June 24, 2026

01 Trending

AI is Becoming a Utility

pgnewser April 21, 2026 1

More and more Americans have begun making AI subscription services a part of their essential household budget. Since 2024, paid AI subscriptions have increased by 38%. The paid AI subscription service market is expected to exponentially expand over the next two years.

Generative AI News: US Households Are Carving Out Room in Budgets for ChatGPT and AI Subscriptions – crypto.news– news.google.com
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In the latest generative AI news, CBS MoneyWatch reported that US households are actively making room in their budgets for AI subscriptions, backed by Bank of America Institute data showing the number of paying AI subscribers has surged 38% from the 2024 average.

Summary
  • Approximately 3% of Bank of America households paid for AI services in early 2026, with median monthly spend at $20, up 10.4% year over year, driven by growing use of tools like ChatGPT Plus, Claude Pro, and Gemini.
  • The share of subscribers paying $21 to $40 per month jumped 50% year to date versus 2024, suggesting consumers are moving up the pricing tiers as they deepen their use of AI tools for daily tasks.
  • Bank of America Research projects the US consumer AI market could scale to $75 billion annually as AI becomes embedded in productivity, search, entertainment, and personal assistant use cases.

Generative AI news has moved from enterprise budgets to household spending lines. Bank of America Institute analysis of nearly 70 million consumer accounts found that the number of households making AI subscription payments is up 38% from the 2024 average, with median monthly spend sitting at $20 for those who pay, up 10.4% year over year.

 

Riot Bots and the CCP

pgnewser April 21, 2026 1

China hopes to soon deploy robots to control future rioters. The People’s Armed Police Force (PAP) is already testing the possibility in preparation for a potential mass riot event.

China may control riots in the future using robots – NewsBytes
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China‘s internal security forces are exploring the use of autonomous machines for riot control, according to a recent study. The research, conducted by engineering experts from the People’s Armed Police Force (PAP), imagines a future where urban unrest is managed without any human intervention. This futuristic approach was envisioned in response to a hypothetical scenario of mass protests triggered by rumors following a military takeover of a large city.

Machine intervention

How will it work?

In the imagined scenario, a large crowd gathers in a central square with the intention of attacking important government sites. However, their protest is met with an immediate response from autonomous machines. Roadblocks are suddenly deployed to cut off their advance and key instigators are quickly identified and captured by these machines. The protesters, cut off from the internet and unable to broadcast their cause, eventually disperse on their own without any direct confrontation with human soldiers or police officers.

Charlie Kirk Honored with 1A Protecting Laws

pgnewser April 21, 2026 1

Kansas joins a growing list of states which passed laws honoring the late assassinated American activist Charlie Kirk. The laws have one thing in common, they both protect rights enumerated in the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. These rights are the right to religious liberty and the right to freedom of speech.

States eulogize Charlie Kirk with new laws promoting religion and free speech– abcnews.com
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A new Kansas law will allow college students to sue their schools for free-speech violations. In Tennessee, a new law will encourage teachers and professors to include “the positive impacts of religion” in American history courses.

The common factor: Both are being done in the name of Charlie Kirk.

The laws are among the first of what could become multiple state tributes to the conservative activist who was killed while speaking at a Utah university last year. More than 60 Kirk-themed bills have been proposed in over 20 states seeking to promote his ideology, establish official days of remembrance or affix his name to roads and public places, according to an Associated Press analysis using the bill-tracking software Plural.

Woke Health Panel No More

pgnewser April 21, 2026 0

RFK Jr. is vowing to replace the “woke” panel currently in charge of choosing what preventative care gets covered by Obamacare. Kennedy plans on replacing the current allegedly “woke” members of the U.S. Preventative Service Task Force, saying “We’re now bringing new members on who have a clear mission.”

RFK Jr. will overhaul ‘woke’ panel that decides preventive services covered under ‘Obamacare’– www.lifesitenews.com
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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. indicated that he’s following through on his promise to reform the panel of experts that determines which preventive medical services insurance companies must fully cover under the Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as “Obamacare.”

