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North Korea appears to have sent at least 3,000 more soldiers to Russia early this year, South Korea’s military said Thursday, demonstrating Pyongyang’s continued support for Moscow’s war on Ukraine as world leaders push for an end to the three-year conflict.

The reinforcements, sent in January and February, add to the roughly 11,000 troops North Korea has sent to Russia so far, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. About 4,000 of them have been killed or injured in combat, according to Seoul.

Pyongyang has also sent a “significant amount” of short-range ballistic missiles and about 220 pieces of 170-millimeter self-propelled howitzers and 240-millimeter multiple rocket launchers, South Korea said. It said the North’s contributions are “expected to increase according to the situation.”

News of North Korea’s continued support of Russia’s incursion comes as European leaders and allies are set to meet in Paris Thursday to discuss support for Ukraine and long-term stability in the region, amid shaky efforts by the White House to broker a ceasefire.

Following talks in Saudi Arabia this week, the US said both Russia and Ukraine agreed to stop using force in the Black Sea and uphold a previously announced pause on attacks against energy infrastructure. But Russia introduced some far-reaching conditions for signing up to the partial truce, which falls far short of a 30-day full ceasefire initially proposed by the White House.

The Kremlin said it would only implement the agreements once sanctions on its banks and exports are lifted, showing the significant gulf in expectations between the negotiating parties.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, have been deepening security ties since they signed a landmark defense pact last year and pledged to use all available means to provide immediate military assistance in the event the other is attacked.

Putin’s top security adviser Sergei Shoigu met with Kim last week in Pyongyang, where he conveyed Putin’s “warmest wishes and greetings,” Russian state-run news agency TASS reported.

“He pays the utmost attention to the implementation of agreements reached with you,” Shoigu told Kim, according to TASS.

Deepening partnership

The United States has warned that Russia may be close to sharing advanced space and satellite technology with North Korea, on top of military equipment and training it is already providing, in exchange for North Korean support for the war in Ukraine.

North Korean troops had been deployed to the Russian region of Kursk to repel Ukraine’s incursion since at least November. But they withdrew from the front lines in January after reports of mass casualties, Ukrainian officials said.

South Korean lawmaker Yoo Yong-won, who visited Ukraine in late February, said about 400 North Korean soldiers in Russia had been killed and about 3,600 injured as of February 26.

Since the war began, North Korea has also sent thousands of shipping containers of munitions or munitions-related material to Russia, and Moscow’s forces have launched North Korea-made missiles on Ukraine, according to US officials.

North Korean medical facilities have also treated hundreds of Russian soldiers injured in Ukraine, Moscow’s ambassador to Pyongyang said in an interview with state-run outlet Rossiyskaya Gazeta in February.

Meanwhile, Russia supplies North Korea with coal, food and medicine, Ambassador Alexander Matsegora told the outlet.

He also said children of Russian troops killed in Ukraine had vacationed in North Korea last summer, and Russia and North Korea are developing student exchanges.

North Korean drones

South Korean officials have echoed US concerns that the deepening partnership between Russia and North Korea could facilitate technology transfers to the Kim regime.

This week, Kim oversaw a test of new AI-powered attack drones, North Korean state-run news agency KCNA reported, and directed that they be further developed “in keeping with the trend of modern warfare.”

Pyongyang also unveiled a new reconnaissance drone that could have partly come from Russia, South Korea’s military said Thursday.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesman Lee Seong-jun said that the aircraft model had been modified from an original North Korean plane, but the “internal equipment and such parts could be related to Russia.”

Drones have become a central weapon in the fighting between Russia and Ukraine. The number of Russian drone attacks on Ukraine skyrocketed from just 379 in May 2024 to nearly 2,500 in November.

Amid ongoing talks of a ceasefire, Ukraine and Russia have continued to exchange attacks. Late Wednesday, Russian forces launched a massive drone attack on the northeastern city of Kharkiv, injuring at least nine people and damaging civilian infrastructure, Ukrainian authorities said.

“No country should have to go through this,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram following the attack.

In an interview with Newsmax Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said he believes Russia wants to end the war, but “it could be they’re dragging their feet.”

This post appeared first on cnn.com

In a small village in the Hebron hills of the occupied West Bank, Hamdan Ballal stood outside his house in a track suit with a black eye.

He held the hand of his 18-month-old daughter, who stood in a pool of his dried blood.

Things looked quite different for the award-winning director just weeks ago. He had flown to Los Angeles to accept an Oscar for the film, “No Other Land,” a documentary he co-directed about the violence and forced displacement of Palestinian villagers for illegal Israeli settlements in those same hills.

Ballal was attacked by a mob of Israeli settlers in front of his home, in the village of Susya on Monday evening.

