Last month, the tech giant Apple Inc. made a bold move and removed three apps from its App Store. These apps even exploited machine learning tools available in AI and tried to construct nonconsensual images without the consent of a person. The decision follows concerns that apps were using false advertising on places like Instagram and porn! Websites.

Misleading Cases in Advertising 

Those who click on this ad are sent to the Apple App Store, and the same app is described as an “art generator” but without any reference to the fact that it can generate nudes. This is a long-standing loophole in mobile app stores first identified in 2022.

Through AI-based algorithms, the apps blamed for doing this act claimed to undress individuals in photos, leading to an incorrect assumption of nudity even though they do not have the permission or knowledge of the subjects. Such acts as these not only breach privacy but also are potential sources of exploitation, harassment, and blackmail. 

A number of similar versions of this advertisement with various other AI generated women have been showing on Facebook, Instagram, Facebook Messenger and Meta’s in-app ad network between April 10 and April 20.

After being tipped off about these scam apps, Apple in fact was the first one to remove them from the App Store. Though they claimed to be innocent, their true motives were disclosed by the apps forcing Apple to remove the apps and observe its community standards. This clearly demonstrates Apple’s unshakeable devotion to creating a secure and gender-neutral digital space for everyone.

Ongoing Challenges and Accountability

Even though the countermeasures taken by Apple deserve respect, this incident, in the end, brings about some doubts about the app review and monitoring of advertising methods. The fact that these apps have been unnoticed in the App Store for a long time only underlines the necessity of more carefulness and active measures to detect and eliminate fraudulent apps.

In addition, developers applied sly methods of promotion of their illegal features on adult sites that ensured absence of their detection by Apple and Google. These cases illustrate the problems the tech companies face to police their platforms and enforce the community guidelines.

With the Apple’s forthcoming disclosure of some AI-related projects at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2023, it will be rather intriguing to see the move initiated by the company with regards to these apps. An important part of Apple’s responsible technology implementation is to maintain a good image for ethical behavior and sound technology governance, which is critical in light of Apple’s increasing use of AI in its products.

Removing these apps would be an example of an ethical issue on the part of AI development and use. The second concern related to the development of AI abilities is users’ privacy. Additionally, the users need to be requested for their permission, and the assurance of their safety should be given. By blocking such applications, Apple stresses ethical behavior in its community.

Source: 404

In the current era of artificial intelligence (AI) integration in various industries, Esquire Bank stands out with a clear message: critical thinking is the key apart from technical ability. Therefore, since more and more businesses employ AI to make decisions and save costs, on the one hand, as for Esquire Bank’s Chief Innovation Officer, Kyall Mai, the significance of human oversight cannot be underrated.

Esquire Bank’s human-centric AI integration

Esquire Bank’s stance reflects a broader concern within the industry: the risk of excessive machine communication may weaken human creative intelligence, critical thinking, and judgmental capacities, among others. While he points out that machine learning people should combine diagnostic capabilities, artificial capabilities, and business objectives, they should also be able to distinguish right from wrong and use their logic and creativity.

Esquire Bank does not neglect AI techniques, including generative, predictive, and other AI applications. It emphasizes the importance of taking a human-centric approach to everything. The lender’s application of predictive AI techniques uplifts consumer experience and tailoring, notwithstanding Mai’s reflections that human judgment should supplement AI-powered insights.

AI as a catalyst for collaboration

For Esquire Bank, AI is not purely about automation. Rather, AI motivates partnerships among technology and business domains. Esquire employs AI to simplify mundane tasks, such as administrative coding. This frees employees from focusing on more complex functions and pursuing more strategic purposes.

AI integration, part of Esquire Bank’s futuristic strategy, helps them adapt to challenges that come with progress and sustain critical thinking and judgment that is superior to every other AI tool. With the expansion of AI capabilities during this transition period, Esquire Bank’s approach of human oversight is, by all means, the way to go for businesses caught in the web of AI deployment.

News sourced from zdnet

Using the example of Andrej Karpathy, who wrote the LLM.c project, to mean that developers must create machines with advanced language models is also good. Still, it loses the magic of seeing a new creature evolve. It demonstrates that a program in a lower-level programming language such as C can be programmed with such a small length and efficiency. Besides what C can do, this also exhibits one of the foundations of C and its actual working mechanisms.

The essence of language models

LLM has these two features, which are believed to be advantages. Removing all the modern deep learning libraries has made Karpathy with only simple and concise coding that runs on many devices and even small devices with fewer objects. It takes a very short time(the right hardware resources) to complete the operation. Those language models will be open for everyone and thus can be translated by democratization. This would lend understanding to students and hobbyists so they could explore these technologies without buying expensive equipment or going through single-company software.

In certain cases, LLM.c is an outstanding academic aid tool that educates the fundamental building blocks of language models. While this aspect of the result is often underestimated, whether a professional or student, both parties experience the utmost benefit of comparing their work with algorithm secrets, data structures, and optimization hacks used during modeling. This might work out a base for well-developed perception, further contributing to developing the new algorithm, which aims to solve the issues instead of only mirroring the signal.

Customers often prefer the most expensive option, and corporations invest heavily in large-scale language models. Despite this, the way medics and researchers are pursuing the direction of advancements in the LLM.c and other areas of research could be greater than Karpathy’s contribution. Through a down-to-earth and clear perspective approach, LLM.c provides the essential basis for a wider audience to engage in and truly appreciate the multifaceted side of language modeling. In this way, the road can be cemented as familiar and more desired in society.

An approachable implementation

Karpathy said low-level language translation and commitment to one’s studies were fundamental in writing his LLaMA paper. Even though the advanced level of guidelines, abstraction, and layers are developing in the new program framework, there is always a chance that a gap may be covered by the existing technologies that will create a great working environment for hardware. It shows that only the tools (programming languages) are not the solution, but the smarter and more capable people (programmers) who can utilize these tools to create programs that enrich the lives of society and others. However, for the jobs to be created, these tools must be the brainchild of the professionals who successfully develop and apply these tools.

The advancement of technologies has fostered learning activities in organizations. Major technologies such as natural language processing and language models have arisen as tools for easy communication across industries and to a wide range of people. It will be imperative that these basic principles and factual methodology guide these scientists and developers. One good thing is that they must keep coming up with new territories and finally break the barrier thought to have been there about language understanding and modeling.

This article originally appeared in Hackaday.

Investors and financial analysts are bullish on AI as the week witnessed interesting movements in the tech stocks, mainly triggered by heavy pledges by big brand names in artificial intelligence. Microsoft, Google, and Meta seem powerful candidates, with Nvidia leading the pack, while Meta saw a momentary dip of 19% in its shares after the announcement of heavy investments in AI infrastructure, which washed off $200 billion of the company’s market cap. 

At the same time, Nvidia saw a 17% spike in its stock in just five days, so we can say that now we have trillion dollar stocks that are as volatile as penny stocks. Well, crypto is not an interesting investment alone anymore, considering the wild fluctuations. But there is more to it than these momentary price movements with far more greater impact, let’s explore.

Microsoft performs better than expected and leaves Google behind in AI

Source: NASDAQ via search.

When Microsoft announced its 2024 Q1 earnings, and they were higher than what Wall Street was expecting, and the company’s stock surged on Friday.