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force “has been lackadaisical and negligent for 20 years,” Kennedy told the House Ways and Means Committee. 

Kennedy announced last July that he intended to dismiss all 16 panel members of the task force because he viewed them as too “woke.” 

“We’re now bringing new members on who have a clear mission,” Kennedy told the committee on Thursday. 

Politico reported that “some public health advocates worry that Kennedy would remake the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force to align it with his views, many of which go against mainstream science, the same way he overhauled the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, appointing members who shared his skepticism of vaccine safety.” 

The task force was formed in 1984 to advise the federal government on preventive health matters. The Affordable Care Act in 2010 broadened its mandate, giving it the power to determine which screenings, counseling and preventive medications insurers must cover at no cost to patients.

In recent years, however, the task force had undergone mission creep. It developed a formal Health Equity Framework to systematically consider race, ethnicity, sex, gender, and social risk factors to be used in all of their recommendation processes. 

Donald Trump ‘planning shock nuclear retreat’ to end conflict with Iran– www.mirror.co.uk

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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Donald Trump may be considering a deal to allow Iran to continue nuclear enrichment in 10 years(Image: Pool/ABACA/Shutterstock)

Donald Trump is reported to be weighing up an option allowing Iran to resume uranium enrichment in a decade.

The US president has offered shifting reasons for the war in Iran but has consistently said a primary objective is ensuring the country will “never have a nuclear weapon”.

Iran has 440.9kg of uranium that is enriched up to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of 90%, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN’s nuclear watchdog agency.

Anchor babies account for nearly 10% of US births: report | The Post Millennial– thepostmillennial.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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Data released by Pew Research shows that 9 percent of all US births in 2023 were to those that were here in the US illegally, or in the country temporarily.

Children born to illegal immigrant parents in the US were nearly 10 percent of all new births in the US in 2023, according to new data. The figures were published about data that came during the Biden administration, which had lax border policies.

New data released by Pew Research shows that 9 percent of all US births in 2023 were to those who were here in the US illegally, or in the country temporarily. The Supreme Court is currently considering the legality of an order from President Donald Trump that would restrict birthright citizenship from some of those born to foreign nationals in the US.

8 children killed in mass shooting in Shreveport, Louisiana, police say – CBS News– news.google.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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  1. 8 children killed in mass shooting in Shreveport, Louisiana, police say  CBS News
  2. Shreveport shooting: Louisiana gunman was father of 7 of the 8 children he killed, police say  CNN
  3. What we know about suspect in Louisiana shooting that killed 8 children  USA Today
  4. Suspect dead after 8 children killed, 2 women wounded in Louisiana shooting  Yahoo
  5. Eight children killed in Louisiana shooting, police say  BBC

Sweden warns Russia could launch land grab to seize Baltic Sea island– www.mirror.co.uk

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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Sweden is bracing itself for a potential Russian operation to seize the island of Gotland, according to the country’s military chief.

Swedish Chief of Defence Michael Claesson warned that Moscow could execute a land grab “at any time” in order to put NATO’s determination to the test.

“It doesn’t have to be particularly extensive at all, but more to make a point and wait to see what might happen politically,” Claesson said.

NATO military exercises have traditionally centred on a potential Russian land assault along the alliance’s eastern flank, however focus is now turning towards the Baltic Sea.

War games have simulated possible Russian landings on strategically vital islands such as Gotland in Sweden, Bornholm in Denmark, and Hiiumaa and Saaremaa in Estonia.

Swedish military intelligence has cautioned that Russia is capable of broadening its conflict in the years ahead.

Obama and Mamdani read and sing with New York preschoolers in first meeting | Barack Obama– www.theguardian.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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Barack Obama met with Zohran Mamdani for the first time on Saturday at a childcare center where the former Democratic US president and mayor of New York City read to preschoolers and led a sing-along.

The meeting comes as Mamdani, a democratic socialist who marked his 100th day in office just over a week earlier, is also trying to build a working relationship with Donald Trump – Obama’s Republican presidential successor.

Obama and Mamdani did not take questions after reading the book Alone and Together to the children – and leading a sing-along of The Wheels on the Bus.

