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OpenAI is getting into the world of defense tech through a partnership with Palmer Luckey's Anduril. On Thursday, Anduril said it entered a partnership with OpenAI to "deploy advanced artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for national security missions." The partnership will focus on improving the US counter-unmanned aircraft systems' ability to detect and respond to aerial threats, the company said in a statement. The company also said that their partnership is a "pivotal moment" in the accelerating AI race between the . "The decisions made now will determine whether the United States remains a leader in the 21st century or risks being outpaced by adversaries who don't share our commitment to freedom and democracy and would use AI to threaten other countries," Anduril said. Anduril, which generally makes autonomous vehicles for military use, has secured several multimillion-dollar contracts from the US government in recent years. Luckey founded in 2017 after previously founding virtual reality company Oculus, which he sold to for $2 billion. Anduril in October unveiled its new AI-powered Bolt-M drone, which can fit inside a backpack. The company developed the drones awarded to Anduril, AeroVironment, and Teledyne FLIR to provide self-destructing drones for the Defense Department. Defense tech leaders, including Luckey, have warned that AI could lead to a dominated by like drones. Scott Sacknoff, president of aerospace and defense investment firm Spade Index, previously told Business Insider that autonomous drones are "definitely a trend." Sacknoff said the military defense business is constantly looking for a "counter" to the newest technology and that the growth of autonomous drones would likely bring more innovations to stop them. "The next phase will be someone — and they already are — working on developing the technology to be countering drones," he said. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in the statement that OpenAI supports "US-led efforts" to ensure that artificial intelligence "upholds democratic values." "Our partnership with Anduril will help ensure OpenAI technology protects US military personnel, and will help the national security community understand and responsibly use this technology to keep our citizens safe and free," Altman said. OpenAI and Anduril didn't respond to Business Insider's request for comment. Read the original article on

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — First it was Canada, then the Panama Canal. Now, Donald Trump again wants Greenland. The president-elect is renewing unsuccessful calls he made during his first term for the U.S. to buy Greenland from Denmark, adding to the list of allied countries with which he’s picking fights even before taking office on Jan. 20. In a Sunday announcement naming his ambassador to Denmark, Trump wrote that, “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.” Trump again having designs on Greenland comes after the president-elect suggested over the weekend that the U.S. could retake control of the Panama Canal if something isn’t done to ease rising shipping costs required for using the waterway linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. He’s also been suggesting that Canada become the 51st U.S. state and referred to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “governor” of the “Great State of Canada.” Stephen Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia, said Trump tweaking friendly countries harkens back to an aggressive style he used during his days in business. “You ask something unreasonable and it’s more likely you can get something less unreasonable,” said Farnsworth, who is also author of the book “Presidential Communication and Character.” Greenland, the world’s largest island, sits between the Atlantic and Arctic oceans. It is 80% covered by an ice sheet and is home to a large U.S. military base. It gained home rule from Denmark in 1979 and its head of government, Múte Bourup Egede, suggested that Trump’s latest calls for U.S. control would be as meaningless as those made in his first term. “Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale,” he said in a statement. “We must not lose our years-long fight for freedom.” Trump canceled a 2019 visit to Denmark after his offer to buy Greenland was rejected by Copenhagen, and ultimately came to nothing. He also suggested Sunday that the U.S. is getting “ripped off” at the Panama Canal. “If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States of America, in full, quickly and without question,” he said. Panama President José Raúl Mulino responded in a video that “every square meter of the canal belongs to Panama and will continue to,” but Trump fired back on his social media site, “We’ll see about that!” The president-elect also posted a picture of a U.S. flag planted in the canal zone under the phrase, “Welcome to the United States Canal!” The United States built the canal in the early 1900s but relinquished control to Panama on Dec. 31, 1999, under a treaty signed in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter. The canal depends on reservoirs that were hit by 2023 droughts that forced it to substantially reduce the number of daily slots for crossing ships. With fewer ships, administrators also increased the fees that shippers are charged to reserve slots to use the canal. The Greenland and Panama flareups followed Trump recently posting that “Canadians want Canada to become the 51st State” and offering an image of himself superimposed on a mountaintop surveying surrounding territory next to a Canadian flag. Trudeau suggested that Trump was joking about annexing his country, but the pair met recently at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida to discuss Trump’s threats to impose a 25% tariff on all Canadian goods. “Canada is not going to become part of the United States, but Trump’s comments are more about leveraging what he says to get concessions from Canada by putting Canada off balance, particularly given the precarious current political environment in Canada,” Farnsworth said. “Maybe claim a win on trade concessions, a tighter border or other things.” He said the situation is similar with Greenland. “What Trump wants is a win,” Farnsworth said. “And even if the American flag doesn’t raise over Greenland, Europeans may be more willing to say yes to something else because of the pressure.”