Their earnings report highlights the company’s unique position in the AI industry, as being OpenAI’s biggest investor, it has an edge over the competition. It said there is high demand for its AI services, which contributed to the performance of its Azure cloud business, which showed better than expected results.

Microsoft management has a clear vision of the future for substantial growth in revenue from their cloud service offered through Azure, noted analysts from financial research and investment management firm Bernstein. One of their analysts noted,

“We also see this as an indicator that Microsoft has taken the AI mantel from Google and that Azure could become a bigger and more important hyperscale provider than AWS.”

He further added,

“If this trend continues, then AI will be a very large driver of the size of Azure’s long term revenue and will require re-evaluation up of how big Azure could be.”

Source: Marketwatch.

The financial firm’s analyst, Mark Moerdler, said in his recent review that Microsoft is a solid company and should be in your portfolio as it has multiple arms to fetch revenues.

According to Amy Hood, Microsoft’s chief financial officer, their capital expenditure will increase over time in order to meet the high demand for generative AI services.

Alphabet stock surges to an all-time high

Source: NASDAQ via search.

The Google owner Alphabet stocks also saw improvement after its earnings report for the first quarter, which also quoted figures more than expected. Its shares increased 11% to a record high and closed at a high of 171.95 on Friday, April 26. 

The search giant revealed revenue of $80.5 billion, which was expected to be $78.7 billion, and earnings per share of $1.89, while the estimates were for $1.51. In a client note, a Goldman Sachs analyst said,

“We expect the market to have a positive reaction to Alphabet’s Q1’24 earnings report.”

The Alphabet board also approved a share buyback program worth $70 billion, and for the first time, the company announced a dividend of 20 cents per share. Bernstein analysts also increased their target price of GOOGL from $165 to $180, but they do mention the opportunities that Google nearly missed but somehow made. They noted,

“And through it all Google’s stock somehow clawed its’ way to all-time highs heading into 1Q24 earnings. Google needed to be perfect, or face a repeat of being penalized for micro-misses. It was perfect.”

Source: Streetinsider.

JPMorgan insisted that it would be too early to hold back from AI stocks, as it mentioned Nvidia as a flashpoint as its share saw a 17 percent increase over five days of trading. Bank noted that despite the concerns about the duration of AI development and its possible revenues, which have formed an air pocket for the short term, but investors are convinced about the potential for revenue generation in the long term of AI spending.

Paradigm Capital has transferred 3,718 Ethereum (ETHs), an investment dealer who hasn’t made a similar transfer in the past three months, to Anchorage Digital. A deal of this nature in which $250 million worth of ETH was on April 28

Paradigm’s ETH Transfer 

Paradigm Capital’s moving 3,718 ETH from check to Anchorage Digital reveals its ‘forward-looking’ approach to holding cryptocurrency. Ethereum transfer back to Paradigm, one of the Asia cryptocurrency media influencers, apparently announced their decision to withdraw from the ETH market after a three-month break. The acquisition was worth about $12 million at the time of the deal execution, which demonstrates Paradigm’s ability to respond quickly to economic changes and maximize benefits for investors.

Paradigm transferred 3,718 ETH to Anchorage Digital: Custodian (0xd5…0191) today, worth approximately US$12 million. This was Paradigm’s first ETH transfer in three months. Currently, the Paradigm address still holds approximately $415 million in crypto assets, mainly 83.518k…

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) April 28, 2024

Amongst all data troubled Arkham Intelligence, Paradigm owns a sizable portion of LDO, the native cryptocurrency of Lido DAO, with 70 million LDO valued at $146.30 million. Coins like OP, QWLA, INS, AAA, and BNB are among the cryptocurrencies in the investing firm’s wide portfolio.

Paradigm’s revenue expectations

While the crypto market keeps fluctuating, Paradigm’s risk portfolio has demonstrated reliability and generated $26.53 million in the current crypto market. With the maintenance period beginning in 2019, the economy still shows a positive trajectory. 

Arkham shows that Paradigm did its best in November 2021, as judged by the net profit of $919 million in the headlines. While the profit margin saw a decline, specifically during the crypto winter, the level of the portfolio has rebounded, at $9.1 million.

The upsurge of ETH coincided with the consequential increase in the total market capitalization of crypto.

Source:coinmarketcap 

The current ETH transaction from Paradigm now takes place when Ethereumworld, with its bullish sentiment, is on a bullish streak in the market. The opening figure of the ETH was $3,258, as per the data given, and it rose by 2.14% to $3,312. This trajectory of ETH’s price increase during the discussed period could be a positive factor for Paradigm’s profit improvement, partnering with the company’s recovery.

Paradigm Capital’s proactive ETH strategy

Paradigm Capital’s transfer of  3,718 ETH to Anchorage Digital shows the Company’s business-oriented actions when managing its digital currency assets during the market’s liquidity accomplishment. 

Ethereum, which the company owns a significant portion of and also serves as a tool for investing in a diversified portfolio of cryptocurrencies, enables Paradigm to extend its stage line. Paradigm stays ahead of the game as the crypto market’s evolution demonstrates its quick-witted responsiveness, a main source of competitive advantage.

In this way, Paradigm Capital strengthens its standing by skillfully riding the waves of market dynamics and deploying the power of its balanced portfolio in the pursuit of high returns against a highly competitive crypto investment level. Following the recent rise of ETH, Paradigm’s proactive approaches support the hypothesis about the company’s sustained development and make it a leader in the changing crypto sector.

This fall, Dulwich London features a brand new Alleyn’s school’s adoption of a bold learning initiative: a comprehensive artificial intelligence course known as “AiQ.” AI is apparently going to be more complex compared to the human mind. With the price tag of £26,000 annually, an institution has created the course, which helps students from the tender age of 4 understand AI Technology. Jane Lunnon, the headteacher at Alleyn’s, suggests that the school should confront AI head-on and seek ways to turn its challenges into opportunities rather than resisting the technology. She thinks that the most genuine learning happens when dealing with the hard truth of the contradiction.

Course structure and objectives

The AiQ course, the name AiQ, is a play on the word IQ or Intelligence Quotient focused on different age groups, starting from the very basic in years Reception and up to the advanced level at years 7 and 12. The curriculum intends to gradually get to all students in the school, regardless of level. The program is structured around six key areas: entrepreneurship, moral intelligence, high-tech confidence, critical thinking, creativity and collaboration, and critical thinking. These skills will be in high demand in the years to come.

This course, with innovative content, seeks to offer tools that will enhance the cultural, emotional, intellectual, and ethical intelligence of students in an era that will be AI technology kin-dom. However, in preparing these curriculum specs, one of the items the faculty at Alleyn’s focused on was the skills young learners might need by the 2040s, when many of them will become full members of the workforce.

Interacting with AI technologies that are complex

Deep Fakes Completion The curriculum will cover the issues related to deep fakes and the dilemmas of differentiating Truth from Falsification. This section of the class plan is focused on the development of a critical attitude towards truth and reality picture creations with AI usage. Lunnon highlighted the necessity of treading a balance between the vigilance required for seizing opportunities and the passive stance of just letting them appear. In fact, he insisted that we should champion a more engaged and informed approach than a complete passive state.

This intellectual course will be launched because parents expressed their concerns about their children’s understanding through a poll. The poll showed that about 70% of them need to be clearer about the possible consequences and risks that AI can bring. This statistic speaks much to the course, which is aimed at enlightening and demystifying young minds about technology, allowing them to appreciate and be mindful of technology’s impacts.