“I thought they would kill me,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ballal said, Israeli soldiers soon arrived outside his home, where they shot live rounds into the air.

He said one soldier pushed his rifle into his leg and told him, “’After (shooting) in the air, I will put the shot in your body.’”

After the attack, Ballal and two other Palestinians were taken away by Israeli soldiers and detained in a military facility in the settlement of Kiryat Arba, where he said he was handcuffed, blindfolded and beaten.

The Israeli military called Ballal’s allegations that he was beaten in custody “baseless.”

Attacks on Palestinian farmers and activists in the occupied West Bank are not new.

However, the ferocity of the attack – and Ballal’s subsequent detention – made him feel that the settlers – and the Israeli military – were taking revenge for their film and its international reach.

“At that moment, I thought because of my Oscar, they wanted to kill me,” he said.

In detention, Ballal, who doesn’t speak Hebrew, said he heard the soldiers laughing when they said his name and the word “Oscar.”

The Israeli military said the Palestinian detainees were given medical treatment and “handcuffed in accordance with operational protocol.”

They accused Ballal of throwing stones at soldiers and said that he had been detained on suspicion of rock hurling, property damage, and endangering regional security.

“They change everything,” Ballal said of the military’s interpretation of the events.

“Why did the settlers come here to my house? To say hi to me? Or to give me flowers? No, they came here to attack, to kill, to push you to leave your home,” he said, adding that many Palestinian villagers eventually leave their homes after years of sustained violence.

“When they have the law in their hand, they can do whatever they want,” Ballal said of the settlers, underscoring what multiple human rights organizations have said about Israel’s role in backing settler violence – and settler impunity.

Amnesty International has called settler violence “part of a decades long state-backed campaign to dispossess, displace and oppress Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, under Israel’s system of apartheid,” and that “Israeli forces have a track record of enabling settler violence.”

Behind his house, Ballal looked to his fields, where a perimeter of settler outposts were visible. He said that his family haven’t farmed much since Israel’s war in Gaza began following Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel.

“We didn’t plow it after October 7 because of the danger from the settlers,” he said.

Settler outposts are often established by Israeli settlers on hilltops with a few caravans and sometimes livestock to mark their claim.

Such land grabs go hand-in-hand with an escalation in violence by Israeli security forces and settlers against Palestinians, paving the way for settlement expansion, which is documented in Ballal’s film.

That violence has become even worse since the re-election of US President Donald Trump, a staunch supporter of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government’s settlement expansion policy in the West Bank, activists say.

In early January, Trump rescinded Biden-era sanctions on far-right settler groups and individuals accused of involvement in violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. And during his first term, Trump abandoned the long-held position that Israeli settlement expansion in occupied Palestinian territories are illegal, contrary to most international law.

From January 2024 to 2025, at least 1,420 incidents of settler violence in the occupied West Bank were recorded, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Those incidents include settlers reportedly killing five Palestinians, including a child, and injuring 360 others, including 35 children, according to OCHA.

More than 26,100 Palestinian-owned trees – which are vital to the local economy – were also vandalized in that period, OCHA said.

On Sunday, Netanyahu’s cabinet approved a plan to separate and legalize 13 settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank, a move that his far-right finance minister Bezalel Smotrich hailed as a move toward what he called “actual sovereignty” in the West Bank.

For Ballal, the assault – and Netanyahu’s moves – are even more of a reason to continue to fight for his community.

“I brought myself in this circle (of activism and filmmaking) because of my community, my villages – I need justice for them. Because of that, we made this movie, to bring attention to what’s happening in this area and what is happening there.”

Later in the afternoon, settlers brought their cows and sheep to graze on the farm next to Ballal’s land.

The settlers were accompanied by Israeli soldiers.

Ballal said that no amount of intimidation – from settlers or from the government – will push him from his home.

Standing under the sun, he added: “No other home. No other land.”

This post appeared first on cnn.com

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) announced it had terminated 113 contracts valued at $4.7 billion Tuesday, including a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) consulting contract for Peru’s climate change activities.

‘[Tuesday] agencies terminated 113 wasteful contracts with a ceiling value of $4.7B and savings of $3.3B, including a $145K USDA consulting contract for ‘Peru climate change activities,” the department posted on X.

DOGE also announced the Department of Labor had canceled $577 million in ‘America Last’ grants, totaling $237 million in savings.

The funding that was canceled included $10 million for ‘gender equity in the Mexican workplace,’ $12.2 million for ‘worker empowerment in South America’ and $6.25 million for ‘improving respect for workers’ rights in agricultural supply chains’ in the countries of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Also eliminated was $5 million to elevate women’s participation in the workplace in West Africa, $4.3 million to assist foreign migrant workers in Malaysia, $3 million to enhance Social Security access and worker protection for internal migrant workers in Bangladesh and $3 million for safe and inclusive work environments in the southern African country of Lesotho.

