Weekly Intel - 2026-01-24

This week's developments highlight both the growing pains of the autonomous vehicle market and emerging cybersecurity threats, while broader economic shifts suggest we're entering a period of significant change in how technology companies approach monetization and global markets.

De-dollarization: Is the US dollar losing its dominance? (2025). The U.S. dollar's grip on global commodity markets is weakening as major trading partners shift toward alternative currencies. Russia's oil exports are now priced in the local currencies of buyers like India, China, and Turkey, while Saudi Arabia is considering yuan-denominated futures for oil pricing, marking a significant change in international trade patterns that business leaders should monitor for its impact on currency risk management and global payment systems.

Tesla kills Autopilot, locks lane-keeping behind $99/month fee. Tesla has discontinued its basic Autopilot driver assistance feature and moved all automated driving capabilities into its Full Self-Driving (FSD) subscription service, which will cost $99 per month. This strategic shift comes as Tesla faces regulatory pressure in California over potentially misleading marketing of its autonomous driving features, while also representing a major push toward recurring revenue streams that could significantly impact the company's business model and the broader automotive industry's approach to software features.

Satya Nadella: "We need to find something useful for AI." Speaking at the World Economic Forum, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella warned that AI must deliver tangible societal benefits to justify its substantial energy consumption. He emphasized that public support for AI will erode unless it improves outcomes in healthcare, education, and business efficiency across both public and private sectors.

Anthropic Economic Index report: economic primitives. Anthropic's latest economic report analyzes anonymized Claude usage data across five key dimensions: user skills, task complexity, AI autonomy, success rates, and use contexts. By examining these fundamental metrics just before the Opus 4.5 release, the report reveals significant geographic differences in AI adoption patterns and provides concrete data to help business leaders better understand AI's current capabilities and economic impact.

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Poland's energy grid was targeted by never-before-seen wiper malware. Russian state hackers attempted to disrupt Poland's electric grid in December using new wiper malware designed to destroy operational data and servers. While the attack targeted communications between renewable installations and power distribution operators, it failed to disrupt electricity delivery, highlighting both the growing sophistication of state-sponsored cyber threats and the critical importance of robust grid security measures.

Microsoft gave FBI a set of BitLocker encryption keys to unlock suspects' laptops. Microsoft provided the FBI with BitLocker recovery keys to decrypt three laptops during a fraud investigation, highlighting a significant privacy and security consideration for businesses using Windows devices. This case reveals that Microsoft can access BitLocker encryption keys stored in its cloud by default, allowing both the company and law enforcement to potentially decrypt data on any Windows device, even when users believe their information is securely encrypted.

EU–INC – A new pan-European legal entity proposes a unified legal structure that would allow European startups to operate seamlessly across EU member states through a single corporate entity, standardized investment documents, and EU-wide stock options. This initiative, already under discussion in Brussels, aims to solve a critical challenge faced by European startups: the regulatory fragmentation that makes cross-border expansion and fundraising more complex than in markets like the United States. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has highlighted this as a priority, signaling serious political backing for the reform.

In Europe, wind and solar overtake fossil fuels. Wind and solar power generated 30% of the EU's electricity in 2023, surpassing fossil fuels (29%) for the first time, according to analysis from London-based think tank Ember. This milestone signals a fundamental shift in Europe's energy landscape, with solar growing faster than any other power source and coal use declining sharply across the continent—a trend business leaders should watch as it reflects both changing energy economics and regulatory priorities.

Your brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of cognitive debt when using an AI assistant. MIT researchers found that people who rely on AI assistants like ChatGPT for writing tasks show reduced brain activity and weaker cognitive engagement compared to those who write independently or use search engines. This finding has significant implications for workplace productivity and learning: while AI tools may increase short-term output, they could diminish employees' critical thinking skills and creative capabilities over time if used without careful consideration.

Claude's new constitution outlines Anthropic's core values and behavioral guidelines for their AI model, Claude, released under Creative Commons for public use. This document serves as both a training framework and a public statement of principles, helping business leaders understand how Claude makes decisions and processes information. The release marks a significant step toward transparency in AI development, giving organizations insight into the ethical framework governing one of the leading AI assistants.

That's what I'm watching. What caught your attention this week?

-Eric