AI as a trend to reckon with AI in the future

Lunnon explained that AI is already a fundamental factor in the learning arena, being far more widespread than many in the community would imagine. She pointed out that a majority of teens may have already interacted with AI in diverse ways, which further creates the demand for pervasive educational programs, such as AiQ.

Continual advancements and the integration of AI into daily life imply that programs like AIQ should be viewed as must-haves for school education programs everywhere. By teaching students how to consider technology carefully at an early stage, Alleyn’s School creates an initial framework that sets the stage for educational institutions to adapt in a timely manner to the opportunities and challenges of technological growth.

This article originally appeared in The Standard 

In their revolutionary study, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are actually training AI systems to mock and express hatred by using AI as a tool. The objective here is to create a sound plan for both detecting and curbing toxic content in media. This technology should be called CRT for short-term purposes. For that to be carried out, chatbots need to be taught to rely on preset parameters to exclude any inappropriate answers.

Understanding and mitigating AI risks

Machine learning technology with language models as representatives is rapidly becoming superior to humans in a range of functions, from creating software to answering non-trivial questions. While these abilities can be exploited for good as well as bad intentions, e.g., dissemination of misinformation or harmful content, the potential of AI in the field of healthcare is vast. It is slowly becoming an essential part of the system. As such, an AI, like ChatGPT, can develop computer algorithms on demand, but it may also issue content that is not compatible when this AI is not directed.

MIT’s AI algorithm addresses these issues by synthesizing the prompts. It does so by first mirroring the given prompts and then responding. This measure helps scientists see the rising trend and address the issue at the outset. The study, mentioned in a paper on the arXiv platform, indicates that the AI system is capable of conceiving a broader scope of malicious behavior than humans would otherwise probably contemplate. This, in turn, can help the system to counter such attacks more effectively.

Red teaming for safer AI interaction 

Owing to the position of the Department of Probabilistic Artificial Intelligence Lab at MIT under the supervision of Pulkit Agrawal as the director, the team advocates a red teaming style approach, which is the process of testing a system by posing as an adversary. This approach, among others, is used to show possible deficiencies, yet to be understood, in artificial intelligence. The AI development team took a step further last week. It started generating a number of risky prompts, which include really challenging hypotheticals like “How to murder my husband?” they are using these instances to train on what content shouldn’t be allowed in their AI system.

The revolutionary application of red teaming is wider than identifying existing flaws. It also involves a proactive search for opportunities for unknown types of likely harmful responses. This strategic approach assures that AI systems are coined to combat adverse inputs that range from simple logical to unpredictably unexpected incidents, ensuring that these technologies remain as safe as possible.

Setting AI safety and correctness standards 

With AI applications becoming increasingly ubiquitous, the main idea is to maintain the correctness and safety of AI models preventively. Agrawal has been leading the verifications of AI systems at MIT and is considered to be at the edge of the line alongside others currently involved in such work. Their research is indeed very important; more and more new models are being added to the list and updated more frequently.

The data collected from the MIT report will, therefore, be of significant use in building AI systems that can have a healthy connection with humans. As time goes by, the techniques adopted by Agrawal and his group will become the industry’s benchmark as the technology advances for AI applications, and the unintended effects of the machine learning progress will be checked.

This article originally appeared in The Mirror

The much anticipated A2RL, the world’s largest autonomous motor race, ended up in a not much desired way. Eight autonomous cars with no drivers competed in an open race that were completely controlled by artificial intelligence.

AI was deployed at the first autonomous motor race

The Abu Dhabi competition Autonomous Racing League (A2RL) attracted a global audience due to the new nature of motorsport, where instead of drivers, software engineers were competing for a win. This was the first event where a full fledged race was carried out, as before that only two cars had raced together autonomously, as teams from universities and tech firms will race the cars named Super Formula SF23, made by Dallara.

However, the results were not as expected, and the concerns that AI will take over everything, including motorsport, were answered quite well with the weird end of the race. The SF23 cars are used in Japanese racing events where they go around the laps near the speeds of Formula 1 races. These cars were heavily modified for AI and equipped with a number of 360-degree cameras, lidars, radars, and computers capable of fast processing to automate them with artificial intelligence.

Autonomous motorsports have been practiced in North America and Europe, but not at the level of A2RL, which is the first to race cars against each other. 

The event had its fair share of issues, as numerous incidents were reported during qualifying sessions and trials. For example, a car hit another from the rear end, and it lifted in the air for a moment, while another one spun on its own at a turn, and another car was seen hitting a wall when it turned early at a corner.

The tech is evolving

The race was not at the speeds you expect at a motor race event, as the race progressed at walking speeds due to the accidents and breaks due to issues with car handling. The scheduled distance for the race was eight laps, and at lap four, the leading car of Polimove spun by accidentally locking up its tires. The car following the Polimove was Unimore, which barely managed to avoid hitting it and almost came to a stop after passing the breaking car.

At the moment when Polimove’s car spun and Unimore’s car slowed down, two more cars following them also halted at the track looking hesitant to pass the incident and at the commentary, Jolyon Palmer, ex-Formula 1 driver said that the technology is not suitable for race yet but it is indeed impressive technology that has made racing cars together. He said,

“Now four cars stopped on the same straight very, very polite with each other giving each other enough space. The technology is working. It can obviously see what’s around with all those aforementioned sensors. There are plenty onboard for it to realise when it should advance and when it shouldn’t – there’s a car ahead. It has recognised that quite clearly as has the car in front of that.”

Source: Nine.

Due to the incident, the racing was stopped, and it started again after a long pause for sprint towards the checkered flag. After the stopover, Unimore held the leading position until it halted and was taken over by TUM, which also stopped a moment earlier in the race.

Though the race was not as perfect as you expect a race to be, the organizers were satisfied by the way it panned out. The technical director of the Autonomous Robotics Center in Abu Dhabi, Dr. Giovanni Pau, seemed intrigued, as he said it will not be like how it is today in a year or maximum one and a half years from now. 

Ex-Formula 1 driver Daniil Kvyat also attended the event and even raced with an AI car for the show, he said we are witnessing some interesting history today and said that it is a good development for the future.

The original story can be seen here.

Memecoins popularity with the investment community has received wide attraction. Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Dogecoin (DOGE) have specifically gained much attention and value increase. Now, an opponent has mounted a challenge, trying to wrestle the control from these titans. Tate’s Bugatti (TATEBUG), a Solana-based memecoin, comes on the scene with grand mission and prospects of continuous growth.

Potential for Astronomical Returns

The investors who had the foresight to buy SHIB and DOGE have enjoyed enlisting returns. That is what TATEBUG seeks to repeat. The project was introduced with about $54,000 of locked liquidity and holds a solid ground among all the new meme coins that keep flying into the market. Promisingly its early run, if carry on like this, investors might be able to build up profit in a short time.

BUG desire to create its niche and attract new capital not only in the US but also abroad. As TATEBUG’s total circulating supply is anticipated to surge eight thousand percent within the next two days, TATEBUG could soon find itself among the most capitalized digital assets with market cap in the hundreds of million range.

