Head of Dubai-based ports giant DP World, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, resigned Friday after mounting pressure over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, while in the US, an AI safety researcher quit Anthropic with a warning that the "world is in peril." Meanwhile, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers braced for another government shutdown, and the US Secretary of State signaled the Trump administration wants to strengthen ties with Europe.
Sulayem's departure from DP World, a global ports operator, came after the release of files that showed he exchanged hundreds of emails with Epstein over a decade, according to BBC Business. The company announced his resignation "effective immediately," naming Essa Kazim as chairman and Yuvraj Narayan as chief executive. Being mentioned in the files is not an indication of wrongdoing, and the BBC approached Sulayem for comment.
In the tech world, Mrinank Sharma, an AI safety researcher, resigned from Anthropic, citing concerns about AI, bioweapons, and the state of the wider world, as reported by BBC Technology. Sharma shared his resignation letter on X, stating he would pursue writing and poetry, and move back to the UK to "become invisible." This news came in the same week that an OpenAI researcher resigned, expressing concerns about the company's decision to deploy adverts in its chatbot.
Across the Atlantic, the US Secretary of State addressed European leaders at the Munich Security Conference, assuring them the US does not plan to abandon the transatlantic alliance, according to BBC World. He stated, "We do not seek to separate, but to revitalise an old friendship and renew the greatest civilisation in human history." While he criticized European immigration, trade, and climate policies, the overall tone of his speech was markedly different from previous administrations.
Back in the US, TSA workers faced the prospect of another government shutdown due to a funding impasse in Congress, as reported by the New York Times. The disagreement centered on reining in the Trump administration's hard-line immigration enforcement tactics. The hardships faced by employees working without pay would largely go unnoticed by the public, with the exception of those who check IDs, scan baggage, and perform other security tasks at U.S. airports. Several previous government shutdowns ended when the TSA workforce began to experience difficulties.
In a separate incident, the New York Times reported on the shooting of Julio C. Sosa-Celis by an immigration agent in Minneapolis. The Trump administration initially presented a version of events that demonized the wounded man, but the official account later shifted and eventually unraveled.
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