Energy firms ‘must double down’ on customer service ahead of ‘difficult winter’

Venezuela's Rodriguez promises elections in transition to 'full democracy'

NEW YORK/CARACAS — Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodriguez told the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday that the country would hold elections as part of a transition to "full democracy," but did not give a specific date for the vote. "I want to make this very clear at this General Assembly: there will be elections in Venezuela," said Rodriguez, who came to power after American forces captured then-President Nicolas Maduro in a January raid. Rodriguez said the government had initiated talks with the opposition and would guarantee the participation of all political forces. She added that national institutions were being prepared for the electoral process. "Venezuela has initiated a process of democratic transformation for its rebirth, an orderly, institutional, and verifiable process, to build a country that is freer for all, more prosperous, and more reconciled with itself," said Rodriguez. Venezuelan and U.S. authorities have previously emphasized the need for an election, yet no date — not even a tentative one — has been set. The opposition views the selection of an autonomou

Meta surprises with new handheld AI device called Meta Charm

MENLO PARK, California — Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a small handheld gadget called Meta Charm for using its new Muse AI assistant in a surprise announcement at its annual device event on Wednesday. Meta said Charm would be ready to ship for holidays in December, but did not give a price. The AI device is about the size of an Apple AirPods case. The social media giant also unveiled virtual-reality glasses to use with a VR console and a pair of camera-free smart glasses for daily use, designed to ease the growing privacy backlash against AI devices that can take videos and pictures of people without consent. Priced at $1,299, the Meta VR Glasses aim to match the capabilities of bulkier and costlier rivals such as Apple's Vision Pro in a device that weighs about as much as a deck of playing cards, a design made possible by moving the battery and processor into a separate puck. They will launch in spring 2027. Meta is betting the VR device, which looks like a pair of dark wraparound frames and responds to eye, voice and hand gestures, can finally take to the mainstream a category lo

US, China agree to extend trade truce by two months, work on bigger deal, Bessent says

WASHINGTON — The United States and China have agreed to extend by two months a trade truce that was due to expire on November 10, allowing more time to work on a potentially bigger trade deal, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday. Bessent made the remarks on Fox News hours after his second meeting in four days with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng to prepare for a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday. "We met today to see if we could do a bigger deal as opposed to just a series of smaller things," the Treasury chief said, noting that the two-month extension of the trade truce agreed in Busan, South Korea in May would give the two sides "more time to see what we can do on the economic front." Bessent told reporters earlier that Beijing had raised the prospect of a more expansive U.S.-China trade deal during 12 hours of talks on Sunday, but gave no details of its potential scope. Wednesday's meeting lasted about 90 minutes, Treasury said. Asked if a deal could be negotiated by January 10, Bessent told Fox News that was n

Ukraine sent 2 captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea, Zelenskyy says

UNITED NATIONS/SEOUL — Ukraine has transferred two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday in an address to the United Nations General Assembly. "Recently, we sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea," said Zelenskyy in his speech. "These guys are not easy to capture alive. One of them, when he realized he was going to be taken prisoner, tried to kill himself. And he was shocked that fate did not let him die." Zelenskyy did not provide more details about the return. Ukraine captured the two North Koreans in Russia's Kursk region in January last year. They were the first North Korean soldiers to be apprehended alive since the country joined the Russia-Ukraine war in 2024. Zelenskyy said at the time that he would hand them over to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un if he could facilitate their exchange for Ukrainians held captive in Russia. Human rights groups, however, urged him to repatriate them to South Korea citing the risks of punishments the soldiers faced. South Korean media reported that the two c

Trump, Xi head into Washington summit with both leaders thinking time is on their side