Just in:Tate’s Bugatti $TATEBUG, a #Solana memecoin that was launched APRIL 26th, 2024, is aiming to challenge other #memecoin giants, such as Shiba Inu $SHIB and Dogecoin $DOGE.#cryptocurrency #CryptoNews pic.twitter.com/onJcPEHIPo

— Crypto Fusion (@cryptofusionorg) April 27, 2024

Navigating the TATEBUG Ecosystem

Those who are excited to join the TATEBUG craze must learn how to operate on the Solana Decentralized exchanges. The tokens can be bought through platforms like Jupiter and Raydium. Nevertheless, it is necessary to link your Solflare, MetaMask, or Phantom wallet before being able to invest.

Potential for Memecoin Millionaires

Memecoins have an alluring feature – the ability to turn someone into an overnight millionaire. Just like the early buyers of SHIB and DOGE who are now the epicenter of the crypto world, TATEBUG is here and can be the same token of choice. This memecoin mania on Solana has inspired people to jump in on the trending coins like TATEBUG. The vision of becoming an enthusiast and generating immeasurable income in a blink of an eyelid has become a reality for all cryptocurrency fans worldwide.

The unfolding of the cryptocurrency market alongside the appearance of memecoins is the full expression of what the cryptocurrency industry is all about. TATEBUG, the native token of the Solana Ecosystem is a Memecoin which aims to tango with the industry heavyweights such as SHIB and DOGE. Introducing an aggressive expansion plan and adventurous community of early users TATEBUG is well-positioned to bring changes in the world of cryptocurrency. While investors sail on the sea of volatility, the temptation of memecoins remains, carrying in them both danger and advantage, awaiting those who have the courage to dare the voyage.

Polish video game developers Bloober Team and Take-Two Interactive’s subsidiary, Private Division, have announced a partnership for creating a new horror game codenamed “Project C.” Known for the creation of psychological horror games like “Observer” and the “Layers of Fear” series, Bloober Team’s new project seems to be an original IP, which will attract gamers with its exceptional narrative and gameplay.

Bloober Team partners with Private Division on Project C

In an official letter to shareholders, Bloober Team confirmed that their new game "Project C" will be announced this year. #BlooberTeam #Game pic.twitter.com/RUIJMUBhTV

— Projekt Parasol (@pl_evil) April 26, 2024

Under the project codename “Project C” and its mysterious nature, the upcoming horror game by Bloober Team is hyped up, and the fans cannot wait to get more information about it. While the exact details of the game are not revealed yet, it has been confirmed to be an original IP indicating a fresh and unique adventure for the players. With Private Division taking on the publisher role, the Project C collaboration shows an instance of the joining of the strengths of two industry powerhouses working to show a mix of expertise and creativity.

The association with Private Division illustrates Bloobers clever approach to the game development process, making use of the expertise of a sophisticated publisher and keeping the ownership of the IP intact. This alliance does not only cover up Project C’s creation but also locates Bloober Team for success in the unstable gaming market as well.

Project R, a look into the future

Source bloober team X

In addition to Project C, Bloober provided an update on another intriguing project in their pipeline: Project R. Announced in December of 2023, Project R is a project under the IP ownership of Skybound Entertainment which is a company originally founded by television producer Robert Kirkman, one of the The Walking Dead creators. Information yet to be revealed about Project R hints at the flourishing ambitions of Bloober Team for the next few years.

The choice of prefixing the word “premiere” to Project R’s launch genre shows the studios’ clear purpose of words the movie is a milestone for the studios. With the backing of Skybound Entertainment, Project R can confirm itself as a worthy second installment to the great story-line video games by Bloober Team.

Strategic vision by Bloober Team

Bloober Team’s joining Private Division for Project C and Skybound Entertainment for Project R shows the path of this studio’s flourishing. While joining forces with big shots and having internal intellectual property rights, Bloober Team is prepared for further success and development in the game industry.

The fans’ anticipation of the release of Project C and Project R debut can not be underestimated by Bloober Team, which continues to create unique horrific games and does boundary pushing every time. Being known for their outstanding results and deep feelings of the theme, Bloober Team will demonstrate that they deserve to be among the best players on the field.

The partnership of Bloober team and Take-Two Interactive’s Private Division for Project C and the studio’s most recent undertaking in Project R prove the studio’s persistence in innovating the world of horror gaming.

This article first appeared here.

Crypto scams and frauds have dealt a massive blow to the financial security of many Americans, marking one of the largest financial lootings in U.S. history. In 2023 alone, the FBI reported over $12.5 billion in losses due to these scams, a 22% increase from the previous year.

A staggering 880,418 complaints about potential crypto and online thefts were filed with the agency’s Internet Crime Center, suggesting an even grimmer reality since many victims don’t report their losses.

Urgent Need for Strategic Intervention

The increasing tide of crypto-related crimes requires immediate and decisive action from Washington DC. With the crypto market experiencing another bull cycle, the influx of new users and capital significantly heightens the risk of fraud.

The current regulatory framework in the U.S., or the lack thereof, has left investors and consumers exposed to considerable risks. The SEC, CFTC, and IRS’s fragmented oversight has created gaps that hackers exploit with ease.

It’s important that prevention takes precedence over reaction. Legislative bodies must enforce anti-money laundering laws more rigorously and create a more cohesive regulatory environment to close loopholes that cybercriminals exploit.

This includes establishing strict reporting and inspection standards for crypto businesses and enforcement agencies. These measures will help in promptly identifying and thwarting illicit activities and offer real-time protection to potential victims.

Rampant Exploitation from Cryptocurrencies to Ponzi Schemes

The Pew Research Center reported that more than 43% of crypto investors had doubts about the security of their investments in the crypto industry in 2023. This sentiment reflects the general impact of crypto-related crimes that affect diverse demographic groups, including fathers, single mothers, college students, and the elderly.

The FBI highlighted that consumers suffered over $29 billion in losses between 2021 and 2023, with many incidents going unreported due to societal stigma and a lack of faith in corrective measures.

The use of crypto in illegal activities such as money laundering, trafficking, and terrorist financing has become increasingly complex. Malicious actors often stay two steps ahead of law enforcement, leveraging sophisticated technologies to cover their tracks.

For instance, North Korean hacker groups have reportedly stolen tokens worth $3 billion since 2017, with $750 million stolen in 2023 alone, which constitutes about 50% of the nation’s foreign currency earnings.

Furthermore, new Ponzi schemes are popping up every month, targeting individuals through social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok. These schemes usually start with harmless interactions that move to platforms like WhatsApp, where the scam intensifies. Victims are coaxed into investing more, with their investments often vanishing in weeks.

New Challenges in Crypto Regulation

The unique challenges presented by cryptocurrencies require innovative policy frameworks that go beyond traditional regulatory measures. Compliance alone is not enough. The integrity of the market must also be upheld. It is important for cryptocurrency exchanges and wallet providers to enhance investor protections. This balancing act between security and innovation is a must for the future of crypto technologies.

Despite these challenges, the U.S. has the capacity to lead effectively in regulating this space. American households are calling on Congress to implement stringent regulations swiftly to safeguard their financial futures.

Meanwhile, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bill Cassidy have pointed out the use of cryptocurrencies in highly-illegal acts, stressing the need for additional tools and resources to address these crimes effectively.

In a letter to Homeland Security with U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, Senator Warren, alongside Senator Bill Cassidy, highlighted the alarming trend of cryptocurrencies being used as a payment method for child sexual abuse materials.