Obama, a standard-bearer for the Democratic party, has offered to be a sounding board for Mamdani, 34. Mamdani’s star power, youth and progressive agenda has made him stand out in Democratic politics.

Iran-US war latest: Tehran threatens attacks on US after seizure of tanker and rejects new round of peace talks– www.independent.co.uk

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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A senior Iranian source has been talking to Reuters news agency about the gaps in negotiating position between Washington and Tehran.

There are still significant differences regarding Iran’s nuclear programme, the source said.

It comes amid hopes that Iran and the US will resume peace talks after they failed in Islamabad earlier this month.

The senior Iranian source said that Tehran’s “defensive capabilities”, including its missile programme, are not open to negotiation with the US

“Continuation of the US blockade on the Strait of Hormuz undermines the peace talks,” they added.

Los Angeles woman arrested on Iranian arms trafficking charge– abcnews.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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LOS ANGELES — Federal prosecutors said a 44-year-old Los Angeles woman was arrested Saturday night at Los Angeles International Airport on suspicion of helping Iran traffic weapons to Sudan, which is in its fourth year of a bloody civil war.

Shamim Mafi will face charges that she brokered the sale of “drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition” between Iran and the Sudanese Armed Forces, First U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said Sunday on social media.

A phone number for Mafi could not be located and it wasn’t known Sunday if she has an attorney who could speak on her behalf.

Essayli posted a photo of someone in an FBI jacket escorting a woman into the back of a sedan outside a terminal at LAX.

Mafi is an Iranian national who became a lawful permanent resident of the United States in 2016, Essayli said.

The US backs a South Africa project to extract rare earths despite a diplomatic clash– abcnews.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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PHALABORWA, South Africa — Two enormous sandlike dunes at an old chemical processing plant in South Africa are at the center of an exploratory U.S.-backed project to extract highly sought-after rare earth elements from industrial mining waste.

The Phalaborwa Rare Earths Project has U.S. support through a $50 million equity investment by the government’s International Development Finance Corporation and is part of accelerated U.S. efforts to reduce reliance on economic rival China for the minerals crucial for making electronic devices, robotics, defense systems, electric vehicles and other high-tech products.

Countries have identified dozens of minerals, including copper, cobalt, lithium and nickel, as critical because they are essential for new technologies. The 17 rare earth elements are a subset of them.

President Donald Trump has made expanding U.S. access to critical minerals, including rare earth elements, a central policy to counter China. The Trump administration said this year it will deploy nearly $12 billion to create its own strategic reserve.

Migrants rush to apply under Spain’s new mass legalization program– abcnews.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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MADRID — Migrants in Spain began applying to legalize their status Monday after the Southern European nation launched a mass legalization measure that could affect hundreds of thousands of foreigners living and working in the country without authorization.

Spain’s approach sharply differs from prevailing attitudes elsewhere in Europe, where many governments have been trying to curb arrivals and step up deportations. The Spanish government has defended the measure as an economic one that has the support of business owners and unions.

With an aging population, the government has said Spain needs more workers to maintain its growing economy, pay taxes and contribute to social security.

The amnesty program was announced in January and finalized this month. It offers immigrants without legal status a one-year, renewable residence permit if they have spent five months living in the country and have a clean criminal record. They have until the end of June to apply.

Ministers rally around Keir Starmer as leadership questions grow over Mandelson saga – UK politics live | Politics– www.theguardian.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey has indicated Keir Starmer’s mishandling of the economy and the Peter Mandelson saga risks leading Nigel Farage to become prime minister.

Davey told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips that Starmer should “move aside” if he wants the Labour party to succeed.

He said: “The thing that I think Labour MPs should think about quite carefully now is their Government has been a bit of a failure, frankly, on the economy, on so much, and it’s in chaos, in the way that Conservatives were in chaos, in perpetual crisis, and I don’t think they can get out of that unless Keir Starmer moves aside.

“And if they don’t, there’s a real danger they’re handing the keys to Number 10 to Nigel Farage, who can benefit from this chaos.

