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Nadella wants us to think of AI as a human helper instead of a slop-generating job killer. New data for 2026 indicates he could be right
Readers respond to Rebecca Mead’s Profile of Stephen Fry and Rivka Galchen’s piece about geothermal energy
DAVOS, Switzerland -- BlackRock CEO Larry Fink will open the World Economic Forum with a blunt acknowledgment that Davos — and the economic system it represents — is facing a crisis of legitimacy. Why it matters: As thousands of executives and global leaders descend on the Swiss Alps for a week of cocktails and canapés, WEF's interim co-chair will warn that the prosperity they celebrate has left too many people behind. Outside of the United Nations, this year's conference marks "the largest gathering of global leadership of the post-COVID era," Fink will say in his opening remarks Tuesday."But now for the harder question," he'll add. "Will anyone outside this room care?" The big picture: Fink, who inherits the mantle of "mayor of Davos" from WEF founder Klaus Schwab, is casting this year's forum as an elite gathering struggling for relevance in an age of populism and deep institutional distrust. "Many of the people most affected by what we talk about here will never come to this conference," Fink will acknowledge."Prosperity isn't just growth in the aggregate. It can't be measured by GDP or the market caps of the world's largest companies alone. It has to be judged by how many people can see it, touch it, and build a future on it." Between the lines: Fink believes the AI revolution — a theme of virtually every pavilion on the Davos promenade — will pose the ultimate test of whether capitalism can deliver prosperity beyond its traditional winners. "Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, more wealth has been created than in all prior human history combined," the world's most powerful asset manager will say. Most of it has accrued to the kinds of people who attend Davos."Now AI threatens to replay the same pattern," Fink will warn. "If AI does to white-collar work what globalization did to blue-collar, we need to confront that directly." What to watch: Fink's remarks set the stage for a week in which Davos' elite consensus will be tested by populist politics — including Pr
The article examines how former President Trump's policies and rhetoric contributed to the immigration challenges and excesses experienced during his administration, shaping current debates on the issue.
Data: The Washington Post; Note: County level data unavailable for Delaware, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, West Virginia and Wyoming; Map: Jacque Schrag/Axios The battle against infectious diseases like the flu and measles has taken a hit with sinking vaccination rates for children in many parts of the U.S., per new data collected and analyzed by the Washington Post. The big picture: Vaccination rates for school-age children have plunged in hundreds of counties as chaos reigns over vaccination schedules, setting the stage for a potentially grim 2026. The new figures offer stark evidence of the extent of the backlash that began during the pandemic against public health mandates. Catch up quick: Plunging vaccination rates contributed to a spike in measles cases, and set the U.S. up to to lose its coveted <a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/12/09/measles-outbreak-symptoms-elimination-
Raising the Bastions The Swiss theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar is a figure at once admired and scorned in U.S. Catholicism. An ostensible “radical” before the Second Vatican Council, his postconciliar reputation has long invited the suspicions of liberal Catholics and the cautious, sometimes grudging respect of conservatives. Many theologians are deeply ambivalent about him. The surface of Balthasar’s texts seems to take different shapes depending on the light in which they’re read. It’s no...
A test discussion exploring different perspectives on climate action and environmental policy. This is sample data for testing the consensus clustering system.
A Dangerous Distraction For many critics of the Trump administration’s ever more violent and indiscriminate campaign of mass deportation, one of its most disturbing features has been the increased penchant of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers for hiding their faces during raids. Some have maintained that the proliferation of balaclava-clad ICE agents, who call to mind the “secret police” of totalitarian states, is yet another warning sign that the United States is descending ...
Hundreds of protesters are believed to have been killed or injured, and many more detained