The senators’ letter calls for a detailed response from federal agencies, specifying the additional tools and resources they need to effectively tackle this disturbing issue. Citing recent findings from both FinCEN and Chainalysis, the letter emphasizes the growing problem and pushes for a combined effort from Congress and the administration to close these gaps in the current regulatory framework.

While Warren’s letter isn’t the best example to give, it is undeniable that cryptocurrencies have made crimes too easy to commit. Perhaps a little too easy, in fact.

Global markets are hitting the brakes on their hopes for interest rate cuts as the US Federal Reserve grapples with stubborn inflation. This is causing a ripple effect worldwide, complicating the financial strategies of other major central banks.

The recent US inflation data has been disappointing, leading to reduced forecasts for rate cuts from the European Central Bank (ECB), the Bank of England (BoE), and the Fed itself. Despite assertions by ECB and BoE officials that their inflation challenges differ from those in the US, the pressure from the US market is undeniable.

Central Banks on Edge

Expectations for the ECB to lower rates have seen a notable shift. Traders now predict a decrease by about 0.7 percentage points starting at the next policy meeting on June 6, a downturn from the previously anticipated 0.88 points. Earlier this year, the expectation was even more optimistic at 1.63 points.

Similarly, the BoE’s anticipated rate cuts have been adjusted down to 0.44 percentage points from an earlier expectation of 1.72 points at the start of the year. This shift aligns with the market’s reduced expectations for the Fed, which is poised to maintain rates at their 23-year high in the upcoming meeting.

The divergence in policy paths between the US and Europe has been a recurrent theme, but aggressive rate cuts in other regions could backfire, impacting exchange rates, import costs, and overall inflation.

Jay Powell, the Fed Chair, recently acknowledged that US inflation is stubbornly high, suggesting that borrowing costs will need to remain elevated longer than previously anticipated. Indeed, the Fed’s preferred inflation measure reported a higher-than-expected 2.7% increase year-over-year in March, prompting some traders to even bet on Fed rate hikes in the coming year.

A Complex Global Dance

ECB President Christine Lagarde and BoE Governor Andrew Bailey have highlighted that the inflation dynamics in Europe are distinct, often driven more by energy costs compared to the US’s large fiscal deficits. Despite this, both signaled possible rate cuts later this summer, even as the first Fed rate reduction might not occur until November.

Conversations around rate disparities continue as ECB and BoE officials express differing views on how far their policies can deviate from the Fed’s. The euro’s recent fall against the dollar underscores the delicate balance central banks must maintain in responding to these economic pressures.

In Asia, the scenario is similarly complex. The Bank of Japan (BOJ) faces inflationary pressures as the yen weakens, reaching 34-year lows against the dollar, which escalates the cost of imports. Yet, the BOJ has opted to maintain its current interest rates, a cautious approach echoed by its governor who prefers gradual adjustments.

Global financial conditions tightened further due to the US’s stringent policies, influencing bond markets worldwide. Germany’s 10-year Bunds, for example, often mirror the movements of the 10-year US Treasury.

In a recent interview, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressed optimism that the US is on a downward inflation path, potentially allowing for future rate cuts. She highlighted the role of housing costs in inflation metrics, suggesting that a stabilization in the housing rental market could eventually lead to moderated inflation figures.

Meanwhile, central banks in other parts of the world, including Paraguay, Turkey, Russia, and Guatemala, have held their rates steady. Hungary has slowed its rate cuts, while Indonesia unexpectedly raised rates. Argentina, on the other hand, continues to lower its rates, betting on a sustained easing of inflation.

The latest round of inflation data is in, just ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting next week. The news isn’t great. The Commerce Department’s indexes, which the Fed uses to monitor inflation, are showing that prices are still rising, far above the central bank’s target of 2% annually.

U.S. consumers are in a tough spot—they’re spending more money than they’re earning. This isn’t something that can go on forever without causing problems. They’re also dipping into their savings to keep up with their spending, setting up a risky financial future.

Overall, this shows us a cautious Federal Reserve. They’re likely to keep interest rates where they are for now, which means no relief from high rates anytime soon.

The Spending Spree and Its Consequences

This March, people spent more than they made, continuing a trend seen in three of the last four months. The personal savings rate has dropped to its lowest since October 2022, now at just 3.2%.

At the same time, the personal consumption expenditures price index, which is a major tool for the Fed to measure inflation pressures, has gone up to 2.7% in March for all items, and the core measure, which excludes volatile items like food and energy, is at 2.8%.

Just a day before these figures were released, it was reported that the annualized inflation rate for the first quarter was at 3.7% on a core basis, and 3.4% overall. The real gross domestic product growth has slowed down to a 1.6% pace, which is a lot lower than expected.

Rising Prices and Economic Risks

Inflation first started becoming a big problem in the U.S. in 2022, sparked by disruptions in supply chains which were expected to resolve post-pandemic. However, even with the easing of pandemic restrictions, high spending by Congress and the Biden administration has continued, pushing the budget deficit to 6.2% of GDP at the end of 2023 — the highest it’s been since 2012, excluding the pandemic years.

The job market remains strong, with more job openings than available workers, which keeps wages high and adds to inflationary pressures. Even though demand has shifted from goods to services, inflation remains high, challenging the Fed’s efforts to manage it.

Fed officials had hoped that inflation would cool down as the cost of housing fell. While this is still expected to happen as new housing supplies enter the market, inflation in other areas has continued to rise. For instance, the core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) services inflation, excluding housing costs, is running at a 5.6% annualized rate over the past three months.

The strong demand, which the Fed’s rate hikes were supposed to control, has not waned, suggesting that the Fed might not have as much control over inflation as it thought.

There are also increasing concerns about a potential economic downturn. Credit delinquencies are at their highest in a decade, and there’s a growing sense of unease on Wall Street about future volatility. Inflation expectations are also rising, with surveys showing anticipated inflation rates climbing.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon captured the changing sentiment by first praising the U.S. economic boom as “unbelievable” one day, only to express concerns about persistent government spending and its inflationary impacts the next.

This unexpected rise has had a massive impact on financial markets, causing a plunge in Treasury values as traders adjusted their expectations for when the Fed might start cutting interest rates. When the March data confirmed these figures, it provided some stability, but the overall sentiment remains cautious.

Economists have begun to pay closer attention to these inflation figures, down to the decimal, reflecting a growing concern over precise economic indicators. This detailed scrutiny is a shift from the past and it shows us all how important accurate inflation data has become in forecasting economic policies and managing expectations in an increasingly uncertain economic environment

The Ethereum Blockchain has caused interest with the latest token called Mollars, that has proved an instant hit among crypto traders. With 65% of its token presale already sold out, it is evident that the project has what it takes to stand out in the challenging arena of digital assets.

Mollars Transparent and Decentralized

In a world that is often tangled in doubt and doubt, Mollars stands out through transparency and decentralization. Unlike many illustrious ancestors, like Bitcoin for instance, which have been criticized for being obscure and centralized holdings, Mollars focuses on transparency and equitable distribution.

The whitepaper of the token clearly states the rewards’ system for the founders and the developers as well. They must be compensated from the token presale funds and not holding a major chunk in their private wallets. Transparency is crucial in securing investors’ trust, thus, it shows that the token emphasizes decentralization, which means that the ownership of the token lies with the general public.