DOGE, led by Elon Musk, is a temporary organization within the White House created via executive order earlier this year.

President Donald Trump tasked the organization with optimizing the federal government, streamlining operations and slashing spending and gave the agency 18 months to do it.

The department has canceled numerous diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives at federal agencies, consulting contracts, leases for underused federal buildings and duplicate agencies and programs.

As of March 26, DOGE claims on its site it has saved Americans $130 billion, or $807.45 per taxpayer.

DOGE critics contend the organization has too much access to federal systems and should not be permitted to cancel federal contracts or make cuts to various agencies.

Fox News Digital’s Eric Revell and Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Tesla made an appearance on Capitol Hill Wednesday where the company was held up as one of several key American manufacturers during a bipartisan event on U.S.-made robotics.

Two Tesla humanoid robots were at the event, with onlookers crowding the machines as they struck various poses. 

They waved their arms at times, and held up hands with two fingers aloft on each in a Richard Nixon-like pose. At one point, a robot’s arm swung out and hit the rope dividing it from the crowd, briefly sending a security guard scrambling to fix it.

Outside of Washington, however, Tesla car dealerships have been targeted by progressive activists across the country. The automaker and tech company is getting singled out for acts of vandalism over its founder, Elon Musk, and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) efforts in the Trump administration.

House select committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich., suggested Tesla’s appearance at the bipartisan event showed Congress rising above partisanship.

‘The competition is with China, and we are united in winning that competition,’ Moolenaar told Fox News Digital at the event. 

He called Telsa ‘innovative,’ adding, ‘All the companies here have shown tremendous ingenuity, and we were pleased to highlight all of their efforts.’

The event featured bots from other events, including so-called ‘robot dogs,’ officially known as ‘Spot the Agile Mobile Robot’ by Boston Dynamics, and a similar machine by Ghost Robotics.

Moolenaar said Spot stood out to him in particular, as well as Tesla’s two robot humanoids that were present at the event.

‘It’s amazing technology, and what struck me was a lot of the same technology that’s in a vehicle is used in these humanoid robots,’ he said.

Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., another member of the committee, said the Tesla robots could have ‘unbelievable applications.’

‘Maybe in agriculture — a lot of our farmers are going out of business, can’t compete labor-wise, right? You get a couple of robots that can actually do very detailed farm work and drive the labor costs down, we’ll save the American farmer,’ Gimenez said.

He also accused Democrats outside the event of having their ‘hair on fire’ over Musk and criticized Tesla critics who have been vandalizing its car dealerships.

‘Some people have taken things to an extreme,’ Gimenez said. 

‘There is no need for putting down something that is advancing American technology and is going to be beneficial for America.’

The Trump administration has recently made moves to crack down on those vandals, with President Donald Trump himself threatening to jail protesters. The FBI, meanwhile, has commissioned a task force to look into the matter.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

CIA Director John Ratcliffe blasted a California Democrat Wednesday for asking him ‘whether Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth had been drinking before he leaked classified information’ in a Signal chat group, calling his words an ‘offensive line of questioning.’ 

Rep. Jimmy Gomez sparked the testy exchange during a House Intelligence Committee hearing on worldwide threats, where Ratcliffe appeared alongside Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and other top Trump administration officials. 

‘The main person who was involved in this thread that a lot of people want to talk to is, Secretary of Defense Hegseth. And a lot of questions were brought up regarding his drinking habits in his confirmation hearing. To your knowledge, do you know whether Pete Hegseth had been drinking before he leaked classified information?’ Gomez asked Gabbard, to which she responded, ‘I don’t have any knowledge of Secretary Hegseth’s personal habits.’ 

When Gomez then asked Ratcliffe the same question, telling him it was either a ‘yes or no’ answer, Ratcliffe fired back, saying ‘You know, no. I’m going to answer that. I think that’s an offensive line of questioning.’ 

‘The answer is no. I find it interesting…’ Ratcliffe continued before Gomez began shouting ‘Hey, I yield back, this is my time, director! Director!’ 

‘You asked me a question, do you want an answer?’ Ratcliffe said. ‘You don’t want to focus on the good work that the CIA is doing, that the intelligence community…’ 

‘Director, I reclaim my time. Director, I reclaim my time,’ Gomez then said. ‘I have huge respect for the CIA, huge respect for men and women in uniform. But this was a question that’s on the top of the minds of every American, right?’ 

‘He stood in front of a podium in Europe holding a drink,’ Gomez then claimed. 

‘Was his performance compromised because of a successful strike?… you think he should accept responsibility for a successful strike to make Americans safer?’ Ratcliffe started saying as Gomez again interrupted him in an attempt to get the situation under control. 

