🔥 RedStone launches price feeds on Stellar: XLM Definitely

Oracle provider RedStone has launched its price feed infrastructure on the Stellar mainnet and made price data accessible for major crypto assets such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), USD Coin (USDC), PayPal USD (PYUSD), and Franklin Templeton BENJI tokenized money market fund. This infrastructure is designed to support DeFi applications such as lending markets, decentralized exchanges (DEX), and tokenized real-world asset (RWA) platforms developed on Stellar.

RedStone's Stellar integration opens the XLM $0.1608 ecosystem to DeFi. Stellar's low-fee structure is becoming ideal for RWA tokenization.

Assets like BTC, ETH, USDC, PYUSD, and BENJI can now access real-time prices on Stellar DEXes. This strengthens lending protocols and RWA platforms. XLM is evolving from traditional payments to DeFi.

#Stellar

@QSIMedia

💻 Apple announces $599 MacBook Neo running A18 Pro chip

In simultaneous events in New York, London, and Shanghai, the company showed off the MacBook Neo, which runs on the Apple A18 Pro processor (2 performance cores, 6 efficiency cores, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine), previously used to run the iPhone 16 Pro. This new system still made of aluminum. Apple says the MacBook Neo can last up to 16 hours on a single charge thanks to its 36.5 WHr battery.

Apple says that the MacBook Neo will start at $599 for the 256GB version and will be available in silver, indigo, blush, and citrus. The 512GB version will come with Touch ID and be priced at $699. Both versions ship with just 8GB of RAM and support Apple Intelligence, and there are no build-to-order options for additional RAM.

In a statement, John Ternus, Apple’s hardware engineering chief, said that the MacBook Neo was “built from the ground up to be more affordable for even more people.”

@QSIMedia

🇺🇸 Trump to meet tech giants on energy pledge ahead of midterms

U.S. President Donald Trump is set to meet today with ‌leaders of major technology companies, including Google, Meta and OpenAI, to formalize a pledge aimed at protecting consumers from rising electricity costs tied to the rapid expansion of energy‑intensive data centers.

The White House has said the so‑called "Ratepayer Protection Pledge," announced by Trump in his State of the Union Address, ​would see tech firms commit to measures designed to ensure the boom in AI infrastructure does not translate ​into higher utility bills for households and small businesses.

“President Trump’s ratepayer protection pledge will deliver more ⁠affordable, reliable, and secure energy for the American people and help stop the rising electricity prices that started during the previous ​administration,” - Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement.

Google, Microsoft, Meta, Oracle, xAI, OpenAI, and Amazon will sign the pledge, a White ​House official said. 🤝

@QSIMedia

⚡️🇺🇸Donald Trump: 'We want to dominate the cryptocurrency space'

"So the U.S. is leading by a lot. We're leading everybody. Other countries are very much into it. They all want it but we're going to be dominant in this field which is really important. In crypto we want to be dominant," - said Trump.

Yesterday U.S. President Donald Trump took a clear side on the ongoing debate over stablecoin yield that is holding up the passage of broad crypto market structure legislation in the U.S.

@QSIMedia

🛰 Starlink to partner with Deutsche Telekom to launch satellite mobile service in Europe

SpaceX’s Starlink will partner with German telco giant Deutsche Telekom to launch a satellite-based mobile service in 10 European countries: Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Greece, Croatia, Montenegro and North Macedonia.

The launch will be the first in Europe to use Starlink’s second-generation satellites, known as V2. The service will go live in 2028 and bring mobile communications to areas where network expansion is particularly challenging, including in areas with nature conservation requirements or demanding topography.

@QSIMedia

🎮 200,000 living human brain cells fused with silicon successfully play Doom game

Australian biotech startup Cortical Labs claims have successfully programmed living human neurons to play the cult-classic 1993 video game Doom.

The team created a microelectrode array by growing 200,000 brain cells onto it. The CL-1 neural computing system chip translates digital game data into electrical biological signals. With the new Python-based interface, the developer taught the neurons to navigate the game’s 3D environment in just one week. By translating the resulting neural activity back into digital commands, the cells autonomously navigated, targeted enemies, and fired weapons in real time.

@QSIMedia

🧑‍⚖️ Remember Twitter? Elon Musk testifies over flip-flop in $44 billion buyout

Since buying Twitter for around $44 billion in late 2022, Elon Musk has changed the name to X, merged it with xAI and then again with SpaceX. On Wednesday, Musk appeared at a federal courthouse in San Francisco to defend himself against allegations that he committed civil securities fraud in the run-up to his purchase of Twitter.