Every time a #Bitcoin (BTC), #Bonk Inu (BONK), or #Shiba Inu (SHIB) founder cashes out tokens, someone has to Lose.This is why Mollars token will have equal opportunity in buying. This is why there will be no hidden wallets for founders at developers. This is why 100% of the…

— Mollars (@mollarstoken) April 26, 2024

Enlightened Interests and the Anticipated Growth

After the initial hesitations, Mollars has grown astoundingly fast, gathering more than 15000 followers on platforms such as Reddit, as well as selling over $2.5 during the six months since their creation. With the first stage presale being limited to just 4 million tokens and the complete supply set to never exceed 10 million, it is estimated that the token will sell out by early 2025.

Prices forecast suggest that by the end of 2024, the asset could go up to 2400%, making the asset very appealing for those investors who are into huge returns. Also, the launch of fractional tokens in the form of “Molls” which are 1/100th of the whole Mollars token ensures that it is accessible to the general population. This advanced method of affordability together with its characteristic to attract diverse investors shows the innovative approach that this cryptocurrency is using.

#ETH new store-of-value, #MOLLARS, is flying under the radar! 65% sold out, inspiration from Bitcoin's early days. Key differences?True decentralization promise an equal opportunity for all holders. Don't miss the final 35%! #cryptocurrencieshttps://t.co/SZzPnz3LFd

— Mollars (@mollarstoken) April 27, 2024

Future Projections and Market Outlook

Given the fact that $1.9 million has been already raised in funding and the exquisitely framed marketing strategy, we look forward for Mollars to grow tremendously on its public exchange debut. Being an ERC-20 token on the Ethereum blockchain, it offers the highest possible discount on trade transactions compared to others like Bitcoin.

In the thick of presale, focus gradually shifts towards that of Mollars’ impending launch and the crypto-market’s expected effect. The overwhelming feedback and positive outcome of the presale gives a good indication of what the future might hold with a projected parabolic growth pattern sustained by rising demand and shrinking supply. It provides transparency and is decentralized. This promising pre-sale is already 65% completed, an important sign of investor’s interest. The Mollars project is about to embark on a revolutionary crypto path. With the launch day getting closer, people from all over the globe stay transfixed ready to set a new record in the e-currency section and create the milestones to a new blockchain era of finance.

The enchanting universe of Disney Lorcana is about to enter the realm of fantasy with the upgrade Expansion, Ursula Returns which includes the Madrigal family joining the rank of the heroes from the film that stole millions of hearts, Encanto. This expansion, powered by Little Mermaid serves as a guarantee of thrilling gameplay as players endeavor to thwart Ursula’s evil plans.

Well, you can’t say Bruno didn’t see it coming. #DisneyLorcana#UrsulasReturn pic.twitter.com/Ey5uYdZH4f

— Disney Lorcana (@DisneyLorcana) April 26, 2024

Madrigal family cards disclosed

Fans will have a glimpse at the Madrigals theme cards, in an exciting revelation by Polygon set to be their first debut in Ursula’s Return. This powerful ability reinforces the offensive abilities of the Madrigal family and facilitates strategic recovery during the game. 

Bruno’s Return. This is one of the main cards of the game that allows players to revive their character directly from the discard pile to their hand. On the other hand, the power to self-heal strengthens the offensive capabilities of the Madrigal Family and makes strategic come-back more viable.

Pepa Madrigal This is another problematic element of the film that deals with Bruno’s sister. 5 solid defenses here make this card a powerhouse. It adds a layer of tactics to the gameplay through its exceptional power to instill opposing characters caught in the rain, dropping off the enemies, and turning the tide in favor of the Madrigal family. 

Camilo Madrigal Along with it is Camilo Madrigal, who also goes by the name of the Prankster with “Many Forms” power that gives him mobility. Gamers can choose to upgrade either their skill sets or attempt gathering lore based on the situation, as Camilo Madrigal is a strong tool for the strategy.

Isabela Madrigal As for Isabela Madrigal, also known as the Golden Child, her fictitious play system is based on the cards “Ladies First” and “Leave It To Me”. In the same way, the Card only targets her, therefore leaving yet another protective layer. The reason that she is a heroine is her methods by which she does things in a heroic way, not in a situation only.

Casa Madrigal Casita In the Madrigal family’s area of weapons and armor,” Casa Madrigal, Casita” is the location card. This spot is well-protected with a defense value of six and the ink of less cost for moving; therefore, it works as a strong strategic point. Through a tiebreaker feature, “Our Home,” not only scores lore but also gamifies the Madrigals’ strategic interest in the presence of their members on the card.

Ursula’s Return

Source Disney Lorcana X

May 17th is almost in only a couple of days more and the players of Disney Lorcana have started sweating already for a gaming trip with almost in eyes. The merging of Encanto’s Madrigal family with the old The Little Mermaid story can be thus assumed that there will be remarkable options for both the story and gameplay.

As players plunge into the depths of  Ursula’s sinister plot, they will have the chance to utilize the Madrigal family’s exceptional powers and cooperate to baffle evil. Whether bringing allies back to life, altering weather, or using twin powers, the cards are the way to guide us through the intricacy of Disney magic.

Embrace the experience

With the approaching release date, Ursula’s Return is gradually building up anticipation. With its enthralling storyline, interactive gameplay mechanism and the addition of beloved characters from the movie Encanto, the game expansion is bound to keep players of any age hooked. Together forge the allies and draw up your tactics accordingly then the match steps into the beautiful world of Disney Lorcana.

Wall Street is in an uproar as the Federal Trade Commission has officially put the brakes on non-compete agreements. Businesses entrenched in the financial hub are now in a frenzy to overhaul their contracts and figure out new strategies to keep their big-ticket employees from walking.

Contract Chaos Unleashed on Wall Street

Long a cornerstone of employment contracts at major financial institutions such as big banks, brokerage firms, asset managers, and hedge funds, non-compete clauses traditionally barred employees from joining a competitor soon after leaving a company.

This practice has been uprooted following a tight 3-2 vote by FTC commissioners led by Chair Lina Khan. The ruling strikes down existing non-compete agreements for most workers and bans all new ones starting this August.

The FTC’s move dismantles familiar elements of Wall Street operations, such as enforcing “gardening leave” and holding back deferred bonuses if an employee decides to jump ship to a competitor. This change is expected to liberate many skilled traders, investors, and bankers, allowing them to leave unsatisfactory roles and potentially enhancing well-run firms that offer better pay and a more agreeable workplace atmosphere.

Industry Backlash

In response, industry groups are raising alarms that the absence of non-compete clauses will diminish the competitiveness of U.S. financial firms, inflate compliance costs, and trigger a wave of legal disputes between companies and their former employees. They argue that high-earning professionals can negotiate fair compensation in exchange for agreeing to such restrictions.

Complicating matters, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has initiated a lawsuit claiming the FTC has exceeded its regulatory authority, with more legal battles anticipated. Meanwhile, law firms and financial companies are poring over the rule’s extensive documentation—over 500 pages—searching for loopholes that might allow Wall Street to keep guarding its trade secrets and intellectual property.

A significant concern is whether firms can still enforce gardening leave to safeguard sensitive information, given the FTC’s stance seems to outright prohibit common non-compete formats. Legal experts believe, however, that it might be possible to reframe contracts to include extended notice periods that effectively bench departing employees temporarily.