Rep. Ben Cline, R-Va., followed Gomez’s questioning and allowed Ratcliffe to speak without interruption. 

‘I appreciate that, Congressman. I guess, you know, just a general reflection here again, that, for the last two days, members of the intelligence community have been asking questions about a Signal messaging group and not asking questions — from Democrats either in the Senate or the House — on China, Russia, Iran and the real threats, that are going on the United States,’ the CIA director said.  

‘No one’s asked me about my second day on the job here, where I lit the fuse that led to a foreign government participating with us to capture one of the senior planners of the Abbey gate bombing that killed 13 Americans,’ he added, ‘But instead, we’re getting questions about whether or not someone has drinking habits.’ 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Republicans on Capitol Hill are fuming that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) general counsel who shut down President Donald Trump’s request to supersede California’s aggressive gas emissions laws once managed diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives for the agency. 

Republicans have dismissed the decision penned by GAO General Counsel Edda Emmanuelli Perez, because she once served as the agency’s ‘Managing Director of Opportunity and Inclusiveness (O&I).’ According to the GAO’s official website, the O&I office includes advising senior staff on equal employment opportunities and promoting a ‘work environment that is fair, unbiased and inclusive.’

‘A far-left radical whose main job is pushing DEI nonsense is trying to undermine American prosperity. What a surprise. These bad actors should be removed from government swiftly,’ Sen. Jim Banks, R-Indiana., told Fox News Digital in a statement. 

While some Republicans discredit Emmanuelli Perez’s decision as ‘DEI nonsense,’ other Republicans denied the ‘democratic legitimacy’ of banning California’s gas vehicles without a vote. Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., told Fox News Digital the House will move forward with a Congressional Review Act resolution regardless of the GAO decision. 

‘The GAO’s conclusion that California can ban 95 percent of the state’s cars, without a vote of the Legislature and with no recourse from Congress, defies basic notions of democratic legitimacy and common sense. We will be moving forward with our Congressional Review Act resolution to reverse this insane ban and restore choice for California consumers,’ Kiley said in a statement. 

Emmanuelli Perez shut down any insinuation from Republicans that she ruled independently on the case, telling Fox News Digital in a statement that the GAO’s decisions are ‘institutional, not individually authored, products.’

‘In response to a Congressional request, we summarized relevant, established case law related to the Congressional Review Act and waivers under the Clean Air Act. We stand behind our work, as all GAO products go through our extensive quality assurance process,’ Emmanuelli Perez said.

The GAO released its decision earlier this month in response to a request from Congress on whether EPA waivers that grant California permission to enforce its 2035 gas car ban are subject to the Congressional Review Act (CRA). 

The GAO determined that California’s EPA waiver is not subject to the CRA, so Congress cannot use the CRA to overturn California’s aggressive zero-emission goals. Kiley, however, has committed to moving forward with the CRA despite the GAO’s ruling. 

Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced last month the creation of a National Energy Dominance Council, in which the EPA will send President Joe Biden-era EPA rules to Congress for review. Those Biden-era EPA waivers included ‘allowing California to preempt federal car and truck standards promulgated by EPA and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.’

The Trump administration announced the EPA waiver transmitted to Congress included ‘California’s Advanced Clean Cars II, Advanced Clean Trucks, and Omnibus NOx rules,’ arguing the waivers on trucks increased the cost of vehicles, goods, and therefore, the cost of living for Americans.  

‘The Biden Administration failed to send rules on California’s waivers to Congress, preventing Members of Congress from deciding on extremely consequential actions that have massive impacts and costs across the entire United States. The Trump EPA is transparently correcting this wrong and rightly following the rule of law,’ Zeldin said alongside the president in the Oval Office. 

Following Zeldin and Trump’s announcement, Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., Alex Padilla, D-Calif., and Adam Schiff, D-Calif., requested a legal decision from the GAO on whether the EPA’s decision to grant California waivers under the Clean Air Act could be overturned using the CRA. 

The Democratic senators championed the GAO’s ruling and slammed the Trump administration for trying to eliminate the ‘California emission standards [that] have protected generations of Americans against fossil fuel emissions.’

‘By ignoring decades of precedent and the plain text of the Congressional Review Act, the Trump EPA is attempting to sell out our nation’s public health and environmental protections to the same polluting industries that bankrolled much of Trump’s campaign,’ the senators said following the GAO’s decision. 

However, Trump campaigned on eliminating such regulations, and on his first day back in the White House, the president signed an executive order ‘unleashing American energy.’ The executive order eliminated the ‘electric vehicle (EV) mandate’ to promote consumer choice. While the litigation is tied up in the congressional branch, with the stroke of a pen on day one, Trump moved to terminate ‘state emissions waivers that function to limit sales of gasoline-powered automobiles.’        

