,” which has granted itself access to government databases with sensitive personal information and implemented thousands of job cuts.

– Robotaxi on track –

The shakeup to US government operations has led to questions about programs like the Social Security retirement benefit and the continuation of programs like hurricane forecasting.

Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said it will be a “Code Red” situation if Musk remains at DOGE, noting that “Tesla’s stock has been crushed since Trump stepped back into the White House,” according to a note released earlier this week.

In January, Tesla confirmed plans to unveil new, more affordable vehicles in the first half of 2025, a move that helped mute criticism that the EV maker’s lineup has gotten stale.

But a Reuters report last week said Tesla was pushing back the launch of a lower-cost Model Y SUV by a “few months” for reasons that were unclear.

Besides confirming the new vehicles as on time, Tesla also reiterated that a robotaxi launch was on track for June, according to its press release.

Ives, who has implored Musk to significantly scale back his work on DOGE, said he must also map out a timeline and “hard facts” around the company’s ambitious autonomous driving and robotics ventures.

Analysts at Morgan Stanley meanwhile said Tesla may also unveil restructuring efforts to cut costs in light of weaker profit margins due in part the heavy investments in new technologies.

Tesla’s stock reaction will also be influenced by whether there is a “sense of increased attention from their CEO,” Morgan Stanley said.

“Investors will be searching for any signs of Tesla’s CEO reprioritizing the efforts of Tesla vs. politically oriented endeavors,” Morgan Stanley said.

Tesla shares were little changed in after-hours trading.