: The Centre on Monday approved a slew of key decisions, including the second edition of the permanent account number or PAN 2.0 project of the income tax department with an estimated cost of Rs 1,435 crore, enabling technology driven transformation of taxpayer registration services. The government, however, aims to emphasize a digital and paperless process for PAN issuance and a grievance redressal mechanism, making the system more efficient and user-friendly. Briefing the media after the cabinet meeting, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval for the PAN 2.0 project I-T department. "The ambitious project is being built at an estimated cost of Rs 1,435 crore, where it will roll out a free-of-cost upgrade to the PAN card with a QR Code," Mr Vaishnaw said. “The existing system will be upgraded and the digital backbone will be brought in a new way... We will try to make it a common business identifier. There will be a unified portal, it will be completely paperless and online. The emphasis will be on the grievance redressal system," the minister said. He further said that all PAN, TAN services will be integrated together to build a common business identifier, which was a long-standing demand from the commercial world. "A PAN data vault system would be made mandatory for all entities using PAN data so that the data provided by consumers can be kept safe," he added. Meanwhile, the CCEA also approved two hydropower projects worth a total investment of Rs 3,689 crore in Arunachal Pradesh. After the Cabinet meeting, Mr Vaishnaw told the media that the CCEA approved an investment of Rs 1,750 crore for the construction of 186 MW Tato-I Hydro Electric project and Rs 1,939 crore for 240 MW Heo Hydro Electric project in Shi Yomi district of Arunachal Pradesh. The projects will be implemented through joint venture companies between North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Ltd (NEEPCO) and the government of Arunachal Pradesh. "Power generated from the two projects will help improve the power supply position in Arunachal Pradesh and will also help in balancing the national grid," the minister saidLAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — Thomas Brown insists he's focused on the job at hand and not the one he might have down the line. His immediate task as the interim coach of the Chicago Bears is helping the team finish strong over the final five games, starting this weekend at San Francisco. The rest of his life can wait. “I think about just the moment. ... I obviously understand the role that I'm in, understand what might come with it," he said Wednesday. "But I also understand that we make most situations bigger than what it has to be because of the outside noise, what everybody else puts a value on it.” The Bears are in a moment unlike any other in the history of the founding NFL franchise. They fired a head coach for the first time during a season when they let Matt Eberflus go on Friday with a 4-8 record and the team in a six-game losing streak marked by head-scratching decisions. They promoted Brown, who in a span of three weeks went from passing game coordinator to offensive coordinator and now the person in charge. The tipping point was a 23-20 loss at Detroit on Thanksgiving, when the Bears let the clock run down rather than call a timeout following a sack. It led to Caleb Williams throwing an incomplete pass from the Lions 41 as time expired when Chicago should have been able to run more than one play. Star cornerback Jaylon Johnson interrupted Eberflus' postgame speech and made his feelings clear. Other players had gone public in recent weeks with their frustrations over the coaching decisions, and they didn't exactly hide their emotions following the Detroit game. On Wednesday, defensive end DeMarcus Walker said he sensed a change was coming after the loss to the Lions. “You guys just look at the whole turnaround, how everything had been going, we just knew some changes were going to be made,” he said. The 38-year-old Brown now has a huge opportunity. He spent last season as Carolina's offensive coordinator and the previous three on Sean McVay's staff with the Los Angeles Rams — the final two as assistant head coach. Prior to that, he spent nine years as a college assistant, including stops at Wisconsin, Georgia, Miami and South Carolina. It's his job to help right a team that came into the season thinking a playoff spot was in reach. Williams' development obviously will be front and center. To that end, the No. 1 overall draft pick has looked more comfortable in the three games since Brown took over for the fired Shane Waldron as offensive coordinator, completing 75 of 117 passes for 827 yards with five touchdowns, no interceptions and a rating of 99.2. Though Brown will continue to call plays, the Bears have another new offensive coordinator in wide receivers coach Chris Beatty. “I think it is a stepping stone actually with my development because I think down the line