Trump also campaigned on a day-one commitment to eliminating DEI in the federal government. On his Inauguration Day, Trump signed an executive order ‘ending radical and wasteful government DEI programs and referencing,’ which rolled back Biden-era DEI policies and initiatives in the federal government. 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

A federal judge denied President Donald Trump’s administration’s efforts to ban transgender people from joining the military, which was set to go into effect Friday.

The Department of Justice has since filed a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeal for the District of Columbia.

Washington, D.C.-based U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes, a Biden appointee, on Wednesday, denied the government’s motion to dissolve her order that prevents the military from denying transgender people the ability to enlist in the military.

Reyes presided over a hearing on March 21, when she requested the Department of Defense (DOD) delay its original March 26 deadline to enact the policy.

On March 21, the defendants in the suit, who include Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, filed a motion to dissolve the injunction blocking the Pentagon’s ban. The filing argued that the policy is not an overarching ban but instead ‘turns on gender dysphoria – a medical condition – and does not discriminate against trans-identifying persons as a class.’

The Trump administration further requested that, if the motion to dissolve is denied, the court should stay the preliminary injunction pending appeal.

The government cited new guidance issued March 21 that it expected to enact the policy if not for the ongoing litigation. The guidance clarified that ‘the phrase ‘exhibit symptoms consistent with gender dysphoria’’ solely applies to ”individuals who exhibit such symptoms as would be sufficient to constitute a diagnosis.”

Reyes said she wanted to allow more time for the appeals process. She also said she had previously allowed plenty of time to appeal her earlier opinion blocking the ban from going into effect.

On Wednesday, Reyes acknowledged that Military Department Identification Guidance (MIDI Guidance) is new, but the argument presented by the defense is not.

‘Defendants re-emphasize their ‘consistent position that the [Hegseth] Policy is concerned with the military readiness, deployability, and costs associated with a medical condition,’’ the judge wrote. ‘Regulating gender dysphoria is no different than regulating bipolar disorder, eating disorders, or suicidality. The Military Ban regulates a medical condition, they insist, not people. And therein lies the problem.

‘Gender dysphoria is not like other medical conditions, something Defendants well know,’ Reyes continued. ‘It affects only one group of people: all persons with gender dysphoria are transgender and only transgender persons experience gender dysphoria.’

She later noted that the opinion has generated a heated public debate, and, as the court predicted, the Trump administration will appeal.

‘This is all to the good,’ Reyes said. ‘But let’s recall that our service members make the debate and appeals possible. Their sacrifices breathe life into the phrase, ‘one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.’ The Court, again, thanks them all.’

The legal challenge comes as the Supreme Court also considers a high-profile case dealing with transgender rights. 

The issue in the case, United States vs. Skrmetti, is whether the equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same, prohibits states from allowing medical providers to deliver puberty blockers and hormones to assist with a minor’s transition to another sex.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Here’s a quick recap of the crypto landscape for Wednesday (March 26) as of 9:00 a.m. UTC.

Bitcoin and Ethereum price update

Bitcoin (BTC) is currently trading at US$87,983.18, a 0.6 percent decrease over the past 24 hours. The day’s trading range has seen a low of US$87,109.90 and a high of US$88,430.06.

Bitcoin performance, March 26, 2025.

Chart via TradingView

Bitcoin’s price performance has been influenced by GameStop’s (NYSE:GME) announcement to invest in Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset, mirroring strategies of companies like MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR).This decision initially boosted Bitcoin’s value, but the momentum was short-lived as broader market sentiments shifted.

Ethereum (ETH) is priced at US$2,065.42, garnering a 1.0 percent decrease over a 24-hour period. The cryptocurrency reached an intraday low of US$2,035.04 and a high of US$2,083.34.

Altcoin price update

  • Solana (SOL) is currently valued at US$144.49, down 1.9 percent over the past 24 hours. SOL experienced a low of US$141.70 and a high of US$147.20 on Wednesday.
  • XRP is trading at US$2.47, reflecting a 0.4 percent decrease over the past 24 hours. The cryptocurrency recorded an intraday low of US$2.43 and a high of US$2.48.
  • Sui (SUI) is priced at US$2.55, showing an 8.1 percent increase over the past 24 hours. It achieved a daily low of US$2.41 and a high of US$2.64.
  • Cardano (ADA) is trading at US$0.7679, reflecting a 0.2 percent decrease over the past 24 hours. Its lowest price on Wednesday was US$0.7406, with a high of US$0.7732.

Crypto news to know

SEC introduces four new crypto roundtables

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced four additional roundtables focusing on crypto regulation, following its first digital asset forum on March 21.

These sessions, scheduled from April to June, will cover trading, custody, tokenization, and decentralized finance (DeFi).