Investors in Twitter filed a class action suit against Musk in October 2022 when he finally agreed to buy the social network for $54.20 a share, the price he originally promised in April of that year. Former Twitter investors alleged that Musk bashed the social network for bot problems and threatened to abandon the deal so he could pressure the board to lower the price.

Musk’s attorneys have argued that he never intended to hurt Twitter or its other investors.

“My tweets have sometimes the opposite effect of what one would expect on stock prices. Sometimes they have the expected effect,” - Musk said about the influence of his tweets on the price of stocks.

@QSIMedia

🏦 Eric Trump slams banks for lobbying against stablecoins

Eric Trump, the son of the U.S. President, denounced big banks for lobbying against crypto and stablecoins, saying that they are depriving customers of better financial opportunities.

In a Wednesday post on social media platform X, Eric Trump called out JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo for contesting efforts to allow U.S. crypto platforms to pay interest on stablecoin holdings. He added that the American Banking Association and other lobbyists are "spending millions" to ban 4-5% stablecoin yields through the Clarity Act.

"[Big Banks] are lobbying overtime to block Americans from getting higher yields on their savings — while trying to block any rewards or perks from being given to customers," - Eric Trump wrote.

@QSIMedia

💻 OpenAI is developing an internal alternative to Microsoft’s GitHub

OpenAI is developing its own code repository platform as an alternative to Microsoft's GitHub. The project was prompted by a rise in GitHub outages that left OpenAI engineers unable to commit or collaborate on code for stretches of up to several hours.

GitHub reported a 58% year-over-year increase in incidents during the first half of 2025, rising from 69 cases to 109 — with 17 classified as "major" — totaling over 100 hours of disruption, according to a mid-year report from GitProtect.

The project is still in early stages and probably won't be completed for months. If OpenAI does sell the platform commercially, particularly bundled with its Codex coding agents, it will mark a direct competitive move against Microsoft.

@QSIMedia

📨 SEC submits framework to White House on applying securities laws to crypto assets

The White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs received a significant crypto regulatory measure from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which oversees the US Stock Market, on Tuesday in the form of commission-level guidance. Details are scant, but the bureaucratic step is one of the most meaningful moves yet by the Trump administration market regulators.

The matter relates to the “Application of the Federal Securities Laws to Certain Types of Crypto Assets and Certain Transactions Involving Crypto Assets.” The guidance is currently at the prerule stage undergoing interagency review.

The regulator will consider interpretive guidance around a token taxonomy for crypto assets to ensure that investors and innovators have a clear understanding of their regulatory obligations. For instance, whether a given token is treated as a security subject to SEC oversight or under the CFTC’s jurisdiction. That distinction could carry consequences for how crypto firms register, disclose and operate.

Since the beginning of his term, SEC Chairman Paul Atkins has emphasized digital asset regulation as a priority, saying he prefers congressional legislation but noting the agency could proceed independently if necessary.

@QSIMedia

🔋 BYD unveils faster-charging Blade Battery to revive China sales

BYD ‌unveiled its first major battery upgrade in six years on Thursday, as the Chinese electric vehicle maker seeks to regain momentum in a highly competitive domestic market after a steep sales slump.

The second-generation Blade Battery can charge rapidly from 20% ​to 97% in under 12 minutes, even at minus 20 degrees Celsius (minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit), delivering a driving ​range of 777 km (483 miles). The higher-density batteries can push ⁠BYD's premium Denza Z9GT and luxury Yangwang U7 models beyond a 1,000 km driving range, and ​have passed safety tests exceeding China's latest national standards.

BYD also aims to expand its "Flash Charging" network to ​20,000 stations by the end of 2026, including 2,000 on highways. The company had built more than 4,000 stations as of March 5.

#BRICS

@QSIMedia

🤝 Codelco, Microsoft sign AI deal for mining operations

Chile's state-owned Codelco, the world's largest copper producer, and Microsoft signed a memorandum of understanding to evaluate joint initiatives ‌in AI, advanced analytics, automation and digital security.

The agreement will run for 18 months initially with joint governance for strategic and operational ⁠tracking. Areas include intensive data use, AI for decision-making, autonomous operations, automation of critical processes and cybersecurity strengthening. The partnership envisions both companies participating in early testing of new solutions and the sharing international experiences.

"Working with a world-class technological leader like Microsoft consolidates our leadership in the future ‌of ⁠mining. Faced with an accelerated digital transformation, we have to process and consider large volumes of operational data," said Codelco CEO Ruben Alvarado.

@QSIMedia

🤖 US gov't preps sweeping export controls for Nvidia, AMD AI hardware

US officials have written draft regulations that would restrict AI chip shipments to anywhere in the world without American approval. The proposed regulations would require companies to seek US permission for virtually all exports of AI accelerators from the likes of Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Cerebras.