I’ll have different OCs or different head coaches or whatever the case may be,” Williams said. “And so being able to handle it my first year, handle a new playbook, handle all these different changes, handle all of this I think it definitely will help the development instead of hurting it or anything like that.” Beyond the development of the prized quarterback, Brown also will be judged during his audition for the regular job on his preparation, decisions during games and command of the locker room. He said he reached out to each player individually on Friday and Saturday and tried to set a tone when the team met on Monday. “I want them to be excellent,” Brown said. “I can nitpick at every single play and tell a guy how he wasn’t perfect. And, so, perfection’s not the goal. It’s to excel at your craft.” Notes: The Bears had a lengthy injury report on Wednesday. WRs Keenan Allen (ankle) and DJ Moore (quad), RBs D'Andre Swift (quad) and Roschon Johnson (concussion), DB Elijah Hicks (ankle) and OL Ryan Bates (concussion) all missed practice. S Kevin Byard (shoulder) and OLs Darnnell Wright (knee) and Coleman Shelton (knee) were limited. AP NFL coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

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BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (AP) — Derrick Butler's 35 points led Bowling Green over Morgan State 102-81 on Saturday. Butler also added six rebounds for the Falcons (4-5). Trey Thomas scored 16 points while shooting 6 for 10, including 4 for 6 from beyond the arc. Javontae Campbell finished 6 of 8 from the field to finish with 13 points. Will Thomas led the way for the Bears (5-7) with 19 points. Morgan State also got 12 points from Kameron Hobbs. Ahmarie Simpkins also had 11 points. Bowling Green took the lead with 14:52 left in the first half and never looked back. The score was 55-37 at halftime, with Butler racking up 22 points. Bowling Green extended its lead to 63-39 during the second half, fueled by an 8-0 scoring run. Trey Thomas scored a team-high 16 points in the second half as his team closed out the win. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by and data from . The Associated Press

Chris Brown concert: Big Concerts to ‘beef up security’ amid backlashOusted Syrian leader Assad flees to Moscow after fall of Damascus, Russian state media say DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Russia media say ousted Syrian leader Bashar Assad has fled to Moscow and received asylum from his longtime ally. The reports came hours after a stunning rebel advance swept into Damascus to cheers and ended the Assad family’s 50 years of iron rule. Thousands of Syrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire, joyful after a stifling, nearly 14-year civil war. But the swiftly moving events raised questions about the future of the country and the wider region. The rebels face the daunting task of healing bitter divisions in a country still split among armed factions. One rebel commander said “we will not deal with people the way the Assad family did." Analysis: Collapse of Syria's Assad is a blow to Iran's 'Axis of Resistance' MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — For Iran’s theocratic government, it keeps getting worse. Its decadeslong strategy of building an “Axis of Resistance” supporting militant groups and proxies around the region is falling apart. Hamas has been batttered by Israel's campaign in Gaza. In Lebanon, Israeli bombardment has crippled Iran’s most powerful ally, Hezbollah, even as Israel has launched successful airstrikes openly inside of Iran for the first time. And now Iran’s longtime stalwart ally and client in Syria, President Bashar Assad, is gone. Who is Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the leader of the insurgency that toppled Syria's Assad? BEIRUT (AP) — Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the militant leader who led the stunning insurgency that toppled Syria’s President Bashar Assad, has spent years working to remake his public image and that of his fighters. He renounced longtime ties to al-Qaida and depicts himself as a champion of pluralism and tolerance. The extent of that transformation from jihadi extremist to would-be state builder is now put to the test. The 42-year-old al-Golani is labeled a terrorist by the United States. He has not appeared publicly since Damascus fell early Sunday. But he and his insurgent force, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, stand to be a major player in whatever comes next. Trump says he can't guarantee tariffs won't raise US prices and won't rule out revenge prosecutions WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump says he can’t guarantee his promised tariffs on key U.S. foreign trade partners won’t raise prices for American consumers. And he's suggesting once more that some political rivals and federal officials who pursued legal cases against him should be imprisoned. The president-elect