Led by Commissioner Hester Peirce, the SEC’s Crypto Task Force is working to establish a clearer regulatory framework under acting Chair Mark Uyeda. Notably, the agency is reconsidering enforcement actions from the previous administration and may withdraw proposed rules that expanded oversight of crypto trading platforms.

Meanwhile, the SEC will also hold a March 27 roundtable on artificial intelligence’s role in financial markets.

GameStop’s Bitcoin bet sparks meme stock rally

GameStop shares surged 11.6 percent to US$28.35 after the company announced it would add Bitcoin to its treasury reserve assets, mirroring Michael Saylor’s Strategy.

The move comes as GameStop struggles with declining brick-and-mortar sales, having pivoted toward e-commerce under CEO Ryan Cohen.

Speculation around the retailer’s crypto ambitions grew after Cohen was seen with Saylor on social media last month. Analysts warn that GameStop’s exposure to Bitcoin could introduce more volatility to its stock.

The company, however, has been aggressive in cutting costs, doubling its Q4 net income to US$131.3 million despite a 30 percent revenue drop.

North Carolina moves to allow pension fund crypto investments

North Carolina lawmakers have introduced two bills—House Bill 506 and Senate Bill 709—seeking to allow up to 5 percent of certain pension funds to be allocated to digital assets like Bitcoin and stablecoins.

The legislation proposes an independent “Investment Authority” to manage these assets, separate from the State Treasurer. This follows a national trend, with states like Indiana, Kansas, and Florida exploring similar measures, often through Bitcoin ETFs.

Internationally, pension funds in Australia and Norway have also increased their exposure to crypto-related investments.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

As the artificial intelligence (AI) market continues to grow, there are many AI stocks for investors to choose from on top exchanges like the NASDAQ, TSX and ASX.

AI technology has made strong inroads into several key industries, including logistics, manufacturing, finance, healthcare, customer service and cybersecurity.

The technology has been around for a long time, but this current wave of buzz comes after the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, a generative AI platform. This intelligent chatbot shows how quickly generative AI is advancing, and it has led to many other major tech firms entering the space with their own generative AI offerings or including AI technology into their innovative products.

On a global scale, Fortune Business Insights predicts that the AI industry will experience a compound annual growth rate of 29.2 percent between 2025 and 2032 to reach a market value of more than US$1.77 trillion.

American AI stocks

According to Tracxn Technologies, the number of US AI companies has more than doubled since 2017, with over 84,950 companies working in the sector today.

One of the major factors fueling growth in the American AI market, states Statista, is “the growing investments and partnerships among technology companies, research institutions, and governments.’

Below are three of the top US AI stocks by market cap. For more US AI stocks, check out our list of 12 generative AI stocks and 5 AI ETFs.

1. NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA)

Company Profile

Market cap: US$2.89 trillion
Share price: US$118.53

The global leader in graphics processing unit (GPU) technology, NVIDIA is designing specialized chips used to train AI and machine-learning models for laptops, workstations, mobile devices, notebooks and PCs.

The company is partnering with a number of big-name tech firms to bring various key AI products to market.

Through its partnership with Dell Technologies (NYSE:DELL), NVIDIA is developing AI applications for enterprises, such as language-based services, speech recognition and cybersecurity.

The chipmaker has also been instrumental in the buildout of Meta Platforms’ (NASDAQ:META) AI supercomputer. Called the Research SuperCluster, it reportedly uses a total of 16,000 NVIDIA GPUs.

In early 2024, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (NYSE:TSM) and NVIDIA released the world’s first multi-die chip specifically designed for AI applications: the Blackwell GPU. Blackwell’s architecture allows for the increased processing power needed to train larger and more complex AI models.

At its March GTC 2025 conference, dubbed the AI Woodstock, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang made a series of important announcements including the Blackwell Ultra AI chip and its next-generation Vera Rubin platform.

2. Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Company Profile

Market cap: US$2.88 trillion
Share price: US$386.84

Microsoft has committed billions to OpenAI, but the tech behemoth has also built its own AI solutions based on the chatbot creator’s technology: Bing AI and Copilot. OpenAI officially licensed its technologies to Microsoft in 2020.

In late May 2024, Microsoft unveiled its Copilot+ Windows PCs, its first range of AI-equipped PCs. According to the company, they are the “fastest, most intelligent Windows PCs ever built.”

After receiving criticism over security flaws, Microsoft announced in late September that it had made changes to the Copilot+ exclusive Recall software, which used AI to create screenshots of everything users do on their computers.

An update to Windows 11 in October 2024 included upgrades to the Copilot artificial intelligence platform capabilities, including the introduction of the ability to speak directly to the AI helper.

Microsoft’s moves into generative AI have translated into higher revenues for its Azure cloud computing business and a higher market capitalization — the tech giant pushed past the US$3 trillion mark in January 2024 and its managed to maintain that level up until the recent stock sell-off as a result of tariffs and trade wars by US President Donald Trump.

