Trump administration has spent nearly $4B to cancel offshore wind farms

7 August 2026 at 16:11

The Trump administration has now convinced developers to abandon 12 offshore wind leases. The latest will cost taxpayers $1.2 billion.

The White House’s plan to vet potentially dangerous AI is cloaked in secrecy

The Guardian - Technology

By: Nick Robins-Early

7 August 2026 at 14:00

A Trump administration framework on AI testing leaves a lack of transparency – and plenty of open questions

After months of talking with tech industry leaders, the Trump administration finalized a framework this week for how it will test new artificial intelligence models for safety and cybersecurity risks. So far, the White House is keeping details of the framework private, in a blow to transparency and potential boon for secretive AI companies.

On Tuesday, staff from OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, Google, Nvidia and Microsoft attended a private meeting with White House officials to review the AI framework. Multiple outlets have since reported that although the volunteer vetting process for new AI models has been settled, the White House does not plan to release its policy publicly and will only share testing criteria with a select few tech companies.

Trump orders new 15% tariff on key material for solar panels and microchips

The Guardian - Technology

By: Lauren Almeida and Alicia Chen in Taipei

7 August 2026 at 10:11

Move to raise levy on goods made with polysilicon aims to protect domestic US supply chains from China, the major producer

Donald Trump has ordered a new 15% tariff on imported products made of polysilicon, an important ingredient in microchip manufacturing that is primarily produced by China.

The new tariff, which will take effect on 4 December, is aimed at supporting US chip and solar panel supply chains to compete with Beijing on artificial intelligence and energy.

Trump orders new 15% tariff on key material for solar panels and microchips

The Guardian - Energy

By: Lauren Almeida and Alicia Chen in Taipei

7 August 2026 at 10:11

Move to raise levy on goods made with polysilicon aims to protect domestic US supply chains from China, the major producer

Donald Trump has ordered a new 15% tariff on imported products made of polysilicon, an important ingredient in microchip manufacturing that is primarily produced by China.

The new tariff, which will take effect on 4 December, is aimed at supporting US chip and solar panel supply chains to compete with Beijing on artificial intelligence and energy.

Trump administration to pay German firm $1.22bn to cut offshore wind leases

The Guardian - Energy

By: Maya Yang

6 August 2026 at 19:20

Agreement with RWE is fifth deal Trump team has made with energy companies, offering payouts to give up projects

The German energy company RWE has reached a $1.22bn deal with the US government to relinquish its offshore wind leases and instead redirect funds towards fossil fuel investments.

The agreement marks the fifth deal the Donald Trump administration has struck with energy companies, offering payouts in exchange for abandoning renewable energy projects and redirecting investment towards fossil fuels.