made the comments in a wide-ranging interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” that aired Sunday. He also touched on monetary policy, immigration, abortion and health care, and U.S. involvement in Ukraine, Israel and elsewhere. Trump often mixed declarative statements with caveats, at one point cautioning “things do change.” A timeline of the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and the search for his killer NEW YORK (AP) — The search for UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s killer has stretched into a fifth day — and beyond New York City. Police say it appears the man left the city on a bus soon after Wednesday's shooting outside the New York Hilton Midtown. The suspect is seen on video at an uptown bus station about 45 minutes later. The FBI is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction. Police believe that words found written on ammunition at the shooting scene, including “deny," “defend” and "depose,” suggest a motive driven by anger toward the healthcare company. The words mimic a phrase used by insurance industry critics. Trump calls for immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and says a US withdrawal from NATO is possible WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump is pushing Russian leader Vladimir Putin to act to reach an immediate ceasefire with Ukraine. Trump describes it as part of his active efforts as president-elect to end the war despite being weeks from taking office. Trump also said he would be open to reducing military aid to Ukraine and pulling the United States out of NATO. Those are two threats that have alarmed Ukraine, NATO allies and many in the U.S. national security community. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says any deal would have to pave the way to a lasting peace. The Kremlin's spokesman says Moscow is open to talks with Ukraine. Gaza health officials say latest Israeli airstrikes kill at least 14 including children DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Palestinian health officials say Israeli airstrikes in central Gaza have killed at least 14 people including children, while the bombing of a hospital in northern Gaza has wounded a half-dozen patients. Israel’s military continues its latest offensive against Hamas militants in northern Gaza, whose remaining Palestinians have been almost completely cut off from the rest of the territory amid a growing humanitarian crisis. One airstrike flattened a residential building in the urban Bureij refugee camp Sunday afternoon. That's according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the nearby city of Deir al-Balah, where the casualties were taken. South Korea's democracy held after a 6-hour power play. What does it say for democracies elsewhere? SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A short-lived martial law decree by South Korea's leader last week raised worries about budding authoritarianism around the world. In the end, though, democracy prevailed. President Yoon Suk Yeol announced that he was declaring martial law and giving his government sweeping powers to crack down on protesters, ban political parties and control the media. Members of the military blocked lawmakers from using the legislature's constitutional power to cancel the power grab. But the National Assembly within hours unanimously voted to do so. The stars will come out at the Kennedy Center for Coppola, the Grateful Dead, Raitt and Sandoval WASHINGTON (AP) — Celebrities, cultural icons and a few surprise guests are gathering for the annual Kennedy Center Honors celebration in Washington. This year’s recipients of the lifetime achievement award for artistic accomplishment are director Francis Ford Coppola, the Grateful Dead, jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval, and singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt. In addition, the venerable Harlem theater The Apollo, which has launched generations of Black artists, is being recognized Sunday night. There will be personalized tributes with performances and testimonials from fellow artists during the gala at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. College Football Playoff's first 12-team bracket is set with Oregon No. 1 and SMU in, Alabama out SMU captured the last open spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff, bumping Alabama to land in a bracket that placed undefeated Oregon at No. 1. The selection committee preferred the Mustangs, losers of a heartbreaker in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game, who had a far less difficult schedule than Alabama of the SEC but one fewer loss. The inaugural 12-team bracket marks a new era for college football, though the Alabama-SMU debate made clear there is no perfect formula. The tournament starts Dec. 20-21 with four first-round games. It concludes Jan. 20 with the national title game in Atlanta.

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