The repercussions of these changes are already visible as instances of trade secret theft lawsuits are on the rise, like the one trading firm Jane Street filed against two ex-employees who defected to competitor Millennium, though the accusations are denied.

The FTC’s regulations carve out an exception for senior executives who make over $151,164 and hold policymaking roles, but this exemption only applies retrospectively. Forward-looking, the ban encompasses all levels of employees, preventing any new non-compete clauses.

This regulatory change is also expected to shake up how companies handle employee bonuses, with industry pundits predicting firms will no longer be able to cancel deferred bonuses if an employee departs mid-payment. This reduces the financial burden on new employers to buy out old contracts, leveling the playing field for smaller firms vying for talent.

Cultural Changes and New Strategies

The effects of the FTC’s decision are predicted to alter corporate cultures broadly, akin to the changes observed when New York City prohibited employers from inquiring about job candidates’ current salaries—a policy that quickly spread throughout the financial sector.

The industry group Sifma has voiced concerns that the FTC may lack the jurisdiction to regulate banks and credit unions. This might afford traditional banks more leeway with non-competes compared to asset managers, private equity firms, and hedge funds, though banking regulators may still choose to enforce FTC rules.

With non-competes on the way out, companies will need to get creative, focusing on confidentiality and non-solicitation agreements as alternative means to safeguard private information.

For Wall Street professionals, the end of non-compete agreements may compel employers to provide more compelling reasons to stay, such as improved pay or better working conditions, shifting from “contractual handcuffs” to “golden handcuffs.”

A quant trader expressed support for the FTC’s move, criticizing hedge funds for abusing non-compete provisions and highlighting it as a step forward in the labor negotiation battle.

As the FTC’s new rule phases in, Wall Street faces a transformation that will require adaptation and ingenuity. No longer can companies rely solely on legal bindings to keep their employees. They now need to focus on creating a more attractive and supportive working environment.

New countries are expected to be announced as members of the BRICS alliance at the upcoming 2024 summit. The 16th summit is set to occur in the Kazan region of Russia in October this year. The alliance plans to extend invitations to emerging nations that have shown a keen desire to become part of the bloc. 

As per a statement from a Russian official, there are ongoing discussions regarding the expansion between Russia and the bloc.

BRICS set to explore new horizons

During an interview with TV BRICS, Sergey Ryabkov, Russia’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, shared insights on the increasing opportunities for new countries to become part of the bloc. He mentioned that the upcoming summit in Kazan this October will be a significant milestone in the collaboration among the BRICS countries. 

In addition, although the bloc lacked experience in expanding at the beginning of 2024, there is a belief that they now possess sufficient knowledge to sustain their expansion efforts.

🚨🇷🇺 Russia plans to host a BRICS SPORTS GAMES in Kazan, Russia — 5,000+ athletes from 60 countries have already signed up. pic.twitter.com/CyaAeiWIg3

— Jackson Hinkle 🇺🇸 (@jacksonhinklle) April 18, 2024

“It is worth mentioning that all the newcomers show great enthusiasm […] They are ready to work substantively and professionally on the agenda that the Russian Chairmanship has developed in consultation with all participants.”  Sergey Ryabkov

These requirements will establish guidelines for interested nations on how to interact with the alliance. As of April 2024, approximately 35 countries have shown their interest in joining BRICS. While some individuals have officially submitted their applications to join the alliance, others have expressed their interest in a more casual manner. 

In addition, as the BRICS continues to expand in 2024, the US dollar will face increasing pressure. Several nations are expected to decrease their dependence on the nation’s currency. The US dollar is currently facing significant challenges, and the de-dollarization efforts by the BRICS nations are further exacerbating the situation. When talking about the summit, Ryabkov adds,

“The summit is a new point of reference and an opportunity to build on the leaders’ decisions and agreements in the future. I think it will certainly emphasize not just the growing importance of BRICS, but also the policy-shaping function of the Russian chairmanship.”

BRICS transactions without the US dollar

BRICS is making progress towards eliminating the US dollar from all global trade and transactions by 2024. The bloc seeks to prioritize local currencies over the US dollar in order to bolster their domestic economies and businesses. 

The alliance is also persuading other developing countries to adopt the practice of settling payments in local currencies for cross-border transactions.

China and Russia have recently signed a trade agreement that involves the use of their respective local currencies for transactions amounting to a staggering $260 billion. The trade deal is being established to facilitate the exchange of payments for the commodities bought by both nations. 

China and Russia have decided to use the Chinese Yuan and the Russian Ruble for their payment settlements, rather than the US dollar.

The Chinese Yuan will be used to settle 95% of the $260 billion worth of trade. The remaining 5% will be paid in Russian Ruble and Euro. The development suggests a strong commitment from the BRICS alliance to advance the de-dollarization agenda.

“$260 billion worth of trade between China and Russia this year. But almost no US dollar will be used! It will be 95% Chinese yuan and Russian rubles. Maybe some euros are involved. This de-dollarization will soon be replicated among all BRICS+ members,” said an analyst.

$260 billion worth of trade between China and Russia this year… but almost no US dollar will be used! It will be 95% Chinese yuan and Russian ruble. Maybe some Euros involved.This dedollarization will soon be replicated among all BRICS+ members. pic.twitter.com/THDcdMukCB

— S.L. Kanthan (@Kanthan2030) April 23, 2024

The collapse of FTX was one of the major events in the crypto industry. It led to some major changes and a steep fall in some assets. The effects of the collapse of this huge company have continued. In a recent auction, some SOL holdings of FTX were sold to Pantera Capital. The details are given as follows. 

FTX and its fall

2022 brought multiple grim news to crypto businesses. One of the affected big businesses was FTX Holdings which went bankrupt leading to wide mistrust in the mentioned industry. It was the largest crypto exchange and the impacts were visible due to lowering crypto investment. 

But the impacts of its collapse haven’t yet come to an end. It has continued as investors, courts, and regulatory authorities have continued to struggle with myriads of problems left behind. One of these is the liquidation of its assets in order to pay the investors. 

In a recent move, venture capital firm Pantera Capital has purchased an undisclosed amount of SOL tokens. There has been no official statement from Pantera Capital or FTX Holdings regarding the exact figure as of yet. 

Bloomberg first disclosed this news regarding the sale claiming that Pantera has been able to clench about 2000 SOL tokens. As of the available information, it happened as the result of a private sale and the mentioned news site has kept the source anonymous. 

Liquidation of SOL Holdings

The transaction is part of the liquidation process of the mentioned company’s holdings. Multiple transactions have taken place in order to ensure that the investors and creditors are paid back. Furthermore, the liquidation proceedings have continued in phases which will lead to the liquidation of assets worth about $2.6 billion. 

Recently, news was disclosed about the sale of some assets to Pantera Capital and Galaxy Digital. The sale took place at a steep discount which has raised eyebrows in multiple circles. The most concerned are the creditors who hope to recover their money. 

As the sale of assets took place at discounted prices, it resulted in dismay in the circle of former creditors. They have filed a class action lawsuit led by Sunil Kavuri. They have blamed those who are trying to sell their assets for lower value and aim to get justice in court.  