WASHINGTON — Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping have no shortage of difficult issues to cover when they sit down for talks on Thursday at the White House. China has resisted the Trump administration's urgings — and economic threats — to use its considerable leverage to prod Iran to agree to U.S. terms to end the nearly seven-month war. Xi wants to see Trump permanently halt arms sales to Taiwan and loosen export restrictions on cutting-edge advanced chips. And the two sides on Wednesday agreed to extend a one-year trade truce set to expire Nov. 10 for two months, kicking the can on finding a more durable agreement. All the while, both leaders seem to believe that time is on their side as they look to outmaneuver the other in what is expected to be the world's most significant economic and national security competition for years to come. “The president very much believes that over time the U.S. economy is going to grow, the U.S. will get stronger, the U.S. will keep making advances in AI and on technology, and that ... the U.S. will develop alternative sources of critical min

Trump welcomes China's Xi to Washington for state visit

WASHINGTON — Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Washington Wednesday evening, where he received a rare greeting from U.S. President Donald Trump, who met his counterpart at the base’s airport instead of waiting for him to drive to the White House. Trump’s decision to greet Xi shows how far the U.S. president is going to honor China’s leader as he made his first state visit to the U.S. capital in more than a decade. Xi says China, US should be ‘partners, not rivals’ In a statement marking his arrival in the U.S., China’s leader wrote that his country and the U.S. “should be partners, not rivals.” “Achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and making America great again can go hand in hand and the two countries can contribute to each other’s success, thereby benefiting the wider world,” Xi said. Xi’s statement also suggested that the two sides “should move toward each other and work together to build a stable relationship — one where cooperation is the mainstay, competition is kept within proper limits, differences are managed and peace can be

US announces implementation plan with Korea, Japan for SMR deployments

WASHINGTON — The United States on Wednesday announced an implementation plan to support a trilateral cooperation arrangement with Korea and Japan on the deployment of small modular reactors (SMRs) in third countries, as the countries step up cooperation to meet growing global energy demands. The State Department made the announcement on the margins of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, after Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi signed a memorandum of cooperation (MOC) on civil nuclear energy during their talks in Ankara in July. The department did not elaborate on the implementation plan. "The MOC and Implementation Plan support our mutual security interests by setting out an ambitious agenda in pursuit of SMR fleet deployment to meet growing global energy demands," the department said in a media note. The department took note of the recent signing of a key industry initiative that establishes a cooperation framework among four companies from Korea, the U.S., Japan and Poland — GE Vernova, Hitachi, S

Lee pledges to double chip output in 5 years, build AI supply chains free of disruption

NEW YORK — President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday unveiled an ambitious plan to double Korea's semiconductor production capacity and secure artificial intelligence (AI) supply chains free from external shocks, calling for fresh U.S. investments in the country. Lee made the remarks at the Korea Investment Summit in New York, attended by financial and corporate leaders from both Korea and the United States, to promote U.S. investment in the country. The president referred to the Korea's "three megaprojects" launched earlier this year to build a chip projection cluster and other AI facilities, adding that the country "will double semiconductor production capabilities within the next five years by expanding a chip production hub." "Additionally, (we) will build critical AI supply chains that are not shaken by any shocks," he said. The president highlighted that Seoul is reinvesting "results" from the AI chip boom to create a new "Future Fund" designed to nurture related industrial infrastructure and talent to ensure stable support for future industries. He also pledged to create market condit

An OpenAI system has gone rogue again – and it is the most panic-inducing yet

‘Our models took actions we did not intend,’ ChatGPT maker admits after latest outrage

Lucky Saint recalls low-alcohol beer over ‘exploding can’ fears

Discovery of ancient wall could confirm origins of Paris

An ancient wall discovered in central Paris was hailed as a "major breakthrough" on Wednesday, as the archaeological find may have settled a long-standing debate about the location of the city's original settlement. A roughly 20-metre (66-foot) wall dating from the Gallo-Roman period was discovered in Paris this summer beneath a hospital on the Ile de la Cite, a stone's throw from Notre Dame Cathedral, the French culture ministry said.

Energy firms ‘must double down’ on customer service ahead of ‘difficult winter’

A survey for Citizens Advice suggested more than 10 million households were worried about how they would afford their energy bills this winter.