“So I would really say to Labour MPs, who in many ways, have the future of the prime minister in their hands, that they really now have to accept, the prime minister is a big part of their own problem and in the context of the threat that Nigel Farage poses to our democracy and to our country with his divisive Trump-like politics, I think the Labour party has to realise they have to move on.”

Stanford’s AI Index for 2026 Shows the State of AI– spectrum.ieee.org

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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The capabilities of leading AI models continue to accelerate, and the largest AI companies, including OpenAI and Anthropic, are hurtling toward IPOs later this year. Yet resentment toward AI continues to simmer, and in some cases has boiled over, especially in the United States, where local governments are beginning to embrace restrictions or outright bans on new data center development.

It’s a lot to keep track of, but the 2026 edition of the AI Index from Stanford University’s Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence center pulls it off. The report, which comes in at over 400 pages, includes dozens of data points and graphs that approach the topic from multiple angles, from benchmark scores to investment and public perception.

As in prior years (see our coverage from 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025), we’ve read the report and identified the trends that encapsulate the state of AI in 2026.

Supreme Court will hear from religious preschools challenging exclusion from taxpayer-funded program– abcnews.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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The Supreme Court will hear from Catholic preschools that say Colorado violated their religious rights by excluding them from a state-funded program over their admission policies.

The court agreed on Monday to take up the appeal from St. Mary Catholic Parish, which is supported by the Republican Trump administration.

Joined by the Archdiocese of Denver, the facilities argue it’s unconstitutional to bar them from a taxpayer-funded universal preschool program because of their faith-based restrictions on admission of LGBTQ+ families and kids.

The state said that religious schools are welcome to participate but are required to follow nondiscrimination laws. The program was created by a 2020 ballot measure and provides public funding for free preschool at centers selected by parents.

Pressure on Starmer grows over Mandelson vetting despite ousting of Foreign Office official – UK politics live | UK news– www.theguardian.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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Meanwhile, Peter Mandelson’s replacement as British ambassador to the US has said the relationship between the two countries is in the middle of an “extraordinary moment”.

Speaking in Washington on Friday, Sir Christian Turner said that the transatlantic relationship, which has become strained due to tensions over the Iran war and Donald Trump’s intense criticism of Keir Starmer for his supposed lack of support in the conflict, was still “one of the deepest and closest alliances in history”.

He said:

I’ve now been in this job for about two months, and they said, ‘Come to Washington for a rest. It’ll be very calm. It’ll be very quiet. You’ll be okay.’

And we’re in the middle of this extraordinary moment, geopolitically, geoeconomically, and indeed for the transatlantic relationship.

It is, of course, all relative – 250 years ago we had a small disagreement. We were in the midst of a dispute back then.

To our credit, we’ve only tried to burn down the White House once since, and what began in that moment of tension has been forged into one of the deepest and closest alliances in history.

He added:

I like to think it’s a pragmatic partnership. It’s not one based in backwards looking and nostalgia. It’s looking forwards as it really secures security and prosperity for both Britons and Americans alike.

Iran’s Supreme Leader sends chilling threat as he mocks US ‘arrogance and weakness’ | World | News– www.express.co.uk

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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Iran’s Supreme Leader has issied a chilling threat in a new bombshell message, while also taking a brutal swipe at Donald Trump and US troops.

Mojtaba Khamenei commended his forces for resisting what he called American and Israeli “arrogance”, before threatening to bring about “new defeats”. The Supreme Leader also said his opponents’ “weakness and humiliation” had been exposed for all to see. Khamenei has not been seen since the war began. He replaced his father Ali Khamenei, who was killed in Israeli-US strikes at the start of the conflict.

In a statement issued through an Iranian state news agency, Khamenei said his forces had “stood firm against America’s sinister schemes.”

He continued: “With its strong divine and popular support and in dense, fortified ranks, it (the army) stands shoulder to shoulder with other mujahideen of the armed forces against the two armies at the forefront of the front of kufr (disbelief) and arrogance, clashing with them hand-to-hand and exposing their weakness and humiliation to the eyes of the world.