Author: thaobh.leo@gmail.com

Munich, July 13, 2026: Helsing, Europe’s leading defence AI company, today announces it has raised $1.8bn in a Series E, valuing the company at US$18bn. New and existing investors participated in the round, including Dragoneer Investment Group, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Disruptive, Iconiq, Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, JPMorganChase, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), General Catalyst, Plural, and Stepstone. Investor demand significantly exceeded the available allocation, reflecting strong and growing confidence in AI-driven and software-defined defence technology. The company remains predominantly European-owned, underscoring its deep roots in Europe. The Board of Helsing remains unchanged with Co-Chairmen Daniel Ek and Tom Enders, and members Jeannette zu…

Dustin Poirier, the man who has shared the octagon with Conor McGregor three times, and Michael Chandler, the one who would have loved to be chosen as the Irishman’s comeback opponent, have defended “The Notorious” after how things played out on July 11. This past weekend at UFC 329, the Dubliner returned to the octagon after a five-year layoff to run it back with Max Holloway, an opponent whom he had beaten 13 years ago by unanimous decision. However, this time, McGregor lost in Round 1 by TKO after he injured his right knee while throwing a roundhouse kick, after…

In conjunction with his time in Congress and before he was a presidential candidate, Lindsey Graham spent 33 years in the U.S. Air Force across three components — as an active-duty staff judge advocate, a South Carolina Air National Guard officer and a senior lawyer in the Air Force Reserve.Graham, 71, died unexpectedly Saturday from an aortic dissection, according to a preliminary report from the Washington, D.C., Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. The South Carolina senator had returned hours earlier from a trip to Ukraine, where he sought to negotiate new sanctions against buyers of Russian oil.In a Truth…

Paris – Saint-Cloud, France, July 13, 2026 – Dassault Aviation and Harmattan AI today announced the successful execution of a collaborative in-flight engagement between a Rafale F4 and an unmanned aerial system equipped with the NAMIB payload, a new electronic warfare device jointly developed by both companies. NAMIB is an electronic warfare payload capable of detecting, identifying, and geolocating electromagnetic emissions, in particular those from air defense systems. It can be carried by tactical drones, including quadcopters, as well as by longer-endurance, fixed-winged unmanned aircraft. During the flight, NAMIB discreetly detected and precisely geolocated a radar located several dozen kilometers…

Square Enix is bringing both Octopath Traveler and Octopath Traveler II to Nintendo Switch 2 on October 1, 2026, giving the two HD-2D RPGs dedicated versions for Nintendo’s latest console. Announced during the series’ eighth-anniversary broadcast, the new editions will offer improved resolution and frame rates while retaining the turn-based Break and Boost combat, job customization, Path Actions, and separate stories built around eight playable travelers. The games will be sold individually in physical and digital formats, with a digital bundle containing both adventures also planned. Each title will cost $59.99, while the bundle will be priced at $74.99. The…

The Defense Department has essentially ended the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program by suspending its second phase requirements.The Pentagon will keep in place Phase 1, which requires self-assessments for how companies protect controlled unclassified information in their systems. But the department said Monday it is suspending Phase 2, which was to begin on Nov. 10 and requires third-party certifications.DOD is also launching a review of CMMC to make sure it aligns with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s acquisition initiatives, which prioritize speed, and lowering barriers for new entrants. The Acquisition Transformation System directives also aim to replace bureaucratic compliance with what DOD calls “scalable, resilient…

The TWZ Newsletter Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy. Here’s TWZ’s weekly carrier tracker monitoring America’s flattop fleet, including deployed Carrier Strike Groups (CSG) and Amphibious Ready Groups (ARG), using publicly available open-source information. Check out last week’s report here. The U.S. blockade is back on beginning tomorrow. “We are reinstating the Iranian blockade,” President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social today after days of escalatory tit-for-tat exchanges between the U.S. and Iran while negotiations falter. Following the President’s announcement, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) released a statement with additional information, stating…

Nearly 6 million veterans live with mental illness or substance use disorders, including about 1 million with serious mental illness, according to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Seeking to expand treatment options for those veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Health and Human Services on Monday launched a five-year partnership designed to accelerate research into psychedelic therapies and prepare the VA to deliver them if they receive federal approval. VA Secretary Doug Collins and Kennedy signed a memorandum of understanding at VA headquarters implementing President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14401, which directs…

UFC Abu Dhabi will move forward with a new main event. The UFC is set to make its annual return to the United Arab Emirates with an event on July 25 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The card was originally scheduled to be headlined by a pivotal light heavyweight clash between ex-champion Magomed Ankalaev and former title challenger Khalil Rountree Jr. However, with less than two weeks remaining until fight night, the UFC Abu Dhabi main event has undergone a major shake-up. The promotion announced on Monday that Rountree Jr. has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled…

The Newton Fund supported partnered research between UK researchers/institutions and counterparts in 16 middle-income countries. It spent GBP 641,667,065 from financial quarter (FQ) 1 2014/15 to FQ2 2023/24. The Fund, administered through the UK government’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) (at that time, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy – BEIS), was delivered by 15 UK research funding agencies. It covered a wide range of research topics and focused on priority research needs of the middle-income countries (MICs) that participated. It was defined by three pillars which underpin development research: people (strengthening research capacity in researchers…