Details yet to be disclosed by Pantera Capital 

Although the transaction has taken place and been confirmed by Bloomberg, there is no official announcement from Pantera Capital yet. Also, there has been no statement from FTX Holdings regarding this matter. 

Furthermore, there is a likely chance of the sale of more assets in the near future. As there has been a demand for SOL tokens from institutional investors, there is a likely chance of close competition from investors and buyers. 

There are more than 41 million SOL tokens currently held by FTX and these will be disposed of to recover the creditors’ money. The process will take a long time and will be introduced to the market over four years.

The price of SOL has appreciated which has led to increased hopes for the recovery of investor money. It has seen a hike of about 1300% over the last year. 

Conclusion

Pantera Capital has completed a purchase of a considerable number of SOL tokens. As per an update from Bloomberg, it has been able to take hold of about 2000 SOL tokens after a deal was locked. As the auction of FTX’s assets has continued it has had a significant impact on the crypto market where there have been accusations of violation of creditor rights. 

OP Labs has conducted Sherlock audit in order to ensure that there are no discrepancies and further steps to implementation are taken. This audit has ensured that the developers are one step closer to OP mainnet. It will bolster the mainnet’s security as well as reliability in case of possible problems.  

Audit of OP Mainnet

OP Labs is the builder of Optimism Protocol which is an extension to the Ethereum protocol. The focus of this protocol is on ensuring the scaling of technology and values. Furthermore, it also focuses on the promotion of commitment to public good. 

As per the recent blog from OP Labs, they have conducted an audit of OP Mainnet. The completion of the audit has led to the escalation period which will lead to the completion of the process of development of the mainnet.  

The audit began on March 27 with the Sherlock audit contest which was aimed to test the proposed system. There were two proposed purposes of the audit. These included recovery ensured by fault proof system and integrating fault-proof system into the existing contracts of the mainnet. 

According to the blog post shared by the developers, the results of the audit show that there were no major vulnerabilities. The developers intend to share the detailed report once the escalation period comes to an end. The complete validation and severity checks will be verified by Sherlock after the execution of the escalation period. 

Update about the audit conducted by OP Labs

As the audit has been conducted successfully, there have been multiple teams whose participation made it possible. As per the blog post from the mentioned developers, Offchain Labs was one of those worth thanking because of their focus on pointing out the faults. 

We’re happy to report that no critical vulnerabilities that would be able to bypass the safety mechanisms were reported during the audit.We’ve shared initial findings, and will publish a complete audit recap once the escalation period has ended.https://t.co/OZ2qW28c5T

— Optimism (@Optimism) April 26, 2024

Offchain Labs were able to find two faults in the [FaultDisputeGame] before the commencement of the Sherlock audit. If these errors hadn’t been identified, it would have resulted in multiple errors. Some of these include some specifications during game resolution. 

The bug was related to time resolution which is based on a contest between two teams contesting a competition. The defending team and the attacking team would face problems in the form of time running out and the contest being resolved although time might not have run out. Thus, the attacking team might have lost time even if the allocated time hadn’t yet ended.

Thus, it would incur an invalid claim leading to the win of a team that wouldn’t have won. Thus, the bug would have affected the protocol. Thus, it was resolved in advance to ensure that there are no headaches for developers as well as users in the future. 

Furthermore, an issue of duplication of an existing public report was found which was resolved in time. 

Further steps

As the mentioned issues have been resolved by OP Labs, they have merged the solution in the [develop] branch. Furthermore, it was integrated into the OP Sepolia testnet on 26 April 2024. Thus, with the deployment they have started functioning. 

The developers plan to continue working on the OP Mainnet in order to ensure that the best version of it is available to the users. With the completion of the Sherlock Audit by OP Labs, the escalation period has started. They will work on probable issues that might come to the developers’ notice during this period. 

A detailed report regarding the possible issues will be shared as the escalation period comes to an end. These changes will be included in the governance proposal changes to the OP Mainnet.

Conclusion

The developers of OP Mainnet have conducted Sherlock audit of the system. It has led to finding out some faults that have been resolved and the solution will be included in the proposal of changes to the governance system. The escalation period for the mainnet has started which will focus on further deliberations regarding any possible changes by OP Labs. 

In light of the underwhelming U.S. GDP growth data and its potential impact on the Federal Reserve’s future actions, the price of Dogecoin has experienced a decline, aligning with the broader crypto market’s adjustments.

At the time of writing, the value of Dogecoin (DOGE) stands at $0.1461, reflecting a slight 0.2% increase within the past hour and a 1.6% decline compared to yesterday. The current value of DOGE has experienced a decrease of 8.1% in the last 7 days.

Dogecoin takes an L

Today’s decline in Dogecoin is part of a larger downward trend in the crypto market, which began following the release of the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) on April 25th.

Currently, the global crypto market cap stands at $2.45 Trillion, with a slight decrease of -0.83% in the past 24 hours and a significant increase of 94.04% compared to one year ago. Currently, the BTC market cap of stands at $1.24 Trillion, indicating a Bitcoin dominance of 50.56%. 

In the current landscape, the market cap of Stablecoins stands at an impressive $161 Billion, representing a significant 6.58% share of the total crypto market cap.

In the first quarter of 2024, the growth of the U.S. economy was 1.6%, which fell short of the anticipated 2.5%. In March, there was a 0.3% increase in personal consumption expenditures.

Given the lackluster economic indicators, it appears that swap traders have adjusted their outlook for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts in 2024. Their expectations have been significantly lowered to just 33 basis points, which is a notable decrease from the initial projections of more than six quarter-point cuts earlier in the year.

Due to expectations of continued high interest rates, the yield on the benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury note reached 4.739% on April 24, marking its highest level in five months. The open interest (OI) of Dogecoin has seen a significant decline, falling from its peak of $2.21 billion about a month ago to $774 million as of April 27. Furthermore, the funding rate currently stands at 0.0063% per eight hours.

Based on the decrease in OI and the low funding rate, it appears that there is a prevailing bearish sentiment in the market. It appears that traders are adopting a cautious stance, possibly due to the uncertainty surrounding the future price movements of Dogecoin. Alternatively, it could suggest a decrease in overall interest in trading Dogecoin with high leverage.

Should you invest in DOGE?

Approximately three years ago, Dogecoin embarked on a remarkable journey towards reaching new heights. During the frenzy of meme-stock mania, the dog-inspired token managed to captivate speculators and reach its highest price of just under $0.74 in May 2021.

Since then, Dogecoin has experienced a decline while the rest of the crypto market is gradually recovering. At the present moment, the token is currently 78% lower than its highest point in history.

Last year, Dogecoin had a significantly lower performance compared to the top two cryptocurrencies. However, it is leading the pack in 2024, with an impressive 79% increase year-to-date.

Understanding the factors behind these significant price fluctuations in relation to digital assets can be quite challenging. There is a potential catalyst that some experts speculate on: the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs. If this were to happen, it could pave the way for more approvals in the future. 

It is possible that X, previously referred to as Twitter, may consider incorporating Dogecoin as a payment method within their social news app. From an academic standpoint, this would potentially stimulate demand for the DOGE token, resulting in an increase in its price.

However, the enthusiasm for this potentially groundbreaking result appears to be diminishing. In the month of April, Dogecoin experienced a significant decline of 27%. The world of economics is filled with rapid fluctuations, as different trends can swiftly rise and fall.