The regulation would set up the US government as gatekeeper for the AI industry, with companies and their governments needing to seek the blessing of the US Commerce Department to buy AI accelerators. The proposed policy is by no means a total export ban, but an extremely powerful tool that lets the U.S. government influence how global AI infrastructure develops.

@QSIMedia

🇨🇳 China seeks to enhance rare earth advantages, take 'extraordinary measures' to achieve semiconductor breakthroughs

China has just released the latest draft of its 5-year plan, which is set to be approved during the next full session of the National People’s Congress from March 5 to 12, 2026. This document lays out the plans and policies that the central government will implement in the next five years, from 2026 through 2030.

Some of the key policies set in the draft 5-year plan included building a more robust “response mechanism” to enhance its supply chain security and enhancing its “competitive advantages in rare earths.” This is the biggest issue that China has encountered so far in its drive for technological superiority.

Beijing promises to prioritize research and development, with the 5-year plan calling to increase investment in domestic innovation by 7% or more annually. It added that it will take “extraordinary measures” in several crucial areas, including semiconductors, industrial machinery, and advanced materials.

It also mentioned a push on humanoid AI robots, focusing on integrating “the brain and cerebrum,” as well as the establishment of hundreds of vocational institutions to train Chinese citizens on strategic industries like AI.

#BRICS

@QSIMedia

🎮 Microsoft confirms next-gen Xbox will play PC games

Microsoft has confirmed that its next generation Xbox — codenamed Project Helix — will be capable of playing both Xbox and PC games. New Xbox CEO Asha Sharma took to X to tease the next-gen console, saying it "will lead in performance and play your Xbox and PC games."

Sharma says she'll be talking with partners and studios about Project Helix (and presumably its ability to play PC games) at GDC, which kicks off in San Francisco next week. The tease sets Microsoft up for a proper Project Helix reveal soon. 🤔

Are you waiting for the release of the next-gen Xbox? ❤️

@QSIMedia

🇺🇸President Trump secures historic commitment to keep electricity costs down amid data center boom

Under Trump’s leadership, America’s leading AI and technology companies gathered at the White House to sign the Ratepayer Protection Pledge. This landmark commitment — first announced by President Trump in his State of the Union address — ensures the rapid growth of AI data centers powers American innovation without raising electricity costs for families and communities.

The signing marks a major victory for energy affordability, American innovation, and working families. 👏

@QSIMedia

🇮🇳 U.S. offers India a 30-day waiver for buying Russian oil as Iran war deepens energy supply worries

After slapping 25% “penalty” tariffs on India for buying Russian crude — revoked last month — the U.S. issued a 30-day waiver to New Delhi for purchasing crude from Moscow.

The waiver on purchasing Russian oil will help ease supply worries globally, as India is the world’s fourth biggest refiner and and fifth largest exporter of petroleum products. New Delhi, also the world’s third largest oil importer, had been replacing Russian oil purchases with supply from Middle East, experts said, but with the conflict affecting energy supplies from the Gulf countries, it is starting to shore up energy from Moscow.

@QSIMedia

⚡️ Trump on Iran: There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!

@QSIMedia

🤑 China’s first gaming billionaire aims to create ‘Smarter-Than-Man’ AI

Chen Tianqiao conquered China’s gaming world in the early 2000s, becoming one of the country’s richest men. Now, he’s reinventing himself in the US and pursuing a more elusive target: the source code of human consciousness to make AI smarter than humans.

Chen is now developing “discoverative AI” - a form of AI with the ability to learn and respond in ways that surpass current large language models which are largely designed to mimic people when generating content.

“I want to create an AI that is not just intended to replace humans, but to do things that humans cannot do, so that humans can go further,” - said Chen, founder of Shanda Group.

Chen said the goal of discoverative AI was to find new knowledge and anticipate complex, real-world events by integrating long-term memory, causal reasoning and predictive modeling. He and Shanda are committed to investing a total of more than $2 billion on the technology, including incubating startups and developing it himself.

@QSIMedia

🇮🇩 Indonesia to ban social media for children under 16

Indonesia will bar users under 16 from accessing major social media platforms under a new regulation, Communication Minister Meutya Hafid said. The restrictions will apply to "high-risk" platforms, including YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live, and Roblox. The restrictions are set to roll out gradually, starting later this month.

Accounts already registered to users under 16 will be deactivated. The government has yet to outline how platforms will verify users' ages — an issue that has complicated similar efforts in other countries. 🤔

@QSIMedia