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Trump Blames Minnesota Cyberattack on Governor, Not Iran

Article 1 Comment President Donald Trump blamed Minnesota state officials with whom he has feuded for cyberattacks on multiple water systems there, despite reports that officials suspected Iranian involvement in the disruptions. The New York Times, citing U.S. and state officials, reported that preliminary assessments suggested the attacks were the work of Iranian hackers. Trump, speaking during a cabinet meeting at the Camp David presidential retreat on Friday, dismissed those findings. “We heard in Minnesota there was a cyber attack, and they blame it on Iran. I don’t think so. I think I blame it on Minnesota because they’re grossly incompetent,” Trump said. Related: Cost of a Data Breach Reaches Record $5 Million on Average The president has long been critical of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, a Democrat who was Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate in the 2024 election that Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, won. Tensions between Trump’s administration and Minnesota authorities reached a boiling point earlier this year after the killing of two U.S. citizens by immigration agents during street protests. “There was a cyber attack of 30 water plants, and I would blame it on Minnesota and the governor, the corrupt governor of Minnesota....

Growing adoption signals progress as cost visibility and accountability drive AI value: KPMG Global AI Pulse survey 0

Growing adoption signals progress as cost visibility and accountability drive AI value: KPMG Global AI Pulse survey

More organizations have reached the stage where AI is part of everyday work — rising to 22 percent, up from 13 percent in Q1, the biggest move of any stage on the AI maturity journey. One-third of leaders (33 percent) cite limited understanding of usage costs, as a key deployment challenge for AI agents. Organizations where CEOs are accountable for decisions based on AI outputs, report higher confidence in their AI strategy, (60 percent vs. 22 percent), are more likely to realize meaningful business value (57 percent vs. 21 percent) and report established ROI (14 percent vs. 4 percent). Leaders with strong cost visibility are five times more likely to achieve ROI (15 percent vs. 3 percent). London, UK (July 1, 2026) – Organizations are entering a pragmatic phase of AI, where success is no longer defined by experimentation, but by how effectively leaders turn investment into real business value, according to KPMG’s Q2 2026 Global AI Pulse Survey of more than 2,000+ business leaders across 20 countries at organizations with annual revenues exceeding US $50+ million. While AI remains a top priority, cited by 79 percent of leaders as a key investment area (up from 74 percent last quarter) and...

Power-Generation Risks Mount as Electricity Demand Soars: FM Report 0

Power-Generation Risks Mount as Electricity Demand Soars: FM Report

FM Report: “Understanding Power Generation: Loss Trends and Predictive Analytics” Johnston, RI (July 15, 2026) – Aging equipment, protracted replacement times and a variety of risk-management shortcomings threaten efforts to meet rising global power demand fueled by AI data centers and broad-based electrification, according to a new report by commercial property insurer FM. The report, Understanding Power Generation: Loss Trends and Predictive Analytics, details power-generation systems’ chief vulnerabilities, most prevalent causes of loss and recommended practices for improving resilience. “Power generation is a pillar of national and global security,” said Stuart Keller, chief engineer at FM. “Losses within this sector reverberate beyond individual facilities, affecting macroeconomic performance, energy availability, the resilience of critical infrastructure and local communities. As demand increases and system complexity grows, maintaining operational efficiency and proactively managing risk are essential.” Where the vulnerabilities lie Mechanical and electrical breakdowns are the primary drivers of loss, accounting for more than 70% of all loss events in power generation and over 80% of total financial impact annually, the report says. Gas turbines are the single largest source of property damage across the sector. Gas turbines and transformers are major drivers of business interruption losses in large part due to ongoing supply...

