Musk to make public a new algorithm on X
San Francisco — Elon Musk said on Saturday that social media platform X will open to the public its new algorithm, including all code for organic and advertising post recommendations, in seven days.
“This will be repeated every four weeks, with comprehensive developer notes, to help you understand what changed,” he said in his X post. Earlier this week, the European Commission decided to extend a retention order sent to X last year, which related to algorithms and dissemination of illegal content, prolonging it to the end of 2026, spokesperson Thomas Regnier said on Thursday.
In July 2025, Paris prosecutors investigated the social media platform for suspected algorithmic bias and fraudulent data extraction, which Musk’s X called a “politically motivated criminal investigation” that threatens its users’ free speech.
Last month, the EU levied a €120m fine on X, with regulators saying the company breached its transparency obligations under the bloc’s Digital Services Act. Reuters
FCC approves 7,500 more Starlink satellites
Washington — The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said on Friday it has approved SpaceX’s request to deploy another 7,500 second-generation Starlink satellites as it works to boost internet service worldwide.
The FCC said Elon Musk’s SpaceX can now operate an additional 7,500 Gen2 Starlink satellites, bringing the total to 15,000 satellites worldwide. The FCC is also allowing SpaceX to upgrade the satellites and operate across five frequencies and is waiving previous requirements that prevented overlapping coverage and enhanced capacity. Reuters
European Commission may reclassify WhatsApp
Brussels — The European Commission is considering recategorising Meta’s WhatsApp to make it more responsible for tackling illegal and harmful content, a spokesperson said on Friday.
The commission is actively considering designating WhatsApp as a “very large platform“, which would increase its legal responsibilities to address damaging content, after it published a user number in February 2025 above the threshold for application of the Digital Services Act(DSA).
“I wouldn’t exclude a future designation,” spokesperson Thomas Regnier told reporters.
The commission intends to separate private messaging, which does not fall under the scope of the DSA, from open channels, which act more as a social media platform, he added. Reuters
SEC dismisses lawsuit against former Rio Tinto CFO
New York — The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Friday dismissed its lawsuit against a former Rio Tinto CFO ending a long-running fraud case over a bad investment in a Mozambique coal project by one of the world’s largest mining companies.
In a Manhattan federal court filing, the SEC said it was dismissing its civil case against Guy Elliott “in the exercise of its discretion,” without addressing the merits of its remaining claims. Friday’s dismissal ends a more than eight-year-old case in which Rio Tinto agreed to pay a $28m civil fine and former CEO Tom Albanese accepted a $50,000 fine, both in 2023.
Elliott denied wrongdoing. In a joint statement, his lawyers called the dismissal “a complete defence victory.”
In its October 2017 complaint, the SEC accused Rio Tinto of deceiving investors about the value of Rio Tinto Coal Mozambique, which the Anglo-Australian company bought in 2011 for $3.7bn through a takeover of the former Riversdale Mining. Reuters
Chipmakers drive S&P 500 to new high
New York — The S&P 500 climbed to a record high on Friday, lifted by a rally in Broadcom and other chipmakers, while a weaker-than-expected jobs report did little to alter expectations of interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve this year.
Wall Street’s three main indices were on track for gains in 2026’s first full week of trading, fuelled by increases in materials, industrials and other sectors that have lagged technology stocks in recent years.
A labour department report showed US employment growth slowed more than expected in December, but a decline in the unemployment rate to 4.4% suggested the labour market was not rapidly deteriorating.
Chip stocks rallied, with the PHLX semiconductor index jumping 2.6% to just short of a record high.
Lam Research rallied 8% to $217 after Mizuho raised its price target on the chip manufacturing toolmaker to $220 from $200. Broadcom rose 3.7%, lifting the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. Reuters
Forgent Power Solutions revenue soars ahead of IPO
Bengaluru — Electrical equipment maker Forgent Power Solutions reported an 83.9% surge in quarterly revenue in its filing for a US initial public offering (IPO) on Friday as more issuers seek to gauge investor interest early this year.
IPOs are likely to gain momentum in 2026 as expected interest rate cuts bolster investor confidence and appetite for risk.
A filing now also makes sense because market attention later in the year is likely to shift to several larger, highly expected IPOs, making early visibility an advantage, said Kat Liu, vice-president at IPOX.
“Industry peers such as Vertiv have performed very well, which may also provide a constructive backdrop,” she said. Reuters