In January 2025, Microsoft announced an US$80 billion investment in US-based AI infrastructure, followed by the integration of AI tools into Microsoft 365.

3. Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Company Profile

Market cap: US$2.0 trillion
Share price: US$162.80

Alphabet holds court with both Microsoft and NVIDIA as part of the tech sector’s Magnificent 7, and its foray into AI has similarly brought the tech giant much success. The company has created the AI chatbot Gemini, formerly known as Bard, which is integrated into products such as its Google Suite, the Chromecast browser and the Google Pixel phone line.

Alphabet’s market cap surpassed the US$2 trillion mark in April 2024. That same month, Google introduced a custom AI chip designed for its cloud services customers. The technology uses British semiconductor company Arm Holding’s (NASDAQ:ARM) AI architecture. In the same week, Google revealed its new A3 Mega AI processor based on NVIDIA’s H100 Technology.

In September 2024, Google partnered with automaker Volkswagen (OTC Pink:VLKAF,ETR:VOW) to launch a smartphone-app-integrated AI assistant for Volkswagen drivers.

At the NVIDIA GTC 2025 conference, Alphabet and NVIDIA announced a series of AI-focused partnerships in the sectors of robotics, drug discovery and manufacturing.

Canadian AI stocks

Recognized as a world-leading AI research hub, Canada ranks eighth out of 83 countries in the Global AI Index. Since 2017, the Canadian government has invested hundreds of millions of dollars into accelerating the research and commercialization of AI technology in the country through the Pan-Canadian AI Strategy.

Research by IBM (NYSE:IBM) shows Canadian businesses are increasingly adopting AI, with 56 percent of IT professionals in large enterprises reporting that they plan to increase deployment the technology in their operations for 2025.

Below are three of the top Canadian AI stocks by market cap. For more Canadian AI stocks, take a look at our list of 5 small-cap Canadian AI stocks.

1. CGI (TSX:GIB.A)

Company Profile

Market cap: C$33.31 billion
Share price: C$141.32

Montreal-based CGI is among the world’s largest IT systems integration companies, and offers a wide range of services, from cloud migration and digital transformation to data analysis, fraud detection and even supply chain optimization. Its more than 700 clients span the retail, wholesale, consumer packaged goods and consumer services sectors worldwide.

Through a partnership with Google, CGI is leveraging the Google Cloud Platform to strengthen the capabilities of its CGI PulseAI solution, which can be integrated with existing applications and workflows.

CGI is aggressively working to expand its generative AI capabilities and client offerings. In early March 2024, the company launched Elements360 ARC-IBA, an AI powered platform for brokers and insurers to settle accounts in the UK broking industry. Later in September, CGI signed the EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act pledge to work for trustworthy and safe AI development.

The company’s AI-powered CGI DigiOps toolkit won the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) India Award 2024 for Excellence in Digital Transformation in February 2025. CGI DigiOps is used in several industries, including the energy and utilities, and retail sectors. “This award for digital transformation excellence is a testament to our commitment to delivering end-to-end AI-powered solutions to achieve meaningful outcomes for our clients,’ Rakesh Aerath, President, CGI Asia Pacific Global Delivery Centers of Excellence.

2. OpenText (TSX:OTEX)

Company Profile

Market cap: C$9.94 billion
Share price: C$37.79

Ontario-based OpenText is one of Canada’s largest software companies. The tech firm develops and sells enterprise information management software. Its portfolio includes hundreds of products in the areas of enterprise content management, digital process automation and security, plus AI and analytics tools.

OpenText serves small businesses, large enterprises and governments alike. Its AI & Analytics platform has an open architecture that enables integration with other AI services, including Google Cloud and Azure. It can leverage all types of data, including structured or unstructured data, big data and the internet of things to quickly create interactive visuals.

In January 2024, OpenText launched Cloud Editions 24.1, which includes enhancements to its OpenText Aviator portfolio.

OpenText has also been expanding its AI-powered cybersecurity offerings in recent years. In early 2025, the company launched OpenText Core Threat Detection and Response, which leverages AI-driven behavioral analytics to detect insider threats and cyberattacks.

3. Coveo Solutions (TSX:CVO)

Company Profile

Market cap: C$553.97 million
Share price: C$5.57

Headquartered in Québec City, Québec, Coveo Solutions is a software-as-a- service company that provides AI-powered relevance e-commerce and enterprise search software in Canada, the United States and internationally. Relevance in AI involves learning models that determine the relevance between search input data and the expected output.

The company’s Coveo AI-Relevance Platform is used in a broad range of industries, including high tech, healthcare, manufacturing, financial services, retail, and telecommunication. Coveo’s many strategic partners include Salesforce (NYSE:CRM), Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) and Shopify (TSX:SHOP,NYSE:SHOP).