AI accelerates electricity demand, prompting a new wave of grid adaptation and investment: Capgemini Research Institute 0

AI accelerates electricity demand, prompting a new wave of grid adaptation and investment: Capgemini Research Institute

Nearly 80% of utilities expect more extreme and volatile demand patterns Around one in five data center power requests may never materialize, distorting forecasts At the same time, AI is expected by 60% of utilities to play a growing role in improving grid efficiency and unlocking operational gains, but only few have implemented advanced AI-driven approaches Paris, France (July 1, 2026) – The rapid expansion of AI-driven data centers is not only increasing electricity demand, but making it significantly harder to predict, challenging how power systems are planned and delivered. A large majority of electricity executives expect more extreme and less predictable demand spikes, while more than three quarters say they struggle to forecast future needs accurately, according to the Capgemini Research Institute’s latest report, AI Meets The Grid: Shaping The Data Center Power Play. The research, which surveyed over 600 senior electricity executives from organizations with annual revenue exceeding $500 million, highlights how power systems are entering a new phase as AI workloads become increasingly unpredictable. According to the report, forecasting has become significantly harder, but AI is also part of the solution with a majority of executives expecting AI to unlock significant efficiency and operational gains. A new era...

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Florida Woman Sentenced in $6 Million Force-Placed Insurance Scheme

Article 0 Comments A south Florida woman who was once a licensed insurance producer has been sentenced to spend more than three years in prison and forfeit assets after she pleaded guilty to a leading role in a $6 million property insurance and tax fraud scheme. Lisette Patricio, 64, of Davie, Florida, pleaded guilty in federal court in Miami last month, three years after she was indicted for diverting millions of dollars in premium payments on force-placed policies on homes around the state, court documents show. She and co-conspirators Darely Carballeira, Arturo Morales and Yarelis Felipe told a company that three insurers had canceled force-placed policies. They then convinced the company to send more than $10 million for new policies. The conspirators kept $6.6 million of that, according to the indictment and felony information documents. “The co-conspirators prepared false statement of diligent effort forms fraudulently claiming that three named insurance companies in the State of Florida had declined to issue an insurance policy for the properties with lender-placed insurance policies obtained through Company 1,” prosecutors said in court documents. “It was a purpose of the conspiracy for the defendant and her co-conspirators to unlawfully enrich themselves by, among other things:...

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Supply Chain Insurance Is ‘Must-Have’ Cover During Geopolitical Tensions: GlobalData

Article 0 Comments Supply chain insurance is seen by businesses as a must-have protection during periods of geopolitical tensions — in order to safeguard their daily commercial operations, according to GlobalData, the London-based data and analytics company. Supply chain insurance (41.1%) is the product expected to see the highest demand due to current geopolitical tensions, with cyber insurance identified as the second most sought-after product, accounting for 20.6% of responses, found a survey conducted by GlobalData. “Organizations are deeply concerned about business continuity amid the cascading risks linked to a highly volatile geopolitical landscape,” commented Beatriz Benito, Iead insurance analyst, GlobalData, in a statement. Read more: Japan Earthquake Halts Auto and Chip Plants, Testing Supply Chain Resilience “In contrast, demand for specialist transport and direct asset protection is lower. This highlights that organizations are deeply concerned about trade route blockages, state-sponsored cyberattacks, and collateral revenue losses that can have a cascading effect on operations, threatening day-to-day business continuity,” Benito added. Ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Eastern Europe are creating specific trade bottlenecks such as those in the Suez Canal and Strait of Hormuz, leading to widespread shipping reroutes, while alternative maritime corridors are emerging, said GlobalData. Meanwhile, the...

Gartner Predicts Neocloud Providers Will Capture 20% of the $267 Billion AI Cloud Market by 2030 0

Gartner Predicts Neocloud Providers Will Capture 20% of the $267 Billion AI Cloud Market by 2030

