A new social media platform called Moltbook, designed for AI agents only, is raising concerns online, including from tech billionaire Elon Musk. Moltbook, a project from Peter Steinberger, allows for AI agents to interact with each other without any human prompting. The machines can create posts, comment, and interact with one another, while humans can only
EPA's reversal of the formal 2009 scientific finding that greenhouse gases threaten humans looks slated to land this week, per the WSJ, other reports, and people tracking the move. Why it matters: Rescinding the "endangerment finding" is the Trump administration's most direct effort yet to rip out climate regulations root and branch — and make it harder for a successor to impose new ones. The big picture: EPA did not confirm the timing, but pointed to Administrator Lee Zeldin's comments in the WSJ piece. "This amounts to the largest act of deregulation in the history of the United States," Zeldin tells the paper. "The final rule will be published once it has completed interagency review and been signed by the Administrator," EPA told Axios on Tuesday. The rule is certain to draw litigation that will play out over years. State of play: The agency is planning to remove the finding with respect to motor vehicle emissions specifically. But that could bring challenges to regulation of emissions from power plants, oil and gas sites, and beyond. What we're watching: The White House Office of Management and Budget website still lists the rule as under review. Meetings with outside parties looking to influence the plan are scheduled through Thursday, but that's not proof of anything
Data: Gallup; Note: Margin of error ranges between +/- 2.4 and 4.7 percentage points; Chart: Axios Visuals Americans say the country's biggest problem right now is politics, per a new global Gallup survey out Wednesday. Why it matters: Only eight other countries — out of 107 — ranked politics first, a sign of heightened political polarization and overall dissatisfaction among Americans. The only country with a statistically significant higher share identifying politics at the top was Taiwan. It's under mounting political pressure from China, which doesn't consider it a country. How it works: Gallup polled a nationally representative sample of about 1,000 people age 15 and older in each of 107 countries from March - October 2025. It asked: "According to you, what is the most important problem your country is facing currently?" Respondents wrote in answers, and Gallup grouped them into buckets. By the numbers: The answer was nearly the same everywhere: The economy was identified by a median of 23% of adults across these countries — more than double the share naming work, politics or safety, the next most common subjects. Those under 35 were more likely to identify the economy as a top concern — a sign that younger generations even in high-income countries feel the economy is failing them. The big picture: Separate polling from Gallup finds that Americans have been more likely to name government as the country's top problem for the past decade. But it's not clear exactly what problem with politics or government all Americans are worried about.For Democrats, concerns are largely centered around President Trump. Republicans are more focused on distrust of Democrats, anger at corruption and anxiety about the country's place in the world. Yes, but: People in highly democratic countries are more comfortable criticizing their governments, says Benedict Vigers, senior global news writer at Gallup. Zoom out: While Gallup has been asking Americans some version of this question
The White House and Senate Democrats have struck a deal on funding on the eve of a partial government shutdown. The deal includes separating funding for the Department of Homeland Security from five other appropriations bills, all previously approved by the House, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) office told CNN. The passage of the
Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) vowed to continue his campaign against the immigration detention of children after picking up 5-year-old Liam Ramos from an ICE facility and escorting him back to Minnesota Sunday. Why it matters: After Ramos' release, Democrats are now focusing on other children that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has detained and the condition of detention centers. There's no direct data publicly available on the number of children in immigration custody, but nonprofit news outlet the Marshall Project's analysis in December found at least 3,800 children under age 18 had been detained in 2025 since President Trump took office for a second time.Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Axios Sunday the Trump administration "is committed to restoring the rule of law and common sense to our immigration system, and will continue to fight for the arrest, detention, and removal of aliens who have no right to be in this country." Driving the news: Castro said on Bluesky he picked Liam and his father, Adrian Ramos, up from a detention facility in Dilley, Texas, on Saturday night and escorted them back to Minnesota Sunday morning. He had called for the release of the 5-year-old and other detained kids and vowed Sunday he "won't stop until all children and families are home." Screenshot: Rep. Joaquin Castro/Bluesky Zoom in: Minnesota Tim Walz (D) said on Bluesky it shouldn't take a court order . "There are no beds, no real blankets, minimal food, extremely cold temperatures. People are in locked cells and leg shackles," she said."Everything I saw showed me this operation is chaotic, disorganized, ineffective and dangerous," Morrison alleged."I was also able to speak with two of the women who were being held there, and both of them shared harrowing experiences," she said."Families are being ripped apart. People aren't being treated with the dignity that every human being deserves. ICE is not going after the worst of the worst
Feb 7 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday in Washington, where they will discuss negotiations with Iran, Netanyahu's office said on Saturday. Iranian and U.S. officials held indirect nuclear talks in the Omani capital Muscat on Friday. Both sides said more talks were expected to be held again soon
Feb 7 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday in Washington, where they will discuss negotiations with Iran, Netanyahu's office said on Saturday. Iranian and U.S. officials held indirect nuclear talks in the Omani capital Muscat on Friday. Both sides said more talks were expected to be held again soon
(Refiles to fix hyperlinks) By Tuvan Gumrukcu DUBAI, Feb 4 - The U.S. and Iran are due to hold talks in Oman on Friday after Tehran requested a change of venue to limit negotiations to its nuclear programme, a regional official said, with a build-up of U.S. forces in the Middle East raising fears of a confrontation