In its fifth annual Commerce Relevance Report, Coveo found that 62 percent of 4,000 US and UK consumers surveyed responded that they are more likely to make purchases based on generative-AI-driven guidance. Drilling down on millennials, that figure rises to 68 percent.

In February, Coveo reported its financials for its fiscal Q3 2025 ended December 31, 2024, including total revenues of US$34 million compared to US$31.8 million in its fiscal Q3 2024.

In March, Coveo announced the launch of three new offerings for its customers: Coveo for Agentforce, an expanded suite of Coveo APIs and the Coveo Agentic AI Design Partner Program.

Australian AI stocks

AI investment by Australian companies is projected to increase, according to BSI’s International AI Maturity Model, making the country the second best market in the world in terms of boosting AI capabilities. BSI reports that three-quarters of Australian business leaders responding to the firm’s survey expressed the belief that failing to invest in AI would place their organizations at a competitive disadvantage.

The biggest spenders when it comes to AI in Australia are the banking industry, the federal government, professional services and retail.

Below are three of the top Australian AI stocks by market cap. For more ASX AI shares, check out our list of the 5 biggest ASX AI stocks.

1. NextDC (ASX:NXT)

Company Profile

Market cap: AU$8.23 billion
Share price: AU$22.93

NEXTDC is Australia’s leading data center operator, with facilities currently operational or under development throughout Australia. The company also has data centers under development in New Zealand, Malaysia and Japan. The company is the 2024 recipient of the Australian Data Centre Service Company of the Year award.

NEXTDC’s clients include some of the world’s largest cloud providers, such as Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Alphabet’s Google Cloud. The company has also obtained NVIDIA’s DGX-Ready Data Centre Program certification, enabling it to optimize NVIDIA’s AI platforms and power advanced AI data centers in Australia.

In its financial report for its fiscal H1 2025 ended December 31, 2024, the company reported total revenue of AU$205.5 million, a slight decrease of 2 percent from the same period in the year prior. However, its net revenue was up 13 percent to AU$167.8 million.

2. Nuix (ASX:NXL)

Company Profile

Market cap: AU$1.06 billion
Share price: AU$3.39

Sydney-based Nuix is a leading provider of data processing, investigative analytics and intelligence software. Its client base includes legal, compliance, forensic investigations, cybersecurity and data governance sectors.

The company’s patented Nuix Neo technology uses advanced deep learning techniques to better train AI models for more efficient, scalable and cost-effective document classification. Launched in July 2023, Nuix Neo is accessed through a browser-based, collaborative interface, and includes end-to-end automation, investigative analytics and AI-enabled workflows.

In its H1 fiscal year 2025 financials, Nuix reported that annualized contract value for Nuix Neo grew to AU$18.9 million, an increase of 361 percent compared to the prior corresponding period, as its customers grew from 8 to 46 over the same period.

3. BrainChip (ASX:BRN)

Company Profile

Market cap: AU$450.91 million
Share price: AU$0.22

BrainChip is an advanced Edge AI on-chip processing and machine learning hardware company. Its main product is the Akida digital neuromorphic chip, which is built with a spiking neural network that mimics the way messages are passed between neurons in the human brain.

A significant feature of Akida’s technology is that it doesn’t need to be connected to the cloud or other networks to learn, enhancing security.

In December 2024, Brainchip announced it had licensed the Akida IP to Frontgrade Gaisler, a leading provider of radiation-hardened microprocessors for space applications. The following month, the company introduced an ecosystem of partnerships developing around its Akida Edge AI Box, which the company describes as “a compact, cost-effective appliance with AI/ML processing power for a wide variety of markets such as manufacturing, warehouse, retail, hospitals, energy, automotive, and aviation.”

At the end of February 2025, Brainchip shared it was formally investigating redomiciling in the US following a strategic review by its Board. If it decides to go forward with the move, the company would pursue listing on a US stock exchange, and de-list from the ASX and OTCQX.

FAQs for AI stocks

Which company is leading the AI race?

Google and Microsoft are battling it out for king of the AI hill. While Goldman Sachs sees Alphabet’s Google as leading the AI race, other analysts are pointing to Microsoft as the clear frontrunner. Microsoft stands to benefit in a big way from its billions of dollars investment in OpenAI’s ChatGPT as advancements in generative AI may have the potential to increase the company’s revenues for its Azure cloud computing business.

Which country is doing best in AI?

North America is the global hotspot for advancements in AI technology and is home to the majority of the world’s largest AI providers. Techopedia positions the US as the primary hub for AI development, and many of the world’s leading tech giants are headquartered there. According to the report, China comes in a close second.

Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

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