Neocloud providers emerging as a significant competitive force in the AI cloud market Stamford, CT (June 30, 2026) – By 2030, neocloud providers will capture 20% of the $267 billion AI cloud market, according to Gartner, Inc., a business and technology insights company. “Neocloud” refers to cloud providers built specifically for AI and high-performance workloads. The rapid growth of GenAI is creating unprecedented demand for GPU-intensive computing, accelerating investment in localized, high-performance infrastructure and exposing the limitations in traditional cloud models. Neoclouds are challenging the dominance of hyperscalers by focusing on AI-optimized infrastructure. “While U.S. hyperscalers are launching their own sovereign offerings, a new wave of specialized neocloud providers is gaining significant traction,” said Enrique Castera, Sr Director Analyst at Gartner. “These neoclouds are differentiated by their focus on AI-optimized infrastructure and high-performance workloads. Some also focus on sovereign cloud capabilities, ensuring data and operations remain within specific jurisdictions. Sovereign neoclouds provide contractual guarantees that some or all aspects of the cloud environment, such as data, operations, and governance, remain confined to national boundaries, protecting them from foreign legal claims and extraterritorial access.” Increasingly stringent data sovereignty requirements are compelling organizations to seek greater control over where AI data is...

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Analog Devices Assessing Latest Cyber Breach Claim From Hackers

Article 0 Comments Analog Devices Inc. is assessing a new claim by a group of hackers who say they’ve stolen hundreds files containing information on customers of the computer chips maker. A hacking group known as ExfilSquad has claimed to have breached Analog Devices and is threatening to release sensitive customer data unless its demands are met, according to the cybersecurity firm DeXpose. Analog Devices said in a filing July 29 that it was made aware of reports and is assessing “validity, scope, and any potential impact.” Analog Devices said in the same filing that it had separately uncovered unauthorized access to its systems last month and determined that some files were “exfiltrated.” Operations weren’t interrupted by the breach, which was identified on June 23, the Wilmington, Massachusetts-based firm said. The investigation is ongoing, and the company has notified law enforcement. The files haven’t been publicly released or used for fraudulent purposes, and the company is monitoring for any indication of misuse, according to a company spokesperson. Retailers, manufacturers, hospitals and schools are among the institutions that have suffered from ransomware attacks in recent years. Ransomware refers to a type of malicious software code that hackers use to encrypt victims’...

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Relation Acquires Wisconsin’s Mid-State Insurance

Article 0 Comments Relation Insurance Services announced their acquisition of the assets of Mid-State Insurance. The transaction went into effect on March 31, 2026; terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Founded in 1986 as an independent life and health agency in Milwaukee’s North Shore, Mid-State Insurance expanded its services to become a full-service, multi-line agency by 1989. Today, they are based in Mequon, Wisconsin, and offer a comprehensive suite of solutions including business and commercial insurance, employee benefits, and home, auto, life and health insurance, servicing clients throughout the Midwest and wherever their coverage needs exist nationally and internationally. Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Was this article valuable? Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article. Submit No Thanks Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it. Submit No Thanks Here are more articles you may enjoy. Interested in Mergers? Get automatic alerts for this topic.

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Meta, BlackRock Plan to Invest in $14 Billion Data Center

Article 0 Comments Meta Platforms Inc. and BlackRock Inc. plan to build a 1-gigawatt data center complex in Texas that will cost about $14 billion to develop, adding to a wave of investment in the computing hubs that power artificial intelligence. The facility will go online in 2028 with Meta as the initial sole tenant, the company said Tuesday. BlackRock funds will hold an 80% interest in the joint venture, while Meta will retain the remaining 20%. The $14 billion development costs don’t include the cutting-edge chips required to power AI models. A 1GW data center typically costs $35 billion to $50 billion. Tech firms including Alphabet Inc., Amazon.com Inc., Meta and Microsoft Corp., have been aggressively building out data centers in pursuit of dominance in the still-nascent market for AI tools. The unprecedented scale of development is being financed through a mix of capital expenditure, private infrastructure funds, debt and sovereign wealth. Read More: Big Tech Debt Flood Is Taking Over Risk In Market: Credit Weekly Meta will initially contribute land and other assets valued at about $2.3 billion and receive a one-time payment of $1 billion. BlackRock will contribute about $4.9